Sunny looked around at the people surrounding him, taking in the battered remnants of what had once been a force a seven hundred strong. More had survived the battle than he'd dared hope.
About half the hunters were present, grim and blood‑splattered, A dozen artisans huddled together nearby, clutching their weapons like lifelines. He spotted Kido leaning heavily on a spear, speaking quietly to Gemma, who was so drenched in blood he looked like he was carved from crimson coral.
Surrounding an injured Seishan were nearly twenty handmaidens, forming a protective ring around her. Their armors were torn and smeared with gore, but their posture remained rigid and disciplined.
A short distance away, standing apart from everyone else, was a cluster of around forty guards.
Other than them, roughly a hundred of Nephis's followers had survived as well. Counting everyone, around two hundred Sleepers had made it into the Crimson Spire.
Two hundred… out of the thousand who had lived on the Forgotten Shore when Sunny first arrived.
Only two hundred had survived long enough to see even a sliver of hope.
Sunny's jaw tightened. He scanned the crowd for familiar faces. Nephis stood tall despite her exhaustion, Cassie at her side. Kai was still on the floor where Sunny had dumped him. Effie was slumped against a wall, breathing hard, her spear resting across her knees. Aiko sat on the floor with her head bowed, wiping tears from her cheeks with trembling hands. Caster was in the middle of the guards, speaking in hushed tones, gesturing sharply.
Sunny narrowed his eyes, that could be a problem.
He tore his gaze away and looked up into the depths of the Crimson Spire. The hollow tower stretched impossibly high, its interior walls crawling with massive growths of crimson coral.
Neph's calm voice cut through the murmurs.
"It's time to go. Gather your strength. We are almost there!"
Her words rippled through the Sleepers. Tired eyes lifted. Shoulders straightened. The faint, flickering light of hope ignited again. Slowly, they rose. Those who could walk supported those who couldn't. The unconscious were carried by friends, comrades, or whoever had the strength left to lift them.
Soon, the procession began moving deeper into the Spire. Nephis walked at the front, holding Cassie's hand. Sunny moved beside them, matching her pace.
They approached the center of the Spire, where a vast, perfectly still pool of dark water lay. Its surface was so smooth it looked like polished obsidian. No one could tell how deep it went but Sunny felt as though it was unimaginably deep.
It contained the Dark Sea after all.
He tore his gaze away and glanced into the shadows. His frown deepened.
All around them, hidden just beyond the reach of the lantern light, countless coral golems stood motionless. These weren't the heroic statues from outside, no ancient warriors or legendary figures. These were crude imitations of ordinary people.
Sunny was certain every human here could destroy dozens of them. But there were thousands, and those were only the ones he could see.
"Neph," he murmured, "there are golems in the shadows. Thousands. They look dormant… for now."
She glanced into the darkness, then nodded.
"We will be careful."
She paused, then asked quietly.
"Can you see the gateway?"
Sunny shook his head.
"No, we'll have to go up. I can't see any stairs, but a lot of those coral pillars are wide enough to walk on."
He pointed toward the nearest pillar and stepped forward.
Nephis grabbed his arm and yanked him back.
"Everyone, back!"
A heartbeat later, a wide ray of blinding light slashed down from somewhere above, sweeping across the interior of the Spire. The darkness vanished in an instant, replaced by searing brilliance.
Sunny didn't need to experience it to know the ray carried the same soul‑destroying power as the sunlight outside, only stronger.
"Hide in the shadows!"
The Sleepers scrambled. Most dove behind coral growths. A few weren't fast enough.
They didn't scream. They didn't struggle. They simply… stopped.
Collapsed like puppets with their strings cut, their souls extinguished in a single, merciless instant.
'...Crap.'
Sunny tightened his grip on his odachi and turned to Nephis.
"What now?"
She hesitated, then spoke evenly.
"Someone will have to attack the Crimson Terror directly to draw its attention away."
Sunny stared at her, a wave of déjà vu washing over him.
"And who might that be?"
Changing Star sighed and took a step back, summoning her silver sword in her left hand.
"...Me. It has to be me."
He frowned, feeling very reluctant to say his next words. But in the end, he still couldn't help but say them:
"Are you crazy? That's a Fallen Terror we're talking about!"
Nephis didn't answer, instead looking up, as though trying to discern the source of the blinding rays of annihilating light.
Sunny gritted his teeth and added.
"Alright, whatever. Say someone really needs to distract that thing. But why does it have to be you alone? Because you are the great daughter of the Immortal Flame clan? Don't tell me that you started to believe in your own bullcrap!"
Neph gave him a strange look and then shook her head.
"No. It can only be me because of my swords."
Sunny blinked and looked at the two swords she was holding, a silver blade with an enchantment that protects against soul damage, and a black blade as sharp as any transcendent weapon.
"...Right, that makes sense, actually. Still-"
Without giving him a chance to voice his objections, Neph turned to Cassie and took her hand.
"Cas. Give me your wing cloak."
A few seconds later, the transparent fabric of the Dark Wing appeared on her shoulder. Without wasting any time, she then looked at Sunny.
"Once I'm gone, lead the people to the Gateway. Make sure that everyone escapes."
With that, Nephis bent her knees, and then jumped with all her might. Supported by the enchanted cloak, she shot up with considerable speed, then pushed herself off the pillar of coral and flew into the darkness.
Gritting his teeth, Sunny glanced at the Sleepers and yelled.
"Follow me!"
He took the lead of the host and sent two of his shadows ahead to search for the gateway.
Faking a confidence he didn't feel, he took Cassie's hand and guided the sleepers up the coral growths into the darkness above.
A prickling sensation crawled up his spine. Glancing over his shoulder, he saw the golems begin to move.
"Those at the back! Ready your weapons!"
The rearguard reacted instantly, steel scraping free as the first of the Sleepers clambered up the root behind him.
Only half of them managed to climb before the golems reached the defenders.
The first coral construct shattered the moment a sword struck it, collapsing into a harmless heap of fragments.
Then more appeared. And more. And more, crawling out of the darkness like a crimson wall.
The Sleepers destroyed the first wave easily, buying precious seconds for more humans to scramble up onto the root.
"Damnation!"
Sunny cursed under his breath. At this rate, they were going to lose too many people.
He summoned Saint. The stone knight materialized beside him, Sunny hesitated only a moment before tossing her his transcendent odachi and sending his remaining two shadows to reinforce her
"Buy us some time! Fall back if it becomes too dangerous!"
Saint gave a single, silent nod. Then she leapt.
She landed between the Sleepers and the oncoming golems like a falling star. A heartbeat later, she became a blur of motion, eviscerating anything within reach. Coral bodies exploded around her in showers of shards.
With Saint drawing the attention of the horde, the rest of the Sleeper army surged upward.
At the front, Sunny lifted Cassie into his arms and jumped the small gap to the next growth. The others followed his lead, one after another, as they continued their desperate climb.
He ran forward, and froze.
Above them, only a few dozen meters away, a wide gallery encircled the Crimson Spire. And on it… another army of coral golems.
They surged toward the Dreamers like a wave. Many slipped and plummeted into the abyss below, shattering on impact, but some landed on the coral roots, including the one Sunny stood on now.
Gritting his teeth, he looked down. Far below, Saint was still slaughtering the golem horde.
'Damn, I really liked that sword.'
With a grimace, he dismissed her, and resummoned her beside him. She appeared with minor wounds etched into her stone body, but was still more than capable of fighting.
"Clear a path."
Saint obeyed instantly, lunging into the golems blocking their ascent.
Sunny followed close behind, adjusting his hold on Cassie as she clung to him. She sent Quiet Dancer forward, the blade weaving through the chaos to support Saint.
He led the Dreamer Army upward, step by agonizing step. Every few minutes they were forced to abandon one coral root and leap to another, or cross narrow stone galleries jutting from the Spire's walls. The climb became a grueling, chaotic procession.
At some point, both the vanguard of the human procession became embroiled in a rolling melee with the horde of coral golems. Those in the middle only had to keep their eyes on the layers of coral and stone structures overhead to make sure that nothing fell on them. In the rear, the tide of golems Saint had held back was slowly closing the distance to the army.
'Where are you… where are you…'
Sunny suppressed another curse. Where was the damn Gateway?
And then, finally, his shadows found it
Out in the darkness, a vast balcony jutted from the Spire's inner wall, reaching almost to the center of the gargantuan structure. Broken marble pillars rose from its surface, overgrown with streaks of crimson coral. They framed a circular dais, where a wide iron ring lay embedded in the stone.
Around the ring, a beautiful pattern of runes was shimmering with familiar light. They were just like those runes that every Awakened had seen countless times when communicating with the Spell.
Around the ring, a pattern of runes shimmered with a familiar, spell-touched light.
But that wasn't what made Sunny hopeful.
The dais was clean. Not a single growth of crimson coral marred its surface.
That alone made it stand out like a beacon.
This was the Gateway.
They were close.
Looking at the shimmering runes and the iron rings through his shadow, Sunny felt something move in his heart.
He was sure that this was the Gateway.
They were so close…
As he watched it, the whole Spire suddenly shuddered. Massive pieces of coral broke off and fell down, crashing into other branches down below. Suddenly, the darkness that surrounded the Dreamer Army became less impenetrable.
High above them, the radiant halo of light became several times brighter.
Nephis had reached the Crimson Terror.
Sunny drew a deep breath, steadied himself, and followed Saint as she carved a path toward the balcony.
As soon as he saw an opening, he leapt onto the platform.
He set Cassie gently on her feet and immediately threw himself back into the fray beside Saint. The stone knight carved through the coral monstrosities with precision, and Sunny filled the gaps she left behind, cutting down anything that slipped past her reach.
More and more Sleepers vaulted onto the platform behind them, until the first hundred survivors crowded onto the vast balcony.
"Come on! We're almost there!"
Sunny shouted as he surged forward, leading the charge straight into the writhing mass of coral golems.
The vanguard slammed into the abominations with desperate fury, behind them, the rest of the army scrambled onto the platform. Together, they pushed the golems back long enough to break through the last line of resistance.
Running with all the speed they could manage, the crowd of young men and women approached the Gateway and froze, stunned by the sight of it.
Hypnotized by it.
In front of them... was the hope that they had forgotten for so long.
"What are you staring at, idiots?! Pick up your jaws and move! Battle formation! Protect the rear! Wounded and non-combatants go first, everyone else holds off the damn golems and then follows! One at a time, bastards!"
Sunny roared, snapping them out of their stupor. The Sleepers quickly reorganized themselves.Those who could still fight faced away from the Gateway and formed a defensive line, protecting the wounded. Those who couldn't helped the people in the worst condition enter the iron ring.
As the first sleeper entered the gateway, the runes surrounding the ring flashed with shimmering light. And the body of the sleeper began to shine as well, the light grew brighter and brighter until it disappeared along with the sleeper.
After all these years, all that suffering, all that loss, the first Sleeper had finally escaped the Forgotten Shore.
Looking through the emptiness left by the disappearance, Sunny realized that he had forgotten to breathe.
A second later, an exhilarated cheer rose above the crowd of humans.
In the next moment, the pursuing wave of golems crashed into the defensive line, and the next human stepped into the Gateway.
The defenders held their ground, throwing the coral creatures back.
Sunny scanned the crowd of sleepers.
And, just as he had expected, Caster was nowhere to be seen.
His gaze flicked to Saint. Her stone body was cracked and chipped, wounds from her battle with the ancient heroes worsened by the climb and the brutal melee.
Sunny dismissed her to be healed in his soul sea.
'You did well Saint.'
And she did, thanks to Saint doing the bulk of the fighting during the climb up the spire, Sunny was fresh and ready to fight.
He moved through the crowd of humans and approached its edge, someone suddenly called out his name.
Turning his head, Sunny saw Effie. The huntress was carrying the unconscious body of Kai on one shoulder, and keeping Cassie close to her own under another. The blind girl's face was ashen, confused, and empty.
"Doofus! Where are you going?"
Sunny stared at her for a few moments, and then suddenly smiled.
"...There's just some unfinished business I need to deal with. Take care, you three. I will… see you later. I hope."
With that, he took a step back and disappeared into the shadows.
Summoning the Dark Wing and the Prowling Thorn, Sunny jumped off the edge of the stone balcony. In the next second, his dagger bit into a fractured coral branch high above. With a sharp pull, Sunny sent himself flying upward, the transparent cloak turning into a blur behind his back.
All around him, the interior of the Crimson Spire was starting to shudder and quake. Vast coral roots were shattering and plunging down as massive slabs of coral collided against lower branches, they were pulverized in turn.
Sunny deftly avoided the falling debris, ascending the spire and soaring higher and higher.
He had sent Gloomy ahead to search for Caster, instead it found a group of six guards waiting in ambush.
Sunny narrowed his eyes as one of the guards pointed in his direction and another hurled a javelin towards him.
Sunny scoffed, until the javelin detonated mid‑air, erupting into a cone of razor‑sharp splinters.
Shit!
He flung the kunai into the nearest root and yanked himself sideways, twisting his body to shield the Dark Wing. He hit the root hard, rolled, and hissed as pain flared in his thigh. A dagger‑sized splinter jutted from the muscle.
"Damnation! I don't have time for this!"
He ripped it out, dismissed the Dark Wing, and sprinted up the root with a snarl.
Another javelin flew. Gloomy rejoined him, flooding him with a burst of speed. Sunny blurred past the projectile just before it exploded behind him.
As he neared the ambushers, he hurled the Prowling Thorn at the guard who had pointed him out. The wire wrapped around the man's ankle.
Sunny stomped, yanked with all his strength, and sent the guard flying into one of his comrades. Both screamed as they tumbled off the root into the abyss.
He dismissed the kunai and surged forward.
The remaining guards lost sight of him in the darkness.
Sunny erupted from the shadows like a feral beast. The Midnight Shard punched through the heart of the middle vanguard. The Moonlight Shard spun through the air and buried itself in another guard's skull.
Before the remaining duo could react, Sunny lashed out with a brutal kick, launching another one of them off the root and screaming to their doom.
Sunny stalked towards the last guard, only the javelin‑thrower remained.
The man opened his mouth to speak.
Sunny's blade took his head before he could make a sound.
He didn't spare the corpse a glance. Sunny summoned the Dark Wing and Prowling Thorn, leaping off the root he began ascending once more.
After a few torturous minutes, he finally found Caster.
Sunny burst from a cloud of coral dust, Weaver's Mask forming over his face. A crimson trail hung in the air as he landed on a wide root in a nimble roll. A moment later, he jumped to his feet and stood silently in the darkness, waiting for Caster to appear.
A faint speck of light flickered in the distance, small at first, then growing rapidly brighter as it cut through the darkness. Caster was climbing fast, almost at the upper reaches of the Spire. His lantern's glow washed over the shattered roots and broken branches… and then it illuminated Sunny.
Caster froze mid‑ascent.
They looked at each other, one born into privilege, trained since childhood, polished into a perfect Legacy. The other a gutter rat from the outskirts, a nobody who had clawed his way through hell with nothing but spite, stubbornness, and a talent for surviving the impossible.
Caster's eyes narrowed as he took in Sunny's appearance, the fearsome mask was new, but the armor and weapon was a clear identifier.
His lip curled.
"You're here. I was hoping those pests would buy me some more time."
Behind the mask, Sunny smiled.
"No, no. You're mistaken. I'm not here."
He tilted his head, adopting a tone of exaggerated surprise.
"Oh! Hey, Caster. What a coincidence, running into you here of all places. So unexpected! Ah, it must be fate…"
Caster stared at him in silence, jaw tight. Then he slowly lifted his gaze toward the furious radiance pulsing above. After a long breath, he lowered his head again, expression hardening.
"…It's good, actually. Now you can answer some questions."
His Jian materialized in his hand. He leveled the blade at Sunny
"You, you're a member of the Shadow Clan."
Sunny blinked behind the mask.
'Shadow Clan? There's a Shadow Clan?'
"Yes," he said smoothly. "I am."
Caster scoffed, though warrieness flickered behind his eyes.
"I suppose I should be honored, then. The first one of your kind ever seen."
He stepped forward, lantern light casting sharp shadows across his face.
"I have many questions, but let's start with the important ones. Why has your clan been protecting Changing Star? How have you hidden from us for so long? And lastly… why did your sovereign kill Asterion."
Sunny paused.
That was.. a lot of information to take in.
Just from this, Sunny could discern that the Shadow Clan must be powerful, and likely on Neph's side, whether that's a good thing or not is still up in the air.
Also, Asterion, it sounded familiar, could he be the Aster that Neph mentioned at that damned tree?
His Flaw tugged at him, demanding an answer. Luckily, he had no idea what the truth was, so he could lie freely.
He shrugged.
"We protect Neph because of, oh, you know… nefarious reasons. Helping her rise up, overthrow some tyrannical ghouls, make her ruler of humanity. The usual."
Caster visibly flinched at that.
Sunny continued casually.
"And as for hiding? More like how have you not noticed? We're everywhere. Hell, I think we even have a few people in the Han Li clan."
Caster paled, knuckles whitening around his sword.
Sunny lowered his voice.
"As for Asterion… well… our sovereign decided to go for a walk that day."
Caster exhaled shakily, eyes narrowing.
"You know far too much for a mere Sleeper. You… have Shadow's lineage, don't you?"
Sunny laughed.
"I do!" he lied cheerfully. Then inspiration struck. "I suppose introductions are in order."
He swept into an exaggerated bow.
"Sunless, Prince of Shadow. I will offer you mercy.""
Caster snarled.
"You may be a prince, but you are no warrior, just a mere assassin! Without the element of surprise you don't stand a chance! You think your little schemes and secrets will give you a chance against a true Legacy? I figured them out a long time ago."
Sunny remained silent for a bit and then asked in an indifferent tone.
"Oh yeah? Do tell. What are my secrets, exactly?"
The Legacy grinned.
"You hid your strength and pretended to be weak. You go around telling ridiculous tales, making everyone think that you are a lunatic. At first, I thought that you had lost your mind, too. But once I started paying attention, it was so obvious. The constant misdirections, the obnoxious bragging that no sane person would ever believe, the crazy act… this is your Flaw, isn't it?"
As Sunny tensed, Caster smiled triumphantly and said:
"...You are compelled to lie against your will. Did you really think that no one would see the pattern? You even bribed that idol friend of yours to try and mislead everyone. A pathetic attempt. Were you expecting that anyone would buy it?"
Sunny stared at him for a few moments, and then exploded with laughter.
"Ah, crap. You got me! Yes, you are right. This is my Flaw. What sane person would go around telling such outrageous lies?!"
Then, he pierced Caster with a murderous gaze and said.
"Do you truly believe that now?"
Caster faltered, realization and confusion settling on his face.
Sunny continued, tone almost sympathetic.
"Ah, but...Sadly, it seems that I am at a disadvantage in that regard. It is such a shame that I have no idea what your Flaw is, huh? That I haven't figured it out a long time ago, too."
Caster looked at him, a corner of his mouth turning downward. In the light of the Memory lantern, he looked handsome and confident.
...Mature.
There was a short beard on his face, and a few gray hairs in his luscious mane.
Hidden behind the mask, Sunny smiled:
"It is so sad that I don't know that your powerful, incredible, amazing Aspect Ability shortens your lifespan every time you use it, and that you reverse its effect on your body with a charm Memory in the shape of a sand glass. Ah, if only I was more observant! Too bad I am not."
The Legacy stared at him with a dark expression, his face slowly turning pale. After a while, he uttered.
"...It doesn't matter. After I fulfill my duty and return to the real world, the Awakening will allow me to take back the years that had been stolen from me. While you, rat, will stay in this cursed place fo-"
Before he was done talking, a heavy triangular blade suddenly flew into his face. As a hint of outrage gleamed in Caster's eyes, his blade rang as he swatted the kunai away and turned into a blur, lunging at Sunny with astonishing speed.
Invisible to a human eye, the string of the Prowling Thorn was wrapped around two coral outcroppings, drawn across the wide root right ahead of him. And the proud Legacy was about to…
A green light flashed through the air, and Sunny felt his wrist jerk back, the tension of the string suddenly gone.
"Tch."
He clicked his tongue.
A fraction of a second later, Caster was on him.
Caster was moving with astonishing speed, his figure turning into a blur. His Flaw was a cruel one, but the power of the Aspect Ability he possessed was also incredible.
However.
Sunny was no ordinary Sleeper
He had a divine aspect, as well as four soul cores. With all his shadows empowering him, Sunny nearly matched Casters speed much to the legacy's astonishment.
Their blades collided.
Sparks burst from the impact. The shockwave rippled through the coral root beneath them.
Caster was more skilled, his swordsmanship honed by tutors, masters, and a lifetime of privilege. He was slightly faster, too.
But Sunny was stronger. Much stronger. Each clash sent a jolt up Caster's arms, rattling bone and tendon. Sunny absorbed the force with ease.
Caster leapt back, hands trembling.
"Damned mongrel!"
He lunged again, fury overriding caution.
Anyone else would have been overwhelmed instantly. But Sunny had studied him. He had prepared for this moment ever since Nephis warned him of Caster's intentions. He knew the Legacy's rhythm, his habits, his essence of combat.
Caster slashed at Sunny's side.
Sunny blocked.
'Up…'
He had begun to chain the next move even before the two blades collided. A split second later, the Legacy brought down his sword in a downward slash, aiming at Sunny's head.
Sunny deflected it
'Thrust at the neck…'
Caster lunged. Sunny tilted his head, letting the blade whistle past his cheek. He countered with a swift slash, carving a shallow line across Caster's stomach.
But Caster flowed with the motion, turning his failed thrust into a sweeping slash. Sunny twisted, but not fast enough, steel slashed his chest, leaving a burning cut.
No matter how cunning and perfect Sunny's movements were, he couldn't make up for his lack of speed completely. Months of training, hundreds of battles, countless hours spent gaining insight into the inner workings of swordsmanship... Caster had done all of that, too, and then some.
Sunny feinted a block and dodged the blade of Caster's sword instead, then whipped his empty hand forward, as though trying to punch the Legacy in the head.
At the last moment, however, a ghostly stiletto appeared in his hand.
…Only to be thrown aside by a powerful hit of the jian.
Sparing him a contemptuous glance, Caster snarled.
"Cretin! Have you forgotten that I was there when Changing Star gave you that Memory?!"
Sunny gritted his teeth and lashed out with the austere tachi, buying himself a moment to regroup.
"I guess it slipped my mind!"
With that, he suddenly hurled the Moonlight Shard at the Legacy, then followed it with a fearsome thrust of his sword. Caster easily dodged the stiletto, deflected the tachi, and drove a savage kick into Sunny's stomach.
Sunny grinned.
He caught Caster's foot mid‑air and twisted it one hundred and eighty degrees.
Caster screamed as he was yanked off his feet and slammed onto his back.
He lashed out with his jian, but Sunny leaned back, letting the blade slice through empty air.
Sunny reversed his grip on the Midnight Shard and drove it through Caster's sword arm, pinning it to the coral root.
Caster hissed, reaching for the blade with his free hand.
Sunny grabbed his wrist and crushed it, feeling the bone snap under his grip.
Caster's scream choked into a gasp.
Sunny rose slowly, looking down at the battered scion of the Han Li clan.
And then, something strange happened.
The entire Crimson Spire suddenly shuddered. This quake was much stronger than all the previous ones, making it feel as though the gargantuan structure was about to topple. Sunny heard the deafening sound of breaking stone.
Almost at the same time, he was suddenly enveloped in absolute darkness, all light disappearing from the echoing interior of the ancient tower.
'Wha… what is happening?'
Confused and disoriented, Sunny looked around.
Why was it so dark?
Following a premonition, he then raised his head and glanced up.
'...What?'
The furious light of the Crimson Terror was gone.
He felt something shift in his being, something new that wasn't there moments before.
His eyes widened, he knew what this was, he had been getting warnings about it ever since he left the cathedral.
[Soul Conduit.]
An unnatural calmness overtook him.
He looked back to Caster.
"It looks like it's your lucky day." Sunny said.
He reached up, removed Weaver's Mask, and dismissed it into his soul sea.
"Wha-"
Caster didn't finish.
Sunny punched him in the head, knocking him out cold.
***
Nephis stared into the distance with hollow eyes.
The world around her was still trembling from the death of the Fallen Terror, but she barely felt it. Her body was numb. Her mind was numb. Everything was Numb.
She had fought the Fallen Terror.
She had won.
She had done the impossible.
She had hoped that she could go back to the waking world, that Cassie's prophecy wouldn't come true.
She was wrong.
The evidence was the attribute the damnable spell had given her.
[Soul Conduit]
Nephis had slain the vessel of the false sun that shines on the Forgotten Shore, and it demanded a replacement.
The chance that Sunny had left her behind and gone through the gateway was close to zero.
The chance that they were the only sleepers left in this spire was almost a certainty.
One of them had to remain so the other could escape.
Even through the numbing pain of her Aspect, Nephis felt the sting of tears. She swallowed hard, forcing them back.
She wanted to cry.
Sunny was the best thing that ever happened to her, ever since he had saved them at the soul devouring tree he had become an irreplaceable part of her life.
Thinking back, they didn't even get to spend much time together after that.
Not after she said something foolish and drove him away.
It wasn't until she helped him kill the devil in the cathedral that their relationship went back to normal.
Better than normal, actually.
She smiled softly at the memories of their time in the Bright Castle.
Nephs knew what she was going to do. She would stay and Sunny would leave.
Even if she had to deceive him. Even if she had to fight him… Even if she had to use his true name.
Unlike her, Sunny still had family in the real world, he had a reason to go back.
"You… you actually killed it."
Neph flinched, noticing Sunny's presence for the first time, a corpse on his shoulder.
Then, she slowly turned her head and looked at him with empty, lost eyes. Only after a few seconds, a hint of recognition appeared in them.
She remained silent for a while, and then said in a hollow voice:
"...Sunny. You are finally here."
Seconds passed by, the silence between them full of untold meaning.
Finally, Nephis blinked and looked away, staring at the corpse of the Crimson Terror. Her sword hand trembling slightly.
"...Killed it? Yes… I did. Got lucky, I guess…"
After a while, she added in a quiet voice:
"It was just a fake star, in the end."
"Lucky… I know a thing or two about being lucky, Neph. A creature like this would not have died just because of bad luck."
She could hear the smile in his voice.
She remained silent for a bit, then sighed and looked down.
"It was evolving… trying to become a titan. The burden of transformation made it vulnerable. I just happened to attack while the Terror was at its weakest. That's why it died… Have you not thought about what we have done?"
"I have," Sunny said. "It's why I brought this with me."
He smirked and tossed the body off his shoulder
It hit the ground with a grunt.
Nephis's eyes widened.
…That wasn't a corpse, that's Caster, a very much still alive Caster.
Sunny's smirk turned into a grin, and he held out his hand to her.
"Come on, let's go home."
Her breath hitched.
She unsteadily rose to her feet and ran towards him, tears starting to form in the corner of her eyes.
She didn't grasp his hand, she all but tackled him as she threw her arms around him.
Sunny grunted at the impact, and he started to laugh.
"I like the enthusiasm, hold tight, it's a long way down." He said, still grinning
He leaned back.
"Huh?" Nephis started as they started to plummet to down the center of the spire, the world rushing past in a blur of collapsing coral and swirling dust.
Tightening her hold on him, she matched Sunny's grin and summoned her Dark Wing at the same time he did.
Together, with almost unnatural coordination, they wove through the falling debris, dodging massive slabs of coral, twisting around shattered roots, diving through narrow gaps as the Spire collapsed around them.
At the last possible moment, they halted their descent, rolling onto the platform in a tangle of limbs and laughter.
They rose, breathless, and sprinted toward the Gateway.
With a final look to each other, they disappeared in a brilliant light.
***
A/N: Aaaaand I'm back, how ya all been? How'd ya like the chapter? I made it extra long on purpose, and definitely did not have to delay it so I could cram the last of the forgotten shore in a single chapter... definitely...
I should be back to regular weekly updates next week, hopefully, probably.