Shadow Slave

In the morning, they set out for the castle.

Before leaving the safe haven of the granite tower, Effie gave them a list of instructions:

"Follow behind me. Listen to everything I say. Don't make any noise. Don't bleed. Don't think too much. Some of the creatures out there can hear noisy thoughts, others can sense strong emotions. So don't feel fear, either."

Sunny stared at her with a grim expression. How was he supposed to control what he feels?

The vigorous huntress grinned.

"What? You never tried to solve math equations in your head to impress a lovely lady? Just do the same."

As Sunny's сheeks began to turn bright red, she giggled and turned to Cassie and Neph:

"Correction. The two of you, try not to feel fear. Doofus, you try not to get too excited. If walking behind me turns out to be too much, ask to get slapped, alright?"

Sunny scowled and uttered through gritted teeth:

"That… won't be a problem."

Effie blinked a couple of times, then smiled.

"Ah! Playing for the other team? I see, I see…"

What… what was that supposed to mean?!

Trying to get his emotions under control, Sunny took a deep breath and counted to ten.

does she think

of granite that blocked the exit from the tower to the side. Lean muscles tensed and moved under her olive skin, making for a

to weigh

a glimpse of his stare, Effie raised an eyebrow and

"Like what you see?"

He answered on autopilot:

that's not why I was looking.

granite slab, then at

that. That's my Aspect Ability. It's a strong

many others, it was practically the ultimate warrior Ability. With not only her strength but also her speed, agility, endurance and resilience boosted, Effie was like one of those ancient heroes Neph sometimes talked about. Especially since that boost seemed to be so

large amount of soul essence over the years of hunting monsters in the Dark City. All those shards the recalcitrant huntress refused to pay as tribute to the

what her Ability was? Sharing secrets like that was not a wise thing to do, especially not in the ruthless reality of

surprise, Effie

eyes knows what my Ability can do. Do you want me to tell you what my Flaw

mischievous

anyone is insane enough to

needs. Why do you think I ate enough meat to create a literal pile of gnawed

and shook her

fun, not gonna

hard to come by, it was

not Sunny. He knew what hunger, real hunger, felt like. What it could do

reason why Effie was out here in the first place. Perhaps she had become a huntress not because she wanted to,

Sunny thought, a little confused.

said not to get

staring at him and cackling.

'Don't flatter yourself, beanpole!'