Chapter 104: Change and Completion (3)
The corridor was dark and silent.
It seed Dorneth had cleared out the surrounding area in preparation for an ergency.
“A shadow?”
“Yes. The mont I took out the elf stones in front of the master, her shadow snatched them and disappeared. After that, there were changes in her divine na.”
It was clearly related to the Shadow King.
This was news to .
Sharbadin hadn’t ntioned this to .
As I frowned in confusion, Nella gave a small, apologetic smile—it seed she felt guilty about Sharbadin not sharing the details.
“Anything related to divine nas is sensitive. I could only bring it up here because we’re with the core mbers of the blood pact.”
“…….”
“…….”
When the topic of divine nas arose, silence naturally followed.
Both Nella and I fell quiet.
Even though we both knew the divine na in question was the Shadow King’s Blessing, we couldn’t recklessly utter it aloud.
Unless the na had been spoken aloud by soone else—such as in the Black Market—or was otherwise spread, ntioning it could trigger the curse of the divine na.
Thinking about it, this restriction was bound to create frustrating situations in the future.
Even if I discovered others’ divine nas using my Awakening ability, I’d have to keep it all to myself.
Honestly, the thought made feel like I might die of sheer frustration soday.
But I couldn’t help but wonder.
‘Isn’t there a way to bypass the restriction and speak divine nas?’
According to the world’s rules, escaping the curse seed impossible. Those who served the gods lived under these constraints.
That included Nella, who was a priestess.
However, I knew of an exception: Arcane, the Prophet of Fate.
He was a rare “Servant of the Gods” who could bypass the curse of the divine nas.
That’s what made him special.
But if we’re talking about exceptions, could there be soone more special than ?
Reto had said that exceptions exist everywhere in the world. Perhaps I needed to ask him about the curse soday.
As an immortal who had lived through countless ages, Reto was likely close to understanding the secrets of the world.
“…Ah! I almost forgot. Here’s your bag.”
“Thank you. I didn’t expect to receive it here.”
Since my stay at the castle had lasted longer than expected, I’d been worried about the bag I left behind at the Black Rose.
The items in that bag weren’t ordinary by any ans.
I had asked Sharbadin to retrieve it, but it seed Nella had brought it along this ti.
Inside were Dominic’s research journal, the Witch’s Necklace, and the Crest of the House of Marcia.
The crest, in particular, was essential.
It was a critical item to prove my fake identity.
At the bottom of the bag, a pile of violet mana stones rolled around.
I had picked them up from the altar, but I hadn’t yet thought about how to use them.
As I went through the contents of the bag, Nella asked with a slightly offended expression.
“What? Were you worried soone would steal it?”
“Yes.”
“…….”
Ah. My honest thoughts had slipped out.
The corridor grew even more uncomfortably quiet. As I glanced nervously at her, we arrived at the door to the quarters.
Quickly, I asked, “What do I need to do?”
“If any unexpected variables arise, please protect .”
“You can count on . I’ll throw myself into harm’s way if necessary.”
“I trust you. Unlike soone else, I don’t have a habit of distrusting others.”
“Haha…”
Yeah, sure. After everything you’ve done to , how could I not be suspicious?
I forced an awkward laugh and glanced at Dorneth, but he just turned his head away.
Great, the dwarf wasn’t helping.
How embarrassing.
In her hands, Nella held two elf stones.
To gather this many in such a short ti, the entire Black Rose must have worked themselves to the bone.
I sincerely hoped it would have the desired effect.
Creaaak—
The door, which had been closed, slowly swung open.
This room, which had always felt familiar, felt completely different today. Through the large windows, the moonlight shone directly on Fenry’s bed.
A long shadow stretched across the floor.
The curtains swayed eerily, adding to the sinister atmosphere.
Was this place always this creepy?
It felt like a scene straight out of a horror movie.
“Prepare yourself!”
The mont Nella, with a tense expression, threw the two elf stones near Fenry, the shadow around her reacted.
Gluurrp—
Like viscous liquid, the shadow surged upward, snatched the elf stones, and vanished.
It was like watching a dolphin leap out of the water to catch its prey.
As if absorbing the elf stones, the shadow began rippling like spilled ink.
Then,
Slrrrr—
The shadow began to expand like a rising tide.
It spread over Fenry, then covered the bed, and soon consud half the room.
The group cautiously stepped back, observing the situation unfold.
The growing presence of the shadow felt overwhelming.
Could the Shadow King himself be moving directly?
There is no place in the world without shadows.
Shadows are everywhere and nowhere at the sa ti.
The Shadow King operates the sa way.
He can bestow his blessing on multiple people and take it back whenever he pleases.
He’s a famously capricious absolute.
Fenry was one of the individuals who had received his blessing.
“Does anyone know what’s going on?”
When I asked, both Nella and Dorneth remained silent. Neither of them had any knowledge of shadow sorcery, let alone Fenry’s circumstances.
They could only observe.
But my question wasn’t directed at them.
[This isn’t the Shadow King. It’s the evolution process of the shadow spirit bound to that elf.]
It was Reto.
He imdiately recognized the situation—the shadow consuming the room was part of the spirit’s evolution.
Evolution?
Was he talking about that adorable little spirit, the one that looked like a mini version of a hooded black cat?
[Receiving the Shadow King’s blessing is akin to a once-in-a-lifeti opportunity for shadow spirits. It triggers rapid growth. However, this particular spirit seems unstable.]
“Unstable? What do you an?”
At my question, Nella and Dorneth glanced at , but I feigned ignorance. I wanted to discuss this with Reto directly, but it wasn’t that simple.
Then again, if Reto could read my thoughts, he would’ve already uncovered my real identity and knowledge of the modern world. Maybe it was better this way.
I didn’t want to have all my secrets laid bare.
[This is clumsy evolution caused by the blessing’s effects. The spirit’s growth is outpacing its master’s capacity. What you’re witnessing is the spirit searching for sothing to compensate for its master’s inadequacies.]
It seed the elf stones weren’t enough to make up for Fenry’s “vessel.”
No surprise. Could a vessel ant for a six-star be fulfilled with re elf stones?
A spirit evolution that should’ve occurred at six stars was being forced at five stars because of the Shadow King’s blessing. This must’ve been the side effect.
But what was it searching for?
Was there sothing nearby it could use?
“Nella, was it like this the first ti too?”
“No, this is the first ti I’ve seen anything like this!”
“Elf stones aren’t enough. We need sothing else to fill the vessel…”
I was trying to convince them and brainstorm a solution when an idea popped into my head: the violet mana stones.
The life-crystallizing stones that had boosted to three stars.
I had an entire stash of them in my bag.
Could it be that the spirit’s searching movents…
Swish!
“…Damn it!”
Suddenly, the room darkened.
The shadow spread out like a net, moving to engulf .
It was clearly targeting my bag.
I twisted my body to evade, but I was too late.
Shadowy hands erged from the expanding darkness and snatched my bag.
They even reached for Nella, but she quickly clutched her chest protectively, guarding sothing precious.
The blue hamr intervened, blocking the shadows from advancing further.
Hissss—
A frosty mist spread forward, halting the shadow hands in their tracks.
It was Dorneth’s frost trait, Frost Mist.
The temperature plumted instantly.
I exhaled a visible puff of white breath.
“Fall back!”
At Dorneth’s command, we retreated. My eyes remained fixed on my bag.
“Ah, damn it.”
The bag floated in mid-air, being shaken violently.
That spirit was just like its master—great at snatching things.
Eventually, the bag opened, and its contents spilled out.
The violet mana stones rolled across the floor before lting into the shadows like snow.
At that mont,
……!
The entire shadow quivered violently, exuding a wild energy before it began to glow ominously.
Shadowy hands shot out chaotically in all directions, destroying everything they touched.
The windows shattered, cracks ford on the floor, and even the ceiling began to break apart.
The shadow’s range was expanding rapidly.
At this rate, the castle would collapse.
After consuming all the mana stones, the spirit had gone berserk.
Crash—!
“Kyaaaaah!”
Screams erupted from outside.
Looking out the broken window, I saw people fleeing the castle en masse.
They glanced back at us from a distance, their faces filled with terror.
In the bright moonlight, a massive shadow lood atop the spire.
To them, it must’ve looked like a monster.
Everything in the room, save for Fenry’s bed, was consud by shadows.
Was this the true form of that cute little spirit?
I take back calling it cute.
[It has ingested a large quantity of chaos-filled mana stones. It’s rampaging. Stop it.]
“How?! What do we do!?”
[There are two options: wake its master or neutralize the spirit.]
Roooarrr—!
The room turned sticky and pitch-black, as if coated with dark ink. Massive hands erged and disappeared repeatedly, making eerie noises.
The sight of the gigantic hands chilled to the bone.
It was the shadow summoning sorcery that could partially manifest the Shadow King’s body.
If that thing fully erged, the castle’s destruction was only a matter of ti.
Looking back at the others, I shouted.
Reto had given two options, and I chose the one that seed more feasible.
“We need to neutralize the spirit before the castle collapses!”
“That thing? How do we…?!”
“We need to move Fenry to a place without moonlight! Attack the shadows before they grow further!”
Neutralization.
It was simple: erase the shadow.
I summoned the Ring of Blood and charged forward.
The root of the spirit was Fenry.
To stop it, I had to move her to a dark place without any light.
As the spirit rampaged, the windows, ceiling, and walls were all torn apart, flooding the area with moonlight.
Neutralizing the spirit here was impossible.
I had to carry Fenry sowhere else.
Stepping into the shadow-covered area felt like entering a black void.
Shadowy hands reached out from all directions.
Their erratic movents reminded of the dwarves’ clubs during training.
The shadow hands were chaotic and nurous, but they were less threatening than being surrounded by six three-star dwarves.
Reading their trajectories, I weaved through them, twisting my body and dodging.
Whenever a hand got too close, I deflected it with a punch.
The training had worked perfectly in real combat.
The shadow hands swished past as I swiftly advanced toward Fenry.
Naturally, the shadows’ attacks beca fiercer the closer I got.
“Damn, this is relentless.”
Gritting my teeth, I pushed through the onslaught of shadowy hands. There were too many of them—it was impossible to dodge them all.
In desperation, I pulled back the bowstring.
Boom, boom, boom!
The simultaneous explosion of five arrows created a brief opening in the advancing shadows.
Rolling across the floor, I finally reached the bed.
Then, the sky seed to darken.
What now?
I glanced upward and imdiately cursed.
“Shit…!”
A colossal shadow fist was crashing down toward , filling my entire field of vision.
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