The Eclipsed Order

Chapter 188: Chapter 189: Ares Takes a Rest

After Number Five’s death, Andrea remained inside the Dream Eater’s domain for several seconds.

The endless darkness surrounding her gradually faded, and the countless eyes that had filled the void closed one after another until nothing remained.

Andrea opened her eyes.

The frozen battlefield returned.

Celeste was already waiting several meters away, her Frost Wyrm power having completely sealed the laboratory behind them.

Andrea looked toward the frozen structure.

"Finished?"

Celeste nodded.

"The laboratory has been dealt with."

Andrea smiled.

"Good."

She glanced toward the place where Number Five’s body had fallen.

"There was more information than I expected."

Celeste walked toward her.

"Did you find anything useful?"

"Quite a lot."

Andrea’s expression became more serious.

"The laboratories weren’t operating independently. Number Five knew about several other facilities, including the locations of their research centers and some of the people funding them."

Celeste’s eyes narrowed.

"How many?"

"I don’t know the exact number yet."

Andrea turned toward her.

"But there are enough that this isn’t something we should ignore."

Celeste nodded.

"We should report everything to Master and to the main headquarters."

"Exactly."

Andrea looked back toward the frozen laboratory.

"And we should probably make sure none of the remaining researchers escaped."

"They didn’t."

Celeste smiled faintly.

"I checked."

Andrea laughed softly.

"I expected nothing less."

The two women began walking away from the ruined facility.

Behind them, the enormous laboratory remained completely frozen beneath Celeste’s power, while the traces of the battle gradually disappeared beneath layers of ice.

Andrea glanced toward the distant horizon.

"Let’s return."

Celeste nodded.

The two disappeared from the battlefield.

---

When I returned to the room, I immediately heard the familiar sounds of the three of them playing games.

Draven, Cedric, and Astra had apparently been using the devices I brought from Earth without any intention of stopping anytime soon.

I opened the door.

The first thing I saw was Astra sitting comfortably on the sofa in her human form, completely focused on the tablet in her hands. Her long white hair was spread across the back of the sofa, while her red, star-filled eyes followed whatever was happening on the screen.

She suddenly smiled.

"Master, look."

I walked over.

"What is it?"

Astra turned the screen toward me.

"This is the pet called Moi. I’m raising it."

On the screen was a small, strangely adorable creature.

"I feed it, dress it, and take care of it every day."

She tapped several buttons.

"I’ve already bought it new clothes, and I made its room look nicer too."

"Is that so?"

I looked at the screen.

"I’m glad you like it."

"Yes."

Astra nodded enthusiastically before returning her attention to the game.

"I think Moi likes me too."

"That’s good."

I walked farther into the room.

Draven was sitting on the other side of the sofa.

Unlike Astra, however, he wasn’t playing some relaxing pet game.

He was playing a zombie shooter.

And judging from his expression, he was taking it far too seriously.

"Move!"

Draven leaned forward, gripping the controls tightly.

"Why are you standing there?!"

A group of computer-controlled soldiers was moving across the screen while an enormous wave of zombies rushed toward them.

One of the NPCs stopped.

Draven’s expression immediately darkened.

"Are you stupid?!"

He pointed at the screen.

"There’s a zombie right behind you!"

The NPC continued running in the wrong direction.

Draven slammed his hand against the table.

"WHY ARE YOU RUNNING THAT WAY?!"

I stared at him.

The NPC finally turned around.

A zombie attacked.

The character fell.

Draven’s eyes widened.

"No."

He leaned closer.

"No, no, no!"

The remaining NPCs continued fighting.

Draven’s expression became increasingly furious.

"I told you to cover the left side!"

Another NPC ran directly into the zombie horde.

Draven froze.

"...What are you doing?"

The character was immediately surrounded.

Draven stared at the screen in disbelief.

"You absolute idiot."

He started shooting rapidly.

"Get out of there!"

The NPC didn’t move.

Draven’s eye twitched.

"GET OUT!"

The character died.

Draven slowly lowered the controller.

"...They’re useless."

I couldn’t help staring at him.

Does he really like it that much?

He had spent the last several minutes treating the NPCs as though they were actual members of a military unit under his command.

Draven suddenly restarted the mission.

"Fine."

His expression became serious again.

"I’ll do everything myself."

Cedric glanced over from his own tablet.

"You said that already last time."

"I didn’t expect them to be this incompetent."

"They’re computer-controlled characters."

"I know."

Draven frowned.

"That’s why it’s even more disappointing."

I sighed.

"At least you’re enjoying yourself."

Draven didn’t even look away from the screen.

"I’m not enjoying myself."

He fired another burst.

"I’m fixing their mistakes."

"Right."

I decided not to argue.

Cedric, meanwhile, was playing something completely different.

His game resembled a shadow-fighting game, with a dark arena, several warriors, and fast-paced combat taking place across the screen.

I walked over.

"How was it, Cedric?"

Cedric immediately paused the game.

His expression brightened.

"It’s actually quite interesting, Master."

I sat down nearby.

"What do you like about it?"

Cedric began explaining almost immediately.

"The combat system is very simple at first, but there’s a surprising amount of depth once you understand the timing. Each character has different movement patterns, attack ranges, defensive abilities, and special techniques."

He pointed toward the screen.

"For example, this character is fast but doesn’t have much defensive power, so it’s better to keep moving instead of blocking every attack."

He switched to another character.

"This one is slower, but his attacks have much greater range and his defensive ability can absorb several hits."

I nodded.

"I see."

Cedric continued.

"There are also different weapons, although most of them aren’t actually necessary if you understand the combat system properly. You can dodge, counterattack, chain attacks together, and use the environment to create openings."

He moved through another match.

"And there are different stages too. Some are simple arenas, while others have obstacles that affect movement."

He paused the game again.

"There is also a ranking system."

"Of course there is."

Cedric nodded seriously.

"I’ve been trying to understand how the ranking system works."

He looked at me.

"The stronger opponents become more difficult because they react faster and use more advanced combinations."

"Sounds like you’ve been playing for a while."

"I have."

Cedric looked slightly embarrassed.

"I wanted to understand why you seemed to enjoy games so much."

"And?"

He smiled faintly.

"I understand now."

He turned back toward the screen.

"It’s entertaining because there are rules, but you’re still free to experiment within those rules."

I nodded.

"That’s probably the point."

Cedric resumed the game.

"There’s also a story mode."

He continued explaining before I could even ask.

"The characters have different backgrounds, and some of them are connected to each other. I’ve been trying to understand the relationships between them."

He paused.

"Although I think the translation of some of the dialogue is strange."

I laughed quietly.

"That’s probably because the game wasn’t made in our language."

"That explains it."

He nodded thoughtfully.

Then he continued playing.

I stared at him for several seconds.

"Okay."

Cedric looked toward me.

"You can stop now."

Cedric blinked.

"Stop?"

"Yes."

I smiled.

"I asked one question, and you somehow managed to explain almost the entire game."

Cedric’s expression became slightly embarrassed.

"Sorry, Master."

"It’s fine."

I stood up.

"At least you’re enjoying it."

Cedric smiled.

"Yes."

I looked around the room.

Astra was still taking care of Moi.

Draven was still fighting zombies while yelling at his NPC teammates.

Cedric had already returned to his shadow fighter.

I sat down on the sofa with a bag of snacks beside me and opened another packet.

’They really do like these things.’

I looked toward the three of them.

’At least with all the power banks I brought, I don’t have to worry about the devices running out of power for a month.’

I ate another piece of food.

’Although I did warn them that staring at screens for too long could eventually damage their eyes.’

’Astra didn’t even look away from her game when I mentioned it earlier.’

’Her response had been surprisingly simple.’

’She would just cast a barrier around her eyes.’

Draven had immediately agreed.

Cedric had also said that he could create a protective enchantment to reduce the strain.

’Apparently, none of them considered that a reason to stop playing.’

I sighed.

’I suppose that’s one problem solved in the most ridiculous way possible.’

I leaned back against the sofa.

I reached toward my phone and grabbed another piece of junk food.

They really do like these things.

I had no idea whether to laugh or worry.

I looked around the room.

Then I yawned.

I had been awake for far too long.

"Alright..."

I stretched slightly.

"I think I’ll sleep for a while."

I raised one hand.

Mana gathered around my fingers.

A small distortion appeared beside the sofa.

Something emerged from it.

At first glance, it looked almost like a tiny creature made from soft white fur.

It was only about the size of a small cat, with a round body, short limbs, and two long ears that drooped gently along the sides of its head. Its fur was pale silver-white and so soft-looking that it seemed almost impossible to imagine the creature being dangerous.

Two enormous eyes opened slowly.

They were a calm shade of pale blue.

A tiny golden marking rested between them.

The creature looked around the room.

Then it noticed me.

Its ears lifted slightly.

"Mm..."

It made a quiet, almost humming sound.

I smiled.

"Hey."

The creature moved closer.

I gently placed one hand against its head.

"How have you been?"

The creature’s tail moved slowly from side to side.

"Mm-mmm..."

I nodded.

"I’ll take that as a yes."

The little creature climbed onto the edge of the sofa and settled beside me.

Draven finally glanced over.

"What is that?"

"A summon."

Cedric looked up from his game.

"What kind, Master?"

I looked at the creature.

"This one is called a Lullaby Sylph."

Astra paused her game and looked over.

"A Lullaby Sylph?"

I nodded.

"It’s a rare species that lives in places where the boundary between dreams and reality is particularly thin."

I gently scratched beneath its chin.

"They’re not combat creatures. Their bodies naturally absorb mental disturbances from the surrounding area, which makes them useful for calming the mind and helping people sleep."

Cedric looked interested.

"Then it’s a support-type magical creature."

"Something like that."

I glanced at the small creature.

"And this one is the empress of its species."

Draven stared.

"That’s the empress?"

"Yes."

He looked at the tiny creature again.

"She doesn’t look very impressive."

The creature slowly turned toward him.

"Mm."

Draven immediately looked away.

"...I wasn’t insulting her."

I laughed quietly.

I looked back at the Lullaby Sylph.

"She’s one of the oldest members of her species that I’ve encountered."

Astra leaned closer.

"How old is she?"

"Hmm, around 2000."

Astra’s eyes widened.

"Really?"

"Yes."

The tiny creature simply sat there calmly, apparently uninterested in the conversation.

I rested my head against the sofa.

"Anyway, I summoned her because I want to sleep."

I looked at her.

"Are you ready?"

The Lullaby Sylph’s ears moved gently.

"Mm-hmm."

I smiled.

"I’ll take that as a yes."

I closed my eyes.

"Begin."

The creature floated upward.

Its tiny body remained suspended above the floor as a faint silver light spread around it.

The room gradually became quieter.

Not because the three had stopped playing.

Their games were still producing occasional sounds in the background.

But the atmosphere itself began changing.

The Lullaby Sylph opened her mouth.

A soft sound emerged.

"Mmm..."

It wasn’t really a song.

There were no words.

No melody that could be easily remembered.

Instead, the sound seemed to flow naturally from her body, rising and falling in gentle tones.

"Mmm... hmmmmm..."

The silver light surrounding her pulsed softly.

A faint vibration passed through the room.

"Huuu..."

The sound was almost like a quiet breath carried across still water.

"Mmm... mmm-hmm..."

The air became warmer.

The tension in my body began disappearing.

The constant movement of mana within my body gradually slowed, settling into a smooth and comfortable rhythm.

The creature continued.

"Mmmm..."

A pause.

"Hmmmm..."

Another soft breath.

"Mm... ahhh..."

The sounds were simple, almost meaningless by themselves, yet together they created a rhythm that made the mind gradually stop wandering.

The light around the Lullaby Sylph expanded.

It passed over the room without disturbing anything.

Draven’s game continued.

BANG!

BANG!

"Why are you shooting there?!"

He was still completely focused.

Astra was still feeding Moi.

Cedric was still fighting.

Yet the noise seemed strangely distant.

"Mmmmmm..."

The Lullaby Sylph’s voice became even softer.

"Huuuu..."

The rhythm slowed.

"Mmm... hmm..."

Each sound seemed to arrive at exactly the right moment, neither too loud nor too quiet.

My breathing gradually synchronized with it.

Inhale.

Exhale.

The remaining tension in my shoulders disappeared.

The world around me became increasingly distant.

The Lullaby Sylph continued floating above the floor, her tiny body surrounded by soft silver light as she maintained the calming rhythm.

"Mmm..."

"Hmmmm..."

"Huu..."

"Mm-mmm..."

The sounds continued gently.

There was no urgency and no pressure.

Nothing that demanded attention.

Only the quiet rhythm of the creature’s voice and the soft pulse of her magic.

My eyelids became heavier.

The last thing I heard before sleep finally took me was another quiet sound.

"Mmmmmm..."

And the room slowly faded into silence

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