Stephen Humphreys—a man with neatly trimmed mustache and charming dark-brown eyes, refined to the point of delicacy.
On the surface, he was a furniture merchant. In truth, he was a convener of psychology seminars, a core member of the hidden organization Psychological Alchemy Society, and a direct subordinate of the High Councilor "Pride."
But after the real "Pride" was fully controlled by the Ankewelt, the Dragon of Imagination, and implanted with a "virtual personality," Stephen too was deeply "hypnotized." He worshiped this new "Pride" as though he were a deity, willing to give his life for his "Lord."
Of course, he himself had no idea anything had changed—he simply felt it natural.
This time, ordered to Cabas Town, his task was to wait for a certain mysticism book he carried to undergo its prepared change. At that moment, he was to chant in Ancient Hermes the honorific name of a great being, triggering the secret ritual hidden within the pages.
And when Professor Mosal's student collapsed in panic, "creating" a surge of monsters, Stephen immediately sensed the corresponding change in his book. Without hesitation, he followed his "Lord's" instructions—ready to utter that name belonging to the Hidden Sage.
But then, an accident occurred. So excited was he that before even finishing the first word, he bit his tongue—clean through the front half. Blood spurted.
Yet pain could not shake his resolve. He seized a chilled mug of ale and poured it into his mouth, hoping the cold and the alcohol would numb his tongue long enough to finish reciting.
Another accident. Because the mug had been chilled too hard, the glass shattered explosively against his lips.
Countless shards drove into his mouth, throat, and even stomach. The agony overwhelmed him and he screamed.
And thus began a string of scenes that could only be called farcical—
Stephen flung away the glass in pain, only for a sharp shard to land perfectly through the seam of his shoe, stabbing into his foot. He howled again, staggered, reached to steady himself on the table—straight onto a fork placed carelessly point-up, which pierced his palm!
More agony, more stumbling—he tripped over a chair leg, toppled backward, and struck the back of his skull against a protruding nail on the floorboard.
This time, at last, clarity returned. At the critical instant, he activated "Dragon Scales," forming a protective layer over his skull, lessening the blow and saving himself from instant death.
Still, dizziness clouded him and he couldn't get up.
Everyone else stared dumbfounded, too stunned even to notice the monsters menacing Mosal's student.
But those monsters, growing ever more "real" and mobile, refused to fade. One of them—a dreambeast with a serpent's head and a feline body—seeing Mosal's "Light of Fire" about to fall, suddenly spewed a torrent of corrosive venom at the student.
Knowing he couldn't intervene in time, Mosal produced a second mystical item: a small camera.
He raised it swiftly, clicked the shutter—flash! The student, though drenched in acid, was unharmed. But the camera's film corroded instantly into green sludge.
—This camera created a "paper substitute" at the key moment, taking all the damage in the student's place.
The boy survived. But Stephen was not so fortunate. The splash of venom that bypassed the student flew straight into his open mouth, blocking the second word of the honorific.
"This… this is too tragic!" Elizabeth, who had been watching Stephen from the start, covered her mouth in disbelief at anyone being so unlucky.
Dast's lips twitched. He silently resolved never to get close to this man again. Proximity to the "unlucky" only bred more bad luck—something he had learned all too well back in Tingen.
After rescuing his student, Mosal gave him more "Courage," then turned his grim gaze on Stephen.
Clearly, the man's state wasn't normal—this looked like a triggered "curse."
So thinking, Mosal was about to use his mystical pipe to "purify" him.
But suddenly, two men nearest Stephen—Wallace's Mentor of Disorder bodyguard and one of his loyal attendants—went berserk. They drew their revolvers, pressed them to each other's heads, and emptied six rounds apiece. Both fell dead in pools of blood.
At the same time, scales began crawling across Stephen's body.
The suddenness of it stunned even Mosal, halting his action.
"He's about to lose control? But how could a mid-sequence losing control wield such power?" Mosal examined, his face darkening.
An ordinary mid-sequence wouldn't, of course. But Stephen was no ordinary case. As the Ankewelt's hidden pawn, he had begun channeling the old dragon's strength embedded within him—power enough to fulfill his mission.
In truth, Stephen's "madness" had spread across the tavern. But except for Wallace's bodyguard and attendant, all others had been shielded secretly by Ebner.
And Ebner had chosen not to protect those two—because the Mirror's spying had revealed their countless crimes in Stonetown, committed under the Wallace family's shadow. Letting them die without trial was already "merciful."
As for Wallace's other attendants, they were less guilty, so Ebner spared them.
"His mutation is strange… perhaps he touched some 'taboo' during his free time."
That taboo being… me!
Ebner said solemnly, nonsense dripping from his lips. Yet Professor Mosal nodded earnestly, agreeing with his deduction. Glancing at Stephen, who was turning into a dragon-like beast, he asked, "Mr. Wallace, surely you have further preparations?"
"Yes… but they are not for public eyes." Ebner looked around. "So, you'd best retreat to the Evernight Church. It's the safest place in town for now."
Mosal hesitated little, quickly gathering his students and Dast, rushing out. Ebner ordered the two surviving attendants to follow.
Grateful for their reprieve, they hurried after the group.
Only Elizabeth looked back once, guilt heavy in her eyes at her own uselessness.
Once everyone had left, Ebner stooped to pick up the Mentor of Disorder's trait, then turned to examine Stephen's dragon-like transformation.
"The essence is high—no less than a complete mythical creature. Far stronger than the incomplete mythic form I can mimic."
That was why he hadn't attacked before—it would have been useless.
A sliver of authority dwelled in the man already. And authority could only be matched by authority.
"But this is the realm of nightmares—the Goddess's domain. And I have the black gemstone She gifted me... So, it seems your luck has run out."
Confirming the others were safe in the church, Ebner began channeling the gemstone while opening the Pure White Eye. He planned to simulate the mythic form of the Feathered Serpent, hoping to unleash the "Flame of Death"—aligned with the Goddess's power, perhaps even blessed by Her.
But just as he was about to, the black gemstone transformed into a veiled female figure, scented of night-blooming herbs, dream flowers, and Daniel's pure dew.
She wore a dress woven from black light. At first her motions were stiff, then graceful—until she embraced Ebner from the front, and in moments dissolved into his body.
Next instant, torrents of knowledge about the "Demon Wolf" filled his mind, slotting into the shelves of the broken White Tower.
And his body, beyond his control, shifted according to that knowledge—mimicking into an eight-legged Demon Wolf of Destruction.
At the same time, the dragon-shaped aberration that Stephen had become opened a pair of blood-red slit eyes.
The Demon Wolf and the Dragon—primordial mythical beasts once again stood face to face.
As though the Second Epoch had returned!
(End of this chapter)