The Forgotten Vault pulsed.
Not with light—but with presence.
Each time Jimmy returned to it, the boundaries between the Dream Realm and the waking world blurred further. Tonight was different. Tonight, the vault invited him.
As the arcane door hissed open, he descended alone, cloaked in shadow and dreamstuff. The air within was heavier—like drowning in thought. Glyphs on the walls shimmered as if acknowledging him now not as an intruder, but as heir.
The book sat where he had last left it—The Chronicle of Nyxthar. But this time, when he approached, it opened on its own.
> [Dream Throne Evolution: 30% → 35%]
> [Seal Deterioration Detected: Oneiric Dominion – 45% Unlocked]
As his fingers brushed the parchment, the words rippled and re-formed. New pages revealed themselves—accounts of Nyxthar's conquest, of how he ruled not with armies, but with ideas. He turned gods into servants, empires into dreams.
And yet… he failed.
Because he feared becoming something more.
Jimmy leaned closer. The final entry shimmered faintly:
"The Dream Throne is not given. It is taken—at the cost of self. To sit upon it is to abandon flesh, and to command all sleep. Would-be heirs must prove one truth: that they are willing to lose everything that isn't theirs."
As Jimmy read those lines, his vision fractured. Reality peeled away like old skin.
---
He stood now in a grand hall of obsidian mirrors. The throne—Nyxthar's throne—waited at the end. But between him and it, stood Nyxthar himself.
Or rather, a construct of him.
The figure was tall, veiled in black flame, crowned with horns of silver light. Its voice was not sound, but resonance.
"You would claim the throne?"
Jimmy didn't flinch. "I would build it anew."
The figure's mask cracked a little. "What makes you worthy?"
Jimmy smiled. "Because unlike you—I don't hesitate."
> [Trial Initiated: Ascension of the Dream Tyrant]
---
The trial was not combat. It was reflection.
Jimmy was dragged into mirrors—each one showing a life he might have had.
One where he married Mira and lived as a humble enchanter.
One where he was a savior, a benevolent dreamwalker.
One where he refused power, lived alone, and never touched a mind.
Each life offered peace, love, redemption.
Each was a trap.
"Do you regret?" Nyxthar's voice whispered.
"No," Jimmy said, eyes blazing. "I choose the dark."
He shattered the illusions one by one, consuming them.
> [Dream Parasite Core Strengthening: +5%]
> [Corruption Immunity Gained: Guilt Echoes]
---
The mirrors collapsed. Jimmy stood at the foot of the throne.
It pulsed with a low hum, vibrating with centuries of hunger.
"You may take it," Nyxthar's remnant said. "But only if you offer me something in return."
"What?"
"Your name."
Jimmy blinked.
"You must become Dream Itself. Shed your mortal name, and wear only the crown."
He hesitated.
Then he smiled.
"My name was Jimmy. But names are for the weak."
He stepped forward and sat.
> [System Notification: Dream Throne Accepted. Title Gained: Sleepless Sovereign]
> [Oneiric Dominion – 100% Unlocked (1 Use Available)]
> [Trait Gained: Nyxthar's Legacy – Can manifest dream projections in the waking world for limited time. Duration: 30 seconds | Cooldown: 12 hours]
Reality screamed.
The mirrors exploded. The construct burned away.
And Jimmy woke.
---
He sat upright in his bed.
His heart was steady. His breath calm. But power radiated from him like heat from a furnace.
Lana burst into the room, daggers drawn. "Master? I felt… something."
Jimmy stood, his voice echoing. "I sat upon the throne."
Her knees buckled. "Then you… you're…"
"I am not dreaming anymore."
He walked past her and out into the night. The campus slept below.
He reached out with his hand.
> [Oneiric Dominion Activated]
A silver wave exploded from his body, sweeping across the academy.
Every person within the grounds fell into immediate slumber.
And dreamed of him.
He stood atop the tower, eyes gleaming.
"I have no name now," he whispered. "Only purpose."
> [Dream Throne Evolution: 50%]
> [Spell Permanently Unlocked: Oneiric Dominion – Cooldown: 1 week]
> [New Class Path Available: Dream Sovereign (Locked)]
The age of dreams had begun.
And he was its god.