Sunny frowned, suddenly feeling a sense of dread grip his heart.

He stared at her, lost for words. Finally, after a few seconds had passed, Sunny collected himself and screamed:

'Wait, is this why I screamed at Nephis? She broke an agreement… what was the agreement?'

Sunny took one more bite and looked at the shadow, lost in thought.

He looked at her and noticed the big, delicious fruit in her hands. His stomach growled.

Something terrible was going to happen if he failed...

Fortunately, Cassie quickly came to his rescue. She always knew how to make the situation less awkward.

"I just absorbed a point of soul essence."

'Weird. What is it with this guy?'

Both Neph and Cassie turned to face him. They were visibly confused.

He was pretty sure that there was, at least up until a few moments ago. Now, however… huh… did he imagine the whole thing? There really was no reason not to eat the alluring fruits. Especially when the three of them were so hungry…

"Why did you change your mind?"

Nephis and Cassie were each holding a large, round, glistening fruit. The skin of these fruits was smooth and black as onyx, while the succulent insides were red as ruby. Their hands, chins and lips were smeared with red juice, making it look as though they were feasting on blood.

Where else would they be able to grow stronger without risking their lives?

"Are you angry because we started eating without you?"

The Ashen Barrows was a perfect place to recuperate. There were no monsters in the surrounding wasteland, it was large enough to protect them from the horrors of the sea, and they had plenty of food thanks to the Soul Tree.

Nephis blinked, a confused expression appearing on her face.

Stunned, he raised his head and looked at Nephis.

At the same time, Nephis said:

"What do you mean "hey"?! What the hell are you doing?!"

Sunny picked up the fruit, looked at it, and took a bite without thinking.

'Damn, why is it so hard to think about this stuff?!'

Forgetting all about the uneasy feeling, he raised his hand and greedily bit into the succulent, delicious, nourishing flesh…

Things seemed to be getting better.

[Your shadow grows stronger.]

Instantly, his mouth was filled with delightful, cool sweetness. The succulent, juicy fruit was probably the most delicious thing he had ever tasted. It was both nourishing and refreshing, with rich texture and soft, lingering aftertaste. The ruby flesh practically melted on his tongue, making his whole body tingle. It was pure joy in the form of a fruit.

Shadow Fragments: [97/1000].

Sunny gaped at them, feeling like he had lost his mind. Why were they so nonchalant about this? What was going on here?!

"Did you…"

Sunny was at the precipice of remembering something very important. He felt as though he just needed to pull on the thread, and the whole truth would reveal itself…

Nephis looked at Sunny and offered him a relaxed smile.

'Huh… Soul Tree? Since when... wait, don't get distracted...'

Stopping for a moment, she smiled.

"What a shame that no one will be here to serve it.... and feed it... and help it spread its seeds…"

'Ugh, this is embarrassing. Did I completely space out while she was talking to me?'

Sunny stumbled and looked at his companions in utter shock.

Because at that moment, the Spell was talking into his ear:

Even now it was motionless, refusing to mimic him eating the fruit.

There was something wrong with the fruit? Why would there…

Sunny lay on the makeshift mattress of fallen leaves, feeling relaxed and optimistic for the first time in many, many days.

Trying to find some sense in the situation, he took a cautious step forward and looked at Nephis. Did she… wait… what was he thinking about?

Something unexpected happened, something that required his full attention.

'Uh… I can't quite remember.'

What agreement?

There was something… something wrong with the…

He blinked, then looked at the delicious fruit in his hands. The Spell announced the increase in his power right after Sunny swallowed his third bite.

They deserved a short vacation.

The blind girl was enthusiastically devouring the fruit. Red juice was flowing down her chin and dripping to the ground.

Not knowing how to answer, he just stood there with a frown on his face and pouted.

The air was filled with an alluring, sweet aroma.

Before falling asleep, he glanced at the mighty branches of the great tree and thought with a bit of regret:

"Why are you shouting?"

But his stomach involuntarily growled, reminding him how hungry he was.

He received a shadow fragment without risking his life in a battle against deadly monsters!

'Wow!'

They had moved their camp to rest between the roots of the great tree. With newfound energy received from consuming miraculous fruits, all their worries seemed to fade.

Finally, Sunny was able to realize why the Carapace Demon had been so fixated on the Soul Tree and its fruits.

Sunny recoiled...

"About the fruits! I thought we had agreed to avoid eating them!"

Sunny opened his mouth to answer, but then froze.

He was so hungry. It was hard to concentrate on anything except for food…

His voice was loud, full of disbelief and anger.

"Are you alright, Sunny?"

Chapter 77 Enthralled

'No, wait… that's not right!'

"Don't worry! Neph brought three of them, one for each."

Changing Star, too, was staring at her fruit with a strange expression on her face. Feeling his gaze, she looked up.

The shadow had an eccentric temper, but it rarely did something without a reason. If it didn't like the fruit, there had to be something wrong with… the… fruit…

"Changed my mind? About what?"

Sunny's eyes widened. Excitedly, he summoned the runes and found the right cluster:

Taking another bite, he frowned and tried to understand the source of this anxious feeling. It was hard to think about anything except for how heavenly the fruit of the Soul Tree tasted, but he forced himself to concentrate.

He flinched and glanced at Nephis, who was looking at him with concern. Suddenly, Sunny felt lost and confused. What were they talking about? Something… something about some sort of agreement?

"Actually, I received mine a few bites ago."

What's more, that food could even provide them with power…

"Uh… I guess?"

"Hey."

As far as hell goes, this place was almost a paradise.

Late in the evening, when the sun was already hidden behind the horizon and the dark sea had once again turned the Ashen Barrow into a lonely island, the three of them were preparing for the night.

He clenched his teeth, thinking that she was trying to fool him.

Shaking off the unexpected memory lapse, Sunny remembered what he was about to say and pressed:

Without saying anything, they both turned to Cassie.

'With the Carapace Demon gone, there's no one to protect this magnificent tree anymore. When we continue our journey, it will be completely defenseless. What a shame…'

These fruits were pure magic!

'So hungry…'

***

Actually, why did they make that agreement?

Cassie smiled and pointed to the ground, where another fruit was placed on the pile of fallen leaves. Her teeth were smeared with red juice.

He was sure that there was a reason, but his memory was completely blank. There definitely was an agreement… wasn't there?

He really received a fragment!

Changing Star frowned.

Despite his delight, Sunny felt disturbed for some reason. Something was very wrong about the whole situation… but what?

Sunny licked his lips.

Instantly, he somehow forgot all about the problem with the Soul Tree's fruits.

With no way to move further west, Nephis, Sunny and Cassie had decided to rest for a few days before making any decisions.

Sunny was finally able to pinpoint the source of the strangeness. It was his shadow. When he reached out to pick up the fruit, the shadow did not copy his movements, as though reluctant to touch it.

'How nice of her…'

His consciousness was already half-asleep. However, one last thought entered Sunny's mind right before he completely slipped into the embrace of darkness:

'Wh—what?'

But then, Sunny got distracted.

"Did we? ...Why?"