Shadow Slave

Cassie smiled, but then suddenly frowned and asked:

"But, Sunny… how do we find her?"

He thought for a few seconds, then shrugged.

"I'm not sure. Follow the sounds of mayhem? This place is not that big. I'm sure we'll manage."

They descended the stairs and entered the slum, with Sunny looking around in search of the distinct tall figure. There weren't that many Sleepers in the outer settlement who possessed an armor-type Memory, so he was sure of his ability to notice Changing Star in the crowd.

Soon, they were surrounded by makeshift hovels and people that had empty, bleak eyes. Some of them stared at them with pity, realizing that the two had just been sent away from the castle, others openly gloated. Sunny paid them no attention.

Once again, he was surprised by the sharp contrast between the castle and the outer settlement. No matter how vile the underside of the ancient stronghold was, people were actually living there, walking around with mostly mundane human worries written on their faces.

Here in the slum, people were merely existing, and barely at that. In their eyes, there was a more dire need and a more consummate fear: the need to find food for the day, the fear of being devoured by some unseen monster in the night. They were all gaunt, cold, and listless.

The only time hope appeared on their faces was when their gazes accidentally fell on the Bright Castle.

'Hope will get you killed, fools. You have it better here than those poor souls in the fortress.'

All in all, it was not so different from the outskirts, with the added terror of Nightmare Creatures waiting somewhere in the shadows.

But then, there were monsters in the real world as well. They just wore human skin.

Sunny was once again reminded of how surprisingly well prepared he was for the trials of the Nightmare Spell, his lack of education not included.

Surprisingly, the was no sign of Nephis anywhere. They walked through the entire settlement before finally catching the glimpse of her.

spacious dwelling. It was crudely put together out of slabs of stone that had been unceremoniously scavenged from

white stone out of the entire outer settlement. Perhaps that was why it seemed to be a bit sturdier than the rest

legs crossed, gazing at the rising sun and the cursed city below. In the pale light of dawn, her ivory skin and silver hair looked beautiful and

piece of rope tied around her waist. Sensing their approach, Nephis turned her head

landing lightly on

Sunny grinned.

Long time

***

the stone lodge, which had turned out to be her new residence. The interior was spartan and austere, with pieces of broken furniture lying here and there and cold winds sweeping freely through the spacious hall of the

its larger size and superior craftsmanship, the lodge had been empty when she found it. No one wanted to live this close to both the edge of the

Looking around, Sunny scoffed.

surely needs some

shrugged, seemingly not very concerned with her living

did spend the past two months sleeping on nothing but rocks and dirt, so in a sense, even this ramshackle mess was an enormous improvement. With some improvements, it could

a little guilty about all the comfort and warmth he had

Speaking of food…

small bundle. Concerned about her friend, she had not eaten her supper the

Neph. I brought you something to

bundle with a faint smile and lingered a

do

that stood near one of the walls and removed a piece

was sizable enough to feed ten people in the castle for a

meat blankly, then moved his eyes to stare at

did you get all this meat? We thought you would be starving here in

touched her