Фалкон Скоттын Уналт (44)

The graceful knight stared at him indifferently, not showing any reaction. The ruby jewels of her eyes glowed with menacing crimson flames, revealing no emotion. Sunny sighed.

"Oh, come on... don't you understand what is happening? Just… emote, please! It won't kill you… I think…"

Saint remained silent and as aloof as ever, causing his heart to ache.

Cursing under his breath, Sunny looked away and summoned the runes. The shimmering symbols appeared in the air in front of him:

Name: Sunless.

True Name: Lost from Light.

Rank: Ascended.

Class: Devil.

Shadow Cores: [4/7].

Shadow Fragments: [2973/4000].

Memories: [Silver Bell], [Puppeteer's Shroud], [Midnight Shard], [Extraordinary Rock], [Prowling Thorn], [Endless Spring], [Dark Wing], [Moonlight Shard], [Weaver's Mask], [Broken Oath], [Autumn Leaf], [Cruel Sight], [Covetous Coffer], [Heavenly Burden], [Memory of Fire], [Memory of Ice], [Strike of Thunder], [Morgan's Warbow], [Shadow Lantern], [Bone Singer], [Shadow Chair], [Overpriced Saddle], [Dying Wish], [Sin of Solace], [Bitter Cusp], [Stifled Scream], [Weaver's Needle], [Essence Pearl], [Nimble Catch], [Shroud of Graceless Dusk], [Siege Souvenir], [Incessant Seeker].

His shadow fragments were already closing in on three thousand. That was not the important part, though.

Sunny studied the list of his Memories with a pained expression, then looked down and concentrated on Saint's name.

Shadow: [Onyx Saint]

…Shadow Fragments: [196/200].

He was so close… she was only three and a half fragments away from saturating the counter.

Sadly, there was no time to hunt for Memories anymore. There was no time for Saint to slowly recover in his core in case she got wounded, either, which was why he had not sent her to defend the wall in the last couple of days.

Sunny could have gone and begged for a few Memories from people he knew, but there was no need. He had been prepared to fail to reach his goal on time. All it meant was that he had to sacrifice several Memories of his own.

The problem was that he cherished all of his Memories. They were all useful in their own way.

Some were integral to his battle prowess, some were a form of insurance for unexpected situations. The Dark Wing and the Heavenly Burden, for example, were far from stellar Memories, however, he needed them in case there was no way to avoid an aerial fight. Other Memories possessed useful enchantments that he wanted to replicate one day.

Some Memories Sunny had outgrown, but was attached to them sentimentally. More than that, he hoped to pass them on to Rain should she become a Sleeper.

Really, there was only one useless Memory in his arsenal, the Silver Bell. However, Sunny was reluctant to sacrifice it. That was the first Memory he had ever obtained, and the first Memory he had changed with sorcery. It was also a… a memento that reminded him of happier times.

'It's just a Dormant Memory of the Second Tier, too. Consuming it won't satiate Saint at all.'

Nevertheless, he had to sacrifice something. In the end, Sunny sighed bitterly and summoned three Memories.

A heavy kunai, a glistening gem made of polished red coral, and an arrow with green fletching appeared in front of him.

The last one was the [Incessant Seeker], an Ascended arrow of the Second Tier he had received recently. It was as powerful as the Strike of Thunder, but possessed enchantments that guided it toward a single target and enhanced the damage dealt to that sole enemy.

Which was a real boon. However, Sunny had many other ways to deal high damage to a single target.

The second Memory… was the Broken Oath. As always, Sunny winced when its soul eroding aura started slowly dissolving his own soul. It was a great charm that had served him well many times in the past, and synergized perfectly with Saint's immunity to soul attacks.

Its power as an Awakened Memory of the First Tier was not great, though. With the caliber of enemies Sunny was facing these days, it was like a drop in the ocean. Aside from that, Saint was mostly fighting alongside Nightmare now, and would hopefully be surrounded by more Shadows in the future. The others did not possess the same immunity, which limited the usefulness of the red gem.

The first Memory Sunny summoned was the Prowling Thorn. He sighed again, looking at the kunai with regret.

There was nothing wrong with the throwing dagger, and they had gone through a lot together. But it had outlived its usefulness. Sunny would have preferred to keep the Prowling Thorn simply for utility, but the situation demanded he let go of something.

…Sunny had already lost the Patient Avenger, and now, he was going to lose three more perfectly fine Memories. He felt as if his heart was bleeding.

'Waste… such a waste…'

He closed his eyes, and then handed the dagger, the gem, and the arrow to Saint without looking.

"Here. You… you eat these. Enjoy your meal!"

The graceful onyx knight silently took the Memories and crushed them in her fists without pausing even for a moment. Hearing the dreadful sound, Sunny was stunned.

'She… she didn't even hesitate! Those were very precious, damn it!'

Opening his eyes, he saw four streams of radiant sparks being absorbed into the Shadow's body. Then, her eyes flashed with dark glee.

The runes still hung in the air, the counter showing:

Shadow Fragments: [200/200].

In the next moment, the shadow that existed where Saint's soul should have been suddenly rippled. The four dark embers in its depths shone with lightless radiance, and wisps of black flames rose from her armor.

Sunny took a step back, mesmerized by the familiar scene.

He had already seen it once, back when his taciturn knight Ascended.

In the next moment, Saint's figure was enveloped entirely by the black flames, making it impossible to see her. A powerful gust of wind blew through the interior of the Rhino, both unbearable heat and chilling coldness assaulting Sunny at the same time. He blinked.

'Uh… crap… maybe I should have done this in the Soul Sea…'

But there was nothing he could do now but wait. Nervous for his expensive APC, Sunny summoned a barrier of shadows to surround Saint. A minute passed in tense silence, then two…

Then, something exploded within the barrier, shattering it easily and sending Sunny flying back.

A wave of darkness rolled through the Rhino, turning its interior into a mess and cracking its armored windows from within. The enormous vehicle shook and trembled, then grew still with a loud groan.

Sunny scrambled back to his feet and stared at Saint, who was standing in the same spot, seemingly unchanged.

However, the darkness dwelling within her was now much deeper and more frightening. Her onyx body was radiating a sense of vast, dreadful power, and the menacing crimson flames dancing in her ruby eyes were brighter.

His Shadow, now a Transcendent Devil, tilted her head slightly, looking at him with her usual indifference. But Sunny could feel a hint of emotion hidden behind it.

Pride. Satisfaction.

Gratitude?

Slowly, a wide grin appeared on his face.

Sunny brushed the Graceless Dusk, straightened, and looked at the menacing devil with a smile.

"...Should I start calling you Saint Saint now, huh?"