After parting ways with Caster and Kai, Sunny and Cassie went to their rooms…
Well to Cassie's room. Sunny left Gloomy in the hall to keep an eye on it.
'It 's time…'
He entered his soul sea, the dark expanse of the black sea stretched to the horizon, with a growing army of shadows comprising all the nightmare creatures he killed on it.
He summoned Wraith, the shadow wolf reached his master and looked at him with expectation, well, as much expectation as a ghost could show.
Sunny looked at his shadow's runes.
Shadow: [Dire Wraith]
Rank: Awakened.
Class: Demon
[179/200]
'I can finally ascend you, this will make things so much easier.'
Sunless gave all the memories he bought on the Memory Market to the wolf, who ate everything. The counter slowly increased, until it became [199/200].
'One more, I definitely won't miss this one.'
He summoned [Azure Blade], the blue jian appeared on his hand from one of his cores and he tossed to his shadow.
Wraith catched it with his mouth and consumed it. The counter turned, [200/200].
The shadows of the wolf began to overflow, the calm sea rippled and reacted to the transformation occurring. Not even the silhouette of Wraith could be seen through the darkness.
When it was finally finished, Dire Wraith appeared in a new glory.
Even more dark mist enveloped it, the overall body got bigger, the sharper claws and fangs were visible.
But the most striking feature was the new eyes. Wraith still had its right eye missing, but it had gained new ones, one in the middle of the forehead and another on the downward side of the original left eye.
New runes appeared for the Shadow
Shadow: [Dark Wraith]
Rank: Ascended.
Class: Demon.
[1/200]
Shadow attributes: [Ghost Body], [Longing for Companionship], [Authority of the Undead].
[Ghost Body] is just an upgrade of [Wraith Body]. But the new attribute…
[Authority of the Undead]
Attribute Description: "This Shadow can force their Will upon the remnants of life, growing stronger with each one."
Sunny had a few thoughts about it, but decided to put it to the side for now.
The Wraith itself looked really happy for one, jumping around with the new found strength. Its master observed with a smile, until the target stopped being the sea and became Sunny himself.
"Wait, wait, WAIT!"
The difference in Rank and Class was…
Aperent.
Luckily, it was on Sunny's soul sea, so he took no actual damage. Still hurt though.
The wolf sat on the black sea with its head down in shame. Sunny turned his back to not look at the adorable shadow, if he did, he would spoil the undead dog, and he couldn't do that.
Getting out of his soul sea, Cassie was sitting in the bed, looking at him expectantly, she wanted to pet Wraith… Sunny was not amused.
"He's in time out, and stop spoiling him!"
"But Sunny!..."
"No but's, he is my shadow, not yours, when you have an echo…
Wait, you have an echo, pet him!"
Cassie looked flabbergasted at the suggestion.
"First of all, that Carapace Scavenger is too big, second, it's not cute!"
Ignoring the ramblings of the blind girl, Sunny summoned the [Mantle of the Underworld] and rested in the small desk.
Serpent slithered through his skin, letting him control shadow essence. Pressing his hands on the armor, infusing it with essence.
It glowed in a dark light, changing into a pristine armor made of obsidian plates, the quality and polish instantly showed as the makings of a genius blacksmith.
When he finished pouring every drop of essence his dormant cores had, the process was complete, and his new memories runes shined like they were reborn.
Memory: [Mantle of the Underworld]
Memory Rank: Ascended.
Memory Tier: VI.
Memory Type: Armor.
Memory Description: [Vowing to never look upon the Goddess of the Black Skies again, the prideful demon retreated into the darkness beneath an unassailable mountain chain. He wasn't the first to lead his army against the gods. However, he was the first to shed their blood, as well as learn the secrets of his own.]
Dismissing the [Puppeteer's Shroud] and summoning the new armor, the obsidian plates wrapped around his whole body, protecting it without preventing movement. Even the enchanter of the Song Clan would admire its design.
Cassie stared at the armor, admiring it, through [Bloodweave], the could see the enchantments, in a way, she recovered part of her vision when she took Weaver's Lineage, but she would never really see again.
"It's… Beautiful…"
She then described the enchantments to Sunny.
[Living Stone]: the armor repair itself,
[Feather of Truth]: the weight can be changed,
[Stalwart]: it gave Sunny various resistances,
[Underworld Armament]: it boosted a charm,
[Prince of the Underworld]: the armor grew stronger the more enemies he defeated. There was a counter that indicated the progress.
"Looks like the rumor was right, the first Lord, or someone else, used it already, the counter is at [1216/6000]."
Cassie informed Sunny with a wistful expression.
The Prince of Song on the other hand was more focused on the armor itself, sure, it still couldn't beat Gunlaug's Transcendent Echo, but an Ascended armor that can grow? With the enchantments it had? It was perfect.
Now, with an Ascended weapon, armor and echo, he was powerful enough to survive the Dark City easily…
"I am…"
He looked down, thinking back to the hall of scared people of the Bright Castle, to the outer settlement…
They didn't have what he did. The training, the lineage, the memories, echos…
Even if he defeated Gunlaug, what would it matter if none were able to fight the Crimson Spire? He couldn't do it alone, even with a few companions…
All of the Sleepers needed to do it, together, just like he himself said to Seishan.
He sighed, then remembered about Nephis.
He could see Changing Star's actions through the happy shadow, gathering information, living close to the edge of the outer settlement; she even fought a nightmare creature that invaded the streets… All in two days.
"Sunny?"
He looked at Cassie.
"Yeah?"
She turned to the door, smiling as she did.
"Someone is here to see you… She'll help you a lot…"
His hollow eyes widened, understanding everything, he knew what he needed to do. He would follow in his sister's footsteps.
He quickly moved to the room's door, opening it without hesitation.
A pale girl with violet eyes met his gaze, a hand awkwardly hanging in the air indicating that she was about to knock at the door.
Nix stared at him with surprise.
"Lord Sunless… How did you-"
"Nix, you know a lot about the people here, right?"
The handmaiden twisted her head in confusion but answered evenly.
"Sure, maybe even more than Lady Seishan."
Sunless nodded, then smiled.
"I need to find some allies…"
—
The rest of his week of stay in the castle was busy.
He had called the Happy shadow back, Nephis didn't need to be watched and he wanted to cover more ground in his investigation.
He looked at every corner, every person, everything in the whole place through the eyes of his shadows, noting the main people that could be problems, and the ones with potential to be allies.
Seishan and Nix helped a lot with that, already having lived on the Bright Castle for years, they informed him about the most noticeable individuais.
He made sure to use [Puppeteer's Shroud] instead of his new armor, no point in gaining attention now.
While he was searching for allies, he made sure to talk to Caster to keep him updated. It was interesting, the Han Li Scion seemed more invested in Sunny's little rebellion than planned, even giving his own suggestions about who could help them take down Gunlaug.
Kai meanwhile…
On his fourth day in the castle, Sunny was in the Memory Market, pretending to look at some memories when in reality using his shadows to listen to the others in the Market, gathering rumors.
A new shadow appeared on the market… The charming singer, Kai. He looked like something was bothering him. Constantly looking right and left, his gaze landed on Sunny, and he began to move in his direction.
Sunny frowned.
'What does he want? Convince me to stop?'
Sunny turned before Kai could even call him. Surely enough, the singer was startled but regained his composure.
"H-Hey…"
Kai 's voice was… uneven, it was obvious why he was here.
"So… Are you really going to do it?"
Sunless sighed. The guy was too caring, they barely met and he was already worried about him.
"Yes… And keep your voice down."
"Sorry…"
Sunny looked around, judging that the place was far too crowded to have this conversation.
"Come, let's talk somewhere else."
Kai nodded.
Gathering his shadows, he kept Happy on him to pretend to be a normal shadow while making Gloomy patrol around them as they walked further from the market.
When there was a good enough distance, Sunny turned to Kai.
"You want to ask why, right? Why am I doing this?"
The singer nodded, his normal attitude returning, he gave Sunless a smile, an unsure one.
"Yes, even though you know the power he has… You will still fight him… Why?"
Sunny stared at Kai with an unreadable expression, eventually answering when his flaw forced him.
"I have to go back, I made a promise."
Kai looked beyond a window of the corridor, his eyes lost in the light of the sun.
"You know, my flaw lets me detect any lie people say."
Sunny's surprise in his eyes couldn't be hidden. Kai chuckled, continuing.
"I know… Doesn't sound like a flaw…
Did you know? Most people tell lies everyday without even noticing, and here, when it comes to the Bright Lord, everyone that tries to act tough and gloat about defeating Gunlaug are nothing but liars trying to get attention."
The singer turned his gaze to lock eyes with Sunny.
"Yet you didn't, even after witnessing his power, you didn't lie… You want to defeat him… Destroy what he built. All the while not lying once…
It's really refreshing."
Sunny studied the singer, finally asking.
"What are you trying to say…?"
Kai smiled solemnly.
"That I am thankful that you want to bring change, and I wished I had the same courage you have…"
Sunny stayed silent, not knowing how to respond. Kai took that as his signal to leave, walking slow, quiet steps.
But that didn't sit right with Sunny.
"There's no problem with being a coward, Kai. Just make sure you don't regret your choice."
The singer turned and continued smiling.
"I don't think I got your name…"
"Sunless, you can call me Sunny."
"I see… Thanks Sunny. My friend."
Kai left, and so did Sunny.
In the corridor, as Sunny was walking, a familiar face appeared out of nowhere. Nix, the handmaiden had used her aspect to create an illusion, making it seem like she wasn't there.
"Looks like you made a new friend."
Sunless didn't look surprised at Nix's presence, he had already sensed her shadow, something she could not hide.
"A friend, yes, but not an ally against Gunlaug…"
Sunny planned to keep walking, but the handmaiden was getting tired of seeing the same expression on her new boss, so decided to tease him a little.
"You know, I heard Lady Seishan has a crush on that singer…"
The Prince of Song stopped in his tracks. Nix smirked and continued.
"... And I also heard Mr. Kai really admire Lady Seis-"
"Nix… Any updates on the recruiting?"
His voice had hidden anger and annoyance, it was obvious. His protective side was annoyed that his sister could have a crush. But the others really saw Kai as a friend.
Nix smirked, proud of herself.
"Well, there is an artisan called Lauma, she has a mapping aspect, but others found it useless because of the requirements. She is quite bullied, and I don't think Kido did anything for her yet.
There's also two brothers that begrudgingly serve Gunlaug, and bear hatred towards Tessai."
Sunny turned and nodded at everything, still trying to take the frown of his face.
"Anything on the 'Kira' person I asked about?"
Nix shook her head with elegance.
"I haven't been able to know much about him, only that the Bright Lord tolerates his presence and that he is strong enough to hunt alone."
Sunny nodded.
"Alright, once I meet with Nephis outside, we'll see how to recruit them. Keep looking, but be selective, we want a quiet coup, not a chaotic riot."
Nix nodded, but before she left, she decided to mention one more thing.
"There's someone in the outer settlement that can help."
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"He's strong enough to hold his ground, but more importantly… He's quiet enough to sneak in and out of the castle whenever he wants."
Surprise took over his face.
"His name is Motza."
"Can you tell me why you only mentioned his name now?"
Nix smiled.
"Because if you want him under you, you'll have to fight him."
Sunny shrugged, not impressed.
"Then I'll fight him."
A chuckle came out of the handmaiden.
"Good to know our leader is straightforward."
Nix used her aspect and disappeared from view.
—
On his fifth day, aside from collecting information, Sunny passed time with Seishan, finally telling her how Lonesome Howl was able to lose Lightslayer's favorite novel in Seishan's room.
"... So Terra decided it would be a great idea to toss the book into the cave."
Seishan could already see how things ended.
"Don't tell me…"
"But she was surrounded by Darkness, the only light was too weak, so she didn't notice she tossed the novel into a hole…
Said hole leads directly to mother's army underground…
Let's just say mom feigned ignorance when Revel asked where the novel is."
Seishan rested her hands in her face, sighing because of the sheer immaturity.
"What's next? Moon horribly misses her shot and hits a butler?"
Sunny snaps his head towards her with so much speed a breeze passes through the room, causing his sister to raise an eyebrow.
"Sunny… Who got hurt?"
The little brother felt a chill run down his spine, Seishan gave him a glare comically scary. He gave a nervous smile.
"N-No one got hurt…"
The glare got sharper and she got closer to Sunny.
"Sunny…"
"S-Shan! I can't lie, remember?! N-No one got hurt!"
Seishan confined her brother on the sofa using her hands.
"Sunless Song, what happened?"
"M-Moon was training her archery… And one of the arrows accidentally hit the window…"
"And?"
"A-And… It almost hit my… Eye…"
Seishan's eye twitched, a vein popped on her face.
"Were you mundane?"
Her voice was scary, filled with anger.
"Yes…"
The sister breathed in… And out…
She sat on the sofa again and folded her legs.
"I'm going to have a real talk with her after we return."
Her voice got back to normal, Sunny breathed a sigh of relief, before widening his eyes and smiling widely.
"Return… Yes. We'll return."
Seishan looked at him, and smiled as well.
The siblings were going back home, to their home, their family…
No matter what it took.
[Your Blood Connection has deepened.]
Both children of Song widened their eyes in surprise.
'Huh?'
—
Turns out, Sunny's innate ability has much more secrets then he thought, for some reason, maybe by getting closer to the connection, they could deepen the connection to have more benefits.
Sunny was looking at a group of Sleepers gambling with Aiko organizing everything, Caster was in the mix, not really playing, going for low risk, low reward playstyle. Although he was barely paying attention to that, he was talking to his sister…
Who wasn't even there.
[Blood]: I'm still getting used to this.]
[Shadow]: No kidding… What's next? Our soul sea's become one?]
[Blood]: Don't jinx it.]
Ever since yesterday, they could talk to each other via Sunny's innate ability. By writing messages concentrating on the runes, they could keep in contact.
The Spell put Sunny as [Shadow] and Seishan as [Blood]. It was still Sunny's theory that the designations came from their source elements.
The limits were unknown, however, it was still convenient.
[Blood]: The list of people is ready, by the way, what are you going to call yourselves? The Shadows?]
Sunny's face dead panned, he's not that bad at naming things.
[Shadow]: Of course not. Talk to you later, Caster finished with the gambling thing.
Dismissing the runes, Sunny looked up to see Caster approaching him.
"So? How did it go?"
Caster had an annoyed expression.
"Fine, but most of these guys are just greedy for soul shards, plus, there are even those with enormous debt. This guy, Andel, is on the top of the girls kill list."
Sharpening his eyes, Sunny remembered the name, Andel was the Pathfinder that was accused by Junbei. According to Seishan, his aspect allowed him to make any weapon sharper.
Powerful, but lousy personality and he is comfortable in the Bright Castle.
"Whatever, I wasn't expecting much."
Sunny started to walk away. Caster looked annoyed, a vein appeared on his face.
"Why am I the one who has to deal with this?"
"So that no one discovers that I am the one planning everything."
Caster looked at his "partner" unamused.
"Why am I even following you…?"
Sunny smirked at him.
"Because it's the only way for you to get out of here. And because I'm your only friend, really, 2 months here and you didn't even talk to anyone?"
The scion rolled his eyes and gave Sunny a light hearted, friendly push that made him laugh.
—
It was the seventh and last day, it was time to leave.
After finishing eating, Cassie and Sunny were approached by Harper. Asking about the soul shards. After declining, both Heirs got out of the Bright Castle, having one last message from the receptionist.
"I'm sure you will be able to come back, the Bright Lord's is kind to all-"
Sunless didn't hear the rest, he didn't want to.
Looking at his runes, Seishan had messaged him.
[Blood]: As soon as you want, we'll start.]
[Shadow]: Alright, just remember to do things slowly.]
The recruitment needed to be as quiet as possible, no need for Gunlaug to know that his subjects are tired of him.
Right now Sunny was leading Cassie to Nephis's new… "Home". A building relatively worn, but big, on the edge of the settlement.
Nephis was standing on the roof, watching the sunrise. She noticed her companions approaching and waved, maintaining her unreadable expression.
'Alright… It will take a while to explain everything…'