Damon thought this was the end for his shadow, but he was not about to give up. Twisting his body, he pulled an arrow using his dealer's hand and willed it to float. He stepped on it as he tried to fly on the metal of his sword.

But a large maw came rushing toward him, choking the air as it smashed him down into the darkness. Pain tore through his body, and the shock almost separated his astral form from his body.

He tried to regain control, but his body plummeted into the depths surrounded by large black worms. Damon's astral projection saw larger chains flickering as they held the worms bound to the darkness.

He closed his eyes as the shadows consumed him.

Then—

"Thud."

His broken body hit the ground. Pain racked through him as his astral form shot out into the open, a chill touching his soul.

Before he could regain his bearings, he heard a chuckle.

"That ended better than I expected."

This voice was familiar. Damon turned slightly, finding the familiar darkness where Lazarak's form filled the space.

Matia was standing beside his throbbing, disembodied heart, her expression unreadable.

Damon glanced down to find, ghost's body he had been possessing damaged and in shambles. His arm was twisted at an unnatural angle, his ribs were exposed, and one eye was closed as black shadows bled from his wounds.

He had fallen all the way from the upper floor back to where he had originally started. His astral form returned to his heart, hovering over flickering shadow-like flames.

"Ajhrg, that was a disaster…"

He spread his shadow perception toward Lazarak.

"Why didn't you warn me?"

Lazarak was almost unable to speak through his muffled laughter.

"You seemed so confident. I didn't want to burst your bubble. Besides, I believed in you. Honestly, you should be proud, it's not every day a god says he believes in someone."

Damon scoffed as Matia picked up a few potions from the pile Lazarak had been studying and began feeding them to the ghost.

The poor shadow was still unconscious, unaware of the horrible things waiting for him.

"Now what? Are you giving up?" Lazarak asked, already expecting Damon's answer.

"Not on your life. The first attempt was just a test."

Damon didn't want Lazarak to have another laugh at his expense, especially after that ego-stroking.

"Besides, this was all part of my plan."

Lazarak wasn't about to let a chance for amusement slip away in this dull prison.

"Really now? Falling and looking confused must have been part of your plan. Speaking of which, what was up there anyway?"

Damon would have bitten his lip, but the flicker of the flames gave enough of an answer.

"Nothing much, just some little earthworms. Next time I'll take some salt with me."

Lazarak's darkness rolled with soft whooshing sounds, then he spoke.

"Hmm, worms, huh? I see... black ones with circular maws? Ah, I see Murmur Worms. Yeah, those nasty things have a bad habit of eating regions to ruin. They especially hate when something flies over them."

His tone turned serious.

"You must have the devil's luck to have survived that encounter."

Damon sneered at his words.

"I happen to pray to the goddess. In case you didn't notice, I'm a devout believer."

Lazarak scoffed with disdain.

"Yeah, sure. That's why you're imprisoned in Eidolon. Must be tough love."

Damon clicked his tongue. He was the farthest thing from a beloved devotee of the goddess. In truth, he was closer to her enemy.

Lazarak cleared his throat, though Damon wasn't sure the formless darkness even had one.

"From what I know, they have habitats in places with lost souls, evil spirits, and some inhumane horrors."

Matia turned to him, her gaze cold.

"Horror? Do you mean those abominable entities that are sick parodies of life?"

"Oh, so you've seen some of them? Hmm, you two are truly wretched creatures."

"Those particular types of creatures are natives of this world, but most are born from twisted memories and imagination. They dwell and grow in places that have a thin rift to the realm where the mind resides."

Damon's shadow flickered.

"Do you mean the Metaverse?"

Lazarak chuckled lightly.

"You're quite a knowledgeable creature. You must have vast experience. Yes, that's what it's called, the Metaverse. Though I pray none of us ever see the horrors that dwell there. If the ones in our world are already this bad, imagine how much worse the horrors born in the minds of gods and alien worlds must be."

Damon could almost feel an intense longing in Lazarak's voice, there was no fear in it.

If what Lazarak said was true, it explained a lot about the Duhu Mountains. Or rather, it confirmed it. He even had a skill that had mentioned something similar.

Before he could dwell on the thought, Ghost woke up. He stood shakily and glanced toward Damon's heart, hovering with its crown in flickering shadows.

There was a trace of fear in the shadow's eyes, but Damon wasn't bothered.

"Come, Ghost. We're trying again. This time, we go with my second plan."

Ghost knelt as Damon possessed him once more. He turned to Lazarak, suspicion in his tone.

"Ahhhj, you dastardly bastard. You knew, dammit! You said earlier... you weren't even referring to the worms. You were talking about the damn horrors."

"What? No, I didn't," Lazarak defended himself.

Damon gave him a deadpan look and repeated what he said word for word:

"Erm... between the both of us, is it really okay to send such a delicate lady up there? I mean, some of those guys aren't exactly the most pleasant to be around."

Damon glared at him. "That's what you said."

Lazarak cleared his throat, guilt creeping into his voice.

"Don't worry. It's not that bad. Some of them aren't as horrible as they could be. Besides, you're not a delicate young lady, your ugliness might even scare them."

"I believe in you …"

Damon bit his lip as he turned into a shadow, slipping out of the room.

No wonder Lazarak had asked if he was sure about sending a lady up there.

It was freaking haunted.

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