Chapter 44: Eternal Dream

Chapter 44: Eternal Dream

The Rorsted Archipelago was the Kingdom of Loen’s governing foothold in the Central Sonia Sea, and likewise a key diocese of the Church of Storms. A high-ranking deacon qualified to participate in the Cardinals’ Council had long been stationed there.

Of course, not every pirate at the admiral level could alarm such a great figure, let alone so-called second mates and boatswains. Deacon Cordova Royer accepted the mission happily, led two teams of Mandated Punishers, and activated Sealed Artifacts 2-37 and 2-166, lying in ambush some distance from Number 15 Fragrant Tree Avenue in order to ensure absolute success.

In Cordova Royer’s view, one Mandated Punisher team paired with two Sealed Artifacts was already enough to handle Steel’s group and Blazing Danitz. Yet the latter’s behavior of watching for pursuers in return made him somewhat worried. By intuition, he believed that some problem was hidden there, and so he called in another Mandated Punisher team.

In truth, 2-37 alone should be enough… Cordova Royer suddenly sighed while waiting.

In his view, this Sealed Artifact would become the nightmare of Steel, Blazing, and the others.

He closed his eyes briefly, and the corresponding information naturally surfaced in his mind:

“Number: 37.

“Name: Eternal Dream.

“Danger Level: 2. Dangerous. Use cautiously and with restraint. Only operations involving three or more people, or deacons and diocesan bishops, may apply for its use.

“Confidentiality Level: Bishop, team captain, and above.

“Sealing Method: Place in boiling water.

“Description: It resembles a heart. Its color is deep black, its touch cold, and it is riddled with holes. It often produces sounds similar to a bagpipe.

“This item originates from a primitive tribe in West Balam of the Southern Continent. They were led by spirit shamans and lived by resting during the day and moving at night.

“A Loenese army conquered this tribe and obtained this item, which had been worshiped upon an altar. Over the following week, soldiers gradually showed signs of disorder, madness, suicide, and other abnormalities.

“Research indicates that anyone who has come into contact with this item will enter a long dream. If not awakened by someone else, they will remain in that illusory world forever. Externally, they display agitation, fear, confusion, and similar emotions. Their psychological and physiological states gradually change.

“Researchers who were awakened still remained unable to distinguish reality from dreams for an extended period, leading to a series of tragic incidents, including but not limited to: confessing love to a superior, kissing a venomous snake on the mouth, suffering depression, stripping naked and sprinting in public, and attempting to bathe in boiling water. If they were not transferred to another city, their only endings were madness or suicide.

“This item can be used to make living creatures within a target range enter the same dream… The user may, within certain limits, choose targets and exclude companions… The maximum range is a radius of fifty meters. Exceeding this will place an enormous burden on the user and leave severe mental trauma… After use, the user will enter a state where they cannot distinguish reality from dream, and must leave the city where 2-37 is located to have any hope of recovery.

“Multiple cases, see appendix, indicate that even without contact, this item broadly affects the surrounding population unless placed in boiling water…”

“Appendix: 1. Similar to the Nightmare effect of the Evernight pathway, but more prominent and uncontrollable.

“2. Example 1: A guard forgot to add charcoal, causing the flame to go out and the boiling water’s temperature to drop. He quickly displayed abnormal behavior. Suspected of dreaming of the girl he loved, he made an impassioned confession to his own boxing glove and attempted to engage in relations beyond friendship with it. Example 2…”

As his thoughts turned…