Freddy, clad in a red and green knit sweater and a black top hat, was sealed into a mirror by Constantine.
He seemed to be able to see the outside world from inside the mirror as well.
Protected by the dream realm, Freddy in the mirror brazenly brandished the razor-like four-pronged claws on his right hand, a provocative smile on his face.
"It's really Freddy! He's back!!!"
"…"
The parents had only heard about the nightmare from their children before, and some even disbelieved their kids, thinking they were playing pranks.
But now, the sight of Freddy, the nightmare with severe burns on his face, appearing in the mirror instantly sent the parents into a panic.
Their fear, in turn, caused Freddy's power to continuously grow, and a look of satisfaction actually appeared on his face.
"Hurry, help!" Feeling Freddy's power still increasing and about to break free from the mirror's seal, Constantine immediately called out loudly for assistance.
"In the name of the Holy Father and Mother… begone, demon…"
Father James's exorcism method was somewhat similar to Constantine's; he splashed a large amount of holy water onto the mirror, then took out a small Cross and began chanting an exorcism spell.
The nightmare Freddy in the mirror, upon being illuminated by the holy water and the consecrated Cross, instantly let out screams as if he had been thrown into a cauldron of oil.
He no longer exhibited his previous composure.
However, protected by a layer of dream realm power, Freddy, though in pain, showed no signs of being annihilated.
Seeing this, Bruce, the probationary angel nearby, immediately condensed a ball of Power Of Faith and directed it onto the mirror.
With the baptism of the Power Of Faith, the nightmare Freddy in the mirror erupted in even louder roars, and the skin on his body began to slowly rot.
Clearly, the pure Power Of Faith had already damaged his essence.
Sensing that the situation was dire, Freddy shot a malicious glance at Constantine and the other two, then his body gradually turned into mist, attempting to escape back into the children's dreams.
"Shit! Someone help me carry this mirror outside the church and kill the demon with sunlight…" Seeing the demon about to escape, Constantine shouted loudly to the parents who were observing nearby.
Mirrors are yin in nature and inherently opposite to reality, and Freddy's true form is a dream demon.
Under this double protection, even the power of a probationary angel couldn't kill him in a short amount of time.
However, for a demon like Freddy, who hadn't fully matured, the sun was definitely his natural enemy.
Sunlight can cleanse all evil.
But the parents, who had never truly witnessed an exorcism ritual, looked at the terrifying demon in the mirror and none dared to step forward.
"If you don't want your children to suffer, hurry and help…" Struggling with the nightmare and almost unable to hold the mirror, Constantine loudly reminded the parents.
For the children…
Thinking of their children, a few parents finally mustered the courage to step forward and together lifted the mirror, walking towards the sunlight outside the church.
"Ow!!!"
Just as they were nearing the entrance, one parent's arm was scratched by a sharp claw reaching out from the mirror.
Immediately after, the other parents who came to help also had varying degrees of claw marks on their hands and arms.
"Don't be afraid, most of his power is sealed by the mirror. He's just struggling in his death throes now…" Constantine, who also had scratches on the back of his hand, loudly comforted the parents.
He needed to ensure they wouldn't drop the mirror and run away out of fear.
And Constantine was right; the harm Freddy in the mirror could inflict on reality was very limited, at most like being cut by a razor blade on the arm—painful but not fatal.
However, just as the parents, enduring their terror, finally carried the mirror to the doorway, the mirror in their hands suddenly began to shatter from the inside out.
Eventually, it scattered into a pile of glass shards on the ground.
"Damn it!" Constantine, who was so close to success, looked at the shattered glass on the ground, a frustrated expression on his face.
Clearly, this exorcism ritual had failed. Freddy, who had used his sharp claws to break the mirror, ultimately escaped back into the children's dreams.
And the dream realm was Freddy's home turf.
Everything seemed to be worse than before.
"Mike, why didn't you act just now? I don't believe that with your abilities, you couldn't handle a small dream demon." After his frustration, Constantine turned his gaze to Mike, who was calmly watching the show from the side.
"Relax, with me here, there won't be any problems," Mike said with a smile. "Since he wants to play, then we'll go to his home turf and play."
With the 'Dream World' characteristic as a fallback, the dream realm was no longer Freddy's exclusive domain.
"You have a way to deal with that nightmare?" Looking at Mike's calm demeanor, Constantine's expression also inexplicably settled down.
"Of course, given his maliciousness, simply eliminating him directly would be too easy on him." Mike surveyed the residents of Elm street, whose expressions varied, and said, "Everyone has a part to play. Now, let's go meet that nightmare in the dream!"
As the aria concluded, Mike used his 'Hypnosis' ability to instantly pull everyone into the same dream.
"Freddy, we're not afraid of you!!!"
In this dream, five children led by Kristen were confronting Freddy, who had just returned.
The skinny black child named Marx, due to his courage, had transformed into a muscular giant in the dream.
He was now charging at Freddy, his fists as big as sandbags.
"You don't have the smell of fear on you???" Freddy looked at the chuunibyou black child in front of him, his brows unconsciously furrowing.
The power of a nightmare came from fear.
Therefore, courage was the thing he hated most.
"Interesting, let me see if you're truly not afraid!" Freddy, who had been frustrated outside, then showed a sinister smile, intending to take out his anger on the child in front of him.
So, as Marx charged at Freddy, Freddy instantly transformed into a giant.
The claws on his hands also became like four guillotine blades, poised to strike Marx's head.
"Eat a knuckle sandwich!"
However, the thought process of a chuunibyou child is sometimes strange; facing Freddy, who was as huge as a mountain, Marx shouted a passionate slogan.
He actually managed to bat away the claws above his head with just his bare fists.
And a clanging sound, very fitting for the scene, even erupted.
"See? The best way to deal with a nightmare is courage." Mike led a group of people closer to the battlefield, then said to everyone, "And this is also your dream; as long as you wish it, you can also be omnipotent."
The most direct proof was that the black child Marx believed his fists were as hard as iron, and thus he gained the ability to block claws with his fists.
"I think I understand!" As a group of familiar people appeared, Quentin, one of the five children who first entered the dream, no longer showed apprehension, only eagerness to try.
"Behold my flame magic!!!"
With another chuunibyou shout, Quentin conjured a wizard's robe for himself, and with a wave of his wand, which was like a chopstick, he instantly unleashed a giant tongue of fire.
It perfectly blocked Freddy, who, refusing to believe, was about to launch another attack.
"Flames burning… whirlwind chili…"
And Quentin, discovering that he could indeed use magic, was like a child who had found a fun toy; spells were flung from the wand in his hand one after another.
Soon, the enormous Freddy was surrounded by various magical spells.
Coincidentally, he had been burned to death, so he harbored a fear of fire.
Therefore, for a time, Quentin truly managed to put him in a sorry state.
"Let's try too!"
After dispelling their fear of the nightmare, a large group of teenagers, all in their chuunibyou phase, also couldn't hold back.
"Decepticons, attack!!!"
Jessie shouted, transforming into a giant mech warrior and charging into the battlefield.
Apparently, he was a mech enthusiast.
"Here comes Thomas the Tank Engine!!!"
On the other side, a slightly younger child transformed into a cartoon train, cheering as he crashed into Freddy.
Then some transformed into magical girl warriors, while others became flying "Supermen."
Rich imagination allowed the children to transform into various fictional characters that would only appear in comics and on television.
Subsequently, the parents, whose imaginations were relatively lacking, each transformed into "Rambos," holding various firearms, and also joined the battle to subjugate the nightmare.
"Is this what you wanted?" Looking at the chaotic battle scene before him, Constantine curiously looked at Mike.
One should know that with his strength, eliminating the nightmare wouldn't require such an elaborate effort.
"Yes, this is exactly what I wanted. To truly defeat a nightmare, the best way is to overcome fear. Otherwise, even if Freddy is eliminated, other nightmares will appear," Mike explained with a smile.
Given the previous situation on Elm street, the seed of fear had already been planted. If not handled properly, the nightmare incident might evolve into a "ghost story" type of horror legend.
As long as someone remembered Freddy, he could revive from fear.
This way is quite good; it makes everyone realize that the nightmare isn't that terrifying, which can fundamentally prevent him from reappearing.
"Damn you, how dare you treat me like this!! I'll make all of you pay!!!"
In the center of the arena, Freddy, who had been beaten for a long time, finally erupted, three grey-black malevolent entities with triangular heads, like small snakes, emerging from his body.
Upon appearing, they instantly sent the various "hero" characters around them flying.
[Nightmare * Energy + 200] x3… [Possession Ability (Trait)]… [Dream Weaving (Trait)]…
The three snake-like entities were also nightmares.
They had been possessing Freddy before, which explained why Freddy's power had grown so quickly.
And with the appearance of the three original nightmares, the evil aura instantly surged, making the surrounding air seem to become viscous.
Just as they were about to continue spreading fear, a large golden hand appeared and grabbed them.
Before the three original nightmares could struggle, they were crushed into pulp by the large hand, ultimately turning into black smoke and dissipating.
Having done all this, Mike once again watched the show from the back as if nothing had happened.
But Freddy was miserable; having lost his ultimate reliance, he became a "mortal" even in the dream realm.
Then he was once again overwhelmed by the children and parents who had recovered.
After a while, when Freddy was beaten beyond recognition and wanted to abandon his power and flee, he was suddenly confined by a string of golden runes.
"Alright, now it's time to truly deal with him." Mike, controlling the runes with one hand, snapped his fingers, and the dream began to shatter.
…
"Hey, I just dreamt I became a magician and taught that nightmare a good lesson…"
"Me too, I became a mech warrior…"
"…"
The children, upon waking up, had not yet fully emerged from their "sweet dreams."
They excitedly exchanged stories about what happened in the dream.
"It's… it's Freddy, he's been brought out of the dream too…"
At this moment, someone noticed a charred corpse-like object in the center of the church.
Although his face was unclear, everyone knew it was the nightmare Freddy who had appeared in their dreams earlier.
"Now, if we just kill him, all the nightmares will end—" Mike pointed at the nightmare, locked by golden runes, and said to everyone.
There are two ways to resolve an evil spirit: one is to unlock the evil thoughts in its heart, allowing it to transcend. The other is to directly eliminate the evil spirit.
Freddy's actions clearly did not warrant salvation. Therefore, completely eliminating him was the best choice.
And without the protection of the dream realm, Freddy was just an ordinary evil spirit, easy to kill.
However, when the evil spirit from the dream truly appeared before them, even though it was weak, the adults and children couldn't help but feel fear.
"You lambs, I curse all of you to hell…"
Seeing the fear on everyone's faces, Freddy again arrogantly burst into maniacal laughter.
"Holy Father and Mother protect us… Freddy, your sins are grave, you're the one who should go to hell…"
At the crucial moment, the old nun stepped forward and slapped Freddy's face with the Cross in her hand, freezing his triumphant smile.
Then, a group of parents also stepped forward, condemning Freddy's crimes while executing the evil nightmare.
"Very good, because of your courage, everything is over." Mike, in charge of the cleanup, used purification power to clear away the remnants on the ground, ensuring Freddy had no possibility of reappearing, then smiled and said to the parents, "And congratulations to you all, you have protected your children's dreams with your own actions."