He Really Was a Little Awful!

Lynch immediately rushed into the abandoned building with Frye and the others. As soon as they entered, they saw the black-robed man at the far end speaking to the cultists.

Before Lynch and the others could say anything, the man had already warily turned to look at them.

"He's the one who's been contacting me!"

Lynch shouted, then raised his revolver and rushed forward.

The man looked tense as he ran for the exit. Lynch pursued him relentlessly. Just as the two of them were about to close the distance, he hesitated for a moment.

If he didn't warn them now and stalled for time, would he no longer have to contact the True Creator after Dunn killed the man?

The thought lasted only a moment before Lynch dismissed it.

That probably wouldn't work. His name had surely already been etched into Mr. Z's mind.

He could let Dunn kill this man, but he had no way to kill Mr. Z.

He didn't even know where Mr. Z was. If he let the man die and Mr. Z escaped, Lynch would surely become a public enemy of the Aurora Order. Thinking it over, it didn't seem worth it at all.

Lynch sighed. In the end, he didn't sabotage things for the man, but instead made a gesture toward him.

The man gave an almost imperceptible nod, and then Lynch immediately lost sight of him.

"Quick, tell Dunn that guy escaped!"

Lynch shouted as he turned and yelled to Leonard and the others.

The next moment, they appeared in reality.

A cup was held out in front of him. "Spit it out, quickly!"

Lynch spat out the water in his throat, and only then did Dunn let out a relieved breath.

"He hid in that building. The man ran outside!"

Lynch nodded and started toward the abandoned building. But as soon as he turned around, he saw a figure appear behind Dunn. It was the man in black.

The man in black had his revolver aimed at Dunn.

Dunn didn't seem to notice. Lynch immediately threw himself behind him.

The man frowned at him. Lynch made another small gesture, and then disappeared from the spot.

It was still a dream!

"He got away. Even setting up two layers of dreams wasn't enough? This man is skilled, or else he knows the Sleepless Pathway very well."

Dunn frowned, shook his head, and handed the cup to Lynch again.

Just as he had in the previous layer of the dream, Lynch spat out the water.

"Captain, two layers of dreams?"

After spitting it out, Lynch wore a bewildered expression.

Dunn smiled gently.

"Yes. Leonard reminded me of it. I thought it would let us catch that guy, but then you threw yourself in front of me. Maybe your death and disappearance in the dream alerted him..."

"I'm sorry, Captain. I was too impulsive and ruined things for you!"

Lynch looked contrite.

"That's not your fault. I should have warned you. Seeing me get hurt, how could you not worry? I should have given you a hint!"

Dunn patted him on the shoulder. Seeing that Lynch still looked uneasy, he thought for a moment, then said, "That said, I do need to criticize you about what happened. I told you that you were support staff. When I told you to leave, you should have left right away. If it had been real, you would have died!"

Lynch pressed his lips together and hesitated. "Captain, I just thought you were more useful than me. I'm not even a Beyonder yet. If I could save you, you'd have been able to catch the man. Instead, I ruined things for you."

"Don't say that. There's no such thing as one person being more useful than another!"

Dunn said sternly.

Then he gave a wry smile and shook his head.

In truth, he might have caught that man if Lynch's actions hadn't shocked him.

He had seen many teammates die, but Lynch seemed to be the only one who had ever so plainly thrown himself in front of him.

He knew Lynch had once died in a dream for Klein, but he had thought that was because the two of them were close.

But Lynch had been a Nighthawk for only a little over a week.

"I need to take responsibility for what happened!"

Lynch said earnestly.

"You don't need to take all the blame, just a little. We had him for a moment, but that guy was as slippery as an eel and got away. We didn't even get a good look at his face. Lynch, do you know what he looked like?"

Old Neil took out a pen, apparently planning to draw the man based on Lynch's description.

Lynch's lips twitched.

"Do you really think I could remember? Besides, he never showed his face in front of me. But I can describe his height and clothes."

Lynch blinked with an innocent look.

Old Neil sighed in exasperation.

"Obviously! I know that much too!"

It seemed Lynch really couldn't help with anything else.

"By the way, what about the civilians inside? I saw them set themselves on fire in the dream."

Lynch hurriedly asked.

Although he knew that by now they had all been pulled into the dream.

"They're all fine and asleep, except one person died."

Frye said calmly.

They went over to Upton, whom the Big Meat Church had dragged to the front and hanged on a gallows.

Even in death, the man wore an expression of excitement and anticipation, as though he had arrived in the True Creator's kingdom.

"A cult," Dunn sighed after watching for a while.

"Have the officers come in and take these civilians away. The bishop will have his hands full for a while."

The bishop of the Church of the Goddess would need to guide these people back to the right path, and convince them that the god they worshipped wasn't an evil god, but the Goddess.

Once they came to believe in the Goddess, they might slowly get their lives back on track.

"Lynch, in any case, your service record is enough to exchange for a bottle of the Sleepless Potion. Are you willing to become one of us?"

To Lynch, this was the best news he'd heard all day.

"Can I really?"

"Of course!"

Lynch nodded furiously.

At last, he could become a Beyonder. He'd been so envious of Klein lately.

"Then tomorrow. We'll help you take the Sleepless Potion. You need to rest today. I think you might need some time to come to terms with Upton's death."

Lynch: ...

He'd been prepared for Upton's death three days ago.

But seeing how everyone thought he must be a little sad, he still nodded. Then he started looking for the tear in his clothes, and tried to show Dunn the hole in the rather worn suit he'd deliberately changed into that morning.

Dunn felt as though he still hadn't emerged from the illusion of being moved by Lynch's selfless heroism when he saw that illusion shatter.

"Old Neil taught you that!"

He firmly shifted the blame onto Old Neil, convinced that a good kid like Lynch could never have thought of claiming reimbursement on his own.

It had to be Old Neil. Klein had started asking him for reimbursement for water and divination practice supplies after spending time with Old Neil.

Now Lynch had been led astray too.

Old Neil stood nearby, wanting to speak but holding back.

He hadn't had a chance to teach him yet.

But the method really did bear traces of his handiwork. He began to wonder whether Lynch had seen him asking for reimbursement sometime.

After all, he had seen Lynch save Dunn. A kind person surely wouldn't think of such things on his own.

A good kid like this couldn't possibly be the sort who went around trying to fleece them.

Maybe Lynch had picked it up the one time he'd been up to no good.

Sigh. He really was a little awful!