'Damn it… damn it all! Why did it have to be the divine flame, of all things?!'
The three of them were finally allowed into the central hall of the temple, where a tall chalice cut of a single slab of grey stone stood, full of blinding white fire. The hall was drowning in stark light, deep shadows, and suffocating heat… however, even that sweltering heat was too forgiving.
…This close to the orb of Sun God's flame, all of them should have been already turned to ash.
Sunny stared at the chalice with a grim expression, remembering the suffering he had gone through in the Sky Below. This was a true remnant of the obliterating pillar of white fire that had been brought down on the Kingdom of Hope by a god, and then continued to burn in the depths of the shattered land, slowly devouring it until nothing but an empty void remained.
The pale version of it that he was able to channel through the Cruel Sight was already immensely destructive, and this… this was the real deal.
How was the chalice even capable of containing the annihilating white star?
He shivered, and then glanced under the surface of the stone vessel, noticing an intricate weave of ancient runes glowing inside the grey stone. An enchantment… and a powerful one, at that. What kind of sorcerer had created it? Who had been powerful enough to contain a piece of divine fury?
…In any case, without knowing how to control the enchantment — if there even was a way to control it — getting the Glass Knife out was not going to be easy, or maybe even impossible. Their task just grew exponentially more difficult.
'Damn it all!'
Absorbed by the dire sight of the stone chalice, Sunny didn't even notice the three women standing in front of it for a moment or two. When he did, however, his mood dropped even further.
Turned into black silhouettes by the furious white flame burning behind them, three Ascended battle masters watched the uninvited guests with eyes full of cold, cutting killing intent.
One had red hair and wielded an odachi similar to his own, its blade forged out of vibrant scarlet steel. One had black hair and held a simple spear, its shaft covered by a complicated weave of runes. One had white hair and was unarmed.
…That last one scared him the most. Solvane, too, didn't feel the need to wield a weapon. If the first two Maidens seemed like warriors of terrifying skill, the third one… the third one gave him a sensation of being something much more than that.
A true vessel of War, perhaps.
He carefully looked around the hall, remembering how it had looked in the future.
The stone slabs covering the floor had been cracked and misshapen, the mighty pillars broken and toppled over, the roof had collapsed. The walls of the hall, seemingly so strong and unassailable, had been shattered outwards, suggesting that something had detonated in the center of the hall with tremendous force.
The chalice itself had been destroyed, with only a few fragments laying on the floor in a molten pile.
…And there had been human bones littering the hall, some still covered by the remains of red silk garments, with vengeful wraiths carrying murderous fury even thousands of years after the tragedy.
Sunny glanced tensely at the dancing white flame, then shivered. Someone had come to the Temple of the Chalice and destroyed it, slaughtering all the fearsome Maidens in the process. Had they been looking for the Glass Knife, as well? Was he going to meet that terrifying being?
Or had he, perhaps, met them already?
Two faces suddenly appeared in his mind… that of Solvane, and that of Noctis.
His thoughts were interrupted by one of the Ascended Maidens. The woman who seemed the most powerful, the fiend with white hair, looked at Saint with a cold expression and said, her voice echoing in the stark darkness of the hall:
"I've been told that you wish to retrieve the legacy of our foremothers, shadow."
Saint lingered for a moment, then moved her head slightly, nodding.
The Maiden smiled, sending chills running down Sunny's spine.
"Then your task is very simple. All you have to do is prove yourself before the Chalice. Kill me, and then my two sisters. If you do, the Glass Blade will be yours."
Saint tilted her head a little, expressing an indifferent agreement.
Sunny let out a furtive sigh of relief.
So, there was a ritual to release that Glass Knife into someone's hands, after all… a trial that those seeking it had to pass. A simple duel, or rather three consecutive ones, against the senior warriors of the ancient sect. These Ascended were truly formidable, but fighting them was better than having to face against the entire sect.
His worst expectations had not come true. As for whether or not Saint would be able to kill the three Ascended priestesses… he wasn't sure. However, there was at least a chance.
And after the leaders of the sect were dead, finding and rescuing Effie would be much easier.
As the War Maiden with white hair grew silent, another one — the woman wielding the scarlet odachi — spoke:
"...However, first, you will have to prove that you have the right to challenge us. You will fight, and kill, a disciple of each of us."
As soon as she stopped speaking, the third one said:
"...Or you will die."
Sunny hid a triumphant smile. Three Awakened warriors were not going to pose any threat to Saint, who was an Ascended Demon, and formidable well beyond her Rank and Class.
However… something felt off. He couldn't tell what at the moment, but his intuition was filling his hearts with unease.
Sunny glanced at Kai, and noticed a similar apprehensive expression in the archer's eyes. He nodded slightly, prompting the young man to step forward and bow.
"My lady accepts. However, it is unbecoming of her to slaughter your disciples, fearsome as they may be. Such a fight would not be a struggle for her, and as such, would not please the Goddess of Life, offending her in this sacred temple. If these disciples wish to challenge my lady, they will have to defeat her shadow first."
The War Maiden with white hair laughed, then took a step forward.
"So, she can only fight us after defeating our disciples, but our disciples can only fight her after defeating her pet demon? Fine… fine, let it be so! No shadow can defeat a vessel of war. He was going to die after your lady's body is torn apart, anyway. Let the creature be destroyed first!"
With that, she turned to one of the younger War Maidens and smiled darkly:
"Let us not disappoint our guests. Go, bring the feral child I have the misfortune of calling my successor here. She will atone for her transgressions today by killing these two shadows!"
Sunny was pushed forward and offered a choice of weapons. After hesitating for a few moments, he raised a fearsome greatsword with his upper hands, and took a buckler and a long dagger with the lower.
Then, he walked into the center of the hall and froze, watching the divine flames burn in the darkness.
…All things considered, things had turned out well. The Ascended War Maidens had been cunning, offering the lives of their disciples as sacrifices, no doubt in order to glean the secrets of Saint's skill before facing her.
Knowing the enemy was half the victory, after all… by remaining a mystery while observing how their opponent fights, the three battle masters would have received an advantage that Sunny couldn't allow himself to give them.
Now, however, he was going to fight and kill three of the Awakened Maidens, thus keeping Saint as mysterious as these battle masters were. Facing such fearsome opponents was not going to be easy, but he was sure of his ability to outsmart, overpower, and slaughter them.
Fighting such skilled warriors was only going to enrich his mastery of Shadow Dance. More importantly...
They were not going to have to fight against the whole sect… the chalice containing the divine flame was not going to be shattered, and the temple was not going to be turned into a ruin. Whatever it had been that had happened here in the real world would not befall Sunny and Kai, leaving them unscathed.
All he had to do was to kill three young women, one after another. They would be fearsome combatants, no doubt, especially due to the madness of Hope coursing through their veins... but he had faced far worse. Sunny felt confident in his ability.
…A few moments later, however, his black eyes narrowed.
Staring at his first opponent, Sunny couldn't help but shudder and let out a low growl.
'...Damnation!'