Erica suddenly realized that she was in a extremely dark and directionless space.
She clearly remembered that just moments ago, she had still been lying on the bed, yet now she was floating in this void.
Looking down, she saw herself standing on the surface of the water, but it felt like she was standing on a thick sheet of glass.
Erica kept walking, hoping to find a glimmer of light or any object.
She walked and walked, endlessly, until she stopped out of frustration. Then, she suddenly recalled that this was a dream - a dream she seemed to have every night. The sensation felt so real, making her forget that she was just inside a dream.
Erica wondered why it was always this place and never somewhere else. It repeated too many times that she started to believe this wasn't just some random coincidence.
It was the same suffocating darkness, bringing an eerie and deadly silence - without a single sound, the water beneath her was so still and clear that she could see her own reflection vividly.
And also... that tall woman.
That woman always appeared in a way that feel almost supernatural, making Erica both terrified and wary.
She wore a deep crimson kimono, and her jet-black hair was neatly tied into a low bùn with two hair pins. One of them bore the emblem of a noble family.
The woman had her back turn toward Erica, so she couldn't see her face.
Suddenly, the woman slightly turned her face to the side, placed her index finger on her lips, and gave a point smile. Then, she slowly walked forward - into the murky darkness - leaving Erica frozen in shock.
Seeing this, Erica tried to call out, but her throat seized up.
She couldn't make a single sound.
Without hesitation, she ran toward the woman. But as soon as she lifted her foot, she stumbled over something lying on the ground.
Startled, she looked down and saw that hands were reaching up from beneath the water, grabbing onto her feet. Surrounding her were dozens of arms, rising like a trap, ready to seize their "prey".
She was horrified by the sight. Nearly a thousand years of being trapped in this nightmare was enough.
Looking at the woman slowly vanishing into the darkness, Erica pushed all her strength into her legs.
But no matter how much she struggled, ít was useless. Those hands were too strong, and there were too many of them.
She couldn't longer resist and collapsed.
In despair, she looked up at the woman, her eyes growing dim from exhaustion.
In the next moment, Erica was dragged beneath the water. A freezing cold and overwhelming loneliness comsumed her mind.
As time slipped away, she wondered how many times she had dreamed of this nightmare.
Perhaps... too many to count.
Erica groggily woke up. It took her a few seconds to realize that she was in her familiar bedroom. She let out a sigh of relief, knowing she had escaped the nightmare.
Right, it was just a nightmare, there was nothing to be afraid of , she ressured herself.
" What nightmare?"
Erica turned to see her pal, Lars, looking at her with a judging expression.
He was a small red hellhound, no bigger than a cat, with a fiery tail. His face wash full of doubt.
" It wasn't a nightmare! Last night, I only dreamed of beautiful things. I was just mumbling nonsense." Erica quickly dismissed it, trying to brush off the topic.
The silence that followed felt awkward - this wasn't something fun to talk about.
" You really think you can fool me, Eri?" Lars raised his chin. " You kept mumbling all night like some drugged lunatic. I couldn't sleep properly because of you. And now, you have to take responsibility."
With that, Lars suddenly clamped down ơn her arm. Erica yelped and immediately grabbed him, forcing him to stop before he hit down any harder.
She knew Lars wouldn't let thíng slide so easily. He was stubborn - once he got fixated on something, there was no way to make him stop.
That left her with only two choices: either let him bite her or tell him about her nightmare. But even if she chose to tell, the story had to be convincing. Otherwise, he wouldn't let it go.
Erica thought back to the woman in her dream. Should she kept it a secret?
Maybe the woman wanted her to.
In the end, she decided to make up a fake nightmare and answered Lars with a solemn tone.
" I didn't want to say anything. But since you're forcing me... The truth is, I dreamed that you were surrounded by a pack of vicious demon dogs... and they tore you to pieces."
" What!?" Lars was horrified. He had never had a good relationship with other hellhounds, so it was no suprise that he was shocked.
" I shouldn't asked you after all."
" Hehe! Good point. You should have just done this from the start."
Erica didn't want anyone to worry about her, she wanted to handle it by herself.
She realized that, compared to her previous dreams, last night's dream had been much clearer. The ones before had always been vague and blurry.
Maybe this was a sign - maybe she was getting deeper into her dream.
Feeling a sudden rush of excitement, Erica jumped up, thrilled at the possibility of uncovering the woman's identity.
Lars, however, was utterly confused.
Without warning, Erica grabbed Lars and tossed him into the air.
" Hey! Stop that!!!"
" Haha! This is so fun!!"