Chapter 676: Estate (Thanks to friend KnifeCur for the Silver Alliance donation)

Hearing Ria's question, Lumian snapped to attention and turned his head toward Lu Jianuo.

Just now, he'd been busy saving lives and sealing the big problem—he'd completely overlooked Lu Jianuo's own condition!

After stabilizing the injuries, this "physician" had carried on a steady, coherent conversation with him, remaining fully alert and rational, utterly unlike the other participants in the "Dream Festival."

After all, even Ludwig, that monster, had lost control of his appetite and begun eating people!

Moreover, Lu Jianuo had never slept in the "Siso" house, nor had he entered this special dream beforehand!

Seeing Ria, Jam, and the employer all staring at him, Lu Jianuo, still suffering residual pain, looked utterly bewildered:

Why shouldn't I stay awake and clear-headed?

Aren't you all staying awake and clear-headed too?

We're all in the same state—why single me out as the only one with a problem?

Lumian observed Lu Jianuo's emotions, then asked calmly, his expression unchanged:

"Have you left the inn recently?"

"Yes, I bought roasted meat and cakes made from palm tree heart for Ludwig," Lu Jianuo recalled.

Lumian smiled:

"Have you slept outside the inn?"

"No, I wouldn't dare find women here," Lu Jianuo shook his head without hesitation.

He clearly felt a pang of regret—Tizamo Town had many girls who looked like mixed-race descendants, offering a flavor quite different from those of the Northern Continent.

As the two spoke, Jam and Ria kept searching for abnormalities in Lu Jianuo, but aside from his clarity and lack of overwhelming emotion or desire, he showed no outward signs of trouble.

Lumian smiled thoughtfully at Lu Jianuo:

"We're passively taking part in an event called the 'Dream Festival.' Simply put, we're dreaming—within this dream, we can do anything, but if we die here, we die in reality too."

"Everyone else in this region of Tizamo Town is controlled by their intense emotions and desires, just like Ludwig."

"Strictly speaking, they're also awake—they're consciously choosing to unleash their malice and erupt with long-suppressed desires. If we can subdue them, we might still communicate, but they'll instinctively try to deceive us."

Recalling how the café owner Bunia, after being exposed by Lumian's arrow, instantly changed his attitude and begged for mercy, Ria agreed with Louis Béry's judgment:

The participants of the "Dream Festival" aren't stupid or mad—they're simply overwhelmed by unchecked desire and emotion, which unleashes uncontrollable evil and cruelty!

"So that's how it is…" Lu Jianuo finally understood the situation.

He immediately grasped Ria's earlier question and blurted out:

Why can we stay awake and rational?

After a pause, his voice lowered as he added:

Why… why can I stay awake and rational?

Lumian smiled:

We stay awake and rational because we've actively entered this special dream before—we've left our marks and traces in specific places.

"As for you, I don't know why."

As he spoke, his gaze fixed on Lu Jianuo's face, studying his servant's expressions.

Lu Jianuo, confused and frightened, said:

"I don't know why this is happening either…"

Seeing no explosive reaction from Lu Jianuo when his anomaly was exposed, Lumian casually examined his fortune.

"Under the threat of blood disaster—likely to fall ill in the coming days… The earlier part is normal, given he was half-eaten by Ludwig; but what about the later part? How long will the 'Dream Festival' last? Impossible—if it lasted days, Tizamo Town's problem would've been discovered already… So Lu Jianuo will contract an illness during the 'Dream Festival,' one that manifests as real as death in the waking world—even after waking, even after receiving the comfort of a Mass, it won't be instantly healed?" Lumian silently interpreted the fortune he saw in Lu Jianuo's fate.

He quickly checked Jam and Ria's fortunes too, finding they too faced blood disasters in the near future—ones that could worsen if mishandled.

In a flash of thought, Lumian said to Jam and Ria:

"I'm taking my servant with me."

This wasn't kindness or benevolence—he feared that leaving Lu Jianuo, who inexplicably remained awake and rational, to roam freely might trigger his anomaly, alter the course of the "Dream Festival," and send events spiraling unpredictably.

Better to keep him close, monitor him tightly, and prevent accidents—if Lu Jianuo truly became a major threat, Lumian could strike first and eliminate him before trouble escalated.

Jam and Ria exchanged a glance, then answered reluctantly:

"You have the right to make any decision."

"Let's head to the Tewanako house now," Lumian repeated his earlier suggestion.

Jam glanced at the small alcove hiding Colobo and hesitated:

"Do you know where Captain ReYasa and the others are?"

"After the 'Dream Festival' began, they should've appeared beside me—but I didn't see them," Lumian described the situation honestly.

Perhaps because the dream doesn't perfectly mirror reality—each person's entry point depends on their own perception, the dream's state, and where they slept.

Lumian thought that if he hadn't remained awake and rational, he might have woken up in the master bedroom of the Bliu Inn suite.

"Should we look for them first?" Jam suggested hesitantly.

Lumian chuckled:

"What for? Fight them?"

Neither ReYasa nor Maxlo had slept in the "Siso" house—they were likely now in a state of weakened self-control, their malice and desires running rampant.

Facing such powerful outsiders, Lumian might not have the leisure to control the pace and intensity of battle as he did with ordinary people—avoiding death would be far harder.

Jam and Ria fell silent together.

They didn't want to fight their teammates to the death.

Lumian was about to gesture for the two patrol officers to draw closer when Jam clenched his teeth and said:

"I want to go somewhere first, then to the Tewanako house."

"Where?" Lumian raised an eyebrow.

Jam replied in a low voice:

"The Palm Estate."

Lumian smiled:

"You want to save Miss Amadina?"

Jam looked slightly embarrassed but nodded firmly:

"Yes."

"Don't worry—it's just a dream. Violation here won't cause real harm, only temporary hysteria that can be cured," Lumian didn't provoke him, merely stated a fact.

Jam's expression hardened:

"I know. I'm just afraid she won't endure it in the dream—she might act out violently and die."

Before Lumian could respond, Jam said firmly:

"You two go ahead to the Tewanako house. I'll go to the Palm Estate, then meet you later."

"We might not still be at Tewanako's by then," Ria reminded him.

Jam nodded lightly:

"This is my own choice—I'll bear all consequences."

Lumian stared into Jam's eyes for a long while without speaking.

Jam felt an indescribable pressure, thought of his own possible tragic end, yet still clenched his lips, refusing to retract his proposal.

After ten seconds of silence, Lumian's expression unchanged, said:

"Let's go to the Palm Estate now."

Huh? Before Jam could react, Lumian seized his shoulder.

Lumian's other hand reached for Ria's arm.

Ria instinctively tried to pull away, then remembered Lu Jianuo had been brought along the same way.

Her tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

Once Lumian had a firm grip on Jam and Ria, he gave Lu Jianuo a glance.

Lu Jianuo, practiced and quick, stepped close and gripped the corner of Lumian's vest.

The next second, Lumian's figure blurred.

The blurring spread rapidly, engulfing Jam, Ria, and Lu Jianuo.

Ria and Jam watched the layered colors and formless, indescribable things around them, their hearts surging with intense emotion:

Is this the "Spirit Realm"?

Is this "Teleportation"?

Is this why the great adventurer Gelmán Sparrow could appear anywhere, before any pirate, at will?

Earlier, when they'd seen Louis Béry vanish suddenly and return with his servant, Jam and Ria had guessed this might be the legendary "Teleportation" ability that made Gelmán Sparrow famous across the Five Seas.

Now it was confirmed.

—The Matanibang Patrol had recruited many adventurers; Jam and Ria were no strangers to tales from the Five Seas.

Just as they experienced the sensation of teleportation, their bodies exited the dream's Spirit Realm and appeared before a four-story beige building.

This was the main house of the Palm Estate.

In the blink of an eye, Lumian had brought Jam, Ria, and Lu Jianuo to the estate's entrance.

Around the estate, cries, screams, cruel laughter, and chants rose and fell in waves.

Just outside the main house, ten meters away beside the garden shrubs, a mixed-race female servant lay pinned to the ground by several slaves, her clothes half-torn, weeping and screaming.

She struggled desperately, but no match for the adult men—she was crushed beneath them.

Seeing this, the former "Peacekeeper" Jam instinctively wanted to intervene—but remembered this was a dream, that such events wouldn't truly affect reality, only cause temporary, curable hysteria.

Stopping would waste time, delay my search for Amadina, and serve no real purpose… Jam warned himself, then turned away and climbed the steps into the main house.

At that moment, after remaining silent for two seconds, Lyra turned her body away from the manor's main house.

"You go in first."

She spoke those light words over her shoulder to Lu Mi, Jia Mou, and Lu Jianuo, then bent slightly at the waist, stepped forward, and sprinted toward the shrubbery at the garden's edge, toward the mixed-race female servant being assaulted by several slaves.

PS: Thank you, friend Knifecur, for the Bai Yin alliance reward~

PS2: There will be a Gold Alliance bonus update at 7 PM~

(End of Chapter)