The days and nights flew by. The duo had passed the nights with relative ease, only struggling on the nights that had a Blood Forsakened.
Still, with the help of the Starlight Lantern, they didn't have any experience similar to the 10th night.
They still struggled heavily, as the Starlight Lantern never fought directly, but the Blood Forsakened would always be weakened or distracted, letting Rein deal a fatal wound with Void element.
They had not even seen the Starlight Lantern or watched it fight, but they knew it was somehow helping them.
The duo had now reached the 100th day.
"Even though the damn lantern said it would be back on the 99th night, it didn't say anything. It just wished us luck for the upcoming night…" Rein said with visible anger
Over 50 days had passed, and she had grown considerably stronger.
Her sword skills were now past the amateur level, being nearly on par with an elite swordsman.
Her archery was also now above excellent, with her barely missing an arrow anymore.
However, she was starting to get more and more impatient the closer they got to the final night, even though she didn't let it show much.
The stress of having to defeat a Wretched Forsakened had been eating at her mind.
'She's matured quite a bit from the well nurtured child. She's even started butchering the Forsakened corpses with me… though that might just be a way to take out her anger.' Ciel thought
He himself had grown much stronger, being able to use Spirit Essence quite effectively on his body for greater physical boosts.
"Let's visit the Soul World. We won't be coming here again until we clear this Special Gate. If we clear it…" Ciel said
"We'll clear it. The damn lantern said it knows a trick, and for us to take it easy." Rein replied
"For someone who hates him, you seem to trust him quite a bit." Ciel said jokingly
"I don't. It's just that if it doesn't, I'll make sure it dies a painful death tonight." Rein said as they entered the Soul World
"We're still at 61% Spirit Charge… We've only gained 11% since the 10th night." Rein said while being dispirited
"Well, the nights have been easier due to the Starlight Lantern helping us. At least that doesn't affect the Stone of Eternity. It has grown quite large with all the Forsaken Cores." Ciel replied
The Stone of Eternity was now like a huge dark blue rock in the Soul World. It was about 2.5 metres in height, and 3 metres in length and width.
The diameter of the Soul World was now around 133 metres
"If we get back to the real world, we'd be rich from all of these resources. The only thing we can use these for is to create winter gear, which we already have a lot of." Ciel said looking at the piles of Forsakened pelt
He had created a few pairs in his free time. He slowly perfected them as time passed, making them top quality and his best works.
They could go outside for much longer before freezing.
They both looked around, thinking about what they would do if they made it out of this frozen hellscape.
"Well then, let's go. There's no time to waste." Rein said
The final night was about to begin
There were many preparations that they had made for the final night during the waiting times.
They exited the Soul World, and watched as the sun set from their windows.
They were living in the ice buildings in peace during the days.
[ Sadly, we can't bring any of this stuff out of here… ] Rein said
They tried taking some of the furniture into the Soul World, but when the night came, it would all disappear, going back to its original location in the Special Gate.
If there was one thing they would miss, it was the luxury of the furniture here.
Soon, the sun set with the duo being sent outside the ice building as usual.
[ Alright… let's hope we survive this. ] Ciel said
A few minutes passed, but nothing exited from the underground staircase.
[ Maybe it already escaped and we didn't see it… shit, this is seriously freaking me out. ] Rein said tensely
Both of them were slightly petrified, with their bodies slightly trembling. Not from the cold, but from facing an unknown horror.
Still, their mind was calm and rational, and it was only their natural instincts giving them the fear.
Suddenly, a beautiful and majestic lantern manifested itself in front of them.
Rein jumped in fright, but quickly calmed down. It was the Starlight Lantern.
"Hey… where is the Wretched Forsakened?" Rein whispered
"Right here." The Starlight Lantern replied
"...?"
"It's me. What, did you think a random Forsakened would appear? I'm the Soul Core of this Special Gate, so it's obvious I'm the final boss."
"Also, I'm not a Forsakened."
They both glared at the Starlight Lantern with pure malice.
They couldn't even hit it, as it would break their Soul Contract.
"You fucking bastard… I'll kill you. There's no way you didn't do this on purpose…" Rein said through gritted teeth
All the preparations made were now utterly pointless.
They had wasted so much time for nothing.
"To be fair, I just wanted to have a little fun. I've been stuck here for 1,000 years, and I'm finally about to escape."
Just how strong would a Wretched Forsakened be? Well, apparently tonight wasn't when they were going to find out.
Still, on the inside, both Ciel and Rein were quite glad. They didn't want to fight this battle at any cost, and their prayers had just been answered.
'1,000 years?' Ciel thought to himself
How did this lantern end up stuck as a Special Gate for a thousand years?
"Whatever. Now what do we need to do to clear this night?" Ciel asked
"Nothing. In 1 hour, this night will be over, and we'll all be sent out of here."
"I've also gained all my current power, making me equal to a strong Blood Forsakened."
"Just so you know, the rules of the night are over now. You can destroy the ice buildings if you want." The Starlight Lantern said
Ciel nodded and entered one of the ice buildings.
He was planning to mark some of the useful furniture before leaving this place.
'I guess this worked out in the end.' He thought as he took some of the furniture into the Soul World
The hour gradually passed by, with Ciel being satisfied with the final reward.
The furniture was too comfortable to pass up. If Ciel ever needed to decorate a house, he would have most of the parts needed with him.
It was now time to go back.
Ciel picked up the Starlight Lantern and gave his hand to Rein.
It wouldn't be good if they were all separated in the surroundings when going back to the Emerald Forest.
Rein accepted the hand without any questioning.
[ Hey, so you think that Blood Bear is going to be waiting for us out there? ] Rein asked
[ Don't jinx it. Well, even if it is, we have a chance of defeating it now. ] Ciel replied
The space and time around them warped just like when they entered the hollow tree all that time ago.
They slowly lost their consciousness, and were sent back to the ground of Lumos.
Ciel woke up with the feeling of being wet.
'Why can't it just be a normal day?' He thought as he opened his eyes
It was raining heavily and the winds were howling, with the occasional sound of thunder roaring.
Next to him, Rein was slowly waking up as well.
In his hand was the Starlight Lantern.
'So it didn't run away… is that a good thing or a bad thing? ' Ciel thought
He didn't know if it was worth putting any trust into the Starlight Lantern anymore. It had too many secrets.
Once Rein woke up, the Starlight Lantern spoke while shining a soft light.
"Im finally out of that eternally frozen place…"
"It's about time it started. The beginning of 10,000."
"10,000? What the hell is that?" Ciel asked knowing he wouldn't get an answer
"Are you sure that is the question you want answered?" The Starlight Lantern said
"What?" Ciel asked in confusion
"My ability, Soul Contract, is split into 3 parts. The first one is the Soul Contract which I've already explained. The second is a regular contract."
"Finally, there's the Star Contract. It lets me make my own extra quests for the Soul Contract."
"Since you helped me escape, you completed the Star Contract. You can ask a question." The Starlight Lantern explained
"Well then… the question I ask is, what do you know about the planets 'Earth' and 'Prisma'? Ciel asked without hesitation
He had already discussed what question they would ask first with Rein.
It was better to ask a simple question rather than a complicated one, as the answer of the latter could be too broad or nothing at all.
They needed to start at the base, and work their way up without rushing.