Chapter 1310 Forsaken

Chapter 1310 Forsaken

'A Corrupted Titan...'

Sunny's face grew dark. The memories of Falcon Scott flashed in his mind, bringing with them a bitter taste. It was another city that had been destroyed by a Corrupted Titan, even if the scale and swiftness of destruction was different.

He remained silent for a few moments, then asked quietly:

"Aren't Titans usually... huge?"

Ananke hesitated, then shrugged. Her azure eyes were crestfallen.

"Most are. But some aren't. More than that, the Defiled... they were humans once. Their path to profane power is unique."

He nodded, feeling a deep sense of unease. A Corrupted Titan... if one of these Six Plagues was indeed as powerful as the Winter Beast, then just how terrifying the Dread Lord would be? Updated from n0velb(i)n.c(o)/m

Still, Sunny felt a dark and scathing desire to kill that Mad Prince. It was strange, really... he had met all kinds of horrid Nightmare Creatures, but knowing that the mad butcher who destroyed Weave had been a human once filled him with dark wrath. 'Just how low can a person fall...'

Odious. The Mad Prince, whoever he had been before succumbing to Corruption, was simply odious. Such a vile creature had no right to exist.

Sunny gritted his teeth, thinking about how many of the abominations he had slain in the past were former humans as well. After thousands of years of Corruption, the distinction was all but erased, but... here in the Nightmare, it felt different. Nephis, meanwhile, had another question. Looking at the forlorn vista of Weave with a frown, she hesitated for a few moments, then asked softly:

"Ananke... you said that the Outsiders were the most powerful warriors of your city. The Mad Prince easily killed them all. Wouldn't that mean that he could have killed all the Riverborn, as well? Why did he spare you?"

Sunny grimaced. He was asking himself the same questions, but didn't want to speak it aloud in fear of hurting the young priestess more than she had already been hurt.

Ananke remained silent for a while, her head lowered. Eventually, she took a breath and said quietly:

"Maybe he wanted us to suffer longer. Maybe he needed us to live some more, for whatever reason. Maybe he simply did not care. The Riverborn... he did kill some. However, then, he stayed his sword and kneeled in front of the girl he spared. She was a child who had just recently arrived from the House of Youth. He asked her a question, then left."

Sunny and Nephis looked at each other somberly. She asked:

"What did the Defiled ask?"

The young priestess lingered, then slowly shook her head. "He asked her... do you wish to live? She said that she did. Hearing that, the Mad Prince burst into laughter, wiped his bloody sword on her tunic, and disappeared. He never returned, and since all our elders were dead, we never heard about him again."

'Insane bastard.'

They traveled across Weave to collect everything needed for the long journey ahead. Even after long years of being abandoned, the city still seemed to be in a relatively good shape. However, beneath the beautiful surface, it had already started to crumble. Sunny knew that Weave was not going to exist for much longer. Maybe in a decade or two, the floating city was going to break apart and be swallowed by the currents of the Great River, disappearing forever under the waves.

Before it did...

and necessities that one would need to travel the Great River. There were items, as well. The weapons and armor that the people of Weave had They gathered fruit from the wild groves and other supplies from various caches that Ananke had established throughout the city. There was food, spices, wine, tea leaves, and necessities that one would need to travel the Great River. There were items, as well. The weapons and armor that the people of Weave had crafted and used were of inferior quality to the powerful Memories that Sunny and Nephis wielded, but they were able to collect a lot of things that would make traversing the Tomb of Ariel easier — from simple blankets and cutlery to fishing nets sturdy enough to capture Nightmare Creatures and sail repair kits.

Everything went into the Covetous Coffer. As they moved from one district to another, Ananke also shared stories of Weave and its people with them. How they lived, what rituals they observed, what passions drove them and what vices they sometimes succumbed to.

There were interesting details about the everyday lives of the River People and entertaining anecdotes. Sunny really learned a lot from hearing these stories, and the more he learned, the more amazed he became.

Their world was so different from anything he knew, and so, they had adapted to its strange circumstances with the tenacious ingenuity inherent to all humans.

Their knowledge of how to survive on the Great River had been built over many generations of persistent, relentless learning and unceasing improvement.

Humans were the most adaptable of species, indeed.

When Ananke started to tell them about Weave, there was a shadow of sadness in her eyes. However, as she remembered the people from her past, they gradually grew bright and warm.

A sweet smile appeared on her lips.

...But the more the young priestess spoke, the more despondent Sunny became.

He hid his expression and stared at the empty streets of the desolate city, his own eyes veiled by somber darkness.

'It's unfair...'

Ananke had been nothing but kind to them, so it was unfair. Sunny and Nephis were going to leave Weave to travel into the distant past and challenge the Nightmare, but she... she could never leave.

Because she was Riverborn.

After guiding the two of them as far as she could, the young priestess was going to return to the crumbling city. And live the rest of her life here, alone and forsaken.

Sunny's heart was heavy, and his hatred of the Mad Prince burned darker. Looking away, he gritted his teeth.

'Curse that vile bastard...'