Chapter 57 Use Of Weapons
In the evening, Sunny continued to practice with the sword under Neph's watchful eye. With his new insight, every movement felt different from before. After the thousand strikes were finished, he sat down to rest and studied the Azure Blade, tempted to continue obsessing over the abundant mysteries of the Forgotten Shore.
After a while, Sunny asked:
"Do you think I'm well-suited to use a sword? Should I consider switching weapons in the future?"
Nephis shrugged.
"That depends on your goals. However, the sword is considered to be the king of weapons for a reason."
Sunny smiled.
"And why is that?"
She tilted her head and deliberated for a few seconds. Then, she asked:
"Do you know how natural selection works?"
He raised an eyebrow.
"Survival of the fittest? The strongest species survives?"
Changing Star glanced at him.
"Somewhat correct. But actually, it's not the strongest species that survive, it's the most adaptable. Otherwise, lions and tigers and bears would have been the ones ruling the world instead of humans."
Sunny knew about lions and bears from archival footage, but he had no idea what a tiger was.
'Probably another extinct predator?'
Meanwhile, Neph continued, not at all like her usual taciturn self. She seemed to be much more eloquent when talking about subjects she was confident in.
"The same logic can be applied to combat. A sword is not the most effective tool in every situation. A spear is more useful against enemies with long reach. A war hammer is much better against armor. A mace is easier to maintain. However, swords are the most versatile."
She cast a gaze at the Azure Blade. 𝔣𝚛eewe𝚋𝚗𝚘𝚟e𝔩.𝚌𝔬m
"A sword can pierce, it can cut, it can bash. It can be used effectively at a variety of ranges. It is swift and maneuverable. Every part of the sword, from tip to pommel, can be used to attack. While wielding a sword, you won't be the best at everything. But you'll be the most adaptable."
Nephis turned to him.
"Do you understand?"
Sunny thought for a bit before answering.
"I think I do."
She gave him a nod and looked away.
"But in the end, you must remember one thing. It doesn't matter that much what's in your hands. A sword, a spear, a club… that's just tools. You are the weapon."
He sighed and dismissed the Azure Blade. As always, Changing Star's lesson gave him a lot to think about.
'You are the weapon.'
He repeated it in his mind, feeling as though another piece of the puzzle had fallen into place.
Together, they watched the sun set in comfortable silence. As the night approached, the sea was coming back, flooding the crimson labyrinth like a rush of darkness. Far below them, scavengers were scurrying to find a hiding place. A few of them were climbing the cliffs, hoping to spend the night on the small island.
Sunny's shadow was keeping an eye on them.
"We're going to have guests soon," he said, disheartened at the thought that their short respite was about to end.
Nephis sighed.
"That's alright. With the higher ground advantage, dealing with them won't be too hard."
Sunny nodded and looked at the disappearing sun. Suddenly, his mood turned solemn. Doubt raised its ugly head, plunging his mind into the gloomy embrace of anxiety. Staring into the distance, Sunny hesitated and asked:
"Do you think we'll be able to reach that castle?"
She glanced at him with no particular expression on her face.
"Yes."
He turned to her and forced a smile.
"Why are you so sure?"
In the blood-red blaze of the sunset, Changing Star's calm eyes seemed to burn with heavenly fire. Looking west, she summoned her sword and answered:
"If that is our will, who dares to stop us?"
***
Dealing with the climbing scavengers, indeed, turned out to be comparatively easy. Sunny and Nephis just had to ambush and push the bulky creatures off the cliff before they could find stable purchase. He received four shadow fragments practically for free, increasing the overall number to thirty-two. Sadly, the soul shards couldn't be retrieved.
They spent another day on the cliffs, resting and training. Sunny practiced with the sword while his shadow explored the nearby paths of the labyrinth. With the Echo still recovering, their group was not in its optimal condition. That's why there was no point in hastily abandoning their current camp.
However, very soon they were going to resume the journey west, moving from one height to another in hopes of reaching the mysterious human citadel.
This time they were not going to travel without sufficient preparations. Knowing that a sudden storm can come at any moment, covering the world with darkness and summoning the sea back before sunset, the three Sleepers decided to thoroughly scout a route before committing to moving their camp to the next landmark.
Nephis spent the day meditating. Her eyes were closed. From time to time, it seemed as though a soft white glow was radiating from behind her eyelids. However, when Sunny looked closely, it was always gone, making him think that he was just imagining things.
He suspected that Changing Star was training herself to endure the pain of her Flaw.
If so, he wished her luck.
Cassie behaved like her usual self, being cheerful and friendly. It was as though their strange conversation had never happened. However, Sunny could feel that something about her was different. He couldn't quite put a finger on what exactly had changed about the blind girl, but she seemed to possess more resolve. It wasn't a bad thing.
They spent some time chatting and remembering their time in the Academy. Sunny told her about his lessons with Teacher Julius and various strange things he had learned from the old man. Her reaction to the idea of studying dead languages of the Dream Realm was exactly the same as Sunny's initial protest and bewilderment.
Soon, the night was upon them again. This time, no scavenger tried to climb the cliffs, so Sunny and Nephis could rest easy. However, they still slept in turns, keeping watch over the camp in case something unexpected happens.
In the morning, they ate the last of the centurion's meat and prepared to climb down into the labyrinth.
It was time to continue their journey.
Chapter 58 Survival Of The Fittest
Days later, Sunny was sitting on top of a dead scavenger, calmly cleaning the azure blood off his face.
[Your shadow grows stronger.]
His sword was still stuck between the plates of chitin armor, trembling slightly as the beast's body convulsed before falling still.
Somewhere behind him, the sound of breaking carapaces announced that Nephis was already digging out soul shards from the corpses of the creatures they had slain. After dozens of such battles, the two of them were nothing if not efficient.
Glancing back, he evaluated the scene of carnage. 𝙛𝓻𝙚𝙚𝔀𝙚𝙗𝓷𝙤𝓿𝙚𝙡.𝙘𝙤𝒎
The path between two crimson walls was littered with corpses. Initially, they were simply planning to lure the carapace centurion that had been tracking them for the past few days into this narrow passage to turn its size against the monster. However, things quickly took a turn.
Attracted by the noise of the battle, both the scavengers and the weird centipede creatures that were waging war against the carapace legion in this part of the labyrinth showed up to join the fight. In the ensuing mayhem, Sunny and Nephis used the animosity between the two tribes of monsters to their advantage and ended up as the only victors.
Not far from him, the Echo was mutilating the corpse of the centurion. Its lost arm had long grown back. Now, the scavenger was tearing pieces of monster meat with its new pincer and vindictively devouring them.
Technically, an Echo wasn't supposed to experience hunger. This one, however, had seemingly acquired a hatred for carapace centurions after their encounter with the massive scythe slayer on that fateful stormy night.
It had already been two weeks since they left the cliffs. In that time, many things had changed, while many remained the same.
Moving from one high point to another, they steadily traveled west. With Cassie riding atop the Echo, the speed of the group was dramatically enhanced. Still, they took care to explore paths to their next stop before committing to a day-long journey.
This way, the risk of being caught in another storm was minimized, as they could always either reach the next landmark in time or return to the previous one.
Their approach to traveling through the labyrinth had also changed. In the past, Nephis and Sunny tried to avoid the scavengers, resorting to fighting them only if there was no other choice. However, the battle with the centurion opened their eyes to the fact that they desperately needed to become stronger, and do it fast.
That's why they began to actively hunt the carapace beasts, taking out any creatures that were either completely isolated or moving in groups of no more than three. The idea of two Sleepers consciously seeking out Nightmare Creatures of the Awakened rank was pretty ridiculous, but somehow, they made it work.
Just as Nephis had said, both of them were abnormal.
Clad in the Starlight Legion Armor, Changing Star, who had always been an extremely formidable fighter, was now able to showcase the full extent of her combat ability. Simply put, she was a menace. It seemed as though her silver sword had a mind of its own. Whenever the tall figure in white armor appeared, rivers of azure blood were sure to flow.
What's more, Neph's powers grew with each soul shard she consumed. Every increase was barely noticeable, but with dozens of them added up together, the difference was apparent. She was slowly approaching the line between the peak of human physical form and the threshold of superhuman prowess.
The same could be said about Sunny, although, in his case, it was predicated on the timely use of the shadow. His own body had become considerably stronger due to the rigors of the Dream Realm, but it was still far away from reaching its peak potential.
While Nephis was growing more powerful through the consumption of soul shards, he was quickly collecting shadow fragments. Of course, he wasn't able to get every kill, so their amount was less than that of the shards. But he also didn't have to share them with Cassie, which Changing Star was continuously doing.
As the result, the rate of their progress was more or less the same.
However, the slow accumulation of power was not the only factor that influenced the rapid growth of their combat effectiveness.
Sunny's skill level and battle sense were also improving by leaps and bounds. Under the tutelage of sword goddess Nephis herself, he was quickly learning the ins and outs of wielding the blade.
Then, he was forced to apply these lessons to practice, participating in bloody battles each day with his life on the line. This brutal, merciless reality was, for better or worse, the best training grounds for a true fighter. There was no room for mistakes, only progress — because a single mistake would most likely become his last.
One real fight was worth a thousand hours of training. With experience, Sunny was able to gain knowledge. With clarity, he was able to turn this knowledge into a seed of understanding.
But even that wasn't the biggest contributor to the dramatic increase in the group's overall might.
The main culprit was, to his endless surprise, teamwork.
After fighting side by side for so long, Sunny and Nephis had developed a tacit, intuitive understanding. Without the need for words and signals, they were able to act in unison with each other, perfectly coordinating their attacks and actions to better control the battlefield and destroy their opponents.
The importance of this unity was hard to overestimate. With proper cooperation, it was as though their numbers doubled. The effect was immediate and overwhelming — at least as long as they chose their battles carefully. It was nothing short of jolly.
With all this added up together, their group had turned from a trio of lost kids into a cohort of well-equipped, experienced and battle-hardened survivors.
Even Cassie was becoming stronger. Apart from the boost she had received from absorbing the soul shards, the blind girl was also slowly learning to live and function with her disability.
After all, it was less than two months since she lost her sight. Cassie was still adapting to her condition, and she was doing an incredible job, considering the circumstances.
She was still unable to help them fight against the monsters, but the burden of taking care of her was becoming less and less heavy. Sunny had also grown accustomed to it, even finding the time spent watching over the blind girl somewhat calming.
The goal of reaching the human castle did not seem as impossible as it had before.
And now, he felt as though they were getting closer and closer.