Once outside, Sunny spent some time finding Effie and Kai. The two of them were in the dining area of the lodge, discussing something between themselves.
There was no sign of Cassie anywhere, but he did notice Caster observing him from the stairs leading to the second floor.
'Is she avoiding me?'
Somewhat disappointed, Sunny landed on a chair next to the two locals he had come to know and gave them a dark look.
"What, the two of you know each other?"
Kai smiled.
"Who doesn't know huntress Athena? We had, uh… a few brushes in the past."
Deciding not to inquire what type of brushes he was talking about, Sunny sighed and asked:
"Does she know about that peculiar Flaw of yours?"
The charming young man blinked a couple of times, the said with confusion:
"I guess so? I don't make a secret out of it."
Great. Of all the people in the world, he got stuck with two weirdos who had no qualms about telling every random stranger about their most hidden vulnerability.
…Well, if he had a Flaw like Kai's, he wouldn't worry about it too much either.
'Lucky bastard.'
Since there was no point in pretending anymore, Sunny simply asked:
"Well? Was anyone in that room lying?"
Effie grinned.
"Ah, so that's why you dragged Night along. Paranoid much?"
Sunny would love nothing more than to ignore that question, but unfortunately, his own Flaw was much more restrictive than Kai's.
"Not at all. In fact, I think that I'm exactly as paranoid as a person should be. By which I mean extremely, of course."
Saying that, he looked at the charming archer with expectation. Kai hesitated for a few moments.
"No, no one said a single lie. Your friends are all extremely honest people, Sunny."
'Oh, you poor lamb…'
Not knowing how to react to that display of naivete, Sunny shook his head and lowered his voice:
"Not even Caster?"
Kai gave him a nod.
"No, he was honest, too."
Was Sunny wrong? Was Caster really just an honest and honorable guy? Was his distrust irrational?
Somewhat unsure, Sunny lingered for a bit and then turned to Effie.
"Neph and I agreed to continue our conversation in a week. Until then, you'll be under my protection."
The huntress giggled.
"Wow. That makes me feel real safe. Thanks, shorty"
He grimaced.
"Don't you worry. I might not look like much, but wait till you see my roommate…"
Kai suddenly choked on his drink and paled a little. Reminded of something, Sunny patted him on the back and said:
"Anyway, thanks for your help. Our deal is done. See you around, I guess."
He was not going to miss this guy one bit. Sunny wasn't winning any prizes with his looks already, but next to Kai, he seemed downright ug… uh… barely above average.
The charming archer looked at him for a few moments, then forced out a smile:
"Yeah, it was nice to make your acquaintance, Sunny. I can honestly say that spending time with you is… uh… an unforgettable experience."
With that, he glanced at Effie with something that resembled pity, rose, and left.
The two of them were left alone.
The huntress looked around with a weary expression, and then asked in a neutral tone:
"So? When do we leave?"
Sunny didn't hesitate.
"Right now. Honestly, I can wait to get back to the ruins. This place… it gives me the creeps."
Effie gave him a strange look, then shrugged.
"Sure, no problem. Let's ditch this scary place and go hide in the ancient cursed ruins. At least we can feel safe there, right?"
***
Some time later, they were carefully walking through the streets of the Dark City. Being here in daylight was not something Sunny was accustomed to, so he was justifiably tense.
Luckily, both of them were experienced hunters and worked well together. Sunny fell into the familiar rhythm of cooperating with Effie without skipping a bit, as though three whole months had not passed since they last saw each other. It was honestly nothing short of jolly.
At some point, the unruly huntress glanced at him and asked:
"But seriously. How did you survive, Sunny?"
He gave her a dark look, then shrugged.
"How do you think? You know that I am very good at hiding in the shadows. I slept during the day and hunted during the night. Observed my prey carefully before striking at their weak spots. If I ever met something I wasn't sure I could kill, I ran."
She became thoughtful for a while, then said:
"It's noticeable, you know. You've changed. You look… feel like a true hunter now."
Sunny grinned.
"Well, I would hope so. I hunted more Nightmare Creatures than was reasonable, really."
She smirked.
"How many?"
That was a good question. Sunny hesitated before answering:
"Around sixty? Yeah, no more than that, I think."
Together with those terrors he had slain in the Labyrinth, his kill count had long ago moved past a hundred.
Effie blinked and looked at him with a dark expression. That many hunts in only three months… the number was nothing short of staggering.
Actually, it was completely insane. Out in the real world, it was widely known that Awakened Nightmare Creatures were too tough for mere Sleepers to fight. Anyone who managed to prevail in a battle against one would earn themselves a proper reputation. Killing a dozen would make a person famous.
If Sunny were to return home and claim that he had slaughtered a hundred, most of them in a cursed ruin populated by Fallen abominations, the news of his accomplishment would fly around the whole planet in an instant. He would be hailed as an unparalleled genius and a hope of the entire generation.
…And yet, there were dozens of people just like him in the Dark City, many of them even more accomplished. Much more. Effie had several hundred hunts under her belt. There were a couple more hunters in the outer settlement whose track record was just as impressive… even if with the death of Jubei, their numbers had shrunk.
Inside the Bright Castle, there was Gunlaug himself, his five lieutenants, all the Pathfinders of the Host, more than a few experienced Hunters, and even a handful of Guards with a lot of battle scars to prove their prowess. All of them were at a level that Sleepers simply weren't supposed to ever achieve.
The Forgotten Shore was truly an... interesting place.
If Nephis were to somehow succeed and bring even just several of them back to the real world, how would the world change? Would other things that had been considered impossible before suddenly have their status put under scrutiny?
Was it the reason why the Spell gave her the name Changing Star? Was Neph destined to not only create change, but also be the catalyst of it?
Consumed with these thoughts, Sunny walked through the cursed ruins. Soon, a familiar shape of the cathedral appeared before his eyes.
Looking at it, Sunny shuddered.
He had been honest when he told Effie about how he managed to survive all this time.
However, he had failed to mention how close he came to dying in the process.
The memory of his first visit to the cathedral, and its consequences, was something he really liked to avoid…
Chapter 180: Break Point
It happened a few weeks after he left the castle behind. Back then, Sunny was just starting to feel confident in the absolute darkness of the cursed night. He stalked the ruins, searching for prey and slaying one monster after another.
Looking back, those few victories might have gone to his head a little. Or maybe he was just too sane to survive alone in the Dark City.
It was the first meeting with the Black Knight that caused him to lose that state of mind.
Sunny did not become interested in the ruined cathedral by accident, nor was he led there by empty curiosity. In fact, he had noticed something strange about the ancient temple and decided to explore it after careful consideration.
Because the thing he saw was too alluring to ignore.
At dawn, for a few short minutes, he could see a weak, ethereal golden glow emanating from the dark cathedral. The same golden glow he had seen twice before.
Once deep within the ruby droplets of his own blood after consuming the Drop of Ichor, and another time exuding from Changing Star's unconscious body after her battle with the horror of the depths.
Without having to guess, Sunny knew what this golden shine was.
It was the light of divinity.
With his own eyes altered by the drop of divine blood, which was left on the talons of the Vile Thieving Bird after it had stolen Weaver's eye, Sunny was somehow able to perceive it.
Considering that both Nephis and he possessed some measure of divine affinity, it wasn't hard to come to this conclusion. More than that, the circumstances surrounding the awakening of his ability to see the golden glow supported it.
Thus, hoping to find another treasure equal to the Drop of Ichor, Sunny entered the ruined cathedral. Then he froze for a second, awed by its grandeur.
That second was all it took for the Black Knight to skewer him on his sword.
Sunny didn't know how the massive devil managed to avoid being seen by his shadow, nor how he got so close without making any noise. All he knew was that a menacing black giant suddenly stepped forward from the darkness that enveloped the temple and pierced him with a wrathful gaze.
There were two scarlet flames burning in the impenetrable emptiness behind the visor of the knight's helmet. Looking at them, Sunny felt as though he was staring into the eyes of death itself.
However, even though Sunny was caught by surprise, his body moved on its own. Countless hours of practice did not go to waste.
In the end, it were the reflexes that Sunny had engraved into his muscles and bones that saved his life, even if only by a hair's breadth. Because of his quick reaction, the massive greatsword of the evil creature did not cut him in two.
Instead, it simply disemboweled him.
Feeling a blinding pain pierce his abdomen, Sunny staggered and looked down, only to see a river of blood flowing from his stomach, which was cut wide open. The red ropes of his intestines were clearly visible in the terrible wound, already on their way to falling out.
The horror of seeing something that should have been inside of him moving to the outside was much more powerful than the excruciating pain of his flesh being torn apart.
Pressing one hand against the wound, Sunny fell on his back and weakly tried to crawl away. However, the Black Knight was already moving, rising his greatsword to deliver a finishing blow.
For a fraction of a second, everything froze. Sunny didn't have time to come up with an elaborate plan, nor even think things through. All he knew was that he had to buy himself a chance to crawl away… somehow.
Of all the Memories at his disposal, nothing seemed to be of use. Not the austere and razor-sharp Midnight Shard, not the ominous and powerful Puppeteer's Shroud. His mighty tier-five armor did not even slow the black blade for a moment.
Even augmented by the shadow, they were not a match for the terrifying devil of the ruined cathedral.
…In the end, Sunny simply thrust his hand forward and let a small and ordinary-looking rock fly from it into the depths of the ancient temple. His shadow wrapped itself around the little stone, enhancing its enchantments.
In the next moment, the rock suddenly howled, replicating the scream of the last Nightmare Creature that Sunny had killed. Augmented by the shadow, the howl shook the walls of the cathedral, causing dust to fly into the air.
The Black Knight stopped, then looked over his shoulder in the direction where the howl was coming from. He seemed to hesitate for a moment.
Not wasting any time, Sunny pressed tight onto his terrible wound, rose to his feet and staggered away, almost slipping in the puddle of his own blood. Groaning from pain, he tried to reach the exit of the old temple.
Miraculously, he did. The Black Knight stopped in the doorway, simply following the small figure of the mortally wounded human with the burning flames that served him as eyes.
Then, it indifferently turned away and slowly returned into the darkness.
***
Some time later, Sunny found himself lying in a ditch somewhere in the depths of the Dark City. He had found his way to this ditch and crawled into it, hoping to hide himself from the monsters stalking the ruins at night.
He was consumed by pain, fear, and disbelief.
Was this… was this how it was all going to end?
Was this how he was going to die?
He wanted to cry for help, but knew that no one would come.
He wanted to simply cry, but, for some reason, nothing but laughter escaped from his lips.
Funny… it was just too damn funny!
An outskirt rat like him, dying in a ditch.
What a fitting end.
Why wouldn't he laugh?!
It was all just so hilarious.
A laughing fit sent him into an ocean of suffering. Every time he moved, it felt as though invisible blades were cutting into his abdomen, slicing his flesh apart.
And yet, he couldn't stop laughing.
The funniest thing of all was that he couldn't even die.
No matter how much he bled, his tenacious blood refused to give up. Guided by Blood Weave, it desperately tried to repair the damage done to his body. However, the damage was just too extensive. Even augmented by the shadow, the Blood Weave couldn't contend with it.
In the end, he was locked in an endless cycle of excruciating agony, not quite alive, but also unable to die... yet. Minute after minute, hour after hour, nothing but pain and suffering drowned his consciousness, until something inside simply cracked.
Who wouldn't have gone mad?
Through the fog that clouded his mind, Sunny hazily realized that the sun had come up, then disappeared again. This happened a few times until he finally let out a quiet sigh.
Enough was enough. He couldn't take it anymore.
It was time to give up.
He had a good run, really.
But how could anyone endure all this?
He wanted to die.
He was ready… ready…
'Are you? Are you really ready?'
Sunny thought for a bit... and then suddenly bared his teeth.
Fuck no.
He was not ready.
Give up?
Never! Never! He was never going to give up!
He refused to give the world the satisfaction of devouring him. Not unless it choked to death on his soul.
'No, I'm not going to die… I'm going to live… I'm going to thrive… I'll be the last one standing, no matter what…'
With that thought, he summoned the Midnight Shard and gripped its hilt with the last bit of strength left in his body.
Memory Enchantments: [Unbroken].
Enchantment Description: [This blade refuses to be broken, and thus is durable beyond reason. It will greatly enhance the power of its wielder when they are close to death, however only if the wielder is still unwilling to surrender.]
Responding to his vicious promise, the ancient blade finally opened the gate to the well of power hiding somewhere deep within his soul. Instantly, a torrent of energy filled his body with dark resolve.
The power given to Sunny by the Midnight Shard enhanced the healing factor of Blood Weave, allowing it to just barely keep him from slipping over the edge of death while it slowly began to repair his ravaged body. And as long as he was almost dead, the effect of Unbroken continued to feed Blood Weave with power, creating another cycle.
A virtuous cycle. A cycle of unbroken will to survive.
This was how Sunny was able to live through his first encounter with the Black Knight.
However, while his body eventually healed, the wound dealt to his mind remained. Days later, after Sunny finally crawled from that ditch, he was never quite the same.
And he never forgot the debt he owed to the Black Knight.
One day, he was going to kill the bastard, no matter the cost.
...And now, approaching the cathedral months later in the company of Effie, Sunny felt like that day was drawing closer.
Perhaps he really should agree to participate in Neph's expedition.
As long as she helps him repay that debt.
There was a lot to think about.
Effie's voice tore him away from these thoughts.
"Huh… Sunny? Are you alright?"
He shook off the harrowing memories, hesitated for a bit, and then smiled.
"Of course! Never been better. Here we are, by the way. Welcome to my humble palace."
The huntress looked at the grandiose cathedral with doubt.
"Here? You live here?"
Sunny remembered his First Nightmare and shrugged.
"What can I say? I have a weak spot for ancient temples…"
Chapter 181: Rules of Hospitality
Effie regarded the cathedral for some time, then glanced at Sunny with doubt.
"I know for a fact that nothing comes out alive from that temple. Are you sure that this is where you live?"
With a carefree smile, Sunny shrugged. The fact that Effie knew about the danger hiding inside the ruined church did not surprise him. Even if it was situated outside of her usual hunting grounds, she had extensive knowledge of the Dark City, some from her own exploration, some from sharing information with other hunters.
Dead tired and longing to return to the peaceful silence of his home, he didn't waste any time and told her about the Black Knight who guarded the cathedral.
The unruly huntress scratched the back of her head.
"So… there's a Fallen Devil inside? He's the roommate you were talking about?"
Sunny gave her a nod.
"The bastard endlessly patrols the ground floor and kills anything that comes through the doors. However, if we enter through the roof and stay hidden, we can reach my living quarters without any problem. More than that, nothing will bother us once we're there, because the bastard never comes that way and obliterates anything that tries."
Effie was silent for a while, then grinned.
"So, you basically have a devil for a butler. Pretty smart…"
Sunny chuckled.
'Was that a compliment?'
"...for a doofus like you."
'Ah, there it is.'
Once they climbed up to the roof, there was a slight problem. Sunny failed to consider that the hole in the tiles that he used to enter the cathedral, while wide enough for his small frame, would be too tight for the tall and robust huntress to crawl through. Looking at the narrow gap between the massive plates of dark marble, Effie gave him a gloomy look.
However, before Sunny could come up with an alternative plan, she simply bent down, grabbed one of the incredibly heavy plates, and moved it aside. The words died on his lips.
'S—strong. So strong. I wonder who is stronger, she or the Stone Saint.'
Honestly, he wasn't sure.
Before proceeding further, Sunny instructed Effie on how they were going to get her inside the hidden chamber and watched as the huntress reluctantly dismissed her bronze armor. With only a short white tunic covering her lovely olive skin and abundant figure, she looked very… uh… comely. For a moment, his displeasure of having someone intrude upon the secluded peacefulness of his lair evaporated.
…But only for a moment.
"Don't you get any strange ideas. Your armor is just too much of a risk. We can't allow ourselves to make any noise, that's all."
Effie grinned.
"Strange ideas? Why are you talking about having strange ideas all of a sudden, huh Sunny?"
He gritted his teeth, turned away to hide his blushing face, and crawled into the hole between tiles.
'Damn woman!'
Once they landed on the support beam of the cathedral, Sunny guided Effie's hands to rest on his shoulders. Although the sun was still high in the sky, there wasn't any sunlight around them. Only the floor of the ancient temple beneath them was bathed in it.
But even then, large areas of the grand hall were drowned in deep shadow.
Only it wasn't really shadow. It was darkness. Not one born from the absence of light, but true darkness, one which even his sight could not pierce. Sunny didn't know if it was summoned here by the Black Knight or simply obeyed him, but this was how the bastard had managed to sneak up on him unnoticed back when they first met.
In any case, he had to guide Effie across the beams of the cathedral. One wrong step, and they would plunge to their deaths.
'What a bother.'
Feeling rather awkward because of how close their bodies were to each other, Sunny quietly sighed and took a step forward. It was hard to concentrate…
'Strange ideas… who's having strange ideas? Not me!'
A few minutes later, they reached the hidden balcony behind the statue of the unknown goddess. Despite the fact that nothing out of the ordinary had happened, Sunny was rather on edge.
Something told him that this was going to be a really long week.
Once they entered his hidden chamber, Sunny informed Effie that she was free to create light and speak. Not wasting any time, the unruly huntress summoned a radiant Memory and looked around with curiosity.
The beautiful and spacious room that had once belonged to the priestess of this ancient temple was suddenly flooded with soft light. The intricate engravings on the walls created an atmosphere of sanctity and elegance. Here and there stood various pieces of furniture, most made out of opulent pale wood, with a few mismatched pieces that Sunny had scavenged from the ruins.
Effie whistled.
"Have to give it to you, Sunny. You sure know how to live in style. Who would have thought?"
He smiled.
"Jealous?"
She sighed.
"The important thing is that even if Gunlaug tracks us here, none of his people would be able to enter. So we're indeed safe."
Slightly disappointed, Sunny shrugged.
"Well, make yourself at home. I'll show you the back exit and other stuff later."
With that, he furtively glanced around and tried to quickly hide a few things from sight to make his home more presentable. If he had known that there was going to be a guest here, he would have cleaned up the mess a little in advance.
Not that Effie paid it much attention. She walked around with curiosity, studying the engravings on the walls and ancient furniture.
…But then, suddenly, Sunny heard a loud giggle coming from behind.
Turning around, he saw Effie standing in front of the wardrobe hidden behind a stone panel. The wardrobe was currently open, showcasing the garments left behind by the priestess.
The huntress looked at him with a strange smile.
'Why… why is she staring at me?'
"What?"
Effie shook her head.
"No, nothing. It's just… you know, Sunny, when I first saw you, I thought — look at this tiny boy! He's just like a toy! You just want to dress him up like a doll and play with him…"
Sunny blinked a couple of times, then scowled angrily.
"Who are you calling tiny? I'm not tiny… in any way, you beanpole!"
Not paying him any attention, the huntress glanced at the wardrobe and giggled again.
Then, suppressing laughter, she said:
"Who knew that you are into… playing another kind of dress-up, huh?"
It took Sunny a couple of seconds to realize what she was implying. When he did, he turned bright red from outrage.
The nerve! The gall! How dare she!
"What are you talking about?! Those aren't mine! The priestess who lived here before left them behind!"
Effie nodded a couple of times.
"Sure, sure. You just happened to have a wardrobe full of pretty dresses. By accident…"
"That's the truth! I never lie!"
She looked at him with a wide smile.
"But of course! It must be the truth. I totally believe you. Definitely."
Sunny stared at her with his mouth wide open, not knowing what to say.
Effie, meanwhile, looked around and innocently fluttered her eyelashes.
"But, Sunny… we have another problem."
Gritting his teeth in irritation, he snapped:
"What is it?!"
She lingered for a few moments, then said teasingly:
"There's only one bed. Ah, what a predicament! Whatever should we do?"
Sunny glared at her for a long time, then spat:
"You take the damn bed! I'll sleep on the floor!"
With that, he turned away a tried to take a deep breath.
'Why did I ever agree to this?! Women… damn women… they're the true terror!'
…Indeed, this was going to be a very long week.
Chapter 182: Dinner Time
After Sunny calmed down a little and had time to think about it, he realized that things weren't as bad as he had thought.
Yes, living this close to the rambunctious huntress was a very special kind of trial, especially due to how much joy she seemed to derive from tormenting him, but there was one redeeming aspect to all of this… aside from the fact that he would get to constantly feast his eyes on… wait… back to the topic!
It was that Sunny was a nocturnal creature. He didn't have to sleep on the cold floor or interact with the vigorous huntress that much, because he would be asleep during the day and out hunting during the night. The window of time when they would both be awake and stuck in the hidden chamber together was not that large.
More than that, Effie had brought enough food to satiate her unnatural hunger in that bottomless bag of hers, so he didn't even have to feed her. So hosting her was not going to be as bothersome as he had initially assumed.
After showing the huntress around and enduring several more good-natured jabs, he finally had some time to himself.
Finally!
Sitting down in a remote corner of the chamber, he closed his eyes and dove into the Soul Sea.
As always, the tranquil sea met him with calming darkness and peaceful silence. Not paying any attention to motionless shadows that stood at the edge of the visible part of it… not even to gaunt and pitiful Harper… he walked over and stood beneath the black sun of his Shadow Core.
Then, Sunny summoned the Stone Saint.
"Hey there, darling. Guess what? I brought dinner…"
Before commanding the Memories he had purchased with the help of Kai down, he quickly glanced at the runes surrounding the taciturn monster:
Shadow: Stone Saint.
Shadow Rank: Awakened.
Shadow Class: Monster.
Shadow Attributes: [Battle Master], [Stalwart], [Spark of Divinity].
Shadow Fragments: [6/200].
Only six fragments, and she was already so strong. He couldn't wait to see his monster grow even more ferocious.
Not wasting any more time, Sunny summoned the first Memory — a strange sword with a stupid amount of useless gems embedded into its blade, for some idiotic reason — and handed it to the Shadow. She took the sword without showing any emotion and ruthlessly shattered it with her gauntlets.
[Your Memory has been destroyed.]
Sunny made a face.
"Why thank you, Spell! I wouldn't have guessed if it weren't for you. So helpful."
Two torrents of ethereal sparks entered Stone Saint's body and were absorbed by the dark embers burning in the depths of the living shadow that hid in her body.
[Stone Saint has grown stronger.]
Was it just him or did the Spell sound a bit hurt?
'Well, tough. I didn't hear you complaining when Neph was promising to rip you to shreds.'
He grinned and glanced at the runes again.
Shadow Fragments: [7/200].
Satisfied, Sunny summoned the next Memory. The process repeated itself.
[...Stone Saint has grown stronger.]
[...Stone Saint has grown stronger.]
[...Stone Saint has grown stronger.]
As the number of shadow fragments saturating the core remnants inside his pet monster grew, his mood continued improving. This was the best feeling ever!
Shadow Fragments: [8/200]
Shadow Fragments: [10/200]
Shadow Fragments: [11/200]
Finally, after the ninth Memory was consumed, the runes describing the number changed to twenty out of two hundred. The Stone Saint looked considerably stronger already. Remembering the changes that happened to his own body after his first few kills, Sunny could more or less gauge how much her condition has improved.
The increment wasn't really that substantial… but in battle, the tiniest advantage could often decide everything. Especially considering that it was going to be doubled by the augmenting effect of his indispensable, but impudent shadow.
All of this was just a prelude, anyway. The main event was yet to come.
Full of anticipation, Sunny called the onyx armor down. If his calculations were correct, this relic alone should give the Stone Saint twelve shadow fragments — almost as much as the nine lesser Memories Combined.
The jet black suit of ancient plate armor appeared in the air in front of him. Surrounded by the lightless vastness of the silent sea, the feeling of dark grace it emanated was even more pronounced. Sunny clicked his tongue.
'Ah, what a beauty.'
It was almost a shame to destroy it.
…Almost.
Slightly reluctant to part with the ancient armor yet, Sunny read the runes describing it.
Stev was right. Even the Spell couldn't make sense of the damaged Memory.
Memory: [M… Un…old].
Memory Rank: ?
Memory Tier: ?
Memory Type: unknown.
Memory Description: [...Pr… …first …army …shed …own…]
Memory Enchantments: —
Many of the runes were missing, and those that did appear refused to coalesce into any sort of comprehensible words. However, Sunny did notice a few of the strange runes that made his head hurt, the same ones present whenever the Spell mentioned the mysterious Unknown.
'Just as I thought.'
The armor was clearly connected to the same tribe of Nightmare Creatures that the Stone Saint had belonged to before becoming a Shadow. The origin of the strange living statues was tied to the Unknown, so it was logical to assume that the onyx armor had something to do with them too.
Well, no matter. He knew that this Memory was severely damaged when he bought it. Sunny was never planning on using it, anyway, only feeding it to the Saint.
"Time for dessert!"
With a wide smile, he pushed the beautiful black armor to the stone monster.
However, the smile soon froze on his face.
Because the Stone Saint did not move to take and shatter the armor like she did with all the other Memories. Instead, she simply turned her head and looked at it. The hue of the crimson flames burning in her ruby eyes ever so slightly changed.
It was almost as though they were filled with the tiniest shadow of… sorrow.
"Come on! Eat it!"
But no matter how much he tried to get the Stone Saint to destroy the armor, she refused. The living statue just stood there and did nothing.
After a while, disappointed, Sunny stared at the onyx armor and sighed.
Well… serves him right. To be honest, he had a slight inkling that this would happen.
Nevertheless, Sunny had decided to buy the armor anyway. It's not every day that you stumble upon a tier-six Fallen Memory, even if it's damaged beyond your ability to repair.
Perhaps he would don it one day... if Nephis would actually manage to open the path to the Gateway and he would somehow find himself among those lucky few to reach it alive and become Awakened.
Until then, the awesome black armor was pretty much useless.
With a deep frown, he left the Soul Sea and summoned it into existence. Soon, the armor appeared on the floor of the hidden chamber.
Effie looked at it with interest:
"Wow. What is this?"
Sunny lingered for a long time, and then finally answered:
"A decoration… I guess."
The huntress raised her eyebrows.
"Really? Well, what are you staring at me for?"
He gritted his teeth.
A few awkward moments later, Sunny said:
"Uh, can you help me move it? It's… too heavy for me to lift…"
Chapter 183: Learning New Tricks
[Your shadow grows stronger.]
With a rather unpleasant noise, the monster's head fell down. Sunny indifferently bent his arm and wiped the Midnight Shard on the sleeve of his armor, watching as the massive body slowly topple over.
Standing on the other side of it, the Stone Saint simply flourished her sword in and stopped it abruptly mid-swing, sending every drop of blood flying to the ground. Then, she just stood there absolutely still, pretending to be a statue.
Sunny sighed.
'That's a cool trick. I should learn it.'
Honestly, cleaning his blade on the Puppeteer's Shroud was not very fair to the tier-five armor. He felt guilty.
"Watch my back."
With the taciturn Shadow observing the surroundings, he summoned the Prowling Thorn and used it to recover the soul shards from the carcass.
This was the fourth Nightmare Creature Sunny had killed this night. With the help of the Stone Saint, his hunts became much easier than before. Not even mentioning the fact that the Shadow was as powerful as most of his marks, the mere fact that he had a partner to draw the enemy's attention away changed a lot of things.
Sunny was somewhat capable of, but preferred to avoid engaging in direct battle with these abominations. His way of doing things was to strike from the shadows and, ideally, kill the enemy with a single strike. If everything went smoothly, the prey would never even see its killer.
Of course, such a hunting method required a lot of cunning, patience, and preparation. He had to observe the enemy for a long time to learn its behavior and weaknesses. The confrontation itself took just a few seconds, but only because days had been spent in adnvance to make that immediate resolution possible.
After hunting in that meticulous way for three months, Sunny felt strange simply overpowering the monsters with brute force. The combination of Stone Saint's indomitable defense and his swift blade was nothing short of miraculous.
It was almost like fighting side by side with Neph.
Almost…
With a sigh, Sunny threw the soul shards into his rucksack and stood up.
He was facing a problem that he had never expected to face. It was honestly rather bizarre.
He was running out of monsters to kill.
Awakened Nightmare Creatures weren't that abundant in the Dark City to begin with, let alone those whom he had already tracked, studied, and felt confident attacking. After tonight's massacre, pretty much every one of them was dead.
Sunny had cleaned the house.
But he was so much stronger now, so much more dangerous. With the help of the Stone Saint, maybe there was no need to be so cautious…
'No. This is how you get yourself killed.'
This was a dangerous mindset. Despite his recent growth, Sunny was still in no way the apex predator in the ruins. In fact, he was the opposite of that. Of all the creatures stalking these streets, he was the weakest.
'Pride is the gravest of all sins. Next thing you know, you'll be trying to hunt the Fallen Ones.'
Sunny would perhaps survive a confrontation with a Fallen Beast… maybe… but actually defeating one was a whole other conversation. And if he had the misfortune to stumble on something of a higher class, his chances of making it out alive would not be very high.
He could start investigating one of the Awakened creatures that he knew of. Or simply go home.
However, something was bothering Sunny. There was this feeling in his head that he had a seed of an idea, but then got distracted and failed to fully form it.
'What was I thinking about just now?'
Whether or not to hunt again tonight… how powerful he had become with the help of the Shadow… how it was not very practical to wipe the blood with the sleeve of the Puppeteer's Shroud…
'Oh, right!'
Back when he saw the Stone Saint shake off the blood of her sword, he had thought that this would be a cool trick to learn. And at that moment, he got a feeling that he was onto something.
'I should learn it… I should learn it…'
Suddenly, Sunny's eyes became bright.
If he could learn this trick from the Stone Sait… what else would he be able to learn from her? This Shadow of his had an Attribute called [Battle Master], which apparently meant that she was proficient in all forms of combat.
Was there a better teacher for someone like him?
The answer was — no. With his technique stagnating because of the lack of guidance, there was no one better than the masterful Stone Saint to learn from.
Suddenly excited, Sunny summoned the taciturn monster back into his shadow and headed home.
***
By the time he returned to his hidden lair, Effie was already awake. Sitting on the bed, she was lazily staring at the ceiling and whistling a cheerful tune. Her long legs were somewhat covered by the blanket, but still… that white chiton of hers was way too revealing! Sunny had to be very careful to look the other way.
It was very hard...
"Oh, you're back. Good hunt?"
Instead of answering, Sunny walked over to his chest, glanced at the huntress with suspicion, and opened it.
Then, he poured the contents of his rucksack inside. Seven soul shards fell on the pile, which was sadly visibly diminished because of his recent expenses.
It was still nothing to scoff at, though.
Effie whistled.
"Seven? How many heads is that?"
Sunny closed the chest and sat on it.
"Four. Three monsters and one beast."
Effie blinked, a bit stunned.
"Three monsters? How did you manage to kill three monsters in one night?"
He hesitated, then sighed.
Trying to hide the existence of the Stone Saint would be very bothersome, especially if he was going to venture on an expedition with Neph's cohort. Out there in the Labyrinth, chances were that none of them would be able to hold back to hide their aces.
That was if he was even going to agree to it, of course.
Anyway, there would be not much harm in revealing her now. Or rather, the benefits outweighed it.
"I'll show you. Just don't freak out."
Effie giggled.
"I'm pretty sure that nothing you're capable of showing can freak me out..."
Ignoring her teasing tone, Sunny glared at the huntress and summoned the Saint out of his Soul Sea.
Immediately, two crimson flames ignited in the depths of his shadow. A moment later, the menacing stone knight stepped from it on the floor of the hidden chamber and turned her head to Effie.
Effie recoiled.
"What… what the hell is that?!"
Chapter 184: Value of Humility
The mighty huntress stared at the Stone Saint, her hand hovering in the air, ready to grasp the shaft of the spear. Her beautiful hazel eyes were full of tension and dark anticipation.
The contrast between that fierce pose and the fact that she was still comfortably wrapped in a blanket was so funny that Sunny couldn't help but snicker.
"Gee, relax. Haven't you seen an Echo before?"
Effie blinked.
"That thing… is yours? Wait, you got an Echo?!"
He gave her a nod and gestured at the Stone Saint.
"Yes, I did. Meet Saint. Aint' she a beauty?"
The huntress stared at the taciturn creature, then scowled with outrage.
"You lucky bastard! You do know that I haven't even caught a sniff of an Echo after three years in this pit? How dare you get one before me, huh?"
Sunny laughed.
"Actually, this was my second Echo. The first one got killed in the Labyrinth."
Effie glared at him for a long time, then shook her head with an expression of utter dejection. Finally, she turned to the Shadow and studied her.
"Wait… is she what I think she is?"
Sunny nodded.
"Yeah."
The huntress stood up from the bed and, leaving the blanket behind, walked barefoot around the Stone Saint. She studied her from all angles and then said:
"How the hell did you manage to kill one of those things and survive?"
Sunny, who had found himself involuntary studying Effie from all angles as well, blinked a couple of times and shrugged.
"Actually, they got wiped out by a group of Fallen. It was an epic clash, to say the least. I just happened to be there in time to finish one off. And here we are."
Effie stared at the Shadow with admiration.
"What class is she?"
Sunny smiled.
"Awakened monster. But I watched her kill two Fallen Beasts, so… I'd say she's an elite among her peers. Anyway, you can see how it's not impossible to hunt three monsters in one night with her by my side. I studied them in advance, of course. That's why we were so fast in dealing with them."
The huntress crossed her arms, thought for a bit, then gave Sunny a strange look.
"Why are you showing her to me? With how paranoid you are, I'd expect you to keep such a treasure hidden."
He stood up, lingered for a moment, then said:
"With what I have planned, showing her to you is sort of a requirement."
Effie grew silent, then gave him a mischievous smile.
"Ah. Sorry to disappoint. Don't get me wrong, I'm up for all kinds of fun. But, Sunny… Nightmare Creatures is where I draw the line."
He frowned, not quite getting what she was talking about. Then, his eyes widened.
"What?! You… what kind of a degenerate are you?! Training! I wanted to use her for training!"
The unruly huntress blinked innocently.
"Training? Sunny, there's nothing wrong with being a bit inexperienced, at your age. In fact, it's quite charming! You don't need to resort to this kind of thing, you know…"
"Inexperienced?! Who are you calling inexperienced?! I'm plenty experienced! Wait… crap. What are we even talking about?!"
Dying from laughter, Effie left Sunny to fume with outrage and walked over to the makeshift kitchen while shaking her head. Soon, the tantalizing smell of roasting meat filled the air.
'...I'm going to kill her. Should I kill her? It's going to be pure self-defense, anyway. A week of this will be the death of me.'
With a sigh, he tried very hard to calm down. When his thoughts returned to their usual cadence, Sunny stood in front of the Stone Saint and slowly exhaled.
It was time to learn.
***
On his way back to the cathedral, Sunny had made a hard decision.
He decided not to augment his body with the power of the shadow during his practice with the Stone Saint.
Even though he knew that this was going to bring him a lot of pain in the future, he was adamant about his choice. There were several reasons why he wanted to face his pet monster with his own physical ability and nothing else.
The first and most simple reason was that Sunny knew that the shadow would not always be there when he needed it. Just like during the battle against the Spire Messenger, when it had been away scouting, circumstances in which he was going to have to rely on nothing but his own prowess were bound to happen.
Not to mention that it had been his own reflexes, and not the shadow, that saved him from being cut in halves by the Black Knight.
The second reason was less evident. It had to do with the existing hierarchy of power in the Dark City. At the very top, there were the Fallen. Beneath them, those creatures that were merely Awakened. And at the very bottom, Sleepers.
Any fight that a human could face in that cursed place was going to be against an overwhelming force. With time, Sunny had adjusted to this reality and was able, these days, to face the lower classes of the Awakened abominations on almost equal terms… with the help of the shadow. He was still weaker, but not by that much.
However, deep down he knew that, sooner or later, he would be forced to fight against Fallen enemies. And he was also almost sure that he would have to cross swords with humans that had saturated their cores to the brim with soul essence, and were thus much stronger than him.
For that reason, his experience hunting monsters who were not much stronger than his augmented self was actually an impediment. It dulled his edge and made him forget what it actually meant to struggle against an enemy who was leagues above him — the knowledge and mindset that he desperately needed to retain to have a chance of surviving the future.
He had to keep himself humble.
And lastly, there was one truth that he had learned during these six months on the Forgotten Shore, and it was that nothing was more beneficial to one's growth than fighting against a superior opponent — especially if that fight ended in your loss. One defeat taught a person more than a dozen victories against weaker enemies would.
The problem was that, in this cursed place, any defeat meant death. So Sunny actually had little experience losing to someone. From start to finish, he tasted loss only three times: once in a battle against the carapace centurion, once when he had faced Nephis under the branches of the Soul Tree, and once in this very cathedral, when the Black Knight's sword had sliced his stomach open.
Each of those defeats taught him more than anything else did.
…So, having the opportunity to fight with a monster who was much more powerful than him, and yet had no desire to kill him, was an extremely rare and precious opportunity.
That's why Sunny steeled himself and let the shadow rest on the floor while he faced the Stone Saint.
Taking a deep breath, he summoned the Midnight Shard, assumed a defensive stance, and looked the menacing stone knight right in the eyes.
"Attack me."
Not wasting even a second, she did just as she was told.
'Oh… crap!'
Chapter 185: Battle Master
The Shadow attacked with the vicious strength of a true monster. Knowing perfectly well that his strength was not enough to block her sword, Sunny desperately moved the Midnight Shard to deflect the strike to the side.
The countless hours of practice and hundreds of thousands of times he had repeated his katas had not been in vain: his body moved with lightning speed, placing the blade in the path of the Stone Saint's weapon at just the right angle. Feeling the impact reverberate in his bones, Sunny gasped from the pain and stood his ground.
Guided by the Midnight Shard, the Shadow's sword glided to the side and missed his body by a wide margin. However, before Sunny had time to congratulate himself, the Saint simply continued moving forward and slammed into him.
Being hit by her shield felt like crashing into a stone wall at high speed.
Flying back, Sunny impacted against an actual wall and rolled to the floor. A small yelp escaped from his lips.
Getting distracted from her food for a moment, Effie glanced at him and called:
"Sunny? You're alive?"
He weakly raised a hand and brought his thumb and index finger together in the shape of a circle.
"...Yeah."
The huntress smiled.
"Good! Don't die yet, alright? It's going to be really inconvenient for me to get out of here without your help."
Sunny gritted his teeth.
'...Is that all you care about?'
"I'll try."
Slowly rising to his feet, he staggered and had to lean on the wall for balance.
The Stone Saint returned to her spot and stood there indifferently, not paying any attention to his furious glare.
With a heavy sigh, Sunny walked back to stand in front of her, raised the Midnight Shard, and spat:
"Again."
***
Over the course of the next few days, Sunny often wondered if he had really gone mad. Otherwise, why would he willingly subject himself to this torture?
His life now consisted of only three things: spending time with Effie, practicing with the Stone Saint, and exploring the cursed ruins.
Out of the three, the time he was spending in the deadly maze of the Dark City was by far the least dreadful. He even found himself enjoying it a great deal.
Once you begin thinking about a cursed ancient ruin teeming with abominable creatures as a comforting place, you should really start thinking about your life choices...
And yet, Sunny knew that he was on the right track.
Painful as they were, his training sessions with the menacing Shadow had turned out to be even more advantageous than he imagined. Every bruise, every cut, every drop of blood that he spilled was making him stronger.
After a long period of stagnation, his technique was finally improving again. And it was doing so with noticable speed.
The best thing about it was that he had not even scratched the surface of the immense didactic potential of the [Battle Master] Attribute. For someone like him, who had never received a formal education in combat, it was simply a boon.
It was a hidden treasure.
Back when he had observed the Shadow in the fight against a carapace centurion, he had noted her distinct battle style.
The taciturn creature fought with the firmness of stone, combining flawless defense with devastating offense. Each action was efficient and perfectly calculated, with blocks, dodges and deflections leading into deadly ripostes. It was solid, indomitable, and inevitable.
However, this was not the only battle style that the Stone Saint was perfectly proficient in. Rather, it was something that she used based on her current weapons and opponents. Back when her original fought against two harrowing Fallen Beasts, her style was reckless and brutal, disregarding any form of defense in favor of an endless onslaught of vicious attacks.
Although there were some foundational similarities between them, these two techniques were vastly different. It seemed as though she was able to switch between countless styles to suit the situation.
Sunny couldn't wish for a better sparring partner.
His own style — or rather, the kernel of one that had been given him by Nephis — was flowing and unpredictable. It focused on adaptability and making it impossible for the enemy to anticipate your next move. The more Sunny fought against the Stone Saint, the more he realized how extraordinary it actually was.
However, it didn't mean that this style couldn't be improved. In fact, Sunny suspected that it was actually designed with the intention of being able to incorporate various elements from other sources. If so, it was a perfect foundational style to learn.
All of this made him wonder where this strange style had come from, and if Changing Star had taught him its basics for a reason.
In any case, he was determined to make sense of it, improve his mastery of the things he had already learned, and begin to incorporate elements of Stone Saint's stark technique into his own.
However, this was easier said than done.
At first, fighting against the menacing Shadow appeared to be almost impossible. Every time he gave her the command to attack, he would inevitably end up on the floor in mere moments, groaning and consumed with pain. His whole body was bruised black and hurting terribly. If not for the tenacious enhancement of the Blood Weave, Sunny did not know if he would have been able to continue.
Or at least continue at an acceptable rate. With its help, however, the speed of his recovery was considerably faster. It was almost inhuman. Because of that, he was able to train more intensely and for longer periods of time.
Just as he had expected, every defeat taught him something new. Losing to a superior opponent was the best way to improve, indeed. Back in the real world, many people were foolishly obsessed with their pride and lived for nothing but to achieve victories against others.
Not Sunny, though. He was perfectly content with losing time after time, as long as he continued to become stronger with each loss. The only person he wanted to defeat was the version of himself from the last fight, over and over again.
Just like that, he had slowly begun to put up at least some resistance to the Stone Saint. At first, he was happy with being able to deflect one attack. Then, two. Then, several.
Before too long, he stopped counting the number of attacks and started counting the number of seconds he remained on his feet. It was just a couple at first, then four or five, then a dozen. Finally, he was able to fight with the menacing stone knight for vast amounts of time, sometimes even up to a minute.
Even Effie seemed to be impressed. She usually paid little attention to his training, but after some time, Sunny noticed her glancing in his direction more and more. At first, he thought that the unruly huntress simply enjoyed watching him suffer in his suffering, but then he realized that she was actually trying to learn from his mistakes, too.
Sunny didn't mind.
His movements slowly became more confident, purposeful, and precise. His body, while damaged and bruised, was brimming with strength and agility.
He was maturing.
It was then, when his spars with the Shadow turned less one-sided, that Sunny noticed something strange.
And when he did, everything changed.
Chapter 186: Eureka
It took Sunny a long time to perceive the anomaly for several reasons. To begin with, it was so subtle that it was almost impossible to notice. His whole mind was concentrated on the thoughts of battle technique and styles, and still, he only saw it by accident.
The second reason had to do with his decision to face the Stone Saint without the augmentation of his Aspect Ability. Because of it, the shadow had nothing to do. It returned to acting as a proper shadow and obediently repeated his every movement while he fought.
The last reason was Effie — or, more specifically, the fact that she had brought a source of light into the hidden lair, making the shadow actually visible.
Because of this unlikely combination of events, Sunny was able to see it.
He was in the middle of a fierce battle against the Stone Saint, sweat and blood trickling down his battered body. The clamor of swords clashing against each other permeated the chamber, drowning the raspy sound of his laborious breathing. Deflecting another blow, Sunny swiftly crouched and let the edge of the creature's shield whistle through the air above his head.
His rather clumsy attempt to imitate one of the Stone Saint's explosive ripostes was easily blocked, and the two of them continued the duel. This time, it lasted for an especially long time. Sunny was pretty sure that he had already withstood the oppressive assault of the monster for one and a half minutes.
If true, this was his personal best.
After countless spars like this, he would sometimes enter a special state of flow. In it, his mind was calm and clear, operating at a tremendous speed. When Sunny entered this state, his attention became simultaneously sharp like a blade and strangely unfocused.
Normally, he would have to concentrate on specific details, like watching the enemy's footwork to predict where the next blow would come from. Sunny was even able to split his mind in two, with one part of it absorbing the information that came through his eyes, while the other was preoccupied with what the shadow saw.
In this way, he could either concentrate on two enemies at the same time or have a full view of his surroundings, so that no one could sneak up on him from behind.
However, with his attention not focused on anything, he was somehow capable of perceiving everything. Every detail, be it the enemy's footwork, the direction of their gaze, or the slight change in the environment simply became a part of the all-encompassing tapestry that he perceived as a whole.
Needless to say, this ability to see everything simultaneously and think with sufficient speed to act on it dramatically boosted his combat performance. It was consonant with and felt like a natural continuation of the strange sense of clarity that he had achieved after almost dying in the battle against his first carapace centurion.
...Right then, Sunny entered this state of flow once again. After a few more exchanges, he suddenly noticed that there was something strange about his shadow.
Instinctively, he paid it more attention while continuing to fight.
It was then that he realized that his shadow's movements, while almost exactly like his, were actually not the same.
There was a very slight, almost imperceptible difference.
But he could feel something vast and profound hiding in this tiny divergence.
Stunned, he slowed down and stared at the shadow.
'What… what did I just see?'
Sunny was so stunned, in fact, that for a moment he completely forgot where he was. In the next second, the rim of the Stone Saint's shield hit him in the chest, sending him flying at the wall once again.
Sunny crashed into the cold stones, fell to the floor, and weakly groaned.
'Ouch. That one hurt.'
However, he immediately forgot about the pain. Sitting up, Sunny stared at his shadow with wide eyes.
'This… this is…'
What did he see?
The shadow's movements, while exactly like his own, were also different. It was… it was…
As though a light ignited in his head… or rather, became drowned in shadows… Sunny suddenly had an epiphany. This revelation was so astonishing that he almost cried out loud.
The divergence between him and his shadow was not random, nor was it chaotic. It was consistent and harmonious, hinting at a deeper meaning. And that meaning was…
That his shadow had a battle style of its own.
Sunny only saw a glimpse of it through the slight discrepancy in their movements. If someone didn't know the shadow as well as he did, they would never notice anything. Even he only saw it by accident.
What he saw wasn't enough to discern anything about that battle style except for the fact that it existed. He was also able to sense its… essence. It was flowing and insidious, shapeless and everchanging, like the shadow itself.
This description was so close to its nature that Sunny felt it was safe to assume that the movements of the battle style were not something the shadow performed on purpose, but rather a manifestation of its innate quality.
Did… did his shadow have a battle art fused into its very being?
"...It is an invaluable helper," he whispered.
If this was true, then Sunny had just found the answer to the question that had been tormenting him for the last few days.
While the battle style entrusted to him by Nephis was versatile and deadly, and the technique of the Stone Saint was indomitable and oppressive, they were not his own. No matter how much he practiced them, he felt that there was something missing.
Individuality.
Only by creating a style of his own would Sunny be able to become equal to the best fighters out there. Until then, he would always be just an imitator.
Of course, creating a true battle style was not something that a novice like him was capable of doing. More than that, there was a difference between knowing that the mysterious shadow style existed and actually understanding what it was.
But still, still… it was a beginning. If he learned the secret hiding inside his shadow and combined it with the flowing adaptability of his current style, what would the result be?
Standing up, Sunny spat a mouthful of blood, wiped the sweat off his brow and walked over to his tormentor, the Stone Saint.
Raising the Midnight Shard, he gritted his teeth and said:
"Again!"
Soon, the clangor of swords resounded in the hidden chamber once more.
Only this time, Sunny paid close attention to his shadow…
Chapter 187: Trial of Strength
Trying to learn the secrets of the shadow was a very slow process. Sunny could only see glimpses of the mysterious battle style while fighting against the Stone Saint, and doing so usually required his full attention. As long as he wasn't fully concentrated on his opponent, their clashes ended in mere seconds, making so that there was nothing to observe.
But when he concentrated on the battle at hand, he couldn't really pay any attention to the shadow, which in turn eliminated the possibility of observing it. Finding the right balance between the two tasks was not easy, not to mention painful. Every time he failed, a new bruise appeared on his body.
And yet, there was progress. Although Sunny was still unable to peer into the depths of the battle art, he was slowly beginning to get a feel for it. His shadow was more treacherous, fluid, and malleable than he was. There was a hint of a graceful cadence to its movements that lacked in his.
It was as though it was performing a dance. A shadow dance.
Frustrated by the lack of a breakthrough, Sunny wanted to push himself harder, but had to stop himself. Even considering the tenacious effects of the Blood Weave, his training regimen had already brought his body to its limits. He needed to preserve its condition if he was going to join Nephis on her long expedition…
Unless he wanted to enter the Labyrinth while crippled with exhaustion and injuries, of course.
What Sunny failed to realize due to the lack of experience — and the fact that he had been mostly self-taught — was that this accomplishment had already made him an outlier as far as humans went. Most novices weren't even able to master the superficial aspects of different battle styles, let alone recognize their fundamental traits for what they were.
They simply followed the rules without understanding them, regarding styles as something indubitable and rigid. Only the most experienced fighters had enough understanding of the essence of a battle art to attempt to manipulate it.
So he was already far ahead of the curve.
But since Sunny never had a proper mentor, he had no idea that he was trying to accomplish something that an average human would never be able to do. His only point of reference was Nephis, who was an absolute outlier herself.
If renowned masters of combat arts were to learn that a self-taught youth from the outskirts had managed to dismantle two incredibly complex battle styles into basic elements and assemble them together to better suit his tastes, while also trying to learn a third one from his shadow, they would be stunned.
However, Sunny just thought that he was unsuccessful and incredibly slow.
'Ugh! Maybe I'm just stupid…'
Picking himself up from the floor, Sunny sighed and wiped the sweat off his forehead. Then, he glanced at the Stone Saint and leaned on the wall.
"You're done for today?"
Effie was nearby, dying from boredom. Watching Sunny torture himself was her only way to entertain herself in this dark room.
Well, that and torturing him herself. Among other things.
'Whatever.'
He gave her a tired nod.
"Yeah, I think so. It's already dusk, so I'll probably rest for a bit and go out."
The huntress narrowed her eyes.
"By the way, I wanted to ask. How do you even know what time of day it is? There's no windows here, and we can't hear the sea yet."
He glanced at her with a gloomy expression and reluctantly answered:
"The shadow of the Crimson Spire. I can feel it."
Effie blinked a couple of times, then shrugged.
"Ah, I see. Anyway, since you're done… can I have a turn with your girlfriend?"
Sunny gritted his teeth and answered without even thinking:
"She's not my girlfriend!"
Only then did he realize what Effie was asking. She had never shown interest in sparring with the Stone Saint before. Why now?
Not that it mattered.
"And no, you can't."
The huntress titled her head.
"What? Why?"
Sunny scoffed.
"Do I need to explain it? It's too dangerous! What if something happens to you?"
Effie giggled.
"So let me get this straight. You can train with her all day every day, but you think that, for me, she's too tough?"
He shook his head.
"Don't misunderstand. It's just that if something happens to me, the worst outcome is that I die. If something happens to you, however, I'm going to get killed by Nephis. The end result is the same, but one way is vastly better than the other. Get it?"
She crossed her arms.
"Oh, come on! I just want to see which one of us is stronger!"
Sunny scowled.
"No way. Don't even think about it."
Effie silently glared at him.
"I said no, okay? There's no way I'm letting you fight her!"
The huntress grinned.
"Ah, alright. That's not going to be a problem…"
***
A few minutes later, Sunny was staring at the scene in front of him in disbelief.
How did it come to this?
Leaning over the opulent wooden table stood Effie and the Stone Saint. The elbows of their right hands rested on the table, while their palms were pressed against each other.
The Shadow was taciturn and indifferent, while the huntress was full of enthusiasm.
They were… preparing to arm wrestle.
Effie glanced at him and grinned.
"Wanna bet who's going to win? If I overpower your girlfriend, you'll owe me a shard… no, ten shards!"
Sunny sighed.
"What if you lose?"
The unruly huntress winked at him.
"...You know what, I don't even want to know. I don't gamble, so forget about it."
Effie sighed.
"So boring. Anyway… let's do this!"
She gripped the Stone Saint's hand and prepared to wrestle.
"Let's go!"
Instantly, both the Shadow and huntress tried to bring the opponent's arm down. The table groaned, subjected to a crushing amount of pressure. For a moment, it seemed that the Stone Saint was on the losing side, but in the end, her hand only moved by a millimeter.
The monster stared at the young woman with her ruby eyes, her face hidden behind the visor of the helmet. There was no emotion in her gaze.
Effie's hazel eyes, on the contrary, were full of mirth. There was a relaxed smile frozen on her face.
However, Sunny could see that she was putting her all into this struggle. The lean muscles tautened under the olive skin of her back. Her whole body was like a loaded spring, brimming with strength and overwhelming power.
And yet, the Shadow's hand did not move.
It seemed as though neither of them could overpower the other.
'Huh. I wonder who will give up first…'
A second after second passed in silence, but nothing changed. Both Effie and the Stone Saint were persisting, not giving up even a tiny bit of ground. The amount of strength they were exerting to keep this volatile balance made Sunny sweat a little.
'They're both monsters!'
…In the end, the first one to give up was the table. Not able to withstand the pressure anymore, it simply… exploded.
Covering his face to protect it from the flying splinters, Sunny froze for a moment, then stared at the pile of tiny debris.
A feeling of deep sorrow and indignation pierced his heart.
'Oh… oh no! My table!'
Chapter 188: Of Heaven and Hell
Just like that, a week had passed. Miraculously, Sunny had survived.
Even more miraculously, he had somehow managed not to kill Effie... which was a big accomplishment in and of itself. In fact, by the end of it, their forced cohabitation had turned rather pleasant.
They were both solitary hunters, after all. There was an instinctive understanding between the two of them.
His overall combat skill and particularly comprehension of both his own battle style and that of the Stone Saint had improved by leaps and bounds. He felt faster, stronger, and better prepared to face the horrors of the Dream Realm.
Although he had yet to reach the same level of physical power that he had possessed before sacrificing a hundred shadow fragments to create the Shadow Saint, Sunny felt that the current him was far deadlier of an opponent.
Which was good, considering how fast the grim future was approaching.
...Currently, Sunny and Effie were sitting on the support beam of the main hall of the cathedral, looking down from the head-spinning height. Far below and away from them, the Black Knight walked through the patches of light and darkness, continuing his neverending patrol.
Effie scowled, then whispered:
"So this is the bastard?"
Sunny gave her a gloomy nod.
"Yeah. In the flesh… or whatever he has instead of it."
The unruly huntress gave him a long look.
"How the hell did you manage to live through a fight with that fiend?"
He grimaced.
"Barely. Also, calling it a fight is giving me too much credit. I just got myself gutted and crawled outside. He never leaves the cathedral, so I got away."
She shivered.
"Are you sure that he won't hear us?"
Sunny pointed down.
"As long as he doesn't walk past that column, and as long as we're not too loud and keep our voice down, we're safe. Trust me. I've been studying that bastard for two whole months."
Effie suddenly grinned.
"So… how loud are we talking about? Because I can promise to…"
Sunny rolled his eyes.
"Can you stop? We're in a temple, for gods' sake."
He didn't need to hear the end of the phrase to know that it was going to be highly suggestive and very inappropriate.
She quietly giggled.
"Fine, fine."
After a couple of minutes passed in silence, Sunny looked down and saw that the pale light of dawn was slowly turning brighter. It was almost time for the two of them to leave the cathedral.
He had yet to come to the final decision regarding Neph's request. Depending on his choice, he and Effie would, perhaps, never see each other again.
Sunny quietly sighed.
Then, turning to the huntress, he said:
"Hey, Effie. Can I ask you something?"
She looked at him with a silent question in her eyes and shrugged.
"Sure. Go ahead, doofus."
Sunny hesitated, feeling the somber mood of the situation. Then, looking away, he said:
"Tell me honestly… were you dropped on your head a lot when you were a kid?"
Effie blinked a couple of times, then suddenly pressed both hands against her mouth to suppress a laugh. In the process, she almost fell down from the support beam.
"Heavens, Sunny… do you want me to laugh out loud and get us both killed? What's up with that question? No, I was not."
He looked at her with a dubious expression.
"Then why are you so damn cheerful all the time? It's not normal. You're like a crazy person… and I know a thing or two about that, mind you!"
The huntress smiled.
"Ah. That."
Then, she shrugged.
"It's simple, really."
Sunny waited for the explanation, noticing an unfamiliar air of melancholy around the vigorous young woman. Her usual infectious vitality somehow felt... lessened.
"It's because I don't think that this place is as bad as all of you seemed to believe. Everyone in this dark city is convinced that this is hell."
She hesitated.
"But to me, it's a paradise."
Sunny glanced at her and frowned.
"How so?"
Effie sighed.
"You wouldn't understand. But for some of us, the real world was more of a hell than the Dream Realm."
Sunny turned away, thinking about his one life in the outskirts. The reason he was able to adapt so well to the ruthless terror of the Nightmare Spell was because, at its core, it wasn't that different from his own reality.
"Still. What kind of a paradise is this?"
A sad smile appeared on the young woman's face.
"The only kind we deserve, I guess."
Then, she looked at Sunny and asked:
"Say, Sunny. You're from the outskirts, right? So you didn't receive a lot of education, I bet?"
He shook his head.
She chuckled.
"Well, not like it would have changed anything. The schools are basically propaganda camps, anyway. They teach kids some useful stuff, but also turn them unable to ask questions and blind to the truth."
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"The truth?"
Effie gave him a nod.
"The truth that our world is dying. Well, not the world, really. Just the part of the ecosystem that we need to survive."
Something moved in his memory. A year or so before Sunny was born, a whole continent was lost because a Category-Five Gate had opened on its coast…
But the huntress quickly overturned his expectations:
"And I'm not talking about the Nightmare Spell. I'm talking about what we, humans, have done to our planet without anyone's help. There were more than ten billion people on Earth a couple of hundred years ago, did you know? But now, there's barely three. And half of them only have food and shelter because of us Awakened and the powers we possess. Which were given to us by the Spell."
She wasn't wrong. Sunny remembered the poisonous, acrid air of the outskirts. The inhuman conditions in the underground factory where his mother had worked. The towering barriers protecting the city from the deadly winds of the wasteland outside. He knew, of course, that the planet was not in a good shape, compared to the past.
But he never really thought about it that much. To him, this was simply how life always worked.
Effie shrugged.
"Who knows how many of us would still be alive without the Spell? I honestly don't know. But if you ask me… I think that one day in the future, more people will believe that this Realm is a paradise. Just like me."
On that ominous note, she stood up and stretched her whole body, making Sunny hurriedly look away.
'Damn... pure thoughts, Sunny!'
"Anyway, it's already morning. Time to meet up with Princess and the others. Let's go…"
***
Soon, they were standing in front of the cathedral. The morning sun was slowly crawling through the sky, washing the ancient city in its pale light. Sunny and Effie did not have to wait long before Nephis and her companions appeared from the ruins.
Sunny blinked.
There was Changing Star herself, Caster, Cassie… and Kai.
What the hell was he doing here?
Once the four Sleepers approached and greeted them, Sunny immediately stared at the beautiful young man.
"Night… uh… why are you here, buddy?"
The archer smiled.
"Ah! I'm very happy to see you too, Sunny, my friend. Lady Nephis has asked me to join her on this expedition, and after careful consideration, I have decided to agree."
Sunny blinked a couple of times.
"Alright, I know that I'm crazy, but when did you lose your mind too?"
Kai looked at him with a strange expression.
"Wait.. crazy? What do you mean, you're crazy?"
Sunny sighed.
"Nevermind."
Then, he turned to Neph.
"About your request. I'm ready to join the expedition, but on one condition. I will not become a part of your cohort. Rather, you can provide sufficient compensation to acquire my services."
Nephis looked at him for a while, an inexorable expression on her face. Then, she said in an even tone:
"Do you have something in mind?"
Sunny grinned.
"As a matter of fact, I do. Behind us, you can see a magnificent ancient cathedral. Inside that cathedral lives a creature which is called the Black Knight. He's a Fallen Devil. In return for my help during the expedition, I want your help after it is concluded. Once we return…"
He paused for a moment, and then added:
"...I want you to help me kill it."
A dead silence fell on the small square. After a while, Caster finally spoke, an expression of subtle shock on his face:
"Sunny… did you perhaps misspoke? We are only Sleepers, after all. How are we supposed to kill that Black Knight of yours? A Nightmare Creature of his rank and class…"
Sunny's grin widened. Then, with an immense feeling of vindication, he looked at Caster and said:
"...It's just a fallen devil."