◈ Episode 213 Invitation to Dream (2)
I opened my eyes slowly
The old-fashioned scenery of the room disappeared and a starless night sky was revealed. I stood alone beneath it.
snap.
As I stepped in, I heard the sound of water.
Looking down, the entire ground was made up of water.
It was dark, so I couldn’t tell the depth. A faint mist of water rose above the surface of the water.
‘It reminds me of the salt desert.’
Under the surface of the water, where my image was reflected like a mirror, colorful starlight was scattered.
There were no stars in the sky overhead.
‘This is the outskirts of the dream.’
This was the outermost edge of a world made up of human dreams and unconsciousness called Dreamland.
And these starlights submerged beneath the surface of the water were all people’s dreams.
I walked slowly
With each step, the water surface created ripples and spread out as if drawing concentric circles.
Dreams like starlight submerged beneath the surface of the water swayed dizzyly with the ripples.
‘The meeting place is not far from here.’
The fog-filled road made it difficult to discern the direction, but the ring on his hand made it possible.
The emerald light flowing from the ring stretched out and pointed me in the direction.
I walked along the ledge of light.
It’s not that I’m not interested in this space itself, but there’s something more important right now.
How long did you walk following the light?
The light from the ring stopped before I knew it.
The fog in front lifted slightly, revealing a large door.
‘Is this the entrance?’
It was a door made of gray marble.
Above the door was carved the image of a horned devil, which looked like an entrance to hell.
‘You carve the devil. I don’t know who made it, but it’s a nasty hobby.’
I approached the door.
When I put my hand with the ring on it, red light flowed from the demon’s eyes above the door, and the door opened.
Inside the stone gate, it was pitch-black darkness where nothing could be seen.
The possibility of a trap was not ruled out. But that would be significantly less likely.
As it is, I moved my steps into the darkness.
As I entered, the door behind me closed with a thud.
And in complete darkness.
A chattering sound came from somewhere.
There was a large table not far away.
The chatter came from people sitting there.
“I was caught off guard and what?”
“So this time my research results were stolen… … huh?”
Those who were chattering among themselves stopped talking and stared at me as I approached.
It was the same for me too.
What was placed on the chair was not a human figure, but a burning black flame.
‘indeed. Is it completely different from the real image because it’s just the mind?’
Even if you try to see it like this, you won’t be able to tell the difference.
On the other hand, it is fortunate for both of us that this side is not caught either.
“Oh Hyo-hyo. Who is it? I just approached without saying anything.”
A black flame that speaks to me.
Even though I didn’t see the real person, I was able to infer who it was just by talking.
Victor Dreadful.
He was looking at me now and asking me to reveal my identity.
‘What do we do.’
Should I reveal my name here?
First of all, John Doe in my information is not that friendly with others.
Judging from the reactions of the other Orders, they are loyal only to the Zero Order and have little regard for others.
Having made my decision, I naturally sat down in the empty seat.
“Oh dear. Seeing as he doesn’t even like to mix words, he looks like John Doe. You are still a quiet person! Oh hyo hyo!”
… … John Doe, this guy didn’t even talk to the same First Order.
Why did you talk to me on the train then?
Were you drunk on the character in disguise?
“Look at that. Really, only one person pretends to be proud and unlucky again.”
At that time, complaints erupted from the black flame that was sitting in another seat.
Anyone could see that I was shouting because I didn’t like my arrogant behavior.
Who is it.
“Night Berom. Don’t be so angry. It’s not even a day or two anyway, is it?”
“It’s noisy, you crazy psychopath.”
“Oh Hyo-hyo. It’s too much. You didn’t call me doctor in a friendly way like last time. I think those tears will come out!”
“shut up. Do you know that I call you that because I want to? damn. Even if it wasn’t just a curse.”
——————
faqwiki.us
Join our Discord for new chapter updates!
https://discord.com/invite/xr7SxG5T6V
——————
Is that guy Berom?
I thought of Berom, whom I had met at the Baltanung factory.
A knight who fluttered a black cloak in black full plate armor and fired red slashes.
The First Order, who even used an old-fashioned way of speaking, is a guy who uses such harsh words and actions.
‘If you see that you hate the way you talk, this is probably the real person. The one I saw then must have been drunk for some reason.’
If so, it was highly likely that the armor he was wearing was a special item.
A cursed item or an ancient relic.
He got his strength from the armor, but he must have been limited by it.
‘Are all the First Orders I know of here?’
There were a total of 8 seats at the table.
Excluding the seat of the highest rank, the Zero Order, the remaining seven seats belong to the First Order.
And there were a total of 4 black flames, including myself, sitting in the seat.
‘Who the hell is that one person?’
The flame, which had been burning silently all along, did not show any reaction.
Seeing as I didn’t even look at them when I appeared, it seemed like they weren’t interested in the other members.
‘It’s going to be hard to know who it is if they stay quiet like that.’
Just then, a new First Order arrived on the scene.
“oh. Are you here more than expected?”
The newly arrived fireworks spoke in a friendly tone and sat down in an empty seat.
“Did you hear the story? Esmeralda collapsed.”
The guy naturally brought up such a story to Berom and Victor.
“The fire witch? Ordinarily, she would have come early, but that was the reason why she was not at her place.”
“uh. That’s definitely news. Perhaps Zero Order-sama will speak sooner or later.”
“I am surprised. I thought that Miss Esmeralda was not the kind of person who would be killed anywhere.”
“Well, I think so too.”
The unidentified First Order, who was speechless at the end, watched this.
Although there were no eyes, I could definitely feel that gaze.
“John Doe. If you infiltrated Seorn together, don’t you know?”
Naturally, the gazes of Berom and Vector Dreadful naturally flew to me.
I had already thought that this question would come up, so I brought out the answer I had prepared.
“Zero Order will explain. listen to him.”
I naturally turned to the role of Zero Order.
Having said that, I didn’t ask any more.
‘It’s quite convenient to sell the name of Zero Order in this part.’
But his eyes were still on me.
‘what? Is he related to John Doe?’
It’s not that I didn’t think of naturally mixing words and drawing out information from the other side.
Just as I was trying to dig up information, there was a chance that the other person would find something out of my words.
Considering the risk of being suspicious of his identity due to a mistake in his words, it was the best choice to speak sparingly.
I had to avoid being exposed as a false identity as much as possible.
‘If you look at Zero Order, you seem to already know that I’m a different guy.’
Haven’t you told the other First Orders yet?
‘Still, it’s a little strange that he’s an executive but doesn’t speak to anyone. I really don’t understand the ulterior motive.’
For now, I decided to postpone the concerns related to the zero order.
It would be impossible to judge his true intentions, so the priority was to recognize the unidentified First Orders over there right now.
As I remained silent, the chatty First Order continued their conversation with Victor.
“Rather than that, have you heard the story? I heard that the Bretus Holy Kingdom is moving. Recently, the paladins have started to moisturize again.”
“Oh, I heard that too. A place that had been quiet for 20 years suddenly moved. Could it be a bad omen?”
“Because the frequency of appearances of cryptids has increased recently. The king of beasts even appeared in Laedervelk, one of the great cities of the Exsilion Empire.”
“You mean the monster of the Jebodang? I heard it too. That’s too bad. I wanted to see that majestic figure with my own two eyes. It’s so sad that you were subjugated. I wanted to dissect that great cryptid and put it in a bottle of formalin and carry it around.”
“Well, it was said to be a subjugation, but judging from the fact that no corpse was left, I think it must have escaped. But I mean, it’s amazing. Even if Ledervelk was a big city, there would be no hiding place for that gigantic monster. Maybe it went down the aqueduct.”
The main talk was the unknown First Order.
The guy took all sorts of things as subjects to the extent that he said he knew nothing.
Beyond the simple world situation, to trivial things such as who did what, where, and what veins were discovered in which area.
‘You are bright and know a lot about the world situation. If you are in charge of intelligence, is it from a national agency? He might be infiltrating some sort of intelligence agency.’
But it’s not like I came here simply because I have a good head.
At the very least, there should be an ability that is not inferior to others when it comes to armed forces.
“So, Nikolai, is there any particularly interesting news these days?”
Nikolai.
I didn’t miss the name Victor said in passing.
Is your name Nikolai?
Being called that by the same First Order within the organization is at least a name that is directly related to one’s identity.
‘A total of five First Orders, including myself, have gathered here. Considering Esmeralda’s vacancy, is there only one left?’
It was a moment when I was thinking about when it would come.
Did they say that even a tiger would come if I said it?
The last First Order has just arrived.
“They are still the same guys. The loud ones are loud, and the quiet ones are quiet.”
Thin, high pitched voice. It was a woman.
I wonder if there was something that made me feel bad when I saw that there were thorns in my words and actions. Or it could have been his usual personality.
I didn’t react because I had an intuition that it would bother me if I was noticed.
The First Order arrived last and asked in a gruff tone.
“So, what about Zero Order? Aren’t you here yet?”
“Zero Order will be back soon. And Miss Bentmin is the latest among us.”
“Shut up, mad scientist. don’t call me by name Just hearing it gives me goosebumps.”
The First Order, called Bentmin, uttered abusive language towards Victor.
“Oh Hyo-hyo. You are a picky person. Isn’t it about time we got to know each other better?”
“I’d rather cuddle maggots than get along with someone like you.”
From what you’re saying, it sounds like you hate Victor quite a bit.
Well, Victor Dreadful does human experimentation like eating rice, and the appearance itself is unlikable.
A person who cannot be friendly with common sense.
It seems that Berom also hates what he says.
‘If you look at Victor’s actions, he seems to be okay with what others say. It means he doesn’t even care about others’ evaluation of himself.’
That’s why you’re doing something like a human experiment casually.
An innate psychopath lacking morality and empathy.
That was a man named Victor Dreadful.
‘Rather than that, the last member’s name is Bentmin.’
There was an old-fashioned feeling that could not be hidden in the irritated tone.
Unlike other informal First Orders, it was felt in his unique accent.
from a good family.
But a question arises. The Black Dawn isn’t a place for nobles to come in, is it?
Right now, even Sedina, a huge merchant family, has been subjected to all sorts of discrimination within the organization. Just because the family lives well.
But the First Order is an aristocratic family?
i need to remember
“Rather than that, Esmeralda? I know you’re not always this late.”
“Oh Hyo-hyo. Miss Bentmin. Didn’t you hear the news? Miss Esmeralda can’t come anymore.”
“what? did you get hurt? Is that Esmeralda?”
“They said yes. I thought it was something worth knowing, but it’s surprising that you didn’t know!”
“Noisy. In the first place, how many times do I have to tell you that I am not that bright about the situation outside?”
It was a moment when they were just talking among themselves.
Koo-ung!
I felt a vibration shaking the black space itself.
The chattering First Orders shut their mouths.
At the same time, their airways, which had been released, were tightened.
Someone was approaching this way through the darkness.
‘come.’
zero order.
The owner of the Black Dawn Society, and in fact the protagonist of this place.
His appearance made the First Order nervous at once.
“Everyone came on time and well.”
Unlike the First Order, which existed in the form of flame, the Zero Order took the form of a normal human.
Wearing black clothes like a priest, a white mask was worn over his face.
The mask resembled the devil’s figure I had seen at the marble door when I entered this place.
There was another person next to Zero Order, who was wearing a hood so deeply that it was hard to tell his age, let alone his gender.
‘Who is it? Seeing that he wasn’t seated, he probably wasn’t the First Order, and he was the subordinate of the Zero Order.’
Did you detect my gaze?
The adjutant slightly raised his head.
I could feel the darkness in the hood staring at me.
“Are you here? Mr. Zero Order.”
It was then that the flame, which had remained silent until now, opened its mouth.
A voice full of respect and respect.
His voice was so full of enthusiasm that it was surprising that he had kept his mouth shut until now.
“okay. long time no see. Leslie.”
Zero Order casually sat down on the chair and looked around.
Zero Order’s gaze lingered once on Esmeralda’s empty seat.
“Everyone seems to be doing well. Even though it’s an irregular meeting, he didn’t miss a single one and accepted it. Now, let’s start the meeting.”
And finally, his gaze was on me.
“The first topic is… … How to fill the vacant position in the First Order. Let’s start with that.”
