Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic-Chapter 1740 - 1739: The Witch of Duality

The water was green, the rainy sky was black, and combined with the thick fog akin to the chaos during normal world Space Chaos, this oppressive and terrifying atmosphere from the very start warned the Foreigner of the unusual nature of this Dream.

No Megan by his side, nor Audrey, only Shard stood alone as he rose from the dock.

"Am I in a dream now?"

[Yes. This is their dream, not another island you have entered.] 𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"That’s good."

Although Shard didn’t understand abilities related to dreams, he had communicated with the doctor, so he knew that dreams reflect the state of one’s mind and soul. What he saw at the moment was enough to explain how much pressure Megan and Audrey were under.

They probably hadn’t relaxed ever since they encountered the prophecy of the bloodline.

Shard took a deep breath and looked at his own hand, noticing that since it wasn’t a deep dream, the "Divine Afterglow" did not appear. As he slightly twitched his little finger, golden threads manifested in the air. They had considered the possibility of getting separated before entering the dream, so the current situation wasn’t too unexpected.

"Let’s see what kind of dream Megan and Audrey have constructed."

The golden thread pointed in the direction of the Forest Path, and as he followed the pitch-black path into the increasingly bizarre town in the dream, the thread continued to guide Shard southward toward the Edwards Mansion located on the hill.

Other than being gloomy and terrifying, the island in the dream wasn’t much different from the real island, so there was no need to worry about getting lost. After smoothly reaching the mansion with the locked door, Shard lightly tapped on the lock, but nothing happened:

"Is the rule in the dream that you can’t force doors open?"

Having encountered a similar situation when entering dreams with the doctor, Shard thought for a moment and then shouted loudly towards the house with lights on in the darkness:

"Hello, is anyone there? I’m here to visit Miss Megan Edwards."

There was no response, so Shard shouted again:

"Okay, I misspoke. I’m here to visit Miss Megan Edwards and Miss Audrey Edwards... not in any particular order."

As soon as he finished speaking, the door lock automatically clicked open, and Shard mumbled something inaudible before entering the yard and walking to the window, where, despite the darkness outside and the lights inside, he couldn’t see clearly inside.

Realizing that he couldn’t peek from the outside, Shard knocked on the door and stated his intention once more. The door opened automatically, allowing Shard to enter the interior, which was also shrouded with thick fog.

The room was brightly lit, with all the furniture and fittings in place, yet it completely lacked any sign of life. The "dangerous house" depicted in horror novels was likely just like this, reflecting Megan and Audrey’s fear of the very concept of the "Edwards Family."

Without checking the direction indicated by the thread on his little finger, Shard directly walked towards the dining room on the first floor where the Edwards Family Tree was kept.

Outside the window was a foggy, terrifying night, making the interior seem even brighter. Only the room containing the dining room was free of fog, and the candlestick and kerosene lamps on the long dining table made the dining room appear even more illuminated.

When Shard opened the dining room door, the masters of the dream were already waiting for him there.

By the window, a girl in a black dress looked at the night outside, her melancholic face reflected in the glass. At the far end of the long dining table, away from the door, another girl in a black dress with white lace gloves had her hands folded on the table, looking up at Shard.

The attire and appearance of the two were completely identical, and both were the masters of this dream.

Holding the doorknob, Shard watched this scene unfold before him, and the girl by the window also looked at Shard through the reflection in the glass:

"Do you have any questions?"

They spoke together, further resembling a scene from a horror novel.

Shard nodded, pointing to himself:

"Why are you two wearing beautiful evening dresses, while I only have ordinary clothes?"

The girls didn’t seem to expect Shard to ask this, so the girl by the window waved her hand, and Shard’s attire transformed from casual wear into a black formal suit.

"Alright, actually, I’m more comfortable in my own clothes."

Shard said with a smile, and his clothes reverted to their original style. Although this wasn’t his own dream, given his powerful soul, he was able to accomplish such a minor change as altering clothes.

He stepped inside and closed the door:

"So, have you decided to tell me about yourselves now?"

"Yes."

They spoke in unison, their overlapping voices echoing:

"This is a good opportunity; it’s easier to explain the current situation in a dream. The ancestors have already shown their shadows, the secrets of the Edwards Family are gradually affecting the entire Material World, and some things must be explained to you beforehand... You don’t seem very surprised?"

"I already knew some things in advance, my Perception is very strong."

He seated himself at the other end of the long table, carefully observing the two ladies who were standing and sitting. Their appearance in the dream was identical to their real-world looks, both young and beautiful:

"Let me start by sharing what I know about you. Megan and Audrey are actually one and the same; the mental trauma and soul discomfort from the past stem from both of you existing in the same body. After all, one body can only host one soul, which is the normal situation."

The two ladies pursed their lips and gazed at him, as Shard continued:

"Discovering this wasn’t particularly difficult; after all, there are distinctions between you two. Wouldn’t ’Duality’ be an apt description for you?"

He sighed:

"What I’m not sure of now are two things. First, why did your souls enter the same body? Second, have your souls completely fused?"

"Our souls entered the same body; tell me after the dream wakes up."

The girl sitting at the other end of the table said:

"As for whether we’ve fused... it’s more like, we’ve never been separate."

The girl by the window walked towards the seated girl, and they held hands. Then, in a burst of glimmer, they became one. Or rather, a single body with two heads, a strange appearance.

Even the beauty of the witch couldn’t mask the horror of this scene. They looked at Shard:

"Scary, isn’t it?"

"I’ve seen scarier things. Besides, this isn’t really the form of your souls, is it?"

Shard waved his finger:

"According to my initial judgment, your souls are in a stage of being one yet having independent consciousness. Showing this appearance is just to illustrate ’you in me, me in you.’ If your souls were truly as strange as they look now, your bodies couldn’t remain normal. The basic theory of a Circle Sorcerer: soul and body influence each other."

That’s why the outlander gradually became handsome.

Megan and Audrey’s relationship is completely different from Lecia and Dorothy, Helen and Grace. They’re definitely not the same person, but strictly speaking, it’s also hard to define them as two separate people. The only thing Shard can be sure of is that Megan and Audrey indeed have their own independent consciousness, rather than being a product of dissociative identity disorder.

Their situation isn’t as complicated as Lecia and Dorothy’s because their souls are relatively stable. They don’t possess the ability of the princess and female writer to completely merge into one, but it’s clear they can’t be separated either.

"Please answer: do you think we are one person or two?"

The two heads merged together, making her appearance in the dream look like that of a normal person.

"Two people."

Shard said without hesitation:

"I firmly believe you are two people."

Megan and Audrey finally smiled:

"If it weren’t for the fact that our situation is only known to that friend with the Thirteen Rings, I almost thought you had investigated us before meeting us."

Shard deliberately asked:

"Then why don’t you think that I heard about you from your friend with the Thirteen Rings, and deliberately approached you?"

The girl with brown shoulder-length hair blinked:

"Absolutely impossible, because she... doesn’t like men. Yes, she is not like me at all."

She stood up and walked towards Shard, the sound of high heels under her black evening dress tapping on Shard’s psyche.

She finally came to Shard, saying very seriously:

"This morning you told me about your past. Before revealing my final secret, I want to tell you something about myself as well."

This dream is as real as reality, those eyes representing the witch are so powerful:

"Do you find someone like me strange?"

"Why strange? I’d say intriguing."

[Or very...]

"No need to continue!"

Shard stopped her in his heart, then said to Megan:

"I know other girls with situations similar to yours, I can introduce you to them when there’s time."

"Really, just how many types of girls do you know?"

She pursed her lips and placed her hand on Shard’s chest:

"Once more, even if I’m like this, even if I might not be human, even if my soul is so peculiar, are you still willing to protect me and go with me to witness the family’s secrets?"

"Actually, when you recover to Eleven Rings, I won’t be able to beat you... Of course, I’m willing, I’m a person who keeps promises."

He nodded slightly, and the master of the dream made a judgment:

"Yes, you’re not lying."

She wrapped one hand around Shard’s neck, the other pressed against his cheek, kissing him like on the dock. The contact between the spirits in the dream further confirmed Shard of her soul’s state. But before Shard could fully understand everything, a third and fourth hand "snatched" Shard’s head, then another identical face:

"Don’t forget there’s also me."

The new pair of red lips touched Shard. Shard closed his eyes, trying not to think about how they managed to have four hands and two heads while standing so close together.