I'm fighting Kal'tsit? Really?

Chapter 84 Fortunately, it was the real body that came (4K5)

The clock on the wall ticked away, but it was still night in reality. The sound of fists hitting the punching bag in the basement was exactly the same as before I went to sleep.

In reality, time has not changed.

Gerald slowly lay back down, his arms behind his head, and pondered the current situation.

He could ignore that thing for now; it was clearly beyond his current capabilities. Although running at full speed might give him a chance to survive, running away in a dream... seemed pointless, since he hadn't gone into the dream to survive.

Based on current assessments, the point at which one awakens from the dream and the role of the relics are gradually becoming clearer.

Upon arriving at the valley for the first time, he received the "Kiss of the Banshee" and left the dream by committing suicide. The Kiss of the Banshee began to fade in color for the first time.

His second visit to the valley was to defeat the Banshee Queen, truly winning the direct confrontation with her. Afterwards, despite his normal bodily functions, he unusually fell into a coma for three months.

The third time, after he received the family sword, he sparred with the Banshee Queen in the courtyard and was defeated. He began to gradually become familiar with the sights and sounds of the valley and obtained the Dream Essence from a dream.

During these three periods, the passage of time inside and outside the dream remains at a constant ratio, and one can escape the dream by sleeping.

But after actively activating the Banshee's Kiss, the color began to fade for the second time. From the fourth time onwards, reality seemed to have stopped. There was no distinction between the passage of time inside and outside the dream world, and he could no longer return to reality by sleeping. There was even a scene with an eggshell that appeared alone.

For ordinary people, encountering this situation should seem like something to feel nervous about.

But at the time, he was preoccupied with fighting with Lamaren to test new ideas, so he forgot about these details and didn't pay much attention to them.

The fourth time, he fought against Ramalen in her enhanced state in the courtyard, Theresa who was holding back, and the Blood Demon Lord. He lost, drew, and won once, and finally fell asleep in Theresa's arms.

This time, he spent the longest time in the dream, and this anomaly forced him to start thinking about a possibility.

Death is one of the conditions for escaping, that much is certain, and perhaps the Banshee's kiss itself means he will have five more chances to start over.

However, if we trace back these four states, from an objective point of view, it is not difficult to find that he actually did something quite unusual before leaving almost every time, which made him mistakenly believe that sleeping was the condition for leaving the dream.

He promised the banshees the future of their race, fought the banshee queen, gained her complete approval and changed the attitude of the little banshees, fought against Ramalen and was defeated and "victorious," and successfully killed the Blood Lord, at least preventing him from returning to Kazdel for a short time, thus causing a power shift within the Blood Court...

Wait a moment.

Gerald suddenly sat up in bed.

One point was missed.

After his "battle" with Lamaren, he escaped the dream once by sleeping, and the time between his next escape from the dream was only one day.

On this day, he did nothing but comb Ramalyn's hair, clean up her marks, and answer the questions of the older banshees. If one had to name a few things, he only let Nasti fly into the sky and take a look at the view above... This seemed to contradict his previous assessment.

Tsk, the reasoning has stopped here again.

Pegasus sighed, setting his thoughts aside for the moment, and began searching his body for the remnants of this dream.

Following the normal procedure, such a high-intensity battle would usually bring him some rewards. And whether it's the cloth on his shoulder, the Banshee's Kiss, or the Dream Essence, they all seem to have ridiculously exaggerated abilities.

So this time, it should be the same... right?

He seemed to reach into his pocket and tug at it the instant his fingertips touched it, pulling out a piece of cardboard.

The blank piece of paper had only a bright red stamp on it, and nothing else special about it.

The outline resembles a bat, and he couldn't discern its aura from the paper alone, but he could vaguely sense that it was an inkpad made of blood.

The seal was surrounded by intricate ancient Sarkaz script, a few phrases of which Lamaren had taught him while they were studying together these past few days.

[Noble...foreign race...blood...friendship...]

Individual nouns are quite easy to understand when translated gradually; in the books collected by the Wang family, these words are almost becoming common words.

But he didn't seem to need the Blood Demon's friendship. After all, the only Blood Demon he had ever met in his life was the monarch of their royal court, and he himself was a member of the Banshee Royal Court. It was impossible for him to be recruited by the Blood Demon's royal court.

Is it possible that a few blood demons will suddenly appear and become his friends? Impossible.

Gerald sighed, set the Banshee's Kiss aside, and tucked the Token of Friendship into his pocket.

Having too high expectations isn't a good thing either; the battle with the Blood Demon Lord will be something he can savor for a long time.

--------

Let's go back to the morning of the second day.

Seeing that the two were not in good spirits, Muirsey chose to eat quietly at the table.

Gerald, on the other hand, seemed much more relaxed. Seeing that Saria wasn't in the mood, he took the initiative to hand over the cooking ceremony, and half an hour later, he placed three ordinary breakfasts on the table.

Now that things have come to this, being suppressed by Vayvan's power is no longer a big deal for Pegasus. He can deal with the humiliation that Saria once inflicted on him with a calm mind. Of course, the issue of drinking blood, which seems to be ingrained in Vayvan's bones, still needs to be addressed at some point.

So at the table, Vayvan was gently poking at the soufflé in front of him with his fork, looking like he had no appetite; Pegasus was happily enjoying the breakfast he had made, and every now and then he would hum a song when he thought of something new; while Miss Elf was sandwiched between the two of them, with no intention of saying a word.

The silence among them lasted until the tasteless breakfast was over.

"Don't you have anything to say, Gerald?"

While Saria was back in her room feeling tired, Muirseth and Pegasus took turns cleaning the kitchen after dinner, and also planned to use this time to give a good scolding to someone who was completely oblivious.

"What happened to you guys yesterday?! How come even Saria has changed like this after only one day?"

Yesterday? Yesterday he rightfully defeated the Blood Demon Lord... No, no, he can't think about things in his dream anymore.

“Isn’t this what you wanted to see?” Gerald rinsed the plates and cutlery in the water and said in a flat tone. His memory, which he used to memorize medical books, was surprisingly useful at this moment. “If you hadn’t deliberately provoked me before you left yesterday, Seria wouldn’t be in this state.”

"But, but this wound looks really strange, doesn't it?" Muirsey mustered her courage again to look at the teeth marks next to Gerald's neck and the scars above his lips: "She raped you?"

Snap.

Pegasus instinctively crushed the plate, gritting his teeth as he replied, "What do you mean by 'stronger'? I was just suppressed with a chokehold when I wasn't paying attention. Isn't that a bit of an exaggeration?"

"Isn't this rape?! And this person is completely unconscious!! How could this happen?! How could my Saria turn into such a carnivorous beast?!!"

The little sprite cried out in despair, completely unaware that its voice was so loud that Gerald had to use the wind to isolate the sound in the space to prevent it from disturbing Saria.

"...That's why you, as her friend, should pay more attention to her."

Changing the subject, Gerald, who was initially annoyed that Muirsay had once again pointed out his weaknesses, has now returned to his initial calm state.

"Huh?" Muirsey hadn't quite grasped why Gerald's expression had suddenly changed, but she also instinctively sensed that there was no room for jokes in the upcoming conversation, so she could only obediently help wash the dishes. "I know, she's my best friend."

Are you sure, Muirsay?

A silence fell over the kitchen.

The little sprite twitched its long ears slightly, its tone still carrying a hint of mischief, as if trying to lighten the mood: "Although I have a feeling that my position as 'best friend' is very precarious right now, and that my status in Saria's heart is very likely to drop one place."

"But I won't lie in a place like this."

Gerald nodded slightly and placed the plate upright on the stand beside him: "So her outburst last night was also within your expectations?"

"..."

Muirsay obediently shut his mouth.

Rather than saying she wasn't there, she had never seen Saria look like this before, so haggard and exhausted.

She never showed her weaknesses to others. No matter how miserable or sad she was, she never saw Saria show any vulnerability.

But no one can be blamed for this.

“Do you know a saying, little Kuranta?” Muirsay paused briefly in his work and said with a smile, “There’s been a saying for a long time: if you want to maintain a friendship with someone, there are at least two things you shouldn’t do.”

“One is borrowing money, and the other is partnering to start a business.” She gently pointed to the number ’two’ with her finger, as if reminiscing, and said, “After the cooperation, as we overcome one difficulty after another and continue to move forward, even the most indestructible team will encounter many problems.”

"Some people want to rebuild their homes, some want to fulfill their own goals, some stay in the company simply to fulfill the wishes of others, and some want to reach for the stars."

"But once their ideas clash, when one person stands in the way of another, conflict will inevitably arise... This is a situation that cannot be avoided in any collaboration. Sometimes, to achieve your own dream, you need to destroy someone else's dream."

Pegasus listened quietly, his gaze fixed on the elf who was speaking so serenely, pondering the meaning behind her words.

“This process is irreversible unless someone on both sides is willing to compromise… which is even more impossible.” Muirsay took a few steps back and leaned against the kitchen wall. “So, I thank you very much.”

"Thank me?"

"right!"

Muirsey wore a gentle smile, unlike any of her previous quirky self. She truly looked like a mother watching over her child, but the expression on her face was one of loneliness and sorrow after seeing her child leave home.

"Thank you for being with Saria."

“I might know that she’s been suppressing her emotions all along.” A shadow fell over the little elf’s eyes, obscuring the light and dark. “It’s just that she’s a very strong person and wouldn’t tell us these things, so I’ve always taken it for granted.”

"It wasn't until today that I realized she also needed someone to help her."

Muirsey paused, then continued, "If you can hear the voice in her heart, and not just rely on her and place your hopes on her... perhaps that's what makes a friend."

Gerald pointed to himself: "It's exactly me, isn't it?"

"Yeah!" Muirsey laughed and reached out, trying to grab Gerald's arm for a high five.

As a result of the slap, the little elf was almost crouching on the ground, crying out in pain with tears in his eyes.

She had come to Saria's house in her original form today, but instead of getting to eat the breakfast Saria made, she had to eat all the pain that was transmitted to her original form.

"Ouch... Ouch, ouch, ouch." Muirsey shook her swollen hand, sighed, and finally managed a forced smile: "I'll leave the rest to you, Gerald. Don't worry, I won't bother you again, and you don't have to take that joke seriously."

"What do you want to do?" Pegasus looked at Muels's hand, which had indeed changed somewhat, and understood. He continued to ask, "Completely side with the other side and become one of those who oppose Saria? Just like that commander of your Rhine Lab?"

"Wow, you've already deduced it this far? Or do you perhaps have mind-reading abilities?"

Muirsey blinked her bright eyes, then gently placed her index finger in front of her lips: "Shh~ Keep it a secret from her~ If Saria finds out, she'll start worrying for no reason again."

Hearing this, Gerald nodded: "Don't worry, I know what to do."

"That's good."

After hearing the affirmative reply, the elf revealed a somewhat sad smile that she herself might not have realized: "Then goodbye. To be honest, I really like you. If we meet again in a peaceful situation, I'll treat you to a cup of coffee, which is a long time coming."

After saying this, her body began to gradually dissipate—

"Eh?"

Click.

Gerald gently extended a finger, freezing all the elf's actions in mid-air as if time had stopped.

Water is a fluid.

Even the Blood Demon Lord couldn't resist his power... Compared to that, how could Muleseth, who was weakened by hundreds of times, possibly withstand his manipulation?

However, this ability is still as powerful as ever, and I definitely need to study it properly next time I have the chance.

"Uh, um... let go—" Muelsy tried to force her body, which was suspended in mid-air, into a watery form, but she couldn't move at all and could only watch helplessly as Gerald walked towards her: "Wait, what are you doing? Gerald? No—"

“You’re too noisy, Muirsay.”

Gerald manipulated the wind to seal the elf's mouth.

He slowly walked up to her, looked at her immobilized state, and said softly:

"I hate people who don't know how to speak properly, especially those who lie to the person in question, claiming it's for your own good, but then deliberately do things that are meant to be misunderstood—they're idiots."

"This makes me feel really bad, because your friends won't change because of your concealment or disclosure, they'll only keep feeling like it's their fault because of your dramatic behavior."

"So, I'm glad you came here in your true form today."

Pegasus slowly closed his palm, and Muels, who had been frozen in the air, began to float and slowly move along with his retreating steps.

"Otherwise, I'll have to consider searching all over Colombia to find you."

Chapter 85 Connecting the Heart (6K5)

While Gerald and Muirsey were washing the dishes, Seria went to her room alone.

A dwelling located underground can, in a sense, be considered a safe house. Purely from a security and privacy perspective, it allows her to avoid most unnecessary sights and prying eyes.

But this so-called safety offered her no comfort in the moment when she was emotionally out of control.

[Let's just completely sink into despair.]

This was the thought that suddenly popped into Saria's head after she realized her out-of-control behavior.

Just like the most fragile weeds, it didn't even have time to linger in my mind before she cut it down and turned it into fragments.

This growing desire was still too shallow compared to the willpower that Saria had cultivated over the years, so even when her emotions nearly went berserk due to a sudden event, she was able to control these thoughts immediately.

One must keep one's word and fulfill one's promises.

Always force your body to move the moment you wake up, and always arrive half an hour before the scheduled time; do not make unfounded promises, and do not meddle in other people's privacy; control your diet and caffeine intake, and control excessive emotions and lecturing tone.

And most importantly, set your own principles as the top priority and resolutely implement them.

Therefore, over the years, Seria's interactions with others have always been subtle: she treats colleagues with reason and courtesy, friends with frankness and decisiveness, and issues with a straightforward approach.