After having her brain eaten twice already in the Dreamworld, her mental faculties had severely deteriorated. Now, she could not think for herself. She could no longer think reasonably. From this moment forth, she would live inside her own delusions.
Every time her brain was eaten in the Dreamworld, she would lose a part of herself in the Waking World. And eventually, she would completely lose herself and turn brain-dead.
This was what Bryan was aiming for from the very beginning. If things that happened in the Dreamworld caused ripple effects in the Waking World, then he would covertly ruin Celine's life.
He would make Ron go through the pain of losing his loved one, just like he had lost Henry, Emma, and his teacher. He would take everything away from Ron and make him beg for death!
As Celine and Ron were intensely quarreling with each other, they didn't realize that a small black cat was staring at them through the window. The cat was looking at them with an amused smile.
After making sure that the dream had resulted in the outcome that Bryan desired, Benny cast one more glance at the quarreling couple and then hopped down the building. He agilely maneuvered his way down the gas pipes and landed on the ground.
He then crossed the street and ran towards the old homeless beggar that was sitting on the sidewalk. Benny jumped into his embrace and looked at him with bright eyes. 'Celine is beginning to show signs of mental instability.' He transmitted mentally.
Bryan who was under disguise, couldn't help but smile as he stroked Benny's head. "This is just the beginning. I can use her as an experimental subject and further refine the Dream Path."
Benny hesitated for a while and then replied, 'I'm afraid you'll need more than one human for that. Are you willing to?'
Bryan chuckled and transmitted mentally, 'Did you forget, I already know the location of two bases of the Holy Blood Sect? I'm sure I'll find plenty of test subjects there.'
'No,' Benny shook his head and continued, 'what I meant was, are you willing to kill so many humans for your own sake?'
Bryan remained silent for a long time. Memories of that fateful night flashed in his mind. Henry and Emma's heads exploding and his teacher standing in front of him and protecting him from thousands of blood weapons.
He didn't want to feel that powerless ever again. If it meant he had to break his principles to obtain what he wanted, he would no longer hesitate. But then, another thought popped into his mind.
'If I sacrifice everyone for the sake of my goals… then how am I any different from Sean?' Bryan remained silent. He didn't know how to answer Benny's question.
He looked at Benny and shook his head. 'I… don't know.'
Benny wrapped his arms around his neck and gave him a warm hug and replied, 'As long you have a clear conscience, it will be fine.'
Bryan smiled warmly as he hugged Benny back. He mumbled under his breath, "Clear conscience, huh?"
His gaze then landed on Ron and Celine's apartment. He gritted his teeth and his eyes narrowed. "At the very least, I won't feel guilty at all, slaughtering these two."
And thus, ever since that day, Bryan had been living the life of a homeless tramp begging on the streets. It reminded him of his time in the slums of Damascus. Apart from that, ever since that day, he had also been visiting Celine in her dreams.
Every day, Celine had the same nightmare where a four-armed demon would eat her brains. And every time she would wake up from the nightmare, she would lose a part of herself.
Days turned to weeks and the relationship between Ron and Celine had taken a complete turn. Both of them were no longer the same as before. Ron had completely broken down at this point.
Every day he would have to watch his beloved turn into someone else. It ached his heart to see Celine turn deranged by the day. After weeks of suffering from brutal torture in her nightmares, Celine was now completely brain-dead.
Dark bags had begun to form under her eyes. In the past few weeks, she was caught between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, she was suffering from insomnia. She knew that if she slept, the demon would invade her dreams and eat her brain.
On the other hand, if she stayed awake, she would always have to see Ron's face, whom she believed to be the very demon that has been haunting her.
Ron looked at Celine who was sitting by the window and looking out in a daze. Her hair was unkempt and her clothes messy. She was no longer the beauty she once was. Now, she looked no different from a patient in a mental asylum.
Over the past weeks, Ron had seen the love for him in Celine's eyes slowly turn into anger, fear, and then finally confusion. He knew for a fact that Celine no longer recognized him anymore. He even believed that she could no longer recognize herself.
Tears streamed down his eyes as he sobbed. "My love…."
He felt as if his heart was ripped out and crushed every time he saw Celine in this state. He would call out to her but would receive no response. All Celine could do now was sit in a corner of the house and look outside absentmindedly.
Ron wiped the tears from his eyes and walked toward Celine. He gently stroked her head and spoke, "Celine, it's time for your meal."
She didn't reply. Subconsciously, saliva overflowed from her mouth and she began drooling. Ron wiped her lips and tried his best to not break down in front of her. "Wait a minute, my love. I'll bring you something to eat."
He turned around and walked toward the kitchen, his entire being emanating a desolate and sorrowful aura. He placed the food on the plate and then walked back toward Celine.
However, when he turned around, his eyes widened in shock. The plate in his hand dropped to the floor and broke into pieces. Soon the shock in his eyes turned to rage, unprecedented rage.
Beside the dazed Celine, he saw an old tramp wearing ragged clothes. He was currently looking at Celine with a mocking smile. Although Ron had never seen this person before, he recognized him instantly.
After all, Celine had mentioned to him time and over again about the homeless tramp who would visit her in her dreams. Ron believed this was the same tramp who had bumped into Celine in the market all those weeks back.
This man was the reason that Celine turned this way. Ron didn't know how he did it, but he knew this tramp was indeed the culprit.
Ron's eyes were seething with hatred and rage. Without speaking another word, he rushed toward the old tramp, both his palms turning into blood claws. He raised his hands and ruthlessly swung at the tramp's head. "DIE!!!"
The old man's expression turned solemn as he dodged the attack. He looked at Ron and chuckled, "Oh? Look who we have here… aren't you this girl's fiancé?"
Ron's eyes narrowed, killing intent gushing out from him as he muttered, "Who are you?"
Very few people knew that he and Celine were an engaged couple. And only a few weeks back, before Celine turned ill, they were planning on getting married soon in the future. For a stranger to know about their relationship was very concerning for Ron who was living in hiding.
The old man smiled bitterly. "I was once your friend…. But now, I will be your doom." His eyes narrowed as he got into a fighting position. However, he didn't attack. He simply stood there, ready to defend.
"Friend…" Ron muttered under his breath in a daze. Memories of Andrew, Henry, Elijah, and other members of the Strike Team flashed through his mind. However, the next moment, he sneered. "I have no friends."
He rushed toward the old man and swiped down his claws once again. However, to his surprise, the old man only blocked or parried, he didn't counterattack even once. Ron felt a foreboding feeling in his heart as he thought, 'Something feels wrong, I need to finish this quick.'
After exchanging a few more moves with the old man, Ron was finally able to stab him in the chest. The reason why he decided to not use any spells was because Celine was still in the room. Hence, hand-to-hand combat was the best choice.
Ron looked at the old man who was now coughing blood, however, the sense of foreboding only increased. The old man looked at him with a mischievous smile, "The price of betrayal is insidious. It is a burden. And it is a reminder."
Seeing that familiar smile on the old man's face, Ron was greatly taken aback. For a moment, an image of a black-haired young boy who loved to play pranks on others flashed in his mind.
'It can't be!' He thought incredulously. However, the next moment, the old man's eyes which were darker than the abyss, began to rotate. A whirlpool of otherworldly darkness engulfed Ron, he felt utterly lost.
The next moment, his vision slowly returned and what he saw in front of him sent shivers down his spine. His body began to tremble and tears started to trickle down his reddened eyes.
"C-Celine…" He mumbled. His hand had stabbed right through her heart! She was staring back at him with a hint of resentment as well as... relief.
"NOO!!!!" Ron took out his hand from her chest and then tightly embraced her. He thought that he had stabbed the tramp but the reality was far from it.
Unbeknownst to Ron, the old man suddenly appeared behind him. However, both his eyes were bleeding profusely. He looked at the couple one last time and then finally dissipated into gray smoke and disappeared.
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