The rooms stood quiet for a long moment, the people in it seemingly unsure on what to feel.
Sunny had done it, he had completed his nightmare and survived. Many saw his struggle as pointless and his condition as unsavable, the only saving grace being the fact that he had actually survived.
At the start, some thought that he would have a tremendous aspect that would allow him to triumph. That was proven wrong.
The thought of a versatile memory that could turn the tides also crossed their minds. Albeit that was technically true, no one would have such expectations for the Silver Bell when it was first revealed, some even forgot about it until it was wielded by Sunny.
And so, they had placed their hopes on [ Fated ], hoping that Sunny would somehow encounter a lucky moment and cause a great comeback or a miracle.
Their hopes were not misguided, and fate cleared a path for Sunny. He had reached the Nameless Temple and coincidentally made himself a sacrifice to the Gods, somehow gaining their attention even in their condition.
[ Sunny found himself in a space between dream and reality. It was an endless black void illuminated by a myriad of stars. Between those stars, countless strings of silver light were woven into a beautiful and inconceivably complex net, forming various nexuses and constellations. It was truly breathtaking. ]
This was a place that was oh so familiar to the awakened.
[ Somehow, Sunny understood that he was seeing the inner workings of the Nightmare Spell. He also couldn't help but think that it looked a lot like the celestial equivalent of a neural network. If so… was the Spell alive? ]
Considering what they knew about the Spell now, such a thing was not impossible. However, it was interesting that, early on, Sunny had already shown interest in the inner workings of the Spell.
And would one day uncover its secrets.
[ [You have received a Memory: Puppeteer's Shroud] ]
Rain widened her eyes. That was hers, or rather it was given to her by Sunny.
"Isn't that yours, Rain?" Tamar's voice sounded nearby.
"Ah, yeah. My brother gave it to me. To think it was his first armor."
It was quite the surprise.
[ [Aspirant! Your trial is over.] ]
As the voice of the spell sounded, everyone paid attention, curious about the Lord of Shadows' appraisal.
[ [A nameless slave ascended the Black Mountain. Both heroes and monsters fell by his hand. Unbroken, he entered the ruined temple of a long-forgotten god and spilled his blood on the sacred altar. The gods were dead, and yet they listened.] ]
"This is..."
"The Viewing's description. So it really was a Nightmare Appraisal."
Naeve and Nightwalker both commented, reading the appraisal.
[ [You have defeated a dormant beast: Mountain King's Larva.] ]
[ [You have defeated three dormant humans, names unknown.] ]
[ [You have defeated an awakened human: Auro of the Nine.] ]
Eyes widened.
Auro of the Nine.
For a moment, Nephis was surprised. Sunny had encountered one of the Nine in his first Nightmare. It was... really something only a [ Fated ] being could encounter.
Beside her, Cassie was perplexed, on the screen just now had been two [ Fated ] individuals, and Sunny, the one and only who had stripped himself of that curse, had been the one to walk away in victory.
Mordret was genuinely surprised. He knew his fair share about the Nine, either by his own investigation or the dreamspawn's ramblings. But until his Third Nightmare, he had never run into them, ever.
And yet, Sunless had. In his very first steps, he walked away, while the member of the Nine stayed behind to die, without achieving its grand purpose.
In the Alter Room, a few were also aware of Auro's name. But none of them knew about Sunny's encounter with him, well, the exception being the Sunnys themselves.
In the Nightmare Room, the words shook Daeron to his core.
He already held great respect for the young man named Sunless, who would one day defeat him in a Nightmare, and yet, how could he expect something like this?
For the people of the Chained Isles, such a name was unfamiliar and meant little. But for those of the Great River who came from the age of the Nightmare Spell, the name of one of the Nine was... surprising.
None of them knew what surprised them most: was it the Gods' attention or the Nine's appearance?
[ [You have defeated an awakened tyrant: Mountain King.] ]
[ [You have received the Shadow God's blessing.] ]
[ [You have achieved the impossible!] ]
[ [Final appraisal: glorious. Your treachery truly knows no bounds.] ]
Cassie raised her eyebrows in interest.
'Why did the Spell react in such a manner? Or rather... why did the Spell call out to him in the first place?'
Unfortunately, she seemed to be the only one who had caught on to that fact while the shock of Hero's identity shook the rooms.
[ [Dreamer Sunless, receive your boon!] ]
[ He was an Aspirant no more. Sunny grinned. ]
[ [You have been bestowed a True Name: Lost from Light.] ]
"That's--"
Nephis and Cassie felt something twist inside of them.
For some reason, the thought of saying those words made them feel scared. But of what?
[ [Your Aspect is ready to evolve. Evolve Aspect?] ]
[ 'What kind of a question is that?!' ]
[ [Dormant Aspect Temple Slave is evolving…] ]
Effie raised her hands to the air and crossed her fingers. Beside her, Ling Ling and his father mimicked her.
The rest of the room chuckled at the display, and some even secretly crossed their fingers as well.
[ [New Aspect acquired.] ]
"Come on, come on, come on..." Effie murmured.
[ [Aspect Rank: Divine.] ]
Effie was about to raise a triumphant fist when...
[ [Aspect Name: Shadow Slave.] ]
"COME ON!!"
Nephis stared silently at the runes revealing the new Aspect's name.
Something was wrong, she could feel it.
[ 'Divine… it's Divine.' ]
Besides the Diverged Cohort, Mundane Sunny still holding Diverged Rain close to him asked confused.
"Is Divine the maximum?"
Nephis answered.
"Yes."
"God damnit. Princess, you knew about this? Doofus has a Divine Aspect, which makes me a little relieved."
[ Aspect: [Shadow Slave]. ]
[ Aspect Rank: Divine. ]
[ Aspect Description: [You are a miraculous shadow left behind by a dead god. As a divine shadow, you possess plenty of strange and wondrous powers. However, your existence is empty and lonesome; you mourn the passing of your former master and long to find a new one.] ]
The words sounded grand for a description of an aspect with Slave in its name, and the last words sounded ominous, especially to a lot of blond and white-headed girls.
[ Innate Ability: [Shadow Bond]. ]
[ Ability Description: [Find a worthy master and let them know your True Name. Once they recite it out loud, you will be bound to their will, unable to disobey any command. It is improper for a shadow, let alone a divine one, to walk around without a master.] ]
"Hey did someone switch the Ability and Flaw descriptions?"
Was what some wanted to ask, but the Spell did not commit such mistakes. Sunny's innate ability was a slave contract.
Nephis stared at it, petrified, her mind unconsciously going to her weird speech pattern of adding "if you will" to her phrases, a pattern that often appeared around Sunny.
She clenched her fist tightly, her nails desperate to draw blood, trying to cause pain to distract from the nausea that was rising within her.
'It's me. I am, was his Master. But then, why does he lo-'
An even scarier thought crossed her mind. A thought only possible due to the lack of memories.
'Have I done... something to him?'
She shook her head, killing the thought almost as soon as it formed.
She knew herself better than anyone, she would rather have his loyalty without relying on a collar, she wanted him to want to be with her. And it was not a collar or a mind game that would achieve that, not in a way that would satisfy her.
Unfortunately, there was someone else who didn't have the mental confidence to assure herself.
[ [The First Seal is broken.] ]
[ [Awakening dormant powers…] ]
Alas, the screen did not wait.
[ Sunny felt something waking up inside of him. With a startled cry, he clutched his chest and stared into the darkness, trying to understand what was happening. The feeling was not painful or unpleasant, yet it was like nothing he had ever experienced. It was as though his soul was being shaken awake, infused with strange new energy. ]
[ His vision strangely doubled. ]
[ He could still see the void populated by an endless pattern of stars. But he could also see something different. ]
[ A silent, calm, dark sea illuminated by a lonely black sun. ]
"Is that... his Soul Sea?" Eunbin commented.
Revel, who was nearby, couldn't help but gawk at the sight. It was a perfect place to be in, no light and no one to bother her, she could read as much as she wanted.
[ [Awakening Aspect Ability…] ]
[ 'This is it. The moment of truth,' ]
[ [Aspect Ability acquired.] ]
[ [Aspect Ability Name: Shadow Control.] ]
[ Sunny hurriedly summoned the runes. He wanted to go to the description of his new ability right away but then decided to give his overall information a look first. ]
[
Name: Sunless.
True Name: Lost from Light.
Rank: Dreamer.
Shadow Core: Dormant.
Shadow Fragments: [12/1000].
]
"Shadow Fragments?" Mordret looked interested. It seemed that Sunless had a different way to gather fragments than he or the Changing Star had.
[ 'Do I… do I actually have a completely different progression path than all Awakened?' ]
Most in the rooms chalked it up to merely a quirk of a Divine Aspect. And they wouldn't be wrong.
[ 'I'll have to explore this carefully.' ]
Some nodded at Sunny's good thinking.
[
Memories: [Silver Bell], [Puppeteer's Shroud].
Echoes: —
Attributes: [Fated], [Mark of Divinity], [Child of Shadows].
Aspect: [Shadow Slave].
Aspect Rank: Divine.
]
[ Aspect Abilities: [Shadow Control]. ]
[ Aspect Ability Description: [Your shadow is more independent than most. It is an invaluable helper.] ]
For a moment they were confused.
[ 'What is that supposed to mean?' ] They thought as well.
However, those who fought beside Sunny quickly understood how it worked. Sunny was someone with multiple shadows and was capable of using them for infiltration and scouting.
'Are his incarnations an evolution of this ability?'
[ [All power has a price.] ]
"Oh."
[ [You have received a Flaw.] ]
This once again draws attention to the screen. Several people had seen the Lord of Shadows in action, they saw how he could make thirteen Saints submit with his power.
So what kind of flaw did he have?
[ 'Oh, no. No, no, no...' ]
And the answer was worthy of such a reaction from Sunny.
[ 'Please, be gone! Please!' ]
They saw as he closed and opened his eyes, over and over again, hoping to have seen his Flaw wrong. And they could understand why, considering his innate ability.
[ Flaw: [Clear Conscience]. ]
[ Flaw Description: [You cannot lie.] ]
Kai stared at it for a long time. It was a direct connection between their flaws.
The one who couldn't lie and the one who couldn't be lied to.
"I am your best friend."
"Ah."
'Was it Fate that we met?'
But soon a thought crossed his mind, a thought that crossed the mind of everyone who had heard the Lord of Shadows weird speech patterns and wild stories.
A thought that was voiced by Effie in an instance.
"It makes so much SENSE!"
To be able to lie with true statements, one must describe such statements in the most unbelievable way. Perhaps the Spell was right in calling Sunny treacherous, his mind was something different.
[ 'Can't lie. I can't lie? Me? How am I supposed to live if I can't lie?!' ]
Mundane Nephis and Cassie looked weirdly at the Sunny that was on-screen. The Sunny they knew was the most honest person they knew, even if pressed to lie, he would just twist the truth. That sometimes helped him and other times didn't. But it wasn't thanks to a Flaw.
So, it was weird to see a version of him so desperate by being unable to lie, as if someone had pulled the plug on a life maintenance machine that he needed to stay alive.
[ If he could only tell the truth, how was he supposed to hide his True Name? Wouldn't anyone be able to turn him into an obedient slave by simply asking a couple of innocent questions? ]
That was another problem, he might not have the worst Flaw, nor the worst innate ability, but he for sure had the worst combo between the two out of anyone.
[ [Wake up, Lost from Light!] ]
[Viewing Black Mountain has been completed.]
[Only 1 Viewing left in Humble Beginnings.]
[Next Viewing: Fated Encounters]
[Issued Break]
=== Time Left: 9:59 ===
The Second Viewing was over.
********
A/N : And the viewing is complete, next chapter is the aftermath and then we go to the last viewing of the Humble Beginnings.