The world was no longer gray. It became alive with color.
He turned toward where the monster had died. In its place was a ball of light. It shimmered under the sunlight. He picked it up—and the system popped up:
[System Notification]
You have obtained a dark god's blessing
Name: Blessing of Lilith
Type: Rare Enchantment
Effect:
• Attack Power +15%
• Attack Speed +25%
• Weapon is coated in cursed shadow frost
– Attacks inflict corrosion, a status that prevents healing and regeneration for 5 seconds.
• Enemies struck by the effect suffer 25% reduced healing from all sources
Duration: 3 minutes
Each kill refreshes the duration by 10 seconds.
While reading, he heard the others come out. They looked like their old selves—no longer pale or tired.
They looked around to see the new colorful world.
"What happened here?" Ryan asked.
"Oh, nothing much. You guys missed all the fun," Sylas muttered.
"Where is the statue?" Elizabeth asked while looking around.
"Glad you asked. Let me tell you all."
He sat them down and told them everything about the nightmares—how the statue had been feeding off them. He skipped a few parts, but enough to catch them up.
Ryan looked at him. He had an expression that said, "What are you talking about?"
Liz turned. "Sylas… I didn't have any nightmare the time we stayed here. My dream was peaceful," she paused for a bit. "If I could, I would have stayed here for my entire life."
Sylas looked at Elizabeth. She nodded slowly, like she was agreeing with Liz.
"Oh." He was speechless.
He didn't know how to respond. It was quiet until Liz spoke up.
"What is that?" she asked.
"Oh, after I killed that monster, it left this behind," he sighed in disappointment. "But I don't think I can use it."
"Why?" Liz asked.
"It's for enchanters," he muttered.
Her eyes lit up like a child in a toy store. She tried to speak, but she couldn't get the words out—like she was embarrassed to ask. Her head was down. She couldn't look at him.
"Can I… can I?" she murmured.
Sylas wasn't blind. He could tell she wanted it.
"Are you an enchanter by any chance?" he asked.
She nodded, then finally spoke.
"I was blessed by Hecate, goddess of magic. I am a B-rank."
Sylas extended his hand with a soft smile. "Well then, it's all yours."
She grabbed it and pressed it against her chest—and it sank through. Her eyes glowed with a faint blue light.
Sylas noticed something. He didn't know anything about the group. So he turned to Ryan.
"What kinda blessing did you receive?"
It took him a moment to answer. He was staring at Liz. Then he turned toward Sylas.
"I was blessed by Hercules, and I'm an A-rank."
Then his eyes went to Elizabeth.
"I was blessed by Aurelia, goddess of light and devotion. Rank C."
He clapped his hands. "Alright. Let's get moving."
Ryan crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "And what kind of blessing did you receive?"
He let out a smile. "I didn't receive any."
"Quit messing around," he muttered.
Sylas raised his sword. "This is my everything." He pulled the sword closer and stared at it. "Without this sword, I'm nobody."
They wanted to ask questions, but—
Sylas cut them off. "Let's get moving."
They entered the forest and followed the path within. Something felt familiar to him. The smell, the air, the sound—it was all so familiar.
They walked silently. No one talked.
Sylas's face had that focused, serious look—like he remembered this place. But in his mind, he knew it was impossible.
He walked fast. The others were having a hard time keeping up.
He stopped and saw two different paths.
His heart started pounding. All he could think was—It's not possible.
He took the left path—and ran toward it. He was fast.
Then he stopped and started laughing. It was a small laugh.
The lake. And next to it was the rock where he saw Excalibur for the first time. Even the big tree next to the rock was there.
They all caught up.
"Why did you run so fast?" Elizabeth asked.
He didn't answer. A wide smile stretched across his face.
He ran back and chose the right path. And they were out.
They followed him. They all begged him to slow down, but the words didn't go through.
He didn't know what was happening. He didn't care. Nothing mattered now. He couldn't see anything in front of him.
He was back. Somehow.
He was back in Camelot.
In the distance, he could see it. His castle. His nation.
He ran toward the city, smiling.
They were still following him—quiet and confused.
He went in front of the door.
"Open the door!" he shouted. But no one opened. So he got close and opened it on his own.
He opened the door and walked inside. His smile faded. His eyes shot wide—like he was trapped in one of those nightmares.
"Wake up. Wake up."
He kept slapping himself, hoping it would end.
"This is not Camelot." He looked around. "This can't be Camelot."
He wandered around aimlessly—until he bumped into a bystander. The man stayed silent, too weak to respond.
Sylas reached out and grabbed his shoulder.
Elizabeth, Liz, and Ryan tried to snap him out of it, asking him to explain.
But the only thing he could hear was some kind of ringing sound.
The houses were ruined—cracked, burned.
The people looked like they were barely living. They struggled to stand.
Dead bodies lay on the side of the streets like trash.
He was lost—until he bumped into a bystander. The man didn't say anything, like he didn't have the strength to.
Sylas grabbed the man by the shoulder.
"What is this place?" he asked. The words came out rushed and loud.
The man was pale. Looked starved. He could barely talk.
In his mind, Sylas begged the man not to say Camelot—but he did.
"Camelot… sir." The words came slow, like he struggled to say them. Then he slowly walked off.
Sylas froze.
The world started to spin.
Everything went black.
He fell to his knees.
Elizabeth, Ryan, and Liz ran toward him.
"What happened?" Ryan asked while shaking him.
But none of the words went through.
"Who was it?" he screamed at the sky.
Excalibur reacted to his emotion.
Golden light exploded upward.
The people stood there. Still. Watching him.
As the light disappeared, he slowly passed out.