Warlock Apprentice

Toby flapped its wings and arrived at the middle of the corridor.

On either side of it, there was a door.

The door on the left was an ordinary wooden door. If Angel were here, he would recognize it as the villa door from when he was still a Junior Apprentice living in Mirror World’s No. 8 Apprentice Town.

As for the door on the right, there was no actual door panel. Instead, it was replaced by a swirling gray mist. The mist lingered at the doorway, constantly shifting in density. Even without stepping in, it already provoked an unsettling feeling.

Toby gazed longingly at the door on the left. It knew very well that behind this wooden door lay a paradise of dried fish snacks, beautiful outfits, and melodious music—a true haven. However, despite its gaze lingering on ”Paradise,” its rationale and actions urged it toward the door on the right.

When Toby stood before the misty door, it murmured to itself: Once I overcome this calamity, I’ll get to revel behind the other door. Surely my little master will grant me this small request, right?

With that wish in mind, Toby steeled itself, flapped its wings resolutely, and charged into the gray mist.

As Toby entered the gray mist, atop Sky Tower in the external world, Angel suddenly shifted his gaze away from the House of the Heart and turned to look out the window.

The once azure sky outside suddenly roared with a deafening boom. A mass of clouds quickly obscured the bright sunlight, and the atmosphere grew darker by the moment. Amid the thick clouds, serpentine flashes of lightning could be seen dancing.

Drip. Drop. Drip. Drop—

”It’s raining,” Frode remarked, glancing out the window before turning back to Angel with a concerned look. ”My lord, is something wrong?”

Angel was silent for a moment before nodding slightly. ”It’s here.”

It’s here? Who’s here? Frode initially didn’t understand Angel’s words, but when Angel retracted his gaze and looked at the slumbering Toby on the table, Frode immediately realized: ”My lord, are you referring to the Extreme Resentment Thoughts?”

Angel nodded. Since the Wilderness of Dreams was entirely of his creation, Angel had always been able to sense things outside the boundaries of this Miniature Garden. Now that he had obtained the Ability Tree, the Wilderness of Dreams was firmly within his grasp, making his sensitivity to external interactions with the Miniature Garden even more acute.

Just now, Angel had sensed an accumulation of emotions—a moderate presence compared to the Wilderness of Dreams—that seemed to be using Toby as a medium in an attempt to infiltrate this Miniature Garden.

There was no doubt about it; this was the real Extreme Resentment Thoughts.

Angel had encountered it before, so he knew full well what it meant when the Extreme Resentment Thoughts attempted to enter the Wilderness of Dreams through Toby—it meant...

”Toby has already begun confronting the Jealous Snake Bird? Or rather, the projection of the Extreme Resentment Thoughts?” Frode inquired.

”Yes.” Angel quietly observed the seemingly sleeping Toby, his eyes carrying a glimmer of hope. According to Frost, outsiders couldn’t assist Toby in overcoming this tribulation. Everything depended on how Toby handled it. Even now, by leveraging the House of the Heart to let Toby face the Extreme Resentment Thoughts in advance, Angel was merely providing a relatively advantageous setting. Ultimately, whether Toby could defeat the Extreme Resentment Thoughts, it all hinged on Toby himself.

”Since Toby has begun facing the Extreme Resentment Thoughts, it means there’s likely an emotional surge happening in the real world. I’ll return to reality and check the situation. I’ll leave Toby’s care here to you,” Angel said to Frode before glancing at Toby once more and then slowly exiting the Wilderness of Dreams.

At the same time, in the real world, Angel opened his eyes.

He stood up and immediately turned toward the front, where Sharley was standing at the center of ”Destiny’s Boiling Tune.”

Within the Magical Energy Array, the area Sharley occupied was pitch-black, illuminated only by the glowing patterns of the array.

At that moment, Sharley seemed to sense something. She directed her gaze at the sleeping Toby, clasped her hands together, closed her eyes, and softly murmured.

Sharley’s expression was unusually calm, entirely unlike her usual mischievous Witch demeanor. In his sleep, Toby also showed no abnormalities. His chest rose and fell in a slow, steady rhythm.

Angel knew that Toby was definitely facing the Extreme Resentment Thoughts, but from the situation in reality, there was no sign of the black mist associated with the Extreme Resentment Thoughts appearing on Toby’s body—clearly, thanks to Sharley’s ability.

Angel let out a slight sigh of relief. Judging by the current state, Sharley’s talent indeed had an effect on Toby. Even without fully activating ”Destiny’s Boiling Tune,” she could already suppress it. When Toby reaches a critical moment and Sharley fully activates ”Destiny’s Boiling Tune,” it might truly allow Toby to confront the Extreme Resentment Thoughts within the House of the Heart without being interrupted like the last time Angel had to forcibly intervene midway.

As Angel observed, a gentle surge of magic power suddenly connected to him.

Turning around, Angel saw Greya walking up beside him. In the spiritual realm, a pink line bound them together.

This was the third-level Trick, the Mind Ribbon.

Angel didn’t resist, opting to let his spiritual power flow into the thread crafted by Greya.

”You’re awake?” Greya’s spiritual waves carried a message to him. ”Since you’ve returned from the dream, does that mean Toby has started confronting what you called...the Extreme Resentment Thoughts in the lucid dream?”

The Mind Ribbon creates a direct connection between spiritual powers, allowing all parties to feel each other’s emotions clearly. Although Greya’s tone sounded serious, Angel could faintly sense a teasing undercurrent in her message.

Evidently, Greya didn’t particularly believe in Angel’s so-called ”lucid dream” concept.

Pretending not to catch the playful tone, Angel responded plainly, ”Yes. Just like last time, since Toby has begun confronting the Extreme Resentment Thoughts, it’s inevitable that there would be an emotional backlash in the real world. I came out to take a look. From what I see now, Toby’s emotional state is very stable. Sharley’s abilities do seem to suppress Toby’s surging negative emotions.”

Greya raised an eyebrow. The sincerity in Angel’s message left no room for doubt—he wasn’t lying. Could it really be true that Toby was confronting the Extreme Resentment Thoughts?

Greya couldn’t figure out how Toby could indirectly face the Extreme Resentment Thoughts without encountering it head-on. Was it truly because of the lucid dream?

She had experienced lucid dreams herself, but their rules were chaotic. Was it really capable of mirroring reality to such an extent?

Shaking her head, Greya set aside the details Angel seemingly intended to keep secret and shifted her focus to Toby’s well-being. ”Do you think Sharley can truly carry out your plan?”

Angel: ”It’s hard to say for now. When Toby’s emotions surge to their peak in the dream, there will undoubtedly be an immediate reaction in reality. At that point, it will depend on whether Sharley can suppress it. If she manages, then half the plan will have succeeded.”

Greya: ”Only half?”

Angel nodded. ”The other half depends on whether Toby can persist through hundreds of clashes with the Extreme Resentment Thoughts and, within those encounters, develop his own method of overcoming it.”

In other words, as long as Sharley could suppress Toby’s emotional surges throughout, Angel’s experiment would technically be a success.

Human efforts would have been exhausted. Now, it all depended on Toby’s determination—and a bit of luck.