Remember one thing... Each day, you'll get a new quest that you need to complete before the day ends. Failure will result in death."
This dream has multiple missions that we dreamers need to fulfill. We receive quests every day based on the situations we're in. Quests can be assigned to one person, two, or even three people. However, there's something called Dreamer's Delusion—a type of mission where all the dreamers in a country must participate. It's just a delusion of a random dreamer, but it forces everyone to take part.
The real Endless Dream begins with the Dreamer's Delusion, which will start in three days.
These are going to be the toughest three days of my life because...
[ QUEST DIFFICULTIES HAVE BEEN INCREASED FROM D TO C ]
For most people, that might not seem like much, but in this Endless Dream, a C-rank difficulty feels like an A-rank.
"You'll receive Quest 2 at a random time of day. Your actions will determine what kind of quest you'll get."
The butler clapped his hands.
"Now, dreamers... let's try to survive this Endless Dream."
A portal opened behind him, and he vanished.
I turned to look at Lee Seonyeon. She was brimming with excitement.
"Hong-ssi... It's like a game. It'll be really fun! I can't wait for the next quest!"
"Yeah... just don't be reckless."
I glanced at Chaeyoung, who was staring at us, completely clueless about what had just happened.
"Han Chaeyoung, right? You were almost killed by your brother... so I stepped in and saved you."
I sat down.
"Han Chaeyoung, Serve me."
She hesitated, then looked at Lee Seonyeon.
"I-Is she with you too?"
I turned to Lee Seonyeon and shook my hand.
"No, she isn't."
"Hong!! You bastard! You really are a piece of shit. Step aside."
She punched me in the head, then sat in front of Chaeyoung, extending her hand.
"I'm Lee Seonyeon. Unfortunately, I'm stuck with this dude too. I'm telling you, he won't protect you... I'll do a better job than him! From today on, I'm your big sister!"
"U-Unnie?"
Lee Seonyeon's eyes sparkled with happiness. She hugged Chaeyoung and started petting her.
"Yay!! That's right, Chaeyoung!"
It seemed like they had completely forgotten about me.
Chaeyoung looked at me.
"Th-Thank you for saving me from my brother."
I smiled gently.
"Yeah, yeah."
...
"Seonyeon, Chaeyoung, what's the time right now?"
"Can't you check it yourself?"
"Uhh... I don't know how to read time from the minute hand and hour hand."
Lee Seonyeon stared at me.
"Are you for real?"
"Haha, yeah."
"6:34!"
It was Chaeyoung.
"It's 6:34 right now!"
I smiled and patted her head.
"Thanks. You're a big help."
Lee Seonyeon looked away.
"You never thanked me after that battle."
"Are you a kid?"
"Shut up! Idiot!"
She threw a small stone at me.
"Ah... it hurts. Alright, so it's 6:34, which means we still have a little time before the next day arrives. Tomorrow, we'll get Quest 2, so we need to prepare."
I glanced at the park exit.
"First, we need to find a place to stay for the night. There might be other survivors, and they could be dangerous, so we need to be cautious."
"Second, we need to split up. We need food and shelter. I'll go get food. Anyone wanna come along?"
"No, go away."
"Mean!"
"Alright then, Seonyeon and Chaeyoung, you two find a place to stay. We'll meet back here in two hours."
They both nodded.
"Well then, let's go!"
...
I walked through streets littered with the bodies of kids, elders, and young people.
Many had died.
A few had survived.
I no longer felt guilty about it, but I understood better than anyone that this Endless Dream turned out like this because of me.
In front of me, the dead bodies started melting...
Within a minute, they had completely dissolved.
I stopped in front of a convenience store.
The door creaked open as I stepped inside.
My co-worker's head was gone. My manager might have survived... maybe he was the one who killed him.
I silently prayed for his soul to rest in peace.
I started grabbing the scattered food from the floor. Most of the store had already been looted by other survivors.
Most of the food was gone, but there was still a decent amount left.
I grabbed two large plastic bags from the cashier desk and started filling them.
Once my bags were full, I stood up and looked at my co-worker's body.
"I never got to see your face... You always wore a mask, but now your face is gone. Well then, goodbye, Sato."
My co-worker's name was Sato. He was a really great guy.
I walked out of the store.
"Only 30 minutes have passed... I still have plenty of time left."
I had taken a digital watch from the store.
"Well then, I know what to do."
I walked toward my apartment.
Once inside my room, I sighed.
"Time to change clothes."
My clothes were covered in bloodstains.
As I changed, memories started flooding in—Glogus235, Desired End... everything came rushing back.
I had come a long way, but now my goal was clear.
To reach the top and give this dream a beautiful end.
I put on a black t-shirt, a black shirt, and black trousers.
Acquiring skills in this endless dream isn't easy but still I got that skill Plagiarist.. and i don't have any effect of acquiring a high level skill.. just what can be the meaning of this.. I should start facing corru—
I glanced at myself in the mirror.
I froze.
"Huh...?"
"M-My left eye... it's light red."
Don't tell me.
[ SOUL'S EYE IS MANIFESTING I-]
I want to die
What is this..? Why is my left eye a bit red..?
Something popped up on my screen.
[ YOU ARE MANIFESTING ??? ]
[ TO MANIFEST ??? YOU NEED TO COLLECT 100 SOULS ]
[ TOTAL SOULS COLLECTED – 1/100 ]
Huh..? ??? What is this..?
If I remember correctly, if something's name is ???, then it means I'm too weak to know its name.
Even if I acquire this skill, there's no way I can handle it since I'm too weak for it.
A person can acquire a skill by increasing their stats. If they want a high-level skill, their stats need to be at a high level too. In my case, ??? is a high-level skill, but my stats are comparable to those of a mere kindergarten kid. This means I'll become corrupted the moment I obtain this skill.
Corruption—this is a term used for dreamers who have lost control over their bodies, known as the corrupted. It can happen by acquiring a high-level skill. If the body isn't compatible with the skill, the skill itself will attempt to take control of the user's body. All a skill desires is a high-level stat.
High-level skills are often alive... that's right, they are alive until you redeem them, at which point they assess whether the user is capable of wielding the skill. If the user meets the requirements, the skill won't corrupt them. But if the user is deemed incapable, they will either become corrupted or die.
In my case, I obtained the Skill Plagiarist, which seemed safe when I first used it. However, some skills take time before corrupting the user. I still wasn't sure whether Skill Plagiarist was truly safe.
But how did I acquire this Skill Plagiarist?
I need to collect souls, huh.. which means I need to kill 99 people..
The first one must be Han Seeyoung.
Skill Plagiarist was enough to surprise me, but now this.. Just what is happening with this Endless Dream..?
I took a look at my phone.
[ Every citizen needs to stay in their houses.. The army is currently dealing with this.. ]
[ The US army has surrendered against these strange creatures ]
[ If the cops find you on the road, then you'll be charged 3,000-70,000 won ]
[ The President has gone missing ]
[ India, Australia, Japan, Mexico, and Germany have surrendered ]
I switched off my phone.
Lots of shit is going on... It's going the same way as it was in the novel.
In Desired End... Han Seeyoung went on a rampage and killed everyone in his sights.
But now what should I do?
First of all, I should get back.. I can't wait for 2 hours to complete.
I went back to the park.. Lee Seonyeon and Han Chaeyoung were already there.
Han Chaeyoung saw me and ran towards me with a gentle smile on her face.
"Y-You look good in that out-outfit."
I gave a gentle smile.
"Thanks, Chaeyoung."
"Why did you change your clothes??"
Lee Seonyeon came forward.
"Well, the old ones had bloodstains, and I need to wear proper clothes that will help me during battle."
"I see."
"We found a place to stay. Come with us. And did you get enough food for us?"
"Ah yeah.. most of the store was already robbed, but there was still a decent amount of food left."
"Hmm, okay. Chaeyoung, come."
"Yes!"
I started going to the place they found..
Let's see what these girls found.
"Are you sure no one will find us there?"
"Yeah."
***
( CS - *** represents a scenario change )
Someone stopped.
"Anna, what happened?"
"Nothing.. I felt like someone was nearby."
"If it's dangerous, then should we check?"
"No.. leave it."
***
Hm?
I stopped.
"What happened, Hong?"
"Nothing.. I felt like someone was nearby."
"Huh.. you felt something wrong."
"Shut up!"
I took a look at my watch..
7:45.. we still have a lot of time left.
We continued walking. We stopped in front of a destroyed building.
It was mostly destroyed.
"Why did you choose this?"
"So no one will think of staying here."
We got inside the building. Multiple bodies were lying in the building.
"People have died everywhere... If someone comes, then we can act like a dead body."
"Most of the people will come here to loot the bodies."
"When they get in our attack range, we'll kill them."
I stayed silent. I looked around.. and—
Saw some people standing in the shadows.
"Seonyeon."
"What?"
"Can dead bodies stand?"
"No.. why are you asking?"
I pointed towards them.
"Then how are they standing?"
Seonyeon screamed and slapped me.
"Stupid! They are not dead!"
SMACK!
I fell to the ground from her slap.
"I see"
"Just die.. Hong, you're so stupid."
The people started walking.
"Seems like we've got some goodies here."
"Hahaha... There's a girl too.. she's beautiful. We can spend our night peacefully."
"There's a small kid too... Hey, does anyone like little girls here?"
A deep voice of an old man came.
"Yes.. I love kids."
The group of people stepped into the dim light, and we were able to see them.
Six or seven men, all looking like scum.
Lee Seonyeon wasn't scared.. she was looking at them without fear on her face..
A person saw me.
"You might be with them, right?"
"Yes."
A big old man, maybe in his forties, came forward.
"You... You leave that food here and those girls."
He grinned, and his tongue slithered out of his mouth.
"I want that small kid."
He was pointing at Chaeyoung.
"Since we don't have any interest in kids.. we'll leave it to you.. for now... We'll take that beautiful lady."
They were looking at Seonyeon..
Even in this world.. creeps like these still exist. They'll r*pe girls.. kids.. no matter who is in front of them..
These people need to be punished.
Seonyeon stepped forward.
"Try it.. if you can."
The men's eyes glowed with excitement.
"Thanks, ma'am... We'll have fun then..."
They looked at me.
"Hey! Are you deaf? Go away and let us enjoy our meal."
One of them walked toward Seonyeon.
He grabbed her jacket and started unzipping it.
SLICE!
His head rolled onto the ground.
THUD!
Blood sprayed onto the walls as his decapitated body staggered for a second before collapsing.
Seonyeon calmly zipped her jacket back up and planted her foot on his severed head.
"You piece of shit. You dare to touch me? Die in pain."
The remaining men were startled.
"What is this?"
"Where did she get the dagger from?"
"Fuck! Now you'll be killed after we rape you!"
"We could have let you live."
The big old man screamed.
"DON'T YOU DARE RUIN MY MEAL!!"
He irritates me.