[SHADOW SLAVE] / Clash With Fate

At the base of the hill, Sunny was looking down at the outer settlement, which looked much better than it had when they first arrived. Their plan had gone as expected he and Nephis came to the outer settlement, she announced her true name, and the food they had hunted was distributed. The sleepers were hesitant at first, but when the first person dared to take a piece of meat, the rest rushed in after him.

It was honestly a touching sight — to see hundreds of sleepers being fed by them. After that, more joined the hunting parties, which were then divided: Effie led one, and Nephis and Sunny led another. Things were going well. A hut was rebuilt to be their headquarters, and plans and orders were issued from there to the hunting groups.

But all things come to an end. The two weeks Sunny had promised to stay and help Nephis were over, and now he had to focus on himself. After all, he shouldn't interfere too much in Nephis's decisions, or he would hinder her growth.

Four figures left the outer settlement. They were: Nephis, followed by Cassie, Effie, and one of the experienced hunters from the outer settlement — Jubi. Jubi hadn't challenged Gunlaug yet, so he wasn't dead, and Sunny made sure he wouldn't. Jubi was one of the few who survived hunting in the Dark City — other than those in the castle — and was one of the most skilled hunters in the outer settlement.

The group approached Sunny, who was waiting for them, and when they got close enough for him to hear them, Effie shouted at the top of her lungs:

"Dufus! You bastard — is what the Princess said true? You're leaving us to live in the Dark City? You're insane!"

"That's right, you cow. I'm going there to grow stronger. Don't worry — if you need me, I can help you. That doesn't mean I'm cutting myself off from you."

When they reached Sunny, Nephis stepped forward, looking at him with sadness and regret as she spoke.

"Is there anything that would change your mind? I—" Sunny cut her off.

"No. Nothing will change my mind. This is better for both me and you… And also, you don't need me. I know that. You can become stronger through hardship."

"So I guess… this is goodbye."

"Hahaha, don't make it sound like I'm dying."

Nephis stepped back to rejoin the group, and Cassie stepped forward, tears in her eyes. She walked up to Sunny, opened her arms, and hugged him tightly.

"Sunny… protect yourself. Be careful. Don't get hurt."

"I know, Cassie. I'm the most careful person here, in case you didn't know."

After Cassie stepped back, Effie and Jubi approached at the same time and said their goodbyes. Well, Effie didn't do that — she just said bluntly:

"Crazy Dufus. Damn Dufus. Don't you dare die, or I'll come talk over your grave every day."

That alone was enough motivation for Sunny not to die. After saying their goodbyes, Sunny headed into the Dark City, making his way toward the cathedral he had lived in during his previous life. He moved through ruins and crumbling buildings, or along the streets like a shadow. No human or beast could detect him while he was in the shadows — all thanks to his shadow god lineage.

[You have slain an Awakened Demon: Swamp Dweller]

[Your shadow grows stronger]

[You have slain…]

Crab was also moving through the city, hunting weak beasts and bringing soul shards to Sunny. Crab had become an Ascended Demon and was a great help to Sunny. As for the serpent, Sunny would need a few days to merge parts from his previous and current life to unlock the third step of Shadow Dance.

The serpent and Crab were just helpers. What Sunny truly wanted was power that was his alone. He never liked being weak. Sure, he enjoyed being seen as weak—sometimes even as someone not worth noticing—but he didn't do that because he wanted to. He simply preferred to stay out of the spotlight.

Sunny climbed to the roof of the cathedral and entered through a hole in the tiles. His body was slim, so the hole was wide enough for him. He dropped onto the cathedral's beams and made his way to the hidden balcony behind the statue of the priestess, where he found his familiar room. When he entered and saw the bed and the fancy wooden furniture, a wide smile appeared on his face.

"Ah, bed… how I missed you. And you, table… I won't let Effie break you again!"

He jumped onto the bed and set a timer on the [ordinary rock]to wake him up. Sunny closed his eyes, but what bothered him was that Crab kept killing things, which made the spell whisper in his ear every time. Sunny ignored the voice and shut his eyes.

"Wake up, Sunless — your nightmare is over!"

"Wake up, Sunless — your nightmare is over!"

"Ugh… five more minutes."

"Wake up, Sunless — your nightmare is over!"

Sunny got out of bed, scanned the room with his eyes, then dismissed the regular stone. But before he could move, he heard something that froze him in place.

[Your shadow overflows with power]

[Your shadow takes form]

"Ah, damn it — screw you, Crab!"

Agonizing pain assaulted him without warning, and he let out a sharp cry of pain. The pain was so bad — worse than forming a Monster Core — like reshaping your soul and making it stronger. He slammed the bed, making it shake a little. He bit his lips and waited for the pain to pass. It lasted minutes before finally fading.

[Your shadow has been completed]

Sunny dismissed Crab's summons, then entered his Soul Sea. In his Soul Sea, three black suns were shining, and more than two thousand shadows surrounded him, watching with reverence and solemnity. He ignored them and summoned Crab. Crab appeared before him — unchanged in size or shape, exactly how Sunny remembered him — but now more menacing. What caught Sunny's attention was that Crab was injured and had lost one of his pincers, with serious wounds all over. Sunny examined him for a while, then sent him for healing within his soul.

Name: Sunless

True Name: Herald of Death

Rank: Dreamer

Shadow Core: Dormant

CLASS: Demon

Shadow Cores: [3/7]

Beneath Sunny, a new shadow formed. Gloomy looked at it with disdain, while Happy observed it with curiosity. The new shadow didn't move. Sunny ordered it to raise its arm — two seconds later, it did. The corners of Sunny's mouth twitched.

"I think you skipped the queue, you lazy bum… Anyway, welcome to the family. This is Gloomy, this is Happy, and you're Lazy. Alright, introductions over — let's get to work. We'll craft a storage Memory. It's very important around here. And a drinking horn — ah, not for alcohol, but for water."

Sunny held a horn he had gotten from a nightmare creature in the Dark City. Now it held endless water. He named it The Overflowing Horn. On the table was a large bag — a storage Memory. He had an easy time weaving this time because the serpent was warped with three shadows and generated shadow essence very efficiently.

At night, Sunny left the cathedral. He moved through the shadows, killing as many nightmare creatures as he could, but he didn't forget his goal: he wanted to acquire the Saint's Echo. The battle between the Fallen beasts and the Saint with her brothers would take about a month. Sunny couldn't waste all that time waiting — so he went to retrieve it.

"Ugh, I've never hated killing this much in my life. I feel like a tyrant slaughtering his followers… No. I'm not going to kill her — I'll return her to where she belongs!"

Sunny reached the plaza. At its center stood unmoving human-shaped statues. The Stone Saints looked exactly like statues, and anyone unlucky enough to pass near them would die. The elder brothers of the Saint stood beside her — she looked small and weak, but Sunny knew better than anyone that she was likely the most deadly among them.

After observing them, Sunny climbed one of the ruined buildings and took up a vantage point from which he could shoot the Saint. He knew he might get beaten badly by the Saint and her brothers, but he didn't care. He kept circulating shadow essence using the serpent and sent one of his shadows to enhance Crab.

In the plaza, a noise was heard, and the Stone Saints opened their eyes to look at the intruder before them — a creature the size of a house, with a human torso, pincers, and scythes protruding from its back, staring at them with eyes black and cloaked in deep shadows. The Stone Saints charged at the intruder, and it charged back at them.

The Saints fought smart and coordinated, but the intruder relied on brute strength and didn't get distracted by their attacks — it focused on one Stone Saint. A Stone Saint made a shallow cut on the creature's pincer, but was grabbed before he could escape and crushed to dust.

[You have slain an Awakened Beast: Stone Saint]

[Your shadow grows stronger]

The other Saints tried to avenge their Brother. One of them, a female Stone Saint, charged at the intruder without hesitation, sacrificing herself for a chance to wound or kill it. She struck its shell, leaving a deep wound, but was smashed hard and thrown into the wall of a ruined structure.

[You have slain an Awakened Beast: Stone Saint]

[Your shadow grows stronger]

The spell whispered in Sunny's ear as he circulated his soul essence, watching Crab struggle under the barrage of attacks. He could take down one or two Saints, but not all of them — that left his defense exposed, and he was getting shredded. Sunny dismissed the bow for a simple reason.

The spot where the Stone Saint had crashed was the same building he was in. He summoned Midnight Shard and rushed toward her. The Saint rose from the rubble and pulled the stones off herself. Crimson dust seeped from her cracks, and her once-proud armor was dented and riddled with gruesome wounds. Now, standing before her was a human holding a tachi, staring at her with…

Pity? Sadness? Longing? She didn't know — but she considered it an insult to her pride as a child of the underworld.

The Saint raised her sword and struck with her immense strength — it clashed with Sunny's blade, making his bones groan. He stepped back, realizing clashing head-on with the Saint wasn't wise. He tried to dodge her strikes — but even that wasn't enough.

The Saint pressured him with flawless technique — her defense unbreakable and her offense precise and calculated. But for Sunny, who had delved deep into her style, merged it with the Broken Sword style, and created several styles based on hers — it wasn't a problem.

Before Midnight Shard clashed with the Saint's sword, Sunny had his shadows warped around it.

Midnight Shard cut through the Stone Saint's sword, then sliced across her shoulder, leaving a deep gash. Sunny didn't give her a chance — he pulled the blade quickly and drove it into her helmet. And before she fell, he whispered:

"I'm sorry… believe me, I am. You'll have another chance — trust me."

It seemed the spell was moved by his words, as it spoke:

[You have slain an Awakened Monster: Stone Saint]

[Your shadow grows stronger]

[You have received an Echo: Stone Saint]