The sun had crumbled, and the stars embraced the sky together with the darkness of night.

  Still no moon was present.

  When the fog dissipated, sounds of broken mirror had echoed in the lands, making the air tremble with each snapping sound.

  The fog slithered to let go of the surroundings as the hungry shadow had risen higher than before. Finally Asher moved his head toward the breaking sound.

  However, before he could see what had transpired there, his eyes widened.

  ‘This—all of this happened so fast.’

  Asher hissed, drawing a cold breath in his lungs.

  The ancient tower, which had withstood the decay of time and witnessed the fall of a civilization, had fallen with an earth-shattering impact. It had crumbled to dust and Asher could see the debris everywhere.

  He was not even that far, just a few meters away. If he had fought the Acosador a little closer to there, he would have undoubtedly been crushed to death.

  Not just the ancient marble tower, but even the walls, although already broken and weak, had turned to dust.

  A colossal fight had happened in the secrecy of the fog.

  He was not sure how much time had exactly passed, though he could make a guess with his abilities. After all, he only needed to know an initial point of fixed time and he would be able to count the hours.

  Though Asher didn’t do it immediately.

  His gaze first lingers on the shadow.

  Now that the fog has cleared and the delicately woven dream and illusion had shattered, he could finally sense something different.

  The shadow was not just a mysterious being hiding its appearance.

  Rather, it was something else.

  Asher licked his lips as his heart beated with dread.

  The shadow felt oddly alive, if that was even possible.

  Just like creatures of dream, Asher suspected there existed creatures of shadows as well.

  For a shadow of that caliber to exist, to trespass into a world of illusion and dreams, and not only to shatter it but also to destroy the creator of it.

  Yes, it was a profane and deadly power.

  Asher didn’t know what to do as all his thoughts ran rampant with astonishing speed.

  His mind divided into two as he thought of ways to survive; however, hope looked slim, if not almost impossible.

  Just then Asher pulled his gaze down.

  A frown appeared on his pale face.

  The shadow stood on something, or someone. Most likely the other creator of the illusion, which had trapped him in its story.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  A large being with crystal legs and white bones on its head. The creature's body seems to have been broken down after a large number of strikes had been bestowed upon it one after the other, as cracks in the form of spiderwebs had spread through its lustrous frame.

  Asher instinctively took a step back.

  Even after the creature, most likely an avenger rank, had died after the brutal fight. He could feel it pulse with energy as white fog left its body like ragged breaths.

  Whenever the fog comes outside, the air around will start to fluctuate as if another illusory tale was being forged, but if that could happen, the shadows—not the creature of shadow itself but the ones below—will deepen to inky black and consume them.

  ‘What should I do now?’

  No matter how much Asher pushed his mind to the brink of its capacity, he could see no way out.

  If even an Avenger who specialized in illusions couldn’t escape, what chance does he even have to begin with?

  In the end none of his thoughts helped even a little bit.

  ‘I… I should try to run.’

  But alas, even that hope seemed to have been crushed as suddenly the air went extremely cold.

  Asher smelled a sweet scent permeate the air.

  His mind rattled as he sensed something shift in the atmosphere.

  His lips started to tremble and eyes shook, almost going hollow.

  And then, as if the world had come to a halt, Asher froze in his steps.

  A pair of eyes met one another.

  His silver pupils reflected a deathly white.

  The shadow stirred. And the night sky darkened… almost pitch black, and it was deeper than anything Asher had seen.

  When the shadow tilted forward, the world around him lost the starlight, and a dome of darkness surrounded him.

  The eyes glowed with the intensity of the sun itself.

  The white was unnatural, as if death had come to see him.

  When Asher had looked into them, he felt his soul being pulled, an ache so loud and painful he thought his chest would get torn open.

  However, none of that happened.

  The shadow moved closer, slithering like a snake but before it did. It dropped like a puddle of water on the creature it had destroyed.

  Like a lake, the creature of shadow flowed on the ground and swallowed the being whole in one gulp, if that was even possible.

  Asher's body went cold and his knuckles whitened as his grip on the crystal blade tightened as time passed.

  A strong pressure then descended on Asher, making his knees buckle down and eyes widen. Asher fell on the ground without being able to resist.

  The shadow was now hovering above him like a predator. Asher couldn’t move his body as he felt his skin freeze. His silver pupils reflected the deathly white eyes that stared at him without blinking.

  They watched him with such a deep gaze as if assessing his worth.

  Asher couldn't move. His silver pupils reflected the deathly white eyes that stared at him without blinking. He felt his skin freeze. The air was thick with tension. He tried to speak, but his lips wouldn't budge. All he could do was stare back. The shadow seemed to be waiting for something.

  And then—

  The shadow soared high.

  Its eyes still on him.

  It stirred deeply like a drop of water and wove itself into a humanoid shape.

  A tall figure made of darkness and shadows stood above him in the blink of an eye. It wore an imposing armor with a helm that was made of dark plumes.

  Even when gripped with fear, Asher felt a sense of confusion.

  Something was odd.

  No, the fear was real but the creature of shadow was not.

  It felt incomplete…

  Asher didn’t feel his mind rattle in the same way it did when he witnessed the plague’s true form.

  He felt strangely lucid.

  But then something seemed to break, as he spat blood loud enough for his body shake and his vision turned dark.

  But he didn't stop staring at the shadowy figure.

  The humanoid shadow lifted its slender form and pointed toward the east. Its face, veiled in dark plumes, hissed softly as the wind moved through it—like fire that flickered and faded with each breath.

  A deep, foreign voice slithered through the air, cold and unsettling.

  “There… go there.”

  As the words echoed, Asher’s body stiffened. The shadow’s other arm rose slowly, its thin fingers unfolding as it opened its palm toward him.

  When he turned to look at the palm, his vision turned blank and the darkness vanished.

  The sun hung high in the air and Asher was on his knees in a ruined place.

  He looked around.

  His fingers shivered as he swept them through his lips, cleaning the blood.

  “...What just happened?”

  It felt surreal; everything did, in fact.

  Placing his hand on the ground for support, Asher still felt shaken.

  But then his eyes looked at his hand, or more like something being held in his left palm.

  When he opened it, his eyes widened.

  A broken, crystal-like shard—pale and translucent, as if forged from a white mirrored glass—was in Asher’s hand as it pulsed faintly with white fog.