As everyone else finally succumbed to the embrace of sleep, a fragile peace settled over the makeshift camp atop the tall hill. Kane, however, remained vigilant. He instructed Sunny's shadow to maintain its watch, to act as an unseen sentinel and inform him of any disturbances. With the shadow as his external eyes, Kane turned his attention inward, activating his mind-soul vision. He scanned the surrounding landscape, perceiving the subtle energies of the Dream Realm, but found no creatures that posed an immediate threat. The night was calm, an unusual stillness that felt almost unnerving after the chaos of the preceding days.
After a period of quiet observation, Kane made a deliberate, yet ultimately regrettable, decision. He began to actively listen to the ravings of his flaw, the constant chorus of voices that had plagued him since his awakening. He sought to understand them, to perhaps even find a pattern or a way to control them. However, the attempt proved to be a grave miscalculation. The sheer volume of unfulfilled desires, the desperate pleas, the lingering sorrows of all the people who had died around him, crashed over his senses like a tidal wave. Their collective anguish, their unfinished wishes, their desperate cries for recognition and justice, overwhelmed his mind for a full minute, threatening to shatter his sanity. Kane, gasping for breath, struggled to reassert control, to push back against the suffocating despair. He finally managed to calm his storming mind, the experience leaving him shaken. 'Crap!' he thought, a cold sweat breaking out on his brow. 'I am never doing that again. That was a foolish, suicidal act.'
The night wore on, punctuated only by the soft whispers of the wind and the distant, almost imperceptible sounds of the Dream Realm. Suddenly, Nephis stirred, her eyes opening. She sat up, her movements graceful even in the dim light, and said, her voice low and firm, "I'll take the shift from here, Kane. You should rest." Kane, however, was resolute. He replied in an equally low voice, "Nah, you rest. I'll take care of it." Nephis was visibly annoyed by his refusal, her jaw tightening, but she chose not to argue further, her silence speaking volumes.
Just then, Sunny stirred from his sleep, his eyes blinking open. He remained in his lying position, his gaze fixed on Nephis and Kane. "Nephis," he said, his voice a sleepy rumble, "Can I ask you a question?" Nephis glanced at both Sunny and Kane, her expression unreadable, and then replied, "Sure." Kane was immediately intrigued, wondering what unexpected question Sunny might pose, knowing his tendency for bluntness. Sunny followed up, his voice now more awake, "I thought you Legacies, especially those from prominent clans, came into the Spell with a whole inherited arsenal of Memories, a vast collection of powerful artifacts and abilities passed down through generations. That's supposed to be your main advantage, your birthright. How is it that you only have three?" Kane's mind raced, connecting the dots. 'Nice question, Sunny,' he thought. 'Perhaps the fall of the Immortal Flame Clan, the destruction of their power, also resulted in the loss of their inherited Memories.'
Nephis paused, her gaze distant, a hint of sorrow in her eyes. "We lost most of our Memories when my father passed away," she replied, her voice soft, almost a whisper. "The remaining ones, the few that survived, were sold to keep the family afloat, to maintain our dwindling influence and prevent complete ruin. This sword and armor I possess, they came from my First Nightmare, not from my inheritance." Kane's blood ran cold as he heard her words. 'That's where my house and properties must have gone,' he thought, a bitter wave of realization washing over him. 'To raise her, to keep her family afloat. And yet, this very clan, her family, was responsible for pushing me into the outskirts, for inflicting such despair upon me. I hate them to the core, even more now.'
Nephis, seemingly oblivious to Kane's internal turmoil, then turned her attention to Sunny, asking another question about how he had discovered her Legacy status. Sunny explained that he had learned it from his interactions with Caster, who had inadvertently revealed her lineage through his deferential behavior. Sunny then, with a surprising lack of tact, asked another question, "Why are you burdened with her?" He gestured towards Cassie, his tone indicating a logical, if somewhat cruel, assessment of Cassie's flaw. Kane thought, 'Quite a cruel question, but logically, it makes sense from a pragmatic standpoint. I'm kind of feeling sad for Cassie, to be spoken of in such a way.' Nephis, however, simply explained, her voice firm, "I can, because I will." Kane thought, 'That was odd. A strange answer, yet it speaks volumes about her resolve.'
Nephis then began to recount a story, a legend of ancient times: the tale of Odysseus, the cunning hero who, through his ingenuity, brought an end to a great war, only to be cursed with immortality and an endless journey. She then asked a follow-up question, "Why do you think he eventually left the island, after all his adventures?" Sunny's answer seemed to be "homesickness," a yearning for the familiar. Kane, however, found himself unable to comprehend that feeling. 'Can't understand that feeling,' he thought, a bitter irony in his mind. 'Thanks to your clan, Nephis, I have no home to be homesick for.'
After that question, Sunny immediately turned towards Kane, his gaze direct. "Can I ask you a question?" he inquired. Kane, slightly surprised by the sudden shift in focus, replied, "Sure." Sunny then asked, "When I had my conversation with Caster, you told me you believed me about it. Why?" Kane remembered the context of their earlier conversation, the skepticism of the other Sleepers. He replied, "Why not? It seemed a possibility. For example, who could have thought that a sea would be here one moment and then completely vanish by morning? I learned to take things with a grain of salt and to believe what I see, even if it defies logic. So, I believed you." Sunny was visibly confused by Kane's answer, his brow furrowed in deep thought. He remained silent for a moment, processing Kane's words.
"Do you have any questions?" Sunny finally asked, breaking his silence. Kane, his mind already racing with his own plans, replied, "No. If I want to ask, I will ask you directly." Sunny nodded, seemingly satisfied with the answer, and then went back to sleep, leaving Kane to his solitary watch. Nephis, who had been silently observing the exchange, then turned to Kane. "Shall I take the watch now?" she asked, her voice carrying a hint of challenge. Kane, however, was resolute. "No," he said, his voice firm. "I will continue to take watch." Nephis stared at him, her annoyance palpable, but she didn't speak. She simply turned away and went to sleep, leaving Kane to his vigil.
The morning finally came, heralded by the familiar phenomenon of the sea receding, revealing the cracked and desolate landscape once more. Since Kane was already awake, he greeted Nephis and Sunny, who were now stirring from their sleep, while Cassie remained in a deep slumber. Kane looked at Cassie, a strange mix of emotions stirring within him. He thought, 'She is quite a sleeping beauty, I guess. Her despair, her helplessness, kind of reminded me of my mom, when she died in my arms. That feeling of utter powerlessness… I might want to help her, to ease her burden, if I can.'
The morning began with a silent and simple breakfast, the group eating in relative quiet. However, the conversation soon escalated, shifting to the pressing matter of what their next steps should be. Nephis, ever the strategist, had some ideas. "The Scavengers are primarily present in the west, drawn to that lying carcass," she explained, her voice clear and decisive. "The logical step for us would be to move towards the east, and to do so as fast as possible, to put some distance between us and those creatures." Both Sunny and Kane nodded in agreement, acknowledging the sound reasoning behind her plan. She continued, "We explored the east a little bit, but we couldn't find a proper high point, a defensible position. So, our plan is to scout the path today, to find a suitable location, and then move our camp there tomorrow."
Sunny sighed, a hint of weariness in his voice. "Do we have any idea where we are, exactly? Is there a Human Citadel in the east, or any other signs?"
Nephis shook her head. "I haven't heard of a region that fits this characteristic," she admitted, her brow furrowed in thought. "In any case, we should find out more. We will either find a citadel, encounter an unconquered gateway, or die trying. The east is as good a direction as any, given our limited information." Kane added his own cautionary note. "We might need to be wary of the weather," he said, his gaze scanning the sky. "The Storm seems to agitate things in the sea, and we need to secure a proper high point, a place where we can be safe from its influence."
As the discussion was ongoing, Cassie, who had been sleeping soundly, suddenly woke up. Her eyes were wide open, and her face was pale, her expression one of profound shock. Nephis, frowning with concern, immediately asked, "Cassie? What's the matter? What happened?"
Cassie, her voice trembling, replied, "A vision…! I had a vision!" All of them were shocked by her pronouncement, their attention immediately drawn to her. Nephis, ever cautious, instinctively summoned her sword, her hand resting on the hilt. Kane, his mind racing, asked, "What is it exactly? Is it good news or bad news?" Cassie, her eyes still wide with the lingering aftereffects of the vision, replied, "Good! I saw a castle… a castle full of people!" Cassie immediately raised her hand, her arm trembling slightly, and pointed towards the west, the opposite direction from where they had planned to go. "I don't know how far it is," she said, her voice filled with a strange mixture of hope and uncertainty, "but it's in that direction." Kane, his mind weighing the implications of this new information, thought, 'Is this truly good news, or is it a trap? A castle full of people… that could be a sanctuary, or a den of vipers. My luck, as usual, is a wild card.'
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The female lead for our MC,Here some contenders
1.Cassie
2.Effie
3.An Original Character
4.Crossover character from other fiction(Like LOTM)
5.Seishan
6.Morgan
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