Once he realized where he was, a rush of memories came to him. No doubt whatever Arcane modifications The Moon Presence set on his memories followed a set of rules. It irked Gehrman that after the biggest secret–his true nature–was revealed, there were still some things clouded in mystery. However, it was clear that when he was presented with certain things from his past, the memories would naturally come back to him. This was how he was able to find his initial sanity as memories of Yharnam, and later Ludwig and Laurence allowed him to retain a lot of his past.
And yet, the past was still murky.
He could only assume that this was to prevent his psyche from fully breaking under the weight of the eldritch truth. Or, a more sinister option was that the Moon Presence was withholding information to manipulate him somehow.
Whatever the case, Gehrman was not hung up on it now. After all, he was in a dangerous area and he needed to get to safety as soon as possible. The physical land of Hintertomb was on the other side of the Moonside Lake, the body of water that separated Byrgenwerth and Yharnam from the rest of the surrounding lands.
The route he took to get here was likely with a boat. Going around the great body of water would have taken days on horseback. However, where he left the vessel he wasn't sure.
Letting out a groan he looked up at the starlit sky and identified some constellations. After finding the north star, he started his trek back to the water. Though the exact route escaped him, he recalled a map of the land and knew that the lake was in the opposite direction of the ruins.
Before heading out, he summoned the [Portable Blood Imbiber] and refilled his stock. He was able to get four and a half vials out of the putrid corpse of the Maneater Boar. Back in the Dark City, it would be a rare treat for him to come across such quality blood in such quantity.
Ideally, he would also eat the entire boar as well, but given its poisonous nature, Gehrman suspected it wouldn't be easy. [Predator] turned the flesh and blood of Nightmare Creatures into increased muscle strength and Blood Fragments respectively. When he was full, this transformation into invaluable resources would happen automatically. For this reason, he could likely eat the pig without dying. It would burn quite a bit, but the rewards would be great.
However, he was vulnerable at the moment. Without allies or a place to retreat to, taking the time to feast and potentially invite other poisonous beasts to him was a risky move.
For that reason, Gehrman dismissed the tool Memory and started to silently jog at a slow pace.
As he did, he started to get used to his powerful old body. Despite being a Sleeper, he found that his current situation was much more beneficial than it would be for any other Awakened.
Perhaps the most dangerous part of the Nightmares was being put in an unfamiliar body by a figure of the ancient past. The Dream Realm had a great variety of people of all shapes and sizes, after all. Re-learning how to fight was quite a chore, but in Gehrman's case, it was an absolute boon. He had already fought for decades in this body, and he was more dangerous now than he would have been in his "normal" vessel. On top of that, he was familiar with all of the enemies he would face. His greatest strength could only be truly manifested if he knew all of the attack patterns a foe could use. And fortunately, his muscle memory against most of the beasts he would face would be impeccable.
There was only one issue.
When in the history of Yharnam was he?
Since he was in the actual land of Hintertomb and not the Chalice Dungeons, it was likely this nightmare did not take place in the early days of Byrgenwerth where he had been hired to aid the scholars with their excavations.
Since Gehrman was alive and in the waking world, it also took place before Yharnam truly fell to the Scourge of Beasts.
His attire was the same as Old Gehrman always wore. There was a loose and worn red scarf hung around his shoulders. A small top hat on his head. A tough, lightweight armor covered by a ragged coat. Loose trousers and deceptively strong dress shoes adorned his lower half.
While the later Hunters often wore more optimized designs, Gehrman never strayed from this attire, so it could not be used to pinpoint a time period.
Eventually, the wet ground sloped downward. The dusty ruins halted before the serene Moonside Lake.
With his enhanced senses, he was quickly able to spot the boat. It was several hundred meters down the coast, but the wooden vessel was still floating.
Making sure to keep his guard up, he followed the path and quickly reached his destination.
The boat was small but made of quality wood. A sack of supplies was hidden under the main seat. And a comfortable backrest perfectly suited for him as he rowed.
Without a doubt, this was one of his own creations.
Sighing with nostalgia, he unhooked the boat from a metal pole that had been stuck to the ground. After pulling that up, he returned it to a specific groove on the side of the boat. The portable stake fits in perfectly. Methodically, he tied up the rope and tossed it under his seat.
The whole process was incredibly smooth and meticulous as if he had done it hundreds of times (which he technically had).
Pushing off with one of the oars, he started to glide through the water.
The lake was eerily peaceful. Gehrman knew that no horrors dwelled in the depths. The water's normal color and lack of abyssal darkness assured him of its safety. However, having only known the Dark Sea, it was still rough for him to get over the uneasiness.
After all, this reality was nothing but a dream that could have been edited by the Spell. He wouldn't put it past the hateful thing to change the logic of the world and put a fearsome Corrupted creature below him.
Without realizing it, he sped up.
The oars moved swiftly and strongly. Their material was made of impossibly tough stuff that had been thoroughly refined. Indeed, the entire boat was very sturdy. Even as Gehrman moved his arms faster and faster, the boat simply cut through the water with increased speed.
Soon wind was pushing back his dry, grey hair.
The journey across the lake was a long one. It would have taken an average person two or more days, but Gehrman could complete it in a couple of hours.
Rocketing across the water in a straight line, he followed the quickest and most sure route back to society.
As his nerves settled, he decided to reward himself by taking a peak at the first new Memory he had gotten in a long, long time.
Memory: [Red Messenger Ribbon].
Memory Rank: Ascended
Memory Tier: III
Memory Type: Charm
Memory Description: [On the night of a gruesome Hunt, the father and mother of two young girls disappeared. A strange Hunter appeared to offer them aid, but only brought them despair. The Hunter gave them news later on. The childrens' parents were dead. The first daughter was eaten by an odious beast after trying to find someone else to protect her and her sister. The second daughter fell into madness. Her family, everyone she loved, was taken from her on the same night.]
Gehrman's mind buzzed as he read the description. He knew this story…it was one that Johann had experienced firsthand. The "strange Hunter" was in fact the very same prodigy that acted as one of his past lives.
The fate of that family was one that he had tried to forget. Everyone either died or went mad by the end of that night of the Hunt. Even still, he couldn't help but feel horrible crushing guilt.
After all, he had killed the father of those two girls.
The Hunter named Father Gascoigne went mad. He had hacked his own wife into pieces, mistaking her for a beast. He saw everyone as a beast. And eventually, he became one.
It was the first truly difficult foe that Johann had faced, and it was also the source of his first death. And his second death. And his third.
Only after he had finally put the madman to rest did he make the connection. He was the father of those daughters.
Reluctantly, he went to them and told them the truth. He also told them of Oedon Chapel, a safe haven. Later in the night, he found a red ribbon in the guts of a terrible beast.
A Maneater Boar.
It was only after he recalled this fact that he made the connection. The slain Fallen Demon was of the same breed as the creature who would bring about the first traumatizing blows that Johann would face that night.
His rowing faltered as he moved to wipe a tear from his face.
Johann never cried.
But he cried then. Alone on the boat, surrounded by shimmering water. Gehrman cried.
It did not last for long, but the hearty sobs allowed him to feel some sense of relief.
After grinding his teeth he steadied his mind and looked at the rest of the ephemeral runes. It was a Charm Memory after all. These were a rare reward and a powerful new tool for his arsenal.
Memory Enchantments: [Nascent Purity]
Enchantment Description: [The wearer of this ribbon receives an immunity to a certain poison and high resistance to all others].
The effect was simple. Since it had come from a Demon, and was thus a Memory from the third tier, he had expected it to be incredibly powerful, vastly improving his strength. The tier meant it could even have three Enchantments.
However, all of its power was focused on this single enchantment instead. This would ordinarily indicate a certain spike in quality. Memories with higher tiers and only one enchantment were supposedly uniquely powerful.
The poison resistance was nice, but it was a lot less exciting than he had expected. That being said, the vague mention of total immunity to "a certain poison" raised alarms in his head. This Memory was given immediately upon his first kill of the Nightmare, and he suspected that this was the will of the Moon Presence. The fact that it had such a niche use was worthy of concern. It felt like he was being given armor just before a rain of spears and arrows came crashing down.
Instead of an increase in strength, it felt like a necessary tool that he would need to survive.
Either way, Gehrman was pleased.
He finally had more than five Memories!
This was news of great celebration for him. The smile on his face grew wide. Unnaturally wide. The Moon Presence might have helped him with this Charm, but it had also twisted a knife that he had forgotten existed.
The thing was manipulative indeed.