Duke Yuma stared at the two translucent chains stretching out ominously.
He gripped Balmung tighter and swung it toward the hazy chains.
‘…!’
Yuma narrowed his eyes. Balmung passed through the two chains like a mirage.
It wasn’t an attack; it was a curse itself.
Kwahak!
Yuma quickly turned his head toward the two places the chains had touched.
There were two people pierced by the chains.
Cloney and Hestia.
Yuma’s gaze quickly shifted once more.
He looked at the being who had summoned these two chains, the [Wretched God of Iron Mace], Morg.
Kwaduk! Wuduk!
Morg’s body was grotesquely contracting.
The medium for casting [Sinful Dream] was his very own life.
That power was tied to his own existence.
“…The people you cherish… have fallen into an eternal slumber, not knowing when they might awaken. Let them struggle in that pain for a long, long time….”
Kwaduk!
Morg’s body squished and burst forth with blood, turning into an unrecognizable mass of flesh.
The spell that Morg had cast using ‘life’ pierced the minds of Cloney and Hestia.
Having staked his life as the price for the curse, Morg broke through Yuma’s meticulously cast [Blessing—Mental Barrier].
Cloney and Hestia’s bodies flipped backward.
As their bodies were about to crash to the ground, Bell and Ermel supported them from behind, barely preventing a fall.
“Cloney!”
Bell shouted loudly, shaking Cloney’s small body vigorously.
Ermel placed her right hand on Bell’s shoulder.
“They’re not dead… they seem to be trapped in some kind of slumber.”
At Ermel’s words, Bell narrowed her eyes.
“Trapped in… slumber?”
With Bell’s question full of concern, Ermel shared all she knew.
“Yes, it seems to be a curse in the form of a nightmare.”
Yuma approached the two who lay stiffly on the ground, his face tight with worry.
The Join Tribe and the people of the Zepharos Kingdom confirmed that not only the two gods but also all the Yeti-like minions led by the [Wretched God of Iron Mace], Morg, had been slain.
Even so, the survivors couldn’t rejoice.
It felt like something bad had befallen those who came to save them.
The chief of the ‘Egar’ tribe of the Join Tribe, Cresen, bowed his head toward Yuma.
“There’s a resting place for them over there.”
Yuma nodded at the words of the Join Tribe.
I nodded at the words of the Join Tribe.
“I see.”
First, I had to take all possible measures.
*
Under Cresen’s guidance, I was able to lay Cloney and Hestia down on the bed.
Ermel was sweating profusely as she placed her hand on the foreheads of Cloney and Hestia.
A pure white light of divine power was radiating brightly from Ermel’s right hand.
Ermel slowly shook her head.
“…The healing isn’t working. It seems it’s not a curse that devours life, but rather a nightmare-type curse.”
With no knowledge of curses, Duke Yuma pressed Ermel for an explanation.
“A nightmare-type curse… First, the subject has to realize that the world they’re in is false. Sometimes it opens just by that realization. Other times, they have to go deeper into the situation and find something like a key to unlock the nightmare themselves.”
Duke Yuma furrowed his brow and asked.
“Is there an average time it takes to break a nightmare?”
“No, it varies from person to person. Some people break out of their nightmares in about three days… while others die in a vegetative state without ever waking up.”
The variance was extreme.
“And this nightmare-type curse… you can say it’s cast by a mental-tier god who is at the pinnacle of that curse. Let’s say… the intricacy of the nightmare. I think the intricacy of the dream world will be incredible.”
To break the [Mental Barrier] that Duke Yuma had set for Cloney and Hestia, the [Precarious Warhammer God] Morg staked his very soul.
There was no way a curse cast through a god’s soul would be easy to break.
Duke Yuma continued to gaze at Cloney and Hestia, who looked as if they had peacefully fallen into slumber, with a stern expression.
Someone approached Yuma from beside him.
It was Kregel, the leader of the Eger Tribe. Kregel had brought someone else along.
Both Kregel and the Join Tribe member knelt before Yuma.
Unlike Kregel, the Join Tribe member beside him was shaking in fear.
“What’s going on?”
At Yuma’s words, Kregel hastily opened his mouth.
“I brought someone from the Join Tribe who knows a lot about curses.”
Yuma approached the Join Tribe member beside Kregel.
“What’s your name?”
The Join Tribe member, who had witnessed Yuma’s recent battle, could only feel fear and awe standing before him.
“Uh, it’s Legores.”
“Tell me everything you know about the curse of nightmares. Are you aware if I can intervene, and if there’s any way to do so?”
Under Yuma’s urgent questioning, Legores trembled and responded.
“From what I know, there’s no way to intervene… But.”
“But?”
Legores calmly gathered his thoughts and continued explaining.
“With the divine power that you possess, Sir Yuma, it might be possible to enter the nightmare and observe.”
“Observe?”
“Yes, while you can’t directly interfere… it seems you could at least watch. But this is something you will have to try to find out for yourself.”
“I understand. By the way, is there any possibility that the nightmare itself could threaten my life?”
Legores slowly shook his head.
“That won’t happen. However… given that the entity casting the curse is a god, not a demon, it will be crafted so intricately that even a being with high mental strength might not notice it. So, realizing that it’s a nightmare will be terribly difficult.”
It was at that moment.
Samer, the great warrior standing guard some distance away, approached those engaged in conversation.
“The second commander of the Zeparos kingdom has arrived. It seems he wishes to meet the deity.”
“I see.”
Yuma rose to his feet.
If wasting unnecessary time was inevitable, it was better to do it sooner.
As Yuma exited the tent, members of the second knight division of the Zeparos kingdom came into view.
Arwin, the silver-haired commander, knelt without hesitation.
Clank! Clack!
Following him, the knights behind him also knelt in unison.
“We meet the great being.”
Yuma said with a blank expression.
His dark gray hair fluttered in the strong wind.
“Rise.”
At Yuma’s words, the knights immediately stood up.
Ermel decided to step forward so Yuma wouldn’t have to worry about trivial matters.
The blonde holy maiden took a step forward.
Ermel looked back and forth between the knights of the second division and the Join Tribe before speaking.
“Sir Yuma is the only deity of this world, the Intermediate World. He is currently slaying the evil gods that have invaded various parts of our Intermediate continent.”
The people and the Join Tribe did not doubt her words for a moment.
What Yuma had just done.
And Ermel’s act of healing the wounded members of the Join Tribe and knights on the way to their land.
All of it substantiated the truth.
Suddenly…!
A golden banner appeared in Yuma’s right hand.
The flag of color appeared.
Duke Yuma planted that flag firmly in the ground without hesitation.
[The God of War has declared the continent of Yeigel as the third holy land.]
Those surrounding Yuma and Ermel gasped as the golden waves spread widely.
“I will protect this land, so trust me.”
Yuma could see the growing in real-time with his own eyes.
“You guys.”
Yuma felt that everyone believed in him, but strangely, he could sense a cold atmosphere.
“Was there any trouble before I arrived?”
At Yuma’s words, the knights of the 2nd Knight Brigade flinched.
Yuma pointed with his chin at the brigade leader, Arwin.
“Speak the truth, Brigade Leader.”
Arwin’s brown eyes wavered.
“Before the gods invaded, we—on the Zephalos Kingdom side—suspected that the gods invaded the continent because of the Join Tribe, based on historical context.”
Yuma could easily guess that the historical context Arwin was referring to was related to the Purma Kingdom of the Gerhegen continent.
Yuma said firmly.
“The invasion happening right now on the Yeigel continent is not because of the Join Tribe. Those punks are just messing around in the Intermediate World to elevate their status as gods.”
Yuma decided to lend a bit of support to the Join Tribe.
It seemed the only way to balance the power between the two sides.
“The reason I could become a god is thanks to the ancestors of these people, the Join Tribe, Ardorlac. They greatly helped me in the process of becoming a god. So don’t needlessly reject the Join Tribe.”
Thud!
Arwin knelt again.
This time, it was towards Kreagen, the chieftain of the Join Tribe.
“I apologize for the suspicions.”
Kreagen sighed.
“No, from your perspective, it could certainly appear that way.”
Yuma ordered Arwin to rise, then spoke again.
“There will be no great disaster invading the Yeigel continent now. My subordinates, who are spread across the continent, will handle the remaining minions and monsters affected by those punks. So, relax and rebuild the shattered continent. As for the kingdom side, refrain from seeking me for a while.”
Arwin and the knights bowed their heads.
“We will remember your words.”
Having settled the tumultuous situation, Yuma returned to the tent where Hestia and Cloney lay.
Sweat began to bead on Cloney’s forehead as she lay with her eyes closed.
Yuma’s brow furrowed.
