As the sun shone brightly on the outskirts of the Bright Castle, seven people were seen in a group discussing what seemed to be the final preparations. Today was the long and arduous journey to recover the seven artifacts.
During the past few days, Ben had been preparing with Nephis's cohort and had been stocking up on food and water. He memorised the travel routes they would take and the creatures they might frequently encounter.
Ben could also feel that he was excluded from the real plans of the cohort. He was a sort of bystander or an acquaintance of sorts. Ben's role in the group was similar to Kai, he was not part of Nephis's inner circle.
He banded together with them as they played off of his desire to leave the Forgotten Shore. Nephis had also fulfilled her promise and now Ben wielded [Soul Flame] without any drawbacks except for the fact that its potency was severely reduced.
It seemed that he couldn't copy Divine Aspects without restrictions. Before [Soul Flame] could heal missing limbs and life threatening wounds but now with the restrictions it could only heal paramount wounds.
Its ability to be used in combat also was significantly diminished. Ben was currently on the way to the cathedral for enlisting the help of their pathfinder. He trailed behind the rear together with Kai while Nephis and Caster led the group.
Cassia was situated in the middle of the cohort. As informed by the cohort, Effie was currently hiding out with Sunny as a result of the situation she caused to Gunlaughs men.
As they continued to walk in silence, Kai decided to break the ice.
"So, Ben you haven't met Sunny have you?"
Ben shook his head in silence, "I hear he's quite the character"
Nephis had a long look on her face at the mention of Sunny. Caster seemingly ignored their chat with an indifferent face.
They soon arrived at the cathedral. Appearing from the steamish black cathedral were two figures who walked leisurely.
The more noticeable of the two figures were the chestnut haired woman with hazel eyes. She was a tall woman with an extremely athletic build, her hair was tied in a braid and her lean muscles gave her an aesthetic build.
Next to her stood a miniscule squirt, he was thin and pale with jet-black hair. He had dark circles under his eyes with other signs of exhaustion. His jet-black hair fell over his eyes in a mess, his eyes contained a glint of coldness.
'Sunny's this short?, I thought he would be taller. It seems the novel described him perfectly' Ben thought with appallment.
Sunny soon met his gaze before he turned his eyes to Kai, seemingly ignoring him.
"Night… uh… why are you here, buddy?"
The archer smiled.
"Ah! I'm very happy to see you too, Sunny, my friend. Lady Nephis has asked me to join her on this expedition, and after careful consideration, I have decided to agree."
Sunny blinked a couple of times.
"Alright, I know that I'm crazy, but when did you lose your mind too?"
Kai looked at him with a strange expression.
"Wait.. crazy? What do you mean, you're crazy?"
Sunny sighed.
"Nevermind."
Sunny then again gazed at Ben, before he turned his attention to Nephis, "Oi you egregious bastard!"
A boisterous voice shouted at Ben, "I guess they convinced you to join!, wonder what they promised you?"
Ben sighed and looked at her, "First of all, I'm not evil or nefarious. Second of all, they just promised me a handshake, that's all."
Effie snorted at his words, "Yeah right they promised you a handshake; as if that would make you move. You're also quite evil, you're gaze literally speaks off that"
Ben chuckled, "Evil is relative"
Ben and Effie had a rivalry going on, because both of them were renowned hunters. It intensified when Ben got the nickname ''The Black Flash".
Ben soon felt he was being observed.
....
'So, this is the black flash. I hadn't even heard about him till Effie mentioned him, but did he really beat a fallen ranked creature alone?. It's also quite peculiar that when I'm trying to look at him my mind is telling me to ignore him.
Is this some enchantment?, if so it's really deadly.'
Sunny stared at Ben's double-breasted frock coat as he was being reassured about his theory, 'That frock coat is disturbing to look at'
The boy was wearing a double-breasted frock coat with a top hat on his head. He had a pocket watch hanging on his coat and was holding a Victorian Era walking stick.
The boy immediately turned his head to Sunny, seemingly feeling his gawking. Ben wagged his finger at Sunny, instantly irritating him.
'So Sunny was the one looking at me eh, I guess he's puzzled about why he glanced over me.', Ben soon gazed at his frock coat with a grin.
Memory: [The Fool's Frock Coat]
Memory Rank: Transcendent
Memory Tier: IV
Memory Type: Armour
Memory Description: A dejected Fool wanted to be ignored by the world. The world's degeneracy disgusted him to no end, but his wish to be passed over was null. So, he created this.
Memory Enchantments: [Fooling], [Self Suzerainty], [Shifting], [Miracle Invoking]
Enchantment Description:
[Fooling] - Creatures will subconsciously ignore you. You can fool Prophecies, Visions, Sight.
[Self Suzerainty] - This armour can be repaired while worn. The speed it repairs itself can be enhanced by supplying it with essence.
[Shifting] - This armour can take on a myriad of forms.
[Miracle Invoking] - You can collect wishes by slaying abominations. After collecting these wishes you can either transcend this armours rank or add new enchantments.
Wishes Collected - [103/1000]
Ben had found this armour in the underground market and had immediately bought it. This memory was quite powerful, amazingly so.
Ben's thoughts soon drifted to Sunny's Aspect, 'It would be quite wonderful if I could copy his aspect, but I know I won't even be able to touch him for 3 seconds much less 10. I do know that I can suppress him and best him in a duel and then copy his aspect but if I do that the others in the cohort would be after me.
I know I'm not that powerful to take on such seasoned warriors. My best bet is to copy his aspect in the future