It seemed that Kaito had already eaten, judging by the distant clattering of dishes.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm coming," Oliver muttered under his breath, half-smiling as he grabbed his bag and slipped his shoes on, his mind still racing with the encounter outside. His half-brother's playful tone was enough to momentarily distract him from the strange girl on the roof and his own odd powers.
As he stepped out into the hallway, his mother was already descending the stairs, her gaze shifting back to him.
"Oliver," his mother said, pausing at the stairs. "Don't forget to grab your lunch from the fridge. And no more late-night studying. You look exhausted." There was an edge of concern in her voice, but Oliver could tell she wasn't truly worried.
He was used to it by now—his mother always had that air of calm detachment, as if she knew Oliver could take care of himself.
Without answering, Oliver turned and walked toward the bathroom, his mind still spinning from the morning's strange events.
He splashed some cold water on his face, trying to shake off the lingering drowsiness and the unease that clung to him like a second skin. After a quick scrub of his face, he grabbed his toothbrush, the bristles foamy as he began to brush his teeth.
His spirit sense buzzed as he slipped his left hand into his pocket again, heightening it, the talisman taking effect as he infused with Qi.
He spat into the sink and rinsed his mouth; he let his senses expand again, reaching beyond the bathroom into the neighborhood. He wasn't sure why, but he couldn't stop himself from checking. Something was nagging at him.
And then he saw her.
Through his enhanced spiritual vision, he saw the girl on the roof once more. She was no longer standing still, and now, as he focused, he watched her mount the chameleon-like creature—its body as large as the roof itself. The creature's scales shimmered in the early morning light, its form sleek and predatory, but it stayed perfectly still as the girl climbed onto its back.
Oliver's heart skipped a beat as she urged the creature to move, crawling it slowly over the edge of the house. For a moment, he felt a tension in his chest. Was she leaving? Could he relax now?
But then his spirit sense continued to follow her as she slid off the side of the roof, and the creature began to crawl down the wall, its claws scraping lightly against the brick.
His mind immediately cleared, and he felt a sense of urgency. It was like a weight pressing on his chest, a whisper in the back of his mind telling him that something more was unfolding.
But it didn't seem to be heading his way.
With a deep sigh of relief, he began to relax slightly. She was leaving. That was a good sign, right?
His spirit sense stretched further; he couldn't shake the feeling that he needed to keep watching.
Curiosity overpowered caution, and Oliver expanded his awareness even further. The girl and her creature moved through the streets, and for a moment, he felt like a voyeur, observing her every move.
He focused in on her, tracking her as she made her way through the neighborhood, her form blurry in the physical world but crystal clear in his spiritual view.
What he saw next made his breath hitch in his chest.
Maybe he hadn't been paying enough attention before, or perhaps his senses hadn't fully sharpened, but as his awareness followed her movements through the neighborhood, he caught sight of something peculiar—a small, leather-bound notebook tucked into the chest pocket of her uniform. His gaze latched onto it, and, as if guided by an unseen force, his spirit sense pierced into its contents.
The moment he focused, his heart raced.
The first thing that struck him was a familiar sight—the dream pattern, intricately drawn and almost alive, glued to the first page. The pattern pulsed with an energy he couldn't quite comprehend, but its presence sent a shiver down his spine. He had seen it before in his first dream; it came in the form of that guiding smoke when he first went into his dreamscape.
But what sent a jolt through him was what came next.
On top of the dream pattern, written in neat, flowing script, were words—words that seemed to bleed onto the page as if written with an invisible ink, a private journal entry. His spirit sense zoomed in, pulling him closer to the text, unable to tear himself away. The entry was dated and detailed, as though she had been chronicling something far beyond the ordinary, something that resonated with his own inexplicable experiences.
Entry 1:
"On the first night after using the dream pattern ritual, Aihara Misaki found herself in the Everlind Palace, home to the sorceress Morgana D'Avielle. The castle stretched beyond sight, its spires piercing the sky, its halls illuminated by ghostly blue flames. I was no longer a student in Tokyo but an apprentice in a world of magic."
Oliver's grip on his toothbrush tightened. Everlind Palace? A sorceress? The girl had used the dream pattern, just like him.
Entry 2:
"Morgana welcomed me as if she had been expecting me. She told me I was chosen, that my soul resonated with her realm. My first lesson began at dawn, within a chamber lined with mirrors that did not reflect my image. She called it 'The Hall of Truth' and told me that if I failed to see beyond the illusion, I would never awaken my true potential."
Oliver swallowed hard. This wasn't just some diary—it logged Misaki's training within her dreamscape.
Entry 3:
"I passed the first trial. The mirrors shattered when I stopped looking with my eyes and started seeing with my soul. Morgana seemed pleased, but her smile was unreadable. She gave me a book—'The Codex of Dreamwalkers.' Its pages shift when I try to read it, as if hiding secrets I am not yet ready for. But I will learn. I must."
Oliver's pulse quickened. Dreamwalkers? That term sent a chill down his spine.
Entry 4:
"Tonight, I was sent to gather moonfire lilies from the palace gardens. They bloom under illusions, hiding between spaces unseen. As I reached for one, I saw something move—a shadow, standing just outside Morgana's tower. Watching. Waiting. When I turned to look, it was gone, but I know what I saw. I am not the only one dreaming."
Oliver lowered his toothbrush, staring at the mirror. His own reflection looked back at him.
Entry 7:
"I did it! I finally did it! Earlier this morning, when I woke up, the silver feather I was given was still in my hand. It wasn't just a dream—it was real! I can't wait to tell Morgana that I succeeded. She'll be so proud of me."
Oliver's jaw clenched.
"Morgana told me I had taken my first step as a true Dreamwalker. She said only those who have fully bonded with the dream pattern can manifest its gifts in the waking world. She smiled at me today, truly smiled. I never realized how rare that was until now."
Oliver exhaled slowly. If she could bring a feather… what else could she bring?
---
Entry 17:
"Morgana has prepared a ritual for me. She says my connection to Everlind can grow stronger, that I won't have to struggle to return anymore. The dream pattern will become part of me. My mark of passage. Tomorrow, under the lunar convergence, I will become one with the dream."
Oliver flipped to the next page. Blank. He flipped again. Still blank.
The journal ended here.
His breath came shallow as his spirit consciousness stared at the empty pages. If this was where the entries stopped… then how did she bring that thing here? And the mark in her eye—Morgana had said that the ritual would make her part of the dream. Is that why there aren't any more entries?.
Oliver swallowed.
Something wasn't adding up. He turned his attention from her journal and onto her figure.
As the girl and the creature passed by other people on the street, no one seemed to notice them. It was as if they didn't even exist. Pedestrians walked by, oblivious, never sparing a second glance. It was unsettling. He had never seen anything like it before.
She moved with a purpose, not looking back, as though she had somewhere specific to be. And from the way she was dressed, it was clear she was on her way to school—yet, somehow, she was slipping past people unnoticed.
It was almost like she was a shadow, fading into the background, her presence erased in the eyes of everyone around her.
Oliver stood frozen in the bathroom, toothbrush still in hand, his senses fully immersed in the strange sight. His heartbeat thudded in his chest, and his mouth ran dry as he realized that he had never felt this disconnected from reality before. There was something deeply wrong about what he was seeing. Something beyond the ordinary, beyond what he had ever imagined possible.
His heart pounded faster as he pulled away from the mirror, his mind racing. Should he follow her? Keep watching? He didn't even know what he was hoping for. Maybe he just wanted answers.
She was heading to school, but as she made her way through the streets, it was like she was fading in and out of existence, an enigma slipping unnoticed through the crowd. And all Oliver could do was follow her from a distance, unsure of where this strange encounter would lead.