Chapter 934

“...Right, this is a dream.”

Maeng Hyo-don, watching the rain streaking down the window inside the fight club, suddenly realized he was in a nightmare.

He thought to himself that it was a relief it was just a dream, but things were not so simple.

The sense of distinguishing between reality and dream was more dulled today than it had been yesterday.

As a chilling feeling spread, the rain outside twisted into a strange shape.

As Maeng Hyo-don recognized the nightmare, it seemed the nightmare also realized his awareness.

“Today is the owner's birthday, everyone. It’s time to raise a toast!”

At that moment, the voice of the announcer echoed.

Today was Choi Pyun-deuk’s birthday, and a grand battle was scheduled to celebrate it.

The announcer, with a voice mixed with flattery for Choi Pyun-deuk, laughed as he glanced at Maeng Hyo-don.

The shape of the announcer’s grin resembled the distorted rain streaks.

Even though Maeng Hyo-don recognized that this was a dream, it felt as though the nightmare was mocking him for not being able to do anything.

“Today, we’ll have a special battle to celebrate the owner’s birthday! A battle against the creatures of the True Clan with just a young player and his bare hands!”

Although Maeng Hyo-don’s powers were restricted in this dream, he had become accustomed to fighting enemies and had learned techniques from Takgeosan that were still fresh in his mind.

No matter how many creatures from the True Clan appeared, Maeng Hyo-don was confident he could fight and survive.

Even if there was nothing he could do now, he decided to endure until he woke up from the dream.

Just as Maeng Hyo-don steeled himself, the announcer’s voice echoed again.

“...Well, that was supposed to happen, but we have an even better opponent.”

Maeng Hyo-don didn’t understand the malice in the nightmare at all.

The darkness of the nightmare was far too deep to resolve simply by enduring it.

The nightmare had set its plans to consume Maeng Hyo-don’s resolve and will.

“The opponent is a rare being with the power to summon the madness of the sea.”

The mention of the "madness of the sea" didn’t immediately remind Maeng Hyo-don of anyone.

Only after a slight delay did he remember the spirit featured in PlayerZ, a game played by Jo Eui-shin.

Fighting a spirit like that could be tricky, but since he had watched the video, he thought it would be possible.

Under the incessant urging of the nightmare’s audience, the announcer grinned widely and pointed toward the dark side of the stage.

The spotlight flickered on, revealing the opponent’s identity.

“The girl player on the verge of going berserk!”

It was Kim Yuri.

The spot where the announcer had pointed revealed Kim Yuri standing there, struggling to endure the pressure of Inung Eating.

With a loosely tied ponytail, a butterfly-shaped hairpin instead of magnolia, and a school uniform that looked damaged as if she had been through a battle, there were several things different about her, but there was no mistaking it—it was Kim Yuri.

And as the announcer had said, Kim Yuri was on the verge of losing control.

‘Why is the class president here, and in such a bad condition like during the youth retreat?’

Based on the timeline, Maeng Hyo-don didn’t know about Kim Yuri at the time of Choi Pyun-deuk’s birthday, so her presence could be a clear sign that this wasn’t reality.

But in Maeng Hyo-don’s simple train of thought, his priorities shifted.

At that moment, his concern for Kim Yuri took precedence over the questions about whether this was a dream or reality.

The images from the youth retreat—her unstable state, opening her powers and collapsing—flashed in his mind.

‘I need to save the class president. How can I escape? It’s hard enough alone! No, this is a dream, can I even save her?’

Just as Maeng Hyo-don tried to snap himself out of the confusion, his thoughts were interrupted by a quiet voice.

“Hyo-don…”

Kim Yuri called out his name, having recognized him.

The audience’s excited cheers filled the air as they understood the two of them knew each other.

Kim Yuri didn’t ask for help, only panting heavily.

Maeng Hyo-don was thrown into confusion.

What would happen if he fought Kim Yuri now?

What if she had been dragged into the nightmare as well?

‘The vice-class president and the teacher will come to save us soon, but... wait, they didn’t come last time either. Ah, if this is a dream... is this real?’

The announcer blabbered on, calling it a big match between the elite players of Yeonggwang High, while a disco ball spun wildly to heighten the atmosphere.

Flashing lights of every color swirled around, and Maeng Hyo-don’s mind slowly began to darken.

Meanwhile, the staff prepared barriers in case of Kim Yuri’s berserk state, and the announcer finished the introduction.

The battle was about to begin.

“Ugh…”

Kim Yuri staggered and groaned, and Maeng Hyo-don almost spoke without thinking.

No longer did he view Kim Yuri as just a part of the nightmare.

No matter the match, he couldn’t just leave Kim Yuri in such a terrible state.

‘I have to get the class president and escape. We can do it, just the two of us!’

The words "dream" and "reality" were wiped from Maeng Hyo-don’s thoughts.

He accepted everything in front of him and decided to act.

Maeng Hyo-don rushed forward to support Kim Yuri.

But in that instant, his body refused to move.

His mouth was sealed, and he couldn’t speak.

It was as though something was actively preventing him from reaching Kim Yuri.

‘What is this, a spiderweb?’

A spiderweb was holding Maeng Hyo-don’s mouth and body.

The moment Maeng Hyo-don saw the web, he remembered what In Seon-o had said during his night walk.

In Seon-o had explained that the net of a Dreamcatcher symbolized the spiderweb that catches nightmares.

As Maeng Hyo-don wondered why the web was binding him, he fully realized that this was a nightmare.

‘Right, this is a dream. The vice-class president said he learned to control his powers. He said the vice-class president and the weirdo will help us.’

With that thought, Maeng Hyo-don looked up, only to find that Kim Yuri was no longer on the stage.

Instead, where Kim Yuri had been, there was only a spiderweb and dewdrops.

Not just Kim Yuri, but the announcer and the audience were gone as well.

The nightmare had turned into dew as it had caught Maeng Hyo-don’s earlier thoughts.

But the nightmare was still there.

‘The spiderweb can’t cover this whole place. To wake up from the dream, I need to find another way.’

The nightmare was far too large and dark compared to the web.

Though some of it had turned to dew, the nightmare was still swirling, plotting to swallow Maeng Hyo-don once more.

The Dreamcatcher had helped him avoid one crisis, but there was no telling what would happen the second time.

Then, it happened.

Rrrr…!

A tiger’s roar, filled with fury, echoed.

It seemed the nightmare was displeased, and the tiger’s roar sounded far more threatening than before.

And then, a white flash burst forth from the edge of the nightmare.

Screech!

Maeng Hyo-don’s vision turned bright white in an instant.

He heard the sound of something splitting apart.

It was the same white flash he had seen when the nightmare ended yesterday.

The flash, filled with intense power, tore through the surroundings, but Maeng Hyo-don wasn’t afraid of the light.

Finally, Maeng Hyo-don opened his eyes.

“...!”

Maeng Hyo-don sprang out of bed.

He was drenched in sweat, just like yesterday, and the surroundings didn’t seem much different from before.

There was one difference, though.

Maeng Hyo-don’s Inung Eating power had been drained.

He had heard that intense mental stress could affect his Inung Eating, and it seemed that had happened.

The appearance of Kim Yuri in the nightmare had shaken Maeng Hyo-don far more than anything yesterday.

And there was something else that bothered him.

‘That window, wasn’t it closed when I went to sleep?’

Maeng Hyo-don and Jo Eui-shin had gone to sleep at the same time last night, and the window had been closed then.

It was possible Jo Eui-shin woke up in the middle of the night and opened it.

Maeng Hyo-don silently watched Jo Eui-shin, who was sleeping in the correct position, before getting up.

He didn’t feel like going back to sleep.

‘Ah!’

As Maeng Hyo-don was about to get out of bed, he looked up at the lamp.

The net of the Dreamcatcher was completely torn, and the beads and unicorn feathers were all darkened.

Maeng Hyo-don grabbed the Dreamcatcher with trembling hands and examined it.

‘I don’t feel any Inung Eating... What is this... did I have such a terrible nightmare?’

Maeng Hyo-don stood there, holding the darkened Dreamcatcher, staring blankly for a while before quietly walking out.

When he left for his night walk, only Jo Eui-shin remained asleep in the room.

A little while later, amidst Jo Eui-shin’s steady breathing, the sound of the window closing softly mixed with the room’s silence.

Around Cheongrangho in the landscaping area.

This was a perfect spot for a night walk, surrounded by the fog barrier.

In Seon-o walked at a steady pace, neither too fast nor too slow.

Outwardly, In Seon-o appeared to be a typical Yeonggwang High student, enjoying a leisurely night stroll.

Then, the gray spider pattern, which had been swirling around his elbow, quickly crawled up his sleeve, causing In Seon-o to momentarily stop walking.

Looking briefly at his elbow, In Seon-o turned his head toward the fog barrier.

At that moment, Maeng Hyo-don, who had just stepped out, locked eyes with him.

“...Hey.”

Maeng Hyo-don spoke casually as he saw In Seon-o.

Still unsettled by the nightmare and drenched in sweat, Maeng Hyo-don didn’t look great, but In Seon-o didn’t point it out and gently responded with a greeting.

“Hey, we meet again.”

“Uh...”

“Guseulbi and Louis packed some snacks, want some? They gave them to me for the night walk.”

In Seon-o held up an aurora-colored paper bag, offering the snacks inside.

It contained the carefully chosen treats from the two attention-seekers: seafood-flavored snacks from the supermarket and brightly-colored rose jam cookies made by Onggildong.

Normally, Maeng Hyo-don wouldn’t refuse food, but right now, he didn’t feel like eating.

When he shook his head, In Seon-o didn’t press further and fell silent.

It seemed like he was waiting for Maeng Hyo-don to speak first.

“As you said, I... well... I hung this up before sleeping.”

Maeng Hyo-don showed In Seon-o the Dreamcatcher, now darkened.

When In Seon-o saw it, his expression briefly clouded over.

It was a look Maeng Hyo-don had never seen before while hanging out with the class.

The shadow of the streetlight made In Seon-o’s face seem even darker.

“You had a nightmare.”

After Maeng Hyo-don spoke, In Seon-o didn’t immediately respond.

It seemed like he was taking a moment to calm himself, hiding his agitation, but it was so brief that Maeng Hyo-don couldn’t be sure.

In Seon-o carefully inspected the darkened Dreamcatcher before speaking again.

“...I see. It looks like the Dreamcatcher didn’t help.”

“No, it did help.”

“Really? How?”

Maeng Hyo-don wasn’t sure how to explain.

He hesitated to talk about the nightmare with Kim Yuri and felt an odd premonition that he shouldn’t speak too freely.

In Seon-o, sensing Maeng Hyo-don wasn’t willing to elaborate, didn’t ask further.

Instead, he spoke as though to himself.

“According to the legend, it’s bad to talk about dreams, whether good or bad. Especially about nightmares—it’s almost like a taboo. It increases the chance that the nightmare will notice you. But if you ever need help, just let me know.”

“Uh...”

Maeng Hyo-don trailed off, feeling a little guilty.

In Seon-o was trying to help, even bringing up the Dreamcatcher, but Maeng Hyo-don felt bad about not explaining more.

In Seon-o, seemingly unfazed, shifted the conversation.

“Our class valedictorian is probably good at math too, don’t you think?”

“Huh?”

Of course, Ju Su-hyeok and Anda-in were good at math.

The two had yet to decide their future paths, but it was widely rumored that they had mastered all the subjects for the university entrance exams.

Since Maeng Hyo-don was quite close with Ju Su-hyeok, he occasionally asked him math questions.

It seemed In Seon-o knew about this.

“You said you were studying math with the vice-class president at night, right? Why not try learning from someone else sometimes? Our class valedictorian is probably good at math too. Almost everyone in the camp is good at it, I bet.”

Maeng Hyo-don didn’t understand what In Seon-o was getting at or why he brought up Ju Su-hyeok.

It wasn’t until much later, when he was wandering around the school and the sun began to rise, that Maeng Hyo-don realized the intention behind In Seon-o’s words.

It seemed In Seon-o was subtly suggesting that Maeng Hyo-don try changing rooms during the camp.

Not with Jo Eui-shin, but with someone else.