Ark Undead

329.Dream

Melantha had a dream.

In her dream, she seemed to see her teacher.

He was wielding a weapon, fighting against a giant and a monster whose height was vastly different from his own.

With agile movements and quick reflexes, the weapon in hand inflicted wound after wound on the enemy.

His superb combat skills allow him to constantly switch between weapons and defeat enemies using different tactics and techniques.

Although Melantha couldn't understand how her teacher conjured those weapons out of thin air, it didn't stop her from appreciating and capturing those unforgettable moments with her own eyes.

With just a bare hand parry, the undead could deflect the massive weapon. With a deafening roar of steel, the undead would pull out huge iron blocks or sharp longswords and smash or stab them into the wide-open chest.

It's as if they know the script of the battle; often, just taking one step back or two steps forward is enough to accurately estimate the distance that the enemy's weapon or claws will slash.

It was just a scratch on the hem of the clothes or the brim of the hat, without causing any physical harm.

His movements were ruthless, deadly, and efficient; every attack was designed to inflict maximum damage on the enemy.

Melantha initially watched these battles with a sense of wonder and respect. But the more she watched, the more a strange fear arose in her heart.

She didn't know what she was afraid of, nor why she felt sad.

Tears welled up in her eyes like a burst dam. Melantha wanted to grab her teacher's arm, but she could only see him walking further and further away, facing enemies that were becoming more and more unimaginable.

The aftershocks of the battle made Melantha unable to even draw her sword, and she could only watch helplessly as her teacher grew smaller and smaller in her field of vision until she could barely see his figure.

Until he had become a tiny dot. Then, in the surging darkness, he transformed into a bright flame and vanished completely.

"!" Melantha suddenly opened her eyes, her face wet.

She could hear Katie's even breathing beside her. She subconsciously turned to look and saw Katie sleeping soundly against her arm.

Outside the window, the fields rush by, the distant mountains and running animals recede rapidly, and the sunlight on the horizon has just set behind the mountains.

Melantha took a deep breath and slowly exhaled, her body trembling involuntarily, even as she exhaled.

She blankly took out a small mirror from her purse and glanced at herself.

Her face was streaked with tears, her eyes were red and swollen, and even the fabric around her chest was soaked.

The palpitations and fear in my heart subsided rapidly, but lingering effects remained. I had some difficulty breathing, and my thoughts were a jumbled mess of fragmented memories mixed with my dreams. No matter what I thought about, it didn't feel real, as if I were separated by a dream.

Melanie hurriedly reached out and wiped away the tears on her face, then rubbed the tears from the corners of her eyes.

After things had tidied up a bit, she leaned back in her seat and looked up at the ceiling inside the car.

Even now, she still feels uneasy, wondering why she had such a dream and what it meant.

All around her were the sounds of even breathing and hushed conversations. For a moment, no one paid attention to Melantha, giving her enough time to process her emotions.

Melantha's hands were clenched into fists without her noticing, and she remembered that her teacher was sitting behind her.

She couldn't help but peek out, turn around, and look at her teacher.

When she looked over, she saw the golden retriever, fully armored, lying in the undead's arms, clutching one of the undead's gauntlets, biting it as it slept, and her gaze coming through the gaps in the helmet.

"Is something wrong?"

No! No...

Melansha quickly pulled her head back in and hurriedly checked her face again to see if she looked like a little kitten.

Melansha breathed a sigh of relief after confirming that she had almost finished tidying up and hadn't appeared sloppy in front of the teacher.

However, once she saw her teacher in person, Melansha's panic and fear completely disappeared.

She sat comfortably in her seat, her breathing becoming steady.

The teacher is still here, so there's nothing to worry about.

However, even though everything in that dream was gradually becoming blurry in Melantha's mind, she could still remember the helplessness she felt when she saw her teacher turn into flames at the end.

Melanie's thoughts were still a jumbled mess as she tried to sort them out.

Just then, the vehicle slowly came to a stop.

"We've arrived at the rest stop. Let's get off and walk around."

The driver stood up, stretched, addressed everyone in the vehicle, and then opened the door.

Melanie then noticed that the sun had completely sunk behind the mountains, the sky had darkened, and a new moon was on the horizon, trying to unveil itself.

Let's go for a walk and change our mood.

This is a rest stop, a node on the Longmen-Victoria passageway.

Minos is quite far from Lungmen. It took the Undead a month to travel from Victoria all the way to Lungmen. Even if they are traveling at full speed now and don't have to worry about energy consumption, it will still take them at least two or three weeks to reach Victoria.

It would take one or two weeks for Victoria to get to Minos.

All told, at least a month will be spent on the road.

Unbeknownst to them, the immortals had begun their journey once again.

This time, however, he was accompanied by quite a few people.

This rest stop is a transit point on an official route cleared by the Lungmen and Victoria trading posts, and the road is equipped with various devices to repel Originium Beasts. Of course, there is a fee to use this route; the money will be used to repair road signs and anchor points.

Inside the transit station, there are various temporary supplies, such as water, food, and Originium solutions. There are also restaurants and inns.

If you don't want to rest in the car, you can rent a room at a hotel and rest for the night.

Although we can continue at night, considering that the children in the reserve group do not have much combat experience and the pilots also need rest, we will stop at the rest stop for the time being and set off again when it gets light.

Kroos, looking completely bewildered, was just awakened when the undead carried him off the bus on their shoulders.

Before the blond, silly dog ​​could understand what was happening, he smelled a delicious aroma wafting from not far away.

"Undying! Delicious!"

The Undead followed the finger of Kroos, who was slung over his shoulder, and saw the various foods displayed outside the restaurant.

The Undead knew that Kroos was hungry.

"I'll take her to get something to eat."

Just then, Melantha arrived beside the Undead, together with Katie.

The Undead nodded, put Kroos down, patted her on the head, and let her and Melantha go to the restaurant over there to eat.

The Undead, however, turned their attention to the other side.

After climbing out of the truck bed and standing on the ground, Onstan stretched, squinted his eyes, and stretched his body properly.

"Feeling unwell?"

"The immortal asked."

"Actually, it's not bad. Instructor Dobermann and Miss Yato prepared soft mats for me, all of them extra-large. Even though the ride was a bit bumpy, it wasn't that uncomfortable."

Onstan thumped his lower back. Even a god would feel uncomfortable sitting for too long and would need to stand for a while.

"It's a pity I can't lie down, I have too much stuff in there."

Just as the Undead was about to say something, Instructor Dobermann got out of the truck.

She took a sip of water and greeted the undead.

The Undead also nodded to Instructor Dobermann as a greeting.

How are you feeling?

Dobermann approached the Undead and said with a smile.

"What's it like traveling with your disciples? Is it novel? Happy? Troublesome?"

"I'm used to it."

There's really nothing special about being immortal.

I had already walked a long road with Kroos before, and now there's just one more Melantha.

However, Doberman was somewhat surprised.

"Didn't those kids gather around you and chatter away?"

"?" The Undead looked back and saw the children from the preparatory group getting off the car one after another. After meeting the Undead's gaze, they excitedly waved to him.

Even the immortal waved in response.

"No."

While on the bus, the children were very well-behaved, and I didn't find it strange that no one had died.

It's not like everyone who sees him has to crowd around for his autograph...

"They've toned it down, you just didn't know."

Doberman sighed and shook his head.

"When you were away, countless people wanted you to come back and teach. Every day, as soon as the practical class ended, they would start asking me, 'When will Mr. Undead come back?' or 'War Knight, are you free to be a teaching assistant?'"

Doberman's tone was somewhat sarcastic.

"I don't know who the real instructor is anymore."

Of course, Dobermann was just joking, but this does show that the Undead are very popular among the children in the Operations Preparatory Group.

Although he is not good with words and his speech is cold, this style seems to be very popular with children.

Onstan listened to these stories with great interest, occasionally adding a word of agreement.

He always likes to join in on interesting topics.

I don't know when I developed this habit.

The Undead didn't respond; instead, he looked at Melantha and the others who were consulting about food at the restaurant with Kroos.

Kroos seemed to pick up the food from the stall but hesitated for a while before looking at Melantha.

Melantha nodded, and Kroos happily stuffed a whole piece of freshly roasted meat into his mouth.

Katie helped Melantha take out her small purse.

After Melanie paid the waiter, she pulled Kroos, who was still staring at the food outside, into the restaurant.