Sunny was really confused, Vile Thieving Birds Spawn wasn't a shadow but could evolve, sunny guessed it had to do with the atribute [Weak]. Or it was gonna be for the minions. He went to read the atributes.
Flame of Divinity: "Your soul is aflame with the light of divinity."
'Kinda wierd for a creature hated by gods to have divinity but ok i guess, i'v seen wierder things.'
Soul Absorber: " the spawn can absorb souls from creatures it consumes and get stronger."
Weak:" the spawn is weak from thousands upon thousands of years of starvation, and needs food to get it's power it so despererly needs."
'Well it makes sense, it was quite weak compare to other monsters of the same rank, and especialy class, it was about the same as a corrupted devil, i should send it to hunt and get stronger as soon as possible.'
Revenge:" the spawn seeks revenge against those who trapped it for thousands of years. It wants to rip them to shreads, it can feel their powers spreading across the realms it wants to taste their blood. Even the owner isn't compleatly safe."
'Damn, maybe i shouldn't send it to hunt after all, after im stronger, like a master. Only for a bit tough.'
Sunny tried expanding the runes asking for souls and to his suprise it worked.
Souls 0/1000
The spawn needs souls to grow more powerfull, who needs minions when you can destroy all that stands in your path. Once all the souls are collected,the spawn will deem you worthy of it's master and let go of it's wish to kill you, that is if you can still win the fight against it.
'Damned spell, i was happy before that stupid last part. I'm gonna need to be a saint with atleast 6 cores and nephis with 5. So mutch for turning it into a shadow after i awakane. I will still do it, but later with my 3 core. I will need saint more for the time being, and i don't wanna risk getting killed myself and the entire human civilisation.'
'It's kinda ironic it wants to kill all the creatures with divine energy, sutch as gods, daemons, maybe even the void beings. While also possesing divinity in its own blood.'
When sunny was back to his senses effie was still joking around about his and nephs relationship, and he was annoyed but knew better than to do anything. Nephis on the other hand was embarased and really angry sunny wasn't doing anything, so she decided to do it herself. Nephis suddenly apeared near effie and trew a punch devestating the giantess, and making her scream and fall to the floor in pain. Sunny was dumbstruck, why did she do that near a hord of bloodfiends, he instantly went and quickly killed the hord before returning to the cohort, effie was sitting on the floor having her back to the boulder, she was trying to laugh in pain, she had a hard time considering she was hit right in the stomach and nephis didn't heal her. Sunny was happy nephis stood up for them and gave her a quick kiss, he then looked at effie and asked
"Do you still want to joke around and waste our time, or should we go deal with collecting the shards."
"What do you mean collect the shards there is no way you managed to take out 7 bloodfiends in 2 minutes."
"You are right, i killed 12, 5 joined after neph hit you and you screamed like a baby."
Effie was dumbstruck, she looked over the boulder and saw 12 dead bloodfiends and was terrified of the sleeper she tought was just some weak scout.
" ok, lets not waste any more time and lets go collect the shards. I will stop joking around now."
In truth sunny summoned the spawn and was far away and waited for it to kill them and quickly dissmised it hoping to not die in an instant. He then checked the amount of souls the spawn gained.
Souls 12/1000
Sunny was correct, the amount of monsters killed counted and not soul shards absorbed.
' it's gonna be a bit hard to get 1000 kills but it' managable, i just have to be carefull with where i summon it and when.'
The cohort got the soul shards and got ready to go and spend a week in a nice place in a while. Sunny was happy he could properly bathe finally, and couldn't wait anymore.
As they aproached the gates effie went to her house and bid the trio farewell. Sunny, nephis and cassie went to the gates and showed 3 soul shards and went to the front desk. There they saw a tall fragile and weak guy, they all had diffrent expretions. Cassie was neutral compleatly forgeting about him, nephis forgot about him but knew she saw him somwhere before, sunny was a bit annoyed by his face knowing what he did to his life but knew he was more to blame by letting his guard down.
"Hello, how may i help you today. Are you going to pay the fee for entering the castle."
"Yes, we would like 2 rooms please." Said nephis while taking 3 soul shards from her weed rucksack. Sunny wasn't suprised by this so he was just wanted to hurry up and go to take a bath, all 3 of them desperetly needed one.
"Sure, in what name should i put the rooms under and would you like your rooms close or far from eachoder?"
"We would like rooms next to eachoder, in the western tower please."
Said sunny, he knew that was where the spire was and he didn't care. They could manage being there and they would have more private space. They would be there for only 1 week so it couldn't be that bad. He continued:
"Put the rooms under sunless and nephis"
Sunny was waiting for harper to guide them to their rooms. Once there sunny waved the girls a good bye and went to the bath. He was enjoying every last moment, until he heard a knock on the door.
"Please don't enter, come back later when i'm done." He then heard the door open and saw nephis, she wasn't wearing anything.
"Didn't i say not to enter the room. And what are you doing not wearing anything are you crazy." He was saying that last part sarcasticaly and knew what nephis wanted, it was obvious, he knew she was waiting for it ever since the boat ride. He also knew she was aproaching and was getting mentaly ready for what is to come. (It was him, he was cumming). She locked the door behind her. Sunny was fully aware what his autistuc blowtorch was doing every time she had night watch. She was practicing her body to withstand her flaw. She was doing it for 2 reasons, 1 for killing nightmare creatures, and healing. Sunny knew what she was going to heal, and he wasn't complaining.
"Are you ready to show me how sorry you really are."
'Damn that is hot.' "Yes, yes i am."
***
In the morning, once again sunny woke up first, it wasn't really morning it was noon when he woke up, nephis was by his side resting her head on his arm. She looked really beautifull, some of her hair fell over her face, her bare chest was slowly raising and falling. She looked at peace, she was slowly waking up. When she did she looked at sunny with a smile on her face.
"Good morning, i hope you had fun yesterday. I'm sure i did, i also forgive you."
"I did have fun, i appreciate your kindness." After a moment sunny asked: "Btw how did you make cassie let you come here, i'm sure she would be against it."
"I used the golden rope and tied her to the bed. She should not have been able to escape."
"I just checked she is sleeping and is okay."
"Good, let's get dressed and get cassie to eat lunch, i'm hungry after last night." Nephis tried too stand up from the bed but failed misserably and fell on her face.
"Are you okay, do you need help?" Said sunny in a worried voice even tough he knew he wouldn't be able to help her, because he also didn't feel his legs.
"I am but i can't feel my legs and i'm still tired from my flaw from last night. So you are gonna have to carry me until i can heal myself."
"Well i can't feel my legs either, and i for sure can't carry you when i can't even sit up without my entire body hurting."
"Damnation, i knew i shouldn't have gone so hard on you but i loved it, i'm sorry, this is all my fault." Nephis said as she picked herself up the ground and tried to get back to the bed being helped by sunny who was groaning continously until he laid back on the bed.
"I loved it too but we should hold back a little next time so we can walk in the morning. Also please don't heal my d*ck next time, it feels like it's gonna fall of any second."
***
After about 4 hours they finally felt like they could walk, with a limp ofc. They went to free cassie who was pretending to sleep and waiting for them to give them a lecture. Sunny and nephis expected this so they sat down and then nephis dismissed the golden rope. When cassie ''woke up'' this happaned.
"How dare you do that nephis, don't you already know what happaned to effie, do you really think it's worth it. Imagine what would happene if you got pregnant, hundreds of lives would be lost, all because you wanted to have a little fun. I just want what is best for everyone, if you want to start a family do it after we kill those assholes that are controling the world."
"I understand, but it's not like i don't know when my cycle starts, it was ok to do it last night because my cycle ended a week ago. And it's not like i don't know the consequences of my actions, that was why i was carefull in my aproach." Neph said it with a serious face and even tone, she knew cassie wouldn't belive her, but she trusted to have sunny supporring her.
'Carefull on her aproach, probably in her dreams, i was dying the whole time. I'm preaty sure i passed out at some point as well. Oh, She probably meant the last round where she looked like she would die of exaustion and got away before the load came out.' It took sunny a few seconds to say: "Yea she was, i would prefer not to talk about it tough."
Cassie was lost in tought. After a bit of thinking she said:" if i say i belive you, will you not do it at least until we get out of this place."
"Yes"
"Yes"
"Ok, now that that is out of the way, can we get some food, i'm starving."
"Sure, i am too."
***
After the week was over and the cohort, and caster, left the castle it was time to start planing how to get gunlaug to help them with conqering the crimson spire.
First they needed effie. How were they going to do it you may ask. Simple, they are going to kill as many of the iron spiders and stone saints as possible.
That was because sunny needed to get saint and turn her into a shadow. It was going to be a gamble, but it was worth it.
"How are we going to do this again?" Said caster in a curious and confused look.
"I will be bait and get the spiders in the teritory of the stone statues, then we will help the winning side by finishing the one closest to death as fast as possible." It was sunny who spoke, he knew it was dangerous. That was why nephis was going to summon the carapace demon and attack them with all its might.
"If you understand now get ready to fight."
Sunny then summoned the prowling thorn he got yesterday, and trew it in the nest of the iron spiders. He damaged one, even if barely. He did that a few times and was now running towards the stone statues. Once there he trew the prowling torn in a tall tree and made the invisible string as short as possible and he reached the top in no time. When the stone statues and iron spiders started fighting, nephis summoned the carapace demon. Caster was stunned, he couldn't belive 2 sleepers were able to kill an awakaned demon only 1 month after winter solstice, and one this strong as well, it could probably kill the entire hord by itself.
When the scavanger demon started fighting, it left only bodies in its path. It didn't take long for all of them to die. And that isn't all nephis also got an echo, and she was visibly happy.
"Let me guess, you got an echo, didn't you." Said sunny, even tough he already saw she got a stone saint, and was thinking she was going to keep it. To his suprise she actually gave it to him.
[You have recived an echo]
'Why did you give it to me, you already said i don't need it anyways.'
'Well you can evolve it and its gonna be of more use to you than to me.'
'I can't evolve her, if i could i would apreciate it. The process of making a shadow is combining the echo with the shadow of the killed creature and the approporiate amount of shadow fragments. So you should take it.'
'You should still take it, maybe it is gonna work anyways because of the shadow bond. I have basically no use for it, it's gonna be more usefull in you're hands. Also i got 2 anyways so i can give you 1'
'Well ok, but it's not my fault if it fails. Thank you for beliving in me.' Sunny was happy but didn't know what to do now. He didn't know which shadow to get first. He could either get saint and evolve her but have to wait to get serpent and get shadow dance later or the opposite. He never had more shadows than his core and he didn't want to risk it.
'No problem, i love you, so how can i not belive you.'
"I always belived you could do it, lady changing star."
Nephis rolled her eyes, they met caster on the third day of their stay in the castle and he wouldn't stop following them after that. All three of them were sick of him but knew it couldn't be helped. They needed him to kill the boss and stay behind on forgotten shore while everyone else escaped. Since sunny looked like a weak ass kid, caster tought nephis was the one who brought 2 dead weights. But he was the one who will make him kill the boss and knock him out and escape.
***
"So, you guys killed 13 iron spiders and 6 stone saints, to prove you can be in a cohort with me. Sure, when can i get the food, i was just preparing to go on a hunt."
"You can take this" neph handed her a bag with meat from the spiders. She also had another bag full of meat from the other nightmare creatures they killed on the way to effies house. Nephis was going to give the rest to the sleepers of the outskirts.
Sunny was also keeping an eye on jubei and his cohort. Making sure that adele doesn't do anything stupid, so far nothing.
When the cohort finally went to the outskirts, nephis put the bag with meat on the table and said: "sleepers of the forgotten shore, come and take your food, take as mutch as you need but leave enough for the rest. My cohort will hunt every 2 days, i promise to you that i will give you everything for free, as long as you decide to follow me and my people."
"Why should we trust you?"
"Why are you doing this?"
"Is there really no catch?"
"You don't have to trust me if you don't want to. For those who do can stay by my side, i promise to bring you out of here. The forgotten shore won't be a challange for those who belive in me and my actions. I am doing this because i want to escape this place and i can't do this without you. I will make sure to bring as many of you out of here as possible, anyone is welcome to stay with my cohort, we won't judge you for anyrhing you do as long as you don't hurt others. We need to work together to escape and we need as mutch support as possible."
If there were any sleepers who were still skeptical about nephis after that speach, they won't be for long.
During that speach, sunny was thinking he decided to learn shadow dance as mutch as possible and gain serpent. With him he would quickly be able to get a lot more fragments by sending serpent to fight during the night, and soon get enough fragments to get another core and finally try to turn saint into a shadow. Sunny already tried to see if he could do it and the spell confirmed it, but sunny wasn't sure but he would do it later after geting his second core.
After the speach the sleepers who were calling nephis a saint then learned she had a true name and started shouting even more and were already working on making stories about her being their savior.
When they finally calmed down they stood in a line and were waiting to get their food and eat it asap. Cassie was handing them their food, with a smile on her face. She was a true beauty and a sight to behold, not as beautifull as nephis but pretty close.
That night when sunny was taking first watch he was practcing shadow dance on the roof. If anybody saw him now they would see a short pale skined, raved black haired black eyed kid in an intricate gray armour covered in small spikes made of tough chitin. He is holding a sword made out of obsidian and looking ready to slice anything in it's path. He looked like he was dancing, but also fighting. His body was moving at weird angles, striking where it didn't make sense and looking like his fighting style was as formless as a shadow dancing around the fire.
Sunny was practicing with his tachi, he was thinking about all of his most important fights, with nephis on the crimson spire, solvane, all of the times he ended on the verge of death. When he concentrated on each fight he used all his knowlage to push his body to understand what to do and unlock the relic. When sunny got to the fight with nephis on the crimson spire he got it.
Sunny stoped and looked at his runes:
Aspect legacy: Shadow Dance
Aspect legacy mastery: 2 / 7
First relic: [Claim]
Second relic: [Claim]
Third relic: Unearned...
'Thank the dead gods, now i can finally be in more pain. Damn it, i'm gonna do it tomorrow.'
'Claim first relic'
[You have recived an aspect legacy]
[You have recived a shadow: soul serpent]
'Welcome back buddy, can you please go hunt some nightmare creatures for me.'