Chapter 214: Dream Manipulation

Ash stood still for a while, weighing his options in silence. The faint night breeze rustled the leaves above him, carrying with it the cool scent of damp grass from the academy gardens. His eyes lingered on the dimly lit windows of the girls’ dormitory, one of them belonging to Melissia’s room.

In his mind, he kept running through the same problem again and again.

If he sent someone else, what would he even tell them? That he just happened to know something was wrong? If he said he could see through the walls, people would look at him as nothing more than a creep... and that was the last kind of reputation he wanted.

Besides, there was still the shock of Snow’s sudden ability lingering in the back of his mind.

Not everything is mentioned in the status window... looks like there are things I’ll only discover after experiencing them firsthand...

Even so, that didn’t erase the question pressing in his mind.

Should I really be here...?

He now found himself back in the garden again, the moonlight spilling over the wet grass, casting silver shadows beneath his feet. For the teleport to work, he needed a clear and direct view inside Melissia’s room, but the vision Snow had shown him earlier wasn’t enough to lock onto the location with certainty.

His eyes narrowed slightly as he considered his options. He wasn’t exactly confident about this. The truth was, Ash had never been good at comforting people, nor was he any better at dealing with someone crying. Situations like that felt far more suffocating to him than facing dangerous enemies in battle.

I’d rather fight angels than deal with something like this... but alas, my luck has never been that good...

He sighed, lamenting his own fate and even cursing it quietly under his breath a few times, as if that might somehow make this task easier.

After a moment of stillness, he muttered in a low voice, almost as though trying to convince himself,

"...Well, a man’s gotta do what a man’s gotta do..."

And with those words, Ash vanished from sight.

Appearing inside Melissia’s room, Ash stood still and watched her quietly. He had Absolute Concealment activated, so there was no way she could sense him... not that her condition seemed good enough for her to sense anyone right now.

The air in the room was heavy and stale, carrying the faint smell of dust and something metallic — blood, perhaps. Every piece of furniture was broken or overturned, glass shards littered the floor, and the bed frame was splintered. It looked less like a room and more like a battlefield.

Sob!

Sob!

Sob!

Looking at the pitiful figure of Melissia curled up among the wreckage, Ash’s mind went back to the moment when he first met her.

Right... I decided I would take revenge on her. But looking at her like this... should I cancel it...? She reminds me of my past self...

Didn’t I also use to cry like this...?

With a quiet sigh, he released his Concealment. Even after that, she still didn’t react to his presence.

Ahh... damn it...

"Melissia."

The moment his voice reached her ears, she jolted as if struck by lightning and stood up in shock.

That was when Ash got a full look at her face, and his expression hardened. There were deep, dark circles under her swollen red eyes, and her pale complexion made her look almost sickly. Her cheeks were hollow, her hair was an unkempt mess, and her clothes were crumpled, stained with dried tears and snot.

She looked thinner than before... fragile, like she might crumble if touched.

Why the heck does she look like this...? What happened to her...?

Before he could say anything, her lips trembled, and she muttered, voice low and unstable.

"Am I... starting to hallucinate now? Is my mind playing tricks on me?"

Her confused expression twisted into something pained. Then suddenly, she stepped forward and began hitting him, her voice breaking into hoarse screams.

"Why the fuck are you not leaving me alone?! Go away! Go away! Go away, damn it! Damn you! Damn Elysia! DAMN YOU ALL!!!"

"Don’t come into my mind! I’m sick of you!"

-Bam!!

-Bam!!

-Bam!!

-Bam!!

"Why are you not leaving my mind? You love Elysia, right?! Then go to her, damn it! Leave me alone! Don’t make me any more miserable than I already am!"

Her voice was trembling, yet every word carried the weight of raw pain.

"Why... why? What did I do wrong? I just loved you... was that a crime? But no, you love someone else... why? Why always me? WHY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

She kept hitting him, both fists striking his chest with every bit of strength her frail body could muster. But Ash didn’t move, didn’t block her blows, didn’t push her away. He just stood there in silence, his face shadowed, his eyes unreadable.

Eventually, her exhausted body could no longer keep up with the outburst. After a week without rest, her strength finally gave out, and she slumped forward, unconscious.

Ash caught her before she could fall, holding her gently in his arms.

For a long while, his mind was completely blank.

I... am the reason she’s like this...

The thought pressed down on his chest, making it feel heavy. It was the first time since losing Elysia that he had felt something this suffocating. He didn’t know why, but he could relate to Melissia... because after Nancy died, he had been just as miserable as her, maybe even more.

And yet, knowing now that the cause of her current state was him all along...

I’m glad she mistook me for an illusion... because if she realized it was me, I don’t even know how she would react...

I can’t even imagine...

Looking at Melissia’s unconscious face in his arms, Ash let out a faint sigh, his voice low and weary.

"Love sure is troublesome."

{Life Mana Infusion}

Ash infused life mana into Melissia’s body, the soft green light wrapping around her frail form as she continued lying motionless on the cold floor. Slowly, her pale complexion began to improve, the sickly gray tone fading bit by bit until a faint trace of warmth returned to her cheeks.

Her breathing, which had been shallow and uneven, steadied slightly under the gentle flow of energy.

Once the life mana had done its work, Ash summoned a small glass vial into his hand. The liquid inside was a deep, glimmering red, swirling faintly as if alive. It was a hunger nullification potion — once consumed, it could supply the body with enough nutrients to survive for an entire week without food.

Supporting her head with one arm, Ash carefully pressed the vial to her lips, letting the potion flow into her mouth in slow, measured sips so she wouldn’t choke. He had no way of knowing exactly how long she had gone without eating, but judging by her weakened state, it could have been days... perhaps even longer. At the very least, this would keep her body from deteriorating further.

Placing a pillow beneath her head to keep her comfortable, Ash rose and glanced around the room. It was a complete disaster — broken furniture, shattered glass, splintered wood scattered across the floor. Instinctively, his hand moved to start cleaning... but he stopped mid-motion.

Wait... if I clean the room, she’ll know someone came inside... I can’t clean it.

Instead, he searched for something that was still intact. After a bit of looking, he spotted a lone chair in the corner, somehow spared from the destruction. It was covered in dust and leaning slightly to one side, but it would do. Dragging it over near the window, Ash sat down, keeping his eyes on Melissia’s unconscious form.

Now... what should I do...?

The truth was, every part of him wanted to just leave. To walk away and pretend he hadn’t seen anything. But he couldn’t unsee what was already burned into his mind. Leaving now wouldn’t mean staying out of someone else’s business — it would be nothing but running away from a problem that stood right in front of him.

And this problem... was tied to him, and him alone. That meant, whether he liked it or not, he bore some responsibility.

"I wish I never saw her like this... at least then I wouldn’t be here..." he muttered under his breath, the words laced with a selfishness he didn’t bother denying.

I’ll consider my revenge taken, I guess...

His gaze drifted to Snow, who was lazily moving along his shoulders and arms, occasionally coiling around his wrist as if inspecting every inch of him. The small serpent’s unhurried movements were strangely calming, but Ash knew it wasn’t simply idling — Snow seemed to be studying him, or maybe even sensing his mood.

Buddy... you made me see this mess. Now you’ve got to help fix it. Do something, will you...

The thought was purely sarcastic, but Ash had no idea his words might actually end up setting something unexpected in motion.

Snow looked at Ash after hearing his words. The little serpent tilted its head slightly, as if thinking seriously about something, then gave a small nod as though it had reached a decision. Without wasting a moment, it slid off Ash’s shoulder, its smooth scales brushing lightly against his arm, and moved toward Melissia’s still figure on the floor.

Ash was taken aback at the unexpected nod.

Does he... really have some way...?

Snow reached her and slowly lowered its head until its small forehead gently touched hers. A faint, soft violet glow began to shine from the center of its head, the light spreading out in slow, calming pulses. For a few minutes, the glow remained, bathing Melissia’s pale face in an otherworldly light, before it finally faded away into nothing.

When the glow disappeared, Snow looked noticeably tired. Its small body seemed heavier, movements slower, as if its energy had been drained.

Ash guessed the reason instantly and extended his hand toward the serpent.

Snow did not hesitate at all. In the next moment, it coiled lightly around his arm, pressing its tiny fangs into his skin.

Ahh! Curses... I can’t get used to this feeling...

His body weakened almost instantly, the strength leaving his limbs as if his life was being drawn out of him. For a brief moment, he felt like an old man whose time had nearly run out.

But within seconds, the feeling passed, his body regaining its usual vigor. Snow, now looking lively again, uncoiled from his arm, moving with renewed energy.

Hey, buddy... what did you just do?

’Mama.’

You did what?

’Mama.’

Really?

’Mama.’

Curse it all... is there something you can’t do? Dream Manipulation really?

Ash was genuinely shocked, because now he understood. Snow had used its ability to alter Melissia’s dream.

In her unconscious state, she was now dreaming that everything which had happened just now — her attacking him — was all simply a dream.

The thought came to him almost immediately.

Why can’t I just make her think that all her feelings for me were a dream too...?

But...

’Mama.’

Snow shook its head firmly, and even though it only spoke one word, Ash understood. It was saying it couldn’t do that. Its ability wasn’t that powerful. It could only make a person dream, nothing more. At least not yet.

Ash sat back slightly, thinking.

Just then, another idea formed in his mind.

Yeah... that could work. It could also distract her away from me. And... didn’t she become much more emotionally strong after that in the novel...?

A slow smile appeared on his face, the kind that came when a troublesome plan formed perfectly in his mind. Without wasting more time, he transmitted instructions to Snow.