Two days later, they entered the Dark City once again.
Nephis was right — no one from the Castle was there to ambush them. Gunlaug seemed to be content letting them come to him instead, so his Hunters and the dreadful hunchback were nowhere to be seen.
Just as well.
The cohort scaled the impregnable grey wall late in the evening and spent the night in one of its towers — almost like how Sunny, Neph, and Cassie had done all that time ago.
When the morning came, they headed toward the ruined cathedral.
The ruined streets of the cursed city surrounded them once more. After months spent in the Labyrinth, their monotone colors seemed strange and bizarre. There was nothing but dark stone and dust around, with rare islands of crimson leaves and moss growing through the rubble.
And swarms of terrifying Fallen Creatures, of course.
…It was nice to be home.
Sunny caught himself thinking that and blinked. He had never thought that one day he would feel sentimental about returning to this cursed, ancient prison. And yet, there was a strange feeling of comfort deep in his heart now. It had been there ever since they had crested the city wall.
'What weird creatures we humans are. Truly, there is nothing we can't get used to.'
Glancing at his companions, he noticed that they were feeling the same way — especially Effie, who had spent years surviving, hunting, and even thriving on the streets of the Dark City.
She even called it a paradise once.
…The only kind that humans deserved.
Sunny sighed. Regardless of the strange ideas the huntress had, he believed that humans weren't meant to live in a paradise.
If they were to ever find one, they would quickly turn it into hell.
…Just like what the humans trapped on the Forgotten Shore were doing right now.
***
Soon, the ruins of the magnificent cathedral were in front of them. The members of the cohort stopped some distance away, looking at the ancient temple with dark expressions. The journey through the Dark City had turned out to be uneventful thanks to Effie's masterful guidance and the shadow scouting ahead to help her learn of any dangers ahead of time.
But the real danger hid at the end of the path, and now, they had reached it.
Sunny had spent the last two days teaching the rest of the group everything that he knew about how the Black Devil fought, what his habits were, and how they had to approach the upcoming battle. They were as ready as they were ever going to be.
Turning to them, he lingered for a few moments, and then said:
"...Remember — I must be the one to deal the final blow. It is very important to me."
Looking at him with a complicated expression, Kai sighed.
"Why are you so obsessed with killing this devil, Sunny? Won't it be better to leave that creature be? I just don't understand this whole endeavor."
Sunny smiled.
"Have you ever been gutted, Kai? And I don't mean emotionally. I mean literally, with a sharp piece of metal?
The charming archer shivered.
"Uh… no. Were you?"
The smile disappeared from Sunny's face.
"Yes. I was. That bastard over there cut me open with his big sharp sword and left me bleeding to death in a ditch. So… it's only fair that I do something similar to him, is it not? I don't know how it works with you citizen folks, but out in the outskirts, you don't let things like that go. Simple as that."
The day you let a person who hurt you walk free was the day you announced to the world that anyone could stomp on you with impunity. After that, it was a short road to the grave… or worse.
So people in the outskirts were very serious about their grudges.
Granted, the Black Knight was not really a person. But the same principle applied.
Kai stared at him with a complicated expression, then asked in a strange voice:
"Really? Then… how did you survive?"
Sunny turned away and moved his shoulders slightly.
"A combination of good Attributes and powerful Memories. That's how I survived. Well… most of me did."
With that, he shook his head and gritted his teeth in anger.
"Enough talk. You all know the plan… so let's get it over with."
Today, Sunny was going to reach the pinnacle of his hunter career.
He was going to hunt the devil.
***
Inside the tenebrous grand hall of the majestic cathedral, darkness reigned unopposed. It drowned the vast hall, clinging to its walls and tall columns. The rare beams of light falling through the narrow windows only served to make it seem deeper.
Six humans entered the temple, the light of their lantern Memories failing to pierce the veil of darkness even slightly.
For a moment, there was utter silence. And then, a sudden yell broke it apart:
"Now!"
A tall young woman with silver hair and calm, striking grey eyes raised her sword. Then, a wave of brilliant white light shone from it, reaching far and wide. The darkness was instantly torn apart and obliterated, vanishing into the deepest, darkest corners of the cathedral.
…And there, right in front of them, a giant clad in black steel armor was revealed, his sword already on its way to reap the lives of the unfortunate fools who had dared to desecrate the silence of the ancient temple.
The greatsword he wielded seemed as heavy as the stone pillars that supported the roof of the temple. Falling from above, it looked like a vertical tear in reality that revealed the impenetrable darkness hiding beneath.
What could stop such a monstrous blow?
...Perhaps the shield that contained the weight of the heavens themselves could.
Effie dashed forward, raising the Dusk Shard. The heavy shield received the terrible impact of the devil's unstoppable attack. A deafening sound of steel clashing against steel rolled across the grand hall like a sound shockwave, growing louder as it reflected from the stone walls.
The shield held.
The floor beneath Effie's feet, however, did not. It cracked and shattered, sending the huntress reeling back. A pained yelp escaped from her lips.
The Black Knight lingered for a moment, seemingly surprised by the obliteration of the darkness that had shrouded him.
However, his hesitation lasted only for a fraction of a second — not nearly enough for the humans to prepare themselves for his next attack.
…And it was already coming.
Without paying any attention to Effie, who was flying back, the devil turned with astonishing swiftness and aimed his sword at Nephis.
But before he could perform his second strike, a massive piece of rubble the size of an adult human suddenly flew through the air and crashed into the armored giant at full speed. All the Black Knight could do was lean forward and meet it with his shoulder.
The boulder exploded into a thousand pieces, leaving the devil unscathed.
The creature that threw it walked through the dust with utter indifference, two ruby flames burning behind the visor of her helmet.
The Stone Saint had arrived to face the Black Knight.