Mind

The flying vessel descended into the abyss of the sky below. Divine flames burned in the endless void, still distant for now, but in a few days, they would draw dangerously close.

Klaus was furious. His flaw amplified his desires, making him yearn to destroy everything in his path. But he had learned long ago how to restrain himself, to bend that overwhelming need to his will. Still, he had made too many mistakes.

"Apple of Eden."

A bitter smirk curled on his lips. How fitting, how ironic. A flaw that magnified desires, named after the fruit that doomed mankind. Adam, tempted, had fallen. And Klaus? Was he any different?

Yet, it was his flaw that had driven him to monstrous things—his relentless need to eliminate threats, his burning obsession with crushing Mordret, his ruthless desire to kill Cormac, and now, his reckless determination to challenge his second Nightmare.

But what was done was done. Regret was for fools. He had chosen this path, and he would see it through.

Cassia had irritated him, but he wouldn't admit to being wrong. He had acted as necessity dictated. Manipulating Sunny—that was on him. The Heir of Death... what an amusing brat.

His expression darkened. The last time he checked Ebony Tower, the terrifying rot had vanished. And Weaver's arm... gone.

Klaus exhaled slowly, leaning back against the couch. His eyes gleamed as he peered through the walls, locking onto Sunless.

That little gremlin... so he was the one who took the arm. Fate was a cruel joke. Klaus had spent years trying to claim Weaver's arm, and yet, a mere child had taken it with absurd ease. As if it had been waiting for him all along.

Klaus's grin was sharp. So, another heir of Weaver... and an aspect tied to the Shadow God. How special. A weakling, perhaps, but brimming with potential.

His gaze dropped, lost in thought.

He had killed his own father to prevent the Dream God from awakening, to stop the cursed Nightmare creatures from being unleashed upon the world. But Sunny was different. Klaus knew too much—about the Shadow Realm that lay beneath the Underworld, about the gods whose corpses formed these realms. The Shadow Realm was the corpse of the Shadow God. And thanks to that bastard Asterion, Klaus had learned just how deep this truth ran. Even Lich had shared valuable knowledge.

If what he suspected was true, the Shadow God required no worship. Sunny was the only one qualified to carry Weaver's lineage, the inheritor of both Shadow and Weaver.

Still... if the little shadow decided to do something foolish, Klaus would not hesitate. He would kill him, too.

For now, his focus lay elsewhere—his second Nightmare. He had prepared as much as anyone could. But the Kingdom of Hope was a special kind of hell.

Hope amplified desires, twisting them into corruption. And Klaus, whose flaw already magnified his own cravings, would be dangerously vulnerable. If he failed to control himself, he would spiral into madness. Every desire would claw at him, demand to be fulfilled, until he was consumed by his own flaw.

That was why Klaus did nothing but meditate.

"Freedom isn't getting what you desire," he murmured, closing his eyes. "It's controlling your desires. True freedom isn't the absence of restraint... but the mastery of oneself."

He inhaled deeply, steadying his mind. He had to be unbreakable. Indomitable. Tenacious. The thought of something like the Demon of Desires manipulating him was repulsive. But the world was neither fair nor unfair. It simply was—cold, indifferent.

Only those with enough strength could bend it to their will.

After all, the mind is what gives meaning to a meaningless universe.

Klaus focused on steadying his mind, seeking clarity and control. Days of meditation had left him weak, exhausted, and hungry, but he didn't mind. The fatigue was a small price to pay for discipline. Still, he knew sheer willpower wouldn't be enough—not for what was coming.

His gaze settled on the runes before him, his body still poised in meditation. One enchantment, in particular, drew his attention.

Enchantment: [Conquest]

"The Will to Forge One Who Conquers Them All."

A faint smile tugged at his lips. Conquest would make his will unbreakable, his mind untouchable. Yet, even with this weapon, he had to be cautious. The enchantment didn't demand an excessive amount of Essence, but it was still a Memory of Divine Rank. His mere Awakened soul cores couldn't sustain it indefinitely. He had to adapt—to endure the corruption of desire.

More madness. More pain.

Fuck it. No use whining like a child.

With that thought, he pushed himself to his feet. The distant echoes of laughter reached his ears. People were making noise. Couldn't a man even find peace in silence?

He stepped onto the deck, his eyes scanning the crowd with idle curiosity. A celebration? A birthday, apparently. Whose?

Sunny, huh?

So his birthday fell on the Winter Solstice? How amusing.

Klaus sighed. This was the Fire Keepers' first solstice after escaping the Forgotten Shore. They huddled together, reminiscing about the fallen and offering prayers for the young Sleepers preparing to enter the Dream Realm that night. Pointless sentimentality. The gods were dead. No divine force would answer their prayers. Still, he held his tongue. Their faith was none of his concern.

Effie and Kai, however, had other plans. Cassie had apparently revealed Sunny's birthday, prompting the huntress to prepare a feast. The four of them dined on the mess deck, exchanging stories and laughter.

Klaus watched from the shadows, smirking.

Going without a gift is rude…

Damn it, Noah. His brother's courtesy and noble upbringing had rubbed off on him more than he liked to admit.

With a casual smile, Klaus stepped forward, settling at the table. The others fell silent, their expressions shifting to confusion and suspicion.

"What's this bastard doing here?" Their eyes all but screamed it.

He chuckled, turning to Sunny.

"Well, what can I say? Happy birthday, Sunless. And yes, I know you're still mad about my little deception, but don't be so petty. As an apology, accept my gift."

Sunny leaned back, smirking. "Oh? You know, I prefer gifts of great value. Don't tell me you're poor, Klaus."

Klaus merely smiled and reached into his enchanted bag. A moment later, Soul Shards poured forth like a river—hundreds of them, Awakened, Ascended… even a few Transcendent. And there, nestled among them, was one particularly notable shard.

Sunny's smirk froze. His jaw slackened.

Was that… Cormac's Soul Shard?

Gods… all that money.

Sunny coughed, flashing a shameless grin. "Apology accepted."

Klaus grinned as the shards compressed into glowing spheres and slipped back into the bag. The cohort eyed him warily, while Cassia deliberately looked away, ignoring him.

Effie leaned forward, curiosity gleaming in her eyes. "Hey, what's that? A Memory?"

Klaus shook his head. "Not quite. The bag is enchanted—twenty cubic meters of space inside." He tossed it to Sunny. "Take it too. Consider it a bonus."

Sunny snatched the bag greedily, already lost in examining its contents. Klaus was momentarily dumbfounded. So, in the end, it wasn't his fault. This bastard was just that greedy.

Shaking his head in amusement, Klaus cleared his throat. "We don't have time to avoid the divine flames. Sky Tide might have warned you, but a new Saint will come to investigate the Night Temple and punish Sky Tide for helping us. And knowing Anvil, that cold-blooded bastard, he'll send that Saint to kill us. I have a pretty good idea who it'll be. So Noah and I will take control of the ship and take a shortcut."

The group tensed. Kai was the first to speak.

"I'm sorry, Klaus, but we don't trust you. Sunny told us about you. Frankly… you're not a good person. If it weren't for the fact that you're close to Cassia, we never would have let you stay."

Klaus leaned back, taking a bite of roasted meat and washing it down with a sip of scotch from another enchanted bag. His grin widened.

"Well, then, you might want to reconsider. This ship? It was built using my notes. The Sapling you found? Mine. So tell me, what makes you think you can just kick me out of my own property?"

Kai opened his mouth, then shut it, struggling for an answer.

Cassia, however, finally looked at him, her gaze cold.

"But we rebuilt it. So it's ours now."

Klaus sighed, shaking his head. Disappointment flickered across his face.

"And tell me, darling… if I want to take it, who's going to stop me? Ownership isn't about who had it first—it's about who can keep it. And trust me… you can't."

Cassia's expression hardened. She scoffed. "So that's what this is about?"

Klaus shrugged. "Maybe. Sure. I might not be so lenient because of that, but who knows? Maybe there are other reasons."

The others exchanged confused glances. That? What were they talking about?

Cassia exhaled sharply, shaking her head. "You insufferable clown."

Klaus simply grinned and took another sip of his drink. "So what? I've been generous, but there's a limit to how ungrateful a person can be. And while you're at it, thank Sky Tide too. She risked her life to save yours."

With that, he vanished from his seat, leaving the cohort in silence.