Shadow Slave

Life, indeed, was good. In fact, Sunny would even go so far as to say that, currently, it was wonderful.

One would expect that being stuck in a cursed city located in the middle of an actual hell, surrounded by nothing but ruins and horrifying monsters, was not really the best way to live your life. But to him, this was somewhat of a paradise.

To his surprise, Sunny had found out that this type of existence suited him pretty well. He had no obligations, no need to worry about the future and, most importantly, was not required to interact with other humans.

Humans always made things hard and complicated. He was sick of them.

Being on your own was much better. He didn't have to pretend to be someone else, force himself to behave differently from how he wanted to, and strain his mind trying to understand people's convoluted feelings.

For the first time in his life, Sunny could simply be himself.

Turns out, his true self was very easy to please. He had no shortage of interesting things to do, explore, and kill. His life was very entertaining and comfortable, all things considered.

It was at least way better than his pathetic existence in the outskirts, back in the real world.

The key to this harmonious feeling was very simple. It was to have no hope.

Sunny discovered that hope was the true enemy of peace. It was the most vile and poisonous thing in the universe. If there was even a glimmer of hope to return home, he would have been desperate, full of anxiety, and probably in the middle of some insane disaster right now.

Like he had always been before.

But without hope, things were simple and pleasant. He really couldn't wish for more.

"Keep telling yourself this crap. You might really believe it."

Sunny grinned.

"What is there to believe? It's the truth!"

The shadow silently shook its head, long accustomed to his crazy tirades. Lately, Sunny had been talking with himself a lot, having long arguments that sometimes descended into screaming matches. It was a good way to pass the time.

ruined cathedral, the entrance hidden behind a tall statue of some unknown goddess. There was

for any creature to climb on it by accident.

through the hole in its roof and landed on one of the wide support beams, then walked across and accidentally noticed the small

bastard had become neighbors. The bastard was, in fact, the guardian of this place. He patrolled the grand hall, killing anyone who dared to come inside. Sunny saw plenty of powerful Nightmare Creatures fall

a Nightmare Creature

that he was at

Sunny could sleep easy knowing that no monster would be able to reach the inner sanctum alive. Of course, he had to be careful to never be seen by his murderous

he wanted, waiting for a chance to exact his revenge. Sunny was hellbent on killing the damn knight, eventually. The bastard had

that, Sunny had to become stronger.

of the cathedral, he approached the hole in the roof and climbed

already reigning over the

was time

***

The creature had long arms that ended with

the monster was at least two meters tall. It was dressed in a torn shroud that was once white, but had

This was Sunny's prey.

called a Blood Fiend, was among the weakest dwellers of the cursed city. It was merely an awakened monster, barely

all, each

the fact that they shared the same rank and class, Blood Fiends were less formidable than Carapace Centurions in terms of strength and speed. However, that was only until they

the Nightmare Creature from

a few of these monsters in the past and had a great time each time… well, except for this one encounter where he had accidentally scratched

die,

around and fell on all fours, his sensitive ears picking up the slightest rustle. Then, he took a few careful steps

front of the fiend, an ordinary-looking

second later, the rock

it

for a moment, then turned around with lightning-fast

body separated from the lower. Still refusing to die, the monster reached out