Chapter 306 : Replacement

"Draw a mark?"

In the dark dream space, Gregor, in his black hound form, frowned as he looked at the sentence and the inverted pentagram symbol that appeared before him. He couldn’t help but mutter.

“Will this mark really help me break free from this deep sleep?”

Gregor thought to himself. Under normal circumstances, he would never agree to drawing an unfamiliar mystical mark on his body. James had made it very clear when he joined the team: don’t randomly read unfamiliar mystical texts, and don’t randomly draw unfamiliar mystical symbols, because who knows what could happen? But given the current situation, he had no choice. The little fox’s sleepwalking couldn’t be maintained for long.

“This mysterious Aka follower was introduced by Paarthurnax, the dragon. A being of such high status as Paarthurnax wouldn’t have any ill intentions toward a mere Apprentice-rank Hunter like me, right? So this mark should be safe.”

“But it looks a bit complicated... Miss Fox, you’re having trouble even controlling my sleepwalking movements. Can you really draw something like this?”

Gregor thought to himself, while the little white fox beside him, after looking at the text and pattern, spoke up confidently.

"All I need to do is draw this thing on the black dog, right? That’s manageable~"

"Uh... Miss Fox, this mark looks a bit complicated. You just had trouble making my body stand and walk properly. Drawing this..."

Gregor said with a hint of worry, but the little fox wagged her tail and replied.

"Ah, you don’t understand. Controlling someone to walk in their sleep isn’t easy. You think walking is simple, but it actually involves coordinating the entire body, with countless muscles working together to maintain balance. It’s actually quite difficult.”

"I’m only a Black Earth-rank Dream Intruder. My main abilities are entering others’ dreams to gather sensations and steal memories. The sleepwalking ability is just a bonus. Until I reach White Ash-rank, it’s hard for me to coordinate the whole body to stand and walk. But if it’s just drawing something, I can manage. Just watch."

With that, the little fox began her work. Under her sleepwalking control, Gregor, who had been sitting in the carriage, suddenly raised his hands. His right hand moved stiffly forward, slapping onto the table in front of him. After fumbling around for a while, he finally grabbed the pen on the table—the one Gregor had used earlier to take notes.

The little fox made Gregor’s body grip the pen with all five fingers of his right hand, then raised the hand. Next, she extended his left hand, palm facing up, and held it steady. Then, with the pen gripped in his right hand, she began to mechanically draw on the palm of his left hand.

By gripping the pen with his entire hand and only moving the muscles in his arm, the little fox successfully controlled Gregor’s sleepwalking to draw the mark. Seeing this, Gregor’s eyes lit up.

"So that’s how it’s done. You’re really something, Miss Fox."

Watching the scene through the screen in front of him, Gregor nodded in understanding. This way, it was indeed possible to draw without moving too many other parts of the body.

Finally, the little fox successfully drew the mark that had appeared in the dream space onto Gregor’s left palm. Although it was a bit crooked, it was clear enough and met the requirements.

After the little fox finished drawing the mark, new text appeared in the space.

"Good job, Miss Fox, Hunter. I can feel the mark has taken effect. Now, please release the sleepwalking control."

Seeing the new text, the black hound Gregor and the little fox exchanged glances. The little fox took a step back and released her control over Gregor’s body in the waking world. As the sleepwalking ended, Gregor’s body, sitting on the carriage sofa, suddenly slumped, his eyes closing as the screen in the dream cockpit went dark.

"Is that... it?"

In the dream space, the black hound Gregor muttered uneasily as he looked at the pitch-black scene before him. He was now wondering what the mysterious mark on his hand would do. Would it wake him up directly, or…

As Gregor pondered, the entire dream space suddenly trembled slightly. The screen that had gone dark suddenly lit up again, and Gregor and the little fox once again saw the scene inside the carriage. Seeing this, Gregor couldn’t help but say to the little fox.

"Miss Fox, didn’t you release the sleepwalking?"

"I did! But the body started moving on its own! I’m not controlling it."

The little fox replied in surprise, and Gregor’s eyes widened.

"What..."

As Gregor and the little fox were still processing this, the screen before them suddenly changed again. The entire screen rose higher, and the perspective shifted to other parts of the carriage. Seeing this, the little fox exclaimed.

"You’re standing up! Hey! Black dog! Someone else is controlling your body to stand up!"

Hearing the little fox’s words, Gregor was stunned, then shouted into the void of the dream space.

"Sir, are you the one controlling my body?"

"Yes, that’s the effect of the mark. It allows me to control your body in the waking world, and the precision of this control is much better than sleepwalking. Look... I’m now controlling your body to walk around the carriage."

In response to Gregor, new text appeared in the dream space. Seeing this, the little fox’s mouth opened slightly.

"A mark that allows remote control of someone’s body? And with such precision... That’s impressive... It’s almost on par with the flesh puppets of the Chalice path. But flesh puppets can’t control living people, and they certainly can’t control from such a distance."

The little fox muttered to herself. Thanks to her grandfather, she had a deep understanding of mysticism world. Seeing this, she immediately thought of the flesh puppets of the Chalice path.

"My body can actually move like this... That’s incredible. Even though I’m not fully awake, if I can walk, I should be able to protect myself. Sir! Please move my body to the safety of the rear carriage now."

Gregor spoke into the darkness of the dream space. After a moment, new text appeared before him. It seemed the other party had a different opinion about Gregor’s suggestion.

"Hunter, I think leaving now might actually be a worse choice."

"What?"

Seeing these words, Gregor was momentarily confused, not understanding the other’s meaning. Soon, more text appeared to explain.

"I’ve learned about your situation from Paarthurnax. Hunter, if I recall correctly, you were drugged after eating food in the first-class dining car, right?"

The text appeared before Gregor, and he nodded in response.

"Yes, I only ate in the first-class dining car. I didn’t eat anywhere else, and no one hypnotized me face-to-face. So the problem must have been there."

"Good. I’ve also traveled in first-class on Pritt trains and eaten in similar dining cars. The food there is prepared in advance and placed together for guests to choose from. Hunter, this kind of self-service model makes it hard to target someone specifically with poison... If you were indeed drugged by the food in the dining car, it’s possible that all the food there was tampered with. To drug just you, perhaps all the passengers in the first-class carriage are now in a deep sleep.”

"For you... those behind this went to such lengths. Do you think they’ll let you return to the safety of the second-class carriage so easily?"

A series of sentences appeared before Gregor. The black hound Gregor’s expression grew serious as he spoke.

"Sir, are you saying... if I try to leave now, they might realize their plan to drug me has failed and resort to force, leading to a direct confrontation?"

"Exactly. If my speculation is correct, the entire first-class carriage is now asleep. A direct confrontation here wouldn’t cause any commotion."

New text appeared before Gregor, and he found himself agreeing. If he tried to go to the rear carriage, what if they resorted to force in the corridor? Their ranks and abilities were unknown. Could he really win in a direct confrontation?

As Gregor pondered, more text appeared before him.

"Hunter, right now, they don’t know you can move while asleep. This is an opportunity for you—a chance to counterattack, to uncover their intentions, to see their true strength, and even turn the tables. Don’t you want to make use of this opportunity?

"Of course, this is just my suggestion. It’s your body, and I’ll follow your decision. If you still want to go to another carriage to ensure your safety, I’ll carry that out immediately."

Seeing the new text, Gregor was stunned. He suddenly felt that this unseen Aka follower made a lot of sense. Meanwhile, the little fox chimed in.

"Hey, black dog, I think this guy’s thinking is much more thorough than yours. You’re not the sharpest tool in the shed, so maybe you should just listen to him."

“What do you mean, not the sharpest tool…”

Gregor felt a bit annoyed by the little fox’s words, but after thinking about it, he realized the other party’s reasoning was sound.

“Yeah, if they’re scheming against me, just trying to hide isn’t the way. Forget hiding—let’s take them on!”

Gregor thought to himself, then spoke to the text before him in his black hound form.

"Sir, you make a good point. Now isn’t the time to run. I agree that it’s time to face these guys head-on."

As Gregor spoke, Dorothy, far away in Tivian, couldn’t help but smile.

…

Southwest of Pritt’s main island, under the dark night sky, the steel train continued to speed across the fields.

Late at night, in the corridor of the first-class carriage, a uniformed train attendant sat at the end of the carpeted hallway, half-asleep, his eyes glazed over as he yawned, seemingly on the verge of dozing off.

Just then, he felt a tap on his shoulder. Startled, he turned to see another young train attendant standing beside him, holding a briefcase and smiling at him.

"You look exhausted. Go get some sleep. It’s my turn to take over..."

"Ahhh... It’s you. Perfect timing. I can’t hold on much longer. I’ll leave it to you."

Stretching and yawning, the train attendant got up and left. The young attendant with the briefcase watched him go, then glanced around, his expression turning serious. He walked to a compartment door and knocked lightly, but there was no response.

“The drug must have taken effect... No one in the first-class carriage is awake now…”

𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

The young attendant thought to himself, a faint smile curling on his lips. He then strode confidently to another compartment door and knocked again, still receiving no response.

"Guest... Guest... Compartment service! Please open the door!"

The young attendant knocked harder this time, calling out, but there was still no response. Seeing this, he breathed a sigh of relief, a smile forming on his face. He pulled out a key from his pocket and unlocked the compartment door.

Once inside, he quickly closed the door behind him and looked around the compartment. What he saw was a man slumped on the sofa, wearing a vest and shirt, with a coat draped over him, fast asleep. It was Gregor.

Seeing the sleeping Gregor, the attendant’s smile widened.

“Gregorius Mayschoss... It took a lot of effort to eliminate you without a sound. If it were just about killing you, it would have been much simpler…”

The attendant thought to himself. To eliminate Gregor without causing any disturbance, to ensure he died without any chance of resistance, they had chosen to drug him. The drug had been added to all the food in the first-class dining car, a massive effort just to put Gregor into a deep sleep and then quietly kill him.

The reason for such an elaborate plan was to ensure Gregor had no chance to resist. The mission required his death to be completely silent, and drugging him into a deep sleep before killing him was the safest way.

Looking at Gregor, who was deeply asleep from the drug, the young attendant set down his briefcase and walked up to him. He pulled out a dagger from his clothes but didn’t strike immediately. Instead, he stared at Gregor’s sleeping face, examining it from various angles. After a long while, he closed his eyes, and his face began to shift, as if worms were crawling beneath his skin, causing his features to become unstable.

After a series of changes, the attendant’s face stabilized, but it was no longer his own. It had transformed into Gregor’s face—an exact replica.

This was Shape-Shifting, an ability of Black Earth-rank Shadow Facades.

"From today onward, I am Gregorius Mayschoss, the Hunter from Igwynt, heading to Tivian to take up his post..."

With Gregor’s face, the attendant whispered in Gregor’s voice. He then tightened his grip on the dagger and prepared to stab the sleeping Gregor on the sofa. But... someone was faster.

Before he could strike, Gregor’s closed eyes suddenly snapped open, and a hand hidden under the coat shot out. Concealed in the coat was a bottle of ink with the cap removed. With a sudden motion, a large amount of black ink splashed out, aimed directly at the attendant’s face.

"What..."

Reacting quickly with the reflexes of a Black Earth-rank Shadow, the attendant raised his hand to block the ink, preventing it from getting into his eyes. But this action also blocked his own vision.

Seizing the opportunity, "Gregor" suddenly sprang up from the sofa, his cold eyes locking onto the attendant. Taking advantage of the attendant’s obstructed vision, he delivered a powerful kick to the attendant’s groin. The attendant cried out in pain, stumbling back and hitting the wall. "Gregor" didn’t give him a moment to recover.

With one hand, he firmly grabbed the attendant’s wrist, the one holding the dagger. Despite the pain, the attendant tried to break free, but the grip was surprisingly strong. Even with his Apprentice-rank Chalice strength, he couldn’t immediately shake it off.

Having gained the upper hand by surprise, "Gregor" clenched his other fist and ruthlessly punched the attendant in the face. The attendant tried to dodge, but in the cramped compartment, with his movements restricted and still reeling from the groin strike, he couldn’t avoid the blow.

And so, "Gregor’s" fist slammed into the face that was now identical to his own, distorting it on impact.

At this moment, far away in Tivian, in her bedroom in Green Shade Town, Dorothy, dressed in her pajamas, couldn’t help but smile.

"Haha... So this is what it feels like to punch my brother... What a rare experience..."