Drayen was sleeping deeply.

  The previous night had been the Night of the Bright Moon. Across the city, plays had been performed all night, reenacting many events from history. Drayen had watched most of them, and with Nevis’s help he had also learned quite a bit about bloodlines.

  But the information was messy.

  Some parts felt right, while others clearly didn’t. Drayen had already experienced how distorted facts often became in the Nightmare Realm.

  Kira had already gone out. Kael had just woken up.

  It was already past noon, and yesterday he had been forced by Drayen to watch all those historical performances about the Nightmare Realm.

  “Hey, rascal. Wake up.”

  He kicked Drayen.

  No response.

  Kael kept pestering him. Drayen only curled deeper into his blanket.

  “Just give me a minute…” Drayen mumbled.

  “Are you joking? We have to go register for the competition. Get up. It’s already late.”

  This time Kael kicked him harder.

  Drayen’s body slammed lightly against the wall.

  “Haaaaw—!”

  Drayen was about to yell at him.

  But then his mind caught a single word.

  Competition.

  Drayen’s eyes widened as sleep completely left him.

  ---

  Bright Moon was one of the special periods in the Nightmare Realm. Many major events occurred during this time.

  During this period, beasts would hide themselves away, gathering deep within mountains, forests, and caves. This was their breeding season. They gathered in massive groups to mate and propagate their kind.

  Although beasts could reproduce during normal times, it was nothing compared to the Bright Moon. During this period, their fertility reached its peak.

  Despite this period being called the Time of Humans, and celebrated widely by human settlements, it was actually the tainted beasts whose strength increased the most during the Bright Moon.

  Because of this, it was not an ideal time for humans to hunt them. Not that humans wished to wipe them out anyway. After all, these beasts were resources for the Nightborne.

  No one truly knew why this phenomenon occurred.

  So why was it still called the Time of Humans?

  There were several reasons.

  The first was trade.

  Since the beasts hid themselves away to breed, many dangerous routes became far safer than usual. Caravans could pass through regions that were normally extremely risky.

  In modern times this effect had weakened somewhat, as human civilization had already cleared many dangerous routes. Still, the tradition remained.

  The second reason was preparation.

  Humans prepared far better than beasts ever could.

  Even if the beasts reproduced in large numbers, what of it? Could they truly match the organized preparations of human settlements?

  They were merely beasts, ruled by instinct.

  During the Bright Moon, every village, town, and city held competitions and formed hunting troops. These events were used to select the strongest fighters and prepare them for what was to come.

  Because when the End Moon rose, everything would change.

  The beasts would reach the peak of their population. Food would become scarce. Driven by hunger, they would descend from the mountains and forests to attack human settlements.

  Drayen and Kael were walking toward the central temporary plaza. It seemed the plaza had expanded even more today.

  The reason was trade.

  Even though in modern times the tradition of trading only during the Bright Moon had mostly vanished, the culture was deeply embedded in the people. Trading companies would still travel from place to place during this period.

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  Not to mention that even in modern times some trade routes were still dangerous.

  Because of this, the tradition continued.

  Drayen noticed several new faces in the plaza. Merchants had arrived from different regions, bringing various kinds of goods and displaying them in their stalls.

  He saw many interesting items displayed across the stalls.

  Various kinds of Night Flowers were being showcased. Naturally, the merchants only displayed fake samples in the open cases, but their presence meant the traders truly possessed those flowers.

  One of the items that caught Drayen’s eye was Red Cool Metal. It was a strange crimson metal that looked like molten iron fresh from a forge, yet when touched it was extremely cold.

  There was also Brown Turtle Wood, a material taken from a plant-based tainted beast. It looked like nothing more than an old piece of log, but it was incredibly tough and durable.

  Drayen suddenly spotted Kira.

  He quickly pulled Kael aside.

  “Let’s go around.”

  Kael nodded, and the two quietly changed direction.

  Drayen was deliberately avoiding Kira. After she had scolded them earlier, he was happily using it as an excuse to avoid her while secretly gathering information.

  Meanwhile, Kira stood at a stall.

  She was purchasing a Passive-Removing Night Flower.

  From the corner of her eye, she noticed the two of them trying to sneak away.

  “Idiots,” she muttered quietly, before continuing with her purchase.

  Passive-Removing Night Flowers were extremely expensive, but she needed them badly.

  The reason was the conflict between bloodlines.

  Most people possessed only a single bloodline. Because of this, the passive abilities that manifested in their bodies all originated from the same bloodline and rarely caused problems.

  However, for Kira, who possessed seven bloodlines, things were different.

  The human body could normally accommodate only one bloodline-related passive ability. With extremely careful selection, it might manage two passives from different bloodlines.

  But selecting those abilities was nearly impossible, since abilities manifested randomly.

  This was where Night Flowers became valuable. Certain flowers, such as the Passive-Removing Night Flower, allowed a person to remove unwanted passives.

  Otherwise, passive abilities originating from different bloodlines would interfere with each other, placing heavy strain on the body.

  That was why Kira needed the Passive-Removing Night Flowers.

  Now that a trader had arrived carrying a large supply of these rare flowers, the price had dropped slightly.

  Kira was taking advantage of the opportunity and buying them while they were still cheap.

  Meanwhile, Drayen and Kael reached the registration counter.

  Kael and Drayen both had ugly expressions.

  “It’s your fault,” Kael glared at Drayen.

  He continued muttering curses under his breath as they joined one of the queues.

  A long line had already formed. Nearly ten rows were dedicated to Rank One nightbornes, while two rows were reserved for Rank Twos.

  There was no registration line for Rank Threes.

  In a town like Rock Apple, competitions were held only for Rank One and Rank Two Nightbornes.

  Rank Threes were considered the guardians of the town. They formed the backbone of its defenses and were responsible for protecting the town from tainted beasts.

  Allowing them to participate in competitions was too risky. If a Rank Three were injured, the town itself would suffer.

  Besides, there were very few rewards that could truly satisfy a Rank Three Nightborne.

  Because of this, competitions were held only for Rank Ones and Rank Twos.

  A man walked along the queues, handing out reward notices to the participants.

  Drayen and Kael each took a copy.

  The rewards for the Rank One competition were quite generous.

  The top 50 participants would receive four Rank Two cores related to their own bloodline.

  The top 25 would receive eight Rank Two cores.

  For Rank One nightbornes, this was a major opportunity to advance to the next rank.

  But the most attractive reward was reserved for the top ten winners.

  They would receive a Night Flower.

  This Night Flower was known as the Desired Active Ability Night Flower—a rare flower that allowed the user to obtain a specific active ability of their choice.

  Whenever someone advanced to a higher rank, the beginning stage was always the most difficult. A newly advanced Nightborne possessed the nightmare essence of the new rank, but lacked abilities to properly utilize it.

  The Desired Active Ability Night Flower solved this problem.

  After consuming it, the user could obtain a desired active ability, regardless of their bloodline talent.

  For many Rank Ones, this reward alone was worth risking everything in the competition.

  For the top three, the rewards were even more impressive.

  They would receive Desired Passive Ability Night Flowers.

  The second and third place winners would each obtain a Rank One Desired Passive Ability Night Flower, while the first-place winner would receive a Rank Two Desired Passive Ability Night Flower.

  Many Night Flowers existed in different ranks. For example, Desired Night Flowers, whether they granted active or passive abilities, were usually divided into ranks.

  The same was true for Passive-Removing Night Flowers, which also came in ranked varieties.

  However, there were also a few rare Night Flowers that did not have ranks at all.

  Seeing the reward for first place, Kael began giggling.

  “They’re practically serving all of this to me,” he said.

  His confidence was not without reason.

  Drayen, however, gazed down at the notice in his hands. He was reading the rewards for the Rank Two Nightborne competition. His expression was mixed—both happy and a little troubled.

  “Talent-Raising Night Flower…” he muttered quietly.

  This was one of the few rankless Night Flowers. Among all known Night Flowers, it ranked tenth.

  Its ability was simple yet exceptional—it could increase the grade of a person’s bloodline, though the result was completely random.

  The people around them were also shocked. The Rank Two competition was offering such a rare Night Flower as a reward.

  A man standing in front of them began murmuring to his friend.

  “Isn’t the reward for the Rank Two competition a bit too good?”

  His friend chuckled.

  “Hahaha… haven’t you heard the rumor?”

  “What rumor?” the other man asked.

  “They say this Night Flower was originally obtained by the Sky Gold Branch Leader, but Miss Clara forced him to put it up as the competition reward.”

  The three guilds had joined forces to organize the competition for all of Rock Apple Town. Naturally, each guild contributed resources toward the rewards.

  The man laughed carelessly. “Well, isn’t it obvious? Her sister Claire is the one who’ll take first place.”

  Another man nearby sighed. “If only I could obtain that talent-raising flower… I might be able to improve my bloodline.”

  His companion patted his shoulder. “Be satisfied. We should be happy just to have second-grade bloodlines.”

  Most people in the Nightmare Realm possessed third-grade or second-grade bloodlines. Having a second-grade bloodline was already considered fortunate.

  Hearing this, Drayen’s expression grew complicated. If he were already Rank Two, he might have had a chance.

  His gaze lingered on the reward notice for a long moment before he finally shook his head.

  Soon the registration process was completed.

  As evening approached, the day came to an end, and the entire town buzzed with anticipation for the competition the next day.