Because I Don't Want to Become Like You

After hearing the strange person's words, Li Weide couldn't help narrowing his eyes slightly.

"May I ask... is this a request, or... a demand?"

A request and a demand were completely different things.

If it was merely a request, it could be refused.

But if it was a demand... then refusing it would not be so easy.

Especially given Li Weide's current situation—if this strange person's proposal was a demand, then it was a blatant threat!

"This is a request, Weide," the strange person said calmly.

Seeing that Li Weide still seemed doubtful, the strange person continued, "I know my current appearance makes me difficult to trust, but... I have absolutely no need to deceive you. If I wanted to force a demand upon you... forgive my bluntness, but with your current strength, you would be utterly incapable of stopping me."

As the strange person spoke, the surroundings suddenly changed.

In the blink of an eye, Li Weide and the stranger had gone from the garden pavilion to the rim of a volcano.

Magma churned within the crater, radiating searing heat that made Li Weide's skin sting.

At that moment, Li Weide recalled the characteristics of Nightmare Magic.

At its highest level, Nightmare Magic could not only force someone to fall asleep and then manipulate their dreams.

It could also trap others in dreams one had created, leaving them unable to escape...

As long as the other person was within a dreamscape one had constructed, and one's soul was vastly stronger than theirs.

Then an enemy trapped in that dream would become part of it, freely controlled by the caster...

And Li Weide was currently inside a dream created by the strange person!

In other words, if the stranger wished, he did not need Li Weide's consent at all. He could simply control Li Weide and achieve his goal, rather than wasting so many words here.

"I understand. You truly have no need to deceive me." Li Weide nodded.

As soon as Li Weide finished speaking, the surroundings returned to the flower-scented garden from before.

"Sorry, I only wanted to prove that I wasn't lying..."

Li Weide waved a hand. "Since this is a request... then if I refuse you, will you let me leave?"

The strange person paused slightly, but still nodded. "I will."

"Then... I'm sorry, sir... or perhaps madam, I don't know which... but I cannot agree to your request."

Li Weide directly refused the strange person's request.

This time, the stranger was genuinely stunned. Why wasn't this person playing by the rules...?

Logically, he should not have refused. Even if he did refuse, he should not have done so so decisively! "Can you send me out of here now?" Li Weide's calm question interrupted the stranger's thoughts.

The strange person took a deep breath. "Of course. But could you tell me why you refused?"

Li Weide looked deeply at the strange person before him. "Because I don't want to end up becoming like you."

The stranger froze again. The answer was completely beyond his expectations, yet perfectly reasonable! He had thought the other party still couldn't trust him, which was why he had refused. He hadn't expected...

Li Weide continued, "I know what kind of person I am. My desire for power is no less than anyone else's... so I likewise cannot be sure whether I could withstand the temptation..."

"If I rashly absorbed this magical power... there was no telling whether I might one day become like you."

Upon hearing this, the strange person fell into a long silence.

After a while, he let out another sigh.

"You are wiser than I was back then... far wiser. If I had possessed your level of self-awareness, I would not have ended up where I am today..."

"I truly desired freedom too much, and so I failed to think things through. I apologize to you once again."

"If you want to leave, you may do so at any time... simply return the way you came."

"If you change your mind, you can come here and find me the same way."

"Of course, even if you don't change your mind, you can still come talk to me..."

"I don't want to remain alone and lonely during the final stretch of my life."

"Oh, right. If we're only talking, you don't need to come here. You only need to use Nightmare Magic to fall asleep, then call for me in your dream."

"In return, I will teach you all the Nightmare Magic I can... it is an excellent kind of magic, and as its creator, I do not wish for it to be lost."

As the strange person finished his final sentence, the entire garden began to distort, and then the dream around him receded like the tide...

In the end, Li Weide found himself still standing in that bare stone chamber.

The long staircase was behind him.

It was as though he had never gone anywhere, and everything that had happened just now had been nothing more than a dream.

Well, it really had been a dream...

Li Weide turned and looked at the staircase.

"How much time do you have left?"

"About two years... this cloak can't hold on for much longer." The strange person's voice came again. "So if you want to master Nightmare Magic, you'd better make haste."

Li Weide suddenly said, "Can you give me a sample of the Ancient Magic Power within you?"

A few seconds later, a small floating vial appeared before Li Weide.

The vial contained a wisp of pitch-black mist. As it roiled, faint blue light flickered from deep within the black fog...

"If I want to find you in a dream, what should I call you? I can't exactly call you Strange Person, can I?"

"Strange Person? Heh heh, there is nothing wrong with calling me Strange Person. Of course, you may also call me the Dream Maker."

"Dream Maker? You aren't even willing to tell me your real name? Forget it, I'll just call you Strange Person. Goodbye." Li Weide accepted the vial and strode down the staircase...

A few minutes later, Li Weide returned to the Forbidden Forest through the stone toad.

That strange person had not lied. He did not hinder Li Weide's departure in any way...

Only when Li Weide reached into his pocket for his wand did he realize that the lighter had somehow returned to his pocket as well.

Looking again at the faint blue glow atop the lighter, Li Weide frowned slightly.

In truth, Li Weide was not entirely unmoved by the power of Ancient Magic. Otherwise, he would not have asked the strange person for a sample of Ancient Magic.

Just as he had said himself, he too was someone who desired power.

However, unless he determined whether this power had side effects, he would not recklessly absorb it.

Even though Ancient Magic Power might already exist within him, though it had not yet been fully awakened...

It could be said that the strange person's current miserable fate had made Li Weide more wary of Ancient Magic than ever! Had that person really become like that simply because he could not control his own desire for power? Or did Ancient Magic actually possess the power to affect one's mind?

Nothing was clear yet.

After all, Li Weide's shallow understanding of Ancient Magic had only come from a game before he transmigrated.

But now, he was in a truly real world!

No amount of caution was excessive!

Li Weide put the lighter back into his pocket and prepared to Apparate to Hogsmeade.

Bang!

Suddenly, a loud crash came from the distance, followed by the sound of trees collapsing and a burst of startled cries.

Li Weide frowned and raised his wand, casting a Disillusionment Charm on himself.

The next second, Li Weide's figure vanished into the darkness.