Miss Wang Weina, even your cousin won't do!

“In fact, according to my full examination, His Highness Wayne’s body is not weak at all, but rather unusually active. He is even stronger than before he fell into a coma.”

Kal'tsit was being conservative; in fact, Wayne's physical condition is currently incredibly good.

The problem is, he shows no signs of waking up.

Despite showing no signs of brain damage and being perfectly alert, Wayne showed no signs of waking up. According to Kal'tsit's diagnosis, Wayne was dreaming—a dream without end.

"How can His Highness Bruce wake up?"

It was Theresa who asked the question. Although she was slightly relieved by Kal'tsit's guarantee, Wayne's continued slumber still worried her. She knew that, faced with this bizarre situation, everyone present, including an immortal like Winster, was severely lacking in knowledge. But there was only one person who could offer a feasible solution: Kal'tsit.

Only Kal'tsit could help her bring Wayne back to reality from the dream at this moment.

Just as Theresa trusted Kal'tsit, Kal'tsit did not betray her trust. A figure whose presence spanned the entire history of Terra, an old lynx so knowledgeable he could claim to know everything, yet always enjoying feigning youth, answered Theresa's question.

“Theresia, explaining the principles in detail would be too complicated for the current situation. But based on Mr. Winster’s account of the events and my own experience, His Highness Wayne is not in any immediate danger; he is simply trapped in an ancient kingdom.”

Kal'tsit extended her index finger and tapped her temple:

"This realm is invisible and intangible, neither conquerable nor destroyed; its name is [Consciousness]. A being trapped within the Empire of Consciousness will be immersed in a bizarre and dreamlike world, experiencing everything it has ever known, understood, and gone through in various forms, ultimately reaching its own [Truth], facing its truest self, and making a life-or-death choice: return to the wilderness, or end up in a fleeting dream. Before that, it cannot escape the realm of Consciousness on its own."

Theresa nodded, and without asking any further questions, stated directly:

What do you need me to do?

"To become a beacon."

Kal'tsit said,

“Theresia, if we want to avoid the final decision and bring Prince Wayne out, we must have external forces intervene and become a beacon. This is something only you can do…” Kal'tsit opened her mouth and made a gesture. Theresia immediately recognized the meaning conveyed by the gesture.

[Demon King].

Prince Wayne is trapped within the realm of the Empire of Consciousness, experiencing a bizarre and fantastical tapestry woven from his past. No one but him can glimpse the memories buried deep within his heart, except for one person.

—Theresia, or rather, the Demon King.

Kal'tsit's meaning is not hard to understand. She is simply letting Theresa choose whether to release the Demon Lord's Originium Arts in front of everyone, enter Vayne's consciousness realm, become his beacon to escape the fog, and lead him back to the real world.

This was a daunting task for Theresa, who, as a Demon Lord, had never before attempted to directly intervene in the consciousness of another. However, the difficulty of the task was not the biggest obstacle; the greater obstacle was the people standing beside Theresa, watching Wayne with concern.

How will they react after witnessing Theresa display the power of the Demon King on this land that is full of discrimination against demons, especially the Demon King?

Since ancient times, interfering with someone else's most private and precious memories has been an absolute taboo!

Theresa wasn't even confident she could persuade Vina to agree, let alone Winster, Ernest, a conservative who already harbored resentment towards Theresa, a demon.

"So, Theresa, do you want to do it? Right now?"

Kal'tsit asked seriously, knowing that Theresa, who was using the Demon Lord's Originium Arts, could hear her "thoughts," and couldn't help but warn her again:

Theresa, have you thought this through? Agreeing to this means that from now on, no matter what, your identity will be completely bound to Victoria and Wayne. If anything changes in the future, you, who know so many of Victoria's secrets, will be relentlessly hunted down. You can simply claim that you are not capable enough, that Prince Wayne is absolutely capable of reaching the end of the Consciousness Empire, and that when faced with a choice, he will be able to awaken based on his own will.

Theresa frowned and asked:

What about the success rate?

Kal'tsit knew Theresa was asking about the success rate of Wayne waking up on his own. She replied:

"I believe in His Highness Wayne; the probability is ninety percent. But anything can happen..."

“I can’t accept any option that’s less than 100% certain. I’ll make sure he wakes up 100%. Let me try, Kal’tsit.”

Theresa answered without hesitation.

Kal'tsit stared at Theresa for nearly ten seconds before pursing her lips, nodding heavily, and saying:

"Gentlemen, the treatment we are about to perform requires an absolutely quiet environment. Would you please excuse us, except for Her Majesty the Queen?"

Winster and Ernest exchanged a glance, then turned their questioning gazes to Vina. Vina's gaze swept over Kal'tsit, finally settling on Theresa's face.

"We're family, right?"

Theresa: "Mmm!"

Vina took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and gave the order:

"Go out, I'll call you if I need anything."

After Ernest and Winster closed the door, Vina opened her eyes, looked at Kal'tsit, and said:

"Doctor, although Theresa trusts you completely, I still feel that you are hiding something from me. But that doesn't matter. Please heal Wayne and don't disgrace your profession and Theresa's guarantee."

"I forgive any transgressions and crimes you may commit in the future. Now, begin your treatment and wake my brother!"

Behind Theresa, a diamond-shaped magic circle radiating a soft white light gradually appeared from the void. The Sarkaz princess knelt by the bed, holding Vayne's hands in her own. The Demon King's magic flowed through her fingertips, connecting their hearts, merging them together, and making them inseparable.

With a deep breath to regulate her heart rate, Theresa slowly closed her eyes and stepped into the realm where Wayne was located—the ancient Empire of Consciousness.

When she opened her eyes again, what came into view was an endless torrent of steel bearing red flags.

Theresa: "?"

Chapter 103 What if the Earth Made You an Evil Spirit

The time is unknown, but the location is presumably within the ancient territory of the Consciousness Empire.

Wayne reluctantly sat down on the spot, and beneath him, as if to please him, a soft sofa appeared out of thin air.

This is the Empire of Consciousness, yet it is not. Contrary to Kal'tsit's guess, Wayne encountered no challenges here, nor did he see any so-called "past illusions." The legendary barriers that "guided those who stepped into the territory of the Empire of Consciousness to their truest selves" never appeared before Wayne's eyes. They never existed in the first place, or perhaps Wayne never knew of them from the beginning, nor did he allow them to exist.

Because this is a world unique to Wayne, a fragment that fell into the Empire of Consciousness, yet remains independent of it. If one had to give an example, Wayne could only draw a parallel with the fragments of a four-dimensional world that fell into three dimensions in the novel "The Three-Body Problem," which he had read in his previous life. This is the fragment of a three-dimensional world that followed Wayne when he fell into the two-dimensional world of Terra.

As long as he doesn't think about it, the so-called barriers won't be created; as long as he needs it, anything he can imagine can appear in this vast wilderness. Here, he is the true emperor, the true god, whose every word and action can become law, whose every thought can create and destroy.

The problem is that Wayne can't get out, at least not for a long time.

The terminal interface originally used to connect to the outside world was shattered by the demon [Eye of Collapse]. Although this allowed Wayne to break free of his restraints and easily defeat the demon in a life-or-death battle, it also deprived him of his beacon to the outside world. He could no longer find his way home.

Rebuilding the beacon would take an immeasurable amount of time, and after trying various methods, Wayne finally gave up the struggle for the time being. He was prepared to stay in this world for a few days or even a few months, but as for years or even decades, he dared not think about it, nor did he want to.

He wasn't some kind of mentally strong, indestructible being like Kal'tsit, who could wander alone in the desolate wilderness for thousands of years without a single person to talk to; that might have driven him mad.

However, he wasn't one to sit idly by before being driven mad by boredom. To constantly remind himself of his identity and preserve his sanity, Wayne was always reminiscing about the past, which was being presented in various ways across this desolate land.

.........

A question mark slowly popped up on Theresa's forehead.

Before entering Wayne's consciousness, Theresa had also imagined with great anticipation what Wayne was thinking.

Wayne is a mysterious person. Just as Kal'tsit said, Theresa still doesn't know what Wayne's purpose is in accepting a marriage alliance with a demon.

Theresa believed that pure love could exist in the world, but she did not believe that pure love could be born in the dirty environment of the royal family.

Even she couldn't deny that her initial acceptance of Tracy's suggestion to marry Wayne was politically motivated. At the time, she was considering the status of her future husband and the benefits to Kazdel, rather than the Prince of Wales' true identity. Therefore, although she unexpectedly achieved a perfect ending, it must be said that, putting herself in his shoes, she truly couldn't understand why Prince Bruce accepted her.

This time, she thought that by entering Wayne's consciousness and seeing the real Prince Bruce, she could find the answer to the question that had troubled her for so long. But what lay before her now?

A vast, boundless torrent of land-based warships.

Although much smaller than the landships commonly found on Terra, the magnificent tongues of fire spewing from its cannons and the power of its large-caliber shells, capable of determining the distance to truth, were in no way diminished. To Theresia's astonishment, the shells struck the distant circular fortress, causing it to explode in a three-story-high blast, adorned with a strange red and white flag. Before the earth could even settle, hundreds more shells rained down, relentlessly striking the fortress's position.

What terrifying firepower! Even in the most militaristic and warlike Ursus, Theresa had never heard of them possessing such a terrifying armored army group.

However, what surprised her even more was yet to come. Once it was confirmed that the last enemy fortress on the mountain had fallen, the "small landship" at the forefront of the steel torrent opened its hood, and a figure that Theresa knew all too well peeked out. The boy, almost identical to Wayne, except with black hair, removed his military cap, raised his hand, and shouted:

"Sunset, victory!"

"Bruce!"

Just as Theresa reached out to call out, the gust of wind whipped up by the explosion brought a massive sandstorm, forcing the girl to shake her head with difficulty, shut her mouth, bend over, close her eyes, and escape from the smoke and dust and debris.

When the surrounding gale finally subsided, Theresa turned her head again, trying to find Wayne sitting in the flat, small landship, but she was greeted by a completely different scene.

The seemingly endless torrent of steel had vanished, as if the few steps she had taken in her desperate escape through the dust and smoke had covered hundreds of miles. The desert had transformed into grassland, and she now stood atop a towering city wall.

The city walls stretched for miles, and even with the Sarkaz's exceptional eyesight, they could not see their end. Before Theresa could recover from her confusion, a loud horn sounded in her ear.

"Waaaaah!"

The bugle call resounded throughout the city walls, and the countless bows and arrows that had been leaning against the walls seemed to be picked up by unseen people, drawn, strung, and aimed at the other side of the city walls, at the end of the rolling mountains.

A roaring black shadow surged forth—a vast army, warhorses neighing, sabers hovering in mid-air, bearing the Khan's banner, charging towards the city walls.

Those on the city walls were equally determined, their arrows ready to be released at any moment. Another bloody war was about to begin.

The victors ultimately defended the yellow flag with black lettering atop the city walls, a flag Theresa was unfamiliar with. Theresa looked around, as if struck by a realization. Sure enough, not far from the city walls, a boy, also different in hair color from Wayne, raised his glass, took a large gulp, and exclaimed with delight:

"Hold the nine border posts of the Great Wall!"

Theresa instantly understood what was happening here.

This is probably the "trial" Kal'tsit was referring to for Mr. Bruce. It involves replaying yesterday's dream in his mind, guiding Mr. Bruce, as the commander, step by step towards the final destination, and then, forcing him to make a choice!

But I really didn't expect that.....

Theresa glanced at Chanyeol's battlefield. Although no real humans appeared, Chanyeol's presence on the battlefield was already evident in the broken weapons, tattered flags, and fallen warhorses.

Are these all Prince Bruce's memories?

Impossible... If such a battle had truly taken place somewhere on Terra, she couldn't possibly be completely unaware of it.

Are these all Prince Bruce's imagination?

But why war?

Theresa didn't believe Mr. Bruce was a warmonger who loved war. Emotions don't lie. Even a schemer like the immortal Black Serpent couldn't lie in the face of the Demon King's Originium Arts, let alone Wayne. He didn't love war, much less be a bloodthirsty devil.

But why is his trial a "war"? Why is the process of guiding him toward his true self a series of wars?

Theresa couldn't understand it, but she knew that if what guided Wayne to confront his true self was the war, then she had another reason to find Wayne and bring him back to reality and onto the right track before he did something foolish!

She absolutely could not stand by and watch that boy, who could write fairy tales that would lull the war-torn children of Kazdel to sleep, who could soothe her weariness after a long day with a goodnight, who possessed the wisdom of a mentor and the gentleness of a loving father, succumb to the war and become a terrible evil spirit!

If this land desires that the essence of its children be bloodthirsty monsters, then Theresa is destined to go against it.

If the earth makes you an evil spirit, then please transform into an "angel" for me.

Wait for me, Mr. Bruce, I'm coming to you right away!

With a determined look in her eyes, Theresa took a deep breath and took another step forward.

As expected, the scene before them distorted once again, and the fragments of the Consciousness Empire underwent the greatest transformation to date, in accordance with their master's will.

When Theresa opened her eyes again, all she could see was the expansive bridge, and beyond that, the only ocean in the world that could be described as endless.