Chapter 342: Persuading Nightborns (2)

It was a surreal sight.

Against the expanse of darkness—a luminous flower with a sheen of blue, green, and gold manifested out of nothing. An aurora of darkness rose from the stalk all the way to its curving petals, but the higher it flowed, the brighter the color became until it settled on flaxen.

Structure-wise, the flower was ordinary.

But its colours were so strangely bright that the Nightborn couldn’t peel his eyes from it.

In its entire existence, it had never seen a colour so bright.

Like a person with monochromacy, it has only seen washed-out shades with no brightness.

Just black, grey, and other dark colours.

And yet right now, there were three colours that it had never seen before swirling and mixing with one another—creating a beautiful upward spiral that was mesmerizing to see. It was not aware there were other colours out there until this moment.

Its lips trembled, and a question naturally flowed out.

"W-What is this?"

"Something I created as a gift for you."

"A gift...? What is a gift?"

Kai paused for a second, surprised that the Nightborn was confused about that.

But he quickly recovered.

"It’s a token of kindness to start a good friendship."

"Friendship? Friends?"

For a moment, Kai simply watched as the Nightborn kept staring at the beautiful flower—like it was the treasure of the world. A small smile curled on his lips, knowing that using a method like this would make persuading Nightborns easier than using brute force.

Mallory was fascinated by every single thing that he brought from the outside world.

And since flowers aren’t exactly easy to get in the academy, Kai needed another alternative.

Remembering that the night—within the House of Night could create anything, he decided to shoot his shot and try creating a flower. Even if he failed, all the flowers he managed to create only bore dark hues; it would still help him train his mastery over the night.

But surprisingly enough, it was a success.

All flowers he created using the night had colourful hues, making them look magical.

It was something that even surprised Noxian.

He had said that colours were practically suppressed heavily by the night. Regardless of how brilliant—the House of Night would bleach them with its bleak influence. And since even the Second Daughter of the Primordial Night had been taken by surprise, Kai could only assume that he was the only one capable of creating colour here.

Of course, he didn’t know the reason why he could.

But that didn’t matter—what mattered was that he could.

Kai blinked his eyes and focused on the Nightborn once again, still captivated by the flower.

"I will visit your domain. I will aid you in making it better. Adding colours—like the ones on this flower if you want to." He said softly, pulling the Nightborn’s attention to him again. "In exchange, lend me your strength.

"I don’t need you to tell me your name. I don’t need you to lift a finger. Just stand by me."

For a Nightborn, their domain was their most precious place.

It was their home and also fragments of their memories.

Something that reminded them that in the past, the darkness hadn’t grasped them. In the past, they were alive. Anything that could improve their domains—was priceless. It was made clear by the glint inside Noxian’s and Kaelmorath’s eyes when he brought up the topic.

Kai hadn’t gotten around to asking Perion what he wanted, but he would surely be the same.

And this was his trump card in persuading the Nightborns.

Seeing how the Nightborn’s eyes lit up at what he said, he already knew the answer.

"You... You’re willing to do that?" the Nightborn asked hesitantly.

"Yes," Kai nodded. "I was wronged by a Nightborn, even though I want no trouble. You must understand that I have to act. If I don’t act now, then that Nightborn would only keep causing trouble in the future. So—

He stretched out his arm, pushing the flower towards the Nightborn, "Join me..."

It was a really good deal.

All the Nightborn would need to do was lend its power, its innate control over the night, and Kai would make its domain much better than it was. As the First Son of the Primordial Night, he has the power to do that.

In fact, he might be the only one who could do that.

Despite the earlier hostility, the Nightborn, after hesitating for a second, accepted the flower.

"Son of Night," the Nightborn bowed its head politely. "I will be of service."

Kai’s lips curled into a smile.

His encounter with this Nightborn had been eye-opening.

And now—knowing that his trump card, his method of persuading Nightborns, was working so well on this one, there was no reason to idle any longer. Kai turned his palm skyward and, with his command over the night, unleashed a spiraling column of darkness.

Behind him, Kaelmorath watched the entire ordeal and cracked a smirk.

Initially, he had doubts that Kai would be able to manage what he sought to do.

Regardless of what he had accomplished, he was still a new Child of the Primordial Night.

Convincing Nightborns were never easy.

Each one had its own personality, its own past, and its own powers.

But it seemed Kai had already accounted for that.

Already grasped the common sensitive spot of all Nightborns, and made use of it.

Just that realization alone made it extremely hard for Kaelmorath to prevent the corners of his lips from curling upward. He met Kai out of sheer luck; the boy had stumbled into his domain and tried befriending him.

Now, he realized it wasn’t only luck for Kai.

But it was also luck for him.

Swoosh—!

A shockwave expanded outward, blowing hard like a gust of wind.

Kai watched the spiraling column of darkness blast into the sky.

It emanated no light, but the disturbance it brought to the surrounding darkness—stood way more than even a lighthouse near the beach. The churning vortex—that was unleashed spread for miles in every direction.

Around, the air trembled, and the darkness rippled.

Something that was impossible to ignore.

Nearby, the blurry shadows snapped their heads toward the source.

All of them had been drifting aimlessly, but now the disturbance had piqued their interests.

Such a wide and impactful disturbance was rare in the House of Night. Rarer still was the one who would dare to make such a scene—as there shouldn’t be any within the First Floor. They wanted to know who. They wanted to see.

Pivoting towards the source, the blurry shadows began to approach.

Ten of them. Then twenty. And then more.

They emerged from the darkness beyond—one after another, blurry shadows thickening into shapes, then into clearer figures, until at last, into Nightborns with eyes glistening with equal parts curiosity and caution.

Soon, more than a hundred of them had gathered—their forms filled Kai’s field of vision.

A crowd of the curious and the dangerous.

Kai cracked a smile.

Of course, this was what he wanted. Numbers.

Inside his mind, the image of the Ending of Impersonation flashed. He grinned mischievously, anticipating what would happen next—anticipating the storm that would sweep over. I really hope you’re ready. I’m coming.

...

An unknown distance away.

A horde traversed the vast expanse of the House of Night.

One hundred Nightborns lined up in near-orderly rows; their forms a snaking line of darkness that wound through the void. Leading them at the very front was a twisted creature, one that Kai would recognize immediately—the Ending of Impersonation.

Its elongated limbs moved with a predator’s grace.

And its porcelain-mask-like face swept over the surrounding area.

Due to the accumulated control over the night bestowed by their sheer number, the darkness around was pushed even further, allowing him to perceive about two hundred yards around; an impressive field of vision for any Nightborn on the First Floor.

Soon, the horde stumbled across another Nightborn.

Seeing another willing recruit, the Ending of Impersonation raised a hand.

A signal for the horde to stop.

Noticing the disturbance in the air, the Nightborn turned around until it was facing the Ending of Impersonation along with its horde. And only then did the Nightborn’s physique come into full view.

It was short, really short like a dwarf, with long arms that reached all the way to the ground.

Such disproportionate limbs made it look unnerving.

But not as much as the Ending of Impersonation.

Feeling the gazes of a hundred Nightborns fixed on it, the short Nightborn froze. Afraid.

"Kindred, do not be afraid." The Ending of Impersonation approached and appeased the short Nightborn’s fright. "We are all of the same kind. Though there are unreasonable ones out there that forgot, we do not."

Realizing that it wasn’t going to be attacked, the short Nightborn visibly eased a little.

Though its face remained guarded.

"W-What do you want?" It finally asked.

"As I said, we are kindred," the Ending of Impersonation repeated, and then let out a heavy sigh, as if there was a weight on its shoulders that was weighing it down. "But there was one entity that was not our kindred—the Child of the Primordial Night. He’s not one of us, so we must band together to push him away."

It reached out its hand toward the short Nightborn, "Join us. Help us dispel him for good, and there would be peace among us."

Hesitation flickered in the short Nightborn’s eyes.

Even though the Child of the Primordial Night was not a Nightborn—he was still an entity of the night. Someone who held power within the House of Night. And going against someone like that sounded too dangerous.

It looked at the horde—a hundred strong, all gazes fixed on it, waiting.

Pressure builds up, suffocating the air.

It didn’t know what to do.

Refusing this invitation would mean standing alone against overwhelming numbers—but go against the Child of the Primordial Night and it could be erased from existence. Both options evoked nothing but fear.

Sensing fear, the Ending of Impersonation leaned closer.

Its eerie mask-like face stopped an inch away from the short Nightborn; eyes glinted evilly.

"Fear is a good thing, little kindred," the Ending of Impersonation said—softly. "It could bind us together. It makes us do the impossible. You are afraid right now. I can see it. Good. Allow that fear to unite you with us. Allow it to give you purpose. Fight for our kind."

Hearing this, the short Nightborn’s hesitation deepened.

It looked at the horde again, and then at the Ending of Impersonation.

Just when it was about to reluctantly nod, the darkness around them swept. It swam around like a whirlpool, hinting activity beyond the darkness that none of them were aware about.

And above, a red mask of a screaming woman appeared.