--- (Klein's POV) ---
A full week had passed since he entered his first nightmare, but nothing extraordinary had happened—at least, nothing beyond the arrival of a transcendent human. His name was Eurys. When Klein heard it, he was shocked beyond belief.
Of course he would be. One of the Nine had appeared in his dream, and unlike Sunny, who only met Auro when he was still a fledgling hero, Klein faced Eurys already in his transcendent state.
His role in this nightmare had been assigned as a strategist—smart, yet not quite brilliant, someone above average at best. Ever since he discovered that, Klein leaned into it, playing the role of a seer. It suited one of his attributes, after all. Slowly, Eurys began to treat him as a companion. They became friends on the road, bound by a shared purpose: to slay a corrupted devil. Yes, his first nightmare truly was that cruel.
For three days, Klein lived as a seer among the soldiers, guiding them with his visions. But fate was unkind. A divination warned him that a mighty beast would attack—a giant golem with twelve arms. He confided only in Eurys, fearing that the truth would shatter morale.
And then it came.
A golem the size of a fortress blocked their path, its single stone eye glaring down like the judgment of heaven. Eurys met it head-on, blade flashing, while Klein rained arrows on its eye to distract it. But the truth soon became clear—the eye was no weakness, only stone as hard as the rest of its body.
"EURYS, TO YOUR LEFT!" Klein cried, just in time to save him from being crushed under a massive swing.
Terror spread among the soldiers.
"Can we even kill this thing?" one shouted, his voice cracking with despair.
"My daughter is waiting for me at home…" another whispered, trembling at the thought of never seeing her again.
"Don't falter!" Klein roared, loosing another arrow. "You are soldiers, not cowards! If we retreat, this monster will destroy our homes! We fight so that others may live! Even if we die, we die with honor!"
Something shifted. Seeing a so-called noncombatant stand fearless lit a fire in their hearts. The soldiers rallied. Together with Eurys, they hacked away at the beast's arms. Twelve became eleven, then ten… stone falling away in shattering chunks.
Hours bled into eternity.
Twelve hours later, the battlefield was littered with corpses. Every soldier had fallen. Only Klein and Eurys remained. Klein's bow arm bled raw, his arrows long gone; he fought now with a sword, each strike weaker than the last.
The golem still stood, two arms left, towering and relentless.
Eurys was barely upright, his left arm gone, his breathing ragged. Yet he pressed on, because he knew—if he faltered even for a moment, their fate would be sealed.
Klein leapt high, driving his blade into the golem's shoulder. Stone cracked, fragments raining down as one more arm crumbled to dust. The so-called mighty beast was left with only a single arm, but fate was crueler than he had imagined.
The monster's remaining arm shot forward, seizing Eurys in its jagged grip. Klein's heart lurched.
"EURYS!" he roared, sprinting forward, his blade flashing desperately against the stony flesh. But the monster only lifted Eurys high, as if preparing to crush him into rubble.
Eurys's eyes met Klein's. There was no fear in them, only grim certainty. Snarling through bloodied lips, he raised his sword with what little strength remained. A transcendent slash tore through the air, shattering the monster's arm and collapsing its massive legs beneath it.
The golem fell. But so too did Eurys. The desperate strike cost him his last arm. Kneeling before the ruined beast, he lifted his gaze to Klein.
"Kill me, Klein. I'm useless now… a swordsman with no arms is already dead."
Klein froze, his sword trembling. His mind screamed to refuse, but Eurys's eyes were unyielding.
"…Damn it," Klein whispered.
He stepped forward and plunged the blade into Eurys's heart.
The battlefield fell silent. The soldiers were corpses. The transcendent was gone. Klein stood alone.
Then he looked at the beast. The golem's body still twitched faintly, its core pulsing with the last remnants of corrupted life. Klein tightened his grip on the sword, stepped forward, and slashed down with all the strength he had left.
The core split.
[ You have slain an transcendent human. Name: Eurys of the nine ]
[ You have slain an corrupted devil. Name: titan golem ]
The whispers of the spell rang in his ears. Klein was both happy and sad—for he had lost his comrades in that fight, yet he had defeated the corrupted devil. He knew what awaited him, but nevertheless, he accepted it.
Exhausted beyond belief, Klein collapsed to the ground, his vision fading into darkness.
[ wake up, Klein. Your nightmare is over. ]
[ Prepare for appraisal... ]
The battlefield dissolved. The grass vanished, replaced by an endless black void—the same appraisal space Klein had read about in Sunny's story.
[ You have received a memory: seer's cloak ]
[ You have received a memory: white mask ]
Klein speculated that the cloak had come from the golem, though he didn't understand why Eurys had left him the mask.
[ Aspirant. Your trial is over ]
[ A seer at heart, alongside his companions and a hero, marched against a mighty beast to protect their homes. The seer foresaw the beast's attack, yet kept silent, knowing despair would shatter their courage. The beast appeared, and they fought. One by one, the soldiers fell, but so too did the monster weaken. In the end, the hero sacrificed himself so the seer could deliver the final blow. With his comrades fallen, the seer fulfilled their mission—to defend their homes. ]
[ You have defeated 1 transcendent human. Name: Eurys of the Nine ]
[ You have defeated 1 corrupted devil. Name: Titan Golem ]
Klein grimaced as he read the words of the spell.
[ You have saved your home from the beast ]
[ You have achieved the impossible ]
[ Final appraisal: glorious. Your foolishness knows no bounds ]
'Hey, I'm not that foolish,' Klein thought at the spell half-jokingly.
[ Dreamer Klein, receive your boon! ]
[ You have received a true name: lord of the mysteries ]
Klein's heart trembled. He truly was embodying the Fool—Klein Moretti—now carrying a name that was no longer his alone.
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Sorry for being gone too long I have to do my assignments lately this days and after I finish one then another will come so I'm having a hard time
The next chapters name should be either "the one who shall not be named" or "the mother of sanguines"
So stay tune my foolish readers