331 Siege of the Crimson Spire (17)

The dark sea was gone.

And all the horrors that dwelt in its cursed depths were gone with it, too.

The world was bathed in pure sunlight. The surface of the Labyrinth suddenly became vibrant and bright, with stark shadows hiding under the jagged pillars of the crimson coral. The furious white sun burned above the Crimson Spire, as if frozen in the middle of the sky.

Sunny even had to cover his eyes for a few seconds.

Laying on the ground, he allowed himself a few moments of rest. A short laugh escaped from his lips.

'I actually did it?'

Speak about the unlikely events...

Unfortunately, he couldn't really rest yet.

The battle wasn't over. The horde of Nightmare Creatures was not defeated yet.

…And somewhere in the Spire, the Crimson Terror itself was not defeated, either.

With a deep sigh, Sunny collected himself and rose to his feet. They were almost there. They almost escaped. Now, all that was left was to make one final push. Even if it was going to be the hardest one yet...

Looking at the tall mound of coral towering above him, he squinted against the light and began climbing it.

Was it always so bright?

As Sunny climbed, he summoned the runes and glanced at them.

Shadows: [Marble Saint].

'Thank gods.'

He knew that Saint was alright, but still wanted to check. The taciturn demon had been heavily damaged and was bound to spend a long time restoring herself, however, her existence was not in danger.

Then, his eyes slid lower:

Shadow Fragments: [999/1000].

'...Crap.'

Sunny gritted his teeth. He was simultaneously excited and scared to find out what was going to happen once he saturated the Shadow Core. It was bound to be beneficial, but at what cost?

Would he go into a slumber for several weeks, as Saint had? Or suddenly become incapacitated amidst furious combat, as Nephis had been after defeating Gunlaug?

That could cost him his life…

'Not like I can do anything about it now.'

Full of unease, he continued his climb and soon reached the very top of the coral pillar. Standing on it, Sunny looked in the direction of the Dreamer Army.

Something wet suddenly fell on his hand. Looking down, he saw a drop of blood rolling off his skin. A moment later, another fell on the vambrace of the Puppeteer's Shroud.

Surprised, Sunny raised his hand and swiped it across his upper lip. It came away wet with blood.

'...A nose bleed? What the hell?'

Come to think of it, why did he feel so weak?

As Sunny stared at his hand in confusion, a violent ripple suddenly ran through his shadow.

***

Across the deep moat that surrounded the island, the remnants of the Dreamer Army were at the precipice of turning the tide of battle in their favor.

Just a few minutes ago, they had been drowning in the rising flood of black water and the relentless onslaught of the horde, lost in the fury of a cataclysmic storm. But now, things were different.

The storm was no more, and the dark sea had retreated. The sun shined brightly in the sky, drowning the battlefield in its light. Bathed in it, the Nightmare Creatures seemed to become hesitant… almost sluggish.

They were not giving up, however. The monsters continued to attack the humans in a frenzied rage, their claws and fangs reaping one life after another. But the survivors of the Dreamer Army were repaying every loss tenfold.

Reinvigorated by the exhilarating gift of sudden salvation, they steeled their hearts and fought with zeal, fervor, and murderous will. More and more Nightmare Creatures fell to their blades, and the horde did not seem to be endless anymore.

The Sleepers did not know why the storm had dissipated and why the cursed sea had retreated, but their faith in Changing Star now burned even brighter. She had promised to guide them out of this hell, and somehow, even the black water had capitulated to her radiant light…

The victory was not impossible anymore. They could practically taste it…

But Nephis herself suddenly stumbled and slowed her sword dance. A confused, alarmed frown appeared on her face. Dodging the claws of an attacking abomination, she thrust her sword into its maw, then jumped back.

Free of the swarming monsters for a few short moments, she lowered her sword.

And looked at the sky.

***

High above her, Kai was still alive… somehow.

'What is happening?'

He had spent so long flying at a terrible speed, struggling against the crushing wind, dodging bolts of lightning and the cursed Spire Messengers, pushing the limits of both his body and mind… the exhaustion was catching up with him now, making it hard to think.

Let alone react…

He really, really didn't feel well. His whole body ached, and his vision was slowly turning blurry. A sickening feeling of weakness permeated his body.

The storm had come out of nowhere, and then disappeared without a trace. The skies were blindingly bright.

…That was a relief.

But the damn abominations were still there.

At least they didn't look tireless anymore.

In fact, the Messengers seemed to be in as much of a sorry state as Kai himself. He wanted to flatter himself and assume that it was because of his arrows. He had wounded the damned monsters many times, after all…

But no, it didn't make any sense.

They seemed able to resist the effect of the Blood Arrow before, at least to a large extent, so why would it change now?

'Something is wrong…'

Using the sun to blind his enemies, Kai dove into the light and dashed to the side, narrowly avoiding the claws of one of the Messengers. Or so he thought — in reality, it wasn't narrow at all. He dodged it with a lot of room to spare. The Quiet Dancer didn't even need to get involved.

'Are they… growing slower?'

With a sudden feeling of unease, Kai hesitated for a split second, and then reduced his speed to take a good look at the terrifying creature.

What he saw made him scowl.

The Messenger looked… wrong.

Its glassy black eyes were erratic and senseless. They were seeping with blood, which flowed down the black feathers like a crimson stream. There were two other similar streams, coming from the monster's ears. The muscles of his pale body were spasming, rolling under the white skin like panicking worms.

As Kai watched, the Messenger suddenly opened its beak in a silent scream. A moment later, a flood of blood erupted out of it and dispersed in the wind like red mist.

Then, the creature convulsed one last time and lost control of its wings. Not even trying to correct itself, the terrible abomination plunged down.

Kai flinched and opened his eyes wide in terror.

…The Spire Messenger was dead.