2 – Ancient Dream Demon

This is a Dream.

I can sense it.

I meet Cappuccino so often in Dreams that I can now tell the difference between reality and Dream by instinct.

‘But I didn’t call for it?’

A slight doubt arose.

I came out of the [Duel Arena] and fell asleep immediately from the fatigue, but

I didn’t ask Cappuccino to make me Dream.

I remember it clearly.

‘Is it just a lucid Dream?’

That’s highly probable.

Because,

This is a cave.

A cave I’ve seen many times.

I know where it is.

This is the third time already.

The first time was when I was active as an Unawakened Hunter in reality, the Dungeon where I met Drake and Dragon.

Cappuccino… or rather, the [Dream Frog]. That guy made me remember the memory of meeting my most difficult opponent and made it appear in my Dream.

And here it was again.

‘We have a deep connection.’

It was an incident that was engraved in my head that much.

I almost died.

I thought I was going to die of fear.

I was directly hit by the Dungeon boss, Dragon’s breath, so there’s nothing more to say.

I walked into the cave.

At the end of the cave, the boss room.

I entered the boss room.

‘Cappuccino?’

It wasn’t.

Grrr.

A jet-black Dragon.

The Evil Dragon was holding flames in its mouth, waiting for her to come.

Dragon Breath welcomes her.

A breath of fire with firepower that cannot be compared to that of the young Red Dragon I met in Losfelt is spewed out.

[Freeze]

An upgraded version of [Ice Crystal].

Frozen solid.

Dragon Breath was flash-frozen by [Freeze] and became ice.

I took out the [Black Sword].

“….”

Immediately, I broke the ice and [Leap]ed through the crack to approach the Evil Dragon.

An information window different from what I expected was floating above the Evil Dragon’s head.

[Ancient Nightmare]

Orange letters.

‘Ah, I thought so.’

I see, so this was a Dream created by a Dream Demon.

I wondered why the Dream was so vivid even though Cappuccino wasn’t here.

‘I was feeling unusually sleepy.’

I used [Execution Sword].

I also used [Bless].

I slashed down in one stroke.

The Evil Dragon’s head split in two, and an intense light soared from within.

I open my eyes.

It was daytime.

The morning sunlight coming through the window illuminated my eyes.

A yawn.

“Haa~ahm.”

I stretched.

Is it already morning?

When I summoned the UI in front of me, dozens of messages had arrived.

Most of them were from Henya, and there were also Tang So-hye and Skilla.

There was also a message from Chris with the appointment time and place written on it.

I stretched even further.

Eugh.

Rustle.

I heard a sound.

“….”

When I turned to my side, Caramel was sitting at the desk, holding a pen to paper, diligently writing and drawing something.

Cappuccino hit the desk with her frog hand.

‘(Again!)’

“….”

Caramel silently responded to Cappuccino’s instructions.

She crumpled the paper, took out another piece of paper, and wrote and drew something again.

“What are you doing?”

‘(Drawing a magic circle.)’

“A magic circle? To humanize you?”

‘(The previous step. I can’t swallow the Demon’s power as it is. I’m trying to extract and absorb only the Dream ability Magical Power.)’

“Hmm.”

I don’t know anything about magic.

“Is Win doing that?”

‘(Win’s ability is my ability.)’

“….”

‘(Just humanize me. All the Ancient Nightmares are dead in my hands.)’

Come to think of it, [Ancient Nightmare] appeared in my Dream just now.

“Ancient Nightmare, huh. I guess I should definitely take care of it. An Ancient Nightmare appeared in my Dream just now.”

‘(What? Really?)’

“Really.”

‘(You woke up safely, so I guess it was easy?)’

“It showed me the same thing as when you first met me. Is that all you have to show? Haa~ahm.”

I got up.

I rubbed my eyes.

My chest is heavy.

When I lifted my unnecessarily large breasts, the effects of the Bust Enhancement Pill had worn off.

It lasted a long time.

The ingredients for the Bust Enhancement Pill,

‘Obram must have collected them.’

I asked Mew to tell Obram. I don’t know exactly what kind of herbs they are, so Mew would directly tell him about the herbs.

‘Uncomfortable.’

The arms I stretched out droop down with gravity.

I thought about what I had to do today.

No, before that, yesterday.

What did I do yesterday?

As soon as I returned to Dwarfneer, I met Lee Su-ju and Hite, and the memory was roughly skipped because I was sleepy.

‘Surely…’

I tapped my head with my index finger.

I received the essence of [Ancient Nightmare] from Hite, and

I had Lee Su-ju appraise the equipment of [Death Knight].

And?

Nothing else, right?

‘Then…’

“Should I meet Lee Su-ju?”

I have something I left for appraisal, so I’ll check on that.

When I went to Lee Su-ju’s workshop, black smoke was billowing out.

“Su-ju.”

“Hah?! Yes!”

Lee Su-ju is startled when she recognizes Americano’s voice.

“Is everything done that I asked you to appraise yesterday?”

“Yes, it’s all done!”

“….”

“What’s wrong?”

“No, I was just wondering why you’re reacting like that. Did you do something wrong to me?”

“No. I didn’t. How could I do something wrong to Americano-nim!”

Lee Su-ju is staring with wide eyes.

I get the feeling her eyes are loyal.

‘Well, whatever.’

“What are the appraisal results?”

“The condition is very good. Even compared to the Death Knight materials I know, it’s a top-quality item.”

“Top-quality.”

Does that mean that [Death Knight] was that strong?

I couldn’t judge the level by the equipment, so I moved on.

“Can I just wear it as is?”

“Wear it?”

“Yeah.”

“If you just wear it, you’ll get hurt! Please leave it to me. I’ll make it wearable and deliver it! And can you also leave the sword to me?”

“Is that also useful?”

“Yes! You’ll be able to match the final item of current standards.”

Final item, huh.

“Of course, it depends on what you put inside, but if it’s Americano-nim, you’ll definitely fill it with something amazing, right?”

“Are you talking about Demon King Stone?”

“Yes! If you catch a strong monster with Demon King Stone and put it in, you’ll complete a weapon that’s just as strong. I guarantee it!”

“….”

So that’s what [Death Knight]’s sword was like.

“So I can’t just use it as is in that state?”

“Yes, unfortunately, that’s right.”

“Then there’s nothing I can do.”

The Steel Cuirass isn’t working properly these days, so I wanted to wear other armor.

But the state-of-the-art armor that Ibon is making will be ready in three months.

The armor that Lee Su-ju is making will be completed in a month.

The only thing I can wear is the Steel Cuirass.

It’s not that the quality of the Steel Cuirass is bad. It’s just that it’s as good as nothing against the enemies that are appearing these days.

“And…”

“Yes.”

“….”

Lee Su-ju is listening to my words and her eyes are sparkling.

“Hite.”

“Yes.”

Lee Su-ju changes her expression.

The whites of her eyes turned black.

As soon as Hite was called, she immediately took over Lee Su-ju’s body.

“What’s the reason why Dream Demons are appearing so frequently only in this area?”

“That’s because there’s a bridge connecting Dreams and reality nearby.”

“A bridge?”

“Yes. For example, there’s Succubus. Among the Dream Demon species, the only species that has the deepest relationship with Dream Demons is Succubus.”

“Hmm…”

Succubus.

Monster.

I’m getting interested.

It’s a monster that has connections with the Great Devil.

“A Dream Demon dared to invade the Dream of the person who will become the mistress of our lord?”

“? You can see that?”

“I can smell the Demonic Energy that lingered for a moment.”

A smell, huh.

Sniff sniff.

“It’s not a smell that you can smell with your nose.”

“Hmm. So?”

“I want to punish the one who dared to touch the one who will become our lord’s mistress with dirty hands. If you just tell me, I’ll take action myself.”

“That’s enough. Su-ju has to make my armor, so you’re out.”

I summarized the story.

[Ancient Nightmare] occurs frequently in Dwarfneer.

This is because there is a bridge connecting the Dream World and Dwarfneer.

Succubus mainly plays the role of that bridge.

“….”

“Oh, as expected of the mistress. You’ve already prepared it?”

I took out a large storage box from the Inventory and took out a ring from the box.

[Succubus Queen’s Recognition].

Before I could even ask, Hite reacted and answered.

“Since Succubus is like a nation as a whole, it will work no matter which Succubus you use it on.”

“What happens if the Queen sees it?”

“If the Queen sees it, you’ll be treated accordingly.”

Hmm…

[Succubus Queen’s Recognition]

[Grade] [Rare]

[Description] [A golden ring given only to those recognized by the Succubus Queen. An item for proof given only to VVVVVVIPs who have spent more than 100,000,000 Gold. If you show this to a Succubus, you will be welcomed.]

[Effect] [You can exercise absolute command over Succubus. Greatly enhances the effect of being charmed.]

You can exercise absolute command over Succubus.

Instead, there is a disadvantage that the effect of being charmed is greatly enhanced.

Charm.

‘This is the problem.’

I thought about it carefully.

I decided.

I put on the ring.

That damn charm.

It won’t be of much use if the opponent is a woman.

Succubus resemble humans.

So I can’t see them as Succubus.

Even if the opponent is a monster, if I don’t recognize them as a monster, the information window won’t appear.

‘Then can I see everyone as Succubus?’

I tried it, and

“….”

‘It doesn’t work.’

I was in the square of Dwarfneer.

Many people were walking around.

‘Maybe I lack concentration.’

Focus again.

Focus.

Focus.

Self-hypnosis.

Those are all monsters.

In fact, monsters are also NPCs.

Think of Obram.

He was a monster, but he looked like a human, right?

Just because someone is human doesn’t mean they can’t be a monster. I stared intently at the people and used self-hypnosis.

Self-hypnosis.

Americano has the highest level of ability in that field.

The moment she recognized people as enemies, as monsters, a starlight shone in her pupils. An ominous starlight symbolizing death.

Information windows appeared above the NPCs.

Even if it’s an information window, most NPCs were just [Human], [Dwarf], [Dwarf Craftsman], [Dwarf Soldier].

There are also people without information windows, probably Heroes.

“….”

I can see the information window now.

I got up.

I’ll see them as I walk down the street.

I wonder if there’s a need to go find Succubus, but

‘Honestly, I have nothing to do.’

I don’t think I can be satisfied with the monsters living in the nearby fields to hunt.

There was no Tower of Trials in Dwarfneer to climb the Tower.

But there’s a monster involved with [Ancient Nightmare]?

Then I should catch it first.

That’s what a Hero is.

At that time, from the alley,

[Succubus]

Gray letters.

I saw a woman with that information window.

She went into the alley, so

I immediately followed her.