Chương 64: 63. Dream Chat with a Deity

Drinking water from the nose was a highly unpleasant experience, though it paled in comparison to the other pain I was currently subjected to. It had taken half an hour for the curse in my chest to subside. Now, only my hand remained. Due to my hemophilia, it had been necessary that I close the self-inflicted wound quickly, and the only way I could think of was through fire. I had used the Two of Chalice half a dozen times to turn the burning flesh into a crust, but that proved to be a lot more limited than needed.

"We must go through the nest," Marcus said.

"There was one hidden boss. There might be another." There was reason in his words, though I strongly doubted it. Harlequin wouldn't be so generous as to let us start at a spot with three point-giving creatures. If Eleonor was right about the total amount, even two was pushing it.

"Does he look in a condition to move around?" Cathy asked, referring to me.

"He needs rest. After this, I do as well." Eleonor had remained surprisingly quiet. My guess was that she had just experienced her first crash with reality. Up to now, she had always been arrogant in her confidence, believing she had all the answers. I had been like that once; in fact, I had been like that several times. In my previous run, every few years I'd come to the conclusion that I had learned everything there was, rising above the rest. The truth was that even now I knew laughably little.

"He doesn't need to go," Marcus said.

"The two of us can take care of this." I could see his play. In his world, only two things determined the course of action: strength and allegiance. After receiving the rewards of the fight, Cathy had obtained two new cards, as well as improved her Magician by one level. She also seemed the safer bet. Despite agreeing to join her group, no one really trusted Eleonor, not even Carl. Go. I waved my hand towards them, following up with a thumbs up.

"Are you sure?" her eyes were filled with concern. I tapped the back of my left wrist, then raised four fingers. They had four hours to explore, then I expected them back.

"Right." Marcus nodded.

"Get some rest till then." It was a good thing that I couldn't smile. That was a lot easier said than done. I shook my head instead.

"You're coming along," Marcus turned to Carl.

"Me?" I could see the sweat forming on the manager's forehead.

"Why would…"

"You're the bait," Marcus said unapologetically.

"That's what you're good at." Carl's eyes widened in terror. Panicked, he looked from person to person, hoping that someone would step in to defend him. When no one did, he reluctantly stood up. Despite how stupid he was in certain areas, and there were many, he had mastered the art of survival.

"We'll be back in a few hours," Marcus said as the group left the chamber. I watched them vanish into the tunnel beyond, then focused on other things. The queen hadn't released a single sphere, but was exceedingly generous when it came to cards. Each of us had obtained a set. In my case, that had boosted my Magician, allowing me to use combat circles. The issue, same as before, was that I only knew four spells. The Emperor had also received a new skill, finally granting me the power to "Overawe" others.

It was a powerful skill, as demonstrated, although it would have an adverse effect on my group as well as the monsters. And then, there was the greatest prize of the fight. THE LOVER(V, MAJOR, CHALICE) (Rarity – Exceptional) SKILLS (1/3): 1 BESTOW SYMPATHY: Appear sympathetic in the eyes of others 2??? 3??? Another Chalice card. With it, the rarest remaining card of the house was in my possession. That considerably simplified things.

When the merchants started selling cards, which could happen a lot earlier this run than the last, I'd have the opportunity to buy them up. Finally, I had also received my second request reward. Conveniently, it had only been granted once the fight against the queen was over. It was highly doubtful that having lightning would have provided a huge advantage against the queen, but it would have significantly helped me against the hundreds of lesser scorpions.

"Will they find anything?" Eleonor asked, her back still to me. I didn't know how she expected to get a response, but I still took out my divine blades. None of them pulled in any direction. I tapped the blades against one another, causing Eleonor to turn around, then shook my head.

"Better get some rest," she said.

"I'll watch." It was as good an offer as any. Killing me off at this point wasn't going to gain her anything. Besides, although I wasn't officially in a pact, a few deities had shown interest in my actions. With a nod, I returned the blades to my inventory, then lay on the chamber floor. Even after clearing a spot, there was no escape from the scorpion corpses. At least it wasn't rotting flesh. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

The path between reality and dreams was always sudden. One moment I was lying on the floor and the next a Dalmatian walked up to me and started licking my face.

"Not now, pup," I grumbled. Hearing my voice confused me. I could feel my lips still being sealed, and yet I could clearly hear everything I said.

"This isn't right," I uttered without moving my lips.

"That's what happens in dreams," I heard a voice beside me. Looking in that direction, I saw Eleonor there, standing just in front of the wall of mist. For a moment, I wondered why the pup wasn't growling. Then I saw that her eyes were golden.

"Cards still have an effect in dreams, but at the same time this is your space," Hypnos said through the girl.

"Here we don't need a mouth to talk," he added, his lips closed like mine.

"I'm not going to form a pact with you," I said firmly.

"You presume I'd offer one," he laughed.

"That's not why I'm here." Eleonor took a step forward.

"The rules forbid me from interfering in this trial. However, I am still free to make requests." The girl extended her hand. A stream of mist flowed from the wall onto it, condensing into the form of a simple green ring.

"A resistance ring," Hypnos said.

"Quite useful given your current situation." I looked at the item. It had been a few hours since my stomach curse had struck, but I strongly suspected that it was near to activation yet again.

"It's not particularly strong. Frankly, I'm ashamed to offer it, but that's the most that the rules allow."

"And what do you want in return?"

"A conversation." Eleonor's hand closed around the ring.

"Call off your pet and have my follower have a proper chat with you. She will not use any skills or abilities while you do. I swear by the Grand Arcana." A promise like that couldn't be broken, and still I didn't trust him. Deities always played their own games. Plus, this was way too much for a simple request of this nature.

"Just a talk with Eleonor?" I asked.

"No strings attached," Hypnos nodded.

"What if I ask for another prize? I'm not interested in the ring. Just tell me more about what I want to know." The girl laughed again.

"You're smart enough to know I can't do that. The ring is the best I could do. If you suspect me in a lie, all you have to do is refuse. The power is entirely yours." That was the usual line. Deities never said that people didn't have a choice, even if that were the case. They always presented options. A trinket, even as insignificant as this, would be a huge help during the trial and beyond. Was it worth taking the risk? Possibly.

"Don't interfere, pup," I said. The Dalmatian looked up, surprised at my order.

"It'll be a talk among friends." I extended my hand, palm open, indicating that I had accepted the offer. Eleonor smiled, then went up to me and dropped the ring into my hand. The moment she did, her eyes returned to their former state. Each time I saw it happen reminded me never to get into a pact with a deity. The rewards were significant, but they used their followers like puppets, not to mention that the punishment was beyond harsh.

"Smug jerk." She crossed her arms.

"Took a deity to get you to talk to me."

"I know. I should have bargained for more." I know perfectly well what you're capable of.

"So what's so important that you had to get him involved?" She tried to be subtle about it, but I saw her clench her fist.

"This trial," she began.

"You know a lot more than you should."

"We've been over this already."

"You know more than the deities!" The admission alone made my stomach knot. I always knew that I would attract attention, though not this much, this fast. I had only heard of one person who knew more than he should and things had ended up pretty poorly for him. Not that I think about it, he might have also obtained the Crying Prophet somehow. The one time I had seen him was during a rule-masters' competition. He was on Scaramouche's team, leaving everyone else in the dust.

The trial was a gathering one: collect the hundred peacock eyes while constantly hunted by elves and other beasts in the jungle world. He had found ninety-nine. There was no doubt that he would win, yet just when the trial was about to end, Harlequin had appeared and announced that due to his prerogative, it would start from the beginning. All a hundred eyes were returned to their places, only this time there was one participant less.

"The reason I got to join the trial was because of you," Eleonor continued.

"I know you're not an oracle, so what are you?" What was I really?

"Just someone with dreams of the future," I calmly replied.

"Some end up being true, some don't." Her eyes narrowed. She didn't like the answer, but was smart enough to know she wouldn't get anything more. It was strange seeing her angry; for a moment she almost seemed human.

"There are still twenty bosses to be caught," she said after a while.

"The scorpions weren't included in the total."

"Why do you care? We're ahead. The others—""The others are still back in the preparation hall, arguing who should get the red curses. Yet, you took all five without thinking. By all accounts, you should have been dead. I saw you die, and yet here you are." She had seen me die? That wasn't a power that Hypnos had. From what I knew, no deities could see into the future. Predictions were strictly the domain of participants, provided they had obtained the right cards.

"You wanted me dead?" There was no way she had wasted a favor from her patron deity just to tell me that.

"I won't be your sacrifice."

"You can't." It was both ominous and flattering that she couldn't deny it.

"You're spoken for. I…" she paused. I could clearly see the anger all over her body; as much as she tried to hide it, she couldn't stop her face or muscles twitching. Despite what everyone wanted to make it appear, this wasn't a voluntary conversation. Someone else had put her up to it, although for some reason it didn't feel like Hypnos.

"I'm offering a further alliance," she said.

"Just you and me."

"You're not my type." And even if she were, I wouldn't let her get within ten feet of me.

"You have information," she pretended to ignore me.

"I have information. None of it is correct." The momentary glare suggested that she blamed me for that. I couldn't deny it. The ripples my return had caused had started with me buying silver coins back on Earth.

"If we combined the pieces, we might get part of the big picture," she continued.

"Isn't that what you want?"

"Poke into my dreams again and Hypnos will be searching for a new follower." There was just enough of a threat in my words to make her see I was serious. Eleonor must have felt it, for her left foot raised a fraction of an inch, as if she were about to step back.

"That will be part of the arrangement," she managed to maintain her calm.

"We exchange information only, and each helps the other. If our goals ever come into conflict, I will step back." Just like that?

"What is your goal?" I frowned.

"I can't tell you. And you won't understand if I did. Take the deal or don't it's your choice." She used Hypnos' trick.

"I just need an answer."

"Just an answer?" I really wished I could smirk.

"Alright. I'll give you an answer at the end of the trial." I put the green ring on my left index finger.

"Good enough?"

"No," she replied.

"But I'll work with that. And… as a gesture of good faith, I'll share something you could use. There's still a creature in this nest that you might want to kill. I've no idea what or where. I just know that you'll be pleased if you do." I had to give it to Hypnos, he really could bargain when he wanted to. This offer was so on the nose that he couldn't have made it more obvious. Eleonor had just provided me with a piece of information that complemented my knowledge of scorpion nests.

"Cute." I stepped up to her. From up close the brand on my lips must have looked grotesque, yet she didn't move back, regardless. Whatever she wanted, she was determined to get, almost as much as I was.

"Then let's go get it." I woke up.