Horn rarely wakes up at this time; in fact, the Ark seldom enters this state either.
Most of the time on the Evil Sea, people arrange for crewmates to take over before everyone slips into a collective hallucination.
Of course, occasionally there are slips, like this time.
Only this time, Horn noted that those around him were still caught in the illusion.
Everyone stood motionless, staring at the wall.
The cabin where Horn was situated was one of the better ones, with a lower population density than the cabins below, but it still housed more than a dozen people.
At this moment, all these people had their backs to Horn, staring blankly at the wall.
Horn realized something was amiss.
"I don't have any abilities; how could I wake up early?"
Just as Horn sensed this, he heard a voice.
"Horn, I come from the future. The future me once fought alongside you, attempting to overthrow the captain's rule over the Ark."
The remark was perplexing.
Horn thought:
"Oh, so I haven't woken up early; I'm still in a hallucination. This hallucination is intriguing… Is it a projection of my subconscious? Do I long for someone to fight beside me?"
Just as Horn was musing, the voice spoke again:
"I know you may not believe this, but the future you even left me a message. Once you hear this message, you will believe me. Of course, you might think this is within a hallucination, so everything heard here seems reasonable."
"But coming up, everyone will wake up. If you believe this is an illusion, then within it, why not try instigating a disturbance, and then follow the scenes you see… constantly fleeing."
"We need a particularly large commotion, preferably one that garners the captain's attention."
The one conversing with Horn was naturally Wen Xishu, though it was Sirius delivering the message.
Wen Xishu also disclosed Horn's secret; given the extraordinary circumstances, he didn't mind Sirius knowing about this.
The secret wasn't much to Sirius. But for Horn and Wen Xishu, it held significant meaning. It was a shared experience, a thing both of them had done in their childhood.
However, what Horn did wasn't as outrageous as what Wen Xishu did, yet Horn still did it.
Actually, Wen Xishu knew that to be able to share such an event with him in the Deceit Tower, the future version of Horn really regarded him as a friend.
And upon hearing this secret, Horn immediately realized the gravity of the situation.
"What do I need to do?"
Even if it's a hallucination, even if it's a subconscious projection, he mentioned the issue, indicating that the mind is hinting at something important in this "hallucination."
Wen Xishu began laying out Horn's plan.
Horn remained very rational, unfazed that the other party actually knew these details. After all, they already knew the critical information.
"No problem, if I can wake everyone up, I can create the commotion within fifteen minutes."
"Then I'll leave it to you," Wen Xishu said earnestly.
While on the Ark, Horn wasn't a particularly powerful Ability User, but he had far-reaching plans.
Wen Xishu always felt that if Horn could reach the Bunker and climb the Deceit Tower a few times to acquire some sequences… even without the Mad Dice, Horn could become an adept ally second only to himself in Deceit Tower.
Sirius hadn't expected… a regular person on the Ark to dare scheme against the captain.
"He's just a non-ability user with crippled legs, yet he possesses such ambition?" Sirius remarked to Wen Xishu in surprise.
Wen Xishu replied:
"He is smart. Patient, with a grand vision, and a sense of justice, yet he also knows when to sacrifice. Honestly… I deeply admire him."
This journey had already made Sirius realize the immense importance of Wen Xishu.
Wen Xishu might not see it himself, but Sirius sharply noticed that Wen Xishu was like an unpredictable variable.
Moreover, people of great strength seemed to naturally gather around him in the future.
Given that a person like him would admire a crippled individual, this flawed person must have extraordinary qualities.
Sirius said:
"Let's begin."
Wen Xishu nodded.
At a distance, Horn also exhaled slowly.
Horn could indeed feel that this was no illusion… because as everyone began to awaken, their reactions were very genuine.
This was truly happening, and if this were a ruse—
Then all his plans would surely be exposed.
Yet he chose to gamble it all.
He quickly started using the Ark's equipment to communicate with everyone, and an unprecedented commotion was about to unfold.
At this moment, Sirius had already fully controlled his body. The so-called hallucination was unleashed by the Evil Sea Giant Beast, but the Evil Sea Giant Beast was Sirius' pet.
This creature in the sea was created by Sirius, something he could fully command.
Once the Evil Sea Giant Beast lifted the illusion, the captain and others initially thought it was time because those assigned to land had just entered the island.
This signified that a concept within Sirius' mind had been invaded.
And it was then that Horn began orchestrating the disturbance.
Initially, Sirius was a bit worried; could a guy in a wheelchair really organize enough to divert the captain and others' focus?
But soon, hearing the blaring alarms on the Ark and sensing the large footsteps echoing…
Sirius was astonished.
How long had this silent preparation been underway? No… this couldn't have been accomplished merely with time. After all, how long has the Ark been around?