June looked at the young man and smiled.
"Let's be friends."
Anyone who knew anything understood that befriending healers was a matter of first priority.
After saying their goodbye to Ray, June and Kim walked past the cargo containers and passed through the Dream Gate without much fanfare. June had been wondering what he would encounter on the other side with a bit of trepidation, but to his suprise, he saw...
Nothing.
Absolutely nothing. He was surrounded by impenetrable darkness, the kind one rarely encountered in a world that was full of stars, moons and city lights.
All June could feel was the wind on his face, hinting that he was not underground anymore. He could also hear various sounds reaching his ears from a distance.
Awakened Kim was somewhere near. Her voice reached him from a few meters away a second later:
"You will receive the Mark soon. For now, I will use my Aspect Ability on you. It will help you see."
Then, suddenly...
June could see again.
The darkness did not disappear, but he was somehow able to see through it clearly. The world was devoid of color, but other than that, it was as if he suddenly received perfect night vision.
A vast starless sky was above him.
All around him...
Were the crumbled, dilapidated buildings of a dark, ancient city.
He was standing in the middle of a spacious square that rested under the black branches of a colossal tree. The Dream Gate towered behind him, while a wide road led into the depths of the city in front of him.
Awakened Kim spoke calmly:
"This is the Saint Square. Apparently, this is where our boss met Saint for the first time..."
June hesitated to ask.
"Which Saint?"
She shook her head.
"Not a Saint. The Saint - The Onyx Saint. She is the general of Shadow Legion... as well as the combat instructor of the Shadow Clan. She'll be training you, too."
He trembled.
'Wait... she doesn't mean... that terrifying living statue?'
June was actually quite familiar with the Lord of Shadows and his infernal servants, having followed the sellsword Saint into battle during the conquest expedition of the Vanishing Lake.
The graceful onyx knight, the towering steel fiend, and the shapeshifting serpent...
Weren't they simple Echoes?
Apparently, they weren't. And one of them would be training him soon.
He sighed.
"I'm... looking forward to it."
Awakened Kim nodded.
"First, you will need to meet the boss and receive the Mark. We'll settle you in the Dark Castle after that."
June raised an eyebrow.
"The Dark Castle?"
Instead of answering, Kim simply pointed.
Turning around, June looked up and froze for a few moments.
Out there, standing on a tall hill above the city, was a sinister castle built of black stone.
It was grand and magnificent, with dozens of towers rising into the air, each supported by a number of elaborate arches and columns. Grotesque gargoyles were staring down on the ruins from under the eaves.
A grandiose staircase led to the castle gates. In front of it, there was a vast stone platform, meant to serve as the gathering ground for the soldiers in case the enemy was to somehow scale the hill.
Now, however, a stunning temple of black marble was perched on it instead.
The Nameless Temple...
It was at this point that June finally asked:
"I am sorry, Awakened Kim, but where, exactly, are we?"
She looked at him in confusion, then smiled faintly.
"Where else? This is the Forgotten Shore."
June inhaled sharply.
The Forgotten Shore! The nightmarish crucible where Song of the Fallen, Raised by Wolves, Nightingale, the Fire Keepers... and Changing Star herself had been forged.
The cradle of humanity's goddess.
A subtle frown creased his brow.
"Wait... but wasn't there a Bright Castle here, rules by a Bright Lord?"