Shadow slave fanfic: The Prince of Death

The once-mighty Immortal Flame Clan had withered down to a single Ascended vassal and barely half a dozen retainers, Awakened or mundane.

Not a single true clan member remained—except for their last heir, Nephis, and her grandmother, Lunarin.

So, before making his move, Abel reached out to the one man still standing guard over the fallen clan—their last instructor, Ascended Rengoku.

Rengoku was a man of duty, much like Abel. When Abel confided in him about supporting the clan under the guise of two Masters training their students together, Rengoku took the idea straight to the clan's matriarch.

"If they aren't spies from the Great Clans embedded within the government, and this is the government's way of quietly aiding us without breaking neutrality," he argued, "then this is a great opportunity to improve Lady Nephis' chances of survival in the Dream Realm."

Lunarin, however, remained skeptical.

"But, Ren… what if this isn't the government's scheme at all? What if it's just this Master acting alone? Can we really trust them?"

Rengoku met her gaze steadily.

"My lady, Kingmaker may be young in his career, but his integrity is well known. Even if he is working alone… does it really matter? As long as we can gain something from this arrangement?"

Lunarin's frown deepened.

Rengoku pressed on. "We don't have to reveal the true battle art. We can observe them for a few months first, then decide if they are worthy of our trust."

Lunarin remained quiet, deep in thought. She knew that without the proper backing of a clan, her granddaughter's fate was grim. The Dream Realm was a death sentence to the unprepared. If she wanted Nephis to stand a chance, she had to take risks.

But only calculated ones.

Finally, she exhaled.

"Very well. Set up the meeting."

And so, Abel and Sunny arrived at the Immortal Flame Manor—not as government envoys, but under the guise of a Master bringing his son to train with another. A simple, harmless exchange.

Masked as nothing more than an Ascended tutor taking on a private student for extra coin.

In truth, Abel had secured private permission from Saint Cor to orchestrate this stunt. Whether Cor had acted out of pity, indifference, or the chance to gain a future ally, he had agreed to Abel's request.

The manor, once a proud stronghold, was now a husk of its former glory.

Inside, they were led to a dimly lit hall where three people awaited them: Nephis's grandmother, the last matriarch of the clan, Nephis herself and her instructor, rengoku. Two dormant servants stood guard outside.

Lady Lunarin, despite her age and lack of power, carried herself with quiet authority. She had been the wife of the legendary Immortal Flame and the mother of Smile of Heaven. A woman like that did not tremble before mere masters.

But she was wary.

To her, there was a chance the great clans had sent an assassin afterall. If the Great Clans wanted to wipe them out, pinning the blame on the government would be all too convenient.

And they definitely had spies in the government too.

Her sharp gaze landed on Abel.

"What brings the government's esteemed Master to our ruined house?"

Abel bowed slightly. "Lady Lunarin, it's my honor to be—"

"Get to the point, Ascended," she interrupted coldly.

She was in no mood for pleasantries.

Abel didn't take offense. He hadn't expected her to trust him, and he certainly wasn't here to scheme.

"You see, we at the government are aware of your clan's plight. However, if we were to act directly, it would be seen as taking sides, which could endanger our own position."

Lunarin's eyes darkened.

"That is why I am here, as an individual," Abel continued. "And why I have a proposal for you."

"A proposal?"

"Yes." Abel gestured toward Sunny. "This is my son, Sunless. He is perhaps one of the most capable children of his generation. If you agree to share your clan's fighting style with him, thus strengthening the government's future, we will ensure that your granddaughter—should she be chosen by the Spell—will not struggle in the Dream Realm, we will supply her with enough memories or soul fragments.

And when she returns, she will have a place in our citadels."

Lunarin remained still, her expression unreadable.

"You ask to learn our clan's secret techniques. And what happens if you abandon us after we give you what you want?"

Abel met her gaze without hesitation.

"Then the government would be the most despicable institution in both worlds. And I assure you, we have no desire for that title."

She thought for a moment.

"But aren't you just working for the government? You are not completely bound to it, there's no guarantee your son will be part of the government too.

So why would the government waste resources to train a kid that might not even be with them later on?"

"You are right my lady, the government is indeed like a day job for me, and thus it wouldn't be the government paying you directly, I'll use my contribution points to purchase whatever lady nephis wishes for instead."

Lunarin studied him carefully. Something about this felt like a trap… but she couldn't see where.

In the end, logic won.

She agreed.

After further negotiations, an arrangement was made.

Sunny would train with Nephis for two hours each day—though that time soon increased in the future because of neph's pleading.

And for the Winter Solstice, Nephis would receive seven awakened memories, soul fragments of similar value, or a mixture of both. Once she passed her first Nightmare.

---

The next day, the time for the joint training came.

The dojo was vast, lined with old training dummies and wooden weapon racks. At one end stood Nephis, waiting silently.

Before sunny arrived, nephis had doubts about this deal, so she asked her teacher with curiosity.

"What if he is an assassin?"

"Highly unlikely, his family is rather well known nowadays, so they wouldn't risk it. And even if he was, I'll be right here to defend you." Rengoku smirked "Not that you need it against a mundane kid."

"But do I have to spar with him? Why don't you just teach him directly?"

"We will assess his skills first, if he is indeed a partner worthy of you, then this will be a great opportunity to improve your skills. If he isn't, then I'll change the training to be direct courses by me."

Rengoku could see the apprehension in neph's eyes so he tried to convince her further.

"Right now the clan lacks the resources to fund you my lady, but recieving some as payment for this joint training would boost your survival chances severely.

And if the kid is actually good, you'll become stronger too, it's also important to have allies in this world."

"I'm strong enough to survive on my own..."

"Sure you are strong, stronger than any other mundane person. But remember the first rule of dreamrealm nephis.

No one survives in the dreamrealm alone."

Soon, sunny arrived at the manor and was escorted to the training hall.

In the center, he saw an Ascended instructor standing with arms crossed. His gaze flickered to Sunny with barely veiled wariness.

"Lady Nephis," the man announced. "This is Sunless. Your new sparring partner. From now on, you will train together."

He turned to Sunny with a stoic demeanor.

"Let's see how good you actually are, I have high expectations from someone trained by kingmaker himself"

Sunny simply nodded at the man and looked at Nephis.

Her hair was still black—untouched by the Spell. Her posture was composed, but not yet hardened by suffering.

She looked… awkward....and innocent.

Sunny grinned.

"Hello, Princess~ I hope you don't disappoint me."

The instructor's glare darkened, his aura pressing down in warning.

Nephis, however, barely reacted.

But Sunny knew this was the first crack. If he wanted to break through her cold exterior, he couldn't be polite.

He had to be familiar...and unhinged.

Just like he had been in his past life.

Nephis tilted her head.

"Is Sunless your real name?"

Sunny was caught off guard.

Is that really her first sentence to me?

"Uh—yes. My mother had a potetic soul, you see."

"Po…tetic?"

Sunny froze.

The Devil of Antarctica had stuttered in his first conversation with his crush.

"I—I meant poetic! Sorry!"

Nephis remained expressionless, but the smallest hint of amusement flickered across her lips.

Sunny felt his soul leave his body.

Embarrassed, he quickly changed the subject.

"Anyway! Let's have a good match!"

---

The duel began.

Their blades clashed, an imitation of the flowing style clashing against a plethora of inferior ones.

For Nephis, it was exhilarating.

She had never fought someone so close to her level before.

Awakened were too strong yet too unskilled to match her. Masters were too powerful to hold back without making it meaningless.

But this boy…

He was different.

It was as if he had no single style. His movements shifted unpredictably, weaving techniques together in a fluid dance, albiet crudely. It forced her to adapt, to push herself in ways she never had before.

She wasn't just fighting him.

She was learning from him.

Sunny, on the other hand, was experiencing something different.

He had fought Sovereigns. Killed cursed ones. Defeated harrowing abominations beyond imagination. Slayed more titans than most people had seen.

Compared to that, this was nothing.

And yet…

It was everything.

Because right now, he was just a mundane.

All he had were his memories, his body didn't actually know those styles, so he had to practice them all again.

And while he could just learn the immortal flame style by his memories, seeing it in person was a different thing entirely.

The Immortal Flame style was his seventieth. A piece of the puzzle. And with it, he was one step closer to the First Step of Shadow Dance, even before his aspect was obtained.

Lost in the battle, he didn't even notice when the duel ended.

He made sure not to defeat Nephis outright—but truthfully, he couldn't have beaten her without going all out either.

Master Rengoku finally stepped forward to provide further training, training under a master was a boon on its own. He didn't even realise how quickly time passed and two hours were over.

As he turned to leave, a voice unexpectedly called out.

"Goodbye, Sunless."

He paused.

Nephis met his eyes.

"I look forward to sparring with you again."

For a moment, Sunny forgot how to breathe.

Then, with a grin, he waved.

"Good night, Nephis! I look forward to it too!"

As he walked down the road, his thoughts were a mess.

"She must still suspect me of being an assassin. But being backed by the government has lowered her guard. If I keep spending time with her, she'll grow to trust me."

Then, suddenly—

"Wait. Did I just say 'good night' instead of 'goodbye'?"

His steps faltered.

"She must think I'm an idiot. No—worse. A creep. Oh God!"