Crimson spire (3)

Sunny summoned the silver bell and began to ring it to warn the army of Dreamers. The bell's chime spread to the trench and then to the Coral Bridge where the army of Dreamers stood.

The Dreamer army stood in silence, staring at the Crimson Spire. Then they heard the loud ringing of the bell echoing, calling them. The Sleepers hesitated to advance, but Cassie appeared among them and spoke, panting:

"Enter the tower quickly! The sun…"

The Sleepers moved and jumped into the trench, then began to climb it madly. They felt weakness with every moment the sun's rays touched them. Only a very few of them died, perhaps just four unlucky ones. Even Nephis began moving toward the tower while a fast shadow rushed past her toward the island.

"What?"

She didn't have time to verify the shadow, as the sun began to shine brighter.

Inside the Crimson Spire, Sunny sat in the shadows, waiting for the Sleepers. A shadowy figure fell from the sky into the cold shade of the Crimson Spire. Sunny looked at Kai, covered in shining armor. The Handsome archer raised a finger toward him with a tired smile and said:

"We did it, you lunatic… most of the Sleepers who came here survived!"

"Ah, yes, we did. But now I just have to kill a Fallen Terror, that's all."

A faint smile appeared on Sunny's lips as he looked at Kai, then raised his head as the sound of footsteps came from the direction of the gate. Sunny glimpsed Caster entering first with his gloomy face, followed by several Sleepers, among them Effie, Gemma, and the giant Tesai, then Seishan with a hundred of the handmaidens. At the end of the gate stood Aiko, and beside her was the stout young man, Steve.

None of them were seriously injured, but they were still wounded here and there. Nephis approached him with a worried expression on her face.

"Did you explore the tower?"

"Yes, I did. And I know where the gate is, too."

Nephis looked at him in disbelief and anger.

"Then what are you waiting for?! Lead us there!"

"Well… how do I put this… you can't enter the gate until I climb up and fight the Crimson Terror. I tried climbing before, but it attacked me with a soul-destroying beam."

The Sleepers gathered around Sunny and Nephis. Nephis's voice was a bit loud, causing a stir in this quiet place. The Sleepers murmured that there was a gate up top, but they couldn't reach it. Then they began to speak encouraging words, that Herald of Death would bring the end of the Fallen Terror. After a moment of silence, Nephis spoke:

"I'll come with you."

"You won't. I can kill this fool in a few minutes, but you must lead the Sleepers to the gate. Then you can join me."

"But I'm not obliged to, right?"

Sunny raised his head and looked at the many Sleepers, then at Nephis.

"Yes, you are. Didn't you promise all these people salvation and a return to the waking world? Then you're obliged to see the end of that promise."

"And didn't you promise them something?"

"I did. I promised them I'd kill any monster that gets in their way until they escape this hell. And now, I'm about to kill the last one."

Sunny stood up, leaning on his sword, then after another glance at the Sleepers, he pointed at Caster.

"Caster, after I climb up to the Fallen Terror, lead the Sleepers to the gate. You must be the first to enter it, or else—you know what I'll do. My shadow will lead you there."

Caster interrupted him, gloomy and tense and afraid.

"I got it! I'll lead them."

"Well then. Now, farewell, comrades. I have an appointment with someone up there."

Sunny summoned [Veil of Thorns], the Memory he obtained from killing the soul-devouring tree. A gray scarf appeared around Sunny's neck, covering half his face. Nephis looked at him with suspicion and sadness, but he didn't look back at her.

Sunny leapt onto a coral root, and as soon as his foot touched it, a beam of destructive light flared toward him. Sunny somehow dodged the light and continued rushing upward. Beams of light chased him as the Crimson Terror attacked him madly.

The Dark Saint appeared beside the Dreamers, holding a person with a loop around his neck. When Nephis looked closely at the badly wounded man, she spoke in surprise:

"Haros?"

The silent knight said nothing. She moved forward, carrying the person on her shoulder and heading to the center of the tower where the Dark Sea was sealed. The Sleepers followed her, led by Caster and Nephis.

Upon reaching the center of the tower, the Saint pointed them to a coral root that led upward, while she drew her sword and began to watch several vague forms moving. Nephis tried to look in the same direction but couldn't see through the darkness like the silent knight. So, she focused on the Sleepers.

"Divide yourselves into lines, then begin climbing one after another."

The first row of Sleepers began climbing the coral root. After they reached the other side, they encountered a coral golem with a blank face. One of the Sleepers panicked and struck it, and something dangerous happened.

An imperceptible change spread through the air, followed by a tremor from the top of the Crimson Spire, and several lights fell from its peak. Several dark shapes began to move, catching the Saint's attention. The dark knight dashed forward and began cutting the shapes within the darkness while the Sleepers continued climbing the coral roots upward.

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Sunny dodged a soul-destroying beam of light by leaping forward. The Crimson Spire's Terror's attack was extremely destructive, and Sunny could only endure a few strikes even with the Veil of Thorns.

Sunny leapt into the shadows, and upon sensing strength, he jumped onto one of the ruins destroyed by the white beam, then began to ascend through the rubble.

"I'm coming for you, you bastard! You better be ready to die."

Another beam swept past Sunny, but this time it grazed him. He felt his soul wounded, though not severely, as the Veil of Thorns absorbed most of the damage. Sunny groaned from the pain but continued his ascent. Upon reaching the top of the tower, he saw it.

A massive lump of human flesh and coral. On its surface were hundreds of human faces—suffering and hopeless. As he entered the hall of the Crimson Terror, a thousand eyes fell upon him. Sunny felt the weight of their gaze but acted indifferently as he assessed the hall. The shadows were deep, giving him an advantage in this land, and the Crimson Terror itself was at its weakest, still evolving.

The flesh mass moved toward Sunny, striking several limbs against the wall behind him, shattering it. Sunny dodged the strike, but he wasn't given a chance to counter before white beams rained down where he stood. Sunny threw himself to the ground, evading the beams, but not the monster's limbs.

Several long arms struck Mantel of the underworld, leaving multiple dents and cracking Sunny's ribs. Sunny raised his blade, enduring the pain, and cut with all his might at the limbs.

The Crimson Terror's limbs fell to the side, causing the flesh and coral mass to tremble and rush toward Sunny.

Sunny barely lifted himself, a wicked smile on his face. When another light beam fell on him, he dodged it by anticipation, then rushed toward the giant mass. Dozens of limbs extended toward him as he charged.

Sunny cut through the limbs that posed a threat, while the rest either struck his sides, causing pain, or hit his shoulders. Sunny couldn't prevent all the strikes, so at least he could choose where to be hit.

"Here you are!"

The flesh and coral mass slammed into Sunny's body, but he didn't budge, cutting a large chunk from it. Another light beam fell on Sunny, and before it struck, six of his shadows transformed into Veil of Thorns to reduce the damage. The light engulfed Sunny and the flesh mass—it was a strange scene: a human silhouette kneeling under soul-destroying light, but he didn't fall forward. He remained kneeling on one knee until the beam faded.

After the light beam vanished, the mass slammed Sunny again, sending him flying and crashing into the broken walls of the hall. Sunny was flung and slammed into the wall, groaning in pain. His ribs were broken, his soul badly wounded. Yet, nothing showed on his face—he was still smiling. He rose again, more determined to put this bastard shadow into his Soul Sea as a trophy.

The limbs moved again, this time smashing through the hall's ceiling and walls. Sunlight leaked in and began to gnaw at his soul. Sunny gritted his teeth, bearing the pain and weakness, and moved, determined to end this abomination. The limbs retreated to the Crimson Terror, then extended once more toward Sunny.

Gripping his odachi, Sunny hurled himself swiftly toward the limbs, blade first, slicing through any that blocked his path, drawing closer to the wounded mass. The flesh and coral mountain trembled at the sense of danger, and beams of light increased in number, striking Sunny. He clenched his teeth, blood dripping from his nose and mouth due to his soul's injuries.

Finally, he collided with the flesh mountain and delivered a deep cut, removing a chunk of flesh. The mass trembled—but couldn't extend its limbs again, because Of a long sword had been driven into its core.

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The Saint led the Sleepers to the gate through the debris caused by Sunny's battle with the Crimson Terror above. The gate resembled an iron ring etched with rune letters similar to the spell. About a thousand Dreamers stood, staring at the gate with doubt and joy. And in that moment, Caster tried to slip away and attack Nephis unnoticed.

He was on the verge of failing his mission. He didn't want to know what punishment would befall his clan if he failed, so he wouldn't allow himself to. And Sunless wasn't here so—no one to stop him from killing changing Star.

Caster crept forward, swiftly approaching Nephis, his weapon forming from sparks of light. But before he could reach her, a stone hand—solid, rough, and full of strength—grabbed him. When he turned his head to see who it was, he met the gaze of two crimson flames staring at him. He felt fear. He was terrified. But what the Saint did was simple—she grabbed Caster and threw him into the gate. His body turned into sparks of light and vanished, just like how Echoes and Memories are expelled.

"What?! Who went in? Was that Caster? Why was he flying?"

"Did he enter the gate? That coward, desperate for glory in his family."

Nephis furrowed her brow as she looked at the Garnet Knight. She had seen Caster move toward her and had been ready to sever his head from his body—but the Saint had stopped him. She didn't know why Sunny wanted Caster alive. She was almost certain he knew Caster intended to kill her.

And from what she knew of Sunny, Caster should have died a hundred times over. But Sunny kept him alive, as if he saw far beyond, something much greater than what she could see. But she could not suppress the suspicions awakening in her heart.