Chapter 473: Nightmare

Helag watched as Jim anxiously knocked on the door, muttering to himself.

He approached and patted Jim’s shoulder, asking, “What’s going on?”

Startled, Jim turned to see Helag and sighed in relief, then remembered his worry. “Helag, it’s over for me. I think I’m about to encounter a nightmare.”

“Nightmare? You mean a bad dream?” Helag found it odd that an exorcist would be so afraid of nightmares.

Jim was surprised. “You don’t know about nightmares?”

Helag shook his head. “Never heard of them.”

“You really don’t know? Your homeland must lack information. Maybe you have a different name for it. Nightmares are something all exorcists dread. Encountering one usually means death; few escape them,” Jim explained.

Helag frowned. “Tell me more.”

Seeing Helag’s genuine curiosity, Jim continued, “Nightmares, also known as demon hunters, specifically target exorcists. They’re rare for apprentices but can appear after becoming a full exorcist.”

“When a nightmare arrives, the exorcist enters a strange world and must kill the nightmare to return. Most who encounter them don’t survive.”

Recalling his recent experience, Helag realized he’d faced a nightmare.

The nightmare was indeed formidable; other exorcists would struggle to survive.

Helag pondered and asked, “Is there a pattern to nightmares? When do they appear?”

“There’s no pattern. Some exorcists never encounter them, while others face them soon after becoming full exorcists, which is unlucky. I’ve heard stronger exorcists are more likely to face nightmares, and theirs are particularly terrifying, often unbeatable.”

“But these are just rumors. Few exorcists reach that level, let alone encounter nightmares,” Jim said.

Helag thought for a moment, then asked, “Why do you think you’ll encounter a nightmare?”

Jim seemed to remember something, showing a half-burned paper figure. “This is why.”

“What’s special about it?” Helag asked, seeing only an ordinary paper figure.

Jim explained, “A mysterious exorcist gave it to me, saying if it starts burning, a nightmare might be near or has arrived. Seeing it burn means preparing for it.”

“I doubt I can beat a nightmare, so I wanted your help.”

Helag considered the paper figure more seriously, realizing its value.

He knew nightmares only dragged the targeted exorcist into their world; others couldn’t help.

Helag remained calm, examining the figure before returning it to Jim. “You’re fine now, so there’s no nightmare. It’s just a paper figure, maybe with some substance that burns under certain conditions. Don’t worry.”

“But I’ve had it for so long, and it was fine until now,” Jim insisted.

Helag said, “If a nightmare appears, just shout. I’m close by and will come help.”

“I… alright…” Jim was still uneasy.

Helag added, “I’m going back to sleep.”

If Jim were a woman, Helag might have said, “Sleep in my room.”

But since Jim was a man, Helag simply let him be.

“Okay,” Jim nodded, saying no more.

As Helag opened his door, Jim asked, “Where were you? What were you doing?”

“Taking a leak,” Helag replied, closing the door.

The houses lacked bathrooms, so Helag’s excuse was plausible.

Jim nodded, not overthinking it, but returned to his room, staring at the half-burned figure, too afraid to sleep.

Nightmares were a widespread fear among exorcists, surrounded by terrifying tales.

Back in his room, Helag pondered the situation.

He’d recently become a full exorcist and soon encountered a nightmare.

According to Jim, nightmares were rare, yet Helag faced one.

Helag considered the situation from a planar perspective.

Each world’s basic rules were similar, yet had unique differences.

This world’s demonic aura was clearly a unique rule.

Reflecting on his experiences, Helag saw demonic aura as a means to enhance individuals.

Under this mechanism, powerful individuals would inevitably emerge.

The world’s will nurtured these individuals to combat external threats and solve problems.

In the wizard or elf planes, individual growth was slow and difficult.

But here, individuals could rapidly become powerful with the right conditions.

If these individuals defied the world’s will, causing harm instead of solving problems, how would the world handle them?

Helag realized the answer was nightmares.

Nightmares existed to deal with such individuals.

Their randomness was due to being a tool of the world’s will.

The world used nightmares to eliminate potential threats.

To grow, individuals needed demonic aura, thus falling under the nightmare-triggering rules.