Nightmare Mythos

The four-star artifact didn't appear catchy at first glance since it was merely being displayed at the Nightmare's Flesh near its heart. This opinion began to change when Cesar was having a hard time plucking it out from the Nightmare, making him frown in the process.

Only Cedeit cleared out this confusion.

"What? This… I understand it now,"

"What? What do you understand?"

Cedeit sighed and replied, "This artifact is a defect… However, it is defective in a kind of good way. Do you know why? Well, this thing is the one providing the concentrated essence in this city. Judging this Nightmare's death and how are you able to gather this information from one of your instructors, it's been many years since this is happening. This star probably connected its roots to the city, providing them an abundance of this like resupplying their consumed essence."

Cedeit paused, his tone in delight "We've passed many cities along the way and you're fortunate enough to encounter this treasure trove. In case you encounter the same problem, this is a good place to do it,"

Cesar shook his head mildly before retorting, "You're saying this is unavailable to take. However, I can take advantage of this defect?"

"Precisely. But I don't know if you are supposed to be glad about this since, fortunately, and unfortunately, this is not the Nightmare you're looking for. Now let's focus on the good side and start harvesting your trophy. Be careful not to damage the defected artifact,"

'This Nightmare is greedier than I thought…'

Cesar mused inwardly before shaking his head in defeat as he began removing the flesh of the monster that was deemed important. Leaving the artifact there was a painful idea to think but with the incoming cash coming on his way the moment he sold the Nightmare's Flesh.

…

Once he was done harvesting he found the mutilated corpse to the point it became unrecognizable, Cesar didn't waste time and prepared himself to leave.

Inserting the key in the air and tilting it to the right, Cesar imagined the inside of the vehicle they used to come into the city. Soon, a broken reality opened up, not much different from what he had saw at the time the Heretic used this to kill him in that Ceased World.

On the other side of the place was an empty space for the vehicle. Arnold and the driver weren't there any longer since it's been a few hours now and they were probably using the inn to rest.

Glancing at the artifact he was going to leave behind, Cesar entered the broken reality before using the same key to make it disappear.

The moment he was inside the vehicle, Cesar didn't waste idling around and leave it. Locking the door of the car, he took a mental note of the inn that Arnold had told him about, which belonged to the Academy, before searching for a shop that was buying Nightmare's Flesh.

Since the era involved a lot of Nightmares, it was only natural for these kinds of shops to exist. Taking this matter into consideration, Cesar was already aware of the places he needed to go to.

But since Flora City is as large as the other cities Cesar knew, he was already aware that he needed to thoroughly search the area. If he knew that there was a Fallen Nightmare from the edge of the mountainside, he would've asked Arnold beforehand about specific locations where he could earn the best for selling Nightmare Flesh.

Even so, with the Nightmare business flouring as it was hundreds of years ago, Cesar was able to spot a certain Nightmare shop in the distance.

Cesar distanced closer to the shop before finally looking at the shop that he was able to spot after a few minutes.

[Moren Nightmare Shop]

"…"

Cesar felt oddly attached to this shop as the only difference from the last time to this one is that it involves Nightmares. The shop he and his squad had seen from Harden City was a normal shop that involved trading and exchanging goods.

'Well, okay I guess? Now that I think about it, the owner said that time she was curious about Jacqueline when she transferred to the City of Wheels… I think her name was Melinda? Hah, I wonder what her reactions were when we're under the influence of The Mansion?'

Cesar's gaze fell into the description that the Moren Nightmare Shop contained and couldn't help but connect the dots.

[Moren Nightmare Shop is currently licensed under the jurisdiction of Hunter's Association.]

The description probably shows that their shop couldn't be messed around since they are under the Hunter Association's influence. It also proves that they aren't fake and going to fake their business since the ones backing them are very important figures.

They just wouldn't tarnish their sponsor's reputation to scam a few bucks unlike some certain Melinda he met at the Harden City.

'Is Melinda curious about Jacqueline's wellbeing because she's under the great three families there which is the Casanova? I can't think of anything else from that honestly. It's also the most logical explanation to have,'

Cesar sighed and remembered why he would even care about this when it wasn't even on his list of concerns. He was here to sell the Nightmare Flesh and that is what he should be doing.

Entering the building with a calm gait, Cesar saw that there were a few people inside. The only difference is that they are formed into a group of squads.

It was mostly the Army that monopolized the possession of Nightmares whether they were dead or alive. So others who came here were either part of the Association or mercenaries who worked in someone else's position.

Hence when Cesar entered alone the shop, all gazes fell on him. Those with abilities were able to see the face behind his robe since it didn't involve any special power to entirely cover like the one the Heretic uses.

Cesar really didn't give a damn about it.

He made his way toward the counter, and looked at the receptionist currently observing him before stating, "I'm here to sell,"