"I must have seen it wrong."

Selena came to that conclusion.

The hammer Frondier had conjured out of thin air a moment ago.

By now, Frondier pulling something strange out of nowhere wasn't surprising. She had simply chalked it up to Frondier's abilities and moved on.

But, that hammer.

Even though she had seen it for less than 5 seconds, the hammer had a square metal head, evenly balanced on each side, with a short handle...

I must have seen it wrong.

Selena showed no emotion on her face. Rather, her expression was completely frozen. It felt like she was trying not to show any emotion, ending up not thinking anything at all.

I must have seen it wrong, must have seen it wrong, must have seen it wrong

"Selena."

"Yes. I didn't see anything."

Huh.

She blurted out a strange answer without realizing. Frondier blinked and looked at her.

"...What, are you a mind reader?"

"Excuse me?"

"I was about to ask if you saw where Merlin fled to."

Oh.

Selena tilted her head in thought for a moment and then pointed with her finger.

"I didn't see clearly, but I think it was in that direction."

"I see."

Frondier walked over, covered the horse with a blanket, and then mounted it. He looked at Selena.

Selena climbed up behind him, feigning calm.

"Cassian, run down this path."

Cassian immediately picked up speed at Frondier's command.

Clippity clop, clippity clop, Frondier was now fairly stable on the horse. His body was still stiff, but at least he wouldn't fall off by himself.

Selena saw the trees passing by in her peripheral view. The trees were endlessly green, the wind was refreshing, and the sunshine was beautifully shining down.

"...It's a beautiful place."

Selena murmured unknowingly. And then slightly regretted it.

She had been unexpectedly scolded by Frondier before, so she was nervous this statement might somehow get her in trouble too.

"Isn't it?"

But Frondier surprisingly agreed.

"It's like a forest out of a fairy tale."

"Yes. I wonder if there's another forest as beautiful as this in the world,"

At that moment, Selena stiffened her expression and closed her mouth.

Once again, she looked at the scenery around them. She closely observed the trees in the lush forest, the occasional birds passing by, and the beautifully shining sunlight.

'...Could it be.'

Something was off. Among all the beautiful harmony around her, there was not a single thing she recognized. The trees, the grass, the passing wild animals, they all looked somewhat similar but different from what she knew.

Could the sun be an illusion too? The sunlight breaking through the leaves of the trees was hauntingly beautiful, but was it the real sunlight's intensity?

"Selena."

Frondier called her gently.

"Do you know the name Merlin?"

"Of course. I've read a lot about the legend of King Arthur when I was younger. Though I was surprised to come face-to-face with a character from the legends."

"Then you know."

"Know what?"

"Merlin is dead. He's a character from the legends, after all."

At that, Selena blinked several times before her eyes widened, and she opened her mouth.

"Then, what we saw just now was a ghost...!"

"Something like that."

Selena was confused. Her head was spinning. More than anything, she couldn't understand why she was so shocked.

After thinking for a while, Selena spoke up, having realized something.

"Why didn't I notice that? I knew that Merlin was someone who died a long time ago."

Logically, the usual her would have immediately thought 'that's impossible' upon encountering someone called Merlin.

Because he's a dead person.

However, until Frondier pointed it out, Selena didn't feel any sense of incongruity.

"It's natural."

"Natural?"

"You must have experienced it too. No matter how absurd something is, no matter how strange the event, even if the situation doesn't make sense, you just accept it and move on."

Is that so?

Selena thought deeply. Then, she realized.

"Could it be, a dream...?"

"Correct. You're quick to catch on."

It was the first time Frondier complimented her, but Selena didn't hear any of it.

With a serious face, she said,

"So, are we asleep right now?"

"Huh?"

"If we're in a dream, then in reality, we're asleep somewhere, being dragged off and restrained, with only a terrible torture awaiting us when we wake up..."

"No, no. What are you talking about."

Frondier turned around with a look of incredulity, as if to scold her.

But Selena was trembling, her eyes filled with tears. And in a few seconds, the tears started falling.

"What's with you?"

"I don't want this, again, I mean, no..."

Frondier's expression softened. He stopped Cassian in his tracks. Whether Selena knew it or not, she just kept crying.

"Hey, snap out of it."

"I'm, I'm sorry..., it's my fault,"

Snap!

At that moment, Selena snapped back to reality due to a throbbing pain that filled her head. It was so painful that it brought tears to her eyes, but it stopped her crying. It was an odd thing.

Frondier was extending his finger. He had flicked her forehead.

However, it was nothing romantic like in a romance novel. There was no holding back his strength. It was clear he had used his aura to hit her. How Frondier was capable of that, she didn't know.

"Does it hurt?"

"Yes."

"See. So, you're not asleep."

What is this?

But it was certain. She had never felt such painful sensation in a dream before. No, if it hurts this much, one should wake up. So, it's not a dream. It's painful, though.

"So, this place being a dream is...?"

"We didn't come here by falling asleep. It's much simpler."

"Simpler?"

Frondier looked around. The lush forest, the clear air, the warm sunlight. Everything was perfect and complete, without a single shadow.

"To think it could go this far." Frondier said, smiling as if in admiration.

"Merlin has reproduced his dream into reality. From the distant past worthy of being called a legend, until this moment today."