No Return (Shadow Slave Fan-Fic)

After a few minutes , Levi got up and started walking towards Shashi who was laying on the ground. She looked paler than usual. 

He crouched down next to her , when she saw him , she gave him a smile.

"Look who's here.. you did a good job Blood Sack.."

Levi rolled his eyes at the nickname.

"That's not a nice thing to say you know.." 

Levi scoffed , then continued:

"That was a sick move , way to use your blood. You are very talented."

"Oh? Why , thank you."

After a moment of silence Shashi continued:

"Well you are being sweet and all , but how about you give me some blood instead of complimenting me? I would appreciate it much more in my current state."

"Tch.. Always asking for blood..."

She sat up , without waiting for him to lend her his arm , she took his wrist and yanked it towards her mouth. After aligning her tooth with his veins , she bit down a bit too hard , making Levi wince.

"Careful there.."

However Shashi didn't reply , she was busy sucking his blood as if her life depended on it. Her flaw was most likely connected to her craving blood.. because she never seemed to get enough..

Or maybe Levi's blood was just too tasty that she couldn't have enough of it.

Levi mentally slapped himself for that thought.

'Don't be Ridiculous..'

After a full minute of sucking out Levi's blood , Shashi finally let go of his wrist. She licked her lips , cleaning the blood off of them , then she looked at Levi and smiled.

"Thanks."

Levi nodded , then he got up to his feet. He summoned his red cloak back into existence , and covered his torso. He extended a hand towards Shashi , when she took it he pulled her up to her feet gently then let go of her hand. Together they walked to the other part of the group , it seemed Cassie had somehow climbed down from the tree by herself too..

***

Soon, the five of them were sitting in a circle, passing around the glass bottle full of cold, refreshing water. Sunny was in the middle of describing their fight with the Carapace Demon:

" ... so he got distracted for a few moments. That's when Levi attacked. He didn't even need to use his Aspect to corrode the armor! That bastard punched through it! Then he gripped the demons heart and withered it into dust!"

"The demon was already severely wounded from his fight with the ... the thing from the sea, so it was enough to finish him off. A few seconds later, he was dead."

Cassie shook her head in astonishment.

"That is ... incredible. Four Sleepers killing an awakened demon! I thought that stuff like that only happens in webtoons."

Nephis corrected her:

"Five Sleepers. Without your vision and advice, we wouldn't have been able to do anything."

The blind girl lowered her face, a little embarrassed.

"Still. Two or three, it doesn't really change a lot, does it?"

Sunny looked from one girl to another, then finally turned to Cassie.

"You're right, it's not something one would expect to happen. But, anyway ... I promised to cook demon meat for you after this is over, didn't I? Are you ready to witness my incredible culinary talent?"

He smiled, already tasting the juicy, tender meat in his mouth. However, Cassie suddenly frowned, a hesitant expression appearing on her face.

"I ... I don't know about that."

He raised his eyebrows.

"What? Why?"

She lingered before answering.

"Well, it just seems weird to eat the meat of an intelligent creature. Even if it was evil. I didn't think about it before, but now ... uh. It just doesn't seem right, I guess."

When she put it like that , Levi was feeling a bit weird too..

Misunderstanding Sunny's silence, Cassie blushed and said:

"Sorry. I know it seems ridiculous, but that's just how I feel. You and Neph don't have to do the same."

Sunny shook his head.

"No, you might be right. I understand ... sort of. It's just that we didn't bring any supplies with us, so we won't be able to eat anything unless we go hunting."

The blind girl sighed. Then, her face brightened and she said:

"What about the great tree's fruits? I bet they're delicious!"

Sunny looked at her in amazement.

"Are you serious?"

Cassie was visibly confused by his question.

"Uh ... yes? Why?"

Sunny blinked a couple of times before answering.

"That tree is magnificent and pretty, but it's also very strange and suspicious. Why is it able to grow here when nothing else can? I'm pretty sure that it's the reason why all the coral around the Ashen Barrow is dead. Have you seen anything else capable of damaging the labyrinth itself?"

Levi's eyes immediately narrowed.. Remembering the killing intent the tree had displayed towards him when he punched it. The tree was indeed suspicious.. however , Levi didn't want to reveal the things he knew just yet...

Sunny looked at Cassie, then at Nephis, trying to show how serious he was about this.

"In any case, it's too creepy. I don't think that we should eat these fruits. Who knows what they'll do to us?"

The blind girl smiled.

"You're being a little paranoid, don't you think? A tree is a tree. Actually, I think it's a wonderful example of how life can prevail against all odds, even in this terrible place. I'm willing to bet that its fruits are perfectly fine."

Levi stared at Cassie.. something was off about her.. He hoped that someone would decline the offer , and fortunately they did..

Crimson Matriarch thought things through before speaking. Then, she said in a measured voice:

"Sunny is right. There are too many strange things about that tree. Eating its fruits would be too risky."

Changing the topic Levi looked at Sunny.

"You sword broke yeah..?"

"Yes. It shattered when I blocked the demon's scythe."

Levi raised a hand.

"Well, you're in luck. I received a Memory after killing the Carapace Demon. It's a weapon ... "

Sunny tried very hard to not let his excitement show on his face. Pretending to be nonchalant, he kept his voice even and said:

"Really? That's good."

Levi scoffed as he took his hand , he heard the spell whisper into his ear..

[You have lost a memory: Midnight Shard.]

Not wasting any time, Sunny summoned the Midnight Shard. Immediately, an elegant sword appeared in his hand.

The sword looked a bit like the Azure Blade, but only in the sense that it was single-edged and had a long hilt suitable for two hands. However, this was where the similarities ended. For starters, its blade was much longer, somewhere between seventy and eighty centimeters, and slightly curved. It was forged out of the same bright, lustrous metal as the Carapace Demon's armor.

It was incredibly sharp.

The hilt was made out of polished black wood, quite similar in appearance to the onyx branches of the great tree. The crossguard was round in shape and more pronounced than that of the Azure Blade, offering better support and protection to the wielder's hand.

The sword had no decorations, no ornaments, no embellishments. It was simple and austere, like a true weapon designed for battle and battle alone. It seemed to radiate a cold, fearsome aura.

Admiring his new weapon, Sunny looked at Nephis and said:

"Even I know what type of sword this is. It's a ... a katana, right?"

She studied the Midnight Shard and then answered:

"Technically, it's a tachi. It's longer than a traditional katana and has a slightly different blade shape. But they're quite similar."

Sunny looked at Levi.

"Uh ... it's a very nice weapon. Tier three, no less. Are you sure that you don't want to keep it for yourself?"

"Nah.. Mine are more suited for my fighting style."

Afraid that the strange winged creature they had seen devouring a dead centurion would appear again, this time to claim the remains of the Carapace Demon, the five Sleepers relocated to a far side of the island and hid behind the trunk of the great tree.

Only when they were sure that nothing would be able to notice them from above did they finally allow the exhaustion to prevail and went to sleep.

Levi was awake , he hadn't slept the night. The others slept peacefully like always as he watched over them.

However, this time something strange happened.