Three months later, a group of seven battered humans appeared from the sea of crimson coral and approached a magnificent white arch. Moving with the precision of experienced predators, they swiftly slaughtered a few transient creatures that hid in the deep shadow cast by the ancient structure, stripped them down for meat, and swiftly climbed up.
During this time, the cohort, now one member up with the First Bright Lord, grew stronger and stronger. Sunny already knew that Nephis and Effie had their core saturated, but now, Caster and Kai must have also reached that point. Cassie and he were close behind, but still not there.
As for the First Bright Lord, Lysander…
It was no surprise that his core had been saturated for years.
And yet, that explained very little.
Sunny still could not comprehend how Lysander managed to stand shoulder to shoulder with each of them in their respective strengths without relying on his Aspect. Effie's monstrous power. Caster's speed. The physical augmentation that Nephis' Aspect and his brought. Somehow, the First Bright Lord could rival them all in their specialties, even when light was scarce and his Aspect lay dormant.
Sunny had tried to ask him.
The answer had never come.
Despite fighting beside them, bleeding beside them, and nearly dying beside them, Lysander remained distant. He never spoke of his cohort, of what happened in the dark maze. He never described the trial in the river. He never elaborated on the cryptic words he had uttered before passing out in front of them.
Underworld. Choice.
That was all.
Even among allies, he remained what he had always been: a legend made flesh, distant due to his past.
Over the past three months, Sunny had learned—or perhaps deduced—three important truths about the First Bright Lord.
Firstly, even if Lysander's Aspect was incredibly powerful, it was dependent on light. In an area where light was scarce, his Aspect couldn't empower him a lot. He had to admit, with or without his Aspect, the First Bright Lord was still a threat that could kill easily almost any Sleeper on the Forgotten Shore.
Secondly, his goals were aligned with Nephis and the cohort. When Lysander learned what Gunlaug had done to the haven that he had created in the Dark City, Sunny had felt it again—that suffocating killing intent that had filled the cavern when the First Bright Lord first rose from the river.
Thirdly, the First Bright Lord was suffering from a soul injury, probably caused by what he experienced in the dark maze. A few times during their return to the city, they had watched Lysander scream and thrash around them in pure agony. The only good side of that was that he didn't seem to target anything in particular and that he was exhausted quickly from whatever he was suffering. They only had to wait at a distance, and then Nephis would heal the soul of Lysander with her Aspect. The injury she had described was that his soul was slowly being corroded and that her white flame would only delay it until they found a proper soul healer in the waking world.
As these thoughts drifted through Sunny's mind, the coral sea thinned, giving way to familiar stone.
The wall of the Dark City loomed before them.
Sunny turned toward the others.
Nephis and the others had sworn to aid Sunny in slaying the Black Knight—the Fallen Devil who had once hunted him, who had left a scar deeper than flesh. It was time to collect that debt.
Before they descended, Lysander drew his cloak low, concealing his golden hair and the faint gleam of the gemstone upon his brow. On the wall, he paused.
"I have matters to attend to," he said, his voice calm but resolute. "My cohort. The first generation of Sleepers..."
He did not elaborate.
He simply added, "When you challenge Gunlaug, I will be there."
And then he parted ways with them atop the ancient wall.
Sunny watched him go, and at his side, he noticed Cassie's gaze lingering on the back of the First Bright Lord. What surprised him was that the face of the blind girl was dark, in complete contrast to the first time they saw Lysander.
------
Sunny and the rest killed the Black Knight in a difficult fight, fulfilling the revenge that was plaguing their minds. As a result, Stone Saint was evolving in his Soul Sea.
------
Then, when he was alone, he explored the secret temple under the cathedral, retrieving Weaver's Mask.
------
Finally, before the beginning of the end, Sunny decided to go explore the Library one last time.