"Thank you for letting me have a good dream. I'll go easy on you, Herrscher of Sentience."
Elias' aura changed. The white suit conjured by the dream dissolved back into the battle suit formed by the Key of Blankness. In his hand, the Judgment of Shamash burned fiercely, setting this dream ablaze.
"How—how is this possible?! Why are you awake?!"
The Herrscher of Sentience, disguised as the priestess, turned pale with shock.
She quickly pulled back from Elias, stunned that her authority had failed to work.
After all, the power to manipulate consciousness was a completely unreasonable bug. No matter how strong you were physically, without mental resistance you were inevitably controlled.
She wasn't naive enough to think a single dream would make Elias willingly stay.
In fact, the dream itself was an attack on his mind. The Herrscher of Sentience wanted him to believe this was the real world and remain trapped forever.
"I really don't have much mental resistance—well, maybe a little, but not enough. On my own, I couldn't have resisted your authority."
Elias openly admitted his weakness.
In the Current Era he had practiced Taixuan sword energy with Fu Hua to strengthen his spirit somewhat, but resisting a Herrscher of Sentience was still beyond him.
And if he were controlled, the Previous Era would be finished. A seven-core Herrscher plus a Vipralopa-class MANTIS like him could easily destroy the world.
Even if all the Fire Moth heroes attacked at once, they'd be slaughtered. Kevin included.
"In the past, I really couldn't have done anything about you. But I'm lucky. With my dear [Idea] lady here, mental powers are ineffective on me now."
As he spoke, Elias glanced at his side. Misteln separated from his body, graceful and poised, holding her battle flag.
"Only a small matter, Master."
"Y-you—who are you?!"
The Herrscher of Sentience stared at Misteln in terror.
All her attention had been on Elias—after all, this white-haired boy who had incinerated all her dreams with three consecutive Shamash Assaults was terrifying. She had completely overlooked Misteln's presence.
And now she realized: the one who had sealed this dream and prevented her escape wasn't Elias.
It was this saint-faced woman.
"Me? Merely an [Idea]."
Misteln smiled at the Herrscher of Sentience.
True, her beloved Master lacked mental resistance. But with her dwelling in his spiritual space, it was like having an impenetrable firewall.
To control Elias' mind, the Herrscher of Sentience would have to invade his mental space and fight Misteln directly.
And given an [Idea]'s absurd strength, any un-metamorphosed Herrscher would be crushed easily with one hand.
"No… impossible! He was clearly affected by my authority! Otherwise…"
"Otherwise you couldn't have read my memories and used them to construct this dream—was that what you wanted to say?"
Elias' gaze turned mocking as he looked at the Herrscher of Sentience. Then he scratched his head a little sheepishly.
"Sorry, but the only reason you saw my memories was because I deliberately opened them to you. I knew you'd use my 'desires' to create a dream."
"You—you're using me?!"
"You could put it that way. But not exactly. I've been traveling a long time now. It's been ages since I saw Kiana, Mei, Bronya… I just wanted to borrow your power to remember the girls I love."
Elias looked at the still-lingering phantom girls around him, his eyes filled with indescribable tenderness.
This white-haired boy, called savior by countless in the Previous Era, always in control of everything, now showed a simple, sincere smile.
"But I didn't expect you to create such a surprise. Not bad at all. Honestly, for a moment I really felt the urge to stay in that dream forever. It was far too beautiful."
Elias swung the Judgment of Shamash in his hand.
Flames soared skyward, splitting apart the sacred white hall. The same fire that had burned away tens of thousands of dreams now burned his own dream as well.
Gazing at the girls in wedding dresses, Elias tightened his grip on the sword, his eyes gleaming with unwavering resolve.
"I'll realize this dream in reality. Today will just count as a small rehearsal. Thank you, Herrscher of Sentience—you've given me plenty of points for improvement."
With that, the dream was completely incinerated.
Elias, Misteln, and the Herrscher of Sentience were pulled back into the vast blue sky.
"Damn you, human!"
The Herrscher of Sentience had lost her composure. She was supposed to be the one toying with minds and using others, but instead she'd been used by Elias. She stomped her foot furiously.
"Honestly, you're finished. I'd suggest you surrender quietly to avoid unnecessary pain."
Elias glanced at the time. Since he had already made contact with her spiritual body, the observation hub should have pinpointed her real-world coordinates. Elysia and the others would already be heading there.
"No! Absolutely not! I haven't lost yet! At worst, I'll abandon that body. As long as I defeat you here, I can seize yours!"
The Herrscher of Sentience still thought she could resist.
"Oh? True enough. For a Herrscher of Sentience, possession probably isn't difficult. But do you even understand what the word 'gap' means?"
Since this was the dream world, there was no need for restraint.
Elias no longer suppressed his power. He revealed his true form.
"!!!"
Thump!
Just the sudden release of Honkai energy forced the Herrscher of Sentience to her knees, as if beholding a god.
Around Elias, the Void spears of the Herrscher of the Void floated; the floating cannons of the Herrscher of Reason assembled on his other side; emerald wings of the Herrscher of Wind spread behind him; the Herrscher of Death's scythe wreathed in black mist materialized; the Herrscher of Fire's blazing white cloak burned endlessly; and the Herrscher of Ice's crown gleamed blue with frozen majesty.
"I hold the Codex of God, parsing all things, creating from nothing—King of Truth."
"I hold the Door of God, traversing endless stars, observing all—King of Void."
"I hold the Wings of God, commanding infinite storms, reaching beyond—King of Desire."
"I hold the Crown of God, freezing eternity, stilling all—King of Silence."
"I hold the Blade of God, wrapped in immortal flame, igniting worlds—King of Haste."
"I hold the Robe of God, scattering white flowers and black mist, ruling life and death—King of Serenity."
Six powers, eight Cores!
More than 30,000 HW of Honkai energy filled the dream world. The once-blue sky turned dark, storms roared, thunder rumbled—it was an apocalyptic sight.
"Ah… my Master…"
Misteln trembled, overwhelmed with exhilaration.
She instinctively knelt before the white-haired boy, but a gentle breeze lifted her up. Elias' arm circled her waist tenderly. Though she was his power, he didn't see her as a servant.
Because to him, she was family.
Then Elias turned his gaze to the completely stupefied Herrscher of Sentience.
"I shall take the pen of God, to master all dreams, binding reality and illusion, King of Spirit. Now—submit, or be destroyed. Choose."
"No! Impossible! You're a Herrscher—no, a traitor, a thief of divine power, one who defies fate! I must kill you—I must!!"
The Herrscher of Sentience's spirit clutched her head, screaming in hysteria. The scene before her exceeded imagination. Compared to the vast sea of Honkai energy radiating from Elias, her own pitiful power was like a single drop of water.
Desperately, she unleashed her authority, and countless figures appeared in the dream space.
The sight made Elias instantly furious.
"So, you really want to die!"
These figures were nothing more than manifestations of a mental attack. But the forms she chose were Kiana, Mei, Bronya, Elysia—all the ones he cherished.
"How about it? Let's see if you can bring yourself to strike at them! That blond in your memory was right—those you love are your weakness!"
The Herrscher of Sentience spoke tensely, yet with excitement.
After seeing his memories, she knew just how much this boy cared for them. She was betting he wouldn't dare harm even false phantoms.
Indeed, when he destroyed the dream she had woven, Elias had chosen to split apart the chapel instead of killing the girls.
"Correction. The ones I love have never been my weakness. They are the reason I grow stronger. And… while you're not entirely wrong, it's not nearly as exaggerated as you think."
With that, Elias grabbed the phantom of Kiana—eyes empty, black mist swirling—and slapped the fake stowaway aside without hesitation.
"You—you actually struck her! She looks identical to the girl you love!"
"Knowing she's fake, why wouldn't I? And identical? Are you blind? My Kiana is a million times cuter than this cheap knockoff!"
His gaze swept over the remaining phantoms, his eyes growing colder, his anger rising.
"T-this looks the same…"
"Same, my ass! My Mei's gentle, graceful aura isn't here at all. My Bronya's stoic face—what is this warped nonsense? And my Elysia… what the hell did you do? You looked at my memories and still made such garbage! Forget mercy—I was going to make it quick for you, but now you're going to die painfully."
Frowning, Elias hurled Void spears through the remaining phantoms of Mei, Bronya, and Elysia. Even so, he still felt a pang of pain.
(Damn it! Even if they're poor imitations, there's still a resemblance. Hurting them still makes my heart ache, damn it all.)
"I knew it worked! There's still a chance! I still have a chance! I'll fight you to the end!"
The Herrscher of Sentience thought she had found her opening.
"Damn!"
Elias cursed. He had forgotten her passive skill—reading minds.
In the next instant, nearly a thousand phantoms of Kiana, Mei, Bronya, Elysia and others filled the dream space. Their strength was barely a fraction of the originals, but their appearances were weapons stronger than power itself.
Elias clenched his teeth. He braced himself for heartbreak, preparing to unleash a tornado of wind and fire to sweep away the illusions and drag the Herrscher out for a beating.
But then—
"Master, let me handle this."
Misteln stepped up behind him, gently covering his eyes with her hands so he wouldn't see the false phantoms. She whispered softly in his ear.
Elias froze, then smiled with relief.
"Ah, right. I forgot—we can switch accounts."
From one perspective, Misteln was like his guardian spirit. Without hesitation, Elias allowed her to take over his body, letting this [Idea] fight in his stead.
His consciousness withdrew, returning to his mental space, which Misteln had already decorated.
Elias sat down on the white throne she had prepared, slipping on noise-cancelling headphones and a sleep mask—refusing to hear or see the outside world.
"Call me when it's over. But remember—leave the Herrscher of Sentience for me. I'll finish her myself."
"No problem, leave it to me."
Misteln, now in control, smiled pleasantly. The [Idea] resisted the urge to mischievously touch Elias' body and instead turned her gaze toward the surrounding enemies—enemies, and rivals.
"Hehe~ Master might hesitate to strike you, but I'm not the same. Now, let me enjoy myself. Concept embodied, illusion released!"
Misteln unleashed her ultimate technique.
Normally, she was a flag-wielding mage-like fighter. But by manifesting as a spiritual entity, she could switch into close combat—and because she was using Elias' body, her strength as a spirit entity was amplified a hundredfold.
"You—you can fight like this?!"
The Herrscher of Sentience was shocked again. She realized the phantoms she had painstakingly created were useless—worse, they had ignited Misteln's battle fervor.
"This will be a beautiful dream."
Misteln smiled faintly. As she took her spirit form, her appearance transformed.
A sleek blue-violet armor wrapped Elias' body, and a helmet with a V-shaped visor covered his upper face. The sharp design exuded mystery and allure. Anyone who saw the lips and refined jaw beneath would feel the irresistible urge to lift the visor and see the handsome face beneath.
"Let's start with you, Elysia. Since we're acquainted, it'll be easier to hit you. Not because I want to, of course."
Her new weapon, a two-meter-long lance, materialized. Before the Elysia-like phantoms could react, she had already skewered dozens.
Misteln felt a thrill she couldn't describe.
(Controlling Master's body to strike Elysia… this feels so… delightful!)
She grabbed four short spears strapped to her back and hurled them, piercing another four fake Ely's in an instant.
It wasn't long before every phantom of the Pink Elf had been wiped out. Tilting her head, Misteln looked at the stunned Herrscher of Sentience.
"Why don't you make some more?"
She wasn't done playing yet.
"Stay back! Don't come near me!"
The Herrscher screamed in panic, fleeing as she ordered the remaining phantoms to attack Misteln, hoping only to buy time.
"Oh~ if you won't, that's fine. But don't forget—this dream belongs to me now."
Misteln sighed with mock regret.
She raised her hand and conjured a new dreamscape. The sky flipped into the ground, boulders rained down on the phantoms, exploding on impact. In just two seconds, they were obliterated.
Then she hurled her lance with all her might.
"Phantasm—Ethereal Dream!"
The lance turned into a streak of violet light, piercing the fleeing Herrscher of Sentience and pinning her firmly to the dream's ground.
"AAAHHHHHHHHHH!!"
"Whew~ mission complete. Switching back."
Though she wanted to linger in Elias' body, Misteln was an obedient [Idea]. Without hesitation, she returned to the spiritual space, relinquishing control.
Elias' consciousness came back online. Looking at the Herrscher of Sentience nailed to the ground, he nodded with satisfaction.
"Good. Now then, Herrscher of Sentience—are you ready to confess?"