The Village of the Night Wanderer

At the mention of the Sky Vein Dragon, Frieren instantly lost all concern for the damp, chilly weather, insisting on setting up camp near the village.

"The last time I saw a Sky Vein Dragon, humanity had yet to master [Flight Magic]. We could only gaze up at the giant dragon's silhouette from the ground."

"Now that such a rare opportunity has presented itself, I must catch a glimpse of it."

As she spoke, she proceeded to lecture Shane on everything there was to know about the Sky Vein Dragon.

The flicker of excitement in her eyes was barely any different from when she spotted a Mimic.

Shane sighed helplessly and began packing up the camp. To avoid getting soaked in the rain later that night, the two returned to the rock overhang where they had taken shelter earlier.

In truth, Shane was also quite curious about such a legendary creature.

The [Sky Vein Dragon] is a dragon with a near-eternal lifespan. Its body is so massive that it carries an entire mountain range upon its back, hence the name [Sky Vein Dragon]. Unlike other dragon species, it is gentle by nature and detests conflict, spending its entire life drifting through the sky.

It wanders everywhere, never stopping, and few have ever witnessed its form; when it finally descends to the ground, it signifies that its life is coming to an end.

With such a mysterious creature, it was no wonder Frieren was so intrigued.

Night fell.

In the forest after the rain, the sound of frogs croaking rose and fell in succession.

Shane and Frieren chatted by the campfire about the Sky Vein Dragon.

Suddenly, Shane frowned and looked toward the distant village; it seemed as though some residents were sneaking out in the middle of the night.

Then, a scene that defied his understanding unfolded: villagers emerged from their homes one after another, feeling their way through the darkness as they headed toward the mountain.

This eerie sight instantly reminded Shane of the ghost incident they had recently resolved.

No way, not again?

Frieren reacted quickly, immediately grabbing Shane and flying into the air to tail them.

They watched as the villagers, appearing as if they were sleepwalking, moved with their eyes closed, stumbling toward a small clearing in the woods before lining up and lying down on the grass.

Before long, the sound of snoring filled the air.

"?"

Shane was puzzled.

Not sleeping in their own beds, but gathering in the woods—was this some strange local custom?

Did they not mind the cold ground?

Immediately following this, something even more bizarre occurred: the sleeping villagers all seemed to begin having nightmares. Many started whimpering with their eyes shut, and some even began muttering strange things in their sleep.

"It seems... something is manipulating them into having nightmares."

As she spoke, Frieren flew a bit lower, though she maintained a safe distance.

"Do you see the footprints on the ground? Something is invisible, right there near the villagers."

Following Frieren's lead, Shane finally noticed that near the reclining villagers, the slightly muddy ground did indeed show a number of messy footprints.

But those were not human footprints.

They resembled the tracks of a large feline, and although nothing was visible nearby, the prints continued to multiply, as if the owner of the tracks were pacing around the villagers.

"Is there a monster that can turn invisible?" Shane asked.

Frieren shook her head.

"I've never heard of any Demon Race member mastering [Invisibility Magic], but among magical beasts, there is a creature called a Dream-Eating Tapir that is born with the ability to turn invisible."

"This magical beast enjoys eating human nightmares and is generally harmless to people."

"Harmless? Then what is happening right now..." Shane wondered.

Frieren was equally perplexed. "This is my first time seeing a situation like this."

"Then what should we do now?"

"There is nothing we can do. When a Dream-Eating Tapir is feeding on human nightmares, you cannot wake the subjects, or it will damage their souls. In severe cases, they could be left mentally incapacitated."

"Fair enough."

The two quietly descended behind a nearby large tree, waiting silently for the Dream-Eating Tapir to finish its meal.

Time passed—so much time that Frieren was nearly falling asleep.

The villagers lying on the ground finally stirred, stood up, and began to walk back toward the village in a line.

Meanwhile, the invisible footprints began to head deep into the mountain forest.

Shane hurriedly nudged Frieren awake, and the two gave chase.

After winding through the woods and utilizing [Tracking Magic], they finally followed the footprints to a lair.

The [Dream-Eating Tapir] dispelled its invisibility upon returning to its den.

Shane nearly laughed out loud; the Dream-Eating Tapir looked remarkably like a pink "elephant-trunk pig," and inside the lair, there were three tiny "elephant-trunk pig" babies. A nest of pink, adorable creatures—they looked nothing like dangerous magical beasts.

Hm?

Wait!

"Frieren, look at the Dream-Eating Tapir's nest. Don't those [stones] surrounding the edge look like Dwarf Race helmets?"

Hearing Shane's words, Frieren took a closer look and indeed discovered seven or eight Dwarf helmets, all being used by the Dream-Eating Tapirs as a stone barricade for their nest.

"What should we do? Should we go down and grab them?" Shane was very tempted.

"Wait... at least wait until they're asleep. I don't want to fight invisible magical beasts..."

Frieren seemed to recall some past experience, her expression showing a hint of resistance.

Shane had no choice but to patiently wait.

Half an hour later.

The cubs, having made a ruckus for ages, finally fell soundly asleep in their mother's embrace.

Shane and Frieren exchanged a glance, then quietly crept to the edge of the nest, carefully retrieving the helmets while trying their best not to make a single sound.

They were in luck; the Dream-Eating Tapir family was sleeping soundly and didn't notice a thing.

Shane held the last one and slowly began to retreat.

Snap.

In the silent nest, the sound of a branch breaking suddenly rang out.

Frieren instantly tensed up.

Shane was so scared he didn't even dare to breathe. He waited on the spot for a good while, and seeing that the Dream-Eating Tapirs showed no reaction, he lifted his foot again to continue walking toward where Frieren was.

However, the moment he lifted his foot, he saw Frieren across from him turn around and soar into the air using [Flight Magic].

"?!"

Shane was stunned!

Immediately after, a hot, damp breath hit the back of his neck.

He didn't need to turn around to know that the Dream-Eating Tapir had woken up!

Without a second of hesitation, he activated [Dash] and sprinted forward!

Behind him came an angry howl.

Shane couldn't care less whether the sound resembled a pig or a cat; he could only run for his life, hoping to escape the Dream-Eating Tapir's pursuit range.

In his heart, he cursed Frieren for her lack of integrity, abandoning him to run off on her own!

What a heartless and unrighteous elf!

"Awoo—"

Shane let out a yell and jumped a meter high.

His backside had been bitten hard by the Dream-Eating Tapir behind him. Startled and furious, he clutched his rear and accelerated his sprint.

When a person is pushed to the limit, they really can do anything!

He ran as if his life depended on it, feeling as though his soul couldn't keep up with the speed of his body!

Finally, after running for who knows how long, the sound of pursuit behind him gradually faded away...

He collapsed onto the ground, exhausted, coughing so hard he nearly coughed up his lungs.

Only then did Frieren slowly drift down from the sky.

"How could you abandon a teammate!!"

Shane raged.

Frieren looked away, feeling somewhat embarrassed: "...Mothers with cubs are very protective. You have to let it vent its temper, otherwise, it will cause trouble for the nearby villagers."

"!!"

How could you even say that with a straight face???

Shane was deeply heartbroken that he had been used by Frieren as a sacrificial pawn to appease the Dream-Eating Tapir.

"What do we do now? Should we drive the Dream-Eating Tapir away?"