Neala and Aksha watched in stunned silence as the Cockatrice swallowed the gold coins.
They couldn’t understand why the Black Market master’s greatest fear was ironically the Cockatrice.
“This is really… strange,” Aksha muttered.
“Still, let’s keep pushing. Let’s make them have even more wicked nightmares,” Neala said, nodding as she waved her hand. More Cockatrices appeared in the dream space.
Two, three, five… Soon, the treasure vault was filled with dozens of Cockatrices.
This was possible because it was a dream.
The Cockatrices that appeared in the dream greedily began to swallow gold coins and jewels.
“Human hearts are easily swayed by the desires reflected in the mirror of dreams. Through those unstable cracks, the truth we desire will seep through.”
What Neala said was true.
Humans entrust their souls to the dream waves drifting on the sea of the subconscious.
Sweet dream memories color the hours of reality in golden hues, but the afterimages of nightmares cast a shadow of deep anxiety on their souls even after waking.
However, before Neala could finish speaking, all the Cockatrices suddenly stopped moving in unison. As if time had stopped, they froze in place.
“What is this…?” Aksha asked with a puzzled expression.
At that moment, a vibration was felt in the dream space. A very faint tremor began, and its intensity gradually increased.
The gold coins began to float slowly from the floor. Gravity was changing.
“What is happening?!” Aksha asked, looking around warily.
“Oh, Succubus ladies. Welcome to my dream.”
A calm, deep voice echoed throughout the space. The voice had a strange resonance, unlike anything they had ever heard.
In the center of the treasure vault, black mist began to swirl. From within the mist, a figure appeared.
It was Necros, a being wearing a mask.
“……!”
Necros slowly walked out. As his steps fell, the surrounding environment began to change. The gold coins scattered like dust, and the jewels melted into black liquid.
“Many things are possible in dreams, just as I can speak,” Necros replied.
“Who are you?!”
In response to Neala’s question, Necros removed his mask. When the mask was removed, a skull was revealed from within.
“A, Lich!”
“No, Aksha! He’s not just a Lich!” Neala exclaimed in shock.
“He’s… an Arch Lich.”
An Arch Lich.
A 5-star Undead monster.
The problem was that the Succubi themselves were only 3-star.
To face a being two entire ranks higher than themselves.
The confidence of the two Succubi vanished in an instant.
Even they, who boasted of being absolute rulers in the dream realm, were powerless in this situation.
No matter how much Succubi controlled dreams, in front of a being of a higher caliber, they too were reduced to mere dream creations.
The paradox of rulers becoming ruled in an instant.
That’s what the dream space was like.
‘A mistake.’
Neala blamed herself for the mistake.
She should have investigated the opponent more thoroughly; in her haste, she had made a mistake.
Or, could she have possibly thought that the being dominating the black market was not human, but an Arch Lich from the very beginning?
Absolutely not.
Necros put his mask back on and burst into laughter. The laughter echoed in the mask, sounding grotesque.
Goosebumps rose.
The dream space created by Neala and Aksha began to change.
Now, it wasn’t Necros’s nightmare, but the Succubi’s nightmare that began.
The nightmare of the two of them was the existence of the Succubus Queen.
The Succubus Queen appeared in the dream. Of course, it wasn’t the real Queen, but just a nightmare.
But even that was a great gain for Necros.
“Ho ho, so you are the children of the Succubus Queen.”
Necros identified the opponent’s identity through the dream.
Now, it was his turn.
Necros snapped his fingers, and the figure of the Succubus Queen completely disappeared. Instead, an endless cemetery appeared.
Numerous tombstones stood under the moonlight, and undead were slowly crawling out from beneath the tombstones.
“Now, the dream is long.”
*Tap—*
With another snap of his fingers, the scene in the dream changed.
This time, it was the dungeon “Evil God’s Nest.”
“Wh-what is this…?”
Evil God’s Nest.
The dungeon managed by Celia.
Finally, they saw the being sitting in the center of the dungeon.
“C-Celia Ishar…?”
For Neala, it was an unforgettable existence.
After all, wasn’t Celia heavily used and sealed by the Succubus Queen?
Yet, the sealed Celia was before her eyes.
“Th-that’s right… This is a dream…?”
This was a dream space.
Celia should not be here.
But Celia stood up with a smile on her lips.
“It’s been a while, Miss Neala. And the one next to you is a new face.”
Celia, who she thought was just a dream, spoke.
“Th-this isn’t a dream, it’s real?!”
Neala exclaimed in disbelief.
She was clearly looking at Celia, but why did she feel like she was standing before the Succubus Queen, Carmina?
“Ah, no, she’s more powerful than the Queen—”
Neala’s words were cut short.
As Celia waved her hand, Neala’s neck was severed.
A sharp red aura cut through the air, piercing her neck, and her head, falling with blood, rolled on the floor.
It happened so quickly that Aksha didn’t even have time to react.
“Hieeeek!”
Seeing her comrade’s head fly off, Aksha tried to scream.
But Celia, who had suddenly appeared right in front of her, covered her mouth with her finger.
“Shh.”
Celia’s voice was sweet.
“What is your name?”
Just by hearing Celia’s voice, Aksha’s eyes lost focus. And she slowly began to speak in a toneless voice.
“I am Aksha. Miss Celia.”
Celia’s eyes gazed into Aksha’s empty stare. Her red lips curved into a smile.
“Follow me, Aksha.”
As Celia extended her hand, Aksha mechanically took it, like a puppet.
Although her consciousness remained, her body and mind were already under Celia’s control.
Even with Neala’s decapitated corpse lying on the floor, Aksha showed no reaction.
Celia began to walk slowly. With each step they took, the dungeon landscape spread and changed like ink dropped in water.
A red carpet leading to a room with a giant throne unfolded before them.
“Now, it’s time for us to have a proper conversation,” Celia said, lifting Aksha’s chin with her finger.
“So, what is Carmina plotting? Tell me everything that’s in Aksha’s heart.”
Celia’s eyes glowed a deeper red.
“Those who block the Master’s path must all disappear. And that includes Carmina.”
A tear flowed from Aksha’s eyes.
“G-great Celia…”
Her mouth began to open, against her will.
***
From a distant crimson palace, the Succubus Queen Carmina suddenly clutched her chest.
The wine glass in her hand fell to the floor and shattered.
The red liquid poured onto the floor, spreading like a river of blood.
“Your Majesty!”
The Succubi beside her exclaimed in surprise.
Carmina, her face pale, bent forward. Her expression contorted in pain.
It was a pain as if a part of her soul had been torn out.
“Neala…”
Blood flowed from Carmina’s mouth.
“My child, Neala, is dead.”
At those words, the Succubi looked at each other in terror. Neala was Carmina’s loyal subordinate, and the one she cherished the most.
Therefore, Neala was a being who shared some of the Queen’s power.
And now, Neala was dead?
That death directly impacted Carmina herself.
“How dare you…!”
Following that, she felt rage.
Rage at the audacity of someone using the Succubi as they pleased, and on top of that, killing her child.
Above all, a powerful aura was felt from somewhere.
This was a clear provocation challenging the Queen’s authority.
“Whoever you are, you will pay the price!”
However, looking at the aura of that being, it seemed to be equal to or even superior to her own as Queen.
It would be wise to avoid such a being, but Carmina’s pride was wounded.
If she let this matter go unnoticed, not only her honor but also the worst-case scenario where the Succubi below her would no longer follow her could occur.
“Hear me, all of you!”
Carmina stood up abruptly and descended from her throne.
A red aura swirled around her.
“Gather everyone!”
Her voice vibrated throughout the space.
Carmina closed her eyes for a moment.
‘I can feel it.’
A powerful aura was felt.
That powerful aura was felt from the Silent Mountain Range.
“Silent Mountain Range. I’m going there!”
Carmina’s voice was filled with killing intent.
A moment later, she raised her hand and split the air. Space tore open, and a rift appeared.
Within it, thousands of glowing eyes could be seen in the darkness.
“My legion, awaken.”
Carmina commanded.
From the rift, endless monsters began to crawl out. Monsters of various forms with sharp claws, horns, and wings.
They were all nightmare-dwelling monsters, Dreamsites.
***
– Urgent Mission has occurred.
‘Urgent Mission?’
When I recently focused on gacha pulls alongside real money purchases, the Urgent Mission came to mind.
– The Succubus Queen is heading towards the dungeon ‘Evil God’s Nest’. Subjugate the Succubus Queen.
– You can dispatch monsters to the dungeon ‘Evil God’s Nest’.
– Reward: 1 6-Star Soul Stone
6-Star Soul Stone: You can create a 7-Star Monster by synthesizing a 6-Star Monster and a 6-Star Soul Stone.
– Failure results in dungeon destruction.
“Already?”
Suddenly, what is this Succubus Queen, and why is she invading my dungeon?
I couldn’t understand it, but more importantly, my eyes were drawn to the reward.
‘Soul Stone?’
I couldn’t *not* know about Soul Stones.
Didn’t I raise Celia to 6-Star rank using a Soul Stone when I first obtained her as a subordinate officer?
Moreover, the reward this time is a 6-Star Soul Stone.
This means I can finally have a complete 7-Star Monster.
“It’s not time to celebrate yet.”
Just the name “Succubus Queen” suggests a formidable opponent.
Moreover, there is a very dangerous situation where the dungeon will be destroyed if I fail.
To stop such an existence, it is necessary to gather our scattered forces in one place.
***
Today, Baalcherit was enjoying the blood of the Minotaurus and cola from the dungeon.
“Hmm hmm~”
She loved her current life.
The Hunters were not as persistent as the White Church in the El Dorado Continent, and above all, Celia was not here!
“This is paradise!”
Initially, when the dungeon was lost due to the White Church, her future seemed bleak, but now, it was so comfortable that she liked it.
However.
“Hmm?”
Space distorted, and a rift appeared.
And the suddenly appearing rift swallowed Baalcherit.
“Huh?!”
Before Baalcherit’s question could even be uttered.
“Oh my, you’ve arrived, Miss Riche.”
In front of Baalcherit’s eyes stood the person she most disliked.
Celia, calling Baalcherit by her alias, smiled.
“Did you have a good vacation?”
It was an evil smile.
