Shadow Slave

As they passed through the ornate gates, a large hall opened up before them. Hearing a strange rustle from above, Sunny raised his head and saw tall windows with stained glass panes soaring to the distant ceiling. During the day, the hall must have been filled with cascading rays of beautiful light.

Currently, though, several young women were nimbly moving from one window to another, draping them with thick sheets of crude fabric. The makeshift wooden ladders they used creaked and cracked, creating a strange and almost melodic sound.

It seemed as though the sheets of fabric were being fastened in a way that prevented even the smallest glint of light from escaping the castle during the night. Sunny suspected that every window in the marble fortress was currently being covered in the same way.

Just as this thought appeared in his mind, a loud noise thundered behind their backs. Turning around, he saw the ornate gates closing. The two guards who had met them outside were already sliding a heavy iron bolt into the sockets, their faces red from strain. The massive bar must have weighed more than the two of them combined.

The castle was now sealed from the outside world, ready to face the onslaught of cursed darkness.

Suddenly, Sunny felt like an animal caught in a cage.

Trying to calm himself down, he looked around and noticed an opulent wooden desk that looked completely out of place in the grand hall. It must have been dragged here from some other part of the marble citadel. Behind the desk, a gaunt young man with nervous eyes was writing something down on a piece of parchment.

The whole thing looked strangely similar to a reception desk in a luxurious hotel… or, rather, to what Sunny imagined such a thing would look like. He had never actually been to a hotel, of course.

Hesitating for a few moments, he walked over to the desk and addressed the young man:

"Hey. Uh… we've been told that someone will meet us inside."

The castle receptionist flinched and looked up from his paper, a fearful expression appearing on his face. When he realized who was speaking to him, though, the fear disappeared, replaced by a tentative smile.

complexion. He looked hungry and weak, much more like those poor souls in the outer settlement

guests! Sorry, you gave me a fright there. Welcome, welcome to the Bright Castle. Whoah, you were just in time. A couple of minutes

tense glance at the two guards and

name is Harper. I'm responsible for guest accommodations today. Let's get you… oh! I don't seem to recognize you guys. Is this your

a couple of seconds, feeling Cassie squeeze

"Yes."

Harper smiled.

it was just a few months ago. But ever since Lord Gunlaug graced me with his kindness, I've been living in

'...Right.'

if the young man was sincere in his gratitude to the local tyrant or was simply

did not seem as surprised by the timing of their arrival into the Dark City as Effie had been. But then he realized that

probably assume that he and Cassie had entered the Dream Realm close to the ruins and then spent the last two months scrounging for soul shards to pay their way into the castle.

by the fact that they had managed to

with the corner of

do we need to do

his quill and opened

mark when the two of you paid the tribute, and that's pretty much it. We have a lot of spare

nervous glint

western part of the castle, facing

to Sunny, fewer people meant less danger. He gave the gaunt young man

"Sure. No problem."