EnCoffin Me Chapter 108
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
Chapter 108
Alexio, hidden in the night mare's shadow, had been munching on carrots these past few days. Although the lunatic occasionally brought him something tastier, he felt that most of those treats weren't suitable for night mares. Since the smuggled quantity couldn't possibly be much, Alexio quietly stuck to gnawing carrots.
The night mare seemed a little guilty about this.
“It's fine. I won't die even if I don't eat. I just like to have a bit of food,” Alexio said, clutching a carrot. To be safe, he made sure to consume enough blood every day. Everything else was just a bonus.
“Are all dark creatures like that?” the night mare asked. Having never left the breeding farm, he was full of curiosity about his own kind in the outside world.
“Not all of them. There are all kinds of dark creatures.”
Alexio was usually very patient with children. He told the night mare about many different dark creatures like the sea serpents and manticores from the main center, vampires and liches from ten thousand years ago, and even extinct dragons. He had seen too much and lived through too much, so even his casual descriptions sounded vivid. In the end, he took out the emblem of the Union of Dark Creatures.
“It's already an organization capable of standing on its own, and it's still growing. After this turmoil passes, I'm sure it will gain a lot of real power.”
He perched on the night mare's head and held the emblem up to his eyes. It was small, with a sigil serpent coiled around it, shimmering in iridescent colors. Although it looked more like something from a dream than something tied to dark creatures, anyone who saw it couldn't deny its connection to them.
At least, that was the case for Brendan.
“C-Can I join?” he asked nervously. “Join the Union of Dark Creatures?”
He was learning very quickly, already grasping basic common sense. Now he had even figured out on his own that he could apply to join an organization.
“All dark creatures are eligible to join. Even non-dark creatures can serve as advisors,” Alexio said. Then he added a condition to this generous rule. “But you still need to put in enough effort. Think about it, what can you bring to the Union?”
“I…” Brendan hesitated. He had been locked up in the breeding farm his whole life. He didn't know anything and didn't know how to interact with others. Someone like him…
“That's why you need to seize this opportunity.”
“…Opportunity?”
“Yes.” The little bat on his head flapped its wings, a hint of smile in its tone. “This is your chance. If you can rescue all the night mares…”
Saving others was something Brendan had never imagined. He himself was the one needing rescue. How could he possibly…
Alexio abruptly put the emblem away and quickly slipped into his shadow. Only then did Brendan look up and notice a few unfamiliar staff whispering among themselves. In the distance, the figure of the leader flashed by.
It was about to begin, Alexio thought to himself from within the shadow. They had put in a lot of effort to push the southeast branch to this point, all to force them into conducting this exchange between night mares. The cruel breeding farm could no longer be ignored, and this completely rotten southeast branch had no reason to continue existing.
The first part would be handled by him and the lunatic. As for the second…
Zhen opened his eyes, revealing the usual deep black eyes of an eastern faction, but deeper and blacker than most. His domain had already expanded, and now it was simply spreading further. Within his perception, the movements of the worms were crystal clear, including the biological traits and behavioral patterns they had stolen from the dead. He could ‘see’ it all.
Guardians were usually closely connected to gods. That was why Helgoden fought as fiercely as Behemoth, and Lucy ruled over the Sea of Undead. As for him… within his domain, he was the emperor who looked down on all!
“It has begun. The night mare replacement is expected to complete within two hours,” he said, mainly to inform the saint beside him. He moved with practiced ease. After all, they had once worked together ten thousand years ago. Although their attempt to save the world had failed in the past, it was only because the Holy Temple had been too powerful back then. But the Holy Temple now…
No, he still couldn't afford to underestimate them. If a god chose to intervene recklessly, they would all be crushed in an instant.
“Military intelligence reports that a certain staff member secretly transported back has been examined and confirmed to be spiritually deceased,” Lucius said calmly. “The worms previously detected in the Emerald Inner Sea were found to release eggs upon death. To prevent further victims, the surrounding area has been sealed off. Containment is the top priority, with efforts to preserve the victims' bodies as much as possible.”
This was the official verdict. In truth, the people currently active at the branch had been dead for over a month. The list of the deceased had already been compiled by the relevant authorities and would be released once everything settled down.
He lowered his eyes.
“Have Mr. Cravenson withdrawn as well. No one of ours should be left at the branch.”
“Understood,” Lucius replied. He hadn't planned to interfere anyway. He had just received Alexio's final update. The night mare had been replaced. Once Alexio reached the breeding farm, he would immediately send back their location.
* * *
At that moment, Alexio was currently bobbing up and down in the night mare's shadow. He kept his external perception shut off to avoid detection, sensing only the occasional jolt and bump that told him they were moving. The aircraft, with its hidden compartment, had already left the branch. No one would have guessed there was a night mare stowed inside.
Once things settled, Alexio poked his head out of the shadow. The compartment was so cramped that even the night mare had to curl up tightly. If he hadn't been in his bat form, he wouldn't have been able to stick his head out at all.
Brendan had been drugged and was sleeping deeply. Alexio dragged out a syringe from the shadow and gave him another injection.
“Don't move. You can't lift your head in here,” Alexio warned. “Just bear with it. Honestly, I think it's better if you stay unconscious during the journey.”
But Brendan shook his head. Staying awake had been his own decision. He didn't want to be completely useless and left at the mercy of others.
Curling up like this was extremely uncomfortable. He kept his eyes open in the dark, enduring it silently. Suddenly, he felt Alexio shift over to the side of his head.
“Let's do this instead. You can let your consciousness sink into a dream state. It won't be so uncomfortable that way, and if there's any danger, you'll wake up immediately.”
“But… how do I do that?”
Alexio's expression remained blank.
He was just a vampire, yet he had already taught werewolves how to fight, taught liches how to use necromancy, and now he had to teach a night mare how to enter a dream. Life was really too hard.
“I think you need to imagine?” he said uncertainly. “Night mares can weave dreams, so just think about the scene you want to see.”
After saying this, he realized that Brendan was different from the night mares in his own era. Back then, night mares loved to travel, which allowed them to weave vivid and colorful dreams. But Brendan, having grown up in the breeding farm, clearly lacked that broad experience.
Feeling helpless, he could only guide further.
“You can imagine yourself drinking water, then your bowl tips over and spills water all over your feet…”
Alexio seemed to have a real talent for teaching, choosing an approach close to everyday life. Under his guidance, Brendan felt himself standing. A small stream meandered beneath his feet, glistening.
At the end of the stream was a large lake, with the moon above it. The moon rose high, illuminating the dream he was weaving.
“Not bad, right?” Alexio appeared in human form within the dream and casually stepped into the stream. The water was warm, not cold, probably because Brendan was only used to drinking lukewarm water from a basin.
“Mm!” Brendan answered happily, splashing as he walked through the creek.
They soon reached the edge of the dream.
“Outside are other dreams. Once you're more familiar with the dreamscape, you can go and see what's in other dreams.” Alexio pointed to dreams floating just beyond the boundary. “Some are sweet dreams, some are nightmares. Some were made recently, others long ago… Dreams are fascinating things.”
Brendan listened intently. Suddenly, he noticed a familiar person in a dream that floated past him.
It was that saint.
Alexio saw him too and frowned slightly.
“I'll go check it out. I'll be back soon. Stay here.”
He was very concerned about everything related to the lunatic and curious about what the lunatic's dream contained. Without hesitation, he jumped out of the current dream and precisely entered that one.
As soon as he steadied himself, he looked up and saw the saint walking down a long corridor with several Holy Temple hunters. Unlike the lunatic he knew, this saint's eyes were filled with gloom.
Alexio glanced outward. Trees and flowers grew lushly, with red walls visible between them, just like the gardens he remembered from books about the eastern faction. At first, Alexio thought this was a dream made by someone from the eastern faction, but then he realized the lunatic in the dream was dressed in the style of ten thousand years ago.
This was a dream about events from ten thousand years ago!
Dreams were merely fragments of images, so following his curiosity, Alexio kept pace with the group and even casually walked beside the lunatic in the dream. He turned his head to look at the lunatic walking beside him. This version of the lunatic was one he hadn't seen much of before. It seemed to depict events from when the lunatic was with the eastern faction.
Or maybe not. Dreams were mostly chaotic after all.
The group of Holy Temple hunters entered a palace. Alexio saw the imperial son sitting on the throne, eyes lowered.
Zhen?!
“I heard Your Majesty plans to take your own life?” The saint's voice was emotionless, edged with sarcasm.
The imperial son on the throne trembled slightly. He lifted his eyes, but then abruptly flinched as the tip of a spear pricked his brow, a trail of blood winding downwards.
The saint gave a cold smile.
“It seems Your Majesty isn't ready to die yet. Otherwise, why would you shrink back?”
The hunters sneered as well.
“Your Majesty, the lives of the entire city rest in your hands. Please make the right choice.”
The imperial son's face was pale as he watched them leave, utterly dejected.
It was a threat.
He raised his hand and touched the bloodstain on his forehead. The blood lingered on his fingertips, initially silent and vivid, but in a certain moment, it twisted like a living thing.
【The lives of the entire city rest in your hands.】
The imperial son stared at the living blood and trembled, not out of fear.
【Please make the right choice.】
That Holy Temple hunter, under everyone's watchful eyes, delivered something that could change fate.
The imperial son no longer hesitated and swallowed the zombie blood in one gulp.