episode_0228

As soon as I opened my eyes, I was met with a disgusting face that instantly made me feel uncomfortable. Despite not wanting to memorize it, the repulsive face that I had seen so many times involuntarily triggered a curse.

“This damn bastard.”

Until when will this torment continue to test my patience?

Of course, it wasn’t like that MacHart guy was directly tormenting me in my dreams because he had a way to do so. It was just that I couldn’t shake off the sense of wariness towards him in my heart, which led to these recurring dreams.

Being involved with demons and knowing MacHart’s abilities, I subconsciously harbored the fear that he could come into my room and kidnap me at any moment. This deep-rooted fear, which I couldn’t share with anyone, had been gnawing at my sleep for days, causing exhaustion.

“Damn… tied up again…”

Seeing his face, I instinctively wanted to stab his throat with my right hand, but just like in my previous dreams, my wrist was firmly bound in the darkness, rendering it immobile.

“It’s useless. You’re already captured.”

MacHart looked at me with a smug smile, his voice oozing with confidence.

And then, that nauseating voice that had haunted me several times before began to churn my insides with unease.

“I wonder how much effort it took to capture you. Why is a noble lady like you so disobedient and resistant?”

“…”

“Are you so rough because you’re originally from a baseborn background? That’s the only way I can think of.”

Stay calm, don’t waver.

If I could just be sure that this was a dream, I could somehow wake up from it.

Statements like MacHart’s insinuation that I knew about my commoner origins or the fact that he couldn’t just leave me bound in his space due to time constraints were swirling in my mind.

I had to firmly grasp the lack of realism in this dream world and wake up from this nightmare.

“But if this situation isn’t a dream… no, that can’t be. There’s no way this isn’t a dream.”

Only about five people knew that I wasn’t originally a noble. And each of them wasn’t particularly close to MacHart, nor were they loose-lipped.

There were plenty of elements in this world that hinted at it being a dream. To wake up from this dream, I had to keep reminding myself of that fact.

The strangely realistic sensations and the lingering sense of reality were all just delusions created by my mind. It was all just a result of briefly entering and leaving MacHart’s space, which led to the creation of this realistic dream.

“I’d rather not even be able to think properly like in a real dream.”

Being stuck in a state of half-hearted thinking and venting my hatred towards that guy in front of me made the torment twice as unbearable. Since returning to Blackwood Manor and starting to sleep alone, I had been having this kind of dream every day, naturally draining my mental strength.

MacHart’s attack had happened long before this, so there was a possibility that I had dreamt this before. But back then, even if I had dreamt it, I would have quickly forgotten and fallen back asleep.

At the academy, I could always feel the warmth of Edan lying next to me in the same bed, which gave me a sense of security. With Edan by my side, I felt like he could protect me no matter what, allowing me to sleep peacefully.

In the infirmary of the Academy Church, the bed was different from Ethan’s, but since I was sharing the space with Agnes, I could somewhat relax.

However, in the three days of sleeping in Blackwood Manor, I always had to lie in bed alone and sleep alone, so I had to find a way to escape from this nightmare on my own.

“How about it, are you starting to feel like submitting to me now?”

“Don’t bother. It’s just a dream. There’s no need to succumb to provocation.”

“Even if you try to escape from me, there’s no way. Once I trap you in this space, you have no means to resist.”

“Ignore him. Don’t listen to anything he says. It’s all nonsense anyway.”

“I was relieved that the guy who was clinging to you like a leech disappeared. You almost got hurt on that pretty body. Isn’t that right?”

“Please wake up. Quickly. It’s a dream, so wake upwake upwake up….”

Ignoring MacHart, who was shamelessly reciting lines that seemed familiar to me dozens of times before, I focused my mind on waking up from the dream.

My wrists and ankles were bound by the black hands of the guy, so it was impossible to escape by swinging a sword like last time.

Since I was in his space, I couldn’t even use magic. Of course, I could argue that in this world being my dream, I could use it if I imagined it well, but I had tried dozens of times in previous dreams and all failed.

If I continued to confront him in this situation, it was obvious what would happen in the end, so I concentrated all my consciousness on waking up from the dream with all my strength.

Even though it was a dream, I didn’t want to be subjected to strange things like MacHart.

No matter it was a dream, what I didn’t like was what I didn’t like.

I had to focus on erasing MacHart’s presence from my mind and waking up from consciousness. If I even vaguely remembered his face in my mind, waking up from sleep would be even more impossible….

“Well, even if that stupid brat was actually by your side, the result wouldn’t have been much different. A guy who couldn’t even become a Sword Master wouldn’t be able to match me.”

“What, this guy?”

“What, this guy?”

-Chuckle.

…Oh no.

Damn, why did he suddenly bring up Ethan.

I was just about to concentrate my consciousness enough to wake up somehow, but because of the guy who mentioned Ethan instead of me out of the blue, my concentration was completely disrupted.

And with my reaction, MacHart, who smiled disgustingly and approached without hesitation, missed the opportunity to escape completely because of that one word.

“Indeed, you have a sharp tongue.”

“……”

“An ignorant lady who hasn’t even learned basic manners, I guess I’ll have to educate you from scratch.”

With the last words, MacHart reached out to my chest with his hand.

And as I deliberately denied what would happen next, I closed my eyes tightly without looking ahead.

Even though it was a dream, I had no intention of allowing that guy to touch my body. If I had to allow a man to touch my body, it would only be Ethan….

-Swish!

And then, the sound of a single slash.

To be precise, it was the sound of something flesh-like being cut on my skin.

For a moment, I wondered if the MacHart in my dream had injured me, but I didn’t feel any sensation of pain from my body.

“Aaah!!”

The following scream was also not from my mouth. It was from that guy who had been pressuring me with a threatening expression just a moment ago.

And with that, a strange sense of anticipation rose in my chest, so when I cautiously opened my eyes again, instead of seeing MacHart, I was met with someone’s trustworthy back.

“What are you doing to my release?”

“Uh, how…”

“Even if it’s a dream, Release won’t give in for even a moment.”

…Have I had this pattern in the dreams I’ve had so far?

It had been my sleep pattern so far to forcibly wake up just before MacHart’s hand touched my body, fall asleep again, and then be afraid to fall asleep again for fear of the same reason, staying up all night.

Not being able to escape from this damn dream was bad enough, but Ethan appearing and saving me was an unexpected future.

‘…Something, seems trustworthy.’

In reality, I think I’ve relied on that broad back a few times, but I never expected to be saved in my dreams as well.

It was a ridiculous situation, but it didn’t matter. Anyway, it was better than just being helpless against that MacHart bastard.

-Swish!

“Aaah!”

-Poof!

“Ugh, aaah!!”

It seemed like I wasn’t the only one surprised by Ethan’s appearance, MacHart’s unconsciousness was also mercilessly sliced by Ethan’s sword.

“This, this bastard…!!”

-Swish!

“Aaah, aaahhh!!”

…It seemed a bit overwhelming, but I just let it happen.

Even if it’s a nightmare, it’s still my dream, so even if I don’t know well, it should look the way I want it to. No matter how unrealistic it may seem, it was better than Ethan losing.

So, suddenly, with Ethan’s attack, MacHart was divided into pieces, as many pieces as there were consonants and vowels, until his breath was cut off. At the same time, the feeling of the black hand gripping my limbs was released.

-Thud.

“Release, are you okay?”

“….”

“Let’s go in and rest for a bit. It seems like you’ve accumulated fatigue suddenly for a few days….”

…A strangely realistic voice suddenly echoed in my ears. And the sensation of my body, it felt like I was really being embraced by Ethan.

Even though it’s a dream, he does everything like a real prince on a white horse. Probably, under normal circumstances, it would have been a surprising action even in a dream, but somehow now I didn’t care. At least it was more comforting to be in Ethan’s embrace than to repeat the nightmare of sleeping and waking up in danger from MacHart.

‘Oh, right, at times like this, a reward….’

Even though it’s a dream, I received a favor, so it’s right to give Ethan a reward as usual.

My head was muddled, and my thoughts weren’t clear, but I still remembered what I should do at times like this.

‘Ethan likes skinship, so if I do something similar, it should be a reward. But even if I say it’s okay to touch his chest in this position, it’s impossible….’

Following the series of thoughts that came to mind, I wrapped my arms around Ethan’s neck and gently put my weight on his neck.

-Swish.

“…Release?”

And in that state, I slightly raised my upper body and brought my lips to Ethan’s lips.

-Smack.

“….?!?!”

It was definitely a kiss in a dream, but for some reason, the sensation felt as soft as a kiss in reality.

Like Ethan’s embrace, a warm and cozy sensation.