Caster reassured Sunny that the guards would most likely not seek revenge, but he also issued a warning.
If Sunny had provoked Hunters or Pathfinders instead of ordinary Castle Guards, the outco would have been completely different.
In that situation, there would have been no argunt.
No threats.
No chance to calm things down.
He would have likely been killed before anyone had the opportunity to intervene.
The Bright Castle, as it turned out, was not significantly safer than the ruins outside its walls.
It was simply dangerous in a different way.
Sunny reluctantly admitted that Caster had a point.
Elysia exhaled lightly, sounding almost amused, though not dismissive.
"So it's dangerous in here too."
Her voice was quiet, almost as if she was speaking to herself.
Cassie nodded once.
Unlike the others, she did not seem particularly surprised.
It was as though she had already expected that answer long before asking the question.
Sunny sighed.
His tendency to attract trouble really was not helping his life expectancy.
Cassie then asked the question none of them truly wanted answered.
Even so, she asked it anyway.
"Is there any way out of here?"
Caster's expression imdiately darkened.
The atmosphere around the table shifted.
Even Elysia straightened slightly in her seat, her earlier playfulness disappearing as she carefully observed his reaction.
After a long silence, Caster finally spoke.
"There isn't."
His answer was simple.
Brutally simple.
"At least not one that any Sleeper can realistically reach."
Nobody spoke for several seconds.
The answer was not surprising.
But hearing it aloud still felt unpleasant.
For now, survival remained the only objective anyone could realistically pursue.
Soon afterward, Caster excused himself and left.
The handso Legacy disappeared into the crowd of Sleepers, leaving the three of them sitting in silence.
Elysia watched him walk away for a few monts before leaning back into her chair.
"Well."
She sighed.
"That was cheerful."
Sunny stared down at his breakfast.
Then he looked at the now-cold food.
Then he looked in the direction Caster had disappeared.
Naturally, he blad the Legacy for everything.
The ruined atmosphere.
The depressing conversation.
And most importantly...
His cold breakfast.
Over the next five days, Sunny rarely left his assigned room.
Instead, he relied almost entirely on his shadow.
While his real body remained hidden within the safety of the castle, his shadow silently moved throughout the Bright Castle, slipping through corridors, observing conversations, following important people, and gathering information piece by piece.
At first, the information seed random.
Disconnected.
aningless.
But slowly, those fragnts began forming a complete picture.
And the more Sunny learned, the less he liked what he discovered.
anwhile, Elysia spent her days exploring the castle alongside Cassie.
The two girls often wandered through the safer sections of the fortress, speaking with other Sleepers and learning how life inside the Bright Castle truly functioned.
Sotis Elysia would return and share strange stories she had heard.
Other tis she would simply complain about people.
"There is a guy on the third floor who spends all day talking about himself."
Sunny glanced up from his bed.
"Only one?"
Elysia looked offended.
"You're missing the point."
A few monts later she added:
"He spent thirty minutes describing his spear."
Sunny paused.
"Actually, that is impressive."
Cassie laughed softly.
The sound eased so of the tension hanging over the room.
At other tis, Elysia would notice small things that Sunny's shadow had overlooked.
People avoiding certain corridors.
Certain guards receiving noticeably better treatnt.
Groups lowering their voices whenever specific nas were ntioned.
Tiny details.
Harmless by themselves.
Yet aningful when combined together.
The more information they gathered, the clearer the truth beca.
The Bright Castle's apparent stability was not natural.
It was carefully constructed.
Carefully maintained.
And carefully controlled.
Beneath the surface existed a system built from fear, hope, exploitation, ambition, and necessity.
Those outside the castle desperately dread of entering it.
Those already inside desperately feared being cast out.
Gunlaug controlled both desires simultaneously.
The possibility of a better life kept people obedient.
The fear of losing everything kept them compliant.
Together, the castle and the outer settlent ford a self-sustaining cycle that trapped everyone within it.
Sunny had to admit it was brilliant.
He also wanted absolutely nothing to do with it.
However, the more he learned about Gunlaug himself, the more conflicted he beca.
Unlike many tyrants, Gunlaug genuinely seed to want to improve the lives of the people under his rule.
According to rumors gathered by his shadow, several years ago he had attempted to absorb the Dark City settlent into the Bright Castle itself.
His goal had supposedly been to protect everyone.
The attempt failed.
The entire castle opposed him.
Many Sleepers feared losing their privileges.
Others feared the strain on resources.
So simply feared change.
Rather than force the issue through violence, Gunlaug eventually abandoned the idea.
Instead, he began providing aid to the outer settlent every year.
Food.
Equipnt.
Protection.
Whatever he could spare.
Even now, despite holding the highest authority in the Bright Castle, there were limits to his influence.
In terms of political power, so of his own lieutenants arguably possessed greater influence than he did.
Tessai, for example, commanded the Castle Guards.
Fear alone granted him trendous authority.
Then there was the constant burden of leadership.
The pressure.
The responsibility.
And the lingering grief from losing his beloved wife.
Sunny found himself feeling an unexpected amount of pity for the Bright Lord.
Elysia remained silent for several monts after hearing his conclusions through the Shadow Bond.
Then she finally spoke.
"...That's disgusting."
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"What part?"
"All of it."
Her expression darkened slightly.
"The fact that he genuinely wants to help people."
She paused.
"The fact that people stop him."
Another pause.
"And the fact that everyone is trapped inside a system that keeps feeding itself."
Sunny thought about it.
Then nodded.
He could not disagree.
The Bright Castle housed roughly five hundred Sleepers.
All of them existed within a strict hierarchy that determined status, privilege, opportunity, and survival.
At the very top stood Gunlaug himself.
Beneath him stood his five lieutenants.
The true pillars supporting the Bright Castle.
There was Seishan.
According to rumors gathered by Gloomy, she was a Legacy from an unknown clan.
Most people believed she originated from Clan Song.
Though nobody had ever confird it.
Then there was Gemma.
One of Gunlaug's oldest allies.
The commander of both Hunters and Pathfinders.
His influence over the military structure of the Bright Castle was second only to Gunlaug himself.
Next ca Tessai.
The head of the Castle Guards.
Gunlaug's iron fist.
A brutal veteran responsible for enforcing laws and maintaining order within the fortress.
Then there was Kido.
The youngest of the lieutenants.
Unlike the others, she specialized in managent.
Then ca Xeleray.
Leader of the reconnaissance forces.
Among all of Gunlaug's lieutenants, he was the oldest.
According to rumor, he had already been present before even the first Bright Lord fell.
There was also an old story claiming that Xeleray sohow knew everything happening inside the Bright Castle at all tis.
Nobody knew whether that was true.
But the fact that the rumor existed at all spoke volus.
And lastly...
Harus.
The most feared Sleeper in the entire Bright Castle.
And also the most feared Sleeper in the Dark City.
And perhaps the most mysterious person beneath Gunlaug himself.
He served as the Bright Lord's personal executioner.
His most loyal sword.
His sharpest blade.
Unlike the other lieutenants, almost nothing was known about him.
Nobody knew his past.
Nobody knew his true capabilities.
Nobody even knew the full extent of his terrifying Aspect.
The mystery surrounding him only made him more frightening.
Below the lieutenants existed several major groups.
The Castle Guards consisted of roughly one hundred and fifty mbers.
Their responsibilities included enforcing laws, maintaining order, and defending the fortress itself.
Despite their numbers, they were generally considered the lowest-ranking military force within the castle.
Above them stood the Hunters.
Elite combatants who regularly ventured into the Dark City to hunt Nightmare Creatures and gather resources.
There were approximately fifty Hunters divided across seven separate hunting parties.
They enjoyed superior food, better equipnt, better housing, and significantly greater privileges.
Unfortunately, they also died far more often.
Then there were the Pathfinders.
A tiny group composed of fewer than a dozen veterans.
These Sleepers specialized in navigation, scouting, and survival within the ruins.
Their experience was invaluable.
As a result, they enjoyed so of the highest privileges among ordinary mbers of the Host.
Together, the Castle Guards, Hunters, and Pathfinders ford the Host.
The military force responsible for maintaining Gunlaug's authority.
The foundation supporting the Bright Castle.
And the reason its fragile order had not yet collapsed into complete chaos.
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