"Does my explanation satisfy you, Mr. Simon?" Sam's gentle voice broke the tense silence.
Simon's entire body was frozen stiff, too terrified to make a move.
Sam chuckled lightly. His approach had been calculated, based on his assumption that Simon wouldn't dare take a barrage of bullets head-on. From what he had learned from Thomas, Sam had a decent grasp of the humanoid monsters' abilities and Simon's performance in fighting them.
The humanoid monsters possessed strength several times greater than an average person, with incredible regenerative abilities—so much so that even destroying their heads wasn't enough to kill them. Against ordinary people, they were an unstoppable force. However, in a one-on-one fight, Ethan could easily prevail. Unfortunately, humanoid monsters rarely acted alone; they typically moved in packs of hundreds.
Simon, over the past three days, had faced these creatures multiple times. But his strategy had always been the same: staying at a distance and firing flame bullets from his fingertips. He never allowed the monsters to get close. If they did, he would immediately flee. For most of those three days, his group had remained holed up inside a house.
From this, Sam deduced that Simon's Extraordinary power was fire-based but lacked the defensive capabilities of someone like Ethan, who could withstand bullets.
The tense standoff lingered for a few more moments before Simon finally extinguished the flame on his fingertip. Forcing a smile, he said, "I acted rashly. Those humanoid monsters don't carry guns."
He took a breath and added, "Please don't take offense, sir. I didn't mean anything by it. I'm just a straightforward person, not great with words. Honestly, these past few days in the Nightmare World have been incredibly oppressive, and my nerves are stretched thin. Thinking about it now, if you were a Nightmare creature, you would've killed us the moment the door opened.
"If my guess is correct, you're also an Extraordinary, aren't you? Your power must have something to do with puppets or similar constructs. These people are likely your puppets, which explains how they were able to enter the Nightmare World with you."
Sam responded with a faint smile, making no visible movements. Instead, he tapped the ground lightly with his cane. Instantly, the black-clad figures holstered their guns in perfect unison and returned to their motionless, statue-like stances.
This was the power of strength. When you possessed true power, any unreasonable circumstance could be rationalized; others would bend over backward to create explanations for you.
This was one of those moments. Sam didn't even need to come up with a cover story—Simon had already provided one for him.
Walking over, Sam gently patted Simon's stiff shoulder, offering a warm smile. "I didn't expect you to figure it out so quickly. Your perceptiveness is truly remarkable, Mr. Simon."
Simon let out a few dry laughs, his gaze nervously darting to Sam's hand on his shoulder, wary of any sudden moves.
"And may I ask your name, sir?" Simon ventured cautiously.
"Sam," he introduced himself with a polite smile, tapping his cane lightly. "It's an honor to share this nightmare with you, Mr. Simon."
Simon hurriedly responded, his tone filled with flattery. "You're too kind. The honor is mine. With two Extraordinary individuals like you joining us, our chances of surviving this nightmare have skyrocketed."
On the side, Anna and the others exchanged strange glances at this scene. Having spent three days with Simon, they knew exactly what kind of person he was—arrogant, selfish, and cold-hearted. Yet, when faced with someone stronger, all those traits dissolved, replaced by meekness, humility, and politeness.
The group soon transitioned into polite exchanges and introductions, a brief period of conviviality that seemed almost surreal in their dire situation. The atmosphere grew unexpectedly harmonious, as if they were old friends catching up rather than survivors in a nightmare.
However, two people didn't share in this harmony—Thomas and Anna.
The honest, middle-aged Thomas kept stealing glances at Anna, his lips parting as if to speak, only to close them again. His hesitance didn't go unnoticed by Anna, whose heart began to race. She had already made up her mind: if Thomas dared to expose what she had done earlier, she would immediately counter with her own accusations.
In the end, Thomas said nothing, leaving the incident unmentioned, as though it had never happened.
After the introductions concluded, Simon turned to Sam and said, "Mr. Sam, Mr. Ethan, since you entered three days late, you might not be familiar with this nightmare. Perhaps I could explain the situation to you?"
Sam shook his head lightly. "No need. I've already learned quite a bit from Mr. Thomas here. Instead, I'd like to hear what plans you have moving forward, Mr. Simon."
Simon eagerly continued, "Previously, I was planning to find a safe house and hunker down until the nightmare naturally resolved, allowing us to wake and return to reality. Most Nightmare Apostles tend to do just that. However, now that we have two Extraordinaries with us, we can revise that strategy. We might even try exploring the nightmare—who knows, we might be able to break it."
Sam's eyes flickered slightly. From Ethan, he had already learned some basics about the Nightmare World. It was called a nightmare for a reason—one could wake up from it.
Typically, most Nightmare Apostles opted for the safest method: finding a secure spot to hide and waiting out the nightmare. Usually, within seven days, they would wake up and return to reality—assuming they survived those seven days.
However, this strategy couldn't be used indefinitely. It was said that the more times one entered the Nightmare World, the longer the waking period became—seven days, ten days, a month, even six months. Eventually, some might never wake again. Without breaking the nightmare, they would remain trapped in the Nightmare World forever.
Thus, if the nightmare wasn't overly complex, it was always better to break it.
At that moment, Simon added, "If we're lucky, we might even find one or two Relics."
Behind his brown-tinted glasses, Sam's gaze flicked toward Ethan, noting his faintly confused expression. Clearly, Ethan wasn't familiar with the term Relics either.
Seizing the opportunity, Sam smoothly replied, "Indeed, Relics are wonderful things. I once had the privilege of owning one, though, regrettably, I lost it due to certain circumstances." His face adopted an expression of subtle regret.
"That's such a shame," Simon said with exaggerated sympathy. "Even a low-grade, Bronze-level Relic could fetch at least five million on the Extraordinary black market. But, of course, hardly anyone would sell one. Relics possess Extraordinary power and significantly enhance combat capabilities. Unless someone's desperate for money, who would part with one?
"If I had a defensive-type Relic, even a Bronze-tier one, paired with my Bronze Law: [Five-Finger Flame Burst], I wouldn't have to spend my days trapped inside, constantly fleeing from Nightmare creatures."
Simon didn't bother hiding his abilities. He saw no reason to. While [Five-Finger Flame Burst] wasn't as common as [Iron Will], it wasn't particularly rare either. Moreover, he had already used it once. Any Extraordinary with a bit of experience could probably guess it.
"By the way, Mr. Sam, what grade was the Relic you lost?" Simon asked casually.
"Ah, it's just a painful memory. Best not to bring it up." Sam sighed, a touch of sorrow on his face, as though unwilling to delve further into the matter.
Simon, not wanting to appear insensitive, quickly shifted gears. "You're right. Let's not dwell on it. We should focus on how to get through the challenges ahead. Mr. Sam, in my opinion, staying in this two-story house is no longer an option. The door is broken."
He paused, his tone growing more analytical. "The houses in this village are just ordinary homes, yet they somehow manage to keep out those immensely strong humanoid monsters. It's strange, but we shouldn't rely on this place anymore. The priority now is to use the remaining nighttime—before the humanoid monsters reappear—to find a more secure house, large enough to accommodate all of us. We also need to gather food and candles while we can."