"That was a good shot, boy!"
Sunny was sitting on some rubble, away from the crowd, the only one keeping him company was the burly archer, who he now knew was named Brock.
"Tell me, how the hell did you manage to throw with that tiny body of yours?"
He clicked his tongue and shot him a threatening look.
"I just had to put in a little effort, just a little. Unlike gorillas like you, lifting a ton of metal isn't exactly easy."
The man laughed, his voice deep and mature.
"Well, you surprised me, kid. I'll go check on everyone. See you around."
As the gorilla walked away, he couldn't help but shoot him hateful glares.
'Who are you calling small, you damned beast?!'
It was true he was much smaller than that guy, but that was because the bastard was too tall, even taller than Effie.
And he wasn't even small. In fact, he was now a bit above average. The Shadow Weave had done its job.
Farther away, the survivors were enjoying their victory by drinking beer. Although many had died, the greatest catastrophe had been averted by the four champions.
Vaen and Nephis had been praised as saviors, with Vaen being the one who caused the most fatal wound and having survived a direct hit from a Fallen Devil.
Sunny doubted many more people in the Forgotten Coast could do that. In fact, he was sure he himself would have died instantly.
Brock was also highly praised. The only one who remained in the background was Sunny, partly because almost no one had seen him. After all, for most people, he only appeared at the beginning and end of the fight.
He smiled. That's what he wanted. The spotlight should go to the stars. He was content with them knowing he was a fearsome person, but not knowing the extent of his powers.
'Well, time to see the reward from the fight!'
With that thought, he opened his runes.
Name: Sunless
True Name: Lost from Light
Class: Monster
Shadow Cores: 2/7
Shadow Fragments: [27/2000]
Memories: [Silver Bell], [Rebellion], [Puppeteer's Shroud], [Azure Sword], [World Tree Seed], [Crimson Mantle]
Memory: Crimson Mantle
Rank: Ascended
Level: IV
Type: Armor
Description: [In an immensely high tower, which covered the entire world with its hope, a trapped damsel always spoke with the beings that approached her, eager for contact. Her favorites, and yet the worst, were the birds, for they were capable of doing what she was incapable of and desired most: to fly freely. A long time later, when the world died and corruption took it, the damsel inevitably fell, but the desire persisted. Despite still being trapped in that tower, she did not stop. She made her vassals fulfill her dreams and tell her of that which she could not see.]
'Interesting.'
Even after so much time, much history had been lost to the ages, both from the Forgotten Coast and from other dead kingdoms. Being able to acquire new knowledge reignited Sunny's inner explorer's flame.
What other memories were out there with a piece of hidden history?
He knew a great part of the world's history, but in reality, his knowledge was more about the world's flow than exact moments. He was unaware of most historical moments themselves. He still hadn't discovered exactly what The Nine had done or how many previous civilizations had perished.
Knowledge was the greatest power in the world, and although his was incredibly vast, it still had gaps.
'That means I'll have to finish off more nightmare creatures...'
It was not at all an excuse to kill something.
He continued looking at the memory's runes.
Enchantments: [Crimson Pact], [Wings of Blood]
Enchantment: [Crimson Pact]
Description: [The blood of your fallen enemies becomes yours. A drop of blood can replace flesh, bone, and skin.]
Enchantment: [Wings of Blood]
Description: [The armor is an extension of your body, and the stored blood functions as material to forge new weapons.]
He smiled. It seemed this memory didn't consume essence, which was very rare for Ascended ones.
Without further ado, he dove into his soul sea. A vast dark sea lay beneath his feet. Above him, hanging in the dark sky, two black suns shone faintly, surrounded by several smaller stars.
He took a step back and turned his head. There, he saw the multitude of enemies he had killed, among whom now lay the Needle General.
After studying him and the other needle messengers he had killed, he turned back to the stars and drew the newest one toward him.
The star descended gently until it was face to face with him.
The light grew fainter, revealing a dark red armor, similar in color to crimson coral. Its design was erratic, with spikes and crevices all over. Similarly, it didn't seem to have any visible openings.
After studying it a bit more, he observed through the material, revealing a weave of bright threads.
He studied the web of threads for a while until he gained a fairly good understanding of it.
From what he saw, the armor was capable of changing shape, storing the blood of his enemies, using it to heal or repair the armor, and could also be used to fabricate other objects.
It was a pretty good memory in his opinion.
He dismissed the armor and left his soul sea.
Outside, people were still celebrating and talking, although many had already left to rest.
He watched the scene for a while. People were laughing, dancing, and partying.
In his mind, a question kept gnawing at him, as it had for a very long time.
'Will we be able to maintain this peace this time?'
He hoped so. They had made many preparations, they were very strong, and had several cards up their sleeve.
Still, he couldn't help but feel a bit uneasy about unexpected variables.
He remembered the ghost of those three eyes watching him through the darkness.
At that moment, he didn't feel like they were looking at him, but deeper.
He had several hypotheses, but they would have to wait. Right now, there was something more important.
He sighed and stood up.
He was going to check on the fools.
- - -
A red carpet stretched across a huge, luxurious hall.
A set of chairs were scattered in front of a throne, always pointing towards it.
Footsteps. A group of people dressed in similar armor entered, carrying 6 sacks.
They placed them at the sides of the throne. After removing each sack, a person was revealed.
The same group of men patiently retreated to the chairs as more and more people dressed in armor entered and found their places.
Once everyone was standing in front of their seat, 6 more figures entered the hall.
Most were unknown to the guards, except for their leader, Tessai.
Among Gunlaug's 6 lieutenants, as they were called, was a horrible hunchback who instilled fear in people's hearts.
The 6 lieutenants dispersed around the hall, positioning themselves every few meters along the side walls, except for two who took their places on each side of the throne: Harus and Tessai.
When the lieutenants finished taking their positions, silence fell upon the hall, broken only by the ragged breaths of the captives.
All present were tense, each as still as a statue. The only ones who differed in this behavior were, again, Harus and Tessai.
The former seemed unconcerned. His gaze wandered everywhere, and he shifted from one leg to the other, sometimes standing still for a few minutes, staring into nothingness.
The latter had a furrowed brow. Her gaze was penetrating, and she wore an annoyed expression, as if everything in this world irritated her and she was about to strike the first idiot who made a noise.
Then, a rhythmic metallic sound, pleasant to the ear, came from the entrance.
The sound grew louder, and sometimes a muffled curse could be heard.
"Damn it, this wasn't supposed to happen."
All the guards shuddered, and the lieutenants dropped their attitudes to put on a serious demeanor.
"Fucking Vaen, fucking Crimson Terror, fucking Changing Star."
Finally, a golden figure appeared at the great gate. He had a refined step; his movements seemed practiced.
If he hadn't had a golden crystal over his face, anyone would have seen the face of hatred and anguish that Gunlaug wore.
The moment he entered, everyone present began to sweat and feel a strange fear.
In the blink of an eye, Gunlaug crossed the hall, elegantly taking his place upon his throne.
Once he was seated, all silence vanished from the hall.
The shining man rested his hand on the chair, subsequently beginning to tap it softly with his fingers as he glanced at all those present.
His gaze settled on the guards, causing more than one to swallow saliva and nearly collapse to the floor. Then it moved to his lieutenants, who somehow maintained a calm demeanor.
And finally, it landed on his guests.
His gaze passed over several of them until it stopped on a young woman.
"There is still quite some time until our guests arrive. In the meantime..."
He pointed at Harus.
"Go and get information out of her."
The hunchback performed a bow, more like a stumble than anything else, and approached the young woman.
Then, without warning, one of the guys lunged, hitting Harus with his body and making him stagger back.
"Don't touch her, you hunchbacked bastard!"
The hall fell silent, only to be filled with the murmur of chairs moving and weapons being summoned.
The hunchback looked at Jack with surprise, which then turned into a cold, murderous fury.
"Boy, do you want to die that quickly?"
Jack laughed. A macabre, crazy smile appeared on his face.
"I'll make your head roll on the floor, bastard."
He turned towards all the guards, looking at them with disgust. Then he turned towards Gunlaug.
Despite the mental attack, Jack didn't move a millimeter. In fact, his gaze only became more penetrating.
"And I'll definitely kill you too."