Freddy slowly turned around.
The moment his burned face twisted toward the sound of that mocking laugh, his expression froze.
Lucien stood behind him.
Alive.
Untouched.
A faint smile played at the corner of his lips, cold and almost amused.
For the first time since becoming the nightmare haunting countless dreams, Freddy's mind went blank.
He forgot to attack.
Forgot to run.
Forgot that the man before him was the one person who had cornered him again and again.
Only one thought remained.
Why?
His voice came out as a broken snarl.
"Why?!"
The dream space trembled with his roar.
"I am blessed by the dark gods of dreams!"
"I am immortal!"
"I should be the one standing above everyone!"
His clawed hand trembled.
"I should have won!"
Lucien looked at him calmly, as if he were observing something pitiful.
"You want to know why I didn't die?"
With a flick of his fingers, a chair materialized behind him.
He sat down leisurely, crossing one leg over the other.
The sheer ease in his posture made Freddy's rage crack into fear.
Lucien wasn't worried.
Not even slightly.
At this point, Freddy was no longer a threat.
The battle had already been decided.
Lucien's voice was calm.
"You used illusion once."
"Why did you assume I couldn't do the same?"
Freddy's pupils shrank.
The hospital.
The false awakening.
The embrace.
The killing blow.
Every sensation had felt real.
The piercing of flesh.
The cracking sternum.
The warmth of blood on his hand.
His voice shook.
"I felt it…"
"I felt your bones break."
"I felt your heart stop."
Lucien's smile deepened.
"When did you start believing that what you felt was reality?"
The words hit Freddy harder than any blade.
He looked down at his claws.
No blood.
No corpse.
Nothing.
Only empty darkness beneath his feet.
His breathing became ragged.
Impossible.
This was impossible.
That illusion had been so perfect that even he, the lord of nightmares, had been completely deceived.
A terrifying realization slowly dawned on him.
Lucien had not merely survived.
He had surpassed him.
Not through some hidden power from the beginning—
but through growth.
During their battle.
Inside the dream.
Lucien had evolved fast enough to seize complete control.
Freddy staggered back.
His face twisted in disbelief.
"No…"
"No, this can't be real…"
Lucien leaned slightly forward.
"It's over."
His voice turned colder.
"Are you ready to die?"
At that moment Freddy felt it.
The entire dream world had changed.
Invisible killing intent surrounded him from every direction.
It felt as if countless swords were suspended around his body.
One wrong move—
and he would be erased.
Then suddenly Freddy laughed.
"Hehehe…"
Two figures appeared in front of him.
A man and a woman.
The missing director.
Elizabeth.
Their faces were pale and empty, their eyes lifeless.
Freddy's last gamble.
Hostages.
His grin widened.
"You're clever."
"You saw through my trap."
"You even stole control of the dream."
"But can you save them?"
He shoved the two figures forward like broken puppets.
His voice became desperate.
"If you hesitate for even a second…"
"I can escape."
His sunken eyes locked onto Lucien.
Waiting.
Hoping.
Begging for weakness.
But Lucien only looked at him with mild confusion.
As if he had just heard something absurd.
Then—
a sword hum echoed through the darkness.
A silver line flashed across the dream.
Once.
Twice.
A hundred times.
Freddy's body froze.
The grin on his face shattered.
In the next instant, countless lines of light carved through him.
His body split apart.
Torn into fragments.
His final thought lingered in disbelief.
Why didn't he hesitate?
Lucien rose from his chair, his expression utterly indifferent.
"What made you think their lives would stop me?"
His gaze swept over the fading remains of Freddy.
"The only reason I saved anyone before was to prevent you from feeding on their fear."
"Now that you're weaker than dust…"
His voice became ice.
"You're nothing."
Freddy's body dissolved completely.
The nightmare king was gone.
Forever.
Then the system notifications exploded through Lucien's mind.
[Congratulations. You have directly slain the Nightmare King Freddy.]
[The cursed spirit blessed by three dream gods has been completely erased.]
[Dream abilities greatly improved.]
[Nightmare Prayer Proficiency: 100%]
[Wind Manipulation: 78%]
[Dream Merge: 12%]
[New insight achieved.]
[Cultivation Realm Advanced: Jade Purity Realm – 1%]
[New Ability Acquired: Summon]
[New Ability Acquired: Adorable Head]
Lucien narrowed his eyes.
The reward was massive.
Far greater than anything before.
A new realm.
Two new supernatural abilities.
This battle had changed everything.
But before he could inspect them, faint voices reached him from outside the dream.
Blurred.
Distant.
Yet filled with worry.
Annie.
Rachel.
Calling his name.
Trying desperately to wake him.
A rare softness entered Lucien's eyes.
So she really was worried.
A faint smile touched his lips.
Then he let the dream world collapse.
Lucien opened his eyes.
The room was dim.
Annie stood right beside the bed.
A towel soaked in ice water was inches from his face.
Rachel stood beside her, equally tense.
For a moment, everyone froze.
Annie stared at him.
Relief flooded her beautiful face first.
Then embarrassment.
Then relief again.
Her voice came out almost as a whisper.
"You're awake…"
Lucien looked at the towel in her hand and smirked faintly.
"Planning to drown me after saving me?"
Rachel burst into nervous laughter.
But Annie's cheeks instantly flushed.
She quickly pulled the towel back.
"I was worried!"
Then, after a pause, she looked away and muttered softly,
"…Idiot."
Lucien sat up slowly, his dark eyes meeting hers.
The nightmare was finally over.
But somehow—
the look in Annie's eyes had changed.
And Lucien noticed it immediately.