Ch. 16

Sunny stared at the runes for more than a moment, wide eyed. He had supposed that he'd received the Drop of Ichor again, and that the Spell wasn't aware of his return. However, that logic had been flawed from the beginning, because it had described his attribute regarding fate, and from what Sunny knew, the Spell was intrinsically intertwined with fate.

Small waves took form at his feet, spreading from them in all direction.

When he shook off from his stupor and summoned it, they couldn't be discerned anymore.

A mass of light, the size of a tennis ball (whatever tennis was), appeared. It looked an unimaginable amount of energy had been concentrated in a point, but barely restrained and swirling as if reaching to be free. It emitted different colours, ranging from those of a rainbows to an impenetrable darkness. Sunny switched his vision. There were no complex tapestries nor cores, only a pulsating divinity that almost hurt his eyes. The sight of it all was enthralling. The Spell whispered softly in his ears.

[Do you wish to consume it?]

Sunny answered, as if in a trance, without even considering it.

"Yes."

As the ball of light shot directly into his head, he had one last thought.

'Ah, shit.'

And then everything went black.

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Sunny woke up feeling strange. He looked up and met Nephis' stern gaze. He was resting on her lap, and quite some time seemed to have passed: where had been a blue sky and the yellow sun, was now a starless darkness.

"You're awake."

"Mmh"

Sunny sat up and massaged his head; he had quite the headache.

"How long was I unconscious for?"

Nephis sighed. Her expression was somber, her tone grave.

"A month."

Sunny's eyes widened. His voice was panicked when he asked:

"What?"

Laughter was resounding behind him. Sunny quickly turned around. Cassie was laughing. In fact, she was laughing so much she was holding her stomach and her eyes were tearing. Why was she laughting?

A small giggle broke out behind him. And there was Nephis, hiding her smile behind a hand. Realisation dawned down on Sunny. He let out a shaggy breath, defeated.

"This is a prank."

Cassie was still laughing, her exquisite face red.

"Oh – your – expression – I – wish I could've seen it. Your tone of voice was really panicked." She said between breaths. "Nephis said something about you doing something recklessly, but still, you really believed you had slept for a month for a moment, ehe."

Sunny's stomach roared, adding to his embarrassment. In a moment of mercy, Nephis handed him some delicious Scavenger Demon's meat, which he immediately started devouring. Cassie gave him goodnight and went to sleep, so he and Nephis were left alone.

How did you get that attribute, Sunny?

So, he had gained another attribute from the Memory. It was something unheard of, and yet he had made it an habit of his.

I got what the Spell called Weaver's Eye from killing the Great Devil, instead of the Drop of Weaver's Ichor. Apparently, it is the same that the Vile Thieving Bird stole and then lost.

And you ate it.

Actually, no. It was like a mass of energy. The Spell asked if I wanted to consume it, and when I answered yes, it shot right in my mind.

Have you read it the its effects yet?

Sunny shook his head and summoned his runes.

Name: Sunless.

True Name: Lost From Light.

Rank: Sleeper

Shadow Fragments: [86/2000]

Shadow Cores: [2/7]

Attributes: [Flame of Divinity] [Child of Shadows] [Blood Weave] [Bone Weave] [Soul Weave] [Fate Breaker] [Weaver's Eye]

Sunny grinned happily. The Eye of Weaver was a real boon. It granted him an extremely high resistance to both Soul and Minds attacks, and also to… Corruption. It made sense: after all, the reflection of the Unknown was forever frozen in its depths. It also and an active manifestation: if he wanted to, he could make it so that the mental sanities of those who stared at him in the eyes were not so safe. He couldn't make them go made, exactly, but it would make terror blossom in their hearts. Of course, the effects were related to his Rank and Class, and those of his adversaries, so it hadn't that much of an effect.

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When Sunny dropped on the ground like a dead corpse, Changing Star didn't panic. She calmly walked over to where he was, checked his condition, tried to wake him up, and then waited without any concern. Or that's what she would like to say.

Instead, when Sunny dropped on the ground like a dead corpse, Neph did panic. She frantically half-run and half- crawled to him, stumbling. She did scream his name, waking Cassie up. She had took him in her arms, shaking him to wake him up, and calmed down only after seeing the brilliance of his runes.

Luckily, when Cassie fully regained consciousness, she didn't notice her reaction. She was blind, and Nephis' voice was steady enough. She told her that Sunny had done something reckless with his powers, and that he had fallen asleep because of exhaustion.

Nephis summoned his runes with his head on her lap, massaging his hair. She noticed immediately his new attribute.

'Weaver's Eye?'

Is that what he got from the Drop of Ichor this time? No, it shouldn't be. Maybe it was something different?.. like an eye. She read its description.

'This is the same as what Sunny informed me of… oh, it's changed… the Spell really has a habit of mentioning Sunny… as treacherous…' She observed with amusement. The description of the Crown of Twilight had really been a great source of teasing for her, for he was ' Lost From Light, who was born from the shadows. He was the rightful heir of death, and the bastard son of fate, too!'' She chuckled (She would never admit that those lines actually gave her the chills, when she had read them. He was the first person she had seen nominated on a description.)

Her careful mask was always on place, but stupor and a fake irritation had occupied her mind, as well as proudness for Sunny.

'Extremely high resistance to Soul and Mind attacks… to Corruption, too! I'm suing him for copyright! He can also slightly drive his adversaries mad and make them feel terrorized of him…' She looked down at him.

'Always doing the impossible, aren't we, my companion?'

Cassie and Nephis didn't do anything the whole day. They had enough food packed, and Nephis still needed to rest. Somehow, her muscles were as sore as much as that time when she'd killed that Great Demon who had ambushed her…

They only ate and planned a devious prank. She just wished he wouldn't really sleep for a week; when she'd used what strength she had managed to muster to try and heal him, it hadn't worked in the slightest.