The next day, the Black Sea had receded, revealing the dark, inky dunes of sand beneath its expanse. In certain key areas, red outcroppings of coral emerged, seemingly made of a strange, bone-like material.
They sat on the city walls, watching the sun rise into the sky, gazing down at the outskirts of the dark city—infected with nightmare creatures.
"Dawn, where have you been all this time?"
Sunny's gaze fell upon Dawn, filled with genuine curiosity yet mixed with unbridled worry.
"Me? I've been in hell, pretty much. But then again, haven't we all?"
"I've been in this place I like to call the Nightmare Desert. It must be close since the spell technically teleported me here."
"What's it like over there, in that desert?"
Looking at the cloudless sky, the soundless wind brushed against his face, sweeping his hair and letting it flow. He sighed—a long, tired sigh.
"The heat was smoldering hot. Even when I tried to rest, I couldn't. It felt like my very being was going to burn away. It's definitely not a place for a dormant human. And the nights—cold, empty—but monsters rose from the ground to wage an endless battle. Awakened horrors, corrupted abominations… it was horror incarnate."
"C-Corrupted?"
Dawn laughed, a small chuckle filled with mirth. His gaze darkened, and so did the nearby shadows cast by the rising sun.
"Yeah, lots of corrupted abominations. Hell, I got chased by at least five of them over the past three months."
"I was right all along. No matter what happened, you would always find a way to survive, wouldn't you, Dawn?"
"I guess so, Sunny. I guess so."
"So, how has this Forgotten Shore been treating you?"
"Pretty bad, to be honest. Let's see... We spawned at night, so I got thrown into the waters and almost immediately died to a shark abomination. And through the day, monsters still prowl through the coral maze. They seem weaker compared to yours, so I guess that balances things out somewhat, right?"
"I guess so."
"Let's see... Cassie's with us. We did a lot of adventuring, and if it weren't for her visions, we'd probably be dead. She seemed traumatized by many of them, but reassured in herself after what you told her."
A gentle, kind smile grazed Dawn's lips as his gaze finally fell upon Sunny once more. "I'm glad she took my words to heart."
"Yeah... And let's see, we survived a type of soul-devouring tree that turns you into its mindless husk before eating your soul. We went on expeditions, trying to find a way to survive. The castle—how we like to call it, the Bright Castle—had a tyrant, and we took him down. His name was Gunlaug."
"I'm glad to hear that, Sunny. So, do you know what happens next?"
"Well, we recently retrieved the [Dawn Shard], which empowers us in battle—makes sure at least most of us survive."
"That's a great memory. So, are you going to make one last expedition to the Gateway? Or do you have other plans for now?"
"For now, Nephis told us to rest and gather ourselves—to prepare for battle. The Gateway is all the way over at the Red Spire. All we know is that it's guarded by one hell of a horror."
"Damnation."
"My words exactly. We should be heading toward the Red Spire in one to two weeks."
"Good. That's enough time for me. I'm already tired of this hellscape."
Walking through the dark city, heading toward the campsite where everyone had gathered, they searched for two people in particular—Nephis and Cassie.
In the crowd, everyone looked at Dawn strangely, yet minded their own business, assuming another traveler had finally reached the dark city after a long journey. Sunny was just bringing him to rest.
Sunny scanned the faces, his onyx-black eyes searching, but Cassie was nowhere to be seen. However, the unmistakable silver mane of the famous Changing Star stood bright as day.
Heading toward Changing Star, Dawn followed Sunny, noting the gazes of the others gathered in the campsite. His silver eyes shone with emotion once more—a mix of sorrow and joy, pain and anger, relief and relaxation. So many emotions he hadn't felt in so long.
Hell, he even felt the butterflies in his stomach—it seemed that somebody had a crush. Just the thought produced a gentle, warm smile on Dawn's tired face. His eyes, cold and empty just days ago, now glimmered with genuine hope, just like everyone else in the surrounding area.
Nephis, hearing Sunny call out her name from within the crowd, walked slowly, a leisurely pace guiding her toward them. They met in the middle as she regarded Dawn with a strange expression.
"Is… your hair naturally that color?"
"I mean, no. It was black when I was a kid, but I dyed it with permanent dye, and, well, now it just doesn't wash off."
"I see," she murmured awkwardly, the tension in the air rising to an unexpected magnitude—one Sunny hadn't anticipated at all.
Feeling the awkwardness, Dawn scrambled through his mind, searching for something to say.
"It's nice to meet you. My name is Dawning, but just call me Dawn. My true name is Dawning Dusk."
"True name?"
Dawn's confused gaze fell upon Sunny as a completely innocent and genuine question escaped his lips.
"Did I never tell you?"
"No!!!"