The moment I opened my eyes and saw that detestable face, my mood instantly soured. I had seen it so many times that I had memorized every loathsome detail against my will. A reflexive curse slipped out of my mouth.

"You damned bastard."

How long was he going to torment me before he was satisfied?

Of course, it wasn’t as if McHart himself could physically torment me, causing his face to constantly appear in my dreams. It was just that my subconscious couldn’t let go of the fear and vigilance I held against him, leading me to repeatedly dream about him.

Given that McHart was connected to demons and I knew his capabilities, the fear that he could invade my bed and abduct me at any time was deeply ingrained in my mind. This unspoken terror was the root of the exhaustion that had been eating away at my sleep for days.

'Damn it... I'm tied up again...'

The moment I saw his face, my instinct was to move my right hand and stab him in the throat, but just like in all the previous dreams, my wrists were tightly bound by something in the darkness, leaving me completely immobile.

"It’s no use. You’ve already been captured."

McHart’s smug voice echoed as he flashed me a rotten smile, taking satisfaction in my helplessness.

And then, that nauseating voice I had heard so many times before began to tear through my insides again.

"You have no idea how much effort I put into capturing you. Why is it that a noble lady like you is so unruly and resistant?"

"......"

"Could it be because you grew up rough as a commoner? That’s the only explanation that makes sense."

Stay calm. Don’t let him get to you.

As long as I could firmly recognize that this was a dream, I could find a way to wake up.

McHart’s comment about knowing I was a commoner, the fact that he didn’t have the time to actually tie me up, all of it pointed to the dream’s lack of reality.

I had to keep reminding myself that this world wasn’t real and wake up from this nightmare.

'But what if this isn’t a dream... No, it has to be a dream.'

Only a handful of people knew I wasn’t a noble, and none of them were close to McHart or loose-tongued.

There were plenty of other clues that this was a dream. I just needed to keep focusing on them to wake up.

The oddly realistic sensations, the strange sense of reality clinging to my body, were all just tricks my mind was playing. It was only because I had briefly fallen into McHart’s trap that my mind was conjuring such a vivid dream.

'It would be easier if this were a more typical dream where I couldn’t think clearly.'

Having just enough clarity to direct my anger at McHart only made the experience worse. And now that I was back at the Blackwood estate, sleeping alone, these dreams had become a nightly occurrence, chipping away at my sanity.

The nightmare had begun even before McHart's attack, but back then, I could probably brush it off and fall back asleep because I had Ethan’s warmth beside me at the academy. The thought that Ethan could protect me if something went wrong allowed me to rest easy and return to sleep.

Even in the academy church infirmary, where I shared a space with Agnes, I felt some degree of comfort, even if it wasn’t as much as with Ethan.

But back at the Blackwood estate, sleeping alone for the past three nights, I had no choice but to face these nightmares by myself.

"So, have you finally decided to submit to me?"

'Don’t engage. It’s just a dream. Don’t fall for the provocation.'

"There’s no way for you to escape from me. Now that I’ve trapped you in this space, you can’t resist."

'Ignore him. Don’t listen. It’s all nonsense.'

"I was relieved when that clingy brat disappeared. I almost had to scar that pretty body of yours. Don’t you agree?"

'Please wake up. Quickly. This is just a dream. Wake up, wake up, wake up...'

Desperately trying to block out McHart’s smug monologue—lines I’d heard dozens of times—I focused all my willpower on waking up.

My wrists and ankles were bound by those dark chains, making it impossible to grab a sword and escape like before.

Being in McHart’s domain, I couldn’t use magic either. Even if someone argued that I could control the dream with my imagination, I had tried that countless times before in previous dreams, only to fail every time.

The longer I stayed in this dream, the more inevitable the outcome became. I tightened every muscle in my body and concentrated on waking up.

Even in a dream, I didn’t want that bastard McHart to lay a hand on me.

A dream or not, what I hated was what I hated.

I had to erase McHart from my thoughts and focus solely on waking up. The more I visualized his face, the harder it would be to escape...

"Not that the outcome would have been any different, even if that foolish boy had been by your side. Someone who hasn’t even become a Sword Master couldn’t possibly stand up to me."

'What did you just say, you bastard?'

"What did you just say, you bastard?"

-Smirk.

...Damn it.

Why did he have to bring up Ethan all of a sudden?

I had almost managed to focus enough to wake up, but McHart’s sudden mention of Ethan shattered my concentration.

And just like that, I lost my chance to escape this nightmare, as McHart closed in on me, grinning with that disgusting smile.

"As expected, you have quite the foul mouth."

"......"

"A lady who hasn’t even learned basic manners must be re-educated from the beginning."

With those words, McHart reached out to touch my chest.

I clenched my eyes shut, refusing to look at what was happening.

Even though it was just a dream, I wasn’t going to let that bastard touch me. If I had to let someone touch me, it would only be Ethan...

-Slice!

Then, I heard the sound of a blade cutting through something.

Specifically, the sound of a blade slicing through flesh.

For a moment, I wondered if McHart had injured me in the dream, but I didn’t feel any pain in my body.

"Aaagh!!"

The scream that followed wasn’t mine. It was McHart’s, the same bastard who had been leering at me just moments ago.

And with that, a strange sense of hope welled up in my chest. When I cautiously opened my eyes, the first thing I saw wasn’t McHart but a reassuring back.

"What do you think you’re doing to my Lillis?"

"H-How did you...?"

"Even in a dream, I won’t allow anyone to touch Lillis, not for a single moment."

...Had I ever experienced a dream like this before?

In all my previous nightmares, I always woke up just before McHart’s hand touched me, only to fall back asleep and relive the same nightmare, dreading sleep every time. That had been my sleep pattern for days.

I had never expected Ethan to show up and save me in this wretched dream, let alone prevent my escape from this nightmare.

'...But it’s kind of reassuring.'

In reality, I had leaned on that broad back a few times. I never thought I’d be saved by him even in my dreams.

It was a bizarre situation, but I didn’t mind. It was better than being helpless before McHart.

-Slash!

"Aaagh!"

-Stab!

"Ugh, aaagh!!"

It seemed I wasn’t the only one surprised by Ethan’s appearance. The McHart in my subconscious was also being ruthlessly cut down by Ethan’s sword.

"You... you bastard...!!"

-Rip!

"Aaagh, aaagh!!"

...It felt almost too one-sided, but I wasn’t going to complain.

Even if this was a nightmare, it was still my dream, so I supposed it made sense that I would see what I wanted. No matter how unrealistic it seemed, I’d rather see Ethan win than lose.

With Ethan’s sudden attack, McHart was cut to pieces, each slice dividing him further until he was reduced to nothing. The moment McHart’s breath ceased, the dark restraints binding my limbs released their grip.

-Thud.

"Lillis, are you alright?"

"......"

"Let’s get you inside and rest. It looks like the exhaustion from the past few days has finally caught up to you..."

...Somehow, his voice felt overwhelmingly real in my ears. And the sensation of my body being held felt as if I were truly in Ethan’s arms.

Even in a dream, Ethan was like a real prince on a white horse. Not only did he show up to rescue me from the villain, but he also held me in his arms like a princess.

Under normal circumstances, I would’ve been flustered by such actions, even in a dream, but right now, I didn’t care. It was far better to be held in Ethan’s arms than to keep reliving the nightmare of being violated by McHart.

'Ah, right, I should give a reward...'

Even though it was a dream, I owed Ethan something for saving me. As usual, it was only right to give him a reward.

My head was too foggy to think clearly, but I knew what I needed to do in this situation.

'Ethan likes physical contact, so giving him something similar should be a fitting reward. But in this position, letting him touch my chest wouldn’t be possible...'

Following the flow of thoughts in my head, I wrapped my arms around Ethan’s neck and gently leaned my weight on him.

-Slide.

"...Lillis?"

In that moment, I raised myself slightly and brought my lips to Ethan’s.

-Mwah.

"...?!?"

Even though it was a kiss in a dream, the sensation felt surprisingly soft and real, as if it were happening in reality.

It was warm and comforting, just like being held in Ethan’s embrace.