The Innkeeper

Chapter 2240: Weak

Lex heard the sound of a system notification. He had been so focused on his own tasks that he completely forgot there was a system quest going on - one that he had more or less ignored entirely. It had been completed because mere moments ago, the Dream realm finished binding to the Midnight Inn. Now, once he lifted the lockdown, Lex would be able to travel to and from the Dream realm even without the tavern!

Quest Complete!

New Quest: A new frontier has been discovered. No dream can be a good dream without the Midnight Inn. Gain access to the Dream Realm!

Quest Reward: Dreamy Mirror!

Remarks: Am I dreaming, or are you actually working hard? Must be dreaming.

It was good to know that even during the most trying times, the system didn’t change its habits. Ignoring the remark altogether, Lex focused on the Dreamy Mirror.

Dreamy Mirror

A mirror that allows one to enter the dreams of someone sleeping. The mirror also protects that dream from any other external interference.

As soon as Lex read the description, he directly exited the Dream realm. There was no need to worry since he could now enter and exit as he wished. Thus, when he returned, he would be in the same place. Or same dream - or however the Dream realm determined relative location.

As soon as he returned, Lex went to Moon and immediately used the mirror on her. Wanting to meet Moon in her dream was enough reason to use the mirror, but the fact that it could prevent external interference was the reason Lex didn’t waste a second!

Although he wasn’t sure if the mirror was strong enough to prevent the Dream realm from accessing her dreams, it was better than nothing. She’d been asleep for a long time, and would continue to sleep for a while longer. Even if she wasn’t continuously dreaming, considering her state she would definitely dream on and off.

It was one of the things Lex was actually quite concerned about, but there was nothing he could do about it - until now.

Lex waited, and waited, and continued to wait, but the mirror didn’t show any changes. Just when he started to wonder if there was something wrong with the mirror, it finally stopped showing his reflection, and instead showed the interior of a white castle that was all too familiar to Lex. It was the one where he originally found Moon, back when she was incredibly weak and frail.

Lex touched the mirror and found that it acted like a door, letting him enter. Thus, for the second time, Lex entered the white castle and found Moon, laying in a hammock. Fortunately, this time around, she was not in a weak state - though it was just a dream.

"Lex? What are you doing here?" Moon asked as she opened her eyes, confused by his appearance. "You’re not supposed to be here on Yildirim."

She scrunched her brow as if thinking hard, though it became obvious to Lex at a glance what was happening. She was not self aware in this dream.

"Yeah, I came to check in on you," Lex said, as if it was completely natural. "It must be tough being the saintess of Yildirim."

Moon was confused for a few more seconds, but then just nodded, and accepted that as an acceptable answer.

"It’s not too tough honestly," she said with a wide smile as she walked up to her balcony, showing him the breathtaking view she saw everyday. "I have a good team, so I only need to make the decisions and they implement it as I intended, which works out well enough. The people of Yildirim are also very receptive to my ideas, which helps things out a lot."

Lex stepped beside her, and saw that the scenery seemed to be moving, showing him the various scenes on the planet. Moon did not find it odd at all, and started to share stories about her various projects and how they were helping the people. This was a side of her he’d never seen before.

After she came to the Inn, she perfectly fell into the role of younger sister, perhaps making up for the missing years of her childhood. Here, though, she was an idealistic ruler, providing all the tools her people needed to live decent lives.

"You’re doing good work here," Lex said eventually. "You don’t get lonely doing all this work on your own, do you?"

Moon shook her head.

"No, the people keep me company, and the work keeps me busy. I don’t really think about it. The days pass in a blur," she said, not really looking at him. Lex looked at his sister, and could not help but suddenly feel so weak.

For the past few years, ever since he had started using his Dao Body, Lex had been feeling really strong because he knew he’d be good in a fight. But now, unable to find Almira after so long, and unable to help Moon wake up, he could not help but feel weak. What was the point in being content with a level of strength where he still couldn’t do the things he really wanted?

"Even so, I’ll drop in on you from time to time. Take care," he said before walking out, though Moon still didn’t turn to look at him. It was only after Lex left the dream that the look in Moon’s eye softened, and her expression became normal as well. How could she not know she was stuck in a dream? But there was no point in letting Lex worry about her when there wasn’t anything either of them could do about it.

Unfortunately for her, she wasn’t as good an actor as she thought she was. Or maybe it was because her abilities didn’t work on Lex like they did everyone else. He saw right through her, which is what caused him to realise just how powerless he really was.

Still, even if there wasn’t anything he could do for Moon, he could at least do his best to find Almira. Since nothing seemed to be working, it was time to start taking drastic measures.