Shadow Slave

Sunny and Effie approached them quietly.

"Hey! Long time no see!" Effie's energetic voice echoed across the canyon, prompting a weak response from the three Masters. Cassie flinched slightly, while Nephis and Jet turned to look at them with dim expressions. After a moment of silence, Soul Reaper forced out a smile.

"Ah. It's you, glutton... yeah, it's good to see you too."

The three were clearly shaken by their experience in the overgrown shrine. Sunny only knew that the creature that dwelled there was powerful and ancient - even Wind Flower did not know much about it, except for the fact that it did not possess a physical body. Therefore, Jet's glaive and Neph's purifying flames were their best bet to destroy it.

With Cassie's supernatural intuition and affinity to revelations, as well as Saint's dark blade, they stood a good chance of, if not prevailing against the shrine horror, then at least getting the enchantment key and escaping alive.

Walking over to the three Masters, Sunny studied their conditions for a few moments, then turned to Cassie:

"Did you get it?"

She nodded slowly and raised a hand. On it lay a strange gemstone engraved with countless runes. Unlike the soul crystal of the Guiding Light, this gemstone seemed to absorb light, not produce it.

The enchantment key.

Sunny let out a long sigh.

"...Good."

Then, fascinated, he asked in a curious tone:

"What was the creature inside the shrine like?"

Cassie shivered slightly and lowered her head.

"I... don't really want to talk about that thing. Right now."

Judging by the heavy expressions of Neph's and Jet's faces, they felt the same.

Sunny raised an eyebrow.

how bad

out of it that she had not even reacted to Effie's

he did not press the topic. The three of them had experienced all kinds of terrible things and faced all sorts of harrowing creatures... if they were that shaken by what

Echoes were nowhere to be seen, though. Hopefully, they were

then. Let's go... we should

lingered for a while, then rose

created them was already dead - Cassie's group had slayed it on the way to the shrine. Sunny navigated the system of caves, following his memory. After a long time, they stopped near the wall of a cave that did not seem different from all

this one was

a few moments, then looked up with apprehension. Eventually, he took a step to the side and sent

"If you will..."

an indifferent gaze, then walked forward and delivered a devastating blow to the wall of the cave. A net of cracks spread from the point where her gauntlet had struck the

Without wasting any time, she bombarded the wall of the cave with crushing blows, each sending a thunderous boom traveling

his side, the other members of the cohort did the same. Only Fiend just stood there and stared, dim flames burning in his

White mist streamed into the cave through the opening, as

Nephis

"Follow me."

wall... was the

twisted time had disappeared, as well. In other words, they did not have to cross

island, which teemed with harrowing Nightmare Creatures by now. Instead of risking their lives in the misty forest, the

the moat, and made their way to its other side. Then, they scaled its vertical wall and climbed out of the chasm near the stone steps leading

them, the terrifying abominations frozen on it still standing motionless.

steps without looking back. Sunny opened the gate of Aletheia's Tower and let everyone inside, then closed it

expressions. He could understand how they felt... he had been quite the same the first time he saw

Sunny sighed.

"It's dead. Don't worry..."

worry, but was feeling agitated himself. Sunny was almost surprised that they had made it so far... the bone orchard, the caverns, the blood lake, the overgrown shrine - all of these steps could have ended in their

All the deaths they had experienced on this nightmarish island had not been for nothing, it seemed. Now, all that was left was to gain access to the

And destroy the loop.

of the hall. She followed, holding the enchantment

directly below the corpse of the Great Tyrant hanging from the ceiling, there was a strange sound,

floor of the tower rearranged itself, revealing a narrow staircase. Without

was carved into the rock. Its walls were covered with sheets of polished