Sunny found himself standing in a field of wheat.
'...'
Raising his head, he slowly looked around.
'What the…'
Where was he?
All around him, golden stalks of wheat danced in the wind. On the horizon, endless hills of verdant grass stretched out as far as the eye could see.
The last thing he remembered was… was…
'Hope…'
Had he failed? Had Hope changed her mind?
Sunny tried to send out his shadow sense, but failed. Looking down, he realised he had returned to his original body.
'The Nightmare is over?'
Then… What was going on?
A soft breeze tousled his hair slightly, causing Sunny to squint.
He thought he saw a figure through the endless stalks of wheat.
'Am I dreaming?'
Taking a step forward, he brushed his fingers against the tip of one of the grain.
'Feels real…'
The world around felt extremely real, but at the same time, it felt subtly… imagined.
'This is a dream.'
Taking slow steps, Sunny took a deep breath.
His bare feet treaded against the cool dirt, leaving behind small footprints.
Nudging the stalks of wheat out of the way, Sunny entered a small clearing. In it was a field of flowers. At the center of the clearing was…
"Lady Hope…"
Hope turned to him.
Sunny smiled slightly.
Hope beckoned for him to come sit down beside her, and he did.
As he sat, he heard her voice in his ear.
"So this is what you look like."
Sunny grinned, nodding.
"Yep."
Looking up, he saw a breathtaking view. Endless silver clouds roiled against a violet sky, looking like a beautiful painting. Seven golden suns burned behind them.
"What is this?"
Hope looked at him for a moment before turning her head to the ground.
"A dream."
Hope brushed her fingers against the flowers on the ground below them, her expression frozen.
"Why?"
"I wanted to speak with you one last time."
Sunny smiled softly.
"I see. How did you do this?"
Hope turned to him.
"I placed it in the soul core you gave me. Now that I am dead, I will fade away after a bit."
Sunny froze, blinking.
"You're dead?"
Hope nodded.
"Yes. This dream would only surface once I died. Did you not kill me just now?"
Sunny stared at her in confusion.
"No, I… I don't really remember?"
Hope did not react.
"I see. My memories do not reach that far either. I suppose you will figure it out not too long from now."
Sunny nodded.
"Yeah…"
Neither of them said anything for a while as Hope stared at the flowers and Sunny stared at the sky.
Eventually though, Sunny broke the silence.
"What did you want to talk to me about?"
Hope glanced at him.
"I wanted to give you this."
A second later, her arm was extended towards him.
"Something for your travels."
In her hand was a small dreamcatcher made from golden strings and beautiful multi-coloured feathers. It took Sunny a moment to realise it was made from Hope's hair and feathers.
"This…"
"It is called Dreamcatcher. You have been having nightmares, have you not? This will help."
Sunny smiled softly.
"Thank you…"
He took it gratefully and felt it disappear into his soul a moment later.
'Right, she already put it in my shadow core…'
Sunny did not dwell on it for too long. He was just happy to receive a gift from Hope.
"When did you make it?"
"During our lessons."
Sunny nodded.
"Why give me this? I'm not exactly doing you a favour here…"
Hope turned to him, and he could've sworn he saw the smallest hint of a smile on her face.
"As thanks for the food. It was quite delicious."
"Wha…"
Sunny nearly laughed at the absurdity. A mortal like him had received the creation of a daemon thanks to mere offerings of delicious food.
"I also wanted to tell you a few things."
Sunny snapped out of his thoughts.
"Oh? What is it, Lady Hope?"
"That woman, Ki Song. She is not as evil as you think. I believe you misunderstand her quite a lot. She… is not unworthy of your trust."
Sunny nodded.
"I'll keep that in mind."
Ki Song had already destroyed many of his preconceived notions of her. As long as she did not threaten Nephis, he was willing to work with her.
"That girl, Nephis. You must take care of her."
Sunny tilted his head.
"Okay."
He wasn't sure why Hope was saying that. It was already something he was going to do no matter what.
"And lastly, I have a question for you."
Sunny stared at her curiously.
"Ask away."
***
"...It seems you are not ready to answer that."
'Huh?'
"Answer what?"
Sunny looked at Hope in confusion.
Was she not going to ask the question?
"I have already asked the question. I will lock the memory away in your mind until you are… at least a Supreme. Then, you will be able to find the memory yourself."
Sunny nodded dumbly.
"Okay…"
He had no idea what she was talking about, but if Hope was saying it then she was probably right.
Right as he said that, a ripple spread throughout the world around them.
Sunny sucked in a breath.
"The Nightmare is ending…"
"It seems to be."
Sunny turned to Hope.
"This dream is ending as well…"
"It is."
Sunny felt his face grow wet.
Then, without warning, he wrapped his arms around Hope in a tight hug.
Hope raised an arm in stunned surprise.
"What… is this?"
Sunny laughed.
"It's a hug, Lady Hope. Humans do it to show affection for each other."
"I… see."
Hope remained still for a moment, before awkwardly returning the hug. Their size difference made it quite uncomfortable, but neither of them cared.
Another pulse echoed throughout the world, and the field around them disappeared.
Within the world of darkness, Sunny heard Hope's voice one last time.
"Goodbye, Sunless."
'Goodbye, Lady Hope.'
As the dream ended, he felt himself return to the Nightmare just as it was ending. He was only there for an instant, but through his shadow sense he felt Hope's body laying on the floor as ichor pooled around his feet.
Then, the world was gone.
…The Nightmare was over.
***
[Your nightmare is over.]
[Prepare for appraisal…]
Once again, Sunny found himself in the space between dream and reality. The boundless black void was illuminated by a myriad of stars, with countless strings of silver light connecting them together to form an infinite, beautiful pattern.
He floated for a while in the vast darkness, tears threatening to flood from his eyes. He had not Hope for long, but he would never forget the time they'd spent together, even if it had ended in bloodshed.
The Spell's voice bounded across the vast darkness.
[—! Your trial is over.]
[A lone shadow came to a land of shattered dreams. Using a simple trick, it bent the rules of the world, ascending itself past its own weakness.
Leaving its fortress behind, the shadow ventured across the lands in search of the immortal lords in the hopes of working together. In a storm of truth and fools, the first immortal lord fell victim to the loathsome shadow, split in two and sent into the sky below.
The shadow, curious about the world, ventured from place to place, exploring groves, plundering temples, and slaughtering abominations. In search of power, the shadow descended into a demon's tower, losing their ever-faithful Shadow in the process. Within the darkness of the demon's tower, the shadow cut out its own eyes and heart in the pursuit of strength.
Emerging from the tower veiled, another lord fell to the shadow's blade, slain without a sound. Leaving a knife with another lord, the shadow made an unexpected ally. Within the darkness of a demoness' tower, the shadow hid once more, spreading its treachery throughout the lands.
One by one, the immortal lords fell, setting Desire free.
Then, Desire fell as well.]
[You have slain a Transcendent…]
The Spell went on to list everyone and everything he had killed inside the Nightmare.
Sunny saw the names of the six Chain Lords he had killed, his eye hovering particularly long on Noctis' name. Plenty of other names were listed as well, the nightmare creatures he had sent Serpent out to slaughter in the form of the Great Spirit Gatherer.
Sunny saw a couple of other messages too, like the one he hadn't heard back in the Ebony Tower.
[You have received the Storm God's blessing.]
[You have received an attribute.]
As the Storm God was dead and hadn't actually responded to him, the blessing was far weaker than the one he had gotten from Shadow God, with it only being an attribute. Still, the attribute was extremely useful, and he was very happy with it.
But then, at the bottom of the list, he saw it.
[You have slain Hope.]
Sunny sighed.
'Desire…'
The Spell had not even classified her as a Divine Titan.
[To slay a demon, one must pay a price…]
His eyes widened in horror as he read the next line.
[You have been cursed.]
"...What?!"
He had been cursed?!
Sunny immediately looked down at himself, feeling his body all over for anything strange.
'W-What?? How am I cursed? Have I been Corrupted?'
He checked himself all over, even dismissing the Mantle to get a better look at himself.
'N-Nothing?'
Sunny shuddered.
'What the hell have I been cursed with?!'
Turning his attention back to the runes, he saw…
[You bear the Blood Weave.]
[You bear the Bone Weave.]
[You bear the Soul Weave.]
[You possess Weaver's Forbidden Lineage.]
[...The price is paid.]
Sunny stared at the runes, his jaw hanging open.
'Wha… What the fuck?!'
The price had already been paid? What the hell had he paid? He hadn't actually been cursed? Was that why he couldn't remember anything when he killed Hope?
Sunny gripped his head, doing his best not to pull his hair out.
"What the hell…"
Then, he saw another set of runes at the end.
[You have received a Relic.]
'A… A Relic?'
Sunny thought for a moment, then realised.
'Ah… it must be the Dreamcatcher.'
He thought he had unexpectedly received something from Hope, but this was fine as well. He had never seen such a curious message before though, as even Weaver's Mask had been classified as a Memory.
'I'll… I'll look at it in a second.'
[...You have set free and slain a demoness chained by a god.]
[Your achi-]
The Spell abruptly stopped speaking.
Sunny could've sworn he heard laughter in the darkness.
'That laughter again!'
[Well done…]
[Final Appraisal: Glorious. Your treachery truly knows no bounds.]
Sunny let out a long breath he didn't even realise he was holding.
'Of course, anything less than glorious and we'd have a serious problem…'
Not that it truly mattered. That hadn't really been his aim in the Nightmare in the first place.
Before the Spell could continue speaking, Sunny decided to check on the memories he had received.
Memories: Memories: [Silver Bell], [Puppeteers Shroud], [Weaver's Mask], [Drop of Ichor], [Shackle Key], [Heralds Cloak], [Midnight Shard], [Moonlight Shard], [Shadow Lantern], [Fountain Keeper], [Robes of Yore], [Extraordinary Rock], [Covetous Coffer], [Breath of Mu], [Keepers Maw], [Liars Road], [Beasts Mask], [Wanderlust Communion], [Trounce Legate], [Heat Locket], [Abyssal Drapes], [Tegument Chain], [Nether's Workbench], [Nether's Worktable], [Shadow Bed], [Weaver's Needle], [Shadow Chair], [Stolen From A Sorcerer], [Sun's Tears], [Heartweave Cloak], [Sorcerer's Robes], [Dreamcatcher].
Looking at some of his older Memories, he sighed.
[Breath of Mu], [Keepers Maw], [Liars Road], and [Beasts Mask] were all memories he had received from Ki Song for his Song Suming disguise. With the Memories being able to change his hair, eyes and face, voice, and scent respectively. The [Tegument Chain] was a Memory he had borrowed from the Government, with it currently being used to augment Solvane's skin back in the waking world.
Sunny rubbed his face.
'Now that I'm a Master… Ki Song won't hesitate to put me to work.'
He'd have to be ready to spend longer periods of time as Song Suming now. And considering the fact he was planning on abandoning the Chained Isles to stay at Ravenheart…
Sunny groaned.
'At least the company won't be too bad?'
Sighing, he summoned the runes of his new Memories.
Memory: [Sun's Tears].
Memory Rank: Transcendent.
Memory Tier: I.
Memory Type: Weapon.
Memory Description: [As a long, sorrowful cry of the great beast echoed across the burning city, Sevras stubbornly refused to die. Straining his battered body, he slowly crawled forward, desperately trying to reach the Ivory Tower.
Which he had sworn to protect.
Leaving a trail of blood behind, the beautiful white dragon torturously wrapped his body around the great pagoda and tiredly lowered his head to the ground in front of its gates. His eyes slowly closed.
It was his… his duty.
To protect it.
He was going to, even in death.
He promised…
Laying on the soft grass in the middle of a burning inferno, the dragon let out a soft breath.
He imagined a different picture…
A picture of a beautiful white city, its streets bathing in gentle sunlight... full of happy and kind people... thriving, peaceful, and safe.
A few moments later, Sevras, the Blessed of the Sun, was dead.]
Sunny stared at its description. It had made him… surprisingly emotional.
'Was that what happened back when Kai killed him? What was fated to happen? Interesting…'
Memory Enchantments: [Prismatic], [The Fire], [Subsuming Flame]
[Prismatic] Enchantment Description: [This Memory can store and release light with varying intensity.]
[The Fire] Enchantment Description: [This Memory contains a remnant of the Sun God's lineage, allowing it to grow stronger in the day. Conversely, this Memory grows weaker in the night.]
[Subsuming Flame] Enchantment Description: [This Memory can be absorbed into the user to boost fire-related abilities. When this Memory is subsumed and The Fire is active, the user's resistance to soul and mind related attacks will increase.]
It was thanks to this enchantment as well that Noctis' attack had left Sunny only severely injured rather than crippled.
'All in all… good!'
The Fire being trapped inside a weapon was… certainly interesting. Sadly, the weapon somewhat clashed with Sunny's own abilities, as he would much rather fight in the darkness of the night. Still, it was a great weapon to have.
'Perhaps I'll give it to Nephis one day…'
And the [Subsuming Flame] enchantment…
'So that's what Serpent did.'
He had not had enough time to read the enchantment's entire description back then, so he had not realised it actually had that sort of effect while subsumed. Seeing as his soul hadn't been destroyed, Serpent must have transferred the blade to his soul at the last moment, giving him the blessing of The Fire.
Sunny nodded in satisfaction.
Dismissing the runes, he looked at the next.
Memory: [Heartweave Cloak].
Memory Rank: Transcendent.
Memory Tier: I.
Memory Type: Armour.
Memory Description: [Aidre of the Sacred Grove looked down for a long time, then spoke.
Her voice was quiet and full of sorrow:
"I see… I see now. I understand. I should have known… that out of all of us, you are the bravest. This sacrifice, Solvane... even in the Realm of Shadows, I won't forget it."]
Sunny scrutinized the description.
'Seriously? You couldn't show me anything new? Oh well…'
Memory Enchantments: [Verdant Sun], [Emerald Coat], [Soul of the Wild].
[Verdant Sun] Enchantment Description: [This Memory grows stronger the more potent the wielder's soul is.]
[Emerald Coat] Enchantment Description: [This Memory can be shaped according to the user's will.]
[Soul of the Wild] Enchantment Description: [This Memory boosts the user's absorption of soul essence.]
Sunny looked at it for a while.
'Huh.'
While the Memory would certainly be good on him, he knew someone who could make much better use of it.
'Jet will like this one…'
Her whole thing was souls, it was perfect for her. Sunny was already happy with using the Mantle, he did not need more armour just yet.
Nodding, he dismissed the runes and looked onto the next.
Memory: [Sorcerer's Robes].
Memory Rank: Transcendent.
Memory Tier: I.
Memory Type: Garment.
Sunny paused.
'Garment..? I can wear this on top of armour then. Nice!'
Memory Description: [Noctis turned to his pale friend.
"Have you ever seen a wolf gnaw its paw off to escape a trap? Ah… it's a terrible thing to behold. I wouldn't wish such a fate on anyone."
The immortal sighed, gazing upon Desire's prison.
"Wolves… are meant to be free."]
Sunny felt his chest tighten.
'Ah… I'd ask you to forgive me but… we've never truly met, have we?'
He could still remember his final conversation with the previous Noctis. He could never forget something like that.
This time, their final conversation hadn't even taken place, as Noctis' had been filled with blood so he couldn't speak.
Sunny swallowed hard before looking at the enchantments to distract himself.
Memory Enchantments: [Master of Sorcery], [Thing of Beauty], [Fine Silk], [Scoundrel].
[Master of Sorcery] Enchantment Description: [This Memory enhances the wielder's ability to perform all manners of sorcery.]
'W-What?!'
Sunny looked at it.
'Even weaving? That's… that's kind of crazy!'
He would've been happy with a boost to his mental acuity to help with his sorcery, but this… this was much better!
Sunny couldn't help but smile slightly despite his mood.
[Thing of Beauty] Enchantment Description: [This Memory is visually stunning. Only those born with shit for brains would fail to see it.]
Sunny… didn't react. For a while.
Then he blinked.
'Does it really say that?'
He read it again.
'...Okay. Thanks Spell.'
[Fine Silk] Enchantment Description: [This Memory is exceedingly comfortable to wear and increases the wearer's control over essence as well as increasing its rate of replenishment.]
'...Nice? I didn't expect that.'
Seeing an enchantment named [Fine Silk] made Sunny believe it would also be something stupid like the previous enchantment.
He nodded in satisfaction.
…That was until he read the final enchantment.
[Scoundrel] Enchantment Description: [No Armour can be worn beneath this Memory.]
Sunny paused.
"Huh?"
He read it again.
"Huh??"
No armour can be worn beneath it?! Then why was it even a garment type Memory?!
Sunny immediately tried to summon it.
…The robes instead appeared floating in front of him, as if to mock him.
'You…'
Then, he dismissed the Mantle and resummoned it.
This time, the robe appeared on him.
'Woah… nevermind.'
The enchantments were not lying at all…
A fine red robe covered his upper body, reaching slightly past his waist. Below that were a pair of long black pants, equally as stylish.
Sunny didn't really care about the style, but…
'It's damn comfortable!'
Then, he took a look at himself with his shadow.
'...'
"Oh."
So that's why the enchantment was called [Scoundrel].
The top half of his robe was… quite revealing, showing much of his lean and sculpted physique.
'I… I guess I've seen people wearing worse?'
Most Awakened tended to care about how powerful Memories were over how nice they looked, and Sunny was of the same mind.
'Still, I think I should save this for private places…'
He wouldn't want people staring at his abs all the time, especially on a battlefield.
'Would they even stare? Hm… it could be a good distraction during battle.'
Sunny didn't think his physique was anything special. Only his marble-like skin was something of note.
He sighed, shaking his head.
…He left the robes on.
Dismissing the runes, he'd been waiting to check the whole time.
[Dreamcatcher]
The Spell had called it a Relic, yet it had ended up in his Memory list anyways.
'Then again, my Aspect Legacy rewards are called Relics too. It must be like the Shadow Lantern?'
The moment he opened the runes though, he was sorely disappointed.
[Dreamcatcher]
Rank: Divine.
Tier: VII.
Type: Tool?
'...Tool? Why is it a question?'
The description didn't even call it a memory…
Description: []
Enchantments: [?], [
'Wha…'
The Spell didn't even know how many enchantments it had, abruptly cutting off halfway.
'Just what is this?'
The fact that it was classified as a Divine Memory of the seventh tier had already made Sunny jump, but he couldn't make out what it did at all. Even when he shifted his vision, nothing changed.
…Only when he put the Memory right in his face did he realise the problem.
As it had been created by Hope, it wasn't created using Spell weaves. The Memory had been put in his soul directly rather than transferred to him by the Spell as well. It being in the Memories section was purely for convenience it seemed.
And when he looked closely…
'These are… runes?'
Sunny… couldn't read them.
Not because he was bad at reading runes, but because the runes were extremely, extremely small. Only when he brushed his fingers against it did he realise his theory was correct.
'H-Holy shit…'
What looked like a simple dreamcatcher… was actually a genuine Divine Relic. Hope had said it would help him with his nightmares, and he had thought that was it. But then… Why were there millions upon millions of microscopic runes engraved upon it?
'Just… just what have you given me? What the hell does this do?'
Just looking at it, Sunny could feel a subtle connection between it and him.
A sudden idea came to mind as Sunny dismissed it.
Diving into his Soul Sea, he saw it again.
Hanging from… somewhere, was the Dreamcatcher. It was no smaller than the colossal dark suns floating in the sky of his Soul Sea, dangling over them menacingly.
'W-Woah…'
Now that Sunny could see again, he also confirmed the fact that the [Veil] did indeed cover his cores in dark clouds.
Exiting his Soul Sea, Sunny summoned it again.
'D-Damn?'
In the real world, the Dreamcatcher was only barely bigger than the Shadow Lantern, but in his soul it was downright titanic.
Sunny shuddered in excitement.
"Thank you, Hope. Truly."
Dismissing his runes, Sunny allowed the Spell to finish its appraisal.
[Final appraisal: Glorious. Your treachery truly knows no bounds.]
He had expected the Spell to finish by now, but it was still waiting for him to allow it to continue. Sunny nodded in expectation.
[—, receive your boon!]
[Your Aspect is ready to evolve. Evolve Aspect?]
"..."
Sunny stared in silence.
"Huh?"