On the last day they would spend in the Dark City, Nephis led a small group of her most powerful warriors on one last hunt.
The members of her cohort were all following behind her. Sunny, who stubbornly refused to accept his status as one of them, walked apart from the group, idly looking around and observing the ruins.
Gemma and Seishan were also with them, as well as ten or so of the most experienced hunters — some of them formerly from the Host, some formerly from the outer settlement. There was no difference between the two anymore.
All of them were simply Changing Star's people now.
As they were walking, Gemma approached Sunny and glanced at him with curiosity.
After Tessai had fallen to Neph's blade, the tall man seemed to have found some measure of peace. Somewhere deep in his eyes, however, there always was a hint of sorrow.
Sunny stared at him and raised an eyebrow.
"What?"
The hunter smiled slightly and asked in a friendly tone:
"You're Sunless, right?"
Sunny shrugged.
"Yeah, that's me."
Gemma silently measured him and then asked with interest:
"I've heard that you lived for months alone in the city. Is that true?"
'Ah, makes sense.'
The tall man was perhaps the most experienced hunter on the Forgotten Shore. He had survived countless battles on the streets of the cursed city. It was natural for him to be curious about this matter…
Sunny gave him a nod.
"Sure. A little over three months, I guess."
Gemma rubbed his chin, then asked bluntly:
"How did you survive?"
Sunny grinned.
How had he managed that, indeed?
of killing. A modicum of madness, and a little bit of
at him for
right,
Changing Star and
we are going to hunt
looked at
"She didn't tell you?"
man hesitated, then shook his
not sure
smiled and looked
was that she had lost her
moments of
how can we kill
'Poor guy…'
lingered for a bit, and
correct, you know more about it than I
just like that, their conversation
the great wall. Standing on top of it, they saw the colossal crater and the headless statue that stood not too far away, its
prey was hiding in a vast underground chamber beneath
they were going to hunt the
***
mud. Thousands of years ago, it had broken off and fell, crashing through the dome of the underground chamber. Now, there was a chasm in the ground that led
the catacombs.
master of the catacombs waited for them below. Sunny wasn't really surprised that Nephis had chosen to return to this place. After all, the
really curious about how exactly
around the hole in the mud,
your shadow take a look at the burial
It slid on the mud and entered the dark
of human bones was still there, in the middle
very different from
mass of bones, some of them comparatively thin, others as thick as a human body. They weren't growing just between the ancient remains: the vines were bursting through
seemed… weaker. More brittle. As though it was sick, sapped of its strength and infected
finally noticed
floor of the underground chamber, open and empty. The exact same box Nephis had mysteriously entrusted
outer settlement hunter, that box had appeared on his pillow with a small note. That note had been written by Changing Star's spy — Seishan. And the contents of
the Artisans. Her Aspect Ability allowed her to control
out, was her last creation and
and then
infected by Kido's vine. It
silent for a few moments. Then, she
Dead will attack us. Now that its power is reduced, and with the help
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