The atmosphere beneath the colossal black tree was strangely peaceful.
For the first ti in what felt like forever, the five Sleepers were not fighting for their lives. No abominations were chasing them. No monsters lurked nearby. Only the quiet rustling of crimson leaves and the faint glow of Elysia's Soul Lantern illuminated the darkness beneath the scarlet canopy.
Sunny leaned lazily against a root while inspecting Midnight Shard for what was probably the hundredth ti already.
The elegant tachi rested across his lap, its cold black blade reflecting the pale silver-pink light of the lantern. Even now, he could still feel the strange will hidden within the weapon.
anwhile, Elysia suddenly tilted her head as though rembering sothing important.
"Hey, Sunny."
Sunny glanced at her.
"What?"
Elysia lightly tugged at the dark cloak wrapped around her shoulders before smiling.
"Do you want this cloak?"
Sunny blinked in confusion.
The cloak she was referring to was Midnight Cloak — the sa mory Senrix had given her when they first t on the Forgotten Shore. Despite its simple appearance, Sunny knew it was an Awakened mory.
Naturally, he imdiately beca suspicious.
"…Why?"
Elysia simply giggled.
"I already have better armor now. Besides…" she looked down at the cloak with exaggerated disappointnt, "I honestly don't like how it looks on ."
Sunny stared at her silently.
He did not believe that excuse even a little.
Not because it sounded suspicious…
But because Elysia sohow made literally everything look beautiful.
Still, Sunny wisely decided not to argue.
A trade was a trade.
After a brief exchange of mories, Elysia accepted the armor Sunny had obtained long ago after killing the Centurion alongside Nephis. It was not particularly amazing, but compared to the thin clothing she usually wore into battle, it was definitely an improvent.
At least Sunny hoped so.
[You have gained a mory: Midnight Cloak.]
Sunny imdiately summoned his runes.
mory: [Midnight Cloak]
mory Rank: Awakened
mory Tier: II
mory Type: Armor
mory Description: [The youngest of the seven heroes loved the night, for it was the only ti the world was quiet. When the sky fractured and the stars died, he wrapped himself in the final hour of true dusk, refusing to let the light of the corrupt sun touch his skin. He died in the dark, laughing at the dawn.]
Sunny stared at the description for several seconds.
'…That is unbelievably cool.'
Then his expression darkened.
'But what the hell does it actually do?'
He was just about to ask Elysia when his eyes suddenly widened.
At so point during the trade, Elysia had already changed into her new armor.
A sleek suit of pure white star-chitin plates hugged her body perfectly, elegant yet clearly built for combat. The armor protected her chest, waist, and limbs without sacrificing mobility, leaving her shoulders free for archery.
Over the pristine white armor draped a tattered midnight-blue cloak shimring with countless microscopic crystals, almost like fragnts of a broken night sky woven into fabric.
The cloak absorbed light unnaturally.
Cosmic shadows shifted around its edges whenever she moved, making the contrast between the white armor and dark mantle even more breathtaking.
And then there was her hair.
Her long pink hair cascaded over the armor like the first light of dawn breaking across a star-filled night.
Sunny stared blankly.
"…When the hell did you get those mories?"
Elysia blinked innocently.
"A few days ago?"
Sunny nearly choked.
"A few days ago?!"
She nodded cheerfully.
"We got them after killing those scavengers and the Centurion. I was lucky enough to receive two mories." Then she awkwardly scratched her cheek. "I forgot to use them."
Sunny stared at her in disbelief.
Forgot?!
People on Earth would probably commit cris for a single Awakened mory, and she sohow forgot she owned two of them.
Truly unfair.
Nearby, Senrix quietly glanced toward Elysia before looking away again.
However, Sunny noticed sothing strange.
For a split second, the cold calmness in Senrix's crimson eyes softened slightly while watching her.
Only for a mont.
Then it vanished completely.
Hours slowly passed beneath the crimson canopy.
None of them moved much that afternoon. The exhaustion from yesterday's battle still lingered heavily in their bodies. Even Nephis eventually rested quietly beneath the tree while Cassie leaned against Elysia's shoulder and fell asleep.
The Soul Lantern continued emitting its soft silver radiance, soothing both flesh and mind.
Eventually, darkness deepened.
And the five Sleepers drifted into uneasy sleep.
—
Sunny awoke suddenly to frantic tugging.
His shadow was practically panicking.
The tiny creature pointed repeatedly toward the crimson canopy above while trembling anxiously.
Groggy and confused, Sunny slowly sat up.
The camp remained mostly quiet.
Cassie still slept peacefully beneath the crimson leaves. Elysia rested nearby beside the Soul Lantern, its silver glow painting her sleeping face with a dreamlike beauty.
A short distance away, Senrix sat against the massive black trunk of the tree with his eyes closed.
Cold wind brushed through his ash-white hair.
Even while resting, there was sothing oppressive about him now.
Sothing hidden.
Like a dormant volcano waiting silently beneath layers of ash.
Sunny frowned and looked upward.
At first, nothing seed wrong.
Then a strange sensation crawled through his chest.
It felt as though he had forgotten sothing incredibly important.
Fragnts of a dream surfaced in his mind.
Cassie was clutching his shoulders desperately, panic filling her blind eyes as she repeated the sa words over and over again.
"You have to rember, Sunny! Five! It's five!"
The dream felt blurry.
Unstable.
And strangely enough…
The importance of the mory itself rapidly faded from his mind.
The urgency in Cassie's voice disappeared like mist beneath sunlight.
Sunny blinked several tis before shaking his head.
"…Weird."
He quickly pushed the strange feeling aside.
After waking the others, Sunny carefully climbed toward the eastern edge of the Ashen Barrow.
And then he saw it.
Far above the island, a massive black figure circled through the grey skies.
Sunny's expression instantly darkened.
It was the sa horrifying winged abomination they had encountered before.
Soon, the others joined him beneath the crimson branches.
Silently, the five Sleepers watched the skies.
Then another creature appeared.
And another.
Three enormous horrors now circled high above the island.
Their pale corpse-like bodies were covered in raven-black feathers, while twisted limbs and monstrous talons hung beneath their wings like weapons forged for slaughter.
The atmosphere beneath the great tree beca unbearably tense.
Sunny could feel cold sweat running down his back.
Nephis remained calm as always, though her grey eyes never once left the creatures above.
Cassie quietly gripped her clothes while listening to the distant cries echoing through the skies.
Elysia had already summoned her bow without anyone noticing.
The silver string shimred faintly beneath the lantern light while her pink hair danced gently in the cold wind. Though her expression remained soft, Sunny could tell she was fully prepared to fight at any mont.
anwhile, Senrix stood silently at the very front.
Crimson flas briefly flickered around his hand before vanishing.
His eyes remained fixed upon the winged horrors with terrifying calmness.
For a mont, Sunny almost pitied the creatures.
Because if they descended…
Senrix genuinely looked prepared to kill them even if it cost his own life.
Yet strangely enough, the abominations never approached the Ashen Barrow itself.
They circled endlessly around the giant black tree, occasionally lowering themselves before retreating again as though fearing sothing hidden beneath the crimson leaves.
Hours passed.
Eventually, as the pale sun descended toward the horizon, the three creatures finally flew westward and disappeared into the distance.
Only then did the group finally relax.
After resting briefly, the five Sleepers crossed the Ashen Barrow and continued westward according to Cassie's visions.
Nephis and Senrix walked ahead of the group in silence.
Sunny occasionally glanced toward them.
The contrast between the two was oddly striking.
Nephis resembled a cold blade forged from moonlight.
Senrix looked like dying embers concealing a wildfire beneath ash.
Behind them, Elysia carefully guided Cassie across the uneven terrain whenever the ground beca dangerous.
Even in this cursed land, her voice sohow managed to sound warm and comforting.
But once they reached the western edge of the island…
Everything collapsed.
Beyond the Ashen Barrow stretched an endless abyss.
The land itself curved downward into a colossal crater so vast that it devoured the horizon whole. Darkness swallowed everything below.
There was no visible end.
Then night arrived.
And from the depths of the abyss…
Black water surged upward like an endless flood.
The Dark Sea.
They had finally found its source.
The sight crushed every remaining shred of hope inside Sunny's chest.
Cassie imdiately denied reality, insisting there had to be another path because her visions clearly showed them reaching the castle soday.
Nephis stared silently into the darkness, already searching for solutions.
Sunny only felt despair.
anwhile, Senrix stood motionless at the cliff's edge.
Crimson flas slowly crawled across his arms before fading once more.
Their reflection danced within his crimson eyes like burning blood.
For several monts, nobody spoke.
Then Elysia quietly stepped beside him.
The silver light of the Soul Lantern illuminated the darkness around them while cold wind swept through her pink hair.
Without saying a word, she gently placed a hand on his shoulder.
Senrix stiffened slightly.
Then, slowly, the flas around his arms disappeared completely.
Only then did he finally turn away from the abyss.
That night, the five Sleepers returned to camp emotionally exhausted.
The next morning, Nephis decided to climb the colossal tree and search for answers from above while the others remained below.
Sunny spent the day training with Midnight Shard, gradually becoming more familiar with the elegant tachi.
Elysia carefully maintained the Soul Lantern while tending to everyone's injuries and exhaustion.
As for Senrix…
He mostly remained silent beneath the crimson canopy.
Sotis, Sunny would catch him staring blankly into the distance for long periods of ti.
And every now and then…
Tiny crimson sparks would flicker unconsciously around his fingers before vanishing again.
Later, Sunny traveled to harvest the soul shards from the Carapace Demon's corpse.
When he finally returned to camp…
He froze.
Nephis, Cassie, and Elysia were calmly eating the crimson fruits growing from the great tree.
The silver glow of the Soul Lantern illuminated their pale faces while crimson juice stained their lips like fresh blood beneath the scarlet leaves.
And beside them…
Senrix silently watched the scene with calm crimson eyes.
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