Chapter 160 160: I, Corion, Have a Dream
TN: Heads up, tons of anime references. Seriously, tons.
The floor of the Cave of Dreams was slick with standing water, and in the deeper places it had even formed underground lakes. From time to time several drowners leapt out of the water, their scaled backs and dorsal fins flashing as they lunged forward with hoarse shrieks, only to be easily cut down by four highly skilled warriors.
The other terrifying presence in the cave was the water hag.
Fighting her felt rather fresh. Victor had never seen this kind of monster before, and he had no idea which of the people present had supplied the image for it.
She stood nearly six feet tall, her body covered in wrinkles and warts, her skin a muddy pinkish green, reeking of mud and fish. Bony protrusions jutted from her back, her hair looked like tangled clumps of waterweed, her claws were long and sharp, and she would even scoop up balls of mud and throw them at people's eyes.
But that was all it was.
Victor's reactions were now so fast it felt as if he had drunk several bottles of Blizzard, while the force of his swings felt as though he had chugged down an entire vat of Thunderbolt. He sidestepped and spun clear of the monster's claws, lifted his sword in a clean upward cut to take off one of her arms, then followed with a savage slash that performed a brutal cesarean on her swollen belly.
It felt as though he were standing inside the Matrix, with Victor in the role of Neo. In this half-real, half-false illusion, nothing was hidden from him. He could do almost anything. If he wanted, he felt as though he could even create an Iron Man suit of armor.
The ease with which the boy cut down the water hag awed the three members of Clan Drummond traveling with him, though after thinking it over, they found it only natural.
After all, the Dragonborn should be this formidable.
Victor only smiled and said nothing, letting them misunderstand as much as they liked.
After winding through twisting passages and ducking through another cavern, they suddenly burst into a bright and spacious feast hall filled with comings and goings. Victor recognized the place immediately, it was the banquet hall of Clan Tuirseach.
Victor raised an eyebrow and looked toward the throne.
King Bran was seated there in all his imposing majesty, though he seemed noticeably younger than Victor remembered.
And aside from the king, the boy saw no one else he recognized in the hall. Neither Svanrige nor Birna was here.
Jorulf's eyes widened as he stared at the figure on the throne. "Th, that's King Bran in his younger days! Impossible!"
King Bran rose from his throne and beckoned to the four of them. "You look a bit worn out. Come sit down, lads, drink some mead, and tell me about your adventures."
His attitude was sincere, and he looked vividly real.
Blueboy Lugos stepped forward. "Thank you, my king, we, "
"Old man, I won't drink with you, and I won't call you my king either. Before you get so old you can't walk anymore, get off that throne!"
The booming voice from behind drowned out Lugos's words.
Blueboy turned in astonishment to look at Uve. The poor man shook his head frantically, innocent and terrified. He was not speaking, yet the voice kept coming from him all the same, and his face filled with panic.
King Bran's voice thundered through the hall.
"Uve Jabberjaw, once again you have insulted me. The first time, I allowed you to punish yourself to spare you disgrace, but this time, I will have you die like a slave, and I'll let eels strip you to the bone!"
The moment King Bran finished his sentence, everyone in the banquet hall drew weapons and charged in from all sides to attack them, while the king himself vanished from the throne.
At that point, Victor understood.
This was Uve's nightmare, his deepest fear. He was terrified of offending King Bran again.
Drawing his sword in self-defense, Victor faced the elite warriors of Clan Tuirseach. They might all possess remarkable skill, but in the face of absolute power, it meant nothing.
After slashing Prometheus through the throats of several guards in quick succession, the boy deliberately reduced his strength and speed, returning them to his usual level as he tried tangling with the phantoms in close combat.
Because he realized this was an excellent chance to train.
In the real world, he had never fought human opponents while trying to kill them, and here in the illusion he could gain valuable practical experience, how to deal with shield-bearers, how to handle heavy weapons, how to fight human enemies properly.
But even with Victor intentionally holding back, the battle did not last long.
When the last phantom in the banquet hall was struck down, the entire structure began to shake and collapse, like a movie set caving in. A brand-new passage opened ahead of them.
The four men exchanged looks. Fighting side by side was the easiest way to forge friendship, and all three men of Clan Drummond had nearly been put in danger just now before Dovahkiin saved them in time. The way they now looked at the Dragonborn was full of gratitude and trust.
Victor smiled. "Looks like that was Uve's nightmare. Come on, let's see what challenge comes next."
Without anyone really noticing, Blueboy Lugos's role as leader had shifted over to Victor after that fight. But the Skelligers accepted it naturally. Reverence for strength was their tradition.
The four-man group pressed on, passing through a surreal landscape of flying fish and drifting coral, and soon reached a rocky shoreline with a wrecked longship beside it.
There were more than a dozen sirens there. Perched on the rocks, their wings folded away, they combed their hair while staring shamelessly at the strong men with beautiful eyes, and even more beautiful curves, smiling all the while.
At a distance of fifteen feet, about five yards, Victor stopped and took a deep breath. He could feel little Victor standing up too, paying his respects to the ladies. This looked more like a sweet dream than a nightmare.
Just as he was wondering whether to draw his sword and attack at once, he heard Jorulf mutter beside him, "Oh no... I, I recognize that longship."
Then the sirens' hoarse, seductive voices drifted through the air.
"Of course you do... of course you know it... that was your father's ship, the one you smashed to pieces... the one that broke apart listening to our song..."
Jorulf raised his axe with a roar. "Shit! I'll kill you! I'll kill every last one of you sirens!"
One of the sirens sang softly, "Come and try... but no matter what you do... you can't bring him back to life..."
Another raised her voice.
"You... it was you. You killed him. You got your own father killed."
Her large, clear eyes gleamed with pitiless cruelty.
The instant Jorulf charged forward with his axe, the dozen or more sirens spread their wings and sprang into the air, ready to dive down on them.
Victor reacted at once, grabbing the reckless warrior and dragging him behind him with a burst of raw strength.
Facing the sky full of shrieking sirens, he took a deep breath without the slightest fear and without the help of any potion.
"Fus, Ro, Dah!!!"
The Dragon Shout that had once made waves on the Path of Warriors, shaken the Fist of Fury, and stunned Kaer Muire, now fueled by the principle that imagination was power, reached its absolute, perfect peak.
The whole world seemed to flip over.
It was quite a while before the three men of Clan Drummond managed to stagger back to their feet, limbs trembling, and follow the Dragonborn with weapons in hand as they cut down the stunned sirens one by one.
Then, just like the banquet hall of Clan Tuirseach, the wrecked longship split apart and the entire scene collapsed.
Seeing that Jorulf was still hanging his head in misery, Uve reached out and slapped a large hand onto his shoulder.
Blueboy Lugos also spoke calmly. "Don't let it get to you. It wasn't your fault. It was just an accident. We all know the judgment cleared your name."
Jorulf nodded, grateful for his companions' support.
...
They continued forward, killing more than a dozen drowners and slaying two more water hags before Blueboy finally could not help teasing him.
"Vic, this isn't your nightmare, is it? Otherwise why do these ugly monsters keep showing up?"
Victor said, "No. Things on this level don't put any pressure on me at all."
Jorulf laughed loudly, and even Uve showed a simple, honest smile.
Soon they entered a wilderness with shade all around. To the right stood a giant tree, and when Victor followed its trunk upward, he found an entire sky overhead, heavy with dark storm clouds.
"How strange. No monsters, and it's so quiet," the boy said softly.
Blueboy thumped a fist against his chest. "I know. This has to be my dream, and I fear nothing."
The moment the words left his mouth, a bolt of lightning struck, splitting open the beech tree on the right and setting it ablaze with heavenly fire.
A deep, majestic voice rang out.
"You really fear nothing? Don't forget, once, all it took was a bolt of lightning hitting a tree to make you piss yourself!"
And when Victor saw the form that appeared before them, clearly the incarnation of Blueboy's fear, he almost laughed out loud.
Blueboy clearly had complicated feelings toward his father. His father must have cast a great shadow over his heart, because the figure standing before them was none other than Madman Lugos, his entire body wreathed in blazing fire like Ghost Rider from Marvel, even the weapon on his back burning with flames.
Blueboy spread his hands and faced the flaming Lugos bravely. "I was only three years old at the time, and afterward I proved my courage hundreds of times!"
The fear-phantom swung an arm. "You pissed yourself in front of the entire village, and you were the lord's son! You shameful, disgraceful thing, I should have exiled you long ago."
"You're just an illusion. You're not real."
"I am the embodiment of your father, the man you fear most, because you know you'll never be as great as him. You'll only disappoint him."
Blueboy shook his head. "No! I'm greater than he ever was on the battlefield. He's no longer a match for me!"
"Then stop talking and prove it!"
The flaming Lugos drew the weapon from his back, a massive two-handed hammer.
Victor, Uve, and Jorulf all stepped back naturally, making room for the duel. This was between father and son. If anyone else interfered, the real Lugos would definitely not be pleased.
...
Not long afterward, as they continued walking down the path,
"Ha! Did you all see the look on his face when my sword went into him? He couldn't believe it!" Blueboy bragged smugly about his martial skill, and to Victor, that was proof enough that he had overcome his fear.
"Are you going to tell your father what you saw when we get back?"
"Of course. I'm going to let him know I'm not afraid of him. I'm going to surpass him. I'm already ready to lead Clan Drummond forward in the future!"
Victor nodded to show he understood.
"Now all that's left is Dovahkiin's fear. I can't wait to see it!" Blueboy planted his hands on his hips, full of confidence.
But unlike the relaxed three-man Drummond team, Victor's expression grew more and more serious. People often do not know what they truly fear until the moment they run into it.
And as they went deeper into the Cave of Dreams and faced one challenge after another, Victor finally remembered the fear Geralt had encountered in this trial in his previous life, the King of the Wild Hunt.
The problem was that, as a player, Victor had never feared the King of the Wild Hunt at all. What was he supposed to be, anyway? In the game he was weak as hell.
He was still deep in thought when, all of a sudden, the world flipped upside down.
The four men's footing vanished at once, and they were sent plunging from a height of several hundred meters. The danger came too suddenly. If they really hit the ground and believed they had been smashed into pulp, then they would truly die.
Without the slightest hesitation, Victor unleashed his willpower and imagined the ground turning soft, something that would cushion the impact.
Then came the crash.
The three men of Clan Drummond all slammed down and lost consciousness.
Only Victor remained untouched, staring at the figure seated on a throne ahead of him. With a sense of inevitability, he let out a sigh, and then the figure rose proudly to his feet.
"So, you came."
"I came."
"At last, we meet face to face."
"Yes, we meet again at last."
"I thought you were insane, mindless."
"Of course not. That fool never had the mental strength to suppress me, so naturally he went mad."
What Victor saw before him left him speechless.
The man wore a Van Helsing-style outfit, carried two swords on his back, had long hair slicked back, and his eyes were nine-tomoe Sharingan.
The surroundings matched perfectly, a storm of warped time and space, countless floating rocks in midair, thunder and lightning cracking in the background. It was exactly like the final boss entrance in a video game. The whole scene was so absurdly over-the-top it was magnificent.
"To be honest, wasting mental energy on a set like this makes you embarrassingly edgy."
"You have to be reasonable. Strictly speaking, I'm only two years old."
Without hesitation, Victor drew his steel sword.
The man opposite him moved a fraction later, yet somehow struck first with the exact same motion, a turning slash aimed straight at Victor's neck.
Clang!
Sword crashed against sword. Power strained against power.
Igni, both of them blasted out fire at the same instant.
Quen, both raised their Signs in defense.
Yrden, both tried to hinder the other's movement.
Axii, both tried and failed to daze the other.
And finally Aard, each blasted the other backward.
In their use of the five Signs, neither side held the advantage.
Hands flashed into their coats and bombs flew.
Grapeshot, Dancing Star, Moon Dust, those were only the basics. Even a Dimeritium bomb that Victor had not yet managed to make in reality, and the poison bomb Devil's Puffball, were tossed out with ease.
Bombs and swords, Signs and swords, bombs and Signs flowed into each other seamlessly, and toxic reactions from witcher potions kept appearing on both their faces as they fought.
At last, after another violent clash, they separated.
The man opposite Victor had been panting heavily, but after drawing a deep breath, the toxic symptoms faded naturally. The same happened to Victor.
They faced each other for a long moment.
Then Victor tugged off his leather armor, going bare-chested and revealing the dragon tattoo that covered his back. The man opposite him likewise ripped off his Van Helsing outfit, and sure enough, he too was marked with the same dragon tattoo.
Since witcher methods could not decide the match, then they would settle it the Skellige way, hand to hand.
The twin dragons roared.
Their gazes collided, and as they rushed at each other they shouted in unison, "One dragon is enough!"
"Oraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraoraora..."
"Mudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamudamuda..."
The fate of the strong, dragons battling across the wilds.
"Take this!"
"A century of skill, Heavenly Crippled Kick!"
Palm and kick collided.
"Rasengan!"
"Spirit Bomb!"
The impact of their energy blasted outward.
"Innate Qiankun Art, Shaking the Earth for a Hundred Li!"
"One-Million-Horsepower Sea Tiger Blast Punch!"
The clash of martial arts across all ages.
"A Thousand Strikes in an Instant, Annihilating Rising Dragon!"
"Ura 108 Shiki, Orochi Nagi!"
Fast strikes and kingly blows tangled beyond distinction.
"Ultimate Move, Serious Punch!"
"Gear Third! Gum-Gum Elephant Gatling!"
After one punch met countless punches,
"Eighteen Dragon-Subduing Palms, The Proud Dragon Repents!"
"Maha Infinity, Formless Wind and Inconstant Cloud!"
Bang! Bang!
Thunder exploded, lightning screamed, and at last they separated once more, bodies covered in wounds from head to toe, with barely a patch of unbroken flesh left on them.
And then, the very next second,
"Magnetic Field Rotation, Cellular Reassembly!"
"Crazy Diamond, Instant Repair!"
With one shout, both of them restored themselves to full condition.
Yet neither charged again right away. Instead they began focusing their minds in meditation, gathering strength for their ultimate technique, the move they had not wanted to use from the start.
Several minutes later, it began with Victor's impassioned roar.
"Remember this! The wishes of those who fell, and the hopes of those who come after, take those two feelings and weave them into a double helix, then drill a path into tomorrow!
"That is Tengen Toppa! That is Gurren Lagann!
"My drill is the drill that will pierce the heavens!!!"
The other man showed not a trace of fear.
"School of the Undefeated of the East! Royal Wind! Brand-New Technique! The East Burns Crimson! Sekiha, LOVE LOVE, Tenkyoken!"
When Gurren Lagann's colossal drill crashed into the gigantic heart of Sekiha Tenkyoken, the force unleashed by the collision of their ultimate moves far exceeded everything that had come before combined.
Heaven split and earth shattered.
At last, when the majestic aftershock of the clash died away, the battle was over.
"All things in creation, turn to ash, Ryujin Jakka."
The Zanka no Tachi in Victor's hands pierced straight through the other man's heart, pinning him to the ground, yet there was not the slightest joy on the boy's face.
"You must be pretty unhappy right now, aren't you?" a voice came from behind Victor. "You're wondering, since when were you under the illusion that I hadn't used Kyōka Suigetsu?"
The secret of the illusion-type zanpakutō Kyōka Suigetsu was that once it struck, you were trapped in illusion so deep it was almost impossible to break.
Victor let the Zanka no Tachi go and gave up on fighting any further. He exhaled and sat down right at the edge of the cliff, while the other man tossed his weapon aside as well and strolled over to sit beside him.
The two sat shoulder to shoulder beneath a hundred-year-old oak that had suddenly appeared, watching the equally sudden sunset.
So this, Victor thought, must be how friendship born through battle came into being.
"What's your name?" Victor asked.
"Haven't you already named me yourself? Why are you asking me now?"
After a moment of silence, the boy finally spoke.
"Corion?"
"Correct answer. Hello, Victor. I'm Corion."
"So back in Vergen, when I formed the hanse with Angoulême, that's when you started influencing me?"
Corion shook his head. "No. Back then, your instincts sensed my existence and you named me after the symbol of evil in your heart.
"If we're talking about the real beginning of that quiet influence, then looking back, it was probably that afternoon just after we came to this world, when you were reading and asked Vesemir to teach you swordsmanship."
"Why did you only appear after we came to this world?"
"In the first life, the place where we lived had a complete criminal code. In the second life, the place where we lived didn't need one. But in the third life, the criminal code here is nothing more than decoration." As he spoke, Corion's lips curved upward in a pure, delighted smile.
"So what exactly are you trying to do?"
"You already know, don't you? Why pretend not to recognize me? We are one heart and one body. No one can suppress their own nature any more than they can stop their fingernails from growing.
"I, Corion, have a dream, I want to exterminate humanity with my own hands."
Victor let out a quiet sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose. "That dream is really awful... even worse than I originally imagined."
"What did you originally think I wanted?"
"I thought you wanted to replace me."
Corion rubbed his chin. "If you'd started killing people back in Vergen, it would've turned into that.
"Think about it. I've been suppressed for years, tormented by desire every second, while you've been happy and comfortable the whole time, without enough hardening. The moment our minds fully merged, you probably would have lost yourself right away.
"Just like that stupid doppler. He probably killed before, so the instant he copied someone again, the thrill drove him mad."
"But you look pretty normal now."
"That's because your mind has gotten stronger. Since we're one heart and one body, of course we influence each other. Right now, for example, I think the kind of mindless slaughter I wanted before has no beauty to it at all. If we're going to kill, we should choose our targets carefully."
Victor understood the meaning in those words.
He looked out at the sunset. Corion looked out at the sunset too.
A silent consensus formed between them.
"So how am I supposed to handle my relationship with you from now on?" There was helplessness in Victor's voice.
Grinning, Corion hooked an arm around Victor and rested his head on his shoulder. "You don't need to change anything in particular. Just let it happen naturally. Most of the time I won't appear on the surface anyway.
"Listen, brother. The fact that you're willing to acknowledge me really makes me happy. If you insisted on denying me, then we'd have no choice but to go down the road of true split madness, and that would make things miserable for both of us.
"If I had to ask one thing, it's this, our first kill together absolutely has to be someone utterly vicious, drenched in guilt, someone so evil that killing him would be the only way to satisfy public outrage.
"The first time is very important. If you don't want our fusion to stay half-baked, with us splitting apart every other moment in the future, then you have to choose that first target carefully.
"Find a true monster, someone your own moral law says must die. Kill him, and our souls will merge completely, without any resistance at all."
After hearing that, Victor fell into deep thought.
But Corion clearly had no intention of stopping there.
"Ah, what a beautiful sunset. Brother, how about I sing you a song? It's called The Rest of Our Lives."
Victor covered his forehead with a hand.
For the first time, he felt he truly understood Angoulême's tangled feelings whenever he abruptly dragged the conversation off course and started stuffing it full of Bell Town humor.
This bastard Corion really was him.
And with that single derailment, Corion had already started humming.
"For the rest of our lives, I'll be the one doing the chopping,
I'll be the one doing the stabbing,
I'll be the one doing the blowing up too,
The one taking baths is you,
The one longing for thighs is you,
The one falling in love is you too."
Victor was rather speechless at the adaptation and asked quietly, "Since you were able to stay hidden in the past, then you, "
But Corion cut him off before he could finish.
"I refuse. Now that I'm awake, I'm not going back. Besides, if you refuse to listen even to the voice inside your own heart, how do you expect to hear the Voice of All Things?"
Victor froze, suddenly unable to speak. There was far too much packed into those words.
Then he saw Corion stand up and smile at him.
"The dream is ending. It's time for us to say goodbye.
"The next time we meet will probably be the moment we part forever, or the moment we stay together forever...
"Victor... my brother, goodbye."
Like something from a dream, Corion dissolved into foam.
TN: I hope all the references are correct...
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