Chapter 39: Reconnaissance
"How long have we been asleep?" Raven asked, urgency threading his voice.
Jacob blinked rapidly, shaking his head as he processed the question. "Thirty… maybe forty seconds, My Lord. Have you already been to the Dream World?"
Raven's eyes widened. Thirty to forty seconds? He had spent what felt like over two minutes inside the dream. "That fast?"
Selene muttered beside him, a frown tugging at her brow. "Perhaps time flows differently in the Dream World."
[Yes. Sometimes, time flows more quickly in the Dream World. Other times… it slows. What did you experience?] Zera's voice hummed in his mind.
Raven forced a smile. "The world looked like ours, but there weren't… humans. Well, not exactly humans. They moved, but more like beasts than people."
[Beasts, you say? Describe them.] Zera's curiosity sharpened.
Raven nodded and detailed their twisted forms, the staggering gait, the raw aggression in their movements.
[Walking corpses… I've seen similar beings in Edhen World. Charles called them 'Zombies,' though in plays or tales. This Dream World glimpse—likely the city's future. And judging by their development… no centuries ahead. Perhaps only a decade or two.]
[Unlike the physical world, Dream World visits are temporary and unstable. The dream you entered may collapse soon. Without a Dream House, the connection cannot hold indefinitely. You'll need to enter again to gather more intelligence.]
Raven's eyes widened.
'The future?'
[As I've said, the Dream World links past, present, and future. The time ratio here seems roughly 1:5. Next visit, bring your spear and let Selene store it in Dream Harvest. The city may be empty, crawling with walking corpses, but survivors might linger at the outskirts. Look for books, diaries, newspapers—anything with clues about the future. You must return to the exact location within 24 hours.] Zera's tone sharpened, urgency threading his words.
"Can I use my abilities in the Dream World?" Raven asked. During his previous visit, he had no time to test them.
[Yes. All bloodline abilities and additional skills function, except System powers and my direct aid. Avoid bites—the infection is highly contagious.]
Raven's brow furrowed. "We're only going in as consciousness, right? I thought soul, body, and consciousness were one."
[They're linked but not fused. Full fusion occurs only upon entering the realm of Divines. For now, your consciousness acts like your body. Pain and injury feel real, even though effects vanish upon leaving.] Zera explained.
Raven nodded, gathering supplies: Frozen Ender Spear, silver pocket watch, dry bread, water pouches, two sets of clothes. He removed his shoes, handing everything to Selene.
"Store these in Dream Harvest. We return to the Dream World," he instructed, pausing to glance at Jacob. "Stay vigilant. Protect us while we sleep. We won't awaken for over six hours."
"Yes, My Lord," Jacob bowed sharply.
Selene hesitated. "Won't the undead attack immediately upon our return?"
Raven's lips pressed together. They could be lying in wait. He considered, then nodded. "Let's move to your room. We'll prepare there."
The trio walked the dim corridor until Selene unlocked a small room at the far corner. Unlike Raven's quarters, it was spartan: a single cot, table, and two chairs.
"Let's sleep on the floor," Raven said, spreading a sheet across the cold floor and lying back. Selene joined him, clasping his left hand, eyes closing.
Seconds later, a cold wind swept the room. Raven's eyes snapped open. Instinctively, he activated Mind Eye.
'Insects scuttling across the floor. Two rats are hiding behind the broken cot. A crow perched outside the window. I can scan five meters with perfect clarity.'
A groan from Selene drew his gaze. She pushed herself upright and summoned their gear from Dream Harvest: spear, pocket watch, shoes.
Raven took the spear, fastened his shoes, and checked the time. "9:20 P.M., September 15th, Year 1420." He nodded, determination settling. "Let's move."
Selene produced a one-meter wooden staff, bluish gem embedded, and followed him.
They slipped into the corridor, halting when three figures banged on a door fifty meters ahead.
'The same undead as before.'
"I'll handle them." Raven tightened his grip on the spear and lunged. Corridors offered little advantage for a spear, but he adjusted his thrusts, mind and body syncing.
The spearhead pierced the naked woman's neck cleanly. She crumpled, blood spraying. The old man leapt to bite—Raven twisted, spear stabbing through his chest. Motion slowed around him. Every step, every strike, precise beyond natural limits.
'Dream World effect? Reflex enhancement?'
A young man charged—another thrust, a decapitation. Time in the real world barely ticked, yet the battle felt like an eternity.
"Incredible!" Selene whispered, awe-struck. Raven hadn't used magic—only raw spearmanship.
The old man crawled, relentless. Raven jabbed toward the ceiling, another decapitation. Fresh blood confirmed they weren't fully dead.
"We need reconnaissance before moving forward," Selene urged.
Raven nodded, breaking the door and peering outside. "Our strength suffices against these… zombies."
"They resemble necromancer undead, right?" Selene asked, tilting her head.
"Yes. Aggressive, but human-level strength. Nothing Radiant Rank yet."
"What is our objective, My Lord?" Selene pressed.
"Locate normal people. Explore the outskirts." Raven's gaze swept toward Thornevale Family territory.
'Even elite members are above Expert Rank. If the infection spreads fully… we'd face an army.'
He descended, assaulted by the stench of rot. Flies swarmed corpses scattered across the staircase.
Outside, streets lay empty. Broken carriages, corpses littered the city. Crows circled above, silent sentinels.
Ten minutes later, the fifty-meter-wide road revealed remnants of civilization. Raven rifled through the wreckage, uncovering a newspaper.
"Legacy News. 12th January, Year 1454… Black Undead spreads east… Alchemist Johnathan finds a cure… The royal family commemorates the late Emperor Ian Sillalus Jorvot… Raynor family scrutinized over epidemic…"
Raven's breath caught. Thirty-four years into the future.
"Store this," he said to Selene, tucking the paper into Dream Harvest. Movement ahead caught his eye. Thousands of undead advanced, their gaze locked in his direction.
Can they sense humans? Or are they controlled?
"Main road is impossible," he murmured. Scanning left, a towering seven-meter wall gleamed under moonlight. "This way."
Raven sprinted, dodging a charging undead. Selene kept pace. After five minutes, the stone wall rose before them, a watchtower marking their path.
"There should be stairs," Raven noted, heading toward the tower.
They found a side staircase and began to climb, shadows of the Dream World stretching long across the city below.
The city below was silent—too silent.
Stone chimneys leaned like broken spines, windows were cracked open like hollow eyes, and the streets crawled with the shuffle of decaying feet.
Raven stood on the seven-meter wall, spear resting against his shoulder, eyes narrowing at the slow tide of undead spilling through the avenues. Every motion was sluggish, yet deliberate, as if something unseen was guiding them.
Selene's gaze snapped toward the dark treeline a kilometer away. The wind carried the faint stench of rot and metal.
"They're moving with purpose," she said, her brows tightening. "Are they aware of us? How can they find us when they behave like beasts?"
"No idea," Raven replied, voice low. "But this city's a graveyard now. Let's check the outskirts—see if anyone survived."
He stepped to the edge and jumped. The fall ended in a solid thud as his boots struck dirt.
A flicker of light danced beside him—Selene appeared on the ground before he landed, dust curling around her feet.
Raven raised an eyebrow. "Teleportation?"
She smiled faintly. "An inferior [Blink], My Lord. Ten meters, no more."
"Useful enough." His tone carried faint amusement.
Selene turned to the narrow dirt road cutting through the outskirts. "Shall we follow the path?"
"Lead the way."
They walked through the empty outskirts, their footsteps echoing faintly. The air felt heavy, as if the whole world was holding its breath.
Raven's thoughts shifted mid-step. "Cast [Dream Alter] on me," he said. "And explain it while you're at it."
Selene nodded, touching his shoulder. A ripple of pale energy spread outward, washing the world in a dreamlike shimmer. The trees swayed unnaturally, their colors bending at the edges.
"With [Dream Alter], I can shape perception," she said softly. "Anyone observing us sees only what I imagine."
"So… illusion?"
"Not quite. It's imagination solidified. Try thinking of someone—someone whose power you know well."
Raven closed his eyes. A name flashed across his thoughts.
"Charles Nightwind."
The world shifted. A warmth flared before his face, and when he opened his eyes, a fireball hovered inches away, crackling like a living thing.
He stared at it, stunned. The flame obeyed his will when he moved his hand, drifting through the air before bursting against a nearby tree. Bark scattered, smoke curling upward.
"What the hell…" he muttered.
Selene smiled faintly. "That's only a fragment of [Dream Alter]'s power. The fireball exists only here. The burn will fade when the dream ends."
She waved a hand, conjuring a small mirror from her dream storage. "Look."
Raven caught it—and froze. The reflection wasn't his. Deep-blue hair. Olive skin. Jade eyes.
"Charles Nightwind…" His voice dropped to a whisper.
Selene nodded. "The spell borrows what you know. Without knowledge of the target—spells, mannerisms—it fails. You can only mimic what fits your strength. Rank-1 can't mimic Rank-3."
He studied the fading burn marks on the tree, then let the illusion dissolve, returning to his true form.
Minutes later, they reached the main road. Dust lay thick over abandoned carts and torn banners. Even the air felt abandoned.
Raven's eyes drifted to the distant gates—locked, chained. "They sealed the city… maybe to stop the infection."
Selene's tone was thoughtful. "Yet Walkers could've escaped easily. Perhaps even they turned."
"Then only the commoners were trapped," Raven murmured, gaze sharpening. "Or worse—all of them turned."
A flicker caught his eye.
Something thin sliced through the air, faster than thought.
Raven's instincts screamed. Time slowed. The arrow shimmered with a faint yellow aura as it cut toward Selene's neck.
'If I don't move now—'
He stepped forward, spear flashing. The metal rang as he struck the arrow midair, knocking it aside. The impact numbed his hands, pain flaring up in his arms.
Selene ducked beside him. "Ambush?"
"Cover," he ordered, spinning the spear again as more arrows hissed through the fog. These were slower, less threatening. He batted them away in quick bursts of motion.
Selene darted to a nearby oak and crouched behind its trunk.
Raven scanned the woods. Shadows darted between trees—small, fast, deliberate.
Five shapes burst from cover, charging across the open field. Not men. Not beasts.
They were short—barely to his chest—with twisted faces, pointed ears, and skin the color of scorched iron. Crimson scales glimmered along their shoulders.
"Goblins?" Selene's whisper carried disbelief.
Raven tightened his grip on the spear. "Stay down."
He dashed forward, weaving through the rain of arrows. Each movement was sharp, controlled, instinctual.
'Too many shots… yet all fired in rhythm. One archer?'
He crouched, leapt skyward, and spun. The spear whirled around him like a silver storm, deflecting arrows as sparks scattered through the air.
He landed amidst the five creatures. Steel flashed. Two heads fell before their bodies hit the ground. The third tried to parry—but his thrust tore through its chest, leaving a smoking hole where its heart had been.
"GUGUUU!" One screeched, rushing him with a jagged dagger. Another hurled a poisoned knife.
Then—a flash of gold. Another arrow, glowing with that same eerie aura, whistled toward him.
'Again?!'
Raven covered his spearhead with faint aura and struck downward. Metal clanged. The arrow split midair.
But pain bit into his side before he could recover. One dagger pierced his abdomen; another blade scraped his shoulder. Poison burned through his veins.
He gritted his teeth, forced movement, and swung wide. The spear carved a half-circle—two goblin heads flew apart.
No pause. More arrows screamed from the woods.
He dove for cover, blood soaking his sleeve. His body trembled from the poison's slow grip. He crawled behind the nearest tree, breaths sharp and shallow.
Silence.
Then—movement.
A figure emerged from the woods. Taller than the rest. Skin black as obsidian. A single gray horn jutted from its brow, and a silver bow gleamed in its hand.
The goblin spoke in a guttural tongue, words like broken glass.
'Too far for the mind-eye spell,' Raven thought, eyes narrowing.
He waited, muscles coiled.
The goblin crept closer. Ten steps. Five.
Now.
Raven sprang from the ground and hurled his spear. The weapon sliced the air with a shriek—piercing the goblin's chest—
No, not piercing. Passing through.
The goblin shattered like glass.
"What—"
The forest cracked apart in a thousand fragments. Illusion.
Raven turned sharply—too late.
A cold voice murmured behind him, incomprehensible but thick with killing intent.
His mind-eye spell flared. The real goblin stood a breath behind him, bow drawn, arrow glowing gold.
He froze, then raised his hands. "Alright, you win."
A female voice broke the tension. "I didn't expect a mere goblin could be this powerful."
Selene stepped out from behind a tree, calm as moonlight.
"Don't—" Raven began, but she vanished mid-word.
[Blink].
She reappeared five meters away, hand raised, magic pulsing around her fingers.
The goblin reacted fast—kicked Raven to the ground and turned, bowstring trembling. Its grin widened, showing rows of yellowed teeth.
It released the arrow.
The shot screamed through the air, aiming at Selene.