Chapter 36: 36: Monster
Several hours after the battle against the Shell Demon, Nephis woke up.
She felt her head resting on a soft pillow, which was unusual as she should have been on the ashy ground. But she was even more surprised when she opened her eyes.
What she saw was the face of a boy swaying gently above her own. They were only centimeters away from their faces touching. She was startled and quickly rolled to the side, escaping Sunny's lap.
She was confused, and a faint red appeared on her pale ears. She didn't know how or when she had ended up resting in Sunny's lap.
She stared in a daze at the short, pale boy in front of her, who was still unconscious on the ashy ground.
A soft laugh was heard a few meters away. The source of the sweet and gentle laugh was Sasha, who watched the whole situation amusedly. Next to her was Jonathan, whose face bore an amused smile.
It seemed as if they had been waiting for the moment when she or Sunny would wake up and see the situation they were in. She looked from one to the other and then spoke.
"Is everyone alright?" It was the only thing she could say, looking away to prevent her face from turning redder.
"Of course, Lady Nephis, we're also glad you're okay. Did you enjoy your nap on Sunny's legs?" Jonathan said, the last part in a teasing and mischievous tone.
Sasha looked at him and hit his shoulder, to which he gave her a puzzled look and then understood why.
"Sorry, I shouldn't have asked that." He apologized, in a low but satisfied tone.
Nephis saw Ludwin, who was breathing but still unconscious. Seeing the other two having fun, she assumed there was no danger.
She went over to Sunny, now willing to bet that he was neither a murderer nor an enemy. She already trusted him with her back; he was now something she had never had before.
He was her ally, one who wouldn't betray her, one who wouldn't stab her in the back, someone to trust.
Her feelings towards him were strange, something new for her. Still, she crouched down and gently shook her friend to wake him up and head to Cassia, who was surely still anxiously awaiting their return.
...
After Ludwin woke up and thanked Nephis for saving his life, everyone headed to the tree where they had left Cassia.
She was crying when her blue eyes turned in their direction. Everyone walked towards her to bring the good news and show her that everyone was alive.
Cassia got up and, with hesitant and erratic steps, ran clumsily with tears streaming down her face towards her dear friend's arms, seeking her embrace and the reassurance that she was okay.
"I-I thought that- I thought the demon- that he had- killed all of you." The girl said, crying inconsolably in her friend's arms, her voice coming out broken and stammering.
Nephis stroked Cassia's soft hair as she returned the hug, trying to calm the girl.
...
After calming the girl, everyone sat around the campfire they had made to cook the meat they had brought.
"So..." It was Isaac who broke the silence that had settled among them. It wasn't uncomfortable, just that each had their own problems to reflect on.
"I received a memory from the demon, it's a sword, called Midnight Shard, it's a Rank 3 Awakened sword." He said, to no one in particular.
"That's great, Isaac. But you already have a better sword, I suppose you're telling us because you want to give it to someone, right?" Sasha said, a calm tone in her voice as she looked at Isaac.
"That's right, if anyone needs a weapon, I can offer the sword the demon gave me. After all, it was you who fought, I only dealt the final blow." Isaac thought he didn't deserve the weapon given by the demon since he had just waited on the side to kill it, while the others had risked their lives to give him that chance.
Although Isaac was someone from the outskirts, he was raised by loving parents who, despite their harsh living conditions, had taught him some values.
His group leader was the next to speak.
"That's very kind of you. Sasha has an Awakened shield and a sword I can provide, Ludwin has the Awakened dagger I gave him, and you have your Transcendent sword. So, why not give it to Sunny? He still has his sword, but the one you have now is of a higher level, it wouldn't hurt to increase the strength of a group fighter."
Jonathan suggested, not just to keep the story as close to the original as possible, but also to make Sunny much stronger than in the original storyline. He was going to give them many fruits from this cursed tree for an entire month.
He would make them much stronger, as he knew his intervention would inevitably change the story. That's why he wanted the real protagonists to become stronger. Sunny should barely have over a hundred shadow fragments, while Nephis, well, she already had her second core formed before he met her in Ashen Barrow. He knew because he could sense two cores in her soul.
"You know, if you want to give me that sword, I'll accept it without much fuss." Sunny interjected, looking gracefully at Jonathan and Isaac.
"Of course, I have no problem with that. Give me your hand, Sunny." Isaac said, approaching Sunny.
Sunny felt weird giving his hand to another man, but he also felt the great difference between Nephis's touch, which was soft like cotton and warm like a flame, and Isaac's touch, which was rough and dry like a desert.
'I suppose it's normal, Nephis is a girl, and her skin is soft while he's from the slums like me, we both have—Wait, what is this comparison, what are you thinking, Sunny!'
Sunny felt a spark travel from his hand to his soul, and when he opened his runes, a new memory appeared.
Memory: Midnight Shard
Memory Rank: Awakened
Memory Type: Weapon.
Memory Description: [Forged from the fragment of a fallen star, this relentless blade is firm and unyielding. It favors those willing to fight to the last drop of blood and who do not know surrender.]
'Interesting.'
Without wasting time, Sunny summoned the Midnight Shard. Immediately, an elegant sword appeared in his hand.
The sword resembled the Blue Sword a bit, but only in the sense that it had a single edge and a long hilt suitable for two hands. However, that's where the similarities ended. For starters, its blade was much longer, between seventy and eighty centimeters, and slightly curved. It was forged from the same shiny and lustrous metal as the Shell Demon's armor.
It was incredibly sharp.
The hilt was made of polished black wood, quite similar in appearance to the onyx branches of the great tree. The cross-guard was rounder and more pronounced than that of the Azure Blade, offering better support and protection to the wielder's hand.
The sword had no ornaments, embellishments, or adornments. It was simple and austere, like a true weapon designed for battle and only for battle. It seemed to radiate a cold and fearsome aura.
As soon as his hand touched the Midnight Shard, Sunny felt this sword possessed an unbreakable will. His sword was strong enough to withstand devastating blows without suffering any damage. With this sword in hand, nothing could leave Sunny disarmed again.
More than that, there was a new and strange feeling somewhere deep in his heart. When Sunny held the Midnight Shard, he could sense a subtle presence, as if there was a deep well of power hidden within it, out of his reach. He still didn't know how to access that power, but it was certainly real.
'I guess I'll have to earn its "favor" first. But how do I do that? Mmm. I'll have to experiment later.'
Admiring his new weapon, Sunny looked at Nephis and said:
"Even I know what kind of sword this is. It's a... a katana, right?"
Nephis finished studying the Midnight Shard and replied.
"Technically, it's a tachi. It's longer than a traditional katana and has a slightly different blade shape. But they are quite similar."
Everyone looked at Nephis, somewhat surprised by her unusually long speech. They realized that maybe she spoke more if it was about things she was good at.
Still, no one said anything.
Jonathan took advantage of this moment of peace to check his runes. He hadn't seen anything since forming his second core.
He murmured quietly, just for himself to hear.
"Runes."
Name: Jonathan
True Name: Soul Appropriator
Rank: Dreamer
Class: Monster
Thread Cores: [2/7]
Thread Fragments: [874/2000]
Jonathan's eyes widened.
'This, how is this possible, this should be impossible even after killing a corrupted demon. This amount of fragments is ridiculous.'
The corrupted demon should have given him at least 1500 thread fragments for him to have so many fragments even after forming a new core.
'But, that thing left its soul cores in my soul sea, then my core seemed to absorb the three cores on its own. Could that be the reason for this incredible increase in fragments? It's the most likely option.'
Shocked but not upset, he continued reading down where his memories appeared.
Memories: [Fallen Legion Armor] [Leg...
A new memory appeared among his memories.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone