Three months had passed since Sunny's absence and that incident. Our hunting party had stayed active during these month. Unfortunately I was not very lucky on memories, nothing useful for me appeared that I could make use of, so I ended up trading them for soul shards.
Other than that nothing much had changed. Shashi and I had been hanging out a lot, I was helping her improve that 'blood-sense' of hers. The woman also did not look as pale. Before, she looked like she was sickly pale, but now her paleness looked more 'healthy' I suppose? I did not know how to describe it.
Cassie had changed, the blind girl had matured and she looked like the knowledge she was exposed to was taking an effect on her. Truth be told, I did not know whether to trust her or not anymore. I had a feeling she knew what was going to happen, but never told us or perhaps she told Nephis.
Why couldn't she just tell us everything so we can change the future?
Putting those thoughts aside, I summoned the runes.
The agreement with Nephis went on, she always gave me one of the soul shards of her share. I had been trying to consume at least one awakened soul shard once a day, since awakened soul shards gave twenty points I would have been able to form a third soul core in a hundred days.
Class: Monster [1760/2000]
'Good..'
The headquarters of our hunting party had changed a lot. It had already looked pretty presentable back then when they had started, but now, the lodge was much more impressive.
The first thing that caught the eye was that it had grown much bigger. Additional structures were built to expand it both horizontally and vertically. Now, it was by far the largest building in the outer settlement, almost starting to resemble a small town hall.
It was heavily fortified, too, especially from the side that faced the white road. A couple of lookouts were visible on the roof, observing the ruins below. They were wearing armor-type Memories and holding bows in their hands.
It was a far cry from how things were before. Inside, a lot of people were busy with various tasks. I had a feeling that this was perhaps the calm before the storm. Everything had been going good, I had wondered why Gunlaug hadn't been acting up until now and.. I was walking down the hall to the meeting room as a result.
'I jinxed it.'
I reached the room, knocking on the door I entered it. I was immediately met with a man with auburn hair standing his back to me. His attention drifted to me as he revealed his handsome face, he gave me dazzling smile as I narrowed my eyes. He looked extremely familiar.
'Wait..' Wasn't this guy Night from Nightingale? His songs was fire, but why is he here?
"What is Night doing here on Forgotten Shore..?"
"Oh and this is Levi." I heard a familiar face, as I turned my gaze in his direction I was met with a short dirty looking boy.. his bangs covered his eyes like seaweeds..
"What the fu- Sunny? What the hell happened to you?"
Sunny rolled his eyes at me. "Oh you know.. Dark city happened.."
I immediately charged to hug him, however he sidestepped my hug. I grumbled in embarrassment as I noticed everyone had seen my failure. Well.. Night saved me by clearing his throat and gathering attention to himself.
"It is nice to meet you all.. you may call me Kai."
Everyone took their seats.
Effie looked at him with a genuine surprise.
"Doofus? You are actually alive?"
Sunny blinked and stared at her for a few moments, then said in an acrid tone:
"Sorry to disappoint."
She shook her head.
"No, no. Just ... how the hell did you manage to survive three whole months in the ruins?"
He grinned.
"What can I say? I had a good teacher."
However, the huntress simply shook her head.
"No student of mine would be stupid enough to actually live in the ruins. Not to mention returning looking so ... feral."
I stared at Sunny, shortie indeed looked pretty feral.. especially dirty. I could never walk around with my hair looking like that. Gazing at my own long hair, I caressed it gently. However I stopped immediately when I noticed Shashi looking at me from my side, she chuckled when I looked away from her.
"So ... what did you guys want to discuss?"
Nephis and Caster exchanged glances. Before saying anything, Caster walked over to the door and closed it. After that, he summoned a Memory that looked like a bone flute and placed it on the table. Immediately, something in the room imperceptibly changed.
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"What is that thing?"
The handsome young man sat on a chair next to Changing Star and said:
"This Memory has an enchantment that creates a cone of silence. No one outside this room will be able to hear what we're talking about now."
He sighed.
"So, the Bright Lord is finally ready to obliterate you all? Can't say that I'm surprised. If anything, it's strange that he didn't make a move much earlier."
Effie giggled.
"Oh, did he ever ... "
Nephis glanced at her, making the huntress fall silent, and turned to Sunny:
"You are right. The Bright Lord is indeed about to make a move. We have withstood his previous attacks, but they were just a rehearsal. A few provocations to test out strength. Now, he is ready to act in earnest. And that's why I need your help."
Sunny raised his eyebrow:
"How can a cockroach like me help the great and mighty Changing Star of the Immortal Flame clan?"
I rolled my eyes at that answer. How the hell did you even survive in Dark City for three months if you are a simple cockroach?
Effie gave him and Nephis a strange look, then cleared her throat.
"Don't take it to heart, princess, but I sort of agree with Sunny. What can this little imp ... uh, no offense, Sunny ... do that we can't? I mean, he is a decent scout, but ... "
"Hey! Offense taken!"
Changing Star smiled, then looked at Sunny.
"Don't be misled by his act, Effie. Sunny might behave like a cowardly weakling, but in fact, he's the last person in the Dark City I would want to face in combat. He is far more dangerous than anyone thinks he is. Isn't it right, Sunny?"
I chuckled as the smile on Sunny's face froze.
"Oh well. I guess the secret is out of the box. Surprise, everybody! I am actually not a weakling. Who could have thought?"
Then, he glared at Effie and added in a mocking tone:
"Oh. My mistake. Actually, everyone except for you already knew. It seems that you are ... "
However, Neph interrupted him:
"That's why he was able to survive three months in the ruins, just like he had survived two in the Labyrinth. Sunny is an extremely formidable fighter."
'Trying to flatter him into coming back?'
"...He's just a bit of a devious asshole. But that's exactly what makes him so dangerous."
'...l guess not.'
Looking at Effie, Sunny shrugged and smirked.
"If you don't believe her, just ask Night."
Suddenly dragged into the conversation, Kai coughed, hesitated for a moment, and then said:
"Uh ... yes, I can confirm. He is indeed a bit of an asshole."
Sunny's face twitched as I laughed out loud
"Not that! Tell them how I saved you!"
The charming archer fluttered his eyelashes with an innocent look, then added:
"Oh, right. Indeed, Sunny saved me in the ruins last night. He is a very exceptional and resourceful individual."
"See, Night has known me for just one night, but even he was able to see how fearsome I am. You and I, on the other hand, had hunted together for an entire month. How come you're so dense?"
"Perhaps you need to show off a little more. You always stood at the back." I said sarcastically.
With a bitter smile on his lips as he glared at me, Sunny turned to Nephis and asked:
"Anyway, what exactly do you want me to do?"
Changing Star hesitated, then said:
"I want you to take Effie to your hideout in the ruins and keep her safe there for about a week."
Sunny blinked. I couldn't help but slam my hand onto the table and burst out laughing until I was slapped on the back of the head by Shashi.
***
After being silenced by Shashi, I was leaning back onto my seat, rubbing the back of my head. Why was her hand so heavy anyways?
After the cohort calmed down from their amused states, they finally addressed the issue at hand. Sunny, cleared his tone:
"Uh ... excuse me? Keep her safe?"
Nephis gave him a nod, then hesitated for a few moments and sighed.
"I guess I owe you an explanation."
With a frown, she glanced at the map of the Dark City. Her gaze was fixed on the symbol of a tower drawn in its center with white paint.
The Bright Castle.
After a few moments, she said:
"You asked why Gunlaug hasn't killed us all yet. This is a good question. However, the answer is ... complicated."
Changing Star turned her head and looked at Sunny.
There were several attempts to taunt us into confrontation already. Nothing too bloody, though. However ... things seem to have changed. We received word from the castle that Gunlaug is going to act against us soon. This time, he is aiming at one of my companions. The attack will be a serious one, and the target is Effie."
Sunny glanced at the unruly huntress and raised his eyebrows. He had a lot of questions.
"Why her?"
I scoffed:
"Effie...despite all our warnings...got into a rather vulgar argument with a bunch of Guards who came into the outer settlement for some entertainment. Coincidentally, some of these Guards went missing last night. No one knows what happened to them."
"I see. Well, there is this one thing that I don't really understand. You said to keep Effie safe for a week. What is going to change in a week? I doubt that Gunlaug will magically forget everything after a few days."
A heavy silence descended on the room. No one seemed to want to speak first.
After a few moments passed, Nephis finally broke the silence. Looking in the window, she leaned back and said in her usual even, indifferent tone:
"In a week, we will be ready to leave the city."
Sunny almost fell from his chair.
...That was not what he had expected to hear.
***
Soon, I spread another map onto the table. This one was drawn on a piece of crude parchment made out of monster hide, and much less detailed than the one hanging on the wall.
It was a map of the Forgotten shore.
At the center of it, a straight black like depicted the Crimson Spire. The Labyrinth flowed from it, devouring the parchment like an ocean of blood. To the east, a small circle of black ink with a symbol of a white tower inside of it marked the Dark City.
The city was perched on the edge of another, much larger circle. It didn't take too much effort to recognize the cyclopean crater.
On the other side of the crater, almost exactly opposite the Dark City, a symbol of a tree depicted the Ashen Barrow. Some distance to the east of it, on a straight line, there was a mark in the shape of a red cross.
Another red cross was drawn inside the crater just outside the eastern side of the Dark City. The third one was about a week's worth of traveling time to the north, near a symbol that looked like a grotesque, misshapen skull. The fourth one was halfway between the ruins and the Crimson Spire. The fifth one lay to the south, about the same distance as the third, drawn atop the symbol of an arching bridge.
The last red cross was at the very edge of the parchment, far away to the south, beyond the Labyrinth. Near it, two symbols were drawn: one was a crown, and the other one was a question mark.
These crosses represented the seven heroes of the forgotten shore.
Frowning, Sunny glanced at the map and said:
"So let me get this straight. You want to leave the Dark City, cross the Labyrinth, reach the edges of the Forgotten Shore ... and then return?"
Nephis smiled.
"Pretty much, yes."
He sighed.
"If we somehow survive the months of traveling through the Labyrinth and actually manage to escape it, why the hell would we return?"
The smile on her face withered. Changing Star lingered for a few moments, then pointed to the three symbols at the lower edge of the map: the red cross, the question mark, and the crown.
Nephis explained the expedition of the first lord, and that they had ventured into the mountains and never came back.
Sunny scratched the back of his head.
"So you aren't really looking for a way out ... you're looking for the remains of the cohort of Sleepers that had conquered the castle fifteen years ago?"
'When did this guy get so clever?'
***
After the meeting ended Sunny and Nephis had a private conversation. I was waiting outside the lodge by myself for Sunny to come out so we could talk properly. It had been a while since I had seen my short friend, I had missed him greatly.
Soon, Sunny got out the lodge. He started walking to me when he saw me, at least he wasn't avoiding me.
"Long time no see, how have you been?"
"I am alright, cant say the same about you though, do I need to repeat how shitty you look?" I crossed my arms. "I suggest you have a shower before departing."
Sunny didn't seem to take my words to heart as he rolled his eyes. "Well unlike you I am not a clean freak.. How does your hair look so clean anyways? Do you have a cosmetic memory or something?"
"Bah! Why would I use a cosmetic memory?"
Sunny eyes me carefully. "Well if you say so."
Crossing my arms, I noticed that Night and Effie were getting out the lodge.
"Where did you even meet Night anyways..? Your luck astonishes me."
"What's so great about him?" Sunny asked in an annoyed tone.
"His music, duh."
Sunny rolled his eyes at me once again.
"You know.. your eyes will be stuck in the back of your head if you roll your eyes that much. Don't you have any other reactions?"
"When did you become so annoying? Are you hanging out with Effie too much?"
"Nah.. But I am hanging out with Shashi, she is.." I stopped my talking almost immediately as I sensed a presence behind me. My face paled as I stared at Sunny, who was looking behing me with a grin, in the next second I was slapped in the back of the head for the second the time of the day.
"Hey Sunny, it was nice to see you again." Shashi walked next to me, putting a a hand on my shoulder. "Try not to die, Effie can be very annoying."
Sunny nodded. "It seems you have a way of keeping him in check, I would like to lear-"
He trailed of as I glared at him, clearing his throat he spoke up once again:
"What I meant to say is that I am thankful of the warning. I will be leaving now, take care of yourselves."
With that Sunny left me alone with Shashi. After a beat of silence, Shashi spoke up in a sinister tone.
"So, dear Levi, you were saying something about me?"
'Damnation..'