Standing on the edge of the bottomless well, Sunny sighed and summoned the Prowling Thorn. Then, he commanded the Dark Wing to come to life and took a step into the emptiness.
The dragonfly wings of his enchanted cloak were too fragile to rely on them alone in a situation that posed unknown risks. It was better to have a backup at hand.
Softly gliding down, he descended in a straight line for a few moments, then made a turn and glanced at the other members of the party.
The golden rope had been thrown into the darkness. Nephis, Effie and Caster were already climbing down, while Kai hovered near them, ready to draw his bow should anything attack the cohort. Cassie was by his side, holding the Quiet Dancer in her hand.
The elegant rapier served as her guide as well as support, allowing the blind girl to make better use of the transparent wings. With it, she was able to zip around with considerable speed or stay in one place without any surface beneath her feet.
'Handy.'
Just like that, the cohort descended to the bottom of the ancient mine. Sunny was gliding down in a wide spiral, sometimes close enough to the wall of the well to touch it with his hand. He was slightly ahead of the rest of the group.
When the distance between them grew too much, he would insert the dagger into a crack in the stone and wait for others, attached to the vertical wall like a strange insect.
His shadow moved further and further down, exploring the darkness below.
Despite the tension that permeated the air, in the end, nothing had attacked the group of descending humans. They discovered the reason for this unexpected respite at the bottom of the mine.
Sunny was the first one to land on solid ground. With other members of the cohort still a few dozen meters away, for some time, he was left in complete darkness.
As soon as he took a step, something crunched under his foot. Looking down, Sunny saw a piece of pale bone.
A few meters away from him, the remains of a giant skeletal creature lay broken on the ground. It resembled a snake with hundreds of tiny claws growing from its belly and a terrifying, round maw. Glancing up, he judged that the length of the dead abomination was enough to coil around the whole shaft of the mine at least several times.
While Sunny was thinking, the other members of the cohort approached the ground. The light of their lantern Memories fell on him, then shone further, revealing the remains of the colossal bone worm.
Exposed by this light, a nimble shadow glided on the stone and attached itself to Sunny's feet.
Nephis was the first one to jump down. Glancing at the repulsive Nightmare Creature, she outstretched one hand and asked:
"Sunny?"
He shook his head.
"It's dead. Nothing is moving out here."
Soon, all of them were on the ground. Gathering around the giant worm, everyone had the same thought:
'Fighting that thing on the vertical wall of the well would have been a true nightmare.'
Sunny didn't know how the members of the lost expedition had managed to defeat the terrifying creature, but was thankful to them. He would not have wanted to test the durability of the Dark Wing if that thing suddenly lunged at him from the dark.
There was a disturbing question now in his mind, however.
If the cohort of the First Lord was strong and capable enough to slay the stone abomination that used to guard the quarry and the worm that lived in the well of the mine…
Then was kind of a horror had killed them all in the end?
With a dark expression on his face, Sunny turned away from the dead creature and walked into the darkness.
Not too far from the corpse of the abominable worm, they stumbled upon an abandoned campsite.
A makeshift firepit was built on the rock floor, with five large stones surrounding it for the humans to sit on. A bit further, a low barricade was constructed out of the rubble, protecting the camp from unwelcomed visitors.
The lost expedition had definitely been here.
Since they had been walking, climbing and running for the better half of the day, the cohort decided to settle for the night and continue the search tomorrow.
Soon, the orange glow of a bonfire chased away the darkness.
It was a bit strange to relax and cook food in the same place where the First Lord and his companions had rested and prepared theirs all those years ago. Sunny felt as though he was touching history.
Or, rather, making it.
However, he didn't have too much time for empty thoughts.
If what Nephis had told him at the start of this expedition was true, tomorrow… tomorrow was going to be his time to shine.
***
The next day, the cohort ventured further into the tunnels of the ancient mine. No one could tell how deep underground they were exactly, but the feeling of countless tons of stone looming over their heads, ready to come crashing down and bury them under their terrible weight, was not a pleasant one.
They were in the belly of the mountains now.
After several hours of walking through narrow tunnels, Sunny suddenly felt a soft breeze touch his cheeks. A few minutes later, a distant rustle reached his ears.
The deeper they went into the darkness, the louder that rustle became, until finally turning into an easily discernable murmur of running water.
Soon, they reached the dark shore of a wide underground river.
The running water was black as ink, but not in the way that the waves of the cursed sea had been. There was no smell of salt in the air, too. Wisps of mist were rising above the surface of the subterranean river, swirling in the silent darkness.
It looked like a boundary of the Underworld.
There was a stone pillar built on the shore, and tied to it, a beautiful boat made of pale wood swayed gently on the cold black surface of the dark river.
Looking at the graceful boat, Sunny sighed.
It was time to earn his keep.
Chapter 252: Unseen
This was the last secret about the fate of the lost expedition that Cassie had gleaned from her visions. But even then, the knowledge she had received was fragmented and incomplete.
All she could tell the members of the cohort was that, once they crossed the dark river and until reaching the next boundary, they had to keep their eyes closed at all cost, no matter what happened. No living thing could see what lay beyond these cold waters and remain... whole.
At least that was what she told them.
Cassie didn't really know herself what would happen if someone failed to follow that rule, but said that she had never felt more terror than in the short moment before the vision showing her the fate of the lost expedition had shattered and everything had grown dark.
This was telling a lot, considering what kinds of horrors the blind girl saw in her vision routinely.
…In any case, this was where Sunny came in.
While looking through the eyes of the shadow was still too dangerous, he could lead the cohort to their destination with the help of his ability to sense space through the shapes of shadows populating it.
At least in theory.
Standing on the shore of the dark river, six humans tied the golden rope around their waists. When everyone was ready, Nephis took out six strips of cloth and a block of wax. Lighting a small white flame on her palm, she sighed and turned to Effie.
"You're first."
The huntress made a complicated face, but then obediently approached their leader.
What followed next looked simultaneously intimate and disturbing. Using her flames to melt the wax, Changing Star gently took Effie's face in her hands and, after the huntress shut her eyes tightly, sealed them with melted wax. Then, she tied the strip of cloth around Effie's head to hold it in place.
One after another, every member of the cohort went through the same procedure. When Sunny's turn came, he shifted slightly when Neph's cool hands touched his cheeks.
A few moments later, he was blind.
'That is… is this how Cassie lives?'
Commanding his shadow to not see anything, Sunny was left in utter darkness. However, he still had it better than the blind girl. His Shadow Sense was still working, at least.
With its help, Sunny could more or less tell what was where. This form of perception was vastly different from sight, but could serve the same purpose in a pinch, be it very poorly. If conditions were right.
Luckily, he had practiced navigating the world with the help of nothing else but Shadow Sense in the past. This was how he had defeated the strange basilisk creature in the Dark City, among other things.
Leading the group of staggering humans to the graceful boat, he helped them to board it and untied the rope holding it in place. Then, Sunny found the oar and pulled on it, propelling the boat across the dark river.
Soon, cold mist shrouded everything around.
The deeper into the mist they sailed, the more it felt like they were leaving one world behind and entering another.
A much darker, much more ancient, much more terrifying world.
No one felt compelled to speak, so the silence was broken only by the murmur of rushing water and the creaking of the wooden oar.
'This is not too bad. Yeah. I am not scared witless, at all.'
Calming himself down with these silly thoughts, Sunny continued to guide the boat.
However, one thing kept making him shiver.
Being surrounded by mist and having to keep his eyes closed, Sunny couldn't help but remember the harrowing encounter with the being that appeared in a veil of fog and tried and lure him into gazing at it using a stolen voice.
…Was this where it came from?
After some time had passed — he couldn't tell how much no matter how hard he tried — Sunny suddenly sensed a solid mass in the distance. This was the opposite shore of the dark river.
Soon, they were drawing near to it.
As the bottom of the boat scraped against stone, Sunny jumped to the pier and tied the rope around the stone pillar. Then, he helped the others disembark.
Turning his head, he sensed another shape swaying on the surface of the water. There was a second boat here, presumably the one First Lord and his companions used to cross.
But unlike Nephis and her cohort, there had not been an oracle in their ranks. No one had warned them to keep their eyes shut.
Maybe this was the reason why none of them had returned.
Turning his back to the river with a strong feeling of unease, Sunny faced the mouth of the tunnel that led deeper underground. Letting out a resentful sigh, he slightly tugged on the golden rope and took a step forward.
The other members of the cohort had no choice but to follow him.
A few seconds later, they disappeared into the tunnel, leaving the shore of the silent river behind.
As soon as Sunny stepped into the tunnel, he felt cold shivers running down his spine. Although he couldn't see anything about it, he could tell that it was different from the ones they had traversed earlier.
This one still felt like it had been cut through the flesh of the mountains by someone — or something — as opposed to being formed by a natural process. However, its creators were unmistakably different from the humans that had created the mine and the quarry outside.
Everything about it was more pronounced, more skillful. The shadows populating the tunnel were different, too.
They were much deeper, much darker. And much, much more… ancient.
Soon, the tunnel turned into a maze of wide passages, all filled with nothing but mist and silence.
'Another maze. Of course it's a maze. Everything in this damn place just has to be a maze…'
Before Sunny could finish the thought, though, he suddenly froze, paralyzed by fear.
Because right in front of them, he felt the presence of a shadow that was different from all the others.
…A human shadow.
Chapter 253: without a Master
The human shadow stood lonesomely in the mist, strangely aloof and motionless. As Sunny pulled on the golden rope to command his companions to stop, it shifted slightly and turned away, then became still once again.
Sunny sensed a cold, dreadful feeling settle in his heart.
The possibility of encountering another human in this dark and terrifying place was already unsettling enough. He did not consider even for a second that one of the members of the lost expedition could have survived down here, in the darkness, for all these years. Not unless they were no longer human.
But even that was not the cause for the coldness and dread he felt.
The real reason had nothing to do with logic and everything to do with his unique Aspect. Because of it, Sunny sensed that there was something terribly, utterly wrong with the shadow.
The feeling he got from it was one of eerie and utter wrongness. However, it didn't seem to be dangerous or hostile. Instead, it felt lost, empty, and… mournful. The shadow was full of sorrow and anguish that he could not describe with words.
Sunny was not that empathetic when it came to humans, but strangely, he couldn't help but share in the suffering of this lonely shadow. Maybe because, in a sense, they were kin.
As he was observing the shadow, unsure what to do, it made a few steps in a random direction and then stopped hesitantly, lingering there without moving. Then, it walked back and froze once again.
It was as though the shadow was lost.
A few moments later, Sunny finally understood the nature of the deep feeling of wrongness he felt in the lonesome shadow. When he did, a cold shiver ran through his entire body.
The reason why this shadow was so strange and eerie was because it wasn't connected to anyone. There was no human casting it. Not anymore, at least.
The human that the shadow had once belonged to was gone, cut from existence by some unknown power. Sunny couldn't sense any bones anywhere, either. It was as if the human had not been killed, but simply… erased.
While the shadow remained to wander aimlessly in the mist for all eternity.
'What a terrible fate…'
But the question remained… what was he supposed to do now? The shadow was in his way. Sunny had to either walk past it or return back and try to find another way through the maze.
But what threat could this pitiful thing pose? It was just a shadow, after all. His own couldn't harm a fly no matter how hard it tried. This one had to be the same.
With a deep sigh, Sunny slowly walked forward. With each step he took, he could sense the lonesome shadow better.
…At some point, it sensed him, too.
Turning to face Sunny, the shadow hesitated for a few moments, then tentatively glided closer. He could feel an outburst of muted emotions radiating from it: surprise, hope… and then, sudden despair.
Realizing that he wasn't its long-lost master, the shadow froze. Its shoulders dropped.
Sensing the deep well of loneliness, anguish and sorrow in front of him, Sunny tilted his head to the side.
Then, following an impulse, he outstretched his hand to the shadow:
'Here… take my hand. You don't have to be alone anymore.'
The shadow trembled, as if it heard his silent invitation. Then, it lingered for a few moments and approached him with uncertainty. Finally, it raised its hand and tentatively placed it in the hand of his own shadow.
A moment later, it disappeared.
Sunny sighed.
[Your shadow grows stronger.]
Diving into the Soul Sea, he walked along the rows of silent shadows standing on the surface of the tranquil water. And there, just as he had expected, he saw a new one.
A shadow of a graceful young woman was standing among them, as motionless and still as the rest of them. Her anguish, sorrow, and loneliness were gone. The shadow seemed to finally be at peace.
Sunny looked at her for a few moments, his heart heavy. Finally, he said:
"Welcome. Rest now. Your… your nightmare is over."
With that, he left the silent sea and sighed again.
Standing in the darkness with his eyes sealed shut, Sunny remained motionless for some time.
Then, he pulled on the golden rope and led the cohort further into the mist.
Sunny didn't know how long they wandered around the dark maze. More than once, he had ended up at a dead-end and had to search for another path. It was hard to not lose track of all the turns of the twisting tunnels, but he had somehow managed to stay on track.
On the way, he had found three more shadows. Each of them was just like the first one, lost and lonesome.
And just like the first one, they eventually took his hand and were absorbed into his Soul Sea. The four of them — one young woman and three men — now stood silently together, united once again even though their masters were long gone.
...Seeing them together gave Sunny a little solace, no matter how misguided it was.
There were five stones arranged around the fire at the campsite left behind by the lost expedition, hinting that five people had descended into the ancient mine. Four of them had eventually perished in this eerie, dark place.
But no matter how hard Sunny searched, he couldn't find the fifth shadow.
The First Lord himself was not here.
Could it be that he had somehow managed to survive and leave the maze of mist?
At some point, Sunny felt someone pull on the golden rope. Turning around, he walked a few steps back and stopped near Cassie. Feeling his approach, the blind girl raised her hand and pointed at one of the tunnels.
Understanding what she wanted to say, Sunny led the cohort in that direction.
Soon, the sound of rushing water reached his ears.
Some time later, they came to the shore of another subterranean river.
They had reached the second boundary.
Chapter 254: The First Lord
For a moment, Sunny was afraid that they had been walking in circles all this time and now returned exactly to where they had started. But then, he calmed himself down and noted that this river, while as eerie as the one they had crossed on a wooden boat, was rather different.
He couldn't exactly explain it, but it didn't feel the same. Plus, there was no pier with two boats tied to stone pillars anywhere in sight… or rather, sense.
Instead, there was a bridge.
Sunny could feel its shadow falling on the cold water, solid and firm as the stone it was built from. The bridge arched over the river, leading far into the distance.
Not wishing to spend another minute in the terrible maze that no living thing could see if it hoped to remain alive, Sunny led the cohort toward the bridge.
If Cassie was correct, they would be safe after crossing the second river. Sunny surely hoped that it was true, because the long journey where he had to play the role of a guide for five blind people had been nothing short of exhausting.
After spending seven… or was it eight by now?... months on the Forgotten Shore, Sunny had thought that he possessed a high tolerance for terror. But this last ordeal tested the limits of his mental endurance.
Walking through that dark place with his sight taken away…
It was a miracle that Cassie had somehow managed to remain sane at all.
He tensed up when they entered the bridge, expecting for something dreadful to happen at the last moment. But the silence was not broken by anything except for the sound of rushing water, their steps, and laborious breathing.
The cohort walked on the bridge, leaving the dark maze behind. Soon, they could feel the mist surrounding them grow thinner.
And at some point, it was gone.
They crossed the river without any trouble and returned to solid ground again.
Making several more steps, Sunny stopped and finally allowed himself to tremble. Then, he opened his mouth and said in a hoarse voice:
"Are we through?"
Although Cassie had not said anything about the need to remain quiet, each of them subconsciously avoided speaking ever since entering the mist. Because of that, the sound of his own voice startled Sunny a little.
A few moments later, Cassie answered in a hesitant tone:
"I… I think so?"
Without wasting any more time, Sunny untied the cloth that covered his eyes and removed the wax from them. Then, he carefully opened them and looked around.
They were standing on a stone shore inside a vast cave, through which the underground river was flowing unobstructed. Some distance away from them, the wall of the cave came down, with a mouth of a wide tunnel visible in it.
By his side, other members of the cohort were removing the strips of cloth. Sunny could hear the sighs of relief coming from them.
However, his attention was instantly drawn to Nephis, who had already opened her calm grey eyes and was looking at something behind him.
Turning around, Sunny followed her gaze… and froze.
Just a few meters away from them, on the shore of the dark river, he saw a human skeleton. It was sitting on the cold stones, its back straight, facing the water.
Unlike the ferocious undead from the catacombs of the Dark City, this one was tranquil and untouched by the corruption of the Forgotten Shore.
…This was the place where the First Lord of the Bright Castle had died.
***
The young man whom the members of the cohort only knew by his title had died on the shores of the cold underground river, just a few meters away from the bridge that he had used to escape the terrible place which, according to Cassie, no living being should have been able to escape.
Somehow, he had survived even without knowing that anyone entering the mist had to keep their eyes closed at all times. But in the end, the wounds he had received there — or somewhere up ahead, perhaps — turned out to be too grievous.
Before the last vestiges of life abandoned him, the young man — the First Lord who had wrestled the Bright Castle from the Nightmare Creatures, created a safe place for the humans sent to the Forgotten Shore to live, and lead an expedition to find a way out of this cursed place — sat down and looked in the direction of the misty, dark maze.
…The place where his friends and companions had died, leaving him alone in the darkness of this forsaken underworld.
Looking at the skeleton that sat quietly on the shore of the river, Sunny couldn't help but feel a deep feeling of awe… and sorrow.
He had never met this young man, but somehow, it felt as though they knew each other very well.
Everything that humans had on the Forgotten Shore was thanks to his bravery, power, and skill.
…What a shame that he had died here, in this lonesome place, with no one to share his last moments and tell the tale of his last deeds.
The skeleton was strangely well-preserved. It was sitting with its legs crossed, back straight, its hands resting on the hips, as if meditating. The skull of the First Lord gazed at the river with the dark chams of its empty eyes, strangely calm and at peace.
What Sunny noticed, though, was not the whiteness of the bone nor the eternal grin of the bare skull, but a thin strip of light metal resting on it like a humble crown.
There was a single bright gemstone on the metal band, placed right above the middle of the skull's forehead.
After the six of them gathered around the remains of the First Lord and stood there for a while in silence to express their respect for this extraordinary human, Nephis sighed and approached the skeleton.
Gently, she took the strip of metal and removed it from the First Lord's head.
…A moment later, the band suddenly broke into countless sparks of light, which then disappeared, absorbed into her soul core.
Sunny's eyes widened.
The crown of the First Lord… was a Memory.
Chapter 255: Dawn Shard
As the last spark of light disappeared, Nephis tilted her head to the side and remained silent for a few moments. Then, she lowered her gaze and said, addressing the First Lord:
"Thank you."
She hesitated, as though wishing to say more, but eventually just took a step back.
Kai, however, wasn't that reserved. Bowing deeply, he remained with his head down for a while, then straightened his back, looked at the skeleton, and voiced something that a few of them must have been thinking:
"Thank you. We will… we will finish what you started."
His words echoed above the cold water, eventually disappearing into the darkness. A heavy silence settled above the shore of the underground river.
A few seconds later, the charming archer turned to the rest of them and asked with uncertainty:
"I think… should we bury him?"
The members of the cohort looked at each other. Before anyone could voice their opinion, though, Sunny suddenly spoke:
"No. Just leave him as he is. He wanted to be closer to his friends when he died, so… just don't touch him."
With that, he turned his head and looked away.
Since the First Lord died outside of the terrible maze, his shadow was gone, too. Now it was just dumb and empty, like most shadows cast by inanimate objects. He had not shared in the harrowing fate of his companions, which meant that Sunny couldn't help him reunite with them… even slightly.
Neither could they bring the remains of the First Lord back outside, to bury him near the girl who had died in the quarry.
It was better to just leave him be.
'Forget about it. Think of something else.'
Sunny had other matters to consider, anyway.
That strange Memory that Nephis had absorbed… he had never even heard of a Memory that could exist outside of someone's soul. Had the First Lord somehow relinquished the ownership of it, or was this a quality that all Shard Memories possessed?
And it was, without a doubt, another Shard Memory — just like Effie's spear and his own stalwart blade. That Memory was the reason why Changing Star had ventured on this expedition, to begin with. The thing that was supposed to somehow give her a chance of defeating Gunlaug.
Sunny stared at Nephis, then said:
"That headband… what is it called? No, actually, let me guess. Dawn Shard? Dusk Shard?"
Neph looked at him and didn't answer. Her ivory face was calm and inexorable.
Sunny grinned.
"...Full of secrets, are we?"
A hint of some deep, sharp emotion appeared in her cold grey eyes. A few moments later, she said:
"Weren't you the one who made it clear that you don't want to be a true member of this cohort? You chose to be a hired blade yourself… did you not? Why should I share my secrets with you?"
Sunny remained silent for a bit, then sighed.
"Well… fair enough. I did, and you have no good reason to share anything with me."
Suddenly, Nephis smiled.
"You can change your mind, you know. If you do, I'll naturally tell you everything."
He stared at her for a while, then shook his head.
"No, no need. Answer me one question, though. How exactly is that thing supposed to help us defeat Gunlaug?"
Changing Star lingered for a bit, then simply shrugged.
"See for yourself."
A moment later, the headband left behind by the First Lord weaved itself from sparks of light on her forehead. The bright gemstone in its center softly gleamed.
And then, something about the world around Sunny changed.
'W—what…'
He blinked a couple of times, then slowly lowered his gaze and looked at the fabric of the Puppeteer's Shroud.
Or, rather, on the spellweave beneath it.
What he saw left Sunny breathless.
The five glowing embers that served as nexuses for the complicated pattern of ethereal strings permeating the Memory suddenly shone brighter.
Much, much brighter.
In fact, their radiance was now almost as intense as of those inside the black onyx armor he had purchased at the Memory Market. Which was… which was…
An Ascended Memory.
'What the hell?'
Pulling on the thread tied around his neck, Sunny fished out the Blood Blossom from under his armor and stared at it, perplexed. The two embers inside the intricate pendant had become much brighter, too.
Not knowing that Sunny had the ability to peer into the inner weave of Memories, Nephis explained:
"The Dawn Shard possesses a single, but also singularly powerful enchantment. It empowers all Memories around it. The area of effect of the enchantment is very large… but the enhancement it provides is ever larger."
'...You don't say!'
Staring at his Memories, Sunny felt as though he was on the verge of being dumbstruck. Singular was the right word to describe the effect of the Dawn Shard. He had never heard of a Memory being capable of rising the power of another one by almost an entire rank…
'Wait, did she say… all Memories?'
All Memories… all of them… in a very large radius?
'Impossible!'
With that crown on her head, Nephis would not only be able to stand a chance in a fight against Gunlaug, but also make each one of her followers so much more dangerous. She would become a perfect general for a small army of Awakened.
… But wasn't there something wrong with that statement?
Sunny frowned.
'All Memories… hold on. All?'
Glancing at Changing Star, he asked:
"So that thing makes every Memory around you vastly more powerful?"
Nephis gave him a silent nod.
Sunny's frown deepened.
"Then do you not see a problem here? Won't it enhance that damn golden armor of Gunlaug's, too? How exactly does it give you a chance against him, then?"
She lingered for a few moments, then smiled slightly.
"It would not, would it? But, hey… do you want me to tell you another secret?"
Sunny glared at her without saying anything. He knew better than to get himself into such a clumsy trap.
Only, as it turned out, there was no trap. Nephis just waited for a bit and continued:
"It will help me because the golden armor Gunalug wears is not a Memory."
Before he could say anything, she added:
"In fact, it is an Echo."
Chapter 256: True Reason
Sunny was silent for a while.
An Echo… that weird golden armor was actually a copy of some strange Corrupted Nightmare Creature?
What kind of creature took the shape of an armor?
But then again, the fact that it looked like an armor didn't mean that it was all it could look like. The main trait of the golden armor was that it seemed to be made out of liquid metal. That metal always flowed and moved around, enveloping Gunlaug's body like a second layer of skin.
The only thing that never changed was the mirror-like surface that served him as a face.
It wasn't impossible to imagine that the mass of living metal was, in fact, not a Memory but a bizarre Echo.
Not impossible, but a bit of a stretch.
Glancing at Nephis, Sunny asked:
"How do you even know this?"
She hesitated for a few moments, then said:
"You already know that we have an ally inside the castle. She was the one who told us."
That mysterious spy again… Sunny became even more convinced that this person was of a very high rank among the Bright Lord's servants. Only someone extremely close to him would know such an important secret.
In fact, Sunny expected that the paranoid tyrant would never let anyone learn of it.
Why would one of Gunlaug's most loyal minions help his enemy? Was it all an elaborate trap orchestrated by the Bright Lord himself?
Looking at Changing Star with a deep scowl on his face, he asked:
"Can this ally of yours even be trusted?"
If he was right in his guess about the identity of the spy... well, things would become complicated.
She was silent for a while, then said evenly:
"Trusted? Not really… never, actually. However, we can trust in the information that was provided to us."
He raised his eyebrows.
"And why is that?"
Nephis shrugged and then answered, her voice indifferent:
"Because I am the only chance anyone here has of ever getting out of this cursed place. And Gunlaug is not."
'Interesting…'
So, one of the top ranks of the Bright Lord's forces was an opportunist who desired to return to the real world desperately enough to risk betraying the ruthless tyrant. That person had been loyal to Gunlaug because there was no better alternative, but then changed sides once the last daughter of the Immortal Flame clan appeared like a miracle and promised to save the people of the Forgotten Shore.
That ally of hers was either swayed by Neph's rhetoric like the rest of the unfortunate fools in the Dark City or was confident of ending up among the few lucky people who would actually have the chance of surviving what was about to come.
…Or just knew something that Sunny did not.
In any case, Changing Star seemed to be confident in the information the spy provided, so he did not see the point of doubting it. She wasn't any more naive or trusting than he was, after all.
Nephis had learned the art of cynicism from the best.
Kai, who had been listening to their conversation with a fair bit of curiosity, suddenly cleared his throat.
"Uh… I am very sorry to interrupt you guys. But I just wanted to ask — since we have found the remains of the First Lord and came into possession of this Memory you were discussing… does that mean that the expedition is over? Have we actually accomplished our goal? Really?"
That, indeed, would seem to be the case.
However, Sunny knew better.
With a friendly smile, he shook his head.
"No. No, buddy, the goal of this expedition has not been achieved yet."
The charming archer looked at him with surprise:
"But… didn't we get the thing that will help us defeat Gunalugh?"
Nephis was staring at Sunny too, a subtle smile on her lips.
"Yeah, Sunny. What else do we have to do? Do tell."
He grinned.
"Well, it's very simple, really. Yes, you told us that the reason for this adventure of ours was to find the means of overthrowing the Bright Lord, and it certainly was a reason. But it's not the whole reason, is it?"
Cassie turned her head slightly to listen to him and sighed.
Caster's face, meanwhile, had turned grim. Effie didn't seem to care one way or another.
Nephis, on the other hand, just smiled wider.
"What is the whole reason then?"
Sunny gestured at the mouth of the tunnel in front of them.
"To finish what the First Lord had started, of course."
Kai was looking between him and Changing Star, unsure of what was going on.
"Uh... what do you mean? Exactly?"
Sunny shrugged.
"Think about it, Kai. We saw the same map. What were the symbols drawn at the very edge of it, near the place where the First Lord's expedition had disappeared?"
The charming archer frowned.
"That… uh. There were… three of them? A crown, a question mark. And a red cross?"
Sunny smiled.
"Exactly. There were six crosses drawn on the map, each marking one of the headless statues. Two to the east of the Dark City, one to the north, one to the west, and two to the south. We had visited one of the two statues situated to the south already. That's where the Spider Matriarch had weaved her nest."
He turned to Nephis and said, his smile gone:
"So the truth of it all is that the First Lord never really intended to find a way through the Hollow Mountains, isn't it? He wasn't a fool who would do something so misguided. No, he came to this godforsaken place for the same reason that we are here. To find the last statue."
Changing Star was silent for a bit.
When the silence was on the verge of growing uncomfortable, she suddenly said:
"That is correct."
Kai stared at her in astonishment.
"But… why? No, wait… what's so important about that statue?"
Nephis sighed.
"This is something that people can only volunteer to do. Anyone who doesn't wish to proceed can stay behind and avoid risking their lives in the battle. In fact, some of us probably should."
She turned to face the tunnel, remained silent for a bit, and then said:
"Yes, somewhere up ahead lies another ancient statue. There will be a powerful creature guarding it. I don't know what that guardian is, exactly, but we have to kill it. Anyone who is willing to fight can join me. Others can stay back and wait for my return."
She glanced at the members of the cohort and added:
"However, if you do join me, you'll have to follow one simple rule. No matter what happens, it's imperative that you don't deliver the final blow to the creature... unless you have reached and touched the statue first."
Chapter 257: Nightmare Champion
'Ah. So that is how it works.'
Initially, Sunny had suspected that the mysterious Shard Memories were just rewarded to those who managed to slay certain powerful Nightmare Creatures who dwelled close to the headless statues.
The truth, however, turned out to be more complicated. The creature itself, most likely, did not even matter — it was the act of vanquishing a powerful foe after coming in contact with a statue that summoned the Memory from oblivion.
That was why they had received the Midnight Shard before even learning about how important these ancient monuments were. Sunny, Nephis and Cassie had taken shelter atop the statue of the ancient knight and killed the Carapace Demon long after.
But no, that didn't make a lot of sense. If this was true, Sunny would have received another Shard Memory after defeating the Corpse Eater. So… not any powerful abomination would do.
Each statue seemed to have a... a Nightmare Champion tied to it by some invisible bond. The Carapace Demon, whom the creatures described as cursed soldiers of the fallen legion used to obey, was connected to the statue of the Knight.
The Iron Matriarch was tied to the statue of the Hunter.
Which statue had the Dawn Shard come from? The Builder, whose monument had somehow come to life and was now wandering the Forgotten Shore? Rumors said that the First Lord chased it around the Labyrinth for a long time, after all.
But somehow, Sunny felt that the metal headband had nothing to do with the walking colossus.
'So many questions.'
How many champions were still around, anyway? Nephis had not even tried to search for one tied to the Builder, nor for one tied to the Priestess. How many Shard Memories were already in the hands of humans?
Among the members of the cohort, there were now three. And they were about to challenge some abominable horror for a chance of receiving the fourth one.
'...Why do I even assume that there are only three?'
Sunny tilted his head.
Indeed, the fact that he had only seen the Midnight Shard, the Zenith Shard, and the Dawn Shard did not mean that Changing Star had not gotten other ones already. Not counting the Memory they were currently hunting, three more were unaccounted for.
How many had she found already?
He smiled darkly.
'Well… it's going to be revealed sooner or later. Right now, however, there is a more pressing issue...'
Glancing at Nephis, he asked:
"What happens if I get the Memory? As you reminded so astutely, I am not one of your lackeys. That would throw a wrench in your plans, wouldn't it?"
Sunny couldn't imagine Changing Star leaving something that important to chance.
However, to his surprise, she just shrugged:
"Keep it, if you want."
He frowned.
Why was Nephis so nonchalant about the possibility of a Shard Memory falling into his hands? Wait… why was she so indifferent about him already possessing the Midnight Shard?
One possible explanation was that it didn't matter who held the Shard Memory — as long as it was in human hands. The other explanation… made Sunny very uncomfortable.
Maybe she was just sure that fate would push the two in the same direction. If this was true, then it didn't really matter which one of them possessed the Shards.
He lingered for a bit, then shake his head and said:
"...Well, what are we waiting for? You didn't really expect any of us to stay behind while others fight, right? Let's go and hunt this monster."
Honestly, while Sunny couldn't even imagine what type of terrible creature guarded the hidden statue, he was almost excited to find out.
He wanted to see what the six of them were capable of under the miraculous effect of the Dawn Shard...
Himself in particular.
***
Eventually, they arrived at a vast cavern situated somewhere in the depths of the draconian mountains. The cavern was large enough to fit the entire Bright Castle — and the hill it stood upon — inside of it. Witnessing its size, Sunny got an inkling that there was a reason why these mountains were called Hollow.
As his sight pierced the darkness ruling over the vast cavern, Sunny couldn't help but feel a deep sense of awe.
The floor of it was covered by black sand, while its walls glistened like obsidian. In the center of the cavern stood a giant pillar of dark stone. It was surrounded by massive scaffolds, which nevertheless looked tiny and insignificant on its surface.
The silhouette of an unfinished statue was easily discernable, cut from the giant pillar by the unknown sculptor. Its upper torso was almost finished, while the lower half was still encased inside the stone.
It was as though a dark giant was struggling to free himself from the pillar of stone that imprisoned him.
With a feeling of surprise, Sunny realized that he recognized the details of the unfinished giant's armor and shield. They were eerily similar to the armaments that the Black Knight guarding the ruined cathedral wore.
…And to the ones the Stone Saint wielded, too.
Looking up, he made sure that the head of the giant statue was missing.
'...Of course it is.'
All of that only took a fraction of a second.
Then, Sunny hastily looked down, trying to notice the guardian of this obsidian cave before the creature noticed them.
…But it was too late.
As soon as the members of the cohort entered the cavern, something moved in the darkness at the base of the statue, and then stepped forward.
Sunny shivered.
'Damnation!'
Standing on the black sand, a monstrous creature that resembled a cross between a lion and a raven stretched its numerous limbs. Its body was pale as a corpse, while its head and chest were covered with dark feathers. It was massive in size, with muscles rolling like steel cables under the skin.
The creature had two powerful hind legs and six more protruding messily from its wide chest, each ending with a set of deadly claws. But the most terrifying feature it possessed was a long, jagged black beak.
It was a Spire...
"Messenger!"
That was all Sunny had time to yell before the vile abomination lunged forward, exploding into a whirlwind of hunger, madness, and death.
Chapter 258: Herald of the Crimson Terror
Sunny had already faced off against a Spire Messenger once.
Back then, the vile creature had killed several experienced hunters in a span of just a few seconds, and the rest had only been spared this fate because of Effie's strength…
That and the fact that the Messenger had no need to fight them and chose to retreat and search for easier prey.
There was nowhere to retreat in this hidden cavern. Sunny didn't even know how the flying abomination had gotten here in the first place.
However, he was not the same inexperienced kid he had been all those months ago, either.
Sunny had grown considerably stronger. His arsenal of Memories was better now. His skill and technique were far beyond what he had known in the past, and his kill count had crossed a hundred Nightmare Creatures a long time ago.
There was the Stone Saint, too.
But, most importantly, his Memories were empowered by the Crown of Dawn.
Theoretically, Sunny could stack three augmentations on the Midnight Shard — one from his shadow, one from the miraculous crown, and one from the Blood Blossom, as long as someone managed to make the Messenger bleed.
Hopefully, that would be enough to breach the gap between a dormant human and a Fallen Beast and allow him to actually wound the abomination, unlike the previous two times he had tried to cut into the flesh of similar horrors — Corpse Eater and the giant eel that had tried to hitch a ride on the ancient colossus.
…But first, he had to survive.
Judging that the Puppeteer's Shroud had a decent chance of withstanding a blow from the Messenger thanks to the enhancement of the Dawn Shard, but also not even reamotely willing to put that to the test, Sunny dove to the side.
A moment later, the massive abomination collided against two shields — one belonging to Effie, the other to the Stone Saint. The terrible beak came down, aiming at the huntress…
If it was before, the round shield that protected Effie from knee to shoulder would have been easily pierced and torn apart, as if it was made out of paper instead of metal. But due to the empowering aura that emanated from the Dawn Shard, it somehow held.
The force of the impact, however, still threw both of them back. Even Shadow Saint, whose flesh was made of stone and weighed accordingly, was launched into the air like a doll made of feathers and rags.
But they had bought the cohort the precious second to regroup and counterattack.
As Kai and Cassie flew in different directions, creating some distance between them and the ferocious abomination, Nephis and Caster attacked from the sides. One sword shined with brilliant white radiance, while the other gleamed with ghostly green light.
However, the Messenger was still terrifyingly formidable. The Memories wielded by the cohort might have been enhanced, but their masters remained the same. They couldn't compete with a Fallen creature in terms of raw power and speed.
Two of the beast's six front limbs swiped forward, deflecting the swords. Two more shot at the attacking humans, forcing them to retreat while barely staying alive.
…Then, the Messenger twisted its neck and caught Kai in its sight.
Its powerful black wings lashed down, creating a small hurricane that threw Nephis and Caster aside. Using powerful hind legs to throw itself into the air, the abomination lunged at the retreating archer, who twisted his body in a desperate attempt to aim his bow.
...And then, suddenly, a triangular blade cut an arc around one of the legs and tied an invisible string around it.
'Crap!'
That was all Sunny had time to think before his hand was jerked forward with incredible force.
However, this was exactly what he wanted.
With the Dark Wing turning into a blur behind his back, Sunny used the momentum of the pull to turn his laughably slow levitation into real flight.
In fact, he shot in the direction of the Messenger as though someone had launched him from a cannon.
The Midnight Shard flashed through the air and bit into the abomination's flesh.
'Do it!'
Indeed, with both the shadow and the Dawn Shard augmenting it, the stalwart blade was able to cut into the flesh of the Fallen Beast. Granted, it felt as though he was trying to cut stone.
But it was enough.
Sunny aimed at the base of the Messenger's wing. With all the speed given to him by the combination of using the Dark Wing to levitate and the Prowling Thorn to create momentum, the blow Sunny had delivered was truly devastating. In fact, it was so forceful that every bone in his hand almost shattered.
But he wasn't the one on the sharp end of the sword.
The Midnight Shard cut deep into the wing of the vile abomination, sending rivers of blood streaming down its pale body. As soon as they did, the enchantment of the Blood Blossom awakened, making the blade even sharper. The elegant tachi tore through the wing, crippling it.
The Messenger suddenly lost control of its flight and crashed back to the ground.
'Eat dust, bastard!'
After a moment of glee, however, Sunny hurriedly dismissed the Dark Wing and plummeted down, landing on the sand some distance away from the monstrous beast.
While gliding all the way back to the floor of the cavern would have been more comfortable, he wasn't going to become a sitting duck. Crippled wing or not, the Messenger could still jump and use the other one.
Maybe...
At the same time as Sunny hit the ground and rolled, a menacing black arrow suddenly fell from above, piercing the second wing of the fearsome creature. There was no blood coming from the wound, though — the arrow greedily drank it, preventing the Blood Blossom augmentation from growing a bit stronger.
The abomination did not stagger and slowly turn into a mummy like the iron spiders had, however. It simply shook its body, causing the arrow to shatter and crumble into a stream of white sparks.
But Sunny didn't see any of that.
With his back to the Messenger, he was already running toward to giant statue with all the speed he had.
Chapter 259: Bloody Mayhem
Sunny ran to the statue with every bit of speed he could manage. Which was quite a considerable amount, by human standards... no, even by those of other Sleepers.
As the wind whistles in his ears, the shadow flew off the blade of the Midnight Shard and turned around, observing the wounded abomination. Despite the fact that its wings were mangled, the Messenger did not seem perturbed. On the contrary, it opened its terrible beak and let out a blood-curdling shriek, then lunged at the tiny humans with even more bestial fury.
'...I think it's not happy!'
Despite the mortal peril his companions found themselves in, Sunny did not stop to help them. Nephis had said that the creature guarding the cave had to be killed by a person who had touched the ancient statue — until someone did, this battle was nothing but a futile and stupidly dangerous game.
The essence of combat was murder, after all. If no one truly aimed to kill the damn thing, how could they ever hope to survive?
So Sunny was helping them after all, in a way.
Behind him, things weren't going well for the cohort. The Messenger was too big, too strong, too swift for a group of Sleepers, no matter how talented. It was already a miracle that none of them had been torn to pieces already.
But how long would that last?
As the shadow watched, the terrifying beak came down again… and once again, bounced off Effie's stalwart shield.
However, this time, a wide crack appeared on the surface of the round shield.
Before the huntress could even react, several powerful limbs shot at the cracked shield, each striking it with the force of a cannonball. Finally, the Memory gave in and shattered — along with Effie's arm. Sunny saw fragments of bone piercing her olive skin as it twisted at an unnatural angle.
'Damn! Faster!'
As the pillar of dark stone approached, he watched the Messenger try to finish the wounded huntress off and be thwarted by the Stone Saint. Simultaneously, Nephis managed to penetrate the barrier created by the creature's front limbs. Her sword flashed and bit into the pale flesh, leaving a deep gash on the abomination's side.
Judging that he was far enough to not be afraid of a sudden attack aimed at his back, Sunny commanded the shadow to turn around and return to his side. His view of the battle immediately disappeared, and soon, the shadow caught up and wrapped itself around his body.
Sunny's speed doubled.
Pursued by the sounds of a ferocious battle, he neared the unfinished statue.
However, before he could touch it, a human figure suddenly appeared in front of him in a blur and slid on the black sand, stopping right in front of the stone pillar. It was Caster.
The proud Legacy didn't look all too well. His shiny scale armor was torn by the claws of the terrible beast, leaving four deep wounds on his muscular chest. Blood was streaming from them, leaving the handsome young man pale and disheveled.
No, it wasn't just that. Caster seemed a bit off, somehow… Sunny just couldn't tell what was wrong with him exactly. He did notice, however, a crystal amulet in the form of an hourglass hanging on a silver chain around his neck.
'What is that? A charm Memory? I didn't know that Caster had a charm…'
Not wasting any time, the Legacy put his bloodied hand on the statue and closed his eyes for a moment.
'...He wasn't wearing one back on the marble arch. Right?'
Opening his eyes a second later, Caster glanced at Sunny with a dark expression and turned into a blur once again, rushing back to rejoin the battle.
Just as soon as he disappeared, Sunny crashed into the stone pillar, unceremoniously using it to stop his momentum. Bouncing off the hard surface, he rolled on the ground and shakily rose to his feet.
'Agh! Dammit! That hurt!'
That counted as touching the statue… right?
Had to.
Glancing back, Sunny saw another Blood Arrow piercing the flesh of the Spire Messenger and shattering a moment later. It wasn't destroyed, at least, just returned to Kai.
Quiet Dancer was zipping around the massive abomination, aiming at its eyes. The elegant rapier was an Echo, and as such did not enjoy the gift of the Dawn Shard, so it was more of a nuisance than a real threat to the beast. Still, it managed to deliver a couple of shallow cuts, causing the bastard to bleed.
That was exactly what Sunny needed — blood, as much blood as possible.
Launching himself forward, he held the Midnight Shard behind him and dashed toward the Messenger.
'Let's see which one of us is can kill it first, Caster. Wouldn't it be funny if an outskirt rat like me got a third Ascended Memory, while a lofty Legacy like you still had none?'
Some distance away from his prey, Sunny commanded the Stone Saint to switch her battle style.
The one the menacing Shadow liked to use the most — or simply saw as most suited to her equipment and the situation — was deliberate, elegant, and steady. But that wasn't what Sunny needed right now.
What he needed was carnage, savagery, and bloody mayhem.
Lingering for a fraction of a second, the Stone Saint suddenly threw her shield away, grasped her sword with both hands, and lunged forward. Any sort of grace she had possessed earlier was now gone. Instead of a noble knight, the Shadow now appeared as a barbarous butcher.
It seemed as though she cared neither about self-preservation nor about protecting the members of the cohort anymore. She didn't even care about killing the enemy that much. All she aimed to do was inflict the maximum amount of pain, the maximum amount of damage, and, most importantly, the maximum amount of bleeding.
Just like Sunny had commanded her to do.
As he ran back, more and more small, but heavily bleeding wounds appeared on the Messenger's massive frame. It's pale body was now half-covered in dark blood. Caster's enchanted sword added one or two, but most came from the berserk Shadow and Changing Star.
Effie was still in the fight, as well. Despite the fact that her arm was severely broken and there was bloody foam on her lips, the beautiful spear broke through the abomination's defenses and left a bloody mark on its skin, too.
But none of these attacks were powerful enough to end the creature once and for all.
Already nearing the scene of the massacre, Sunny willed his shadow to flow onto the Midnight Shard. The power of the Dawn Shard was burning inside of it, making the stalwart blade sing.
And on top of it all, the vile Blood Blossom was filling it with insatiable bloodlust and hunger.
Without slowing down, Sunny lunged at the Spire Messenger… and fell on his back. As momentum pushed him forward, he slid on the black sand and thrust the Midnight Shard upward.
Piercing the abdomen of the terrible creature, the razor-sharp sword easily cut through skin and muscle, gutting the abomination and causing it to stagger and fall.
Chapter 260: How to be a Hero
Indeed, with so much blood streaming down the Messenger's pale body, the savage augmentation of the Blood Blossom had grown vastly more powerful.
If before Sunny had felt as though he was cutting stone, now the Midnight Shard sliced through the tough flesh of the abomination with just a moderate amount of trouble. Of course, the fact that it was aimed at the soft belly of the monster instead of the adamantine black feather also played its part.
The tachi cut through the pale skin and muscle tissue, tearing its abdomen open.
As blood, guts and viscera fell from the terrible wound, Sunny slid from under the massive creature — just in time to avoid being crushed under its weight.
Even then, however, the Messenger was not yet dead.
'...What?! Curses!'
Lying on his back in an awkward position, Sunny was momentarily left defenseless. He had hoped that his strike would if not kill the monstrous abomination outright, then at least leave it stunned for a few seconds, giving him time to disengage and get away to a safe distance.
But the creature seemed to be impervious to pain and the fear of death that all living beings felt. Despite receiving a mortal wound, it only became more ferocious.
Staggered by the unexpected attack, the Messenger lost balance and fell to the ground. Its head hit the black sand, sending a cloud of it into the air.
…Then, its round corvine eye locked onto Sunny and flushed with eerie madness.
Knowing that he was not going to be fast enough, Sunny desperately tried to roll away. But it was too late. The terrifying jagged beak shot in his direction, threatening to impale him through the chest.
'Damn it a…'
However, at the last moment, a human figure in an elegant black and white armor suddenly appeared between him and the abhorrent beast. The incandescent sword lashed out, pushing the beak slightly to the side.
As the result, the Messenger failed to kill Sunny. Instead, the beak pierced the Starlight Legion Armor and tore through Changing Star's shoulder, almost severing her left arm. Nephis was thrown aside in a rain of blood, while the abomination opened its mouth and let out another deafening shriek.
For a moment, time slowed.
Sunny, who had just rose to one knee, noticed a sword surrounded by ghostly green lights approaching the Messenger's neck. Caster was seconds away from finishing the cursed creature off…
But before he got the chance, a heavy triangular dagger flashed in the air and sunk into the creature's eye, penetrating through it deep enough to reach the brain.
The Messenger froze. Its ugly raven-like head swayed slightly. The beak fell open, revealing rows of sharp teeth and a long, wet, crimson tongue.
Looking at the monster with a dark expression, Sunny pulled on the string of the Prowling Thorn, wreaking havoc inside its skull. The kunai tore through the round black eye on the way back, flying into the air in a stream of blood, bone, and chunks of brain matter.
Finally, the creature convulsed and crashed onto the ground.
Its eyes dimmed, then glossed over.
The corner of Sunny's mouth curled upward.
[You have slain a Fallen Monster, Cursed Herald.]
[Your shadow grows stronger.]
'Come on!'
[...You have received a Memory.]
A triumphant gleam appeared in his dark eyes.
***
The cohort was in a pathetic state.
Effie had the bones in her arm shattered into tiny pieces, with sharp splinters tearing through her skin. Her ribs and lungs were wounded, too. Caster was bleeding heavily from the four gashes left on his torso by the Messenger's claws. Kai lost too much blood to the Blood Arrow and was now on the verge of fainting.
Neph's left arm was partially severed and barely attached to her body. The sight of it was ghastly.
Even the Stone Saint was severely damaged.
Only Sunny and Cassie were more or less in one piece.
It was all worth it, though. The Spire Messenger was actually dead, while they were not.
Lying on the black sand, Effie suddenly laughed. Sunny gave her a strange look.
"Have you lost your mind? What are you laughing at?"
The huntress shrugged, then grimaced from pain.
"Oh, it's just… I was thinking whether we are legendary heroes now or just, you know… fools of legendary proportions. All of us in the outer settlement — the Castle too, I guess — heard the stories about the incredible exploits of the first cohort hundreds of times. Killing a Spire Messenger who made its nest in the throne room, and all that. But I never once thought that I would actually do something that impossible as well."
She grew silent, and then added:
"It's weird."
Sunny sort of understood her feelings. However, he wasn't going to admit it. He didn't want his name to ever appear in the same sentence as the word "hero". After everything he had experienced, Sunny had become allergic to it.
He sighed.
"You do know how one becomes a mythical hero, right? It's really easy, you just have to do something outlandish and then die. The death part is the key, actually. So I would rather not be a hero, ever."
With that, he stood up and tiredly dismissed his battle Memories and the Stone Saint. Since only Cassie and he were unscathed, it fell to them to help everyone treat their wounds.
Well, in this case, they just had to make sure that no one died before Neph summoned her flames and healed everyone. Sunny wasn't sure that she'll be able to remain conscious after that, though.
Walking over to their leader, he sat down, looked at her, and then asked:
"...Are you stupid? Why did you do that?"
She glanced at him with her usual indifferent expression, straightened her back, and said:
"What do you mean?"
Sunny sighed.
"Why did you get between me and the Messenger? Look at the state you're in."
She looked at him, then shrugged with one shoulder.
"I can heal myself, remember? You can't."
He shook his head.
"I also remember that my armor is two whole tiers above yours. Chances are, I wouldn't be even wounded that terribly."
Nephis was silent for a bit. Then, she simply said:
"...Too risky."
Sunny couldn't help but laugh.
"Gods! I just don't get you. I really don't. You are so morbidly cunning sometimes, but other times, you are so stupidly naive. It doesn't make any sense."
Changing Star did not respond for a long time and just stared at him. When she responded, her tone was as flat as usual:
"Right back at you."