The Weave of Madness

Sunny summoned his runes—and almost toppled off the bench.

'What the hell!'

Blinking, he read the runes once again.

Name: Sunless.

True Name: Lost from Light.

Rank: Dreamer.

Shadow Core: Dormant.

Shadow Fragments: [68/1000].

"W-where did the extra fifty-six fragments come from?"

He frowned, staring at it as if the runes might offer an answer. And then, like a slow tide washing over his thoughts, a hazy memory surfaced.

It was faint—like trying to grasp smoke—but the more he focused, the clearer it became. The void. The suffocating darkness. The cold embrace of despair as his soul dimmed, flickering on the brink of extinction.

And then...

A man? No... a Nightmare Creature.

It had grabbed his hand and whispered something. 

The words were fragmented, slipping through his memory like water through his fingers. But one phrase stood out, sharp and chilling:

'Your nightmare is just beginning...'

Sunny shuddered. The memory seemed distant yet unnervingly real. 

Then there had been a faint whisper of the spell. He couldn't remember the exact words, but the fragments...

"Wait. The spell... it mentioned slaying something. Does that mean...?"

Fifty-six fragments. That wasn't the kind of reward you'd get from killing ordinary creatures. Only one type of being could provide that many.

A Corrupted Titan...

'What the hell! When did I kill a Corrupted Titan?' 

The realization was absurd, impossible even. Unless... Had the spell counted a kill he somehow made In that dream?

Or was the dream, not a dream at all? Could it have been some illusion crafted by the Titan itself? Or did that being simply travel to his dream? Did he have an ability like Nightmare?

'Unbelievable...'

There was only one Corrupted Titan he knew of with the power to infiltrate dreams.

'Mad Prince, that bastard!' 

In hindsight, it made sense, horrifyingly so. Jet had mentioned that the Category Three Gate was supposed to have a Corrupted Titan as its guardian. But no Corrupted creature had been in sight.

'The madman must have slipped through that gate... and entered my dream.'

But why? Why would the Mad Prince allow himself to be slain so easily? No matter how strong Sunny had become, a Sleeper stood no chance against a Corrupted Titan. Especially not one as cunning and deranged as that bastard.

Just what was the madman planning now?

Sunny's thoughts spiralled as he tried to piece it all together. The fragments didn't fit. No matter how he turned them, the picture they formed was one of deception and malice.

One thing was certain—his current condition was part of a much larger scheme.

At least now his predicament made sense. The life he lived wasn't a dream, nor was it a trick played by the spell. It was, in fact, real.

'What does he want to achieve by sending me back in time and then dying? Did he even send me back in time or just transferred the memories of my future self? Wait, is that bastard really, truly dead or somehow still lurking somewhere, waiting for his chance to do... something? Knowing that guy, he must have found a way to do that.'

Damnation!

As he was lost in deep contemplation in light of this new revelation, a tall man in a dark blue uniform appeared on the stage. 

"I am Awakened Rock. Sleepers, welcome to the Academy!"

...

Navigating the academy's familiar halls felt surreal. Sunny moved with purpose, relying on his memories to guide him. The day had passed uneventfully—at least on the surface. 

Whispers flitted among the Sleepers, rumours of the Category Three Gate that had opened dangerously close to the academy, but the government had managed to contain the fact that it lacked a corrupted guardian. 

Sunny grimaced. The unknown danger of Mad Prince loomed in the shadows.

Before his thoughts could spiral further, he stepped into a familiar room.

'This brings back memories.'

This was the first room he had ever been given. As the door closed behind him, a flood of memories washed over him. 

The warm bed, the soft mattress, the table, the dresser... Even the separate bathroom had once been a source of joy. He remembered the disbelief he'd felt when he realized the entire space was his.

He sighed. 

'The old me never would've imagined owning an entire house someday, and one of the most luxurious ones at that!' A wry grin tugged at his lips.

But there was no time to dwell on such things. The revelation of the Mad Prince gnawed at him, demanding his focus.

Whatever that bastard was planning, it wouldn't be anything good. 

'I have to get as strong as possible and soon. Only I know that treacherous bastard makes even Mordret look like a saint!' 

He stared at his shadow, who nodded in response. 

'Even Gloomy agrees with me... for once.'

He collapsed onto the bed, the softness enveloping him. It felt good—too good—but he resisted the temptation to sink into comfort.

Instead, he closed his eyes.

'Let's see what I can do to get stronger...' 

Last time, he had been clueless. His aspect, its capabilities, even the rules of the Spell—it had all been a mystery. Now, though, he knew better.

There were three paths forward, as far as he could see.

First was the straightforward method of absorbing shadow fragments. He was still a dormant beast in this time, so it would be easy for him to get a lot. Unfortunately, fragments required Nightmare Creatures to harvest, and he wouldn't face another until the Winter Solstice.

Next, he could weave memories. By the end of his last life, he had become quite proficient in it. Being able to copy enchantments, turn objects into memories and even creating his own custom memories like the siege souvenir. Unfortunately, he had to dismiss this method as well.

'I need blood weave and weaver's needle for it.'

Reminiscing his encounter with the vile thieving bird's spawn, he moved toward his last and only feasible way to attain strength - his aspect legacy, Shadow Dance.

'I wonder how much easier it will be for me to master the fourth step this time.'

He'd reached it once before, but it had been a gruelling process—full of pain, sacrifice, and desperation. Now, with his experience, he wouldn't have to claw his way through the unknown.

'Who knows, I might even attain the first step before entering forgotten shore itself?'

It was a reasonable assumption. The vision of the woman dancing in Shadow God's temple was burned clearly in his mind, as well as his fight with Nephis which had led to him attaining his first breakthrough. 

...He still hadn't decided how he would handle that situation this time. 

Sunny's expression darkened.

"That fight happened because one of us had to stay behind," Sunny thought grimly, staring at the faint lines of light filtering through his room. "Unfortunately, I'd already killed Caster before I realized that."

His jaw clenched at the memory.

"This time, I can avoid the tragedy."

Even if he ended up stronger than last time, sparing an enemy was far harder than killing one. And Caster wasn't just any enemy. Sunny couldn't shake the feeling that there would be complications.

'Should I just kidnap someone else for the [soul conduit]? One of Gunlang's guards maybe?'

He quickly discarded this thought. 

"No." He muttered, his eyes narrowing.

'It has to be Caster. That damn bastard dared to kill Nephis. I will deliver him to his forgotten hell personally.'

It was one more reason to drive him to get stronger. 

The two of them could escape together, and Nephis wouldn't have to use his true name to make him go. 

'My true name...'

How did she even find that out? 

'Cassie saw me say it in a vision of me killing Harper. So, if I avoid Harper this time around, she'll have no way to know it.'

The weight of that realization settled heavily on him. Sunny won't lose his freedom. Not this time. Not at any cost!

...

Sunny enjoyed a lavish supper. After eating monster meat for a long, long time in Ariel's tomb, the delicious variety of rice, bread, fruits, vegetables and all kinds of beverages was almost overwhelming.

Almost.

The meat was nowhere as good as the Great and Corrupted Nightmare creatures he had gotten used to consuming. 

'Figures. It's not every day that people get to wrestle giant sea serpents or spend their vacations on the back of island turtles. Or ever, really.'

A small, bitter laugh escaped him. It was just his damned fated attribute that threw him into the grinder over and over again.

He decimated his place in no time and looked at it regretfully. He wanted to eat more, but it was time for his appointment. He lingered for a moment, got up, and refilled his plate, and started munching. 

Unlike last time, Sunny probably knew more about the spell than all other awakened in the compound combined. He didn't need any assistance from them. If anything, they should be begging him for scraps of his knowledge. 

Not that he'd share a thing.

'If they want to interview me, they have to wait till I have had my fill!'

...

Next morning, Sunny washed up and headed to the breakfast area. The air was filled with the hum of chatter and the clinking of utensils. After filling his plate, and taking a few hungry bites of the delicious food, he searched for a place to sit. 

His gaze fell on an empty table at the end of the hall, where the blind girl sat alone. Just like last time, no one wanted to sit next to her. She was doomed to spend the next 4 weeks in solitude. 

For a fleeting moment, pity stirred in Sunny's chest.

...And was replaced by bitterness and anger.

'For what you did to me, you deserve to die alone in some forgotten corner of hell.' 

He clenched his jaw.

This time, things were different. He hadn't made a fool out of himself and entered everyone's hate list, so he was free to sit wherever he wanted. He didn't have to sit near her anymore. 

Sunny's gaze swept across the hall, searching for an empty seat in another lone corner. Finding a seat, he walked towards it. 

...And sat on the lone girl's bench.

'Even if no one would mind sitting next to me, I still can't risk them asking my true name!'

That was the only reason Sunny sat next to her. It had nothing to do with the conflicting emotions boiling in his head. 

He glanced at her face one more time, her solemn head tilted as if listening to something only she could hear, and began eating his breakfast. For some reason, the delicious food was not so tasteful anymore. 

Damnation. 

There was the familiar commotion of sleepers gathering around a large screen. As expected, his name was second to last, only ahead of the blind seer. He had fooled the interviewer successfully.

Everyone was shocked to see Nephis receive a true name, but Sunny was disinterested. Compared to the achievements Changing Star would have in the future, this one was not even the most prominent.

The sleepers eventually gathered around her, with Caster initiating a conversation with Nephis. Sunny wanted to ignore it all and concentrate on his food. Nothing will happen here which he already didn't know.

But it was proving to be a difficult task. His mind just refused to let go of the turmoil brewing inside him. His senses dulled down, like his body was conserving energy from wherever possible to reinforce his mind for the intense confrontation. 

...He spent the entire time watching his half-filled plate in silence.