When Dio woke the next morning, he felt wonderfully refreshed.
Unlike the dream involving Alfia, which had vanished from his memory the moment he opened his eyes, this time he remembered everything.
Because he had activated [Dreamwalker] deliberately, every moment of the dream remained perfectly clear, down to the smallest detail, as though it had all truly happened only moments ago.
Dio lay on the bed staring at the ceiling, the corners of his mouth slowly curling upward as the events of the previous night replayed themselves in his mind.
He never would have imagined that the usually dignified, elegant, and seemingly untouchable High Elven princess could be so wild!
Inside the dream, Riveria had cast aside every trace of her usual reserve.
The cold, regal exterior she presented to the world had melted away, revealing a passion as fierce as a roaring flame.
It had been exhilarating.
Utterly insane!
Just remembering it made Dio’s heartbeat quicken and warmth gather low in his abdomen.
Who could possibly have guessed?
Riveria Ljos Alf—the woman renowned throughout Orario for her composure, authority, and unapproachable dignity—had shown an entirely different side of herself inside the dream.
Then, without warning, a freezing wave of killing intent spread through the room.
It snapped Dio out of his pleasant memories at once.
The pressure was so sharp and intense that every hair on his body stood on end.
His muscles tightened instinctively, like prey realizing a predator had been watching from the shadows.
Dio jerked his head toward the source.
Demeter was sitting in a chair on the other side of the room, arms folded beneath her chest and one leg crossed over the other.
Her smile was pleasant enough at first glance, but her narrowed amber eyes gleamed with unmistakable danger.
When Dio finally noticed her, Demeter’s smile widened.
“It seems you had a very pleasant dream last night.”
Her voice was sweet and gentle, yet every word sounded as though it had been forced through clenched teeth.
A chill ran through Dio’s entire body.
“It—it was all right.”
He gave an awkward laugh and tried to bluff his way through the situation, but every warning bell in his mind was already ringing.
Demeter was a goddess.
Her divine power might be sealed in the Lower World, but her perception and instincts remained as sharp as ever.
She might not know exactly what he had done with [Dreamwalker], but she had almost certainly sensed the Magic activate.
And judging by her expression, she had also witnessed the ridiculous smile on his face while he lay there savoring the memory.
When Dio continued grinning nervously, Demeter’s expression turned cold.
“Tell me the truth.
Which girl did you target last night?”
Guilt immediately showed on Dio’s face, and sweat gathered at his temples.
He knew Demeter well enough by now to understand that if he refused to answer, she would find some way to force the truth out of him.
That would probably end even worse!
But if he confessed…
There was a real chance she might beat him to death.
His target had been Riveria Ljos Alf.
The vice captain of the Loki Familia.
The strongest mage in Orario.
The famous adventurer known as Nine Hell.
If this secret ever spread, Demeter would not be able to protect him.
There might not be a single place in all of Orario where he could hide.
Loki might act carefree and mischievous most of the time, but she was fiercely protective of her children.
If she discovered that someone had dared to lay a hand on her vice captain inside a dream…
Dio’s back went cold just imagining the consequences.
“If you refuse to tell me,” Demeter said, delivering her final threat, “then I won’t update your status.”
She knew exactly where to strike.
Right now, the changes to his Basic Abilities were the one thing Dio cared about most.
He wrestled with himself for several long moments before finally surrendering.
Without Demeter’s help, he had no way of seeing how much his status had changed.
“Riveria Ljos Alf.”
He lowered his head and muttered the name so quietly that it was barely audible.
Demeter heard him perfectly.
Her pupils widened, and she shot to her feet, staring at Dio as though he had completely lost his mind.
“Who did you say?!”
Her voice rose an entire octave.
“Riveria?
Riveria of the Loki Familia?
Nine Hell?
Have you gone insane?!
Do you have any idea who she is?
Do you know how protective that lunatic Loki is?”
“If Loki finds out you did something like that to her vice captain—no, even if she only learns that someone invaded the dreams of one of her children—she’ll turn all of Orario upside down looking for you!”
Demeter grew more agitated with every word.
She paced back and forth across the room, gesturing wildly as though the disaster had already begun.
“Do you understand that I won’t be able to protect you if this gets out?
Forget me—even if every god in Orario joined forces, they might not be able to save you!
Loki acts irresponsible most of the time, but when she becomes serious, even Freya knows better than to underestimate her!”
Dio shrank back slightly, startled by the scale of Demeter’s reaction.
He had known Riveria was important, but he had not expected the situation to be quite this dangerous.
“Goddess, calm down…”
He hurriedly tried to reassure her.
“I didn’t do anything to Riveria in reality.
It only happened in a dream.
Who can prove what happened in someone’s dream?
I never touched her real body.
Even if Loki somehow found out, she wouldn’t have any evidence that it was me.”
“No evidence?”
Demeter stopped pacing and spun toward him.
“Do you think Loki is an amateur?
She is a goddess of trickery and mischief.
If she truly decides to investigate, she’ll find clues somewhere.”
She pointed sharply at him.
“And all she needs to do is see your Falna once.
The moment she notices [Dreamwalker], you’ll expose yourself!”
This time, Dio genuinely began to panic.
He had not considered the possibility of magical traces or someone discovering his Magic through his status.
“Then what am I supposed to do?”
His voice tightened.
“Should I run?”
“Run where?
Your Dimensional Gate is still cooling down.
Do you honestly think you can escape Orario?”
Demeter rolled her eyes in exasperation.
“For now, all we can do is hope Riveria dismisses the entire experience as an ordinary nightmare and forgets about it in a few days.
If she chooses not to investigate, then Loki won’t have any reason to become involved.”
Dio finally released a small breath of relief.