Despite feeling a slight sense of shame at having contributed almost nothing to the battle, Yoru very quickly decided to attribute the group's success to himself anyway.
After all, if not for him, Sunny would have lost Scavy during the very first stage of the plan. And without the echo disrupting the demon's balance at the crucial moment, bringing down the Carapace Demon would have become a far more fatal affair.
…Though now that he thought about it, actually killing the thing had only been possible because of Nephis' flames...
But why sweat the small stuff?
Having thoroughly convinced himself of his own usefulness, Yoru dismissed the lingering feeling of inadequacy and walked toward Nephis with an easy grin.
"Nice one, Neph. That strike at the end was pretty impressive. I was actually planning to do something similar myself, but you beat me to it."
In front of the giant body, Nephis had dismissed her helmet. Behind it, her face was pale and tired, her hair sticking to it in a sweaty mess. The afterglow of the white radiance was already extinguished, leaving her eyes grey once again.
She spared Yoru a brief glance then closed her eyes, refusing to indulge in his usual antics.
Yoru, naturally, interpreted this as silent admiration.
Then he frowned slightly.
"Wait... where's Sunny?"
"Right here."
Yoru nearly jumped out of his skin.
Acting entirely on instinct, he spun around and thrust the Bloody Requiem behind him, feeling nothing but steel clash against steel.
Sunny stood there calmly, blocking the spear with the Azure Blade mere inches away from his throat.
For a moment, the two remained frozen in place.
Then, Yoru staggered back with an expression of pure outrage.
"What the hell is wrong with you?!"
He dismissed the spear with an annoyed scowl.
"We just fought an Awakened Demon and your first idea afterwards is to sneak up on me like some serial killer? Yoru shook his head in frustration, "Jesus wept."
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"Nothing's wrong with me. And I wasn't sneaking. You're just incapable of noticing your surroundings."
After a short pause, he added flatly:
"Also, who's Jesus?"
Yoru stared at him completely stunned.
He knew that Sunny didn't have much of an education and that most religions probably didn't exist in this world anymore... But seriously?
After a few more moments, Sunny smirked.
"I'm kidding. He's that guy from... uhhh, before the dark ages... I think."
Yoru blinked but considered it better to just drop the conversation.
He let out a long sigh.
"Anyways, sorry for trying to stab you."
But before Sunny could respond he said:
"But if I actually wanted to hit you, trust me... I could've."
Sunny snorted.
"No, you couldn't."
"Could too."
"You couldn't a few second ago."
"I was startled!"
"You screamed."
"I did not scream."
From a short distance away, Nephis listened to the two bicker in silence. It was only moments earlier they had been perilously fighting for their lives against an Awakened Demon.
Now they sounded like idiots arguing in the street.
For some reason, she found that strangely amusing.
***
Soon, the four of them were sitting in a circle, passing around the glass bottle full of cold, refreshing water. Sunny was in the middle of describing their fight with the Carapace Demon:
"... so when he collapsed he was vulnerable. That's when Neph attacked. She used her Aspect Ability to ignite her sword and struck at the weakened patch of armour on the demon's chest, the one you told us about. It really was not as strong as the rest of his carapace, so the sword went through and pierced the bastard's heart."
"The demon was already severely wounded from his fight with the… the thing from the sea, so it was enough to finish him off. A few seconds later, he was dead."
Cassie shook her head in astonishment.
"That is… incredible. Three Sleepers killing an awakened demon! I thought that stuff like that only happens in webtoons."
Nephis corrected her:
"Four Sleepers. Without your vision and advice, we wouldn't have been able to do anything."
The blind girl lowered her face, a little embarrassed.
"Still. Three or four, it doesn't really change a lot, does it?"
Yoru chimed in:
"Well, I killed a fallen beast so a mere awakened demon isn't that astounding in comparison."
Everyone promptly ignored him.
Sunny looked from one girl to another, then finally turned to Cassie.
"You're right, it's not something one would expect to happen. But, anyway… I promised to cook demon meat for you after this is over, didn't I? Are you ready to witness my incredible culinary talent?"
Cassie suddenly frowned, a hesitant expression appearing on her face.
"I… I don't know about that."
He raised his eyebrows.
"What? Why?"
She lingered before answering.
"Well, it just seems weird to eat the meat of an intelligent creature. Even if it was evil. I didn't think about it before, but now… uh. It just doesn't seem right, I guess."
Yoru gave the matter a few seconds of serious thought before immediately discarding all ethical concerns.
Nightmare Creature cuisine was a delicacy few transmigrators ever had the opportunity - or misfortune - to experience. Why would he squander a once in a lifetime chance like this?
Ethics be damned!
Misunderstanding Sunny's silence, Cassie blushed and said:
"Sorry. I know it seems ridiculous, but that's just how I feel. You don't all have to agree with me."
Sunny shook his head.
"No, you might be right. I understand… sort of. Our resident genie can provide you with all the food we need anyways."
At that, Cassie's face brightened.
"What about the great tree's fruits? I bet they're delicious!"
"Stay away from the fruit."
Yoru's response came immediately, his tone unusually grave.
Cassie frowned, visibly startled by the sudden seriousness in his voice.
"Uh… why?"
Sunny gave him a brief discerning glance and answered in his stead.
"That tree is magnificent and pretty, but it's also very strange and suspicious. Why is it able to grow here when nothing else can? I'm pretty sure that it's the reason why all the coral around the Ashen Barrow is dead. Have you seen anything else capable of damaging the labyrinth itself?"
"In any case, it's too creepy. I don't think that we should eat these fruits. Who knows what they'll do to us?"
The blind girl smiled.
"You're both being a little paranoid, don't you think? A tree is a tree. Actually, I think it's a wonderful example of how life can prevail against all odds, even in this terrible place. I'm willing to bet that its fruits are perfectly fine."
Yoru's expression subtly stiffened.
'Damn... already?'
Of course, the reason behind Cassie's strange justification was none other than the Soul Devouring Tree.
The Soul Devourer had begun enthralling her far sooner than he expected.
Of course, Cassie herself had no idea anything was wrong. The influence of the ancient terror was subtle and insidious, planting foreign thoughts so gently that its victims mistook them for their own.
And eventually, if left unchecked, all of them would become obedient little guards doomed to protect the Soul Devourer until the foreseeable future.
He knew that even if he did nothing and let events continue, Sunny would save them all in the end. But that wasn't guaranteed now that Yoru was present. Perhaps him being there would stop Cassie from gaining foresight or knowledge on the creature, so Sunny never has his "strange dream."
But even if this wasn't guaranteed, Yoru had sworn to himself back in the academy to not let tragedies happen. He wasn't willing to idly sit by and allow those he called his friends to become subjects of a hellish tree.
But avoiding this nightmarish situation wasn't as easy as just telling them about the tree's enthrallment, for a number of reasons.
First, he needed Sunny to climb the tree and receive blood weave. Without weaver's lineage, humanity was basically screwed and further condemned than it already was.
Second, he liked to believe that he had earned enough of the group's trust so they'd have an easier time listening to his suggestions, but despite the several weeks fighting alongside one another, Sunny was still untrusting of him. Their earlier argument inside the bone spine was proof of that.
If Yoru suddenly started ranting about soul-devouring trees and enthrallment, Sunny would probably assume he had lost his mind.
After all, It was Yoru himself who had told them to come here.
And then there was his Flaw.
There was no telling what kind of tragedy his Flaw would inflict upon them all. If Cassie weren't to receive a vision about the tree, it could very well be the reason why.
While Yoru wrestled with his thoughts, it seemed the conversation had been progressing: Nephis stood up and took Sunny's hand in hers.
The latter visibly froze when she touched him.
For a brief moment, he awkwardly looked away, an unfamiliar trace of sheepishness appearing on his face before it vanished.
After a few moments, an elegant sword appeared in his hand.
The weapon resembled the Azure Blade only in the broadest sense. It was single-edged and possessed a long hilt suitable for two hands, but that was where the similarities ended. Its slightly curved blade was forged from the same lustrous alloy as the Carapace Demon's armour, gleaming softly beneath the pale light.
Compared to the elegant simplicity of the Azure Blade, this weapon possessed a colder, more predatory beauty.
Admiring his new weapon, Sunny looked at Nephis and said:
"Even I know what type of sword this is. It's a… a katana, right?"
She studied the Midnight Shard and then answered:
"Technically, it's a tachi. It's longer than a traditional katana and has a slightly different blade shape. But they're quite similar."
Glancing at Nephis, he cleared his throat and said after a bit of hesitation:
"Uh… it's a very nice weapon. Tier three, no less. Are you sure that you don't want to keep it for yourself?"
Changing Star was the one to deal the final blow to the Carapace Demon, after all. By right, the Memory belonged to her.
Nephis shook her head.
"I already have a sword. It suits me."
As the two continued talking, Yoru quietly made up his mind.
He turned toward Sunny.
"Sunny… do you wish to leave this island?"
Sunny frowned slightly at the abrupt question, but after a second, he nodded.
"Eventually, yes. But I'm more interested in sleeping right now."
By now, all of them had grown accustomed to these strange questions. They understood that Yoru's Aspect required the desires of others in order to function, so nobody paid the wording much attention anymore.
Yoru nodded slowly and drew in a measured breath.
"Then listen carefully. All of you."
Something in his tone caused the others to look at him with sudden attention.
The usual playfulness had vanished from his face.
Over the next several minutes, Yoru explained everything he knew about the tree.
He spoke of the Soul Devouring Tree's ability to enthrall living beings that lingered near it for too long. He described how the fruits were used to lure victims deeper beneath its influence and how those affected would gradually begin rationalising the tree's existence without realising anything was wrong.
The atmosphere atop the branch slowly grew heavier.
When he finally finished speaking, Nephis remained silent for a few moments before staring into the distance.
She was checking her runes.
A few seconds later, Nephis frowned faintly.
"I don't see an [Enthralled] attribute."
Sunny immediately spoke up as well.
"Me neither."
Yoru wasn't sure whether to feel relieved or alarmed.
On one hand, it was reassuring to know the tree hadn't fully infected them yet. On the other hand, the lack of proof made him sound completely insane.
Suppressing a grimace, he quickly turned toward Cassie.
"What about you?"
The blind girl tilted her head slightly in his direction.
"I don't have it either."
Then, after a small hesitation, she asked softly:
"Are you sure you're not just trying to scare us, Yoru?"
Yoru stared at her in stunned disbelief.
He knew for a fact Cassie should already possess the attribute by now.
Which meant-
She had just lied to his face.
Then, a sudden chuckle interrupted the tense silence and everyone turned to face it's source.
Sunny leaned back slightly, a crooked smile spreading across his face.
"Doesn't anyone else find this funny?"
Yoru's eye twitched slightly.
He had already learned that whenever Sunny started laughing during a serious conversation, things usually spiralled out of control immediately afterward.
"The same guy who insisted we come to this tree in the first place is now telling us to run away from it."
"Yes, I am."
Yoru forced his voice to remain calm.
"I mean, why do you think the Carapace Demon was here of all places."
"Sunny, you said you saw the demon pick a fruit from the tree after dropping a Transcendent shard beneath the it. That sounds like an exchange to me. And since when do Nightmare Creatures trade for anything?"
Sunny blinked.
"...When you put it like that, it does sound pretty ridiculous."
'Yeah. No shit.'
Nephis leaned forward slightly, grey eyes calm and unreadable.
"So what exactly do you suggest we do?"
Some of the tension in Yoru's chest loosened. At least she was taking him seriously.
After organising his thoughts, he answered in a firm voice:
"We keep moving west. We leave this place behind and put as much distance between ourselves and that tree as possible."
Then he added:
"Immediately."
The group remained silent, considering his words.
After a while, Nephis rose to her feet and brushed the ash from her clothes.
"It would be risky to leave now when we haven't recovered from any of our recent encounters."
She glanced toward the distant black canopy of the tree.
"We should wait until tomorrow before making any decisions. In the meantime, we can discuss what to do about the eastern side of the Ashen Barrow."
Yoru stared at her in disbelief.
"Hah… No, you're not understanding how serious this is."
He stood as well, unable to fully suppress the frustration bleeding into his voice.
"This thing can poison our minds and keep us trapped here for who knows how long. Staying even one extra day could be a death sentence."
Cassie looked up toward him uncertainly.
"If we leave immediately, we could get caught in another storm like before."
Nephis nodded once.
"This place is too unpredictable for rushed decisions."
Yoru clenched his jaw.
For a brief moment, a cold unease crept into his chest.
Was this the tragedy his Flaw would bring?
Were they doomed to remain here?
No... he was being dramatic. The others weren't being irrational. If anything, their logic was sound.
Truthfully, if Yoru wasn't aware about the true nature of the tree - if he hadn't known what would eventually happen here - he probably would have argued to remain for several more days himself.
That was what made the situation so infuriating. No matter what he said, events still seemed to drift toward the same inevitable conclusion.
As though fate itself were quietly correcting his interference.
With a defeated sigh Yoru walked towards the west side of the barrow.
"Lets see what awaits us then."
***
Soon, they had crossed the island and approached its western slope. Here, the ground was raised just before plunging down, forming a natural rampart that hid the landscape from their eyes.
Nephis was the first to climb up and reach the top.
Sunny was just behind her with Yoru and Cassie trailing behind him when he felt that something was wrong. Changing Star's posture was somehow strange, stiff and rigid, as though she had suddenly turned to stone.
Stepping on the ashen surface of the natural rampart, he worriedly looked at Nephis and noticed a grim, resentful expression on her face. He had never seen her in such a state before.
Turning his head, Sunny looked west and then narrowed his eyes. His face instantly darkened.
Feeling the desire to curse, Sunny gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. Inside his head, only one word was repeating over and over again.
'Damn! Damn! Damn!'