The Dreamer's Epilogue-Chapter 6: Océane
Chapter 6 – Océane
Along the way, Emrys and the woman, who introduced herself as Océane, fought many battles against the Red Spawns.
These were the usual weak ones. They thanked whatever divine being for such a blessing.
And after the battle with what they came to know was called a Bulky Red Spawn, an evolved version of a regular one, they were now far less worried about the weak ones.
They killed like berserkers, gaining nothing new, and continued like this until they found a relatively safe place. It was a five-story building nestled in the heart of Paris.
The inside was riddled with what used to be merchant stores.
Emrys and Océane used the stairs and went up to the very top, passing by sights they would rather not describe for the health of their minds.
Still, there were little to no Red Spawns.
It was Sunday, so the building was particularly empty.
And from what Emrys managed to notice, those Red Spawns were born from the blood of dead humans.
"Quite gross," Océane had said when he shared this little insight.
Once they arrived at the top, they hid themselves under the stairwell, facing each other, eyes closing, chests heaving up and down restlessly.
Each one of them was focused on regaining their breath, while at the same time restless thoughts paraded through their minds.
There were too many things to think about.
Océane, particularly, had an anxious face, one she always hid beneath an open and extroverted smile when Emrys glanced at her.
’Fuck.’ Emrys cursed internally, feeling his body tremble in exhaustion.
At that instant, he wished for nothing more than to close his eyes and let dreams — or nightmares, it didn’t matter — take over his consciousness. But it would be the biggest and certainly last mistake he would ever make.
Because with such little time left before the literal end of the world, the moment he closed his eyes, he would not open them again.
So he clenched his jaw, trying his best to push the sleep away. It was easier than he thought, considering the current dire state of his situation.
However, the exhaustion refused to leave his aching bones.
Exhaling, Emrys peeked through his eyelids, staring at the woman, Océane, sitting cross-legged in front of him.
Just like him, she was utterly spent, her face pale, having lost all her previous makeup, and her lips dry and cracking like stone.
Her breathing was shallow and rasping, her eyes closed as she tried to regulate it while placing her right hand on her chest.
Looking at her more closely, Emrys noticed the clothes stained with blood she was wearing. It was McDonald’s working clothes.
’Was she going to work before all this?’ he wondered, only then noticing that she looked... older. Well, older than him at least.
Emrys was eighteen. Océane looked like a woman in her twenties.
And objectively speaking, she was a beautiful girl, her face filled with brown freckles, with long slender legs that ran like a gazelle.
Emrys was awed, but that didn’t lessen his irritation at being forced into such a dangerous fight.
Recalling the fight, he remembered the achievements he had obtained.
He summoned them again, curious about what he had gained.
White light flashed in front of him, panel upon panel flickering open.
[NEW ACHIEVEMENT! What a Kill!]
[You have participated in killing a GeumGeum-less Bulky Red Spawn using your rather debatable driving skills. Paul Walker would certainly be proud of you. Or not.]
[Rewards: Regenerative Potion (Unranked); Red Glove (Unranked artifact); Token of Purple (Special artifact)]
[NEW ACHIEVEMENT! Me and You!]
[You worked with another human being to take down a monster. Basic human activity achieved. Wonderful!]
[Reward: You don’t get rewards for something like this.]
Emrys looked at all these panels with interest, even though his lips twitched irritably at the last two.
He ignored them and focused on what he had gained. He wished to know their descriptions.
[Regenerative Potion (Unranked): It won’t make your limbs regrow, but you will be able to refresh your mind and continue your suffering. A failed potion from a worthless alchemist of the Alchemy Tower. The bastard refused to let her name be known.]
[Red Glove (Unranked): An artifact created using the body of a GeumGeum-less Bulky Red Spawn. It makes your knuckles hurt less when you punch. So punch.]
[Token of Purple (Special artifact): This is a token given to those who performed worthy deeds within their means. Survive, reach the Tower, and a reward shall be presented to you.]
Emrys didn’t hesitate for a second. He took the regenerative potion and gulped it down in one go.
He immediately felt his fatigue lessen, his mind refreshed and sharper. He moaned in relief.
Next, Emrys took the glove and wore it. A soft feeling washed over his hands. The glove was red and fingerless.
Not his type of style, but security before aesthetics.
He held the Token of Purple in his hand. It was square-shaped, with a gift box etched onto it.
"You obtained it too?" Océane’s voice echoed, pulling Emrys’s attention away from the token.
He immediately stored it, looking at Océane holding the same token.
Emrys stared at her sternly, eyes narrowing in irritation.
Océane chuckled awkwardly, running her dirty hand through her hair. "Hey, I already said sorry, didn’t I?"
"You think ’sorry’ is enough after what you’ve done?"
"Don’t look at it that way, surly boy! Look!" She showed him her token. "We managed to survive and even get something so cool!"
She grinned.
"Everything went well. Look at the bright side of things, okay?"
"All of this will mean nothing if we do not find a portal to enter the Tower," Emrys hissed, looking at the timer at the right side of his eye. "And because of you, I have lost much of that time."
"Oh, that?" Océane said casually, storing her token and looking at Emrys with a strange smile. "I do know the location of a portal."
Emrys immediately straightened his body, eyes wide in surprise.
"Say that again?"
—End of Chapter 6—
