Caster had been lucky enough to enter the Dream Realm near the city and arrive at the castle much earlier than the three of them. By the time Sunny, Nephis and Cassie had found their way to the human settlement, he was already in good standing there.
Despite the fact that there were a lot of opportunities for a talented Legacy to rise through the ranks of Gunlaug's army, he had nevertheless decided to remain independent and eventually joined the Changing Star's cohort, drastically raising their combat strength and reputation.
Looking back, that was when all of Sunny's problems had really started.
"That's right, it was all his fault, not mine. Yeah, definitely!"
Grinding his teeth, Sunny kicked the heavy chest and cursed under his breath. Then, acting as if nothing had happened, he smiled brightly and left the hidden chamber once again.
Down below, things were getting interesting. Attracted by the smell of blood, several monsters tried to enter the ruined cathedral to feast on the fresh corpses. However, the Black Knight was as full of wrath as ever. Just as Sunny climbed onto the support beams, he was finishing off a large creature that looked like a praying mantis made of human skin.
Initially, Sunny planned to take a look at the material possessions left behind by the five unfortunate thugs, but the sight of the ferocious battle made him change his mind. He would have to do it later.
Besides, his shadow had already looked through the bloody remains and came to the conclusion that there was nothing really valuable among the dismembered corpses.
Not wasting any more time, Sunny escaped through the roof of the cathedral and retraced his steps to the place where he had fought the Blood Fiend.
The body of the hunting party's leader was still there. Of course, his Memories had long disappeared, leaving the bearded man dressed only in rags. The heavy battle-axe was gone, too.
Sunny sighed.
"That's why killing people is not worth it."
His shadow covered its face with a hand and shook its head dejectedly, trying to express that his wording was nothing short of unfortunate. Sunny frowned.
"What? It's not!"
And for him, it was doubly so.
When one Awakened killed another, they received a considerable portion of the enemy's soul essence without having to shatter their soul shard. Sunny, however, was not an ordinary Awakened. His Aspect was based on consuming shadow fragments instead.
That meant that even if his enemy had absorbed hundreds of souls shards in the past, Sunny would only receive the number of shadow fragments matching their rank and class, just like he would after slaying a Nightmare Creature. Since all Sleepers were mere dormant beasts, in this case, the number was… one.
"Just one fragment away from four hundred," Sunny said, a bit disheartened.
All that work for nothing…
Some small, rational piece of his mind was actually relieved that killing humans was not very lucrative. Otherwise, in his state… no, he wouldn't. Surely.
"Ah? Wouldn't what?"
Sunny blinked a couple of times, waiting for his inner voice to answer. However, it was strangely silent. Shrugging, he bent down and searched the dead man's body, hoping to find something of value.
However, he was left disappointed. There was no pouch full of soul shards as he had imagined. All Sunny found was a strange piece of fabric that had been secretively tucked away into the tall thug's shirt.
Looking at the fabric, he noticed crude shapes drawn on it with ink. Some shapes looked strangely familiar.
"Is that… a map?"
Indeed, it was a primitive map. The shapes he recognized were the various landmarks located in the neighboring parts of the cursed city. Sunny knew many of them by heart, and had even explored a few in the past.
"A treasure map?"
Suddenly, the strange timing of the hunting party's arrival and their lack of experience made perfect sense. They weren't actually hunters. Instead, they were a bunch of fools who had been swindled by some smart person back at the castle into buying a fake treasure map.
At least that was the most likely possibility.
However…
"But what if it's real?"
Sunny blinked, looking at the map with a mix of distaste and avarice. He couldn't decide whether he should try and follow it or throw it away.
…Luckily, his thought process was interrupted by a thunderous crash.
One of the buildings not far from where he was standing suddenly collapsed, filling the street with a cloud of dust and flying debris. A massive shape flew through the air and heavily crashed against another wall, causing an avalanche of stones to fall down.
The creature tried to stand up, but then twitched and grew still, spilling rivers of fetid blood all over the pavement. It was unmistakably dead.
Sunny quickly hid the map in his armor and dove into the shadows, trying to understand what was happening. Somewhere near, furious roars and the sound of steel clashing against steel could be heard, growing closer with each second.
Strangely, there were no human voices.
"A battle between Nightmare Creatures?"
Such things were not rare in the cursed city, but to Sunny's knowledge, there were very few things capable of challenging the current masters of this street and the adjacent square.
These creatures were not the most powerful among the inhabitants of the city, but due to their unique characteristics, Sunny tried to avoid them like the plague. He saw several monsters much more powerful than anything he would be willing to take on ending up sliced and diced into tiny pieces on that square.
However, none of them was able to give the protectors of the square as much trouble as they were having right now, at least judging by the desperate sounds of the battle.
Intrigued, Sunny decided to take a look.
Hidden in the shadows, he climbed up the tall wall of an ancient building and soon arrived on its roof. Watching his footing, Sunny walked forward until he reached the opposite edge of the building.
From there, he could see the wide square in all its dark glory.
In the middle of the square, a moving statue was fighting against several hulking monsters.
Chapter 102: Stone Saint
On a dark square surrounded by ruins of once-magnificent buildings, a vicious battle was coming to an end. The remains of its solemn protectors were lying on the cold cobblestones, ruthlessly shattered into pieces.
Sunny blinked in shock.
'They actually lost.'
He was really astonished. The living statues that used to guard the square were a very tough bunch. As far as Nightmare Creatures of the cursed city went, they weren't the most formidable in terms of size and physical might. However, their strange bodies were extremely durable and capable of withstanding truly devastating amounts of damage.
Aside from that, the stalwart stone warriors were also disciplined, proficient in the use of weapons and utterly deadly. They were able to perfectly coordinate their movements, using strategy and tactics to silently overwhelm opponents whose power far surpassed their own. Countless monsters fell to their blades.
That's why Sunny had always avoided getting into a confrontation with these weird creatures. Even though they weren't Fallen by rank, the stone revenants represented a threat that was enough to make him wary.
However, now the ownership of the square was about to change hands.
The bodies of the previous masters lay shattered to pieces. In death, they looked just like broken statues. Even their metal armor and weapons had turned to stone after the wielders were destroyed.
There were five or six of these stone piles scattered around the square, while the attackers seemed to have lost only three of their numbers — including the massive monster that had been sent crashing through a building earlier. Each body towered above the dark cobblestones like a small hill.
The invaders were of a type of the Nightmare Creature that Sunny had never seen before. These new menacing monsters looked like giant spiders with bodies covered in thick plates of wrought iron. They moved with terrifying speed and force, sending cracks running through the cobblestones with each step.
There were currently two of them left on the square, circling around the lone surviving stone warrior.
The last of the living statues seemed to be a female. Compared to the spiders, she was almost comically small in stature, standing no taller than Sunny himself. The graceful stone creature was armed with a sword and a round shield, wearing a plate armor that covered most of her body, leaving only the eyes exposed. Or, rather, two rubies burning with crimson flames that these creatures had instead of eyes.
Her armor and weapons were black in color, forged from some unknown and incredibly heavy stonelike alloy. Of course, in reality, they were made out of the same stone as their wielder. However, the dark force that had turned the granite body of this Nightmare Creature into the strange approximation of flesh had also turned the stone armor into metal.
Currently, the last of the living statues was standing with her shield raised, the blade of the sword resting on its rim. Her head was lowered, ruby eyes silently following the movements of the two spider monsters.
Sunny didn't know for sure, but he suspected that these spiders were both fallen beasts. In any case, the stone woman was doomed. Her enemies were just toying with her, savoring the helplessness of their victim before finishing the job.
He didn't really care. In fact, he was waiting for the show! Watching Nightmare Creatures slaughter each other was one of his favorite pastimes, and the best thing about it was that it didn't matter who won.
'Come on, get her!'
However, in the next moment, he was surprised. In a strange turn of events, the stone monster lunged at the spiders first. Calmly striking her sword against the rim of the shield twice, she dashed forward with grim determination.
The spider she was aiming at was a second too late to react. However, due to its superior physical form, it was still able to meet the sudden onslaught with a vicious strike of its own. One of its legs shot forward, threatening to shatter the stone body of the attacking living statue into tiny pieces.
The smaller creature deflected the blow with her sword and bashed the spider with the round shield, putting all of her weight and inhuman strength into the strike.
Sunny blinked as the massive body of the Fallen beast was thrown back and toppled over.
The black sword immediately lashed out, sending a shockwave through the spider's guts. A rain of strikes fell on the iron surface of the monster's abdomen, filling the square with the clangor of metal. The stone warrior attacked with savage ferocity, using both the sword and the shield to inflict as much damage as possible in a short amount of time.
Just as the iron plate protecting the soft innards of the monster cracked, the second beast joined the fray. The following bloodbath was nothing short of horrifying.
Despite the fact that the spiders were much faster and stronger, the steadfast stone wraith kept up with them for a while. Her indomitable will and ruthless resolve were enough to give the fearsome creatures pause. Moving with the deadly precision of a bloodthirsty killing machine, the living statue completely disregarded self-preservation in favor of making her enemies suffer.
It seemed as though she was determined to take them to the grave with her.
Soon, the terrible wounds on her body accumulated, making the stone creature look like a vandalized piece of macabre art. However, the spiders were no better: their fetid blood was spilling everywhere, painting the whole square red. Severed limbs and shards of cracked iron littered the ground, mixing with the shattered remains of the fallen stone warriors.
Finally, one of the spiders fell heavily to the ground and twitched, drawing its last breath. The remaining beast lunged at the staggered stone monster, its countless eyes burning with fury.
The round black shield rose one last time and then flew aside, torn away along with the right arm of the stalwart living statue. However, almost at the same time, the blade of her sword pierced through the massive beast's skull, ending its life just a moment before breaking apart and turning to stone.
Sunny shook his head. What an impressive sight! A lowly Awakened creature slaying two Fallen beasts… Midnight Shard would have liked that fierce last stand a lot.
Come to think of it, this was nothing short of inconceivable. However, the graceful stone warrior paid dearly for performing the bloody miracle.
Staggering once again, she fell heavily to the ground, clearly done for.
The battle for the ownership of the dark square was over.
Nobody won.
Chapter 103: Coup de Grace
As the dust settled, Sunny abandoned his hiding spot on the roof of one of the buildings surrounding the square and jumped down. Avoiding the puddles of fetid blood, he walked among the corpses littering the ground and approached the dying stone monster.
The Nightmare Creature was lying on her back, her body battered and broken. From up close, Sunny was able to see it better.
The black armor of the strange monster was slowly turning to stone. In its gaps, he could see her slightly lighter skin. It was smooth like polished granite and dark grey in color. Streams of ruby dust was flowing from the terrible wounds, looking almost like blood.
Two crimson gems that served her as eyes slowly moved, focusing on Sunny. There was no particular expression in them, just tired stillness. The flames that used to burn inside were slowly dimming.
The statuesque creature stared at him without making a sound. In fact, Sunny wasn't sure that these monsters were even capable of producing sounds. Throughout the whole fight, she had remained eerily silent.
He sighed.
"Life is not fair, huh?"
With these words, he summoned the Midnight Shard and thrust it through the visor of the dying creature's helm. Even at the death's door, the stonelike flesh of the living statue proved to be extremely tough. However, he put enough strength into his strike, not wishing to make the poor thing suffer more than necessary.
He was always glad to kill a Nightmare Creature, but this one deserved a quick death. To be honest, he was very impressed by the small stone warrior's desperate last stand.
"They didn't know who they were messing with. But you showed them…"
At that moment, the familiar voice of the Spell resounded in the darkness:
[You have slain an awakened monster, Stone Saint.]
[Your shadow grows stronger.]
Sunny smiled.
'That's four shadow fragments. Finally! Four hundred and three…'
However, in the next second, he forgot what he was thinking about. Because the Spell wasn't done talking.
Whispering into his ear, it slowly said:
[You have received an Echo: Stone Saint.]
***
Sunny's eyes opened wide.
Did he hear it right?
An Echo? He had finally received another Echo?!
Cautiously looking around, Sunny lowered his voice and said to the shadow:
"You heard it too, right?"
The shadow stared at Sunny in exasperation, then gestured at its mouth, lowered its hands and didn't say anything.
He smiled.
"Exactly! That's what the Spell said!"
Humming a song, he paced back and forth for some time, then suddenly flinched.
"Oh, right. I should get out of here. Now that the stone people are gone, who knows what kind of horrors will try to make this square their nest."
He made a move to leave, but then stopped and looked at the scene of slaughter with avarice.
"However… I really should get some mementos first…"
It's not every day that you stumble upon that many dead Nightmare Creatures before the carrion eaters arrive to feast on the corpses. This was a chance he won't get any time soon…
Sunny hesitated for a few seconds, trying to decide which monsters to approach first. The spiders were obviously much stronger. If they were really of the Fallen rank, their soul shards would be incredibly valuable.
However, buying anything with a bunch of Ascended soul shards would be very suspicious. Plus, it would take a while to find the crystals inside the massive bodies of the giant beasts.
The living statues were of the lower rank, but their shattered remains were easy to search. The other inhabitants of the cursed city could arrive at any minute. So…
With a deep sigh, Sunny ran to the nearest pile of shattered stones and kneeled beside it, hoping to notice the gleam of the soul shards as soon as possible.
…He was barely done with the second dead statue when a sudden noise made him stop. Knowing that greed had doomed a lot of people to their deaths, Sunny suppressed the desire to linger here to the last possible moment and quickly dashed away, putting the last crystal he had managed to find inside his armor on the run.
Summoning the kunai, he threw it into the air and then pulled on the invisible string, making the dagger spin around a stone column. As soon as the string coiled itself around the column, he jumped and made the string contract, sending him flying up.
Just like the golden rope, the invisible string that connected the kunai to his wrist was incredibly sturdy and capable of changing its length at will, which allowed Sunny to use the throwing dagger as an improvised grappling hook from time to time.
Using the top of the stone column to jump even higher, he grabbed onto the cracks in the wall of one of the ruined buildings and quickly climbed up. By the time he reached the roof, the noises produced by the approaching creature were already loud enough to make him shiver.
Whatever that thing was, Sunny didn't want to find out. The sound it produced while moving made him think of a giant snake… one with countless mouths, each hissing the notes of a strange, maddening tune.
Luckily, he left the wide square just in time to never meet that abomination.
***
By the time Sunny had returned to the ruined cathedral, the night was already coming to the end. The eastern horizon was growing lighter, and the sound of the black waves crushing against the city wall was growing restless.
Walking across the support beams stretching above the grand hall, he caught the glimpse of the marching Black Knight and sighed.
One day… he was going to kill the bastard on some glorious day.
But not this day.
Today, he had other things to do.
Reaching the safety of his hidden lair, Sunny put the soul shards into his treasure chest and then sat down on a magnificent wooden chair.
There was an excited smile on his face.
It was finally time to find out what was the difference between a normal Echo and one transformed into a Shadow.
Chapter 104: Soul Arsenal
Not wasting any more time, Sunny dove into his Soul Sea.
Despite his changed mental state, it was as calm as always. The silent expanse of still water stretched into the empty distance, with the Shadow Core hovering above like a dark star. Tiny spheres of light floated in the air around it, reflecting on the surface of the tranquil sea.
The silent shadows were still there, standing motionless at the edge of darkness. Compared to before, their ranks had swelled. Monsters of all shapes and sizes were among them now, making Sunny's collection of slain enemies look increasingly impressive. Walking past them, he glanced at one or another from time to time, recalling the thrilling battles with a mix of dread and pride.
This was his personal museum, a dark monument to all his sins.
"Wait… sins? Why sins?"
Just at that moment, Sunny stumbled and stopped. Not too far away from him, a gaunt shadow stood among the menagerie of terrifying creatures, silently staring at him with empty eyes.
That shadow once belonged to a young man, not much older than Sunny himself. He had lived in the ramshackle settlement beyond the castle's gates, struggling to survive like everybody else. Before… before…
Sunny looked away.
"Don't you look at me like that. It was your own fault, fool. You shouldn't have asked me all those questions!"
Out of the three people he had murdered with his own hands, this kill was the only one that made Sunny feel something. Because it wasn't done in the heat of the battle or to settle a personal score. This one… this one was done in cold blood.
It was why he had to leave the castle — among other things.
Sunny grimaced.
"I said stop looking at me! Just stay dead and don't bother me with your nonsense!"
Huffing angrily, he turned away. Soon, he walked past the shadows of the Blood Fiend, the hunting party's leader, and the deadly Stone Saint.
Glancing at the statuesque figure of the stone monster, Sunny forgot all about the gaunt shadow and smiled. He was here to take a look at her Echo, after all.
The prospect of having another Echo under his command was already very exciting. The loyal and strangely personable scavenger had been of great help to Sunny in the past, tremendously increasing his combat performance. After all, despite having a Divine Aspect and a uniquely powerful Ability, Sunny was still just a Dreamer, one whole rank below the Echo.
The scavenger, however, was merely a beast… while the Stone Saint was a monster. Her power was comparable to that of the ferocious carapace centurions, far surpassing anything that Sunny could ever hope to achieve in this cursed place. The strange nature of the steadfast living statue made her even more formidable.
Having a servant like that would make many impossible things possible. However, Sunny wanted even more. He was waiting to see what miracle his Aspect was going to perform, hoping that the results would surpass his wildest expectations.
Soon, he was standing under the black sun of his Shadow Core, observing the spheres of light that represented his Memories.
There were nine of them now.
The ones that he actually used were the Puppeteer's Shroud, the Midnight Shard, the Prowling Thorn, the Ordinary Rock, and the Endless Spring.
Savoring the anticipation, Sunny summoned each of them one by one and read the glowing runes surrounding the Memories.
He had gotten the heavy kunai after defeating a peculiar creature that resembled a monstrous armored porcupine. The rain of jagged bone quills had left several holes in Sunny's body, but the reward was well worth it.
Memory: [Prowling Thorn].
Memory Rank: Awakened.
Memory Tier: II.
Memory Type: Weapon.
Memory Description: [This flying dagger is as unpredictable and fickle as the affection of a young beauty, but, perhaps, not as deadly.]
Memory Enchantments: [Rose of Betrayal].
Enchantment Description: [The Prowling Thorn is connected to its wielder by an invisible string. This string is strong but mercurial — just like the treacherous bond of sentimental attachment.]
After reading this description for the first time, Sunny couldn't help but wonder if the Spell had been scorned by a lover once. The runes practically exuded bitterness.
Next on the list was his most dangerous Memory, the talking rock.
Memory: [Ordinary Rock].
Memory Rank: Awakened.
Memory Tier: I.
Memory Type: Tool.
Memory Description: [Just an ordinary rock.]
Memory Enchantments: [Not Really].
Enchantment Description: [The word is mightier than the sword. The rock is mightier than the word.]
The funny thing was that the Ordinary Rock, which was capable of repeating various sounds, had fallen into the hands of a person who was unable to tell lies. It was now the most honest Memory in two whole worlds.
…It had also made Sunny think twice before opening his mouth. Sometimes.
The last Memory he decided to take a look at was, perhaps, the most precious to him. It was the beautiful glass bottle that Cassie had given Sunny as a farewell gift.
Memory: [Endless Spring].
Memory Rank: Dormant.
Memory Tier: IV.
Memory Type: Tool.
Memory Description: [A lovesick devil had once imprisoned a mighty river in this fragile glass bottle. It was his gift it to a beautiful desert spirit.]
Memory Enchantments: [Gift of Water].
Enchantment Description: [This bottle contains enough water to make flowers bloom in the desolate heart of the most lifeless of deserts].
This one was sort of romantic. It seemed as though the Spell was all over the place when coming up with these descriptions, to the point where Sunny couldn't even tell if it was being serious.
With a sigh, he dismissed the sphere of light containing the Endless Spring and glanced up.
The other four of his Memories were not very useful. They were an incredibly heavy tower shield, a suit of armor that was worse than the Puppeteer's Shroud in every regard, a glass eye capable of producing bright beams of harmless red light, and the obnoxiously loud silver bell — the first Memory he had ever gotten.
The remaining three had been awarded to him for killing comparatively weak monsters on the streets of the cursed city. He was hoping to trade them for something more suitable during his next visit to the castle, whenever that might be.
Forgetting about the Memories, Sunny finally focused his attention on the brightest sphere of light that was floating in the dark emptiness above his head
The one containing his new Echo.
He willed it to descent and watched as the sphere glided down, softly touching the surface of dark water a few moments later. It slowly dimmed, revealing the stone figure hidden within.
Here in the dark silence of the Soul Sea, the Stone Saint looked just like a statue. She was approximately as tall as Sunny, looking miniature in comparison to the rest of the Nightmare Creatures he had to face on the Forgotten Shore.
She was also uniquely human-like in appearance. If not for the dark grey hue and the stonelike nature of her granite skin, Sunny might have even mistaken the strange monster for a Sleeper. Provided, he couldn't see much of her body behind the graceful dark armor.
The nature of these strange creatures remained a mystery.
Chapter 105: Living Stone
Previously, Sunny had considered the living statues to be just that, monuments brought to life by evil spirits. There were a lot of revenants like that walking the streets of the cursed city.
Take the Black Knight, for example — Sunny was almost sure that the bastard was actually just a suit of armor with a vengeful wraith imprisoned within it. He had no proof that there was an actual body in that moving steel fortress, at least.
However, after watching the Stone Saint die right before his eyes, he wasn't so sure that she and the Black Knight were the same anymore. There certainly were similarities… even the design of their armors was somewhat similar, as though one had originated from the other. But the stone warrior's armor seemed much more… ancient.
And then there was the ruby dust that flowed from the stone creature's wounds instead of blood. Since when did statues have blood? It was almost like these strange creatures were designed to possess their own weird form of life. Come think about it, the stone warriors resembled artificial beings brought to life by some dark magic much more than they resembled undead creatures.
'Mysteries, mysteries, mysteries all around!'
Perhaps the runes describing the Stone Saint would provide him with some answers.
The Echo, meanwhile, was coming to life. Two magenta flames ignited in her gemstone eyes. The stone of her armor suddenly gleamed with subtle metal shine, the smooth surface of her granite skin turned slightly less rigid. Silently turning her head, the Saint gazed at Sunny through the narrow split of her helmet's visor.
"Let's see…"
He concentrated on the runes.
Echo: Stone Saint.
Echo Rank: Awakened.
Echo Class: Monster.
Echo Attributes: [Battle Master], [Stalwart], [Mark of Divinity].
Sunny blinked. Mark of Divinity? That was the same as his original Attribute! What business did a Nightmare Creature have walking around with the traces of divinity left in its evil, corrupted soul?
And what with these other Attributes…
Battle Master Attribute Description: [Born on the battlefield, the Stone Saint is proficient in all forms of combat.]
Stalwart Attribute Description: [The Stone Saint is highly resistant to all forms of damage, as well as being fully immune to mind and soul attacks.]
Bewildered, Sunny shook his head. No wonder these silent stone warriors were so deadly. They were literally a bunch of killing machines created to last as long and deal as much damage as possible on the battlefield.
But who had created them?
Leaving the Attributes alone, he lowered his gaze and read the next line of runes:
Echo Description: [Deep in the cavernous halls of his dark domain, the last child of the -unknown- had created them from stone to quell the fire burning in his resentful heart. However, that fire only grew hotter. Designed to bring peace, they were instead born into an endless war.]
Huh… the Unknown again. Or rather, their children. It seemed like his theory was correct. The Stone Saint was either an artificial being or a descendant of one. In any case, that was before she was corrupted by… well. Whatever it was that had corrupted all the Nightmare Creatures, and especially those in the cursed city. Now even gods wouldn't be able to describe what exactly she was.
Not that it mattered. A monster was a monster.
Sunny was more interested in the fact that the traces of divinity that the stone warrior bore had to have come from their original creator, who was at least partially one of the Unknown. Which meant that the Unknown, indeed, were closely related to the gods and to divinity itself.
Just like mysterious Weaver.
Looking away from the runes, Sunny studied the motionless Echo with his altered eyes. What he saw made him smile darkly.
Just like the Memories, the true essence of the Echo was weaved from the countless diamond strings that formed an infinitely complex pattern. Only in its case, the pattern was even more elaborate, dwarfing anything that Sunny had previously seen.
Two embers were burning inside the Stone Saint's body, serving as anchors for the endless strings. One of them was situated in the place where her heart should have been, the other in the lower part of her abdomen.
Sunny closed one eye and looked more closely. And there, behind the shining pattern of the diamond strings, he noticed another, much more primitive and crude system of adamantine threads. They pierced the stone flesh of the Echo, resembling a human nervous system.
These strings were also seemingly made from diamond, but they were much less ethereal. In fact, they were entirely corporeal. Sunny frowned.
'Makes sense… that makes sense. Wait, how does it make sense?'
The Memories and the Echoes were created by the Spell. They were artificial. The Stone Saint, too, was artificial, but in a much more mundane sense. She was made by a child of the Unknown, just like her Echo was made by the Spell.
Which meant what? That the technique that had been used to create the Stone Saint was eerily similar to the technique that the Spell used, although it did look extremely primitive in comparison.
Could that mean that the Spell itself had come from the Unknown?
Sunny grimaced and shook his head. No, no. Although it was a sound theory, there was too little information to actually consider it substantiated or even remotely believable. He needed to find out more, learn more, uncover more before even beginning to understand the true story that connected the Spell, the gods, the Unknown, and his own life into one nightmarish tapestry.
But there would be time for it later.
Right now, he had something equally as interesting right within his grasp.
Glancing one last time at the graceful stone monster, Sunny gulped and licked his lips. Then, he said timidly:
"Let's… let's do this."
Taking a step forward, he hesitated and then carefully put his hand on the breastplate of the Stone Saint's armor, right across from the place where the main nexus of her Spell Weave was situated.
To his surprise, the breastplate felt like stone and was warm to the touch. It was as though a furious crimson flame was burning inside the Nightmare Creature's chest.
'Huh.'
As soon as Sunny touched the Echo, a new string of runes appeared in the air in front of him.
[Transform Echo into a Shadow?]
He hesitated, once again afraid to make the choice. What was he going to do if the process made the Stone Saint weaker, or even useless?
Trying not to think of this possibility, Sunny sighed and forced himself to say:
"Yes!"
An imperceptible change happened to the Soul Sea, as though a gust of wind suddenly appeared out of nowhere. The tranquil dark water seemed to simultaneously stay still and move restlessly. Then, a sudden pressure came from somewhere above.
Raising his head, Sunny saw two dark beams descending from the depths of the Shadow Core. One of them fell on the Echo, while the other landed on one of the silent shadows that stood motionlessly behind his back, as though connecting them together
Bathed in the dark light, the shadow of the dead Stone Saint slowly dissolved into it.
And then the Echo began to change…