[ Sunny stared at her, lost for words. Finally, he collected himself and said the first thing that came to his mind… ]
[ "Are you nuts?" ]
In the Alter room, the mundane looked incredulously at the on-screen Nephis—well, most of them.
Nephis and her father did not see that much of an issue.
They had no choice but to fight that thing, so what could they do except fight it?
[ The idea of fighting that thing was pretty ridiculous, if not completely insane. Realizing that his words might have sounded a bit rude, he cleared his throat and added: ]
[ "I mean… have you thought this through? How are we supposed to kill that monstrosity?" ]
[ "It's not a question of thinking things through. We simply have no choice." ]
[ She glanced at Cassie, who was listening to them with a pale face, and explained: ]
[ "We can't leave the cliffs before morning, and neither can the monster. However, once the sun rises, it will easily see us and attack. Then, our only advantage—the element of surprise—will be gone. If we have to fight it anyway, it's better to be the ones initiating the fight." ]
"That is the most logical solution, yes." Morgan nodded in agreement.
[ Changing Star looked around and added: ]
[ "It's not completely dark yet. Although barely, I can still see. Once the night comes, this won't be the case. So we will have to attack it first, and do it soon." ]
[ "This still doesn't explain how we are going to kill it. That thing just dispatched eight scavengers like it was nothing. We are not its opponents. We don't even know its weaknesses!" ]
"That is a valid worry." Seishan commented.
"When you know nothing about your enemy and must fight it regardless. Then you create a plan with that in mind." Morgan said.
[ "It's just an awakened monster." ]
Effie sighed and shook her head.
"I guess it's as expected of you, Princess. This is not going to calm doofus down, you know?"
Meanwhile, in the alter room.
"Just an awakened monster? Is... is this Nephis crazy? We barely fight the scavengers, and this thing dispatched eight of them easily! What are we supposed to do?" Sunless asked, receiving a few understanding gazes from the other Sunnys.
[ "What do you mean, "just" an awakened monster? Have you forgotten that all three of us are only Sleepers?! Dormant humans are not supposed to be able to deal with awakened beasts, let alone monsters. The fact that we can reliably kill scavengers is already abnormal!" ]
[ "But we are abnormal." ]
"I mean, I guess you are right." Kai said.
"The both of them are Divine Aspect users, they are the furthest from normal or ordinary."
[ "You and I both are not exactly ordinary Sleepers. Aren't we? Don't try and deny it. Someone ordinary simply would not have survived in this place." ]
[ He frowned, not happy about her line of thought. Meanwhile, Changing Star continued: ]
[ "You, me, plus the awakened beast you have as an Echo, plus the advantage of a surprise attack. I'm not saying that it will be easy. We might die. But there's a good chance that we won't." ]
[ She looked down, at the silvery blade of her sword, and added after a couple of seconds: ]
[ "In any case. As I have already said, we don't have a choice." ]
"It all comes down to that, unfortunately." Windflower commented.
"Well, as one must know, it's when you are backed into a corner that your teeth are the sharpest." Noctis said with a toothy grin.
[ Sunny gritted his teeth, trying to find a logical retort. However, her reasoning seemed unassailable. He just had a really bad feeling about fighting that monster. ]
[ In the ensued silence, Cassie, who had been quiet all this time, suddenly spoke: ]
[ "You are forgetting about the main advantage we have over that thing." ]
[ Both of them looked at her, surprised. ]
[ "We are intelligent, and the monster is not." ]
"That is another advantage, well, they need as many as they can get." Jet commented.
[ Her words echoed in the darkness. Sunny sighed. ]
[ It seemed that a fight with the bone scythe monster was inevitable. ]
Once again the scene shifted towards another place in another time, Sunny was standing in the darkness, looking at the centurion, Azure Blade, in the tight grasp of his hand.
[ The ominous feeling he had before was still there, now stronger than ever. ]
[ 'I don't like this.' ]
"We can't blame him for that." Effie said with a shrug.
The scene once again shifted, this time the colors were saturated, giving the sense of a gray world. It was a flashback of Sunny and the other two making plans as well as retrieving the soul shards of the dead scavengers and giving them to Nephis to absorb.
[ "Are you ready?" ]
[ Sunny sighed glanced at his shadow, hoping to get some moral support. ]
[ The shadow pretended to not notice and ignored him. ]
[ 'Disloyal bastard!' ]
"Pfft-" Rain tried to hold her laughter.
Those who knew Sunny were aware of his habit of talking shit to his incarnations, and them reciprocating that same speech. Who knew it had come from such an earlier point in time.
[ "As ready as I'll ever be." ]
They saw as Nephis turned towards the blind girl, ready to impart some words before leaving for the fight.
[ Cassie tried to put on a brave face. She turned to Nephis and forced a smile: ]
[ "Go and kill that thing. Maybe you'll finally get something decent to wear and stop making me feel so guilty." ]
"Oh~ But then we would stop seeing Sunny being so embarrassed." Effie said as if already tasting the regret of not using that as a source of teasing anymore.
Nephis decided to ignore her antics.
[ A corner of Changing Star's lip curled up. ]
[ "Okay." ]
[ After that, she turned to Sunny and returned to her usual serious self. ]
[ "Let's go." ]
The screen went back to Sunny standing in the darkness.
[ With a sigh, Sunny raised his hand and summoned the silver bell. ]
[ Then, he lightly shook it, causing the clear melodic ringing to resound amidst the storm. ]
"Is it just me who feels a little surprised every time he uses this memory? I mean, the average guy would've given away this memory for a weapon any time." Effie said.
"Well he isn't really the average guy, as the on-screen Nephis said, besides it has proven useful myriad times." Morgan remarked.
The monster reacted instantly and caught sight of Sunny.
However, Sunny was already running in the opposite direction.
They saw as Sunny ran with all he had to get away from the Carapace Centurion. The Monster kept running towards him with maddening killing intent.
As the Monster was preparing to attack Sunny, the future Lord of Shadows lowered his body, ran for a few minutes, and then turned around.
[ The picture of the monster, who was more than three meters tall, rushing at him like a speeding train was enough to make any person falter. However, Sunny stood his ground, raising the Azure Blade above his head. ]
[ After all, he was the bait. ]
Unnoticed in the darkness, and unseen by the audience until it became relevant, was the golden rope, strung in between two boulders.
Unaware, the monster charged right into it.
Although the rope, being a memory, was sturdy enough to resist its charge, the boulders were not and were therefore shattered in an instant.
But the damage was already done.
The Centurion fell right on its face and slid through the mud.
"Hahahaha, eat mud!" Effie cheered.
In another room, someone else was also laughing.
"Hahaha, this is what I call an entrance. The stronger monster has already tasted the ground before even reaching its prey." Noctis cheered as well.
[ The monster was unperturbed. Almost immediately, two bone scythes pierced the ground, jerking its massive body to a stop. In the next moment, unexpectedly swift and nimble for its size, it was already beginning to rise. ]
[ If it was allowed to stand up, their fates would be sealed. ]
[ Fortunately, Sunny's Echo was faster. ]
"Woah!"
Sounds of surprise were heard as the Carapace Scavenger echo appeared from seemingly nowhere.
[ The moment the monster fell, it stopped pretending to be one of the dead scavengers, got up and dashed forward. Just as their enemy was about to rise, it jumped on its carapace from behind, pinning the creature down with its weight, and locked its pincers on the creature's arms just beneath the point where the bone scythes began. ]
[ Despite the fact that the Echo was wounded by the spikes growing from the monster's carapace, it succeeded in immobilizing it, at least for a second. ]
[ A second was enough. ]
[ As though out of nowhere, Nephis, who was lying in ambush, appeared in front of the monster. Darting between its terrifying scythes, she leaned forward and delivered a devastating thrust with her longsword, putting her whole weight behind it. ]
[ The tip of Changing Star's sword plunged into the narrow gap. Then, the sword disappeared into the monster's body, penetrating so deep that its hilt ended up brushing against the chitin. ]
[ 'Hell yes!' Sunny thought, triumphant. ]
"Huh... It couldn't be that easier, could it? I remember them being stronger than that." Effie commented with a confused face.
[ Because the creature didn't even seem to notice the wound that was supposed to be if not fatal, then at least heavily debilitating. Straining its body a little, it suddenly twisted, throwing the Echo off its carapace, and rose to its feet. The bone scythes scraped against the rock as it pulled them out from the ground. ]
[ Defenseless, Nephis was right in front of it, her sword still stuck in the monster's flesh. ]
[ 'Oh no!' ]
"Ah, there it is." Effie said in realization.
[ Sunny was too far away to do anything, circling around the massive creature to attack it from behind. The Echo was on the ground, still reeling from being thrown off the enemy's back. It didn't seem like it could help either. ]
[ For the moment, Changing Star was on her own. ]
[ The scythes pierced the air, aiming for her flesh. At the last moment, however, a pair of pincers locked one of them into an iron grip. That gave Nephis another fraction of a second to react. ]
"Come on, Neph." Sunless prayed.
Being mundane, he was not as inclined at this sort of thing as the other variants of himself, nor had he live through it. And so he was worried about what would happen.
On-screen, Nephis let go of the sword dove under the monster and hid in its blind spot.
[ 'This is bad, this bad...' ]
[ By then, Sunny was already behind the creature. Hoping to buy Neph some time, he brandished the Azure Blade and slashed down. The sword connected with the joint of one of the monster's rear legs, drawing azure blood. However, unlike how it was in the battle against a scavenger, he failed to completely sever the limb. It was too tough and thick. ]
"Yeah, but damage is still damage." Luster said with a shrug.
[ In the next moment, the leg disappeared from Sunny's field of vision. ]
[ 'Crap.' ]
[ As that thought appeared in his mind, Sunny raised his head and looked at the monster. Somehow, it had already turned around and was now facing him, two crimson flames burning with bloodlust in its eyes. ]
"Oh, that's bad." Ray said.
"Sunny, dodge!" Rain screamed, as if her words could reach him.
[ Before Sunny could properly react, the sharp tip of a bone scythe hit him in the chest with the force of a siege ram. The only thing he managed to do was to transfer the shadow from his body to the Puppeteer's Shroud. ]
[ Because of this lightning-fast decision, the armor held. He wasn't pierced through the heart and impaled on the scythe. ]
[ However, it was a small consolation. ]
[ The force of the blow was still enough to make his ribcage cave in and send his body flying through the air like a rag doll. ]
[ … Somehow, Sunny found himself lying on the ground. His body felt weird, and he couldn't breathe. Something bitter was flowing from his mouth, making him choke. ]
It was blood. He was drowning in his own blood.
"Sunny!"
Such cries were heard across the main room and the Alter room, as the visage of their friend drowning in his own blood got imprinted in their mind.
As it was already common in these moments, they forgot that Sunny would survive.
Not that it was any conselation.
This image would remain in their heads, especially considering how they had rarely, if at all, seen him bleed.
[ Weakly, Sunny tried to move, but his limbs wouldn't listen to him. Only the shadow listened, enveloping his body and delaying the inevitable a little. ]
[ 'I'm hurt...' ]
"N-no... shit, you doofus." Effie said, her face contorted in worry.
[ In that moment, hovering on the edge of nothingness, Sunny realized that he was about to die. ]
[ He had to struggle against the fog that permeated his mind, slowing down his thoughts and dampening all emotions. ]
[ All except for fear. ]
[ Despite the fact that his body was broken and his mind was paralyzed, some stubborn part of Sunny was still refusing to give up. He wasn't ready to die. At least not without giving his all to survive. ]
[ He was revolted at the thought of giving the world the satisfaction of the win. ]
"The spite you all, was it? Ah, as expected of my friend." Noctis said with a wide smile.
[ That would be so infuriating. Hadn't he told Hero that he was going to survive no matter what, to spite them all? ]
[ That's right. He might be a shameless liar, but a promise was still a promise. ]
[ But… how was he even supposed to survive? No matter how he looked at it, the situation seemed to be hopeless. ]
[ As the scythe slayer approached, its eyes shining menacingly with bloodthirsty crimson light, Sunny tried to pierce through the fog that enveloped his mind. However, his attempts were aimless and weak. It was hard to find purchase in the fog. ]
"Come on..."
Those in the audience clenched their fists, looking for the exact moment that Sunny would turn things around and survive.
[ He needed an anchor. ]
[ Suddenly, a simple thought caught his attention. It was something that he had repeated a thousand times, burning it into his mind. ]
[ 'Repetition, experience, clarity.' ]
[ Clarity… ]
Nephis' eyes widened slightly, surprised that her lesson had come to him in his time of need. It made her feel warm inside.
She wondered, if there were things he had told her, that she had forgotten, that had helped her go through the difficulties of life.
[ He remembered what Nephis had taught him. The essence of combat was murder. Any action performed during a battle served only one of two purposes: it was either to kill your enemy or prevent the enemy from killing you. ]
[ If he could learn that, he would have enough clarity to master the mind. ]
[ Back then, he didn't really understand the profound meaning behind the simple word "clarity" that Nephis had used. But now, with his mind in shambles, he was finally able to grasp it. ]
[ The two truths behind the essence and purpose of combat were simple and solid, almost tangible. Even in his half-conscious state, he was able to use them as a stable foundation in the fog. Then, he reformed his mind around this foundation, building it along the stark lines of that truth. ]
[ Suddenly, he was able to think again. ]
[ What's more, his thoughts were clear and incredibly fast, free of all unnecessary distractions. ]
[ This was clarity. ]
Hearing the narrator's words, hope began to spread across the spectators sitting in their seats.
[ Sunny looked up at the advancing monster, calmly weighing his options. ]
[ His body was pretty much useless. He couldn't move his limbs at all. The shadow still followed his commands, but it was busy doing an important job—keeping him from dying immediately. ]
[ Even with its help, he wouldn't be able to last long. ]
[ But this was a useless thought. He couldn't do anything about it, so there was no sense in wasting time considering it further. ]
"That only lives one thing." Morgan reminded.
[ With his body immobilized, Memories couldn't be used. ]
[ That left only the Echo. ]
[ The carapace scavenger was going to have to be his only tool to either kill the enemy or prevent the enemy from killing him. ]
The monster approached Sunny, as lightning flashed, its hideous and menacing figure was seen with all detail.
[ Its scythes rose into the air, ready to strike down. ]
[ Looking right into the monster's burning eyes, Sunny thought: ]
[ 'Go to hell, you overgrown bug!' ]
[ The scythes shot toward his body. ]
[ …In the last moment, something massive and furious rammed into the monster from the side, throwing it away. It was Sunny's carapace scavenger. ]
"Yeah!!" Rain rose from her seat and cheered, only to sit back to her seat, embarrassed, when the others in the room stared at her in surprise.
Thankfully, they were quick to turn to the screen.
They saw as the Scavenger echo let go of any sense of self-preservation and threw itself at the Centurion with reckless abandon. It rolled on the ground with the monster in a mess of limbs.
The echo attacked with its pincers, the sound of chitin hitting against chitin drowning the rooms with the sound.
However, the monster was still superior to the beast. It cut off one of its pincers clean off.
As it rose to push the echo away, the leg that Sunny had previously injured finally broke off.
[ Burning with madness and fury, it untangled its limbs and slowly stood up. Another deafening screech resounded in the howling darkness of the storm, hurting Sunny's ears. ]
[ 'Now what?' he thought, momentarily lost for ideas. ]
[ But then, something very unexpected happened. ]
A blinding flash of light covered Sunny's vision and drowned the rooms in light. A lightning had hit Nephis' sword sticking out of its body, it acted like a lightning rod, attracting the lightning at the monster.
"No... No fucking way?!" Effie said in surprise.
What were the odds?
"Hahahaha, what luck! Truly both blessed and cursed by Fate. Hahaha!" Noctis laughed.
[ Sunny stared at all this in bewilderment. ]
[ 'It's… glowing?' ]
[ For a second, he hoped that the monster was dead. But no, a single strike of lightning was not enough to kill a creature like that. Just a few moments after being electrocuted, the slayer moved, slightly shaking its body. ]
[ Although it was in a rather bad shape, it was still alive and full of murderous intent. ]
[ Looking somewhat dazed, the monster gathered its limbs and tried to stand up. Slowly but surely, it was coming back to its senses. The bone scythes scraped against the rocks, helping it rise. ]
[ However, before it did, Nephis was suddenly right in front of it. ]
"Back to the fight, huh, Princess?!" Effie said loudly, still riding the high of Sunny's counter-attack.
"Obviously." Nephis said.
'As if I would leave him alone in this.' She thought.
[ Grabbing the hilt of the longsword, she grimaced as the heat burned her hands. Then, she twisted the blade, making the slayer's body twitch, and pulled it out, breaking apart a large portion of its lower torso armor. ]
The creature lashed out, attempting to cut Nephis in two, but she reacted fast enough, and cut off one of its scythes.
With a screech, the Centurion kicked Nephis away.
The audience remained in the edge of their seats, the tension rising with every step of the Centurion and each attempt at damaging it.
In the Alter Room, Smile of Heaven stared worriedly at her daughter, both the one on-screen and the one watching.
[ The monster, on the contrary, was back to its sense. It seemed as though the sudden pain of losing a limb had shaken it wide awake. Raising to its full height, it opened its ugly mouth and let out a deafening, enraged shriek. ]
[ Then, it lunged toward Neph with all-consuming hatred burning in its eyes. ]
[ But it didn't get far. ]
[ Right as the livid monster was beginning its attack, the battered Echo appeared in its path. Its one remaining pincer shot forward, plunging into the wide gap in the armor created by Changing Star's sword. Twisting its arm, the scavenger pushed it inside the enemy's body, wreaking havoc on its innards. ]
"Eww" Ling Ling suddenly said, making both his parents and Jet flinch.
Effie hurriedly covered his eyes, to his protest.
While Jet tried to do the same to Young Nephis, who merely slapped her hand, her eyes glued to the wounded figure of Sunny.
Jet looked deeply at the young girl. The tears were already formed at the corner of her eyes, they were being held back by who knows what, perhaps the girl's own tenacity to not show weakness when he was the one who needed help.
[ In the end, it even lifted the whole monster in the air a little, its pincer going in almost up to the shoulder. ]
[ The slayer lashed out with its scythe, piercing the Echo's chest through. ]
[ Then, it twitched a couple of times and fell still. ]
"Oof, that is nasty." Noctis said, softly grabbing his robes as if trying to prevent them from being sullied by the creature's innards.
[ The scavenger screeched angrily and jerked its pincer, tearing the bigger monster's torso clean off its carapace. Proudly giving the eviscerated enemy one last look, it then staggered and collapsed to the ground. ]
[ Sunny tiredly dismissed the Echo, hoping that it can survive. ]
[ He wasn't feeling too well. ]
[ In fact, he was pretty much done for. ]
[ [You have slain an awakened monster, Carapace Centurion.] ]
[ The Spell's voice fell uselessly on his deaf ears. It sounded distorted and distant. ]
[
[You have received a Memory: Starlight Legion Armor.]
[Your shadow grows stronger.]
]
"Oh... You were right, we did get a memory." Nephis softly said, remembering the armor she had worn for approximately three years.
[ 'I won.' ]
[ Sunny closed his eyes, finally allowing pain and exhaustion to flood his mind. ]
[ The fog was back, making everything feel like it was happening to someone else. ]
[ He was tired. ]
[ And he couldn't breathe. ]
[ Drowning in blood was not very pleasant. ]
"Come on, just hold on a little, Princess is gonna heal you." Effie said as if trying to console the seemingly dying young man.
[ As his conscience begin to slip, he heard the sound of someone's hurried steps. ]
[ And then, two soft hands gently touched his face… ]
Nephis stared at the screen, she knew that at this point in time, she was not that comfortable with her Flaw. She knew that the reaction she would have would be... radical.
But she did not care, healing him was more important. She was willing to suffer double the pain of her Flaw if it meant healing him.
[ Somewhat surprised, Sunny struggled to open his eyes. As his vision slowly focused, he saw Neph's pale face looming above him. Her short silver hair was wet, sticking close to her skin. ]
[ She was standing on her knees beside his broken body, caressing his face with her hands. In her eyes, there was a strange expression. ]
[ It was as though she was frightened, but resigned to something. ]
She prepared herself for what was about to happen. She didn't know what to expect, after all, she couldn't remember this.
[ 'Wh—what?' ]
[ Greeting her teeth, Nephis moved her hands to his collapsed chest and pressed them lightly against it, causing a pulse of pain to radiate through Sunny's body. ]
[ Then, a soft, radiant brilliance suddenly ignited beneath the skin of her palms, reflecting in her grey eyes like two dancing white sparks. ]
[ Almost immediately, Changing Star's face contorted in a grimace of excruciating agony, and she let out a terrible, muffled scream. ]
Her skin paled, and as she bit her lower lip, drops of blood soon rolled to her chin.
As the radiance grew in intensity, Nephis shut her eyes tightly, tears streaming down her tortured face.
The people in the main room grew quiet, not questioning their Sovereign. It's not like they weren't curious or unaware of her Flaw, but asking for someone's Flaw was a sensitive topic.
It was rare for an awakened to not be particularly protective of their Flaw, people like Kai were quite rare. Besides him, only those whose Flaws were so painfully obvious, like Cassie's, could be open about their Flaws not out of trust or openness, but because it would be pointless to.
So they did not question it, merely going through their suspicions in silence as the Nephis on screen suffered to heal the boy they had been viewing.
[ Sunny, on the contrary, felt like he was in heaven. All pain disappeared from his body, replaced by gentle, all-encompassing warmth. He felt as though he was being cleansed by something pure and sacred. ]
[ By a white, pristine, purifying flame. ]
They saw as his body was slowly repaired to its original state. They saw Nephis stumble away from him and vomited.
After that, she lay down while Sunny inspected her work.
They remained silent, their bodies finally relaxing. Sunny's life was no longer in danger, and the Centurion had been defeated.
[ By the time the storm was over, it was already deep into the night. Sunny, Nephis and Cassie huddled together for warmth and slept as though they were dead, too tired to make someone keep watch. ]
[ If anything were to happen, the shadow would probably alarm them in advance. ]
[ If not, so be it. They were just too exhausted to care. ]
[ Luckily, the rest of the night went without incidents. ]
"That's great, they've been through a lot in such a short period of time."
In the morning, they saw as the group moved away from the corpses of the scavenger, afraid that some kind of creature would come and eat them.
And they were right. Soon, the familiar visage of a Spire Messenger appeared.
[ The creature left the cliffs and flew back the way it came. ]
[ It was moving west. ]
[ Following the black dot as it disappeared into the distance, Sunny sighed. ]
[ "Neph. What do you think that thing is?" ]
[ "I have no idea." ]
"Wow, to see one so soon, well, that's just a sign that they are getting closer to the Spire, for better or worse." Effie said with a shrug.
The images on screen sped up as they went about their day, for example, Sunny still had to perform his thousand strikes.
[ After fighting against two scavengers at once, running away and barely surviving the sudden flood, climbing tall cliffs in the middle of a storm, and battling an awakened monster—all done in a single day—they deserved some time off. ]
[ Plus, Sunny needed to sort himself out. Truth be told, he was feeling a bit strange. ]
"Strange?" Rain questioned, slightly worried that something was happening to him.
[ The reason for this was not his traumatic near-death experience, although it had a lot to do with it. The thing was that, after the unexpected epiphany he had while trying to fight against the deathly mind fog, Sunny felt as though he had been changed. ]
[ Because the clarity he gained never went away. ]
[ It was still here, at the center of his being. He felt as though his very way of thinking and perceiving the world was now completely different. It was stark, streamlined and dauntless. ]
[ Sunny felt that he had become calmer. He was now able to think much faster and act without hesitation. Many things that previously seemed obscure and frightening suddenly became predictable, and thus surmountable. ]
"The way he is describing it, it almost feels like he is describing a magical effect." Morgan said, an eyebrow raised.
"For someone like you, who was raised differently from everyone, perhaps so. But some of us, who were born in normal families, find such things hard to imagine, as we were never educated in such things." Cassie corrected, not looking at the red-eyed woman.
[ Looking at the sky, Sunny wondered if this was how Nephis always felt. ]
[ 'Probably. Mastery of the body, mastery of the mind. Right?' ]
[ Some time later, Sunny approached the western edge of the cliffs. ]
[ Nephis was sitting there, her feet dangling over the edge. She was looking west, lost in her thoughts. ]
[ He sat down beside the silver-haired girl and followed her gaze, trying to guess what she was thinking about. ]
[ Just like always, he failed. Changing Star was hard to understand. ]
Nephis found it amusing in a way.
Nowadays, she felt that Sunny understood her better than anyone, the only one who could boast of something similar was Cassie, her best friend.
[ Sunny shifted, feeling incredibly embarrassed. Finally, he gathered his courage and said: ]
[ "You saved my life twice yesterday." ]
[ Nephis glanced at him and turned away again. ]
[ "I did." ]
[ He hesitated, trying to find the correct words. In the end, he couldn't come up with anything and simply said: ]
[ "Thank you." ]
There was no need for that, everyone thought so.
After all, he had also saved her life on that fight with his echo.
[ This time, she looked at him a bit longer. Her face was calm and indifferent. ]
[ "There's no need to thank me. Without you and your shadow, we would have drowned before reaching the cliffs or been torn apart by a large group of scavengers after stumbling on them in the labyrinth." ]
[ After that uncharacteristically long sentence, she fell silent and added after a while: ]
[ "We're allies." ]
Nephis disliked whenever the viewing made clear the distance that still stood in between the two.
But that also made her treasure what they currently had even more.
Because it meant that Sunny had gone through unknown lengths and efforts that she did not remember, to close that distance and embrace her.
Realizing that, she could almost feel like she was falling in love again.
[ Sunny nodded, knowing that she was right. Still, Nephis went above and beyond to keep him alive. Even if he had also done his part, not everyone would have gone to such lengths to return the favor. ]
[ However, he didn't say anything about it. Mostly because he could already imagine her answer. ]
[ Staring right at him, she would stay quiet for some time and then say something like "I just wanted to" or "It is what it is" in a flat tone. And then there would be an awkward silence. ]
"He says you are hard to understand, and yet he can already tell what you would answer." Effie said after a chuckle.
[ "It's you Flaw, isn't it? The pain you feel every time you use your Ability?" ]
[ "Yes." ]
[ "What does it feel like?" ]
[ "Like burning alive." ]
"So it was pain. We had theorized that it was something to do with your Aspect's activation due to some early witness records of Forgotten Shore survivors that we were able to interrogate during the war." Seishan wondered.
Just like any enemy would, they had tried to understand the Flaw of one of their greatest adversaries, Valor Clan's Divine Aspect, the Star of Ruin, Nephis.
Morgan was already aware of Nephis' Flaw, after all, it was something that she was informed about when Nephis was adopted as her sister.
[ He sighed, trying to imagine what kind of suffering someone being burned alive would have to endure. As always, the Spell was vile and cruel. ]
[ "I'm sorry," he said quietly after some time. ]
Nephis felt weird. She was surprised, and uncertain about how to react.
Why... was he sorry?
[ "It's just pain." ]
"Well... that's sad." Noctis said, running an hand down his face.
[ Sunny looked away, trying to hide his expression. ]
[ 'Just pain.' ]
[ These might have been the saddest words he had ever heard. ]
Nephis felt weird, was it really, that sad? Or had she grown to be used to it and did not care for it anymore?
[ For a long while, they just sat quietly together. Nephis was looking at the horizon, thinking about something only she knew about. Sunny's mind was strangely empty. ]
[ From time to time, he would cast a glance inside his Soul Sea. ]
They saw as he went through his spoils of war, like his increasing Shadow Fragments. He also checked on the now recovering Echo of the Scavenger.
[ The reward was sizable, but seemed disproportionate to the amount of trouble they had gone through to get rid of the terrifying monster. Ultimately, dormant humans like them were really not supposed to battle awakened Nightmare Creatures. ]
[ 'No way, really?' he thought to himself, full of sarcasm. ]
"Yeah, not everyone is an overachiever like you and your girlfriend." Effie complained.
[ It was just their bad luck that there was not a single Dormant-rank creature in this whole damned region of the Dream Realm. ]
[ Sunny remembered his lofty plans of hunting weak monsters while safely protected from all their attacks by his tier-five Awakened armor and couldn't help but smile bitterly. Who knew that the Puppeteer's Shroud would turn out to be merely a minimum requirement for survival, as opposed to a huge, odds-defying advantage. ]
"Too much for that, I don't know why you were expecting that, considering your attribute." Jet said with a shake of the head.
[ Still, that armor had already saved his life twice, so it was doing its job. ]
[ Speaking of armor… ]
[
Memory: [Starlight Legion Armor].
Memory Rank: Awakened.
Memory Type: Armor.
Memory Description: [Born in the all-consuming darkness, seven valiant heroes made an oath to return light to the cursed land. Time has erased their names and their faces, but the memory of the defiant oath still remains.]
]
"Oh, what an interesting description." Professor Julius said, leaning forward as if to read it better.
[ 'Teacher Julius would have been ecstatic to be reading this stuff.' ]
"Haha, read me like a book. Truly my most brilliant student."
[ He cleared his throat and looked at Nephis. ]
[ "Anyway. I have a present for you." ]
[ She turned her head and looked at him with a bit of confusion. ]
[ "A… present?" ]
Nephis smiled slighly.
Her first armor was gifted by Sunny, an armor that she would go on to use for three years.
And her most powerful weapon, Blessing, was given by him as well.
[ Sunny smiled. ]
[ "Yeah. I forgot to tell you that I received a Memory after we finished off the Centurion. Guess what type it is?" ]
[ He glanced at her expectedly. However, Changing Star did not guess. In fact, her expression did not even show a hint of curiosity. After an awkward pause, Sunny had to look away. ]
[ "Uh. It's an armor. So, give me your hand." ]
"The hand, huh?" Effie teased. "The only thing missing him is him kneeling in front of you before giving it to you."
Nephis was silent for a moment and then spoke.
"I believe, that when Sunny proposes, it will be something more outstanding than just kneeling and asking." she said, and then added in a whisper. "Not that I would say no."
Expressions of surprise flashed across those in the room, well, except for Revel, who seemed to be merely enjoying the development, while patting Hel's back to give her some comfort.
[ Physical contact was required to transfer a Memory. Otherwise, he would have preferred to avoid it for as long as possible. There had already been too much contact between them for his mental composure. ]
[ In retrospect, being invaded by the healing flame was a strangely intimate experience. Not to mention the memory of her soft touch… ]
"Heh~ It seems that it was you who entered him fi-" Effie began, but before she could finish...
"Dear, there are children present." Her husband interrupted.
[ Not that he had been in any condition to think about such things back then. ]
[ Staring right at him, Nephis slowly held out a hand. Sunny hurriedly grasped it in his own, wishing to be done with this part of the process as soon as possible. ]
[ Trying not to get distracted, he willed the Starlight Legion Armor to be expelled from his Soul Sea. One of the spheres of light disappeared from the Shadow Core's orbit. Immediately, he felt something akin to a spark of electricity moving through his body and into Changing Star's. ]
[ She blinked and retracted her hand. ]
[ Then, Nephis stood up, walked a few steps away from the edge of the cliff, and summoned the Memory. ]
[ Spinning sparks of light appeared around her. A moment later, they covered her porcelain body and turned into a black, skintight bodysuit made out of an unknown, durable material. It looked quite similar to the rubbery seaweed that permeated the area. ]
[ Then, intricate pieces of pristine white plate armor materialized over the black bodysuit. First the greaves and vambraces, then articulated pauldrons and rerebraces, then cuisses and sabatons. Finally, a breastplate engraved with seven shining stars appeared to protect Neph's torso, short enough to pose no hindrance to her mobility. It was followed by a helmet with a white plume. ]
"Yeah, that's the one look I'm familiar with." Effie said. "I'm gonna be honest, princess, even if you wear something else, I can only imagine you on this."
"I think it's because most of her depictions in Government propaganda use that as their image." Kai explained.
They also took notice of the seven stars in her breastplate, the same stars that could be seen in the statue.
"So the statue was one of the heroes?" Professor Julis wondered.
[ The armor looked light and elegant. It was simultaneously functional and flattering, both providing high levels of protection and accentuating the graceful lines of Changing Star's body. A stark contrast of black and white made for quite a striking sight. ]
Nephis blushed slightly, she did not dislike the idea of Sunny appreciating her body, gods knew both of them could do freakier stuff, but with so many watching, it was embarrassing.
But it seemed that she would have to get used to Sunny's dedicated descriptions.
A frown crossed her face. The descriptions would be limited to herself... right?
On-screen, Nephis dismissed the helmet and then began to perform a set of strikes with her sword for a while.
[ "Well? How is it?" ]
[ She turned to him. Soon, a wide smile appeared on her face. Beaming with delight, Nephis hesitated and finally said with a bit of embarrassment: ]
[ "Much better." ]
[ Sunny heaved a sigh of relief. ]
[ At least now all three of them were properly clothed. That was good. ]
[ Really good! ]
[ Not only because Changing Star's combat effectiveness would dramatically increase due to the acquisition of a reliable armor, but also because now he wouldn't have to be distracted every time he saw her… ]
"Heh~" Effie started.
"No." Nephis said.
"I didn't say anything yet, though?"
"You don't need to."
[ When they returned to the makeshift camp, the first thing that Nephis did was come up to Cassie. ]
[ "Hey, Cas. Guess what." ]
[ "You've finally received an armor-type Memory?" ] [ "I found something decent to wear…" ]
""Oh"" They both said at the same time.
[ "The sound of your footsteps changed." ]
[ "Ah. I see. Well… it's from the Carapace Centurion." ]
[ With all three of them equipped with decent armor, they were finally starting to resemble a real Awakened cohort. In fact, Sunny thought that their group was rather eye-catching even by Awakened standards. ]
[ In her light tunic and sea-wave cloak, beautiful and delicate Cassie looked like a princess. Lithe and poised, Nephis was like a noble knight tasked with protecting her. Sunny, however… ]
[ If he was generous to himself, he would say that he looked like a young squire. ]
"Hmm~, I can see it." Effie said, a hand in her chin, and some nodded in agreement.
[ But truthfully, he resembled a page boy a lot more—at best. If a random stranger were to see the three of them, that stranger would most likely assume that Sunny was either a lowly servant or a feeble ruffian that had been captured by the noble lady's guard. ]
[ 'Well, that'll just add to their surprise when I stab them in the back.' ]
[ Wait… why would he stab a random stranger? ]
[ 'Ah, who cares. I'm sure there'll be a reason.' ]
"Who would've thought? The Sovereign of Death thinking of stabbing people." Jet joked.
"Isn't Shadow the God of Peace as well?" Young Nephis asked her.
"Ah, well, yes, but is Sunny really what you would associate with Peace?"
The young girl thought for a moment and recalled not only what she just saw in this place but also her daily life with him.
Sunny was not an aggressive person, but he attracted too much trouble.
So not peaceful at all.
She shook her head.
"Right?"
[ At that moment, Cassie sat down by his side. Sunny turned his head, looking at the blind girl with a bit of surprise. ]
[ She bit her lip. ]
[ "Nephis told me that you almost died yesterday." ]
'It's one of those talks.'
Was the thought that crossed most of their minds.
[ 'Oh, so that's what this is about.' ]
[ He shrugged. ]
[ "Yeah." ]
[ "But don't worry about it too much. It's not my first brush with death." ]
[ Although it was, as far as he knew, the closest. The memory still sent shivers running down his spine. ]
"How nonchalant of him." Cassie murmured, slightly frustrated at the way he brushed off her worry.
[ Cassie was silent for a while. Then, she quietly said: ]
[ "I'm sorry." ]
[ "Sorry? What are you sorry for?" ]
[ "For being so useless." ]
An awkward silence filled the rooms. No one could say that she was being an invaluable piece of the team, but none could say she was useless either, especially knowing the power she had reached.
She might not be as dangerous as Sunny himself, or Nephis or Mordret. Even among Saints, she wasn't the most dangerous, from what they could tell, if they had to be wary of someone, it seemed more fitting to be wary of Morgan or Jet.
"Seemed" was the key word.
Cassie's expression quickly shifted to her usual mask. The topic of uselessness was not really pleasant for her.
[ Sunny frowned and looked away. A second or two later, he said in his usual careless tone: ]
[ "You're not useless." ]
[ Cassie softly chuckled. ]
[ "Aren't I? If I want to walk, I need to be leashed to you or Neph. If I want to eat, I need to wait for one of you to feed me. That's my life now. I can't do even the simplest of things without your help… let alone be of use to either of you in return." ]
[ Slowly, her voice turned raw with emotion. This was the first time Sunny had seen her mask of resolve slip a little, revealing the desperate, angry, frightened face beneath. ]
The awkwardness grew, as they heard Cassie list the things that had crossed their minds.
[ He was silent for a long time. Then, he said: ]
[ "Hey, have I ever told you about my First Nightmare?" ]
Cassie froze for a second. Her memory went back to the second viewing they had seen.
She tried to tie that experience to the topic that they were discussing, but she couldn't.
[ The blind girl shook her head. Sunny half-closed his eyes. ]
[ "My First Nightmare was as bad as it gets. To tell you the truth, the situation was pretty hopeless. I was a slave destined to die of cold or mistreatment. Chained, bleeding, defenseless. What's worse, my Aspect turned out to be completely useless. I mean, literally. If I remember correctly, the phrase the Spell chosen to describe it was "a useless wretch with no skills or abilities worth a mention." ]
[ "Then… how did you survive? Did things change for the better?" ]
[ "Gods no. In fact, they quickly turned worse. Much, much worse. But, what would you know? In a strange twist of fate, my useless Aspect turned out to be the only thing that could guide me through that mess alive. In that regard, I was incredibly lucky." ]
Lucky.
Most of the people in the audience disagreed.
For a lot of people, luck was simply chance, and therefore unreliable. While Fated allowed for more improbable things to happen to Sunny, it was hard to link the happenings they had witnessed in his First Nightmare as mere luck.
He had shown them a will none could easily replicate, unless you were as abnormal as he.
[ "But here is a thing about luck. People usually speak about it as though luck is something that just happens to you. It's not. Luck is fifty percent circumstance and fifty percent your own ability to grasp it. Luck is something you have to make happen yourself. I fought with everything I had to survive. That's one of the two reasons I'm still here." ]
Cassie frowned, still not sure where Sunny was going with this.
[ "The second reason is the Spell itself. I won't go as far as to call it reasonable, but it is fair… in its own, perverted way. The Spell takes with one hand and gives with the other. It was like this with my First Nightmare, and it is the same with you." ]
[ Cassie's frown deepened. Sunny chose his next words very carefully. Eventually, he said: ]
[ "Your Flaw is the most debilitating one I have ever seen or heard of. You are right, without help from someone like Neph, it would have been a certain death sentence. And people like her… well, I'm not even sure that someone else like that exists. But…" ]
Cassie knew that.
If she had met Sunny instead of Nephis...
Would he...
So why? Why was he saying that she was not useless, if he would have left her to die because of it?
She gritted her teeth, the mere idea of him doing that hurt her, despite not having the moral to deserve anything more.
[ The blind girl gritted her teeth. ]
[ "But what?" ]
[ "But that also means that the other side of the Flaw, your power, is equally as extraordinary. You just haven't found the way to grasp it yet. When you do… believe me, you'll remember this conversation and feel very embarrassed about how naive and foolish you were." ]
Cassie's thought process froze.
Was it truly that way?
It was, wasn't it?
She had guided the blade that could destroy Fate towards what it was meant to destroy.
She had done something not even the Gods, the Daemons or the Void had done.
Cassie had proven Sunny right. The power she possessed is extraordinary.
Even if the knowledge she had was a burden, the heaviest thing in the world, it was also the origin of power. And she was the one with the most knowledge.
Even blind, she had guided Nephis and Sunny towards the Dark City, where they met companions in Effie and Kai.
She broke Fate, creating a future where she wouldn't be a powerless witness to the suffering of the people around her.
'Indeed, Sunny, I was naive and foolish.' She thought, a sense of embarrassment coursing through her body.
And so, the only thing in her body now was Guilt.
'If only, I could be so extraordinary without sacrificing you...'
She was no longer the useless girl, she was now a powerful Saint, with powers that could change the world more than a Supreme could.
Yet at what cost?
[ "Do you really think so?" she whispered. ]
[ There was a hint of desperate desire in her voice. However, the question itself almost made him laugh, for an obvious reason. ]
[ "Trust me. I'm the most honest person in the world. Two worlds, in fact." ]
She let out a small smile.
[ …Sunny would actually love nothing more than to be less honest, but, sadly, he was physically incapable of doing so. Of course, she didn't have to know that. ]
[ Cassie was silent for a long time, lost in thought. It looked as though she was in the throes of some inner struggle. Sunny almost assumed that their conversation was over, but then she suddenly said in a low, raspy voice: ]
[ "I had more visions than I told you guys about." ]
The rooms' occupants straightened, ready for a heavy conversation.
[ He blinked, staring at the blind girl with surprise and a bit of apprehension. Her sudden statement really threw him off. Why would she keep something like this secret? And why tell him now? ]
[ "More… visions? Why haven't you told us?" ]
[ A fleeting, tired smile appeared on Cassie's face. She lowered her head and remained silent for a while. Then, closing her eyes, she said: ]
[ "You probably don't know. How could you know? But knowledge… knowledge can be really heavy. It can be as heavy as the heaviest thing in the world." ]
Nephis looked sideways at Cassie, who had a calm expression on her face, unperturbed by the topic.
[ Then, a sad smile appeared on her face. ]
[ "I am afraid that by telling you, I will actually cause the things I saw to come true." ]
Cassie thought of that and completely agreed. She had always made her "policy" to not reveal her more important visions, as to not risk them coming true.
Something in the back of her mind told her, that it had happened once before.
Something had happened that had confirmed this perspective of hers.
[ Sunny tensed up, alarmed by the implication behind her words. If she was afraid of the visions coming true, then their content must have been pretty bad. And if it was really bad… ]
[ If something terrible was destined to befall them, Sunny had to know about it in advance. That way, he would be able to make preparations and deal with whatever happens. As long as he was prepared, many things would become much less dire. However… what if his preparations would become the very reason for that terrible thing to happen, making Cassie's vision a self-fulfilling prophecy? ]
[ This was the danger of knowing the future. ]
[ 'Damn it, my head hurts. I hate this crap!' ]
Cassie smiled sadly, understanding the feeling, regardless of how used to it she was.
[ Sunny struggled for a long time, trying to decide if he should pressure Cassie to reveal her visions. Either outcome was going to leave him uneasy, so he was really not sure what to do. In the end, unable to make a decision, Sunny simply remained silent. Cassie also didn't say anything. ]
[ After some time had passed, she finally spoke: ]
[ "Can you… can you just promise me one thing?" ]
[ It seemed as though this was her attempt to find a compromise between revealing everything and doing nothing. Sunny frowned. ]
[ "That depends on what it is." ]
"Yeah, promising things out of the blue, is just a recipe for unfulfilled promises." Revel said with a shrug.
[ "Can you promise that you'll take care of Neph? No matter what?" ]
[ He delayed answering for as long as the growing pain allowed him. When it became almost unbearable, Sunny reluctantly said: ]
[ "I can't. I can barely take care of myself." ]
Cassie stared at her past self, almost hatefully.
'Was it at this moment?'
Was it at that moment she had made the decision to make use of his greatest weakness?
She almost chuckled.
Cassie no longer resented her younger self for how useless she was, but simply because her decision had taken something from her.
What that something was, Cassie was not sure, maybe she never would.
[ He also didn't trust Nephis enough to make a promise like that. He had nothing against Changing Star and even liked her quite a bit, but they didn't really know each other. Their alliance was one of necessity, not choice. Who knew what would happen once their need for each other was no longer there? "No matter what" was too steep of a requirement. ]
Nephis was not bothered at all.
Although she was uncomfortable whenever the lack of trust between them was pointed out. In this particular case, she was not bothered with Sunny choosing not to promise what Cassie had asked.
After all, even if there was trust, Nephis wouldn't want Sunny to promise such a thing.
"No matter what" could potentially risk his life, and that was something Changing Star was absolutely against.
[ Of course, he could have misled Cassie by answering "yes". After all, the question was whether or not he could make a promise, not whether or not he would follow through with it. But at that moment, Sunny was strangely reluctant to deceive the blind girl. ]
[ Maybe that whole honesty thing was slowly growing on him. ]
Some wanted to chuckle, but couldn't.
The sensation that something was going on, that a large cog had turned, made them all slightly apprehensive.
Meanwhile, Cassie once again wondered if Sunny could lie, would things be different?
No, he said it himself, even if he could lie, he wouldn't.
Was she Fated to betray him?
She hated the thought of it.
Would that broken tapestry keep haunting her future?
[ Cassie sighed and turned away. Suddenly, it felt like something imperceptible about her changed. ]
[ "I see. Yeah. That's fair." ]
"That didn't sound very accepting."
The only one who was able to speak about it, was Young Nephis, unbothered by everyone else. She looked doubtfully at Cassie, who chose to ignore her.
Nephis on the other hand, reminded herself to have a serious talk with Cassie after the viewings of the day were over.
They saw as the day went past and Sunny tried to take his mind out of his conversation with Cassie. They heard his inner monologues, wondering about the past of the Forgotten Shore.
To little success.
[ Starless Void, Starlight Legion… what did all of it mean? The seven heroes were described as being born in the "all-consuming darkness". Their oath was to return light to the cursed land. What light did they seek? Starlight? And what was the nature of the all-consuming darkness? ]
[ Was it the manifestation of the curse that befell their land? And if so, was it the same curse that eventually turned soldiers of the Starlight Legion into carapace monsters? ]
[ If the curse was still around… was Sunny going to wake up one day with patches of chitin growing over his skin? ]
[ 'What a creepy thought.' ]
"Yeah, it would hardly suit you, my friend." Noctis said with a weird smile.
Those around him looked at him weirdly, or rather, as they always did.
"I don't think that would be the main problem, Sir Noctis." Elyas murmured.
[ The seven heroes were forgotten, but the memory of their oath, apparently, still remained. "On this forgotten shore, only steel remembers"... that was the Azure Blade's description. Was there a hidden meaning behind these words? Were the Memories received on the Forgotten Shore hiding a secret? ]
[ 'So many questions, and not a single answer!' ]
"That's just how many things are..." Professor Julius said dejectedly.
[ And then there was the main mystery — Cassie's vision… the one she chose to reveal to them. She dreamt of a boundless darkness locked behind seven seals. Once the seals were broken, the darkness escaped. She also saw a crimson spire with seven severed heads guarding seven locks. Were these locks connected to the seals? ]
[ And was the giant knight's missing head one of the seven guarding them? ]
[ Or was he completely wrong about everything, leaping to conclusions and forcing connections where none existed? ]
[ Maybe things would become clearer in the future. ]
[ The word "future" made him frown. ]
"Considering how he possibly wrote a report on the region itself, I will guess that he did." Revel said.
"You didn't read it?" Eunbin asked
"In what world would Revel read something other than a Novel?" Seishan teased.
The screen shifted to a new scene. This time Sunny and Nephis were once again in their teacher and student modes. As Nephis was instructing Sunny on why a sword was the best weapon.
[ "But in the end, you must remember one thing. It doesn't matter that much what's in your hands. A sword, a spear, a club… that's just tools. You are the weapon." ]
[ As always, Changing Star's lesson gave him a lot to think about. ]
[ 'You are the weapon.' ]
Once again, her lesson left the viewers comparing her insights to their own knowledge of combat.
After that conversation, Sunny and Nephis sat together watching the sun setting, behind the screen, the audience appreciated the sight as well.
Alas, with the night approaching, everyone knew that scavengers would try to find a safe place like the one they were staying at.
[ "We're going to have guests soon," he said, disheartened at the thought that their short respite was about to end. ]
[ Nephis sighed. ]
[ "That's alright. With the higher ground advantage, dealing with them won't be too hard." ]
[ Sunny nodded and looked at the disappearing sun. Suddenly, his mood turned solemn. Doubt raised its ugly head, plunging his mind into the gloomy embrace of anxiety. Staring into the distance, Sunny hesitated and asked: ]
[ "Do you think we'll be able to reach that castle?" ]
[ She glanced at him with no particular expression on her face. ]
[ "Yes." ]
[ "Why are you so sure?" ]
Nephis smiled slightly, almost aware of what she was about to say.
Those belonging to her cohort wore tired expressions.
[ In the blood-red blaze of the sunset, Changing Star's calm eyes seemed to burn with heavenly fire. Looking west, she summoned her sword and answered: ]
[ "If that is our will, who dares to stop us?" ]
Smile of Heaven, in the Alter room, clasped her mouth, trying not to laugh.
Looking sideways, she saw her husband wearing a deadpan expression.
Holding back her laughter, she said.
"It seems she stole your line, dear."
"I haven't said that since I was seventeen."
"If it's any consolation, I thought it was pretty cute back then."
"Not the impression I was going for at the time."
The images on the screen sped up, going past their fights against the scavengers that tried to find refuge from the dark waters.
[ However, very soon they were going to resume the journey west, moving from one height to another in hopes of reaching the mysterious human citadel. ]
[ This time they were not going to travel without sufficient preparations. Knowing that a sudden storm can come at any moment, covering the world with darkness and summoning the sea back before sunset, the three Sleepers decided to thoroughly scout a route before committing to moving their camp to the next landmark. ]
[ Nephis spent the day meditating. Her eyes were closed. From time to time, it seemed as though a soft white glow was radiating from behind her eyelids. However, when Sunny looked closely, it was always gone, making him think that he was just imagining things. ]
[ He suspected that Changing Star was training herself to endure the pain of her Flaw. ]
[ If so, he wished her luck. ]
Nephis quietly thanked him in her mind, knowing full well that in the future he would console the effects of her Flaw in a better way.
[ Cassie behaved like her usual self, being cheerful and friendly. It was as though their strange conversation had never happened. However, Sunny could feel that something about her was different. He couldn't quite put a finger on what exactly had changed about the blind girl, but she seemed to possess more resolve. It wasn't a bad thing. ]
'I knew it.' Cassie thought.
[ They spent some time chatting and remembering their time in the Academy. Sunny told her about his lessons with Teacher Julius and various strange things he had learned from the old man. Her reaction to the idea of studying dead languages of the Dream Realm was exactly the same as Sunny's initial protest and bewilderment. ]
[ Soon, the night was upon them again. This time, no scavenger tried to climb the cliffs, so Sunny and Nephis could rest easy. However, they still slept in turns, keeping watch over the camp in case something unexpected happens. ]
[ In the morning, they ate the last of the centurion's meat and prepared to climb down into the labyrinth. ]
[ It was time to continue their journey. ]
[Viewing Journey to the West has been completed.]
*** * *** *** * *** *** * ***
A/N: Finally Done! I've been working on this chapter for the last few days, and the result is 10k words. Hope you enjoyed it, next chapter is an aftermath chapter so it will come faster than this one. Leave your opinion in the comments!
Check Out my other Fanfics:
Cursed Shadow (JJK/JJK Modulo x Shadow Slave Fic) [1st Nightmare Arc]
Trailblazing Shadow (HSR x Shadow Slave Fic) [Jarilo-VI Arc]