[Vol. 8] Chapter 165: Eclipse of Shadows
As expected, the moment that deep shadow surged up like a reflex, a flash of golden light also sparked in the silver-blue eyes of the priestess. Like sunlight piercing the darkness, it instantly suppressed the dark aura and made it vanish into nothing.
With a crisp clang!—
The pitch-black short sword was fully drawn from its sheath and held in Violet’s hand.
The blade was sharpened on only one side, about three feet long. It was thin and light, clearly designed for a woman’s use. The surface had no carvings or decorations, only a curved hilt wrapped in a spiral, forming a small guard shaped like a curled-up fox. It seemed a bit mismatched with the rest of the weapon, but in another sense, it also completed the sword’s aura, giving it a strange harmony.
This was the help Violet had offered to Miss Shadow after she became one of the chosen heroes.
artifacts are weapons crafted by divine forces, holding immense power. For an ordinary person, even gaining one is already a lifetime’s blessing. Holding too many at once often brings more trouble than benefit.
Because Miss Shadow already possessed the [Blade of Shadow], a genuine Primordial Artifact, Violet didn’t try to give her any more items. Instead, she refined and integrated a fragment of law-based power directly into the weapon itself, like an upgrade or enhancement, boosting its strength while also reducing the burden on its user.
Although it looked like Miss Shadow received nothing compared to the other heroes who gained new artifacts, Violet knew that, in truth, Shadow had probably benefited more than any of them.
Violet didn’t explain all this. She simply lowered her gaze and examined the artifact in her hand.
To be honest, although there was some resistance when she drew the blade just now, it wasn’t nearly as difficult as when she once touched the [Judgement Holy Sword] in the past as the Spirit Fox Shrine Maiden. That sword had reacted fiercely and tried to backlash, but this one didn’t.
That’s just how Primordial Artifacts work.
True Primordial Artifacts have a will of their own. Not quite like a soul, but more like a strong inner consciousness. They are smart. They adapt. They can’t talk, but they have a powerful sense of judgment over who touches them.
Things like the [Judgement Holy Sword] are only fragments split off from true artifacts. Their awareness is limited. They react mechanically, either resisting, accepting, or channeling power based on instinct. If someone is strong enough to completely suppress them, they can still be forced to work.
But the [Blade of Shadow] aren’t like that at all.
True Primordial Artifacts are extremely picky. If they sense that someone is too strong and they can't fight back, they won’t struggle. They’ll just shut down. They’ll withdraw all their power and awareness, becoming as useless as a rusty stick. You can’t bribe them, you can’t intimidate them, they just won’t play along.
Violet knew all this because she had her own set of artifacts that had been identified as Primordial Artifacts by Sethlin. They all had similarly difficult personalities, maybe even worse. While they were perfectly obedient around Violet, if anyone else tried to use them…
She casually swung the short blade through the air a few times. As expected, there was no force, no aura, no reaction at all. Violet wasn’t surprised. She slid it back into the sheath and tossed it back to Miss Shadow.
The moment the blade touched her, the [Blade of Shadow] instantly split into two swords again, one long, one short, and even gave off a soft, flickering glow and strange, whimpering sounds.
It was like a kid who had just been bullied and ran back home to cry to their parents.
Violet looked speechless. Miss Shadow herself was also stunned.
She had owned the [Blade of Shadow] for three years now. This twin-bladed weapon was made of two parts, the long sword and the short sword, each with its own unique power. It was thanks to this incredibly powerful artifact that she had gone from ordinary to legendary in just three years.
Unlike other Shadow Guards who had to train day and night, Shadow only needed to meditate and tune into the artifact’s subtle power waves, her strength would naturally grow stronger on its own.
After three years of practice, she could now use either blade with ease. But if both swords were drawn at once, they would combine into the true form of the Primordial Artifact, releasing power so overwhelming that even she struggled to handle it.
As its chosen user, she knew very well just how powerful this artifact really was. She had expected Violet to handle it carefully, or at least clash with it somewhat. But what just happened?
Violet had swung the artifact around like a toy, and it had done absolutely nothing.
Could that really be the fully awakened form of the [Blade of Shadow]?
Had this stubborn artifact... gone soft?
Confused, Miss Shadow quietly asked for guidance.
“Lady Violet, just now... what was that?”
“Oh, it’s nothing, just a little test. Your Primordial Artifact is very complete and high-grade. If you can unlock its true power, even slaying a god might not be impossible~”
Seeing that Violet didn’t want to explain too much, Miss Shadow smartly nodded without pressing further. But then she remembered the creature she had encountered at the Gate of Ghosts, Humble Humbold, and a spark flashed in her eyes.
“Lady Violet, may I ask... what kind of being was the ‘Illusory Beings’?”
“That one, huh...”
Violet naturally understood what the girl was thinking. Humble Humbert was incredibly powerful. Even with her current blessings, Miss Shadow had no chance of defeating that thing. If you ignored the world’s suppressive forces, its true strength was likely already at demigod level, and it might even possess abilities that break the usual rules.
In the Holy Empire, the only ones who could possibly fight it were Brightlight Saintess Yuna and the current Edwina.
In summary... it was probably equivalent to Minchen. Even among the World Sustainers, that creature’s rank was likely second only to the so-called Supreme Lord.
As Violet was thinking of how to gently tell Miss Shadow “You still have a long way to go,” something unexpected happened. The [Blade of Shadow], which had already split back into their two forms in Shadow’s hands, suddenly began to vibrate!
“Bzz~ hum~ bzz~ hum~!”
Even though their wielder hadn’t done anything, the two slim swords floated into the air on their own and merged once again into their original form, the ancient short sword. A deep, ancient aura surged wildly from its body, as if awakened by some unknown power.
Then, as if trying to point something out, the blade suddenly shifted, aiming straight upward.
“...?”
At that exact moment, Violet felt an indescribable tug in her heart, like an invisible force calling to her. She instinctively looked up.
Where she looked, and where the sword pointed, was the same.
Up in the night sky, the moon hung high. Tonight was a full moon, the third full moon of the year. It was silver-white and flawless, casting a clean, glowing light across the land. Under this strong moonlight, it was nearly a third as bright as daytime. In the well-lit Holy Capital, it wasn’t very noticeable, but out in the wild hills and forests, it would’ve been much more striking.
So that’s it, tonight is the full moon. I hadn’t realized earlier...
Just as that thought passed through Violet’s mind, something strange suddenly happened.
From the edge of the full moon’s silver glow, a shadow slowly began to spread.
It grew.
It crept.
Slowly but unstoppably, it began to devour the moon’s silver light.
In just seconds, it had covered over one-fifth of the moon’s surface, like a heavenly beast was taking bites out of it. The once flawless moon now looked eerie and twisted.
“A lunar eclipse...?” Violet frowned.
Something felt off. Ever since she came to this world, she had never heard of anything like this, not even in the strange records or legends she had read. Violet had assumed that lunar eclipses simply didn’t exist in this world.
But now...
And besides, could a normal eclipse happen this fast?
She wasn’t the only one with this question. This strange eclipse appeared across every part of the vast Origin Realm, catching the eyes of countless living beings.
In the west, the human queen of the Human United Kingdom dropped her pen in surprise and walked to the window, looking eastward with a worried expression.
In the far east, the supreme emperor sat alone on his high throne, quietly turning a spotless lion-shaped ring with a deep look in his eyes.
On the floating island in the sky, a green-haired goddess stood atop the giant tree, solemnly watching the silver moon as it was consumed. From the divine tree, waves of powerful life force and law-based power swept across the capital of Azure Sky Kingdom, as if preparing for war.
Far to the north, on a snowy road, a silver-haired girl leaned out the window of a carriage. In her clear eyes, eight-petal snowflake patterns reflected the darkened sky and the fading moon. Her expression was cold as ice.
“The first sign of disaster... has come, just as expected.”
And deep in a remote, silent forest at night, a red-haired girl paused mid-step. She pulled her wide cloak tighter around her body. The darkness around her grew deeper, yet her blurred face, hidden by unseen powers, now showed a playful and pleased expression.
“It’s only been just over a thousand years, and [Obscurity] is already getting restless, huh. I wonder if your lackeys are ready. We have never dared to let our guard down, not even for a second~”
At the center of the world, the Holy Empire’s Capital, Angel City.
“Chosen Hero of Heaven, Lady Hero of Heaven?”
“...Ah.”
The blind girl known as Elunie Light snapped out of her daze and “looked” toward the concerned nun beside her, scratching her head a bit shyly.
“Sorry, sorry, I was a little lost in thought. Did you need something, Sister?”
“It’s no problem, Lady Elunie. It’s like this, as the first chosen hero blessed by the Goddess herself, His Holiness the Pope would like to meet with you alone for a private conversation. Would you happen to have time now?”
“Th-The Pope wants to see me?!”
The girl was startled. Whatever deep thoughts had just clouded her mind disappeared in an instant. She nodded quickly.
“Of course I have time! Are we going right now?”
“Yes, please come with me, Lady Hero.”
……………………………………………
“...Huh?”
While still watching the ominous lunar eclipse unfold, a strange and sudden force stirred within Violet, making her frown slightly. She turned her head on instinct, and froze in surprise.
Because standing beside her was no longer Miss Shadow, but a still, unmoving human-shaped figure made entirely of white particles, as if time itself had frozen her in place.
And not just her, everything in sight had come to a complete standstill.
The entire world looked as if it had turned into outlines made of floating particles. The sounds of the distant banquet, clinking glasses and lively chatter, had abruptly gone silent, replaced by an overwhelming stillness.
Violet stood frozen in brief shock, but quickly realized what was happening.
She instinctively raised her hand, where a glowing structure like a ring of stars spun in a steady rhythm above her palm, emitting a deep and mysterious energy, the power of ‘Time’.
[Anchor of Time] — Activated.
There was no doubt: this was the [Still Flow of Time], a realm between time and space. The [Anchor of Time], without her control, had activated itself and pulled her into this interdimensional space...
Why?
This sort of reaction couldn’t have happened randomly. Something, some power, must have triggered the Primordial Artifact fragment known as [Sea of Time], causing it to act on its own...
‘Was it protecting me?’
With that thought, Violet looked upward, toward the obvious source of the disturbance, the darkening moon that hung high in the sky, slowly being consumed.
“...Huh.”
An unbelievable sight unfolded before her eyes.
Even within this world where everything else had been stopped by the great force of Time, even the floating Primordial Artifact [Blade of Shadow] had become a still, empty shadow, the eclipse above her was still moving.
The shadow continued to devour the silver light of the moon at a visible pace. As if no force, not even Time itself, could stop or slow it down.
If anything had changed... it was that the moon now appeared blurry, like being viewed through frosted glass.
This was clearly a side-effect of the [Still Flow of Time].
It seemed that the Anchor of Time couldn't fully block this eclipse that felt like it existed beyond time itself. But it could at least isolate Violet from it, keeping her in a relatively safe state from which she could observe what was about to happen...
The lunar eclipse pressed on, slow but unstoppable.
In just a dozen heartbeats, the full silver moon was completely swallowed by darkness, leaving only a thin silver ring around its edge.
Even the two smaller satellite moons beside it, which had floated quietly nearby, lost their light the moment the eclipse completed, as if swallowed whole by a giant invisible mouth, vanishing from the sky without a trace.
Utter darkness finally descended, wrapping the world in shadow.