Somnu and Aurora were standing on the altar.

  The groom in his black suit, the bride in a golden wedding dress.

  What…? Somnu darted his head around, his eyes repeatedly blinking.

  Between him and the bride stood none other than the sly old geezer, Mr. Emberlyn.

  “You finally did it, kid.” The old man in the tuxedo smirked. “You weaseled your way into my family somehow. At the very least you stayed away from my lovely wife this time.”

  “Oh stop it!” Mrs. Emberlyn appeared from behind him, her silver neatly raised and tied. Her light blue dress shimmered with intricate patterns that compliment her simple sapphire jewelry she had adorned. Despite the regal presence surrounding her, she bonked her husband on the head as she always did. “Just officiate without needless comments, please. This is their moment!”

  “Yes, honey. Anything you say, my dear.” The old man pushed his lips together and stretched his neck towards her, but it only earned him another bonk.

  “Pfft!”

  “!”

  Somnu’s gaze moved back to the giggling bride.

  Her skin was radiating under the church lights, making her look even more stunning than before. Somehow though, he just knew she wanted to get out of that long dress as soon as possible.

  “Aurora, let me fix this for you!” Leyna, in her bridesmaid’s dress, rushed in from behind and fixed a loose strap around the bride’s waist. After that, she gave her brother a wink. “Just a second, okay?”

  “Do what you have to do, he can wait a few more seconds.”

  “!”

  Mo came from behind him, tapped him gently on the back and handed him a ring with another wink.

  Right… It’s my wedding. Somnu thought, remembering and glancing over to the rest of the attendees.

  Mark, Ashley, Ava… All were present. Somehow, Mathros, Lulu and the Luscairna were there. Even Carmella was cradling a baby.

  “Caaw!”

  “Hiss!”

  “?!”

  Squinting his eyes, he could barely make out some kind of crow and snake at the far end of the hall. There was a figure between, one so oddly familiar, but one that could never be here.

  Before he could check properly, he was rushed back into the ceremony.

  “Does the punk scarecrow boy of Duskville town take the delinquent girl of the Emberlyns as his wife, to have and to hold, for better or worse, for richer or for poorer, in sickness and in health, to love and cherish, beyond the limits of physical death?”

  What is this old man spouting?! Beyond the limits of physical death?! Are you trying to bind my soul with some kind of spell?! After grumbling silently to himself, Somnu let out a quick sigh. He was standing in this spot for a reason, after all. For one lifetime, or all of them, it didn’t make much difference. “I do.”

  As soon as he said it, he watched the bride jump in joy as his sister cheered from the back. Behind him, his brother was whistling like an idiot while to the side, the old man was being held back by his wife from lunging at the one stealing his precious granddaughter.

  It all made Somnu shake his head in exasperation.

  After exchanging rings, the big moment came.

  “By the power vested in me by the great lands of Nirvia, I now pronounce you eternal husband and wife!” The sly old geezer paused for a moment, biting his bottom lip in frustration. Then, after a bonk on the head, he strained out the last words, almost spitting out blood with them. “You… you may now kiss the bride!”

  “!”

  As everyone cheered, Somnu straightened his back suddenly.

  For some reason, he hadn’t considered things would get this far, he wasn’t quite prepared as he would have liked to be. Perhaps some things didn’t require a reckless plan.

  It’s just a kiss… come on! He reminded himself.

  It hadn’t been his first or second kiss. He had a girlfriend once before after all. He couldn’t help but wonder where she would be now, what she would think of him after everything.

  Crow-Shit! He shook his head slightly, almost saying another name at the altar. “...”

  He saw his bride looking at him with an annoyed expression, likely because he was taking too long.

  So he closed his eyes and went in…

  … Only to get sucker punched in the face.

  “?!”

  “Wake up!”

  The walls, the altar, the very ground… everything crumbled and crashed into nothingness, disappearing into a void of a nonexistent world.

  ***

  Resonance! Ignoring the pain on his face, he screamed inwardly, connecting his sight back with his crow.

  Everything around him had been destroyed. The ground was shattered, the familiar swamp was nowhere to be seen anymore.

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  The only things that remained the same was the Dreadbeast under the crimson moon, and the girl in front of him holding up her fist. She was covered in blood and small cuts everywhere, cuts Somnu recognized.

  “Stop, I’m back!”

  “Seriously?! That’s what you’re dreaming about now?!”

  “... You saw that?” Somnu blurted out, his mouth left half-agape. What even was that all about…? It’s not something I ever thought of… She’s going to get the wrong idea now!

  “I had to forcibly allow him to reel me in so I can bring you back! I’m usually immune to mental attacks!” She said, letting go of him again and taking a stance. “We’ve all been calling you, but you wouldn’t wake up. I had to carry you away while being attacked.”

  “Caaw! That’s right, Master!”

  “We couldn’t connect either, you had us worried! Hiss!”

  “Immune? You really are just a walking cheat. It’s unfair.” Somnu instantly summoned his sickles, disks and clones, creating a cloud of black smoke around them. “I won’t let it happen again.”

  “I sure hope not, as in, ever!” She flew toward the charging owlbear, light emitting from her entire body.

  “That’s harsh…” Somnu commented, but then grabbed the translucent crown hanging above his head. Only one thing will block the mental attacks… I need to grit my teeth and push through the pain this time… This is what all those nights were preparing me for!

  As soon as he stabbed the crown into his skull and felt the familiar, excruciating rush of pain and agony, he used [Night Terror State] and [Feral Instinct] in hopes of forcing his body to move.

  And so, it did.

  Almost in an instant, he had caught up with the girl, swallowing whatever physical discomfort plaguing him.

  “I need you to kill the Nightmare Creature… I’ll take care of the rest.” He said through heavy breaths.

  “I don’t know how he’s even controlling that thing, or where he is, but I can do that much before I run out of power. Then we need to get out of here quickly before the rest of the Dreadbeasts that I saw on the way here catch up to us.” Aurora said while flying, then narrowed her eyes. “Are you okay?”

  “Never been better.”

  “Somnuuu!!! This was supposed to be our one-on-one, remember?! Why do you keep talking to her?! You’re mine!” The owlbear stopped its charge and from each eyeball, shot bullets of condensed blood. “Let me eat you! Let’s become one!”

  The scarecrow’s familiars rushed in front of him, blocking and swallowing the blood bullets coming their master’s way. The bullets that made it through were blocked by one of the Mementos, and yet still, two bullets managed to hit him in the right shoulder and in the left side of his torso.

  “Hngh! Dammit!” Somnu grunted, feeling the heat rush to his head. “You’re really starting to get on my nerves! You keep repeating the same bullshit, are you getting desperate?! I’m pretty sure you need therapy or something!”

  “Somnuuu! I’ve been waiting for far too long! No one can deny me everything I’ve worked so hard, so long for! I will kill this girl and become Somnu!”

  “!”

  The scarecrow shuddered, countless slashes appearing around his body once more. Instantly, the multi-colored glow enveloped his body, healing the smaller wounds before he could tend to them.

  Glancing over at the girl, Somnu saw the blood bullets simply get evaporated by the blinding lights around her figure. Beside the similar slashes on her body, she had a bullet wound in her shoulder and one in her side too. Beads of sweat were evaporating as soon as they appeared on her face.

  Is she splitting the damage with me somehow? Even the pain from Veilbinder’s Diadem? Is that why the pain is lessening? Somnu figured, then furrowed his brows under the blindfold. I have to do this fast!

  Just like him, she seemed immune to the effects of Bloodbind too. Although she likely hadn’t taken any bitter pills to achieve that. Nevertheless, the countless slashes and blood attacks were rendered pointless with her healing skills, and so were the mental attacks and the Nightmare Creature’s restrictions, in part due to Veilbinder’s Diadem and the other due the constant rejuvenation coming from the superhero aspirer.

  Beside those, Somnu could only think of telepathy and possessions as additional skills John Doe might have.

  That meant they had almost countered all the possible, and known, skills the Blood Fiend had in his arsenal to fight them.

  Only one thing remained.

  “Now!” Aurora shouted as she suddenly launched herself with blinding speed into the owlbear’s massive form, only to stop in the middle of its torso.

  “What are you doing?! You can’t-”

  “Watch me!”

  Before John Doe realized what was happening, the girl turned into a blinding star, exploding in all directions.

  Once more, the Dreadbeast was torn apart in all directions, leaving nothing but small pieces scattered around.

  The scarecrow split into three with Grudgekeeper and a doppelganger acting as his clones to hunt down his countless prey. Just as the final remaining few pieces of flesh came together with blood surrounding them, Somnu’s main body grabbed it and held it up in front of him at a distance.

  “Why are you naked again?” Aurora asked as the lights enveloping her diminished quickly. Her now paler complexion reflected the draining of her skills, she had likely used that skill on her way to find him. “Come to think of it, you were basically naked when you first got to the fort too…”

  “I don’t have time to explain, just look away if you don’t like it.”

  “...”

  Somnu ignored the girl making her way back to him and turned his focus to the squirming piece of flesh in his straw hand.

  “Since you want me so badly, come on out and talk to me! Maybe I’ll hear you out this time!” Somnu shouted, quickly blinding himself by deactivating the summoning of his familiars and Grudgekeeper.

  ‘Both of you leave for now. You’ve been drained by the restriction this entire time too.’

  He couldn’t be too careful.

  Now, finally, he was almost ready to use the newest item he had in his inventory.

  “Come on out! I can’t kill you, I’ve already guessed that much!” Somnu spoke, tightening his grip on the toothy eyeball nibbling on his straw hand, trying to devour it. “If you want to become one so badly, let’s do it! Come out and I’ll eat you! It’s about the same right?!”

  There was no logic to his words. Yet again, there hadn’t been any logic to his enemy’s words either.

  Nonetheless, his attempts didn’t work.

  John Doe wouldn’t respond.

  Is he running away? Somnu gritted his teeth. “Neither of us can leave his Layer until we’ve dealt with this! We have to end this, right here and right now! I’m giving you an out, or I’ll ask the cheat of a hero to force me out of here!”

  “Hey!”

  “Last chance!” The blind Sleeper kept his blind gaze at his enemy, but something told him a glare was coming his way from the side.

  Yet again, silence.

  “It’s okay… Master…”

  “!” The scarecrow immediately resonated his vision with the crow who summoned herself. “Fala?! Go back!”

  “No. You told me I could make my own choices.”

  “Fala! This isn’t-”

  “Finally!”

  “?!”

  Somnu’s heart sank to the bottom of his stomach, as if he had been sucker punched harder than any other time before.

  He simply froze, a chilling cold running down his spine. A scorching heat erupting in his veins.

  After the many taunts to get Blood Fiend out, the scarecrow finally got his wish only when his crow companion willingly stepped into the limelight.

  John Doe’s had shown himself once more. However, this time…

  He was coming from Fala.