Leon landed on the huge wall, as he began studying his surroundings.
Looking down, he saw an expansive city that lay in ruins. The beautiful stone buildings were broken and shattered, many of them turned into mere piles of rubble.
It was impossible to say what terrible disaster had happened here, but it was clear that it was not natural. Many of the collapsed houses were blackened by fire, with claw marks cut into the still-standing fragments of walls.
Looking closer, he noticed strange shapes moving through the rubble, and even more hiding in the shadows.
The ruined city was teeming with Nightmare Creatures.
Leon continued to observe the dark city below him. Looking up he saw a large castle — but right then, he heard something.
He approached one of the towers on the wall.
Calming himself down, he became imperceptible to the common eye.
Walking inside, he noticed a tall young woman. She had brown hair, tied in a simple braid. Her build was extremely athletic, with perfectly defined lean muscles.
"Dinner time."
He saw her sitting in front of a massive pile of food.
"So much?"
His thoughts slipped out, making his invisibility pointless.
Leon lampooned internally.
***
The young woman was pinned to the ground with Birdie's claw. Leon looked down at her as he held the broken halo.
The young woman looked at him with a nervous look. Leon then remembered the cool bone sword he had gotten from the lord of the dead.
'Might as well threaten her with style!'
He let the broken halo disappear into white sparks, and pulled out the bone sword.
He then held it to her neck. Noticing the bone sword, the young woman seemed to widen her eyes. This time, it felt like she was examining it rather than be horrified.
Leon was confused at her reaction. People normally should be terrified of looking at such a long bone — him being the exception of course.
Beside him, Noah smiled.
He held the sword at her throat and began speaking.
"Who are you?"
Effie grimaced, but she did not answer.
Leon sighed as he continued.
"Where is the gateway? Is it inside the castle?"
Although he knew there was no gateway inside the castle, he wanted to make the woman think he had just entered the dark city after travelling through the labyrinth.
Effie slowly gaped her mouth open.
But she still remained silent.
Leon groaned.
"First a pile of bones and now you, why does everything seem to get harder in my life?"
Normally, he would not have said something like that, but he hoped this young woman knew something about the lord of the dead. So he slowly gave her clues.
Effie finally cracked as she began speaking.
"You. Were you the one behind the huge explosion?"
Leon looked at her and slowly smiled.
"Indeed. I had to blow up a Fallen Tyrant after all."
Effie's eyes twitched.
"Is it dead?"
She asked in a grim tone.
His smile faded slowly as he looked at Effie's face.
"Yes."
Effie probed.
"How do I know you're not lying?"
The bone sword in his hand dug into her neck slightly, enough to let a drop of blood stream down her neck.
Effie gulped.
"Alright. My name is Athena, and no, there is no gateway in the castle."
Before he began questioning her again he commanded Birdie to let her go.
With slight shock in her eyes, Effie slowly got up, wary of Leon.
He put the bone sword away as he smiled.
"It seems we had a small misunderstanding."
Holding his hand out, he spoke.
"My name is Leonar, nice to meet you."
***
After an hour or two of talking, Leon had finally gotten a clear picture.
Athena was friendly enough. After he let her go, they climbed back onto the wall — or rather flew, and now they were sitting opposite to each other eating a meal.
"You really survived so long in the labyrinth alone?"
She asked while stuffing her mouth with food.
Leon shrugged.
"Well, it wasn't that easy either."
Before he could continue his tale, Effie interrupted him.
"Well, I've only known three other people who had survived the labyrinth for so long."
Leon's eye narrowed as he continued listening to her.
"They arrived last month. Well I say that like it was a short time, and they have completely changed the situation back there."
Putting the juicy meat into his mouth, Leon thought back to when Athena had explained the bright castle situation to him.
The bright castle was ruled by one person. Gunlaug, the bright lord. He had five lieutenants under him, that helped managing the castle itself.
But there was another person, living in the outer settlement, who was a secret challenger to the throne.
After finishing his food, he smiled.
"Well, I would love to meet this Gunlaug. And also this outer settlement person."
Effie snorted.
"Don't bother. That man is simply not worth it. How about you meet the princess instead? She's much more prettier."
She paused before continuing.
"Although, a doofus I know might have his eyes on her."
Leon showed an amused expression.
"I see."
"But..." Effie spoke in some kind of sadistic tone.
"You look much more tastier— I mean handsome."
Leon paused, with food still in his hand.
"Well. Thank you?"
Effie's smile widened.
"So tell me. How did you defeat the lord of the dead? It's a fallen tyrant!"
Leon chuckled.
"Well..."
He began explaining the entire story — leaving some of the details aside of course.
Effie's mouth gaped open. The food in her hand fell down, as her gaze froze on Leon.
"That... But... How?"
Leon shrugged.
"It was certainly unexpected. But it is what happened."
Birdie slowly purred.
Leon smiled as he glanced at Birdie.
"His name is Birdie, by the way."
Effie choked on her food. Leon summoned the Endless Spring and slowly passed it on to her.
"B-Birdie?"
Leon nodded.
"Right. Really cool name, I know."
Effie's eyes slowly softened.
"So. It's actually dead?"
Leon smiled, as he summoned his new Memory.
"This."
A flowing white cloak appeared in his hands.
"Is called the Starlight Shard."
Effie stared at the Shard in awe. She then slowly smiled.
"That's... incredible. I only regret I wasn't there to smash those bones."
Leon chuckled, as he stood and grabbed the bone sword again and placed it on the table.
"Keep it as an apology, and also a thanks for the meal."
Effie stared at the long piece of bone for a while. She then looked at Leon again and spoke in a shaky tone.
"Thank you Leonar, this means a lot to me."
Shaking his head, Leon spoke.
"I'm sure it means a lot to you, after all, I think this might be the last piece of bone from that guy."
He draped on his cloak as he approached the door.
"See you another time, Athena."
Effie narrowed her eyes.
"Please, call me Effie. But where are you going?"
Birdie landed in front of Leon, as he climbed onto it.
"To go meet this... Gunlaug guy."
With that, Birdie dived off the wall.
Effie stared at the spot Leon was.
'Crazy...Probably crazier than princess...'
Sighing slowly, Effie thought about Nephis and Leon.
The most simple question was obviously, 'Who was stronger?'
Although Leon indirectly helped Effie get revenge for her Master's death, Nephis was her friend now.
Effie slowly picked up the bone sword and sighed.
"Wait. Now that I think about it. Princess did mention someone that had been with them in the labyrinth, but then went missing..."
***
Leon flew across the dark city on top of Birdie as the sun set once again. In the dark of the night — and considering Birdie's skill to stay hidden, he was practically invisible.
As he flew across, he got a closer look at the castle and the settlement Effie had mentioned.
Built from the same pristine marble as the arch at the base of the hill, it stretched into the sky.
Smaller towers, spires, and wings stood here and there, forming a complex and strangely harmonious formation.
The whole structure was incredibly beautiful, striking.
The only thing that spoiled the picture were dozens of human skulls hanging above the gates on rusty chains.
Landing down near the outskirts, Leon let Birdie disappear into sparks as he continued on foot.
After noticing the castle, he decided to enter the castle directly. But before that, he noticed the outskirts.
The first thing that caught his eye was the large house, it was by far the largest building in the outer settlement, almost starting to resemble a small town hall.
It was heavily fortified, too, especially from the side that faced the white road. A couple of lookouts were visible on the roof, observing the ruins below. They were wearing armor-type Memories and holding bows in their hands.
He then heard a bunch of people speaking around him.
"Saint Nephis has gone for another hunt it seems."
"We are lucky that such a kind person has arrived to give us salvation."
Leon's eye twitched.
'Saint Nephis?'
"I knew it since the first day I saw her behead that terrible demon! She is our savior."
"Her true name is Changing Star, a Star after all."
He froze.
'What is this?'
The residents of the outer settlement seemed to revere Nephis as a god, rather than a leader. It was as though they had complete faith in her.
'In just a month, she started a cult?'
He wanted to go and meet his friends, but he had learned that Nephis was gone for a hunt. Which meant Sunny and Cassie would have obviously followed.
As he approached the gate, he found it heavily guarded by guards. As Leon was contemplating on how to enter, he saw someone approach the gate.
The person seemed to know the guards as they chatted for a bit, and then the guards let the man inside.
Sighing, he stepped into the gates of the large castle — Leon simply walked right through using his cloak, right beside the man that entered before him.
He noticed a guy arguing with another.
"I swear I had payed! Where's Harper? He'll tell you."
The other person frowned.
"I'm afraid that's not possible. Harper is no longer a resident of the castle."
Getting angry, he held the man's collar.
"You're kidding me! Changing Star even provides free food, what does Gunlaug give?"
The man suddenly put his palm over the other person's mouth.
"Fool! Do you want the guards to hear you?"
Batting his hand away, he yelled.
"One soul shard per week is simply absurd!"
Leon frowned.
'One soul shard for one week?'
He understood a little why the outer settlement folks were worshipping Nephis.
Stepping away, he noticed all the people he had passed, as he walked toward the castle in front of him.
Everyone had fear on their faces, as though their life was about to be over, and yet some of them were confused.
Leon could guess that before Nephis, the outer settlement must have been comparable to the outskirts.
He understood their confusion.
If the outer settlement isn't so bad, why were they paying so much?
As Leon continued drowning in his thoughts, he accidentally bumped into someone.
Leon fell down, while the other person widened his eyes — as if he had bumped into nothing.
Leon put his hood down, as he looked at the person in front of him.
The man was unbelievably handsome. He was tall, slender — combined with his auburn hair and green eyes, the man was looking like a model.
"I am so sorry. Are you alright?"
Leon nodded, as he grabbed the man's hand and got up.
"I'm not usually this clumsy. Sorry for bumping into you."
Leon gave a soft smile.
"No worries. It happens to everyone."
The man let out a soft chuckle.
"You don't seem to be from around here. Are you new?"
Leon tilted his head.
"Well yes. How did you know?"
The man smiled, his smile looking too bright.
"Well, with your hair and eye-patch, I almost confused you for another person."
'Who is this guy? Why is he so cool?'
"Well nice to meet you. I'm Leonar."
The man shook Leon's hand and nodded.
"Nice meeting you Leonar. I'm Kai."
Kai's breath suddenly hitched.
"I'm actually late for something. See you later Leonar."
Leon smiled and waved his hand.
Noah sighed.
"[Fated] really does wonders sometimes."
"What do you mean?"
Noah shook his head, and continued walking forward.
Sighing, Leon put his hood back on, and continued walking ahead.
***
As he passed the many buildings, he finally entered what looked to be the main hall.
The main hall of the mighty castle was grandiose and majestic in appearance. The gentle light of the morning sun was cascading through the tall windows.
At the far end of the hall, a set of stairs led to a dark alcove. The back wall of the alcove had numerous small holes cut through it, and with sunlight shining through them into the deep darkness.
Beneath that light stood an empty white throne.
Long wooden tables were placed along the length of the grand hall, with a motley crowd of Sleepers sitting on crude benches behind them, busy consuming their food.
As Leon walked along the tables, a sudden silence took over the entire hall. Something was taking place near the entrance.
He turned back to see a torrent of guards pouring inside. Looking at it with an indifferent expression, Leon saw the golden madman Effie spoke of.
Gunlaug was clad in a strange, gilded armor that covered his tall figure from head to toe, not leaving even his eyes exposed.
It seemed simultaneously solid and liquid, almost flowing over his mighty muscles and broad, powerful shoulders.
In the place where his face should have been, a smooth and empty expanse of polished gold reflected the frightened faces of hundreds of Sleepers.
Gunlaug simply walked toward the throne and took his seat.
Slowly, five figures stepped out of the darkness of the alcove and stood at the steps leading up to the throne.
He observed everything as Gunlaug rested his head on his arm and looked at the sleepers present in the hall. The grand hall of the Bright Castle had gone completely silent by then.
Leon watched from the middle of the hall, invisible and indifferent.
The five figures who stepped from the alcove's darkness behind the throne were more interesting to him than Gunlaug himself, at first.
He ran his eye across them methodically — aspect signatures, posture, the specific way each one positioned themselves relative to the throne.
"Greetings everyone. Your bright lord greets you today."
He said.
Leon noticed that every single Sleeper lowered their heads, trying not to look at Gunlaug directly.
One of the five people standing near the steps leading to the throne, suddenly tilted their head slightly, and looked directly at where Leon stood.
She was a young woman, who looked strikingly beautiful and yet her eyes looked cold, and sharp.
Leon went completely still.
She didn't react, or alert anyone. She looked at the space where he was standing for a moment, then returned her gaze to the hall.
'Fascinating...'
She could actually sense Leon, even with his complete calmness. Even someone like Gunlaug did not even notice him.
"Song Seishan."
He heard Noah speak.
The image of Sera suddenly appeared in his head.
—if you find her, please tell her I'm sorry.—
Leon noted Seishan's appearance, and began listening to Gunlaug.
"You're eating better than last month." Gunlaug paused. "That's Changing Star's doing, isn't it?"
Everyone knew it wasn't a question. Not one person dared to speak up.
"I don't begrudge her the generosity. People fed are people who can work, and people who can work are worth keeping alive."
He tilted his head slightly. "What I find curious is the gratitude. You're grateful to her for the food. You're not grateful to me for the walls that kept the things outside from eating you, before she arrived."
"I mention this not as a complaint," Gunlaug said, "but as information. Gratitude has a short memory."
He slowly lifted his head, and chuckled.
"Perhaps. I should pick out the ungrateful people today."
Leon had heard enough — he knew exactly what Gunlaug had meant right now.
He stepped forward.
The first few people he passed didn't register his presence through the cloak. The crowd thinned as he approached the throne steps.
By the time he'd climbed the first two stairs, Harus had already turned toward him — not looking at him, but angled toward the disturbance in the hall's attention, the slight wrongness of a space that wasn't quite empty.
Leon slowly pulled his hood back. The entire hall went silent — in a way that was more quiet than they already were.
Gunlaug did not stand. He looked at Leon with the same expression he'd worn for the entire speech — which was a golden armor...
"You're not from the outer settlement," he said.
"No." Leon climbed another stair. "And I'm not from your castle either."
He stopped a few meters from the throne. Close enough that every person in the hall understood the implication. Far enough that it wasn't an attack.
Gunlaug stared at Leon as he began assessing him. What he saw made him grow silent. Leon did not show a sliver of fear. He simply looked at Gunlaug with his one eye.
The five lieutenants stared at Leon with disbelief.
No one had ever dared to approach Gunlaug like this, and even if they could, they would never be so calm.
Leon looked unbothered, he simply stepped closer to Gunlaug, till he was just a few meters away from him.
Leaning forward, Leon took a closer look at Gunlaug's armor.
"My my, Transcendent?"
He said in a snarky tone.
Gunlaug tilted his head forward slightly.
"Are you from Changing Star's cohort?"
Leon snorted.
"Changing Star's cohort? That's my cohort if anything."
Gunlaug leaned forward.
"You are quite brave, young man. What is your name?"
He leaned back as he continued to stare at Gunlaug.
"Names are mere decorations. Just like I don't care about yours. But the throne of yours—"
Before Leon could finish his sentence, his vision went dark, he couldn't hear anything anymore.
Leon's eye twitched as he activated shadow sense.
He could feel the shadows around him.
Gunlaug simply continued sitting, but one of the lieutenants and stepped forward.
The hunchback, Harus spoke.
"Don't bite more than you can chew, kid."
Harus suddenly thrust his blade at Leon. Leon summoned the halo into a sword, and batted the blade away from a 45 degree angle.
Harus widened his eyes in shock, before a blade was thrust at him.
He frowned as he clashed with Leon's blade, sliding back.
"You."
Harus spoke, unable to comprehend how Leon still fought. After all, his aspect made sure he was the silent executioner of the bright lord.
Leon frowned.
'Is his core saturated? What is that strength?'
He knew if Harus was given more time, it would be difficult to kill him.
Leon blitzed toward Harus, while Harus seemed to be busy contemplating how his aspect did not work on him.
Harus saw Leon approaching him, so he gripped his chains. But then, he felt a sharp pain at his throat.
Lyka had snuck behind Harus and bit into his neck. Even while she dug her teeth into him, she remained undetectable.
Harus swayed as the poison entered his body.
Countering Leon's blade groggily, he grimaced.
Smiling, Leon simply continued to clash blades against him till the poison took over. Eventually, Harus grew slower and slower.
Leon knew it would be practically impossible to win against Harus in a fair fight. He was far too weak to do so, especially without his sight. Not even considering that the other guards might interfere at some point.
He was even wary of Gunlaug's strength, especially the transcendent piece of gold he wore.
Harus found an opening, and grinned madly as he thrust his fist wrapped in chains against Leon's face.
Except it was a faint.
Leon side-stepped, letting the fist go across his face, and then became unnoticeable again — using his cloak.
Harus flinched and tried to swing his sword blindly, but it was too late.
The cold blade met Harus's stomach, as Leon plunged it deeper.
Everyone watched Leon thrust his blade into Harus's abdomen.
They all grew silent in disbelief.
None of the lieutenants or guards had interfered, simply because they did not expect Harus to ever lose.
He was the blade of the bright lord after all. The strongest lieutenant.
And yet here he was, with his blood slowly painting the floor of the bright hall, crimson red.
Leon slowly took his blade out as his vision restored.
Leaning closer to Harus, he whispered.
"Such cheap tricks won't work on me, hunchback."
Harus widened his eyes.
A crimson red crown materialized over Leon's head as he gripped Harus's neck.
He lifted the hunchback off the ground as flames covered his stomach. Leon was healing him.
"This. Is my mercy."
He said while throwing Harus near the stairs.
Harus grimaced in pain, clutching his stomach.
"Good speech, golden boy."
Leon said, as he looked at Gunlaug — his vision already restored when the blade had struck Harus.
From above, the roof burst open, with something falling down.
Everyone looked up — everyone except Gunlaug and Leon, who kept staring at each other.
Birdie descended like a lightning, black wings folding back, the downdraft filling the entire hall with heavy winds. Half the hall flinched backward, while the other half simply stopped moving entirely.
They thought it was a Spire Messenger, or some other type of fallen monster invading the castle.
Leon climbed on.
Simply disappearing would be boring, so he had to get out of the bright hall in style.
Grinning, Leon looked back at Gunlaug.
"By the way, Gunlaug."
Gunlaug lifted his eyes from Harus over to Leon.
"Cool Echo."
He finished his sentence as Birdie took flight.
Powerful winds burst throughout the bright hall as he left through the same hole Birdie had come from.
The bright hall was deathly silent, as everyone stared at the giant hole in the roof.
A small voice spoke out in the crowd.
"Did that guy just... defeat Harus?"
Even though many wanted to remain silent, seeing the corpse of Harus, seemed to spark some sort of bravery in them.
"He did..."
The hole in the ceiling was the only evidence left that anything had happened at all — that, and Harus kneeling on the stairs, breathing steadily.
Gunlaug looked at Harus kneeling down, grimacing in pain.
He then stared up at the hole.
His hands, encased in golden gauntlets, clenched their fist tightly.
Never had he seen someone not be affected by his golden armor.
Or rather... as the eye-patch boy seemed to figure out, an Echo.