Chapter 62 – Separated

"...E-Excuse me?"

The fox, who had been all high and mighty a second ago, was baffled. Not because of what Dream said, but because he didn't understand.

Was that supposed to be an insult? It sure sounded like it. But what did magnum dong mean? He had no idea, and wasn't sure how to respond to Dream.

Riddick and the girls though were positively stunned. They knew exactly what that meant. And while the girls knew what Dream just did, Riddick was the only one who truly understood the ramifications of doing such a thing. Telling a class 4 to come and suck it? If those foxes understood, they wouldn't hesitate to decapitate Dream where he stood.

But that was only IF they understood. And Dream knew that they didn't get a word of that. As for letting them know what it meant, he wouldn't. He wasn't that stupid.

"It means no."

Dream made it simple. The fox also decided to take it simply and recover from his befuddlement.

"No? You're nothing more than a bystander to this conflict, so don't start believing that you have a choice."

"He's right, Boy. There's nothing you can do here." (Riddick)

"Bu-" (Dream)

"No buts! Do as they say! I don't need you here nor want you here. Don't be a hero and forget about everything and us." (Riddick)

"..."

Dream shut his mouth and went quiet. He'd never seen Riddick like that. He's almost never raised his voice. The girls were also wide-eyed, stunned by their father's outburst, and more so by his rejection of Dream. 

At first, they were happy that Dream had decided to stay. As he said, it was becoming a criminal to the world's largest Empire, a place that had the power to put their dad on the run. But he decided to stay with them anyway. And then their dad comes in and pushes him away? Why would he do that?

"..."

Dream silently walked over and faced Riddick, putting his hand out for a shake.

"You at least took care of me for a bit. Thanks." (Dream)

"Leave."

*Boom*

Riddick put his hand on Dream's chest and shoved, throwing Dream several meters away to the foxes. He landed flat on his back.

"*cough* Damn." 

Dream felt the wind in his lungs leave all at once. Quickly, a fox transformed into a human and restrained Dream with a pair of rope. The lead fox nodded.

"Good. A reckless child who knows nothing. Riddick Durov, you have one more chance to give yourself up."

"How about you quit flapping your lips like a pest and give me some experience, the only thing you're good for."

"....Go."

The fox narrowed his eyes in displeasure and ordered his team, not wishing to speak any longer. After that, all the foxes proceeded to launch fireballs and bend the ground. Riddick also responded in kind by making some fireballs of his own. Though these weren't red or blue, but black.

Right as they were about to collide, the fox that restrained Dream threw a bag over his head, cutting out all sensory information. He was then lifted up and could feel himself being moved.

'Damn, those fireballs looked cool. He wouldn't let me see for just a bit longer huh? Now I'm just a piece of luggage.'

[At least you aren't on the receiving end of those fireballs. Nevermind that, the restraints they have you in are no joke. Those ropes especially, they're enchanted with something that acts as a mana inhibitor. Not only does it restrict the flow of mana, but existing mana tied to your body is cut off.]

'Ya, I can feel myself weakening. Like I'm back on Earth all over again. It's not a fun feeling. Can you get rid of them?'

[It would take too long. From what I can see on the GPS, which still works, he's bringing you back to the Mountain. You'll probably be set free in a bit.]

'*sigh* Alright.'

Dream decided to just relax and be as comfortable as possible. Not that being carried like a bag was comfortable in any sense.

..............

After almost 20 minutes of sensory deprivation and uncomfortable positioning, Dream was finally set down on the ground. And soon after, the restraints came off.

When the bag came off his head, Dream repeatedly blinked his eyes and massaged his face. All the sensory information flooding in wasn't very comfortable for his brain.

"I suggest you forget everything that happened. And don't bother looking around for us or that scum. You won't find anything."

After saying so, the fox dashed off and disappeared, leaving Dream alone.

"...*sigh* I give a 3/10 for that treatment."

[Why 3?]

"I didn't get dropped and I at least know where I am."

Dream looked around and saw the entrance to the Mountain a mile or two away. He stood up and stretched out. The mana flowed back into his body and he recovered to peak performance.

[So things have taken an interesting turn.]

"I know. I'm surprised that they let me go just like that."

[It's probably political. If they killed everyone associated with Riddick, then the human Empires would step in. And they're probably confident enough in their stealth that they don't need to worry about being found out. It's not like everyone has a GPS after all.]

"Very true. Anyway, I better find a place to live. And preferably not with Graff. Get me somewhere secluded."

[There's an area about a hundred miles from here that would be good.]

'Transportation?'

[Right here.]

In front of Dream, a helicopter was summoned. This one was much smaller than the other one though. It only carried two people. But in exchange it was fast. He quickly stepped inside and began flying to the location Sophia found. 

And in a mere 15 minutes, he arrived. The area was next to a lake and there was nobody around for miles. Dream got out of the helicopter and desummoned it. 

"Nice. Now, a house."

The next moment, a prebuilt house was taken out of his inventory and placed near the lake. It was only single story and not that big, but for one person it was perfect. He walked inside and found it furnished, having everything he might need.

He walked over and flopped down onto a couch. Next, he took out a phone, placing it onto the coffee table in front of him.

"Hey, Old Man. How you holding up?"

"Don't patronize me, Boy! I've got 2 third classes on my ass, how do you think I'm holding up?"

Dream grinned hearing the voice from the other line. 

Dream wasn't actually planning to forget about them. At first, he really did plan to stay, but after Riddick forcefully rejected him, he realized that if he stayed he would just be more baggage. So he decided to help them from afar. The only problem was that if he planned on keeping tabs with them, he needed a way to communicate. And that's what the handshake was for. Or more like the shove.

Right as Riddick shoved, Dream took out a device from his inventory and handed it off to him. The Old Man got the hint and took it before the foxes could see. The device was actually hand made. It was basically a smartwatch but made with this world's materials for the case. The case of the watch was enchanted with the function of taking the signals from the watch and sending them through telepathy, making it so two people could communicate over distances using the watch.

With his skills, he was able to easily make them. But he had only gotten the State skills a couple days ago and hadn't made them for everyone, only a prototype. Meaning only Riddick had one. And right now, Dream was using it.

"I'm glad the watch works. Otherwise I would have to use Luna's phone, which could give me away."

"I meant it when I said you should forget about us. This isn't your fight, and if they find out that you're helping me, it's over for you."

"Well they won't find out. How could they possibly understand my technology? I think you should relax and accept the help that I was going to give anyways."

"..."

There was silence over the line for a moment.

"...Fine."

"Good. So what's your plan?"

"My plan is to run until I either kill them or lose them."

"I see that. You've already covered a lot of ground. But It's going to be forest for many more miles. So the likelihood of you losing them is slim to none. How confident are you in killing them?"

"It's no problem. Though it won't be easy. I'll be tired afterward, so hiding will be necessary."

"Well think of it this way. Your goal is to face off against the 4th class Raoul, and if you can't handle some measly 3rd classes, then good luck."

"I'm one of those measly class 3's as well. I need to reach class 4 before having a chance."

"You and I both know that's not true. It's all about skills. So take this chance to start leveling them."

"It's not that easy."

"Then make it that easy. Look, right now you don't have a choice. The longer you wait, the more reinforcements they're going to get. Do you want to get stuck in the same situation as last time? If I'm not mistaken, they have sleeper agents in all 4 of the Empires, which gives you about the time it takes for them to travel there and back before you get screwed. So before then, you better get the power necessary to fight against ALL of them. There is no fallback plan, and nobody's coming to help."

"..."

"There are two ways that this will end, you either get more powerful or they take Luna and Iris. And then I'll have to be the one who saves them. And I prefer to take my time with leveling up. So here's how we'll do this. I have a drone that's about 70,000 feet above you, so I'll use it to navigate and find hiding places so you can rest after your fights. All you need to do is focus on yourself and working on your skills. And if you ever get into mortal danger, I'll head over there and try to help."

"....Unnecessary. Just wait for the news."

*click*

Riddick cut off the connection after giving a brief response. Dream sat back.

"I think that did it for him. Sometimes people fail to look ahead and see how much of a perilous situation they're really in. Either way, there's nothing much I can do."

He closed his eyes and his mind began running. His plans were drastically changed in an hour, and he needed to find his next step.

'They're going to be chased all day every day. And I can only sit back and watch with that. The only thing I can think to do is start leveling up. My skills have gone stagnant, so I think getting to class 2 will help that.'

[Sounds like the best plan. We'll need to be prepared to fight strong people if you ever plan to help.]

'Well, I can start after I know they're safe. I have no idea how long it'll take them to fight.'

"It's done."

"Huh?"

Dream sat up after he heard a voice.

"Old Man?"

"Yes, it's me."

"You killed them? Already? It's been like 5 minutes!"

"Well, I killed all the class 2's and one of the class 3's. The other one was injured and ran. Either way, they won't be coming back anytime soon."

"Ok. And what about you?"

"...I'm fine. So? Where's this hiding spot?"

"It's several miles from your location. I'll have Sophia guide you."

"....Got it. We'll head there. Unfortunately, this is going to be our life for a while. So sorry, but unless you want to forfeit your life, we may not see each other for a long time."

"How long are you thinking?"

"Could be years. Depends on how I progress or how fast they try to hunt us. Either way, it won't be a short amount of time. And I won't be letting the girls know about you and me talking. I have to assume that we're always being watched and if they spill your name or any notion of us communicating, then they'll hunt you for answers."

"That sounds logical. You know, I could send a helicopter to bring you guys places. It can fly without me."

"That'll be a no too. They know about it since we were in one when they ambushed us. If they connect it to you, it's the same outcome. Look, talking is the only thing we can do. And I appreciate the help, but you need to move on to something else. I suggest maybe going to the Spire if you want to learn magic, the Sword school for martial arts, or the Mercenary Empire if you want to take jobs and level up quickly. Hell, with your devices, you could even cross the lands and go to the Animal Empires. Doesn't matter. Just find something to do. You have a lot of potential, and squandering it because of my situation is stupid. You're a free man, so go and live your life."

"...I appreciate the concern, but you don't need to worry about what I plan to do. As I said, I got drones watching over you guys. I'll help with what I can. You just focus on getting stronger. If I want to go somewhere, then I will. Nothing's going to keep me from living how I want. So don't worry about it. Sophia will guide you to the hiding spot. Get your rest. I know you're injured."

*click*

Now it was Dream's turn to hang up. He understood and appreciated Riddick's concern, but he didn't want them in more danger just because they didn't want his help. He was perfectly safe. They weren't.

"*sigh* I will worry about their life and death...."

[And that's ok. You should rest as well. You've been up all night. I'll watch everything.]

"...Alright."

Dream got up and walked over to the bed, crawling under the covers.

"I guess I better get used to my bed being empty..."