The Spell whispered:
[You have slain an awakened demon, Carapace Legacy.]
[You have received a Memory: Midnight Shard.]
[Your soul shines even brighter.]
His unwavering voice sounded tenderly... as always.
Ariandel lingered over the figure of the knight, now freed, for a brief moment more. Then he shifted his gaze to the shattered Memory in his hands. The bow had snapped at the draw's recoil, at the center section where the archer should have held it.
"..."
Artisan of Fantasy was somewhat too numb to be shaken by the sight... No, what truly spared him from seeing his mind crack along with the precious memory of his forgotten self was the fact that it had not yet dissolved into gleaming particles.
'Ahh...
Hmm... Well...
if it's only broken... not completely destroyed, something can still be done about it...'
He dispelled the Memory.
And in the very next moment, he summoned the runes page.
===
Name: –
True Name: Ariandel
Rank: Dreamer
Class: Monster
Oneiric Soul Cores: [2/7]
Oneiric Fragments: [156/2000]
Memories: [???], [Evertwine], [Starlight Legion Armor], [Midnight Shard].
==
Memory: [???]
Memory Rank: ???
Memory Tier: ???
Memory Type: ???
Memory Description: [???]
===
'???', Ariandel thought, strangely. 'Later... hmm, I'll think about it later...'
...
Beside the Illustrious Artisan of Fantasy, his companions had moved closer to the edge of the branch. They stared, astonished, at the guardian of the Ashen Barrow.
Well... two of them, since Cassia could not see.
"W-what is with this silence... Is the Demon dead?" she asked softly, her delicate doll-like face subtly marked by anticipation.
Sunless and Nephis snapped out of their stupor. He, suddenly overcome by a sense of exhaustion, looked at the girl and then back at the demon.
"Aah..."
Then he laughed with pure relief.
"Yes! The damn thing is good and dead!"
Nephis nodded, genuinely amazed.
"Arian struck the most fragile part of the armored carapace, right over the demon's heart."
Cassia reacted with pleasant astonishment.
"That is... truly amazing. A Sleeper really managed to defeat an Awakened Demon."
Artisan of Fantasy corrected her in a pleasant voice:
"Four Sleepers, actually... And it was you and Sunny who contributed the most to this outcome."
Sunless looked at the elegant youth, surprised—and even pleased—by the recognition... deserved? Had they really contributed that much? It didn't matter, he thought, refusing to dwell on what his bizarre friend believed.
Meanwhile, the reserved girl turned her face shyly. She lightly touched her hair, trying not to smile, and retorted:
"Still... two or three more? That doesn't change much. Something like Dreamers defeating an Awakened Demon... should only happen in webtoons, right?"
Ariandel drew away from the horizon, his eyes turning—amused—to face Cassia. His beautiful face marked by an irony only he recognized.
"Ah, Cas... my dear."
A laugh, gentle and almost melodic, sounded in a pleasantly contagious tone.
"If you only knew..."
She turned toward his voice, a confused smile hovering on her lips.
"Hmm?"
Nephis smiled at the grace between them, her gray eyes gleaming subtly with shrewdness.
"Don't overthink it. Our charming prince has the gift of leaving even the smartest at a loss."
Silence followed.
All of them stopped, turning to look at her.
None of the three knew exactly what to think.
If that was an attempt at humor on the part of the Star of Change, perhaps she truly had no hope...
Under the brazen gaze of the trio of little ones, all expression drained from the tall, agile girl's face.
"Shall we go down?" she said at last, calmly... or secretly embarrassed—Cassia, usually so accommodative, hadn't even bothered to ease the strange silence.
Ariandel smiled faintly. In his hand, a subtly luminous stream of fine colored lines wove into a very long golden rope. He tossed the neatly bundled package toward Nephis, who caught it with ease.
"Before we occupy ourselves with any other matters. Know, my dears, that we are under the power of an Awakened Terror, and one insidiously skilled in mental manipulation."
Silence followed.
All stopped, turning to face him.
None of the three knew exactly what to think.
If that was a joke by the Illustrious Artisan of Fantasy, perhaps they ought to despair... after all, Ariandel did not lie, not even in jest.
"What do you mean?" Nephis asked tersely, with a rare scowl—and perhaps even a hint of fear.
With almost involuntary stiffness, Cassia turned her face to the ebony wall—the monumental trunk of the magnificent tree. Her eyes widened slowly, as if seeing something horrifying. She trembled... and went pale.
"An Awakened Terror?" Sunless murmured, as if the idea sounded absurd—but his expression suddenly twisted, haunted by panic.
Exhaling lightly, with a certain indifference, Ariandel ran his fingers through his unreasonably long, wavy, immaculate hair. His gloves vanished like a mirage. He smoothed the silky strands with tranquil satisfaction.
"Do not dwell on it. The tree, besides being able to attempt its charms, must be capable of keeping from its captives the most obvious thoughts of resisting enslavement."
After a brief moment of lazy pause, he continued, in his pleasantly deep, smooth voice:
"Fleeing immediately is also not prudent. If we leave its shadow, we may have to face another Guardian of the Ashen Barrow upon our return. Keep it occupied trying to charm us... we will take our time preparing before proceeding with the journey. And do not eat its fruits."
Sunless pierced Ariandel with a terrified look.
"Are you crazy?!"
"If I were, I wouldn't know."
"You're insane!!"
"You know... your words are kind of nonsensical."
"You... you! gnhh...goto hell! You fanciful bastard!!"
The elegant youth paused for a brief instant. Then his gaze widened discreetly. A bit shocked, he turned to Nephis.
"Take your boyfriend and go harvest meat from that behemoth—force him to prepare some good demon steaks for breakfast. The fragments are yours. After that, scout the path west."
She, in response, continued to appraise him with unfathomable gray eyes. Her face, impassively calm, still betrayed a rare sombre seriousness.
"Exactly how do you intend to resist tha mental manipulation?"
"Besides my Attribute, see: my Aspect is tied to the subconscious, imagination, and the surreal—its very nature reinforces my resistance to that kind of power. And there is also this Relic of mine, which grants moderate resistance against mental attacks."
"And us, what shall we do?"
"Cassia's tunic provides the same measure of protection—and comes from another Awakened Terror, also hideously adept at mental manipulation. Sunless's armor is another with a bit of countermeasure against that kind of power, it seems to me."
"And me?"
"You are you."
After one final grimace, Nephis moved and went to tie the golden rope to the broad branch where the group had remained all that time. In the meantime, there was no further discussion.
As it seemed, they really would remain, willingly, in the grasp of an Awakened Terror—a monstrously monumental tree whose roots grew, devouring the very coral... the labyrinth that not a single other mortal monstrosity seemed even able to damage.
Sunless looked at his two companions in total shock. Then his black eyes gleamed with renewed hope.
He turned to a still-pale Cassia.
"Cassi! Help me! Talk to Arian, please! Say something to stop these two from going crazy!"
Even marked by fear—with her light-blond hair, large sky-blue eyes, and exquisitely beautiful face—the girl, dressed in a discreet tunic of light, soft enchanted fabric, remained subtly breathtaking.
Her gaze, vague and expressionless, rose calmly toward the voice calling her. A cold reminiscence spread across Sunless's chest, and he heard her say:
"Do not eat the fruits."