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Chapter 98 - A Damned Ice Cream Party!

Nephis stood on the stage, gazing down at the silent crowd. A faint breeze drifted through the hall as she held a small cup of ice cream in one hand, taking a thoughtful bite.

A soft smile crossed her lips.

"Well… where do I even start?"

She began to pace slowly, her voice steady but gentle.

"I know that not many of you truly knew Asher. He seemed to come out of nowhere — a stranger suddenly known as Saint Zerei — and people just… went with it."

A few quiet chuckles rippled through the hall. Nephis exhaled softly, turning back to the crowd.

"I don't think many people realize that Asher was one of the three who traveled with me to the Dark City."

A collective gasp rose among the audience. Nephis smiled faintly, a touch of nostalgia shadowing her eyes.

"Echo of the Abyss…" she said, her tone fond yet sad. "He has a true name, of course. But when I first met him… he was a coward."

The hall stirred with surprised murmurs. Nephis looked down at her melting ice cream, her voice growing distant.

"He was weak, and he'd hide behind Cassie — or even a rock — whenever we fought scavengers."

The crowd burst into soft laughter. Even Sunny cracked a faint smile before glancing at the untouched ice cream in front of him, his expression darkening again.

"But when it mattered," Nephis continued, "he always stood in danger's way. Not just for himself… but for those he cared about."

Silence fell. Every word hung heavy in the air.

"He fought beside me against the Fallen Terror. Many of you already know that story… Caster didn't make it."

She paused, studying the reaction of the crowd.

"The thing is... the terror was in midst of its evolution. So while it was in its weakest,"

A flash of white light shimmered in her palm as a beautiful sword took shape, casting rippling spark across the stage.

"So we killed it."

The room erupted.

"They killed the fallen terror?"

"Were we even in the same rank as them?"

"Woah!"

"Even if it was evolving, That's crazy!"

Sunny listened to everyone speak while Effie laughed beside him, "I remember saying it's impossible to leave the forgotten shore because of the terror. You psychos actually killed it."

Sunny gave a small smile, before noticing the professors actively taking down notes.

Nephis expression became solemn. 

 "But then… the spire began searching for a new vessel. Since the terror was gone, it needed someone — something — to keep it stable."

The hall fell utterly silent.

"I was badly wounded," she said softly. "And while I was healing, Asher… that idiot threw me into the gate."

The crowd stayed silent... no... there were muffled sniffles all over the ground as the former dreamers wiped their eyes with handkerchiefs and tissues alike. Effie lowered her head, gripping the wheels of her chair so tightly her knuckles whitened. Kai's jaw clenched as he stared at the floor.

"But."

Changing Star spoke louder, raising her ice cream cup. A small flame in her eye.

"He'll come back. If anyone can do it, it's him."

A few moments later, a voice resounded from the crowd, full of adamant belief:

"That's right, I bet he is currently roasting the terror's meat, looking at a map and thinking where to find another Gateway!"

"He'll come back in no time! He can fly!"

"He said he will!"

Dozens of dreamers raised their ice cream cups high, their cheers echoing through the grand hall.

Nephis blinked, caught off guard — then smiled, a rare, genuine warmth lighting her face. She lifted her cup high.

"When he does," she said, her voice ringing with conviction, "we'll have a damned ice cream party."

The crowd erupted again — laughter, tears, hope.

Sunny stared at her for a long moment before letting out a quiet breath. Nephis' personality... was definitely influenced by Asher to some extent.

A small, tired smile tugged at his lips as he lifted his own cup.

"…We're waiting for you, fool."

***

"Shit...!"

Streaking through the air, Asher scowled and glanced back frantically. He knew venturing into a Death Zone was a bad idea — but this? Seriously?!

The blizzard howled like a beast, shaking the world around him. The cold didn't bother him much, thanks to his trench coat and reinforced body, but the sheer absurdity of it did. Every snowflake was the size of his palm — and each one hit like a slap.

He hovered above the ground, scooping up whatever snow he could from the ground in his box while he looked to his right. Just 50 meters away... there was no hail. 

Why was the dream realm so weird!?

Dismiss­ing the box, he floated upward again, squinting into the pale void. Water, check. But he couldn't linger. The outskirts of the Hollow Mountains were still dangerous.

Closing his eyes, he extended his perception. The world faded, replaced by a ghostly map of distortions — shimmering, unstable pockets in space. Nightmare Seeds. Three of them.

 An issue however was that, Asher couldn't sense the category of any of them.

So if he accidentally entered a seed meant for sovereigns, he was doomed. So... he has to find that skeleton Nephis had. He coughed.

The skeleton being the same person he killed in his first Nightmare. 'This is going to be weird...' 

Alas... what could he do. That skeleton seemed to know which seed to go to unlike him. For all he knew, if he didn't find Eurys, the chances of him reaching the real world- already low- would basically become zero.

The problem is... He wasn't a main character. He can't just stumble upon Eurys out of nowhere like Nephis. He would have to go out of his way to find him under a god dammed tree.

The endless white gave way to gold.

A desert stretched before him.

After nearly a month of travel, he was finally back. The Nightmare Desert.

The very same one from his first Nightmare.

Landing lightly, he crouched and let his fingers trail through the warm sand. For the first time in ages, something felt… familiar. Home, in a twisted way.

But the comfort didn't last. His expression darkened; a ripple of urgency tugging against his senses.

Without hesitation, he darted behind a dune, closing his eyes as he sank into the calm, vast depths of his soul sea.

The world shifted — the winds turned to waves. His feet touched liquid glass as ripples spread outward, glimmering faintly under a dark, moonlit expanse.

He turned up, seeing that thing.

A tall, lithe figure formed from the water, it hair flowing like ink and her crimson eyes glowing with mischief. Dahila turned toward him slowly, crossing her arms behind her back.

A sly, knowing smile curved her lips.

"Oh, hi, Asher," she purred, her voice echoing like a song under deep water. "Seems to me you've gotten yourself into a very sticky situation…"

_________

[A/N: This chapter is in advance for the 40 reviews! So... Hurry up!!!]

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