For the first time in ages, Gabriel had a dream.

He was conscious from the moment it began, given that he had learned the secrets of lucid dreaming from an old book in Lord Lazar’s library. He did so to maximize his proficiency and organize tasks in his head while being asleep.

Ironically enough, he found himself right back where he had last dreamt: the moist interior of his old shack.

If this was any other place, he would have sat down and started planning for tomorrow.

But this dream was different. This setting around him was special.

“Why am I back here?”

He looked down at his hands and a chill ran through his spine.

He could see every last detail on his hand, almost as if he was awake.

When he took a look outside, he met the all too familiar garbage dome towering beside his home. It was oozing from a horrid stench, something he was used to when living back here and didn’t notice until now.

“Ugh!” Gabriel pulled away while covering his nose. “What did they feed to this mountain of trash? It smells like burning flesh!”

Suddenly, a realization hit him.

His eyes widened as he let go of his nose.

“Did I just smell in my dream?”

He was put off by this revelation, even more as he recognized the footsteps rushing towards his shack.

They were the zombie maids of Lord Lazar.

Each of them was giggling. Their skins were slightly red from a blush.

“The Lord has called you!” Said one of the maids.

“He said it’s important!” Continued the other.

– – –

The castle was just like he remembered. The corridors, the rooms, everything was a one-to-one recreation of what it looked like in the past. It was even as lively as before, if not even more.

His destination was the ballroom. Even before entering, he could hear the loud chatter of voices he could easily recognize. They belonged to the lieutenants of Lord Lazar, which was pretty strange, considering they only came together on special occasions.

“Has someone died?” Gabriel thought while listening.

As he opened the door to the ballroom, the light blinded him for a second, and when he could finally see again, there was only one person he could look at.

“H-How…”

His voice trembled in disbelief. He blinked twice to hush away the illusion, but it stubbornly remained.

The person before him was truly there, sitting on a large throne of skulls, playing around with a wine bottle in his hand.

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It was Lord Lazar. He was alive and well.

Standing up from his throne, he raised his wine bottle and smiled.

He looked just as beautiful as the day Gabriel had lost him.

“Everyone!” Lazar roared. “Listen! Stand up and salute, for my warrior has returned home!”

The monsters, the lieutenants, and even Lord Lazar stood up to pay their respect to Gabriel. They all rejoiced in unison, shouting praises and celebrating his arrival.

Having witnessed such a warm welcome, tears began to form in Gabriel’s eyes.

“S-Stop! I don’t deserve this…”

No matter how loud he pleaded, the monsters still cheered him on. He was not sad because of it, but rather embarrassed to have revealed his emotions before so many people who were important to him.

He was very happy, much happier than ever before.

Because finally, he returned home.

The lieutenants surrounded Gabriel and led him to their table. He was hesitant to sit down at first, given his rank was much lower than theirs, but their persistence forced him to accept the request.

“Thank you!” He said, wiping the tears out of his eyes. “I was not expecting such a grandiose welcome.”

Lord Lazar approached his seat.

“Don’t worry about it! You’ve gone to hell and back, being surrounded by those pesky humans for so long. They are the worst, aren’t they?”

The lieutenants laughed in agreement. Gabriel too, however, his laugh was way quieter than the bunch.

Lord Lazar held his bottle of wine to Gabriel and offered to pour him some.

“N-No!” Gabriel protested. “Excuse my refusal, Lord Lazar, but I feel my presence is not worthy of this kindness. I’d be ashamed to have put you through such a humiliating act!”

Lazar chuckled, then poured him nonetheless.

“I’m proud to see your formality remained uncorrupted by the humans. That is certainly worthy of some wine!”

“W-Wait… Excuse me Lord Lazar, but did you just say you are…”

Seeing that Gabriel was in so much disbelief, Lazar simply gave him a playful wink with one eye.

“That I’m proud of you? Don’t worry, your ears have not failed!”

“Lord Lazar…”

Gabriel was at a loss of words.

Lord Lazar was someone he deified and for a good reason. He was strong, attractive, and powerful beyond all limits imaginable.

But most importantly, he was the one who summoned Gabriel into this world. Even though their relationship was something formal, on par with that of an employer and employee, Gabriel always viewed Lord Lazar as something more.

He was perfection in the flesh. His motions were one with purpose, flowing through space and time with infinite control over history. He was an infinite pool of precision, filled to the brim with knowledge and clear technique.

Be it magic or physique, he bore creation and destruction in his hands, both flowing into one another with the laws of beauty honed to excellence.

The attraction Gabriel felt was not purely platonic.

It was something more, something truly special.

“I heard you have unlocked an ability unlike your previous ones.” Lazar said as he sat down on his throne.

Gabriel was confused as to what he referred to, so Lazar continued.

“You know, that was one of the first abilities I’ve ever unlocked.”

“Really?” Gabriel gleamed with joy. “Are you talking about the new power I’ve unlocked for my Demon Sigil?”

“Exactly.” He nodded. “Yours is still in an early stage, but worry not! With enough practice, that ability of yours can be honed to destroy armies of men in the blink of an eye.”

“That’s wonderful! I will practice and perfect my abilities until they are worthy of your respect.”

“I’m counting on you, my warrior.”

Hearing that, Gabriel laughed.

He laughed loudly and heartfully, his smile reaching high and proud into the skies.

But despite all of this, tears escaped his eyes and poured down the sides of his face. He tried wiping them away but only more arrived.

Reflecting from the tears was a bright light that pierced through the walls, breaking into the room and erasing everything in its path.

That blinding light was the first sign of his dream coming to a close.

More of those lights pierced through the walls, spreading like a corruption, slowly engulfing the room.

Still, Gabriel laughed. He wanted to relish this illusion of the past, where everything was much-much simpler.

The lights erased the paintings from the walls, the carpets on the floor, and everyone around the dining room. It didn’t take too long for them to spread onto the tables and chairs, and soon Gabriel had nothing more but Lord Lazar before himself.

The light did not spare anyone, not even the Lord.

His feet and legs burned out of existence, followed by most of his upper body and arms.

Even though he knew this was but a dream, Gabriel saw Lazar as something more than just a fragment of his yearning for the past.

“Thank you.” He said and wiped away his tears.

Before his head would have faded out of existence, Lazar said one last thing to Gabriel.

“Make me proud, my warrior.”

And with that, he was gone.

A clear white surrounded Gabriel, soon engulfing him within itself.

It was time to wake up.