As soon as I walked in, I felt overwhelmed by the stiff atmosphere in the Deputy Director’s Office.
Could it be because of the “big issue” that the Deputy Director mentioned?
While the Knight Commander’s still derpy expression was creating a contrast, it didn’t change the fact that the mood was uneasy.
“Deputy Director, what on earth is happening…?”
“Do you remember what that knight said when you came in right after I requested your status report?”
Is he referring to that knight who made me look bad due to his useless actions?
He clearly mentioned that patients suffering from Mental Contamination are still emerging.
In this world, there was only one being capable of causing Mental Contamination.
“…Is it an Outsider attack?”
“If it were just an attack from an Outsider, I’d feel much better about it.”
But, contrary to my expectations, the Deputy Director shook his head and denied my words.
So, even though there wasn’t an Outsider attack, Mental Contamination is occurring?
Looking at the Deputy Director with a puzzled expression, he just lowered his head and let out a sigh.
“I deemed the situation wasn’t serious yet, so I planned to analyze the circumstances before deploying a response. But my judgment was wrong. After I spoke to that creature, several more came to report to me. The number of Mental Contamination patients is skyrocketing.”
The Deputy Director said, filled with guilt.
“Moreover, there have even been fatalities. When I checked the identities of the deceased, I found that most of them were strong young men in their twenties.”
As he spoke, he gestured with his hand towards something piled in a sack in the corner.
…Does that mean the corpses are inside?
When I saw him talking earlier, it seemed that the frail individuals actually had milder symptoms, but why is that?
Taking a deep breath as if to gather his thoughts, the Deputy Director spoke again.
“So we decided to act immediately. We prioritized pinpointing the cause, and during that process, ten knights made the ultimate sacrifice.”
The Deputy Director, seeming distressed, momentarily glanced at the Knight Commander before looking back at me.
“And the Commander also sacrificed her own body.”
I snapped back to reality from my trance, nodding my head at the Deputy Director’s words.
“Yeah, that makes sense.”
The Commander, who had been wearing a serious expression, suddenly raised her arm, extending her index finger.
“The steak I tasted in my dream was truly fantastic!”
…Huh?
With the Knight Commander suddenly blurting out something strange, my mind felt like it was going blank; however, the Deputy Director maintained his incredibly serious expression.
I thought he was just trying to hold back a laugh, but it didn’t look like that at all.
“It seems that in her dream, she suddenly encountered some strange being, and as she fought it, she felt like her body was gradually being devoured. The longer the battle lasted, the closer she came to defeat, and when she woke up, she faced death, is that right?”
…He was interpreting that?!
Wait, is it really possible to interpret such mindless babble like that?
I was completely stunned, gazing at the Deputy Director in disbelief, but he continued to take a deep breath as he prepared to elaborate.
“Thanks to the Commander sacrificing her body, we were able to identify the root cause of this incident.”
…Did she really sacrifice herself?
From how she spoke, it seemed like she was just enjoying a therapeutic meal.
Regardless, I focused on the Deputy Director’s words about having discovered the cause.
He narrowed his eyes and said firmly.
“It is related to Sleep.”
Sleep…?
No way, that’s too much.
Just hearing it felt like beads of sweat were trickling down my back.
It’s bad enough having to live in this narrow territory due to the existence of the Snow Mountain Giant, but now I can’t even sleep properly?
I could forgive other Outsiders, but I couldn’t forgive the Snow Mountain Giant and the Torturer.
Other Outsiders might act defensively out of some unintended consequence or to protect something, but these beings intentionally inflict harm on others.
Even so, harassing someone while they sleep is pure evil.
How could they interfere with Sleep, which has the most significant contribution to human recovery?
Feeling my anger boiling over, the Deputy Director showed me his palm, open.
“Calm down, Tanton. I understand you have every right to be upset, but we need to stay composed to resolve this.”
After saying that, the Deputy Director wore a definite expression.
Such a look meant…
“So Tanton, I’m sorry, but I think I’ll have to leave this matter to you.”
Sure, I thought it would come to this.
Even though I had shown my willingness to stand in front of Bell, didn’t they take me too lightly?
…Or maybe not. Jumping in front of an Outsider barehanded is absurd.
“Yes, understood.”
Sure thing.
That’s just a casual way of saying I’ll do as my superior says.
And that was fine.
Being annoyed, I might as well blow off some steam right now.
“When will we be getting any Sleep?”
“I was just about to take a Sleep break as soon as I got back.”
“That’s great. I’ll inform the Branch Manager.”
The Deputy Director said that, looking at me with an earnest gaze as if he would see through me.
“I’m counting on you.”
…Strangely, the Deputy Director seemed to have softened a bit since the Knight Commander’s return.
Whether it was because of me or the Knight Commander’s return, I wasn’t so sure, but isn’t it nice that things are looking up?
With a salute to the Deputy Director, I headed back to the Branch quickly.
#
As soon as I arrived at the Branch, I headed to my room.
I lay down on my bed right away, but I had no idea whether that mysterious being would show up in my Dream World just because I was sleeping.
Well, if it doesn’t work, I could always just sleep until I find it.
I could also just ask for some sleeping medicine at the Knights.
With fatigue creeping in after hearing countless explanations from the Saint, I surrendered my body to the growing drowsiness and focused on the sensation of my mind growing hazy.
I slowly felt myself sinking, but unlike the usual sleeping experience, a high-pitched ringing echoed in my ears while my consciousness remained sharp.
It felt like a symptom of Lucid Dreaming.
I completely still, concentrating on feeling as if I was flowing, soon the calm sensation took over my entire body.
Instinctively thinking this was the moment, I slowly opened my eyes.
“…Ah.”
Before me unfolded a dark space that resembled fog.
I cautiously began to move my body, resisting the stiffness, and finally got up completely.
As I moved my hand slowly, a bizarre sensation struck me, as if this is what it feels like to experience an out-of-body experience.
Is this the space of my Dream?
It’s not easy to enter a lucid dream, but here I am.
“Indeed, something is here.”
However, it didn’t feel wise to move recklessly.
Unlike when I tackled other Outsiders, this time I was surrounded by a void of darkness, so I had no clue where to head.
Since I was in the Dream World, Lia, who should be in my pocket, was nowhere to be found.
…I realize now how frustrating it is to have no information at all.
I had a newfound gratitude toward Lia and the Outsiders.
Sniff.
Yeah, the Outsiders…
“There’s a smell!”
What? Why is Bell’s voice echoing in here?
“Huh?”
“I know, she seems a little dim-witted in a way.”
The Gardener’s voice too.
This is definitely a Dream, but how is this happening?
“…Hey, be quiet! I am speaking!”
…Waiting for those oddly bickering voices to settle down, I soon heard the sound of hurried breathing.
“Anyway, we are directly intervening with your mind, right? So even if you are in the Dream World, we can still interfere with you.”
Oh, I see how it works.
After all, the Dream World is the byproduct of brain activity, so I guess the Outsiders, at least, can interact with it.
Wait, then what about those embarrassing dreams I had where I hugged the Gardener…?
“Well, anyway, that’s the end of my explanation!”
With those words, the Gardener’s energy faded.
Hmm.
Something feels suspicious.
“Hey! Over there, I smell something!”
Thanks to Bell’s voice, I quickly returned to the present moment.
Right, I could think about that later.
Resolving the issue now is more important.
Perhaps because I was in the Dream World, I had the illusion that Bell was pointing towards something.
It felt somewhat like those times in my dreams when various spaces unfolded around me.
“Okay, thank you.”
Hearing Bell’s cheerful bark, I rushed towards the indicated direction.
Even with Bell’s help, I couldn’t shake the doubt of not knowing if I was actually going the right way.
It felt like this was akin to walking with my eyes closed.
But every time I headed in the wrong direction, Bell would grunt as if to show disapproval, allowing me to quickly adjust my path again.
…Just a moment ago, I felt quite lost, but now I felt grateful towards Bell.
“If you feel thankful, that’s a debt!”
…Where did she learn such things?!
Whenever she reacts like that, my gratitude somehow vanishes.
“It’s already too late!”
What?!
She just engaged in this contract without a document?!
No matter how you look at it, that’s too much even for an Outsider!
And what can I possibly repay an Outsider who has everything already?
Thinking about it, that’s kind of funny.
“…That’s a secret.”
…Somehow this feels unsettling, but there’s nothing I can do right now.
Following Bell, I continued down the path, but nothing seemed to appear at all.
Was it an empty space from the start? Did I hit the jackpot and get nothing? My mind wandered with various absurd thoughts.
“Don’t tell me it’s already left, leaving only traces behind?”
With that anxious thought, I kept looking ahead when all of a sudden I felt my foot catch on something.
I stumbled and fell forward.
“Ugh!”
Since this was a dream, I didn’t feel any real pain, but the mere act of tripping over something made me feel disgusted.
I turned my head toward the object that tripped me.
“What the…?”
The instant our eyes met, I couldn’t help but freeze on the spot.
In this Dream World, I could create anything in my imagination.
So the reality was that I could encounter and even touch things that do not exist in real life.
And it was equally terrifying.
But I had a mode called Super Coward!
This meant that anything horrifying in appearance could never show itself before my eyes.
But right in front of me stood…
Wasn’t that the Enderman from DigCraft?
Honestly, the Enderman’s design itself wasn’t particularly scary.
The graphics of DigCraft were blocky and charming, so it was more cute than anything.
But the reason I had given up playing after seeing that Enderman was…
“Graaah!”
Just watching that 2D character open its mouth and chase me for no reason filled me with an intense fear.
If it were like a censored horror game with a reason, it wouldn’t have been as scary.
But the only reason the Enderman came after me was simply for “looking into its eyes.”
That unexplainable sense of animosity was what terrified me the most.
And that Enderman was charging at me just like before.
“W-What, what’s happening?!”
I didn’t know what it was, but instinct screamed at me to run!
I bolted and started fleeing frantically.
“Human! Not there! To the side!”
To the side?
Is that really where I should go?
What if the Enderman follows a diagonal direction and catches up to me?
But if I ignore Bell’s warning, something worse might happen.
Trusting her words, I hastily swerved to the right and dashed forward.
“Graaah!”
“Ugh!”
That crazy thing is right behind me!
I continually felt that fighting it would only bring bad outcomes, so I kept running!
“Left!”
What, what?
Left?
The gap between me and the Enderman wasn’t very wide, so changing direction now risks it closing in on me!
With tears in my eyes, I changed course to the left.
“Gaaaargh!”
“Closer! Too close! Too close!”
It was almost touching me now!
Look at that cute design with such a menacing glare!
“Human! It’s over! Turn right and throw yourself!”
As its arm reached towards me, ordering me to go right made my heart race dangerously!
I forced myself to take a deep breath, trying to calm my pounding heart.
The fear subsided a bit.
“Graaah!”
The moment I swerved right, I tossed myself forward.
And in that instant…
Schlick!
I felt something touch my body, followed by the sound of something tearing, and my body rolled to the ground.
Survival instincts kicked in, and I quickly turned around to assess the Enderman’s position.
“Graaah! Huh? …Grrr.”
But the Enderman didn’t approach any closer, returning to its calm expression and teleporting away to another place.
“Haa, haaa…”
My heart raced like it might burst, but it wouldn’t settle down.
Panting hard.
Oh.
That was possibly the scariest nightmare I had in a long while.
“Arrival!”
Just then, Bell’s voice echoed loudly in my mind.
Looking around, I noticed the surroundings transformed into something completely different—that space was cloaked in a slightly reddish hue, unlike before.
As I remained tense, trying not to let my guard down.
“Graaah! D-Don’t come here!”
“Hehe, I’ll give you something good, come here!”
The cries of despair mixed with a mocking voice reached my ears.
And as I turned my head toward that voice…
There stood a figure with horns sprouting from its head, wearing what could be mistaken for mere underwear—a sensual outfit, pale skin, and red hair.
Indeed, it was a demon.
What stood before me looked exactly like the “Succubus” portrayed in media that lures men into dreams.
Thud, thud.
I immediately dashed towards the demon, positioning myself between the man and “her” in a protective stance.
Seeing my actions, the man looked bewildered and I shouted with urgency.
“Quick, run away!”
Hearing my words, the man nodded and sped off in the opposite direction.
Once I confirmed he’d fully escaped, I turned my attention back to the demon.
“Oh my, this is my first time encountering such a situation.”
“…Found you.”
I could tell by the tone of her voice.
Finally, I’d located the main culprit behind this incident.
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