[BONUS]

[Bonus chapter thanks to TheCodedProf :) (2/6)]

Much of it was expected.

In the not so precious pile, there were large amounts of clothing... both male and female. Leonel didn't really have to think very hard for why that might be. At least, that was until he found mounds of makeup as well.

Leonel chuckled, picking them up. "I didn't expect that the mighty Dream Asura would be fond of cosplay and cross-dressing."

He gave Somnus an amused look, but the latter didn't seem embarrassed, nor did Leonel plan to care enough to tease him for it either.

If he was being more serious, it was less likely that Somnus liked to cross-dress, and more likely that he sometimes found pretending to be a woman to be more useful than being a man.

That idea, though, was even more amusing to Leonel. That was because rather than just cross-dressing, he was probably out there seducing people and... © content.

Leonel picked up a pair of fake breasts and almost burst into a fit of laughter.

"Hey, hey. These almost feel like the real deal."

Leonel squeezed and pressed a bit. At first, he found it funny, but quickly he found it to be very impressive.

The only reason he could tell that these were fake was because he was exceptionally in tune with his own senses. If he was a normal mortal, then the difference would have been far too subtle for him to even tell. He could imagine this being the greatest invention for the mind of a teenage boy and lonely male. Back on Earth, he would have been made a billionaire overnight if he invented this thing.

"... You can't be serious..."

Leonel reached over and picked up a tube. Well, he was going to pick it up, then smartly chose to use his Earth Force to control the metal casing it was in.

This time, there was a faint blush on Somnus' face, but even Leonel had a hard time picking it up, especially through all the blood.

"You know what," Leonel let them drop to the ground and began to clap, "I respect it. Going so far for your craft, I'm sure you've made a killing. I wonder, how many people, businesses and worlds have you pulled into your grasp with these tactics? This will be very useful..."

Leonel fell into thought for a moment. He had only planned to casually go through the less than precious things, but now he started going through them more seriously.

As he did so, he was quickly compiling a rolodex of information. Then, he formed a Dreamscape just for Somnus alone.

"...Three... five... six... seven worlds, you should have pretty firm control over that many. Impressive. Unfortunately, they're all Mortal Worlds."

Somnus' gaze flashed with a hint of terror. He learned all of that just by going through his costumes and trinkets? What kind of monster was he?

He wasn't even sure what kind of mental capacity that would take, and one of his own strongest Forces was Dream Force!

"You don't keep a record, so I assume all the information's in your head, right?" Leonel smiled. "If you cooperate, I might be willing to let you go in the future."

"... Do you take me... for a fool?"

Leonel chuckled. "Why wouldn't I let you go, we're family after all, didn't you know?"

Somnus' eyes opened wide, and as though a spark of understanding had taken shape in his mind, almost like he had his own Dreamscape, he was shaken to his core.

Could it be the reason he had sensed such a large influence of the Ancestor was because... Leonel was her descendent?!

Somnus' breathing became hurried, his heart quivering wildly.

Wasn't Leonel a Human? Why couldn't he sense any Dream Asura scent coming from him?

"Look at your mind go, you're probably trying to figure a lot of stuff out at once, huh? Well, you don't need to know."

Somnus' eyes dimmed.

He didn't understand why Leonel told him in the first place. Everything he came to know was a potential trouble point.

Even if this world was isolated, there was no way it was perfectly isolated. Someone as powerful as their Ancestor, for example, even if she couldn't enter without Anastasia's permission, would definitely still be able to pry into Somnus' mind if she was still so inclined.

Aside from the fact that it wasn't even certain if Anastasia could stop a deity on the level of the Demoness from entering in the first place, as a Dream Force expert, Leonel should be aware of this. So why was he allowing it?

Leonel chuckled.

The reason he wasn't worrying about it was because who ever said his plans stopped with the Owlans and those beasts? That woman liked to play games, right? Then they would play games.

But also, in such a frayed state of mind... how could Somnus protect his own?

Almost instantly, his mind was like an open book to Leonel, spilling faint connections and intricate lines between matters that Leonel should have known nothing about.

"You lied to me!" Somnus roared, realizing what happened immediately.

"If you're a fool, why blame me? You were enjoying playing tricks and scheming against me, weren't you? Did you get some great sort of satisfaction out of that? Well I'm going to make sure to play you to death. Whether in body or in soul, you'll not have a day of peace for as long as I don't will it."

Somnus seemed to finally collapse, blood leaking from wounds he couldn't even register as his head fell limply, his gaze dim.

He didn't have the will to fight anymore.

Leonel sneered.

Now, if anyone looked into Somnus' mind, they would think that Leonel had lied just now because that was what Somnus believed.

Looking into another person's mind was a double-edged sword. It wasn't always clear and defined what they were thinking, and if they believed something that was wrong, it could easily come off as fact in the eyes of an observer.

And that was perfect for Leonel's needs.

'Now, let's see what other useful stuff you have on you...'