Southwest of the Pritt Kingdom, Igwynt.
In the afternoon, the entrance of Igwynt Train Station is bustling with activity. Gregor, dressed in a gray-black overcoat and a short-brimmed hat, stands in the crowd, holding a large suitcase. In front of him are two familiar faces.
"Ha, I never thought you, little black dog, would get promoted to the headquarters after just over a year at the bureau. I’ve been recruited for over three years now, and I’m still stuck in the same position. It’s really frustrating how some people just have all the luck..."
Standing in front of Gregor, the burly man Turner grumbles. Beside him, a plainly dressed woman glares at him and speaks up.
"What do you mean by ’black dog’? Watch your words, Captain Turner. You’re not just insulting us, but yourself too."
Elena says this, and Turner smirks before continuing.
"Hey, it’s just a habit. Besides, this kid’s got such good luck, calling him a black dog or something like that doesn’t matter, right? Isn’t that so, Gregor? Hahaha..."
Turner pats Gregor on the shoulder and laughs heartily. Gregor smiles and responds.
"Elena, Turner, thank you for coming to see me off."
"It’s only right. After all, we’re colleagues now. We’ve been through a lot together over the past year. To be honest, I’m a bit reluctant to see you go," Elena says with a smile, while Turner continues."Ah, what’s there to be reluctant about? Look on the bright side. If this kid does well at headquarters and lands a good position, we’ll have connections there. Maybe one day he can even pull us over too."
"Tsk, now’s not the time for jokes. It’s not like he’ll be able to influence personnel decisions right after being promoted to headquarters. Can’t we just say a proper goodbye?"
Elena continues to chide Turner, who finally waves his hand and responds.
"Alright, alright. Bro Gregor, I wish you a smooth journey."
"Yes, have a safe trip, Gregor. Remember to write often once you’re there," Elena also nods and says to Gregor, who smiles in response.
"Of course. We’ll keep in touch through letters. Well, it’s getting late. I should board the train now. Please give my regards to Mr. James."
With that, Gregor waves a final goodbye to Elena and Turner, then picks up his suitcase and turns to enter the station, merging into the crowd heading inside.
With a smile, Gregor quickly passes through the ticket check and arrives at the platform. A steam locomotive is already waiting by the platform. Looking at the long steel beast, Gregor feels a surge of joy.
"Finally... Tivian, here I come."
Gregor murmurs to himself. Recently, he has often entered his dreams, hunting for spirituality with the little fox he accidentally met in the Dreamscape. Although the little fox’s mimicry isn’t particularly strong, she is very familiar with the Dreamscape, more so than anyone Gregor has ever met. During this time, the little fox has acted as the commander, while Gregor has been the enforcer, hunting at the edge of the Dragon’s Territory. They have quickly accumulated enough spirituality for Gregor to advance.
Now, he has also finished handling all his affairs in Igwynt. It is time to head to the capital, Tivian.
With long strides, Gregor carries his suitcase toward the steam train. Unlike most people, he doesn’t squeeze into the second or third-class carriages in the middle or rear of the train. Instead, he heads straight for the first-class carriage at the front. With his financial means, he can afford to travel first-class.
Arriving at the sparsely populated first-class carriage, Gregor hands his ticket to a young conductor standing at the door. The uniformed conductor, wearing a hat, immediately salutes upon seeing Gregor and says with a smile.
"Good afternoon, sir. May I see your ticket, please?"
Hearing the conductor’s words, Gregor directly pulls out a ticket from his pocket and hands it over. The young conductor examines the information on the ticket, particularly the handwritten name, and immediately smiles at Gregor.
"Ah, Mr. Gregorius Mayschoss. Your compartment is number eight, toward the rear of this carriage. Let me help you with your luggage."
Returning the ticket to Gregor, the conductor says with a smile. Gregor nods in response.
"Thank you for your trouble."
With that, Gregor hands his luggage to the conductor, who immediately picks it up and leads him into the carriage. Under the conductor’s guidance, Gregor arrives at his compartment. The conductor opens the door, and Gregor steps inside.
"Please wait inside, sir. The train will depart shortly. If you need dinner, the dining car is in the next carriage. It offers a delicious dinner exclusively for first-class passengers. I wish you a pleasant journey."
After placing Gregor’s luggage inside, the conductor says routinely. Gregor smiles and responds.
"Alright, thank you for your trouble."
"It’s my duty, sir."
With a final salute, the conductor exits the compartment and closes the door. As he walks down the carriage aisle, he suddenly turns his head and gazes at Gregor’s compartment for a moment. After a brief pause, he decisively turns and walks away.
Soon, all the passengers on the platform have boarded the train. After the conductors close all the doors, the steam train begins to move. With the sound of the whistle, black smoke billows from the locomotive’s chimney. The steel wheels slowly roll amidst the dispersing steam, gradually accelerating the massive train. The entire train begins to move from slow to fast, leaving the station.
Back in his compartment, Gregor finally sits down and lets out a sigh of relief. Feeling the vibrations of the moving train, he looks out the window at the rapidly passing scenery. Watching the city he has lived in for over a year, he can’t help but feel a sense of nostalgia. He also harbors more expectations for his future life in Tivian.
The thought that he will soon not only advance but also reunite with his only sister fills him with joy.
“Just wait for the surprise, Dorothy. Your big brother is finally coming.”
Gregor thinks to himself. He is very curious about how Dorothy has been living in Tivian these past few months, wondering if she has been suffering or being bullied.
“The amount of living expenses I sent Dorothy was carefully calculated. While it’s a lot in Igwynt, Tivian is a different story, with much higher costs. I’m not sure if it’s enough. I was worried that giving her too much might make her develop bad spending habits, but what if I didn’t send enough?”
“But Dorothy never mentioned any issues with money in her letters, so it’s probably fine. I just hope she’s not keeping quiet about it to avoid burdening me.”
Gregor thinks this to himself. If Dorothy had been struggling financially in Tivian without telling him, he would feel deeply guilty.
“In any case, I’m finally going to Tivian. I won’t have to worry about Dorothy being alone there anymore.”
Gregor concludes his thoughts. He then leans back on the sofa in his compartment and picks up a newspaper prepared on the table, ready to pass the time during the long journey.
Time flies as the train moves forward, leaving the city and passing through fields. The sun in the sky gradually sets, and day turns to night. The gas lamps in each carriage of the train are lit one by one, transforming the train’s environment from day to night.
After finishing all the newspapers in his compartment, Gregor looks out the window and notices that it’s getting late. He heads to the first-class dining car for dinner, where he eats half a roast chicken, three sausages, and a piece of bread, accompanied by a glass of beer. After the satisfying meal, he returns to his compartment and takes out a book from his suitcase to read.
The book Gregor is reading is a guide to etiquette, part of his preparation for working in Tivian. He is, after all, a country boy from a poor background. Although he can read and write, his education level is not high—he only graduated from a church school, which Dorothy would say is roughly equivalent to an elementary school education.
While this level of education is above average for the time, it’s still not enough for a civil servant in the capital. So, on Mr. James’s advice, Gregor has been working to improve his cultural knowledge in his spare time.
Working in Tivian, he is likely to encounter high-ranking officials and important figures. To avoid being labeled a country bumpkin, he is diligently studying to improve his knowledge and cultural level. Gregor believes that etiquette is crucial when dealing with the elite of the capital, so he has prioritized learning proper manners.
In the carriage, Gregor studies the etiquette book seriously, even taking out a pen to make notes. His attitude is very focused. As he studies, he begins to feel drowsy, and the drowsiness grows stronger, making him yawn repeatedly.
Feeling the increasing drowsiness, Gregor decides to take a nap. Before closing his eyes to sleep, he habitually performs his daily pre-sleep routine: the self-hypnosis for entering dreams.
As Gregor falls into a deep sleep in his train compartment, his consciousness gradually coalesces in his dream. When the groggy Gregor regains his senses, he finds that the environment around him has changed. He is no longer in the train compartment but in his room at the Southern Sunflower Street Apartment in Igwynt.
Facing this scene, Gregor remains calm. He knows he has entered a dream. Since he has been entering the Dreamscape every day recently, he is very familiar with this situation. He is now in his dream, his Dream Cocoon.
"I fell asleep... It’s already this late? I didn’t realize I’d been studying for so long," Gregor says, looking around.
"But since I’m in a dream, I should hurry to the forest. If I keep that little lady waiting again, she’ll scratch me," Gregor continues.
Although he has already accumulated enough spirituality to advance, he still enters the Dreamscape Forest every day because he promised his little fox collaborator that he would help her with long-term forest exploration. Thanks to the little fox’s help, Gregor has accumulated enough spirituality. In return, the honorable Gregor continues to enter the forest daily to assist her.
Without further ado, Gregor in the dream immediately recites the mimicry incantation. In a flash of light, his form changes into a robust black hound.
After transforming into his Dreamscape mimicry, the black hound Gregor lets out a roar, creating a glowing passage in front of him. Gregor then skillfully enters the passage and arrives in the forest.
Standing above his Dream Cocoon, the black hound Gregor scans the endless expanse of giant trees and the sea of canopies, looking for the familiar small figure. However, he doesn’t see her, which puzzles him.
“Strange... Where’s that little lady? She’s usually here waiting for me every day.”
Looking around, Gregor thinks to himself. Since he doesn’t have enough Dream Anchor Sigils to go to the Dragon’s Territory, the little fox always uses her Dream Anchor to open a portal and come here to pick him up. For some reason, the little fox seems to have an abundance of Dream Anchor Sigils, using them as if they were free.
Every night, since Gregor sleeps a bit late, the little fox usually opens a Dream Anchor portal to Gregor’s Dream Cocoon and waits for him here. So, every time Gregor emerges from his Dream Cocoon, he sees the little fox, who then complains and nags at him. But today, strangely, the little fox isn’t here, which makes Gregor feel a bit uneasy.
“Maybe the little lady had something come up today and couldn’t make it? Well, that means I can get a good night’s sleep…”
Gregor thinks to himself. Although that’s what he’s thinking, he doesn’t immediately leave the Dreamscape. Instead, he jumps from the branch of his Dream Cocoon to the grass below and begins to wait quietly. It doesn’t take long before a familiar Dream Anchor portal opens in front of Gregor, and a small white figure he knows well steps out.
"Hey, you’re early today. You’re finally getting it, black dog. You actually went to sleep early so I wouldn’t have to wait for you."
The little white fox steps out of the Dream Anchor portal and, upon seeing Gregor waiting for her on the ground, speaks with surprise. Gregor, hearing this, frowns.
"Huh... Didn’t you come late today? My biological clock has been set to a late sleeping time recently. I can’t fall asleep early even if I try," Gregor says, puzzled.
Due to his regular Dreamscape activities, his biological clock has been fixed to a specific sleeping time over the past month. When he feels drowsy, it’s usually time to sleep. So, tonight, while studying in the compartment, he felt drowsy and assumed it was time to sleep.
But... something seems off this time.
"I wasn’t late. I always check the time before I go to sleep. I come at the same time every day. Today, you definitely came early, not me late. Your sense of time is terrible, black dog."
Puffing out her chest, the little fox speaks confidently and proudly to Gregor. Hearing her words, Gregor is momentarily stunned, his dog face showing a serious expression.
"Hmm... So, did I really fall asleep early today? Does studying have a hypnotic effect?"
Gregor murmurs to himself. Although falling asleep a few dozen minutes early isn’t particularly strange—studying can make one drowsy—it’s still an unusual occurrence.
For most people, such an anomaly might be quickly overlooked. But Gregor is a Hunter for the Serenity Bureau and has handled many cases. This anomaly immediately puts him on alert.
"Little fox, please wait here for a moment. I need to wake up and check something."
Gregor says this to the little fox, then his black hound mimicry begins to chant the return incantation. As the incantation continues, Gregor’s black hound mimicry rises and quickly floats back into his Dream Cocoon, merging into it.
"What’s the problem with falling asleep early? Does he really need to wake up to check? I don’t understand these black dogs."
Sitting on the ground, the little fox wags her tail as she watches Gregor’s Dream Cocoon above. Not long after, Gregor’s black hound mimicry emerges again. Standing on his Dream Cocoon, he looks down at the little fox with a grim expression.
"Something’s wrong... I can’t wake up!"