Shadow Slave

Just like that, a week had passed. Miraculously, Sunny had survived.

Even more miraculously, he had somehow managed not to kill Effie... which was a big accomplishment in and of itself. In fact, by the end of it, their forced cohabitation had turned rather pleasant.

They were both solitary hunters, after all. There was an instinctive understanding between the two of them.

His overall combat skill and particularly comprehension of both his own battle style and that of the Stone Saint had improved by leaps and bounds. He felt faster, stronger, and better prepared to face the horrors of the Dream Realm.

Although he had yet to reach the same level of physical power that he had possessed before sacrificing a hundred shadow fragments to create the Shadow Saint, Sunny felt that the current him was far deadlier of an opponent.

Which was good, considering how fast the grim future was approaching.

...Currently, Sunny and Effie were sitting on the support beam of the main hall of the cathedral, looking down from the head-spinning height. Far below and away from them, the Black Knight walked through the patches of light and darkness, continuing his neverending patrol.

Effie scowled, then whispered:

"So this is the bastard?"

Sunny gave her a gloomy nod.

"Yeah. In the flesh… or whatever he has instead of it."

The unruly huntress gave him a long look.

"How the hell did you manage to live through a fight with that fiend?"

He grimaced.

"Barely. Also, calling it a fight is giving me too much credit. I just got myself gutted and crawled outside. He never leaves the cathedral, so I got away."

She shivered.

"Are you sure that he won't hear us?"

Sunny pointed down.

"As long as he doesn't walk past that column, and as long as we're not too loud and keep our voice down, we're safe. Trust me. I've been studying that bastard for two whole months."

Effie suddenly grinned.

"So… how loud are we talking about? Because I can promise to…"

Sunny rolled his eyes.

"Can you stop? We're in a temple, for gods' sake."

He didn't need to hear the end of the phrase to know that it was going to be highly suggestive and very inappropriate.

She quietly giggled.

"Fine, fine."

down and saw that the pale light of dawn was slowly turning brighter. It was almost time for the two of them to

request. Depending on his choice, he and Effie would,

Sunny quietly sighed.

to the huntress,

I ask

him with a silent question

"Sure. Go ahead, doofus."

of the situation.

were you dropped on your

times, then suddenly pressed both hands against her mouth to suppress a laugh. In the process, she almost fell down from the

get

her

so damn cheerful all the time? It's not normal. You're like a crazy person… and I know a thing or two about that, mind

The huntress smiled.

"Ah. That."

Then, she shrugged.

"It's simple, really."

for the explanation, noticing an unfamiliar air of melancholy around the vigorous young

of you seemed to believe.

She hesitated.

me, it's a

glanced at her and

"How so?"

Effie sighed.

understand. But for some of us, the real world was

turned away, thinking about his one life in the outskirts. The reason he was able to adapt so well to

What kind of a paradise

on the young woman's

we

at Sunny

right? So you didn't receive a lot of

He shook his head.

She chuckled.

basically propaganda camps, anyway. They teach kids some useful stuff, but also turn them unable to

Sunny raised an eyebrow.

"The truth?"

him

the world, really. Just the part of the ecosystem that we need

memory. A year or so before Sunny was born, a whole continent

quickly overturned

our planet without anyone's help. There were more than ten billion people on Earth a couple of hundred years ago, did you know? But now, there's barely three. And half of them only have food and shelter because of us Awakened and the powers we possess. Which were given to us

poisonous, acrid air of the outskirts. The inhuman conditions in the underground factory where his mother had worked. The towering barriers protecting the city from the deadly winds of the wasteland outside. He knew, of course, that

it that much.

Effie shrugged.

if you ask me… I think that one day in the future,

that ominous note, she stood up and stretched her