The whisper of Cassie's last word had barely faded when the First Bright Lord rose from the soil of the river. Dark water cascaded from his shoulders in thin streams as he stood up. Droplets slid down his ivory skin and fell back into the shallow backwater, making ominous sounds resonate in the cave. His golden eyes swept across the cohort, empty of human emotions and meaning, filled with an unconcealed killing intent.
A chill ran down Sunny's spine.
'Strong. He is strong. Much, much stronger than me.'
The only other Sleepers who had ever given him that suffocating sensation were Gunlaug… and Nephis, when she had stood against the unseen horror in the depths of the cursed sea.
Yet as Sunny met that burning gaze, he understood something else. Despite looking at all of them, he could see that the consciousness of the First Bright Lord was not currently present behind these eyes.
"Whatever is in front of us, it is hostile to us, or at least, me, for I woke him up," Nephis said as she backed away from the edge of the stone shore, putting a small distance between herself and the First Bright Lord. "Cassie, can you see his attributes? Or something that might be useful to know his condition and if he is still human?''
The blind girl took a deep breath, focusing on the legend in front of them.
''I can, but you need to buy me time.''
All of them nod, preparing for the worst. Sunny inhaled sharply and summoned the Midnight Shard while wrapping his gloomy shadow around him. White sparks danced in the air as the Memory materialized in his grasp, the steel tachi reflecting the ambient light of the cave. Around him, steel rang softly as the others did the same.
No one spoke. No one needed to, the past few weeks having honed their coordination and fighting prowess as a group.
The First Bright Lord stood still and suddenly disappeared from Sunny's vision.
Too fast.
Slower than Caster using his Aspect, but faster than Sunny, even enveloped by his shadow.
Faster than Nephis in front of him.
He blurred forward and threw a punch toward Nephis' head.
White flame enveloped her, allowing her to react in time as she raised her sword to block. His fist struck the flat of the blade, producing a shockwave. The force of the blow drove her backward, boots carving deep lines into the stone shore before she stopped several meters away, close to Cassie.
Caster attacked from the right, his jian flashing toward the arm that had just struck Nephis and was still raised in the air. At the same time, Effie thrust her spear forward to hinder the young man.
Sunny rushed in, searching for an opening to deal a strike.
'Two attacks at different angles.' He thought. 'No way he could evade both cleanly.'
But he did.
The First Bright Lord shifted with impossible precision and timing. He ducked a few centimeters beneath Effie's thrust, grasping the spear above him, all the while lowering his other arm at the last possible instant, Caster's blade slicing only empty air.
He countered immediately. His heel drove into Caster's ribs, sending the Legacy crashing at the side—straight into Sunny. Sunny barely managed to lower his stance in time, Caster's body flying above him and crashing into the cave wall.
With Effie's spear in his grasp, he brought her closer to him to fight her at close range. With confidence on her face, Effie accepted the challenge. She lunged to grapple him, trying to overpower him with her monstrous strength.
"I accept the challenge, First Lord!" She said with a wide grin.
'If she can lock him in place...' Sunny formulated a plan, believing in the strength of the always-hungry woman.
Their arms collided in the air.
Stone cracked beneath their feet.
For a breathless moment, they matched.
Effie's monstrous strength strained against him… and met equal resistance.
Sunny's eyes widened.
For the first time since he had known her, another Sleeper stood against Effie in raw strength.
"What the fuck?!" she snarled.
Then the light flickered.
It was subtle, a shimmer in his eyes, a faint gleam along his skin.
And the cave responded to the call of the First Bright Lord.
The pale luminescence reflected from the dark river surface… the faint glow of minerals embedded in the cavern walls… the brightness of the gemstone set into his crown… even the lingering radiance of Nephis' flame…
It bent toward him.
Drawn. Absorbed.
His muscles tightened.
Effie's expression shifted from fury to shock as the balance broke. With a brutal twist, he overpowered her, wrenched her arm aside, and slammed her into the stone. His fist descended toward her skull to end her life.
An arrow whistled, aimed for his fist.
Kai's shot forced him to abort the strike an inch from her head.
"Light!" Kai shouted. "His aspect—it's related to light! He's absorbing it!"
Nephis recovered from the past blow and attacked, blade wreathed in white fire. The First Bright Lord twisted just enough to avoid the edge, but the flames kissed his left side, leaving a long burn across flawless skin. At the same time, light from the radiant flame continued to converge toward him.
Sunny slid opposite to her and lunged, thrusting toward the back of the young man.
Even then—attacked from behind—the Bright Lord tilted his head as if aware of the angle. The Midnight Shard grazed his cheek, drawing a thin red line.
Caster reappeared in a silver flash, blade carving toward the torso.
Finally, Sunny saw it.
The Bright Lord was not watching Caster or his jian.
He was watching the air between them.
As though tracking something invisible.
Even then, Caster's superior speed finally outpaced him. The jian cut across his chest, drawing blood.
The Bright Lord staggered one step and released the light he had gathered.
A blinding burst exploded outward.
Sunny threw an arm over his eyes, but white flooded his vision.
When his sight returned in burning fragments, the Bright Lord was already moving again.
This time toward Cassie.
"Stop him!" Sunny shouted.
Nephis intercepted him, flames roaring brighter despite the risk of feeding him more power. Her sword clashed against his bare hands, cutting deep into his flesh and burning him.
Effie rejoined the battle with a roar as she swung her fists.
Kai's arrows came in a steady rhythm, aiming for weak points.
Caster struck multiple slashes with incredible speed.
Sunny pressed close behind, forcing the man to divide his focus.
And still, he adapted.
Each time Nephis flared her flames, he absorbed more, making him stronger.
Each time they attacked from different angles, he slipped between them by a margin so thin it felt unreal, managing to avoid fatal blows.
Cassie stepped forward.
Her flying rapier shot into the air like a silver serpent, darting toward the Bright Lord's throat. He swayed aside—but the weapon changed direction mid-flight, slicing across his shoulder.
For the first time, confusion flickered in his golden eyes as they met the blind girl.
Cassie's brows furrowed.
Her rapier harassed him relentlessly, striking from unpredictable vectors. Even with whatever strange perception that guided him, Sunny could see that the shifting trajectory forced him to expend precious movement.
Sunny capitalized on it, cutting low toward his wounded side.
The blade bit deeper this time.
The Bright Lord didn't make any sound.
He seized Sunny by the collar and hurled him aside like a rag doll.
Stone collided into Sunny's back. Breath fled his lungs.
Through his blurred vision, he saw Effie tackle the man again to bring him to ground level. Caster's blade pierced shallowly into his thigh. Kai's arrow embedded in his shoulder.
Cassie's rapier darted toward his chest, wanting to pin him to the stone shore.
The Bright Lord caught it mid-flight.
His fingers closed around the blade.
Blood ran down his hand.
He crushed the steel hard enough to bend it before flinging the rapier aside. He didn't fall on the ground, even with Effie weighing on him. He didn't stop moving, even with Caster's jian piercing his thigh and blood flowing out of the new wound. He didn't slow down, even with Kai's arrows embedded in his shoulder.
The First Bright Lord stepped forward, golden eyes fixed on Cassie.
Sunny forced himself up.
They couldn't overpower him without killing him.
They couldn't outpace him without killing him.
They had to endure long enough for Cassie to figure something out, or they would have to kill the Forgotten Shore's legend.
Cassie gasped.
"I see it!"
The Bright Lord's fist rose toward her head.
Nephis lunged desperately to intercept it, radiant flame wrapping around her sword.
Cassie's voice rang out, cutting through the cavern.
"Lysander!"
The name echoed.
The First Bright Lord stopped. The golden glow faltered. His fist hovered in the air, trembling.
For the first time since rising from the river, the First Bright Lord, Lysander, blinked.
The emptiness in his gaze cracked, and behind the bright golden eyes—
Something human stirred.