Chapter 163: Chapter 167: High-Level Reporting
To be honest, Duncan somewhat regretted his words as soon as he uttered them—he was genuinely afraid that Fenna, this blunt girl, would destroy her own eyes on the spot…
The reaction of the young Judge exceeded his expectations. He had imagined that once he, a top villain, showed himself, it would definitely provoke strong hostility from Fenna. However, he hadn’t expected her actions to be so decisive and swift, deducing the critical elements of a Dreamscape invasion and mirror medium almost instantaneously and taking targeted countermeasures, which was completely different from the initial invasion of Sherry’s Dreamscape.
She even tried her best to avoid communicating with him, the invader, which was an “emergency measure” to prevent the spread of mental contamination during a Dreamscape invasion.
The fact proved that the gap between a trained high-ranking Judge and an untamed Transcendent was not slight. If it weren’t for Duncan’s own powers being so bizarre and the entire invasion process being completely built on Fenna’s own psyche, perhaps any lesser invader would have been detected and thrown out by the Judge at the first confrontation.
Now, Fenna had quieted down and was just silently watching the Ghost Ship Captain appear in the center of her vision—she hadn’t been impulsive enough to destroy her own eyes, perhaps because she had realized that the Dreamscape had been thoroughly invaded and ordinary expulsion methods were mostly ineffective.
She closed her eyes; Duncan still stood before her, in the darkness, looking increasingly gloomy, his figure indistinct under the illumination of the Spiritual Body’s fire.
“What do you want to do,” the young Judge finally spoke, her voice as cold and hard as steel, “how did you invade my Dreamscape?”
Her attitude was full of hostility, yet Duncan found it amusing—this Judge’s demeanor was a stark contrast to the polite and composed manner she had shown when visiting the antique store.
Who knows what her reaction would be if one day she were to discover the true nature of that antique shop.
“I just came to tell you one thing,” Duncan spoke straightforwardly, “if you truly care about the safety of the City-State, you might want to visit the small church on Sixth Street.”
After he spoke, he closed his mouth, standing quietly amidst the flames, maintaining a mysterious and majestic aura.
Fenna was stunned by the Ghost Ship Captain’s response.
In that moment, it was as if something pierced through a veil in her mind, unveiling a corner that had always been hidden—Sixth Street, small church, these words were strongly etched into her brain, leaving her momentarily dazed.
But compared to this moment of daze, the reality of her Dreamscape being contaminated by Captain Duncan spurred a stronger disturbance in her mind. She tried to pray to the Goddess in her heart, but the Goddess’s power could not penetrate this layer of illusion. She watched the “Captain” with full vigilance but could not discern any emotional clues from his gloomy figure.
A few seconds later, she finally gritted her teeth slightly and tried to maintain her composure as she said in a deep voice, “You invaded a Judge’s Dreamscape just for… this?”
“You can judge for yourself,” Duncan said lightly, “I am looking forward to what you will find there.”
As he said this, he began to feel the connection with the Dreamscape rapidly destabilizing.
A strong force of rejection was taking effect.
He noticed that Fenna had not calmed down as it seemed on the surface—despite seemingly conversing with him, this young Judge was resisting the invader with her willpower every second, her determination so strong that she was struggling to the brink of awakening!
This made Duncan realize that their communication had to end quickly. After conveying the necessary information, he should leave behind a mysterious image and gracefully step back.
He didn’t plan on explaining too much to her, nor did he expect to be able to clarify his friendly stance or establish even the slightest trust with Fenna through a few words—”Captain Duncan” and “City-State Judge” were not the type of adversaries that could be resolved with mere words. Explaining too much would only make him seem suspicious and might even divert Fenna’s attention to unnecessary directions.
The Spiritual Body fire spreading in the darkness gradually receded, and Duncan’s figure began to slowly back away from Fenna’s view.
But just in the last few seconds before the connection was about to break, Fenna couldn’t help but demand, “What are you really plotting against Prand?”
Duncan raised his head in the darkness, and suddenly, a strong sense of mischief surged within him.
He gazed at the young Judge through the Dreamscape, his lips slowly curling up under the eerie green glow of the Spiritual Body fire. Fenna heard the most absurd and puzzling phrase she had ever heard since becoming a Judge:
“Order some fries.”
The Dreamscape abruptly collapsed, the connection completely severed.
In the chaotic void of darkness, Duncan slightly stepped back, observing the flickering starlight before him.
The Bone Dove-shaped Ai Yi flew through the darkness, flapping its wings and landing on his shoulder.
“No matter what she is going to wildly conjecture next, one thing is certain,” Duncan glanced at Ai Yi and murmured as if talking to himself, “The sixth district, the small church, these two key pieces of information have already caught the eye of the Storm Cathedral… Whatever their reason, they will definitely launch an intense investigation there.”
Duncan’s approach was simple and effective—all he needed to do was to lift the lid on that small church in the sixth district, to draw the attention of the Deep Sea Church, and as for whatever Fenna and her fellow priests might contemplate afterwards, that was completely irrelevant.
The largest moving disaster in the Endless Sea directly sought the Judge in a dream to report heresy and corruption within the City-State; this matter would keep those priests occupied endlessly, but before they exhausted themselves, they would throw everything they had at that small church—to uncover whatever secrets might be hidden there.
Of course, during this investigation, Fenna might also waste some energy due to the existence of Homeloss, but that was just a minor detail.
Finally, remembering what he did as the Dreamscape neared its end, a smile appeared on Duncan’s face.
“How about some fries?” Ai Yi, perched on his shoulder, noticed the smile and tilted her head, “Sliced thin as hash?”
“…Your speech is becoming more fragmented,” Duncan frowned, “But making some fries tomorrow morning is doable, and it’s a good chance to teach Alice how to make some proper food.”
…
Fenna suddenly opened her eyes.
There was no light in the room, only the pale, cold glow of the Creation of the World streaming through the window, casting mottled shadows on the furniture in the dim light.
Her heart was beating violently, her head felt as though it was stuffed with burning hot iron bars, a throbbing pain resulting from severe spiritual power depletion and high stress pulsated between her temples, and her nightgown, soaked with sweat, clung coldly to her skin, making her extremely uncomfortable.
But this discomfort was nothing compared to the contaminated dream she had just experienced.
Fenna sat up cautiously in bed, taking a careful look around, then slowly blinked, closed her eyes, and opened them again.
Each time, her heart violently thudded twice—she was testing whether she had really escaped the Ghost Ship captain’s “phantom,” yet simultaneously fearful that his figure would appear directly in her field of vision the next second.
Not until she confirmed she had escaped the intrusion, and that this place was indeed the real world, did she finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Being a Judge for so many years, she rarely felt this nervous.
Fenna left the bed and walked to the dressing table nearby.
The dressing table stood intact, reflecting only her own image in the mirror.
She stood in front of the mirror for several seconds, as if to inspect every detail in her reflection, before she vigorously shook her head, pulled open the drawer, and took out a small dagger inscribed with runes of storms and waves.
Holding the Holy Artifact, she cut her skin to let the blood soak the runes, then prayed to the Storm Goddess.
In the short prayer, she heard the gentle sound of waves in her ears; the Goddess’s blessing was as comforting as ever, soothing her anxious mind.
After reestablishing the connection with the Goddess, Fenna finally relaxed—then she quickly changed out of her sweat-soaked nightgown, dressed in her outer garments at great speed, grabbed the great sword near her bed, and walked out of the room.
Moments later, a steam-core driven private car broke the tranquility of the Upper City District’s city center; under the bright gas street lamps, Fenna drove straight to the cathedral.
She had to inform Bishop Valentin about what happened today at the earliest opportunity, including the suspicious details she had previously uncovered in the archives—the complexity of the situation had far exceeded her expectations, and it was no longer an event that a Judge could resolve alone.
If necessary, Homeloss might even need to contact the Storm Cathedral, which was patrolling the Endless Sea.
Fenna’s gaze was determined, her breathing steady, her thoughts clear.
But suddenly, a hint of hesitation arose.
She recalled the bizarre scene at the end of the dream.
What on earth did he mean by ‘how about some fries’?