CHAPTER 889: SECOND MEETING WITH MONIKA

"Hi~ Did you miss me? Little flame looking as cute as ever~" Monika chuckled, crossing her legs while resting her chin on her hand.

"Not particularly. Especially since you’re being treated like an anomaly out here." Alice shrugged with a slight frown on her face.

Out of all the ’guides’, Monika was the one who acted with the most freedom. At least from what she’s seen thus far.

Then there was the way others treated her. They didn’t tell much but...

It was definitely...

Fear.

"Heh~ Seems like you’ve heard a few stories about me. I suppose taking an overly familiar tone would only put you more on guard right? Hmm..." Leaning back slightly, she adjusted her posture to something more elegant and serious.

With both palms resting on her lap while her staff was next to her, she smiled professionally.

"Welcome, dear Hunter. It seems as though your hunt has been rather successful. The prayers of Adela have now met eternal silence.

"May you take this time to rest up by this branch, it will provide you with warmth in these trying times." Monika spoke with an unfamiliar tone.

Furrowing her brows, Alice let out a sigh.

"Why the sigh, dear Hunter? Or perhaps are you curious about the origins of the departed Adela? She belonged to a church like no other. One of blood and love. Though... Can you really see that ’thing’ as an icon of worship?

"Doesn’t it make you curious? The hands of man that calls forth the descent of a God far greater than them. A mysterious thing, don’t you think? An act that’s no different from a doll creating a living breathing human, the same as the one who’s very hands have crafted that doll from porcelain."

"Alright alright, let’s stop it there. It doesn’t matter what tone you use it still gives me the creeps." Alice sighed, stopping Monika in her tracks.

"Fufu~ That wasn’t what you said last time." She chuckled, leaning forward while the light of the branch danced off her outfit.

"Yeah well, last time you had a different tone. A little more professional than this but not as professional as the tone you used just now." Alice massaged her temples.

Now that she’s got a rough idea of how things work in this realm, Monika’s acts are beginning to ring warning bells in her mind.

Not so much as fear but rather... an aversion to something troublesome.

"First impressions are an important thing. Just like names. As you know, the meaning behind my name means advisor. The one who warns and the one who tells the truth. And when combined..."

"The lonesome watcher who warns." Alice recalled the meaning behind Monika’s name.

"Exactly. If you had received advice from someone with my earlier flippant tone, would you believe them? Had I invited you to a tea party with that tone, would you accept? No right?" Monika smiled as Alice felt a slight chill.

Monika was a bundle of mysteries and masks not unlike her mirror jester. Right when she felt like she figured Monika out, she would peel away that mask and reveal something new.

"So, what are you here for? I doubt you’re just here to talk. Especially since the other guides don’t give details like you do. Are you trying to make me learn more about this realm?" Alice narrowed her eyes.

Even though one of the rules of this realm was to accept it for what it was... Alice was beginning to have doubts.

Now that she knew Karina was involved, could her information truly be trusted?

Were the rules real or were they fake? Or perhaps... was accepting the world more harmful than questioning everything?

The more knowledge she gained, the more chaotic the current situation felt.

"Hm~ What do you think? We’re no longer children who have adults making decisions for us. What you do, what you believe, what you deny is all up to you. Everyone talks with hidden agendas and goals.

"Just like how you are talking in a manner that drags as much information out of me as possible, I talk with an unknown goal in mind." Monika smiled.

Tapping her finger against the staff, she created a table and a tea set.

"Some tea?" She offered but Alice frowned.

"Shame." Monika shrugged.

Closing her eyes, she hummed to herself for a moment before opening her mouth.

"Then how about I give you some information as an apology? I’ll give you a small hint." Monika offered with a smile.

Alice found it suspicious but she won’t deny free information.

"As you know, the place we are in right now is the Nightmare realm. A realm woven by the dreams of many. But dreams are fundamentally fake, even if grounded in reality. You can dream about winning the lottery by finding a gold mine, you can dream about earning the love of the most handsome man or the most beautiful women.

"But when you wake up, all of it disappears, staying in the dream that you had enjoyed a moment ago." Monika smiled, closing one eye.

"So tell me, why do you think the physical power you earn and the techniques you are imbued with when you choose a class transfer to the real world?

"That comes with understanding. You observe, you comprehend, you use your body as an anchor for that knowledge. And when you become linked with this realm, your mind becomes an ark. With each Embryo, the vessel grows.

"The storage of ’memory’ increases. And with that, you carry the data back into reality, thus turning fake into real. Your power, your techniques. Everything you learn in this Nightmare is taken back to Extalia."

The more Alice listened, the wider her eyes became.

"That’s right. With every insight gained, every boss slain, and every new area uncovered, the fog pulls back. Further and further until everything is revealed.

"With each discovery, more and more of this realm bleeds into reality. Once it does, it’ll cease to be simply a Nightmare, a dream. It becomes truth." Monika chuckled.

Alice furrowed her brows.

"So you telling me about Adela..."

"Yep. It simply speeds up the process a little." Monika grinned.

Alice was now on guard.

Accept the realm was a bait all along. The more she accepted this realm, the more dangerous it became.

"Just kidding~" Monika stuck out her tongue.

"Huh?"

"Well, I was partially kidding. Everything I said before was still the truth but about Adela, that was for a different purpose. By telling you about Adela, I’ve anchored that boss to this location.

"Whenever you wake up, the Nightmare ’refreshes’. And when that happens, the bosses sealed within change. Even if you fought Adela the first time, it might not be the same the next time. And I doubt you’d want to fight a completely new guardian right?" Monika waved her hand.

"So in a sense, I helped you avoid potential deaths you might’ve had."

Even though she said this, how much could Alice trust? How many of her words are lies and how many are the truth.

"Then what about the rules that Karina spoke about. Are they lies as well?" Alice narrowed her eyes.

"Nope~ They’re all truth. Do not stare at the sentinels, watchers of this realm. You’ve yet to see one so this doesn’t apply. But trust me, you’ll know when you spot one of them.

"Second, do not chase or delve after shadows of familiar ones. Do so and you get lost in your own nightmare.

"Dreams and reality become blurred, you don’t know if you’re back in reality or stuck in a maze of your own perception. Time flows differently for you and you alone. And without outside interference, you’ll sink deeper and deeper until you can no longer get out, even with help.

"And lastly, no matter what, do not cause a scene. Accept the world for what it is. Tell me, little flame, what do you think will happen if you deny the reality of this Nightmare?" Monika asked, leaning forward.

"Rejection?"

"Rejection. Deny the realm and the realm denies you. When you don’t want to play by the rules, the sentinels will take care of any anomalies disturbing the function of this realm. As you are right now, I doubt you have defences put into place for that kind of attack right? So it’s best if you play along for the moment." Monika laughed, summoning a teacup and drinking some tea.

Alice folded her arms.

"I won’t take up more of your time. I’ve given you some information as an apology for concealing a bit of myself. Now, it is time for me to give you some advice." She placed the teacup down.

"Embryos have more uses than just currency and a method of getting stronger. They signal life itself. No matter if it’s a long fall or a poisonous room, toss an Embryo in and see how it reacts."

Once she finished saying this, Monika grabbed her staff and tapped it against the ground.

Fog began to coil around her body as she prepared to leave.

"Behind us is a new area where higher tier Embryos exist. But be careful my dear little flame. Stay too long in the zone without protection and madness will encroach on your mind."

Before Alice could even respond, Monika disappeared.

Scratching her hair in frustration, Alice let out a sigh.

This was the second meeting with Monika. Like the first time, the information she gained was priceless. But there was also the issue of knowing too much was bad.

Increasing her insight into this realm would only speed up the process...

And she wasn’t the only target.

How long has this realm been around for? How many targets has it dragged in?

And...

How much of it has been turned real.