37: Legacy of the King

Jonathan looked at his memories and saw the runes of his new memory.

Memory: Legacy of the King

Memory Type: Tool

Memory Rank: Transcendent

'A transcendent rank memory... This is incredible! Transcendent memories are super powerful. I never expected to obtain something this powerful at the beginning of the novel; this will surely be very useful.'

Excited, Jonathan looked further down, where the description of his new memory was.

Description: [A transcendent who ruled his people with an iron fist, faced his enemies within his own soul, gave courage to his allies, and offered valor to his people with each victory. At least, that was how the king of a forgotten kingdom lived. When corruption arrived in the blood of an Entity of Light, his power was insufficient, his victories worthless, his people corrupted, and his will shaped into that of an irrational beast that only sought to devour the souls of the innocent.]

'This... could it have something to do with the dark city and its fall due to the being of light that came from the skies? I don't remember the details of that story; I'll save it for when we enter the underground ruins.'

With those thoughts for the future, he summoned his new memory.

The others around the fire under a branch of the black tree watched as sparks appeared above Jonathan's head. Everyone was somewhat surprised by the sudden situation but still looked on expectantly to see what would form above his head.

When the sparks disappeared, everyone saw a sinister crown on Jonathan's head.

The crown was made of dark metal, not opaque, with an obsidian sheen that subtly reflected the surrounding light.

The crown had an intricate and robust design, with runes signifying destruction, protection, and power engraved on it. The points at the top rose like swords, each decorated with a dark gem, possibly onyx, that had a subtle glow.

At the center of the crown, in the largest peak, was a scarlet gem that seemed to contain an ocean of mysterious power.

When their reflections appeared in the mysterious scarlet gem, everyone felt a pressure demanding adoration. All present were thrown to the ground by the immense pressure emanating from the crown.

A fairy tale scene unfolded under a mystical black onyx-colored tree in the middle of an island of ashes.

There, under a branch of the immense tree, darkness illuminated by a faint fire, in the dark corner of the scene, seven people stood around a fire, its light casting shadows around them. In that place, a beautiful image could be seen; a man in black and gold armor rose with a sinister crown while seeing six people bow before his might, as if swearing loyalty to their king.

'Eh, what is this? Why did everyone kneel? What's happening?' His mind was confused by the sudden situation of his friends kneeling in front of him.

But a second later, he realized what might be happening. He withdrew his memory, and immediately everyone stood up and looked at Jonathan, surprised and some indignant at what he had done.

"Eh, I'm sorry, I didn't think that memory had that power." His voice came out with anxiety and apology; he really didn't want them to think ill of him for doing such a thing.

Still, he was honest; he didn't like his friends kneeling before him because of the power of his crown.

"What the hell was that? Are you fucking crazy, idiot?" Sunny spat out his usual coarse language at Jonathan.

His friends were the next to ask questions.

"Sunny's right; I think you should explain yourself," said Ludwin, looking at their leader. His tone was calm but also seemed somewhat irritated at having been forced to kneel before someone.

"Come on, come on. He probably didn't know that would happen; we should listen to what he has to say before insulting him." Sasha defended her friend, but her voice sounded surprised, and she said the last part looking at Sunny, her cold eyes piercing the skinny boy.

Isaac remained silent; perhaps he had nothing to say or was just keeping his thoughts to himself. Nephis just looked at him cautiously and suspiciously with her icy gray eyes, demanding an explanation.

He hesitated under the gaze of the six, or five—Cassia was blind and only directed her empty gaze in his direction.

'Ah, I messed up. How am I supposed to explain that I killed the being fighting the Shell Demon?'

"Well, I don't know how to say this, and I'll really be in trouble if you ask for more explanations, but..."

Everyone (except Cassia) looked at him expectantly.

"... It was me who killed the being that created that mist and the illusory voices you heard."

Everyone was surprised by Jonathan's words. Nephis made a rare expression on her face, a mix of confusion and astonishment, but quickly returned to her usual indifference.

"As for how I killed it, let's say I got help, but I can't say more; I'm sorry, but I can't say more than that."

Everyone remained silent at his response. The members of his cohort already knew he was hiding many things, like the true reason for going west or how he knew Nephis and the others would reach the dead titan's corpse.

But the trust they had built through their life-and-death battles and days in the labyrinth had created enough trust not to ask about it. Even so, they still didn't fully trust their leader.

"Fine, forget it, I won't ask anymore." Ludwin huffed and sat down again.

Sasha and Isaac did the same, remaining silent while lost in their own thoughts.

Sunny, however, didn't calm down just with that.

"Hey, I won't accept—" his protest was abruptly cut off by Jonathan, who grabbed him by the shoulders and took him to another corner of the tree. He signaled Nephis to follow, and the three of them left, the others watching their backs as they walked to another area of the tree.

...

"What the hell is wrong with you! Let me go." Sunny protested against the pull he was receiving.

Jonathan stopped when the distance was enough and looked at both Nephis and Sunny, then spoke.

"Okay, the reason I was able to kill the corrupted demon fighting the Shell Demon was because that damn thing could invade the souls of those who witnessed the mist." Jonathan quickly and succinctly explained the situation of his soul sea, how he defended his soul from the corrupt, and avoided mentioning the help he received, replacing it with the threads that this time managed to kill the corrupt.

Nephis and Sunny remained silent as he spoke and explained, not worried that they would think it was a lie since they themselves had unique souls. Both had a soul with a defense against invaders.

Sunny hesitated at the words he was about to say, not believing that someone else could have something similar to a special soul and an aspect like his.

"Maybe, do you have a divine aspect?" His voice contained hesitation and denial.

'Haaa, this is so annoying, damn it. Anyway, the three of us have a divine aspect, surely they won't shout it out loud. Eh, maybe if they ask, Sunny will say it. Well, it doesn't matter, it will be known anyway.'

"Yes, Sunny. I have a divine aspect, just like I suspect you and Nephis do too." Sunny opened his eyes wide and looked at Nephis, who maintained her expressionless mask.

"You—do you also have a divine aspect? That's not—it can't be possible. I mean, what are the odds that three divine aspects are together?" Sunny protested at Jonathan's words, still incredulous at such a revelation.

"How did you know?" Nephis said, her intense gaze boring holes into Jonathan's face.

'Wow, she's scary when she considers you dangerous, huh?'

"Well, my aspect ability gives me a sense of souls; I can 'see' and feel the souls of those with formed soul cores, and you, Nephis, have two cores. That's how I knew you were a bearer of a divine aspect."

Sunny looked at him fixedly with a silent question in his gaze.

'Well, I've revealed a lot already, no need to avoid Sunny anymore.'

"As for you, you're the first person with a soul of darkness. Not a corrupt darkness, but a shadowy darkness that ascends to the divine and not to the corrupt." Jonathan answered Sunny's silent question, who was now even more incredulous at the events unfolding.

"Well, I just wanted to explain that; I still don't trust Isaac and Ludwin. As for you two, as bearers of the same level of aspect, I thought it would be more beneficial to reveal ourselves and work together to get out of this place rather than keep ourselves closed off and avoid each other."

He wasn't lying; he really believed they would be more efficient together than apart. Besides, he wanted Sunny not to show himself as someone weak again; he wanted him to reveal himself. Anyway, he would attract attention whether he wanted to or not in the future; it's better to stand out among the next most powerful Awakened in history.

So, the three of them returned to the camp and spent some time talking with the rest, discussing what to do next.