A ghastly pallid apparition vanished in the halo of the Immersive Stone, and until the last moment when the apparition shattered, it maintained a dead fish-like countenance.

Lyle, who was convulsing on the ground, was like a dehydrated salted fish, eyes rolling back in white. He emitted uncontrollable gasps, more akin to retching accompanied by wailing. Lyle felt as though his soul was about to evaporate.

The gates of hell opened right in front of him.

The taste of fear that had just frozen his mind remained fixed, as if his thoughts had frozen in death, yet they were accompanied by a heart-wrenchingly painful throbbing.

Never again would he claim that he could endure hardship.

Nia’s tentacles gently patted Lyle’s cheek, attempting to pull his hazy consciousness back.

"No need to wake him, Nia," Mr. Scholar controlled another mass of darkness floating in front of him. "Lyle still has one more to eat; while he’s still unable to struggle, feed it to him quickly."

"Wait a second!!!"

The fish-like Lyle came to life again, letting out the loudest roar.

He absolutely couldn’t eat it again; if he did, it would truly be a fate worse than death. Even now, his tongue was still cruelly tormented by that hellish, chaotic taste. Lyle toughed it out against the acid swell that continuously arose in his brain, his thoughts racing to find a way out.

"Teacher! As long as the taste feedback is obtained, that’s enough! Which means, the one eating this thing doesn’t necessarily have to be me! Anyone with normal taste nerves could do it, right?"

"It’s possible, but are you looking for a test subject to complete your work? However, to lure someone into the dream, you must be sufficiently familiar with them."

Which is to say, exploiting an acquaintance is possible.

"That’s possible! I have human friends worthy of my trust!" Sorry, but it’s every man for himself.

Mr. Scholar clearly understood his student’s intention, and he made no attempt to stop him. In fact, as a teacher, if it were not for the fact that he was a Lich and lacked the capability to help share the burden, he would have gladly endured some pain for his students. It was clearly much better for a stranger to suffer as a human than for his own students.

"Alright then, Lyle, let’s do as you wish."

Lyle breathed a sigh of relief, having narrowly escaped disaster.

Mr. Scholar maneuvered the mass of darkness to float beside Lyle, "This mass will remain in your dreams; you can use it to complete the experiment at any time."

"But have you thought about who your test subject will be?"

Lyle began to ponder, considering those he was close enough with to deceive, and almost instantly, he thought of his good buddies, Kevin and William.

"How about William?"

"William?"

"William Dolgette, a human magician. He’s a good friend of mine, he would be more than happy to help me."

Irason blinked, her face expressing oddity as she watched Lyle, while sneakily observing Morocoy’s reaction.

Mr. Scholar’s face remained impassive.

"That seems like a very suitable test subject. Let him have it, Lyle."

"Cough cough." The Green Dragon Priest interrupted the unscrupulous teacher-student conversation, deciding it was time to intervene. "Lyle, accessing William might be difficult for you these days. I know William too, and recently he has been visiting our Withering Druid’s stronghold. As a guest, you understand, I don’t wish to see a guest die in my home."

"Well, Ms. Irason, this isn’t exactly deadly."

"That is not the point," Irason looked sternly at Lyle, "we don’t want to be rude; please don’t make it difficult for me, Lyle."

"...Alright then, I’ll look for someone else."

Aside from William, that left Kevin.

Lyle stroked his chin, considering the lucky star Kevin as a target. Was that really appropriate?

Who cares, if it’s not him descending into hell, then I’m the one who’s going to suffer.

As the dream dissipated, Lyle took his leave, heading back to Cassandra, a place he hadn’t returned to in a long while.

Irason watched the ever-composed Mr. Scholar.

"Brother, you really are heartless to go through with it."

"What’s there to be heartless about, Lyle has already suffered."

"That thing isn’t very important to you?"

Mr. Scholar casually opened a portal back to Andrei Academy.

"To me, my student Lyle is also very important."

The gloom of Cassandra had never changed; when Lyle breathed the damp air, a nostalgic scent assailed his nose.

Business before pleasure.

The time was now nearing midnight, the perfect moment for rest.

Lyle held the Immersive Stone in his hand, while Nia rushed through the shadows with the dreamy light spots, looking for that fortunate Mr. Kevin.

Baron Borey’s Manor.

A wild banquet was being held here.

The manor’s servant estimated the time and trotted over to the guest of honor.

"Master Kevin, it’s almost midnight, you should return to your room to rest."

"Okay..."

At this time, Nia’s tentacles had already appeared on the banquet table, less than five meters from Kevin.

Kevin, like a rabbit choked by its own throat, hurriedly coughed a few times, he had actually choked on the red wine just now.

"Master Kevin, are you alright?"

Kevin took out a handkerchief and wiped the corner of his mouth, gesturing to the servant, "I’m fine, you go change your clothes first, don’t worry about me." Just then, during Kevin’s coughing fit, his wine glass had spilled on the servant’s clothing.

Nia was secretly feasting on the meat dish, eyes constantly watching Kevin.

"Something’s not right, Yino is already struck by misfortune, logically I should have avoided bad luck, so why did I still choke?"

"Could it be that my choking actually constitutes good luck, a warning of some sort?"

Lyle, who was monitoring the situation, knocked heavily on his desk, Kevin’s talent had activated, it seemed it would take quite an effort to get him to sleep obediently.

But Lyle had anticipated this.

Kevin’s talent would absorb the luck of people around him, which was why he had intentionally asked Nia to observe from a distance. After Kevin made a scene for a while, he would eventually have to sleep.

A cruel smile formed at the corner of Lyle’s mouth.

My dear brother, Kevin, taste this pain, infused with over a hundred bitter flavors.

Two hours later.

The time had arrived when most were sound asleep, the guests had already dispersed, and the servants had retreated, but Kevin was still forcing himself to stay awake due to his luck, despite being drowsy and nearly falling down several times, on the verge of falling asleep right there.

He couldn’t hold on much longer.

Baron Borey had just come to give him a scolding, and Kevin was about to be compelled to sleep.

The wait was worth it.

Just then, Kevin made a new move.

He waved over a guard, shouting loudly.

"David! Accompany me on a walk!"

"Master! Have you gone mad! It’s the middle of the night!" 𝕗𝐫𝐞𝕖𝕨𝐞𝗯𝚗𝕠𝘃𝐞𝚕.𝐜𝗼𝚖

"Do as I say!"

Kevin, having straightened his attire, took the guard and stepped out onto the streets in the dead of night.

Of course, Lyle understood it was his luck at play again, but what use was that?

Could there be anyone on the streets of Cassandra capable of saving him in the dead of night?

"Kevin, what are you doing out here at this hour, you scamp."

The cold, low voice sounded as if it came from a corpse just crawled out of the grave, sending shivers down the spine.

The man speaking stepped out from a dark alley, his large overcoat casting a long shadow in the darkness, and with his indifferent expression, he resembled a Nightmare from ghostly folklore.

Kevin cheerfully greeted the "Nightmare" and ushered his own guard to turn back the way they came.

"What a coincidence to see you on such a night, Mr. Ralph!"

Cassandra’s fearsome wolf, the terrifying sheriff, Lyle Butler’s uncle, Mr. Ralph Butler, adjusted the brim of his hat.

"Talking about fate in my patrol zone, Mr. Kevin Borey. Do you wish to rest in peace here with me?"

"Haha, no need, Uncle Ralph, I’m heading right back to sleep!"

Kevin ran off in a flash.

Leaving behind Ralph, who stood in place with a thoughtful expression.

And hidden in the shadows under the eaves, Nia watched it all unfold.