Chapter 58: Dimne Corporation

That night, Ilunia broke into a heavy sweat, drenching her entire body and soaking straight through to her bed.

Her pajamas grew damp, low murmurs slipping past her lips, accompanied by small, uncomfortable groans.

Her face twisted, her breathing ragged, and the moment she snapped back into consciousness, her entire body jolted upright.

"Hah...!"

Ilunia gasped, struggling to find air, pulling in as many breaths as she could manage. Her expression turned grim, her hands clutching the sheets on her bed.

She stayed like that for a good while before finally managing to calm herself down.

’What kind of prophetic dream was that?’

"A little girl inside a coffin, silver hair flowing down her back, dark horns curling like a goat’s, and eyes closed shut, as though the world held no meaning at all to her."

Ilunia summarized her dream into simple words. That vision had been genuinely new to her, leaving her momentarily bewildered.

She felt her heart pounding hard. After confirming this was something entirely unfamiliar to her, she let out a small sigh.

"What is that supposed to mean?" she muttered, pouting, her face flushed with mild irritation.

Fate always had a strange way of bringing Ilunia face-to-face with things. So whatever she’d just seen was likely going to turn out to be something far from ordinary, especially given that just hearing that coffin girl’s breathing alone had been enough to make Ilunia’s heart pound as though it might burst.

Ilunia took another breath, deeper this time, and right after, she heard a voice from across the room:

"Seeing something again, Miss?"

Ilunia turned toward the source of the voice. "Wilson...?"

Of course it was Wilson’s voice, the one man who’d stayed closest to Ilunia ever since she’d been left on her own, also the one man who remained utterly loyal and devoted to her.

"Yes, I came to wake you, but it looked like you were in the middle of a vision. So I waited."

"Ah, I see..." Ilunia nodded, seemingly unbothered as she pushed her blanket aside and started to get up.

Wilson stepped forward quickly to assist her, offering his hand for support, which Ilunia accepted.

"We have something we need to take care of tonight."

"What is it?" Wilson asked.

But Ilunia stayed quiet, reaching instead for a few strips of white cloth to wipe herself down and wrap around her body. That was one of Ilunia’s habits, rather than changing into regular clothes, she preferred wrapping herself in thick strips of cloth, since her blindness made things considerably more difficult otherwise.

There was no way she could let Wilson help her change clothes either. She was still a girl, and Wilson was a man.

Once she’d finished, Ilunia finally spoke.

"How’s that man doing?"

"Which one?"

"The one who tried to make My Lord kneel."

Wilson’s brow furrowed slightly hearing that, then he answered, "He’s fully obedient to us now, terrified, even."

Ilunia smiled hearing that.

"Let’s go see him."

***

The moon hung high in the sky, surrounded by a scattering of flickering stars. The air felt pleasantly cool as it swept through Ilunia’s hair, tossing it wildly as she left the Academy in a car.

The car window stayed open the entire way, allowing all of it through, while Ilunia kept "watching" this advanced civilization, streetlights lining every corner, and the empty streets stretching out in the dead of night.

Of course, plenty of workers were still out there working overtime, just that Ilunia had never actually seen any of it properly.

She could only picture it in her mind, drawing from whatever she’d once glimpsed in her dreams.

As she took all of it in quietly, Wilson, serving as the car’s driver, suddenly spoke up:

"Miss Ilunia, may I ask something?"

"I don’t answer overly personal questions, you know."

Ilunia let out a soft, gentle laugh, though Wilson didn’t seem too concerned about that, simply chuckling and getting straight to the point.

"Why that man? Is he really the salvation you’ve foreseen, just because he wears the White Glove?"

Wilson looked genuinely serious about that question, falling silent for a moment in thought, then adding:

"I’m sorry, it’s not that I doubt you. It’s just, beyond being extraordinary, I’m simply afraid he might be taking advantage of you, Miss."

Ilunia listened carefully, then nodded. "If that’s really the case, I’d gladly let myself be taken advantage of by him."

"What if he isn’t the Salvation we’re looking for?"

"Fate doesn’t lie to me, Wilson. I know far more than what you’ve ever seen of me. What I know is so vast that even speaking it aloud becomes an obstacle in itself."

Naturally, Wilson couldn’t possibly understand any of that. So, once they arrived at their destination, Ilunia said nothing more, opening the car door and attempting to step out on her own.

They arrived at an exceptionally tall building, the Dimne corporate headquarters, specializing in Serum production.

They walked into the building without hesitation, and even at this late hour, the place was still bustling with staff hard at work.

The moment those staff members noticed Wilson and Ilunia’s presence, they froze for a moment, dozens of them scattered across the first floor, and every single one of them bowed low.

"Welcome, Miss Ilunia."

Ilunia gave a small nod in response. Wilson escorted her to the elevator, and they descended to sub-basement level one, straight into the underground floor.

A light ding! rang out as the elevator reached its destination, the doors opening to reveal a dimly lit corridor lined with doors, each leading into a specific room.

After that, one of those doors opened, revealing a man in his early twenties, drenched in sweat.

His face lit up as he ran toward Ilunia.

"Miss! Welcome! Why didn’t you tell me you wanted to visit?"

Hearing that, Ilunia gave a wry smile.

"I forgot. But what are you doing down here, Ron?"

Ron Dolan, one of Eland Dimne’s victims, a genius Serum developer whose research had been stolen every single time by Eland, and thanks to Ilunia’s help, Ron had finally gotten his revenge and was now quietly working to restore the Dimne corporation’s former glory, with Ilunia now serving as its new leader.

Ron smiled broadly, a genuinely kind man who held Ilunia in the highest regard.

"I came to see, well, you know, that piece of trash. I’ve been testing out a new Serum, and figured I’d try it on him."

Sure, he was a kind man, as long as Ilunia overlooked the fact that he was also a bit of a research-obsessed madman.

"...He’s not dead, is he?"

"No, he’s fine."

Hearing that, Ilunia let out a breath of relief. She then walked toward the room Ron had just come from, pushing the door open to reveal a room with walls entirely made of steel.

Inside, Eland sat bound to a chair, his mouth sealed with black tape, his entire body covered in severe wounds, the steel walls around him stained with long-dried blood.

Sensing someone’s arrival, Eland opened his eyes, staring toward Ilunia, and immediately his whole body began trembling with fear, his face turning grim, tears streaming down as he shook his head violently.

"Wilson."

Ilunia said just that single word, and Wilson approached Eland, peeling off the black tape.

And this is what followed:

"N-no more...! Please, let me go, I’ll, I’ll be obedient, I won’t resist, please! I’ll bow before you, yes! I’ll kiss your feet and do anything at all, just please, get me away from this place."

His appearance had turned genuinely pitiful, the man seeming to have aged considerably, his skin drained of all its former vibrancy, his once-confident face now replaced with pure, absolute terror.

Ilunia simply watched him in silence, then gave a small, gentle smile.

"...Do something for me, and after that... you may become one of us, in our lowest caste, of course."