The battle was finished. Atop the sky, looking down from the flying ice animal, the spectator saw the back of the triumphant hero — a knight savoring his victory beneath the symbol of the sun dawning over the horizon.

The dry wind of the desert flocked around him as he walked toward them with the unconscious Elf naked in his arms. It enlarged this humongous shadow as the shield of all.

Yuri suddenly felt dizziness took over him, but the rest of the day became a blur.

…

[All-Creation: Divinity]

It was the Origin of Dream. Even among all the powers the Knights possessed, this was considered among the most absurd.

All beings in the world were governed by concept. Definitions and traits which labeled them. Men. Women. Reptile. Mammalian. Rulers. Extraterrestrial. Threat-to-Humanity. Carbon-based Lifeforms. These were conceptual definition living-beings born to make sense of reality.

Dream could directly impart and manipulate these traits, augmenting the definition of reality as he saw fit.

He could bless a sword into a conceptual desert, able to wield the natural force of sandstorm and dried winds. He could wish to attain the cleansing power to cleanse corruption and restore those who were corrupted by the darkness back to the light. It was an Ability which granted him solutions to any problem. [All-Creation: Divinity], for all intents, was the power of miracles.

However, using such overwhelming power had a price.

…

Sometimes later…

Yuri dragged himself out of the interrogation room, relieving from the brief tour from hell.

The last week has been brutal.

With ten members of the expedition dead, five coming back in shambles and the men of the hour — Dream and Orwell Mehest — vanishing from responsibility, the White Tower’s expedition was deemed as a high-profile disaster.

Worst, the archeological ruins collapsed during a World Enemy’s attack and the secondary explosion from the Leyline destroyed what was left of it.

Aww, what use is that boring ruin?

Sure, Yuri could say the ruin outlived its purpose. The Mana reading returned to normal once the Reverse Beast fled the area. However, Yuri was still entangled with such a disaster, and the groups he worked for promptly booted him off employment to avoid the hot potato.

Porter? That is a hell of a plebeian job. You could be much greater.

Then some part of his brain developed egotism syndrome. Yuri was lucky to survive this carnage. The last thing he needed was a voice in his head convincing him invincibility was within reach. That sounded like a recipe to have Dream gunning after him.

I’m lost for words…

Okay, this kid doesn’t realize we are here. How dense is he?

Yuri groaned at the sixth-grade syndrome returning on full-force.

It was then Yuri noticed a familiar person.

“Hello, Yuri,” said Charon, fully healed from the ordeal.

“Hello, Charon,” Yuri said.

The heck?

Wait, she seems familiar. Isn’t this…

No. Just no. Chandra will rather die than dress like a cute maid.

“What brings you here,” Yuri cramped down on his inner-voices.

“Err, Yuri,” Charon said with an uneasy smile. She refused to look Yuri in the eye. “My mistress wants to meet you to discuss something about your future employment.”

…

Yuri should have expected this.

As expected, from the forefront of Phantasia’s genetic royalty, both Shyme and Sonovia fully recovered from their ordeal in the White Tower. Unlike Yuri’s spartan accommodation, both 33 Stars were residing in a hotel suite with expensive wooden furnishing, good views and beds worthy to die for. This room alone spoke of the different weight in statuses more keenly than even the numerical disparity in their Information Card.

“Thank you for your hard work, Yuri,” Shyme, dressed in a serene Kimono, said tiredly.

“You sound like you are working hard yourself,” Yuri said.

“If you think your questioning is harsh, try ours,” said Sonovia, who sported a much more comfortable cotton clothing over her armor. “We have to reimburse every soul lost in this expedition. Frisnia is throwing a fit about the collateral damage. The Seven Continental Alliance is blowing up about Orwell escaping.”

“Then there are the lingering curses from Dream’s battle,” Shyme said, and deflated.

Serve you right! You Enma Clan bitch!

Manners!

“Curse?” Yuri tried to ignore the voice in his brain.

“Yes,” Shyme said. Life was flowing out of her with each word. “Those arrows Serenade fired while possessed are loaded to the brim with curses and unholy aura. The entire area of battle is so contaminated by the battle that only something like Heisen Mushroom, which thrives on ominous and cursed ground, could grow there.”

“Then, how did Dream beat Serenade?” Yuri asked the obvious. “He must be swimming through a truck of curses. He also got hit by an arrow at point-blank and kept going like nothing happened.”

“Theoretically, you’re right,” Sonovia shivered at the memory. “Even I would be instantly killed on that battlefield. Somehow, that man fought a battle we never could. I believe both he, and Orwell, have a technique allowing them to shrug off those effects.” She growled. “That’s why both of them are so damn hard to damage.”

Sounds like a charlatan. I mean, anyone that powerful would already be ruling a nation somewhere.

I agree. Those two are exaggerating. 

“And you don’t know this mysterious power,” Yuri asked, mentally quieting the two abrasive voices.

“I wish,” Shyme said. “You know I would kill to learn some of their trick.”

It was then a surprise visitor arrived to greet the group.

“Hello, everyone!” Serenade Asmodella said with a cheerful smile. “I’m back! Good news! Lightwell agreed to help solve the curse problem. That should help us get off the hook!”

Then she noticed the visitor in the room. The Elf blinked at the human boy. She straightened up, checked her pocket mirror, and calmed her nerves. The cutie gingerly smiled at the befuddled young man before asking a question that knocked Yuri into orbit.

“Yuri, right,” the pink-hair Elf gave him the widest of smiles. “Let’s say there is this cool guy from Earth, what kind of woman would he prefer?”

The metaphorical bomb dropped with the force to overturn the continent.

What?

This is an emergency. The whore of Lightwell actually asks ‘that’ question? Just who the hell is this guy? Are you telling me all the hype is real!?

“Aha!” Shyme stood up. Her fist held high like she triumphantly overpowered the army and crowned herself the empress of the Multiverse. “I know it! What did you say again?” Shyme quoted with a sneer, “‘How embarrassing it must be to get saved like a damsel.’ Or is it, ‘I wouldn’t dare come out of the house if I fell for that classic rescue romance?’ How does it feel now, you bimbo!?” Shyme couldn’t stop lording her victory. “You fell for the guy from the same planet, so much—”

“Oh, shut up!” Serenade interrupted with vigor. “You see him alright: Named a better man! I dare you!”

“Chronicler!” Shyme answered with no hesitation.

“Oh, come on, the only person here who saw that guy in action is you,” Serenade argued. “Dream have this coolness factor!”

“He’s a jerk!” Shyme yelled.

“Oh, I heard how he called out the crush on your uncle,” Serenade pointed at the main gripes Shyme had with Dreams. “It’s called a sense of humor. Did your man have that at all?”

“Don’t associate a gentleman like Chronicler with a bastard like Dream!” Shyme vehemently retorted.

Unreal…

The hell is this? I never expect those two, of all people, to fight about a guy.

Yuri agreed with the imaginary voice in his head, then he saw Sonovia trying her hardest to put a distance between herself and him.

“Sonovia?” Yuri made a troubled smile.

But Sonovia wasn’t in the mood for conversation, “Stay away from me!” She pointed at the bickering Wolf-girl and Elf. “Those two are the genius of this generation and two random nobodies from your mother-fucking world transformed them into love struck bimbo,” Sonovia said in horror at the planet of titan. “Keep you and your stupid Earthling charisma away from me!”

Yuri partially agreed. As a firsthand witness, he could dare to believe Earth will be saved because the Phantasian elite had superheroes fetish. Did this actually mean capes were making a comeback as a fashion statement?

…

In the clearing a noticeable distance from that room, a man knelt under the sunlight breaking the shade. He was the man who defeated the Bugbear and rescued Serenade. But unlike his normally imposing figure, Dream was grunting in pain. His mask hung limply in his hand. It was a mark of his limit.

Without his mask, Dream was a pleasant-looking man in his early twenties. His only mystical trait was the multicolored glint in his eyes and the whitening hair.

Those unnatural hair and eyes were once brown, but repeated usage of his Abilities transformed them white.

[All-Creation] wasn’t exactly tamed. Beneath the image of the hero who bought miracles was the man constantly at war with his inner self-loathing. Dream’s internal conflict created a supernatural internal friction within himself. Each battle ground his soul and body, one shattered pieces at a time.

It was a reason he didn’t actively throw himself into fights. His body simply couldn’t take it. Each stand against evil shaved the dull kindling of his will. This phenomenon worsened with each full activation of [All-Creation]. To bring salvation to all, Dream was slowly burning himself in a blaze.

Despite the inferno that his life would become, Dream was satisfied with his decision. To see the world hero existed was the fondest dream of Remus Breaker. If he could create a reality where people could look in the sky and see hope, then his soul was a meager cost of such a priceless gift.

Dream, Remus, or Rem to his friend, had another meeting to attend.

He sat down beneath a tree and meditated.

…

As a parameter, MAS was unique. Unlike other stats, the qualification to receive each point was straightforward.

MAS 1/5 is the basic awakening to Mana.

MAS 2/5 is the ability to conduct Multiversal Power (MP) from Mana. This technique allowed the user to extract an almost unlimited amount of resources from the Mana. It was the stage the user realized Mana was more than a fuel and recognized it as a canal of energy to be respected.

MAS 3/5 is the ability to access the memory of Mana. The psychic consciousness which connected everything and everyone—the Imaginary Realm.

MAS 4/5 is the complete understanding of Mana and associated Skill, achieving it allows the user to achieve a hundred percent understanding of their abilities.

MAS 5/5 is the ability to access and guide the will of Mana within their immediate surroundings.

This meeting took place in the Imaginary Realm where all participants were at least MAS 3/5 on the scale. It was the meeting of the order which stood against Orwell and many more threats.

It was the meeting of Horizon Dawn.

…

Dream opened his eyes and saw himself on the familiar platform of light.

In the middle of this platform, surrounded by the starry universe, was a familiar wooden table with two participants sitting on it. One was a black-hair woman in a white summer-dress with sun-tanned skin, pouring cups of coffee. Another was a blonde-haired girl in robes of leaf green over much casual clothing of a yellow blouse and skirt. Dream smiled softly. The girl went with a braided hair-style. It appeared she was getting a little more self-assertive.

Dream, or Rem in this space, was happy. It meant the girl was ready to replace him when he eventually keeled into the dirt.

“Hello, Cy,” Rem said. “Glad to see you are doing okay.”

“Wow,” Cytortia Tianshang, a presumed dead 33 Stars and Shyme’s best friend, said with a smile. “Rem being sweet. That is pretty rare.”

“Ah, what about me, my dear,” said the black-hair woman.

“Greeting, Ma’am,” Rem greeted his sponsor and mentor — the Queen of the Center Force — Symphony.

…

Rem finished his briefing and got himself the update.

“So the fairy had begun their movement,” Cytortia said. “They took over the White Tower’s Leynode.” Cytortia glared at Rem. “And you and Orwell blew it up.”

“We don’t have your Origin, Cy,” said Dream. “You would have to fix the Leyline and Serenade in an instant. The purifying power of [Sage Force] is second to none.”

“Keep dreaming about appealing to my ego,” Cytortia replied. “What about other members?”

It was then Symphony spoke.

“I can answer that question,” the highest authority figure of the Knight of Horizon Dawn spoke. “Recent escalation with Malice had blocked [Clairvoyance], but the activity of each member after the Hidden Vault Showdown is clear to me. Empress is currently in Zen Archipelago, following the trail of Titania.”

“Melody is chasing down the maniac herself, huh?” Cytortia said. “But isn’t she disappeared six-hundred years ago.”

“Yes, but she still left some trail in Zen and Melody is chasing it down,” said Symphony. “The Fairy Realm influence in that land is pretty strong, so I believe the Empress won’t be rejoining our main effort soon. Our major concern is Ace. I believe Hades sent her into a pretty hostile pocket dimension.” Symphony scowled. “That old-fart fuck everything up.”

“What a shame,” Rem said. “Serenade will probably be overjoyed to meet Luxinna.”

“So Serenade is Lux’s old friend,” Cytortia said. “We live in quite a small world, aren’t we?”

“What about Hikma?” Rem asked. “Orwell is dying to have a rematch with the Chronicler.”

“Good news, he is also in Frisnia,” Symphony answered. “I believe that Ron de Vue will be timely. And of course, the Architect is currently with Cytortia in Acropolis. They will also be heading to Frisnia once the repercussion of the Hidden Vault Showdown is handled.”

Rem nodded and prepared to leave when Symphony gave him another order. “Dream, keep your eye on the boy, Yuri. I felt a sinister scheme during your skirmish.” Symphony’s words turned sterner. “And take better care of yourself, Rem.”

“Consider it done, Ma’am,” Dream answered as he vanished from the Imaginary Realm.