Nightwalker studied him for a long while with the sa strangely distant expression he had worn previously, then smiled faintly. “Conquering the Eternal City? I am not going to diminish your accomplishnts... getting to the Lighthouse unscathed must have already been difficult enough. Well done. However, you should have noticed that this place is populated by a myriad of immortal abominations. Surely, your goal is a tad too ambitious?"
Sunny gave him a nonchalant shrug. “Personally, I think it's just ambitious enough."
Jet chuckled.
“You must not have witnessed the power of a Supre before, mister. It is quite daunting. And that guy is not just any Supre, at that — he's soone who beca Supre by killing the person who sat on the throne before him, which puts him in an entirely different category:"
She smiled.
“I wouldn't have brought the Night Garden here if I wasn't reasonably confident in his ability to keep his promises. Despite how he looks, he's quite reliable."
Sunny gave her a silent stare.
“Huh? What's wrong with how I look?"
Not getting an answer, he frowned and glanced back at Nightwalker.
“She's right. My forces have already secured the Wharf and the island it is connected to. Currently, we are engaged in a battle for the three islands north of that. I expect the siege to co to a conclusion in a few hours, which would allow us to advance further, into the heart of the city." Nightwalker studied him with interest. "Really? How are you dealing with the immortals, then?"
Sunny gave him an even look.
“lam putting them to sleep. Although now that I know what hides in the water, I am thinking of just tossing them into the waves.’ Nightwalker shook his head slowly.
“That won't work.’
Sunny was a little disappointed.
"Why?"
The lost founder of the House of Night let out a heavy sigh, as if recalling his own disastrous attempt to do just that.
“As I said, the immortals are rely shells for the parasite that controls them. So, you can indeed get rid of them by throwing them into the water — so would climb out, but most would beco an endless source of sustenance for the little critters there. However..."
His expression darkened.
“A parasite is a parasite. Once one host becos useless, it will find another — and with myriad abominations populating the depths, the Flesh of Kanakht would have countless new hosts to infect. Once thousands of those fishes start mutating, sprouting tendrils, and climbing ashore... you'll regret having fed them an immortal or two in the past. Believe ”
He shivered.
Sunny was quite uneasy, as well. He humd, then mumbled quietly:
“Wow. I never thought that one day I'd be happy to only be fighting the human vessels of an immortal Great Terror..."
His expression twisted a little.
“Flesh of Kanakht is a Great Terror, right?" He had assud so because the fallen immortals wielded power similar to that of Great Nightmare Creatures. Considering that Nightwalker did not ntion any kind of source creature or a Cursed Abomination controlling them, the Flesh of Kanakht did not seem like a Tyrant. As for being a Titan... it could be one, but Sunny would have expected more trouble when facing a creature like that.
‘As if fighting a city full of immortal Great Ones is not trouble enough!’
Nightwalker nodded.
“I would expect so.’
He studied Sunny intensely, then shifted slightly.
“Well... I guess you really do have a chance to conquer this hell. Unbelievable."
His expression turned wistful for a brief mont.
"And there I was, feeling proud of myself for becoming a Transcendent..."
At that mont, Naeve, who had been silent before, finally spoke:
“The Flesh of Kanakht is not our only problem."
Nightwalker gave him a curious look.
"Oh?"
Naeve hesitated a little, then nodded.
“The Dutchman is also here”
Nightwalker's eyes widened a little.
“That thing? It followed you to the Eternal City?"
The House of Night had never engaged in a serious battle against the Dutchman, but having traveled the misty waters of the Stormsea for decades, they had known about the existence of the wraith armada from various chilling encounters and sightings long before this expedition. Nightwalker probably knew more than most.
Sunny shrugged.
"It's more like we followed it here. It doesn't matter who arrived first, though, only who will be the one to leave when all is said and done. Jet here is a specialist in disposing of troubleso wraiths. In fact, she's sowhat of a wraith herself"
Jet smiled.
“When I'm in the mood."
Nightwalker chuckled. Then, however, his expression slowly grew serious.
A heavy silence settled in the room. Sunny studied Nightwalker and Naeve, wondering why their reunion was so... reserved. The forr seed too aloof, while the latter was seemingly holding himself back.
But neither displayed any noticeable sense of joy.
Perhaps they were simply too shocked to feel anything easily defined yet. Maybe they had never had a joyful kind of relationship, to begin with.
He hesitated for a few monts, then asked:
“If I may ask... how did you end up stuck in this city, Nightwalker? Better yet, how did you manage to get here alone, as a re Ascended?"
The corner of Nightwalker's mouth twitched.
"re Ascended, huh?"
He remained silent for a while, then sighed. “Who said that I was alone?"
Sunny frowned.
“That was the impression | got after learning about your disappearance from Naeve and Bloodwave"
Nightwalker shook his head.
“I wasn't alone. I was accompanied by that kid, Asterion, and his followers."
Sunny winced.
"I'd appreciate it if you would not ntion his na.’
Nightwalker grinned.
“Oh, I would be happy too. I don't particularly like ntioning him either.’
At that mont, Jet asked in a confused tone:
“Why would you take him with you instead of forming an expedition from the champions of the House of Night? And why did you leave the Night Garden behind?" Nightwalker smiled.
“That's simple. Because I did not want to lose the Night Garden, and I did not want my people to die. Plus... you said that you are putting the immortals to sleep? I was planning to do sothing similar — fighting them physically is useless, so I needed soone with a powerful Aspect that allowed them to perform ntal attacks. Such people are rare, and that kid seed like a good candidate, being the successor of Heart God and all.’
His expression darkened.
Nightwalker remained silent for a few monts, and then said in a cold tone: "Of course, I did not expect that the bastard would kill as soon as we reached the city and he didn't need anymore."
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