Tantalizing Topic

'What if' was a tantalizing topic. It was one Noble entertained for the duration of her train ride. 

What if she challenged another Nightmare and survived? 

There would be even more trauma, certainly.

As long as it wasn't emotional manipulation like the last Nightmare, Noble thought she might be able to handle it, but what were the odds of that?

The Spell always seemed to find and exploit a person's weakness, so Noble would need to set aside even more time aside for psychological help. 

But the reward? That was where Noble's mind had settled. 

A Saint transformation. 

Sarai had been right when she said everyone wanted one. It was the stuff of webtoons: being able to change yourself at will into something superhuman. 

While Awakened and Masters had powers, Saints were on a different level. Up until the Sovereigns revealed themselves, Saints were the epitome of human strength and tenacity. 

So that begged the question: if Noble conquered the nightmare, what would she transform into? 

There was the obvious answer, of course. 

An actual bee. A colossal monster with a stinger that could pierce an armored vehicle like it was made of paper. 

'Wouldn't that be something?'

Or like Saint Cor was a murder of crows, Noble could end up being an entire swarm of bees. 

'What would it be like to have so many streams of consciousness to maintain simultaneously? I feel like it would give me a massive headache!' 

Conversely, it could go the other direction and Noble could receive a transformation so far out of her current skill set that even she wouldn't think of it. 

How strange would it be if she ended up looking like one of those extinct mammals... what was it called? What if she turned out looking like a shrew!

Those creatures dug deep into the ground, which is something she would never be able to do without activating her flaw. And a flying shrew...that would be a sight indeed! 

Then there were some transformations that didn't resemble animals at all. What if she turned into a storm cloud or got an ability that made her able to not just disappear, but travel in and out of a different plane of existence within a realm? 

'Wouldn't that be something? Imagine exerting force upon the tangible while being intangible. A Saint like that would be virtually unstoppable.' 

Because each transformation was unique to the person, the options were endless. 

'But my time to think about them has ended,' Noble sighed as the train came to a stop. 

It was dangerous to spend too much time fantasizing about what would never be. While a small journey into the realm of possibilities was fun, staying there was the best way to make oneself discontent. 

And Noble was happy with her life the way it was. She was going on a very different but no less exciting adventure very soon. 

That adventure held far more promise. She would be with those she loved most while forging a new and bright future for humanity. Fort had been doing a considerable amount of research now that he had made the official announcement at work about his relocation. 

The new ambassador found that the projections for the Dream Realm were far better than the waking world at this point. And their family would be on the cusp of this amazing move, able to establish themselves in the infancy of civilization. 

What would that mean for their children? For their grandchildren and beyond? Even without being part of a legacy clan, their progeny would be set up to thrive for generations to come. 

That was a future worth pursuing. And it would be pursued together with Fort in Ravenheart. 

 'Who could ask for more?'

Pushing aside the thoughts, Noble prepared to face the day. A whole new crop of Sleepers was set to arrive today. It felt too early to have so many. It seemed like the Spell was getting more aggressive with each passing day. 

At least Rain hadn't been infected yet. 

And she never would be, at least not without the girl's permission. 

'Sadly, these students were not so lucky.' 

Before heading to her classroom to help them, though, there was one stop Noble needed to make first. She hadn't exactly promised to pass on Roan's message, but it would be wrong of Noble to keep the information to herself. So the professor took a slight detour before beginning her workday.

Thankfully, the library was already open when she passed, so Noble went inside to seek out the third member of her previous cohort. The man in question was behind the reception desk, reading a book with 'Dreamwalker' in the title. 

'Is that some kind of play on a nightwalker?' Noble wondered. 

"Hey, Master Nickel!" 

Nic did not even look up from his book. "Not interested."

Noble furrowed her brow. "What do you mean?"

"Your slow approach to my desk coupled with your use of my proper title instead of calling me Nic suggests that you are either coming with a request or a proposition. Additionally, your tone indicates that you think it is not a suggestion I will like so I will save us both a lot of time and preemptively say no." Nickel shrugged and turned the page. 

The professor was stunned for a moment. She pressed her lips together. "I see. Well, don't say I never passed you the message then." 

"Message?" Nic flicked his eyes from the page to the woman incredulously. "Who is this message from?" 

Noble hesitated. Was she at liberty to discuss Roan with Nickel or would the man prefer to introduce himself? 

"I am not sure if I can tell you just yet, but it is from a Master," she hedged. 

"Must be a legacy. No one else would care to keep their identity secret when making an offer." Nickel's interest died away. Seeing Noble's helpless face, he sighed and set down his book. "Give me this message so you can leave with a clear conscience." 

"The message is an offer to join them as part of a cohort to conquer the Third Nightmare. If that might interest you, I can get you in touch with them..." Noble watched the librarian's expression darken.

"Some legacy Master can't get a group together among his own clansmen, so he is trying to bait unsuspecting new Masters and use them like fodder? My gut reaction was right." Nickel clicked his tongue. 

"It isn't like that," Noble felt like she was doing Roan a disservice, "If you want to meet with them and hear the story..." 

"You aren't going to leave unless I say I'll think about it, are you?" Nickel raised one eyebrow at her. 

"I'll put it this way. I'll leave faster if you do," Noble smirked. 

"Fine...I'll think about it. But I doubt my answer will change." Rolling his eyes, Nickel raised the book to cover his face. 

"Thank you, Nic. Have a great day!" Noble turned to leave. 

The conversation had gone about as she expected. The ball was now in the librarian's court whether he wanted more information. 

Noble had other responsibilities. Plastering on a friendly smile, the professor entered the open air of the Academy and floated toward her classroom. 

New students would be there in less than an hour looking for her guidance. 

'Duty calls!'