Shadow Slave

Effie regarded the cathedral for some time, then glanced at Sunny with doubt.

"I know for a fact that nothing comes out alive from that temple. Are you sure that this is where you live?"

With a carefree smile, Sunny shrugged. The fact that Effie knew about the danger hiding inside the ruined church did not surprise him. Even if it was situated outside of her usual hunting grounds, she had extensive knowledge of the Dark City, some from her own exploration, some from sharing information with other hunters.

Dead tired and longing to return to the peaceful silence of his home, he didn't waste any time and told her about the Black Knight who guarded the cathedral.

The unruly huntress scratched the back of her head.

"So… there's a Fallen Devil inside? He's the roommate you were talking about?"

Sunny gave her a nod.

"The bastard endlessly patrols the ground floor and kills anything that comes through the doors. However, if we enter through the roof and stay hidden, we can reach my living quarters without any problem. More than that, nothing will bother us once we're there, because the bastard never comes that way and obliterates anything that tries."

Effie was silent for a while, then grinned.

"So, you basically have a devil for a butler. Pretty smart…"

Sunny chuckled.

'Was that a compliment?'

"...for a doofus like you."

'Ah, there it is.'

Once they climbed up to the roof, there was a slight problem. Sunny failed to consider that the hole in the tiles that he used to enter the cathedral, while wide enough for his small frame, would be too tight for the tall and robust huntress to crawl through. Looking at the narrow gap between the massive plates of dark marble, Effie gave him a gloomy look.

However, before Sunny could come up with an alternative plan, she simply bent down, grabbed one of the incredibly heavy plates, and moved it aside. The words died on his lips.

'S—strong. So strong. I wonder who is stronger, she or the Stone Saint.'

Honestly, he wasn't sure.

Before proceeding further, Sunny instructed Effie on how they were going to get her inside the hidden chamber and watched as the huntress reluctantly dismissed her bronze armor. With only a short white tunic covering her lovely olive skin and abundant figure, she looked very… uh… comely. For a moment, his displeasure of having someone intrude upon the secluded peacefulness of his lair evaporated.

…But only for a moment.

too much of a risk. We can't allow

Effie grinned.

are you talking about having strange ideas all

turned away to hide his blushing face,

'Damn woman!'

sun was still high in the sky, there wasn't any sunlight

even then, large areas of the grand hall

born from the absence of light, but true darkness, one which even his sight could not pierce. Sunny didn't know if it was summoned here by the Black

the beams of the cathedral. One wrong

'What a bother.'

close their bodies were to each other, Sunny

ideas… who's having strange ideas?

statue of the unknown goddess. Despite the fact that nothing

him that this was going to be a really long

chamber, Sunny informed Effie that she was free to create light and speak. Not wasting any time, the unruly huntress summoned a radiant Memory and looked around with

beautiful and spacious room that had once belonged to the priestess of this ancient temple was suddenly flooded with soft light. The intricate engravings on the walls created an atmosphere of sanctity and elegance. Here and there stood various pieces of furniture, most made out of opulent pale wood, with a

Effie whistled.

Sunny. You sure know how to live in style.

He smiled.

"Jealous?"

She sighed.

that even if Gunlaug tracks us here, none of

Slightly disappointed, Sunny shrugged.

make yourself at home. I'll show you the back exit and other stuff

more presentable. If he had known that there was going to be a guest here, he would have

paid it much attention. She walked around with curiosity, studying

Sunny heard a

saw Effie standing in front of the wardrobe hidden behind a stone panel.

huntress looked at him

she

"What?"

Effie shook her head.

saw you, I thought — look at this tiny boy! He's just like a toy! You just want to

of times,

are you calling tiny? I'm not

paying him any attention, the huntress glanced at the