A frail-looking young man with pale skin and dark circles under his eyes was sitting on a rusty bench across from the police station. He was cradling a cup of coffee in his hands - not the cheap synthetic type slum rats like him had access to, but the real deal. This cup of plant-based coffee, usually available only to higher rank citizens, had cost most of his savings. But on this particular day, Sunny decided to pamper himself.

After all, his life was coming to an end.

Enjoying the warmth of the luxurious drink, he raised the cup and savored the aroma. Then, tentatively, he took a small sip… and immediately grimaced.

"Ah! So bitter!"

Giving the cup of coffee an intense look, Sunny sighed and forced himself to drink some more. Bitter or not, he was determined to get his money's worth — taste buds be damned.

"I should have bought a piece of real meat instead. Who knew actual coffee is so disgusting? Well. It's going to keep me awake, at least."

He stared into the distance, dozing off, and then slapped himself in the face to wake up.

"Tsk. What a rip-off."

Shaking his head and cursing, Sunny finished the coffee and stood up. Rich people living in this part of the city were rushing past the small park on their way to work, staring at him with strange expressions. Looking haggard in his cheap clothes and from the lack of sleep, unhealthily thin and pale, Sunny was indeed out of his place here. Also, everyone seemed so tall. Watching them with a bit of envy, he tossed the cup into a garbage bin.

"I guess that's what three full meals a day would do to you."

The cup missed the bin by a wide margin and fell on the ground. Sunny rolled his eyes in exasperation, walked over, and picked it up before carefully putting it in the trash. Then, with a slight grin, he crossed the street and entered the police station.

To his surprise, he wasn't the only one coming to the station, A tired-looking young man dressed in a clean school uniform was staring at the panicking officer silently.

The student looked at him with his empty black eyes surrounded by black circles created by countless sleepless nights, adding eeriness to his eyes. Sunny didn't like the boy. His skin was as pale as his, maybe even paler, and the way he was staring at him, it was as if he was looking at his soul directly; he felt stripped in front of him as if there was no secret he could hide from his deep black eyes.

"Hey! Boy can't you hear me? This isn't the time for you to be here. Go back to your parents!"

Panicking officer's words quickly brought him back to reality, making him clear his throat.

"As demanded by the Third Special Directive, I am here to surrender myself as a carrier of the Nightmare Spell."

He said while scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

The officer's expression twisted even more, becoming even uglier, and they said in an almost desperate tone.

"Another one? Shit, why does it have to be during my shift?"

Then, with a hurried motion, he pressed a button on his terminal and bellowed:

"Attention! We got another one in the lobby! I repeat! ANOTHER ONE!"

***

A few minutes later, Sunny and the student were led to the basement of the station by several policemen. Soon, they were fastened into bulky chairs that looked like a weird mix of hospital beds and torture devices. The basement of the police station has thick armored walls and a formidable-looking vault door. Other officers were standing near the walls, with automatic rifles in their hands and grim expressions on their faces.

Sunny did not particularly care about them. Even the student that scared him at first wasn't his concern anymore. The only thing he could think about was how much he wanted to sleep.

Finally, the vault door opened, and a gray-haired policeman walked in. He had a seasoned face and stern eyes, looking like someone who had seen a lot of terrible things in his life. After checking the restraints, the policeman glanced quickly at his wristwatch and then turned to Sunny and the student:

"What do you kids called again?"

Sunny blinked a few times, trying to concentrate, then shifted uncomfortably. He was having a hard time concentrating enough to allow him to ignore the officer's rude words.

"Sunless."

"Edward"

The old policeman raised an eyebrow.

"Sunless? That's a strange name. As for your name, Edward huh? It sounds like one of the old names."

'Edward...' Sunny tried to burn the name to his mind after hearing it for the reason. He wasn't sure about the reason either.

"It's because I was born during a solar eclipse. My mom had a poetic soul, you see."

The old policeman grunted.

"And I guess the other one is parents were historians. Do you want me to contact any of your family?"

Both the student and Sunny shook their heads, refusing the old policeman's offer.

"There's no one. Don't bother."

"I don't want them to be possibly the last thing I would see before leaving this world."

For a second, there was a dark look on the policeman's face. Then his expression turned serious.

"Alright, Sunless and Edward. How long can you guys stay awake?"

"Uh… not long."

"Same as him."

The policeman sighed.

"Then we don't have time for the full procedure. Try to resist for as long as you guys can and listen to me very carefully. Okay?"

Not waiting for a response, he added:

"How much do you know about the Nightmare Spell?"

Sunny gave him a questioning look.

"As much as anyone, I guess? Who doesn't know about the Spell?"

The student stayed silent as if agreeing with Sunny's answer.

"Not the fancy stuff you see in dramas and hear in the propaganda broadcasts. I mean how much do you know?"

"Don't I just go into the Dream Realm, kill a few monsters to complete the First Nightmare, receive magic powers, and become Awakened?"

The old policeman shook his head.

"Listen carefully. Once you guys fall asleep, you will be transported inside your First Nightmare. Nightmares are trials created by the Spell. Once inside, you will meet monsters, sure, but you will also meet people. Remember: they are not real. They're just illusions conjured up to test you."

"How do you know?"

The policeman just stared at him.

"I mean, no one understands what the Spell is and how it works, right? So how do you know that they're not real?"

"You might have to kill them, kid. So do yourself a favor and just think about them as illusions."

"Oh."

The old policeman waited for a second, then nodded and continued.

"A lot of things about the First Nightmare depend on luck. Generally, it shouldn't be overwhelmingly hard. The situation you're in, the tools you have at your disposal, and the creatures you have to defeat should be within the range of your abilities, at least. After all, the Spell sets up trials, not executions. You're a bit disadvantaged due to… well… your circumstances. But kids from the outskirts are tough. Don't give up on yourself just yet."

"Uh-uh."

Sunny was getting more and more sleepy. It was becoming hard to follow the conversation.

"About those "magic powers," you mentioned… you will indeed receive them if you survive until the end of the Nightmare. What those powers will be, exactly, depends on your natural affinity as well as what you do during the trial. But some of it will be at your disposal right from the start…"

The voice of the old policeman sounded more and more distant. Sunny's eyelids were so heavy that he was struggling to keep his eyes open.

"Remember: the first thing you must do once inside the Nightmare is to check your Attributes and your Aspect. If you get a combat-oriented Aspect, something like a Swordsman or an Archer, things will be easier. If it is reinforced by a physical Attribute, then that's even better. Combat Aspects are the most common, so the probability of receiving one is high."

The armored room was growing dimmer.

"If you're unlucky and your Aspect has nothing to do with combat, don't despair. Sorcery and utility Aspects are useful in their ways, you'll just have to be smart about it. There are no useless Aspects. Well, almost. So just do anything in your power to survive."

"If you survive, you will be halfway to becoming an Awakened. But if you die, you'll open a gate for a Nightmare Creature to appear in the real world. Which means that my colleagues and I will have to deal with it. So… please don't die, Sunless."

Already half-asleep, Sunny felt a bit touched by the policeman's words. He glanced at the student again. If he hadn't seen that soul-piercing gaze of his, he would have thought he was already asleep.

"Or, at least, try to not die right away. The nearest Awakened won't be able to get here for a few hours, so we would really appreciate it if you don't make us fight that thing ourselves…"

'What?'

That was Sunny's last thought before he fell into a deep sleeping state.

[Connection between target [Sunless] and your trial has been established.]

Unknown to the old officer and Sunny, system notification, only he could hear ringing in the student's mind.

****

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