[SHADOW SLAVE] / Clash With Fate

Beside the massive corpse of the Spire Messenger, Sunny stood watching Crab tearing into the pale corpse and eating from it. Crab was a scavenger in the end, so he could evolve by eating corpses, and that was what he had been doing all along. He didn't gain many shadow fragments, but there were many creatures in the Dark City and the labyrinth that kept him supplied with a steady stream of corpses.

The tired cohort approached Sunny as they watched the Shell Demon ripping apart the Spire Messenger's corpse and devouring it greedily. Nephis spoke:

"Did you get it?"

"Yes, let me summon it."

Sunny summoned the Dusk Shard. A heavy shield weighing hundreds of kilograms formed on his arm. Previously, he hadn't been able to carry this shield, but now with five cores and the reinforcement of his shadows, carrying it was extremely easy. After moving the Dusk Shard slightly with his arm, he looked at Effie.

"Effie, will you accept this as your payment?"

"Are you serious, Sunny? This memory suits me very well, but that bastard was a monster, which means this memory is of the same Class."

"Don't worry, it doesn't suit me Well even though I'm very good at using it."

Effie moved toward Sunny and extended her hand. When Sunny grabbed her arm, an electric spark passed through it. And the sound of the spell was heard:

[You have received a memory…]

Effie's smile widened upon receiving her reward, which was frightening because of the soot, dust, and her disheveled appearance. Nephis spoke, announcing what they would do next.

"Set up our camp here. We'll start the return journey in two days. The journey will take a very long time, so rest well because we have a lot of work ahead."

___________________________

After two months and a few days, six figures moved leisurely, coming out of the Crimson Labyrinth behind them and advancing toward a dark gray wall.

The cohort had reached the Dark City very early. This was mostly thanks to Sunny and Nephis. The power of these two people was extremely unnatural, especially Sunny. His physical strength alone far surpassed Effie's, which embarrassed the huntress who usually knew no shame. As for Nephis, although she was weaker than Effie in terms of physical strength, her sword skills closed the gap and even surpassed Effie.

As for the rest of the cohort, each of them was deadly in their way. Caster was extremely fast and cut down Nightmare Creatures without them even seeing him. Kai's arrows were lethal, reinforcing the cohort from behind and striking the monsters' weak points with precision. As for Cassie, even though she couldn't see, she possessed memories that helped her sense her surroundings, given to her by Sunny. He had also provided her with an Awakened monster that he obtained as an Echo.

"Ah, how I miss my soft, luxurious bed… sleeping on the cold ground every day was exhausting."

"What's with you talking like girls, you doofus?"

"Do you know that sometimes it's better for you to just shut up and not talk so you don't get punched?"

The cohort moved and began climbing the wall of the Dark City. The sun would set in a few hours, so they had plenty of time to move through the Dark City and reach the Outer Settlement. Especially since the part they were moving through wasn't inhabited by Nightmare Creatures, as it was still relatively empty ever since Sunny hunted down all the monsters on the outskirts of the city.

Previously, Sunny had moved the cohort toward the Outer Settlement because he wanted to know if Gunlaug had attacked or posed the threat without doing anything. The old hunter Jubei was responsible for the Outer Settlement in their absence. His responsibility was to ensure that the fragile order Nephis had painstakingly established didn't collapse.

There was a significant possibility that Gunlaug had done nothing, as this decision would be opposed by Gemma, Sieshan, and Kido. They couldn't act directly, but they could delay Gunlaug's actions until their return.

The hill appeared in Sunny's line of sight and on the Top of the Hill the bright castle Stood. and At its base, walls and tall towers rose, reaching ten meters in height. And in front of its gate stood two Sleepers, languid and lazy, leaning on their weapons.

"These lazy bums! I should beat them a little so they'll be more dedicated to their work!"

The Sleepers turned their heads toward the sound of running. They raised their weapons toward the stranger but soon lowered them, frightened. The stranger possessed a strange presence around him, cold, calculating eyes, and in the depths of his pupils, darkness and shadows danced. His movements were perfect and precisely calculated. One of the Sleepers asked:

"Who are you?… And what are you doing here?"

"Me? I'm Sunny Sunless, if you don't know who I am."

"Sunless?! Are you herald of Death? Didn't you go with Lady Changing Star on a mission?"

"Ah, you sure have a lot of questions… Yes, I'm Herald Of Death. As for Nephis, she's behind me with the others. I came to see if Gunlaug did anything… By the way, is Jubei inside the settlement, or did he go out to lead a hunting party?"

"He's… he's inside, but…"

"But what?"

"His condition isn't good. He was attacked by some of the Bright Castle hunters, and his injuries are severe. He was poisoned by one of the hunters, and we couldn't rid his body of the toxin that's eating him from the inside."

"That's a problem. But don't worry, just wait for Nephis to arrive, and she'll heal him."

Sunny entered through the gate of the Outer Settlement after the Sleepers opened it for him. As soon as he entered, the gazes of the Sleepers inside the settlement fell on him as they were busy doing various tasks. Whispers spread among them, and hope ignited in them as soon as they realized who he was.

"This is so annoying. If this continues, it'll be very bad."

Sunny moved toward the hut located at the edge of the Outer Settlement Walls. Inside, many sounds and people were moving hurriedly. There were a lot of them—perhaps thirty people.

Sunny entered the hut, and the same gaze fell upon him, but he ignored them and advanced toward the stairs to descend into the basement.

Upon entering the basement, a foul smell reminiscent of rot and dying filled his nostrils. The source of the smell was a man lying on a bed, with half his body from arm to torso covered in black. Upon seeing Jubei's body, Sunny scowled.

The condition of the old hunter was extremely critical—he probably had only a day or a few hours left to live. Sunny didn't know whether this was his luck or some intervention from mysterious fate, but there was only a little time left before Nephis and the cohort arrived.

Sunny pulled a wooden chair and sat, waiting for the cohort to arrive. He had already done everything he could to ensure the old hunter's survival, but he couldn't remove the poison, as the poison was related to an Aspect of one of the hunters and wasn't created by a Memory.

"People are weak these days, dying even from poisoning! What is this weakness?"

"Sunny?"

Sunny lifted his eyes from Jubei and turned his head toward the door to find Nephis standing there with the rest of the scowling cohort.

"Ah, hello, Neph. As you can see, there's a man dying here. Will you help him?"

"All right. But did you go out and get some rest? We have a lot to discuss later."

Sunny rose from his chair, exhausted. He had sent four of his shadows to gather news from the Sleepers. He had heard so much and learned so much that it left him mentally drained. He was also tired from the return journey.

All he wanted was to return to the Cathedral and sleep in his bed.