Shadow Slave

The eel tried to catch him, but was a second too late.

"Crap!"

Falling toward the dark waves, Sunny threw the kunai in the direction of the stone giant's hand.

Instead of a weapon, the colossus was holding a tool that resembled a mason's hammer. The kunai curved in the air and wrapped the invisible string around its shaft.

'This is going to hurt!'

Sunny plunged into the darkness. A moment later, the string drew taut, and he found himself swinging through the air at a terrible speed. Flying underneath the colossal stone fist, he almost touched the black water with his feet, but then the inertia pulled him up and away.

After a few seconds of weightlessness, Sunny landed on the hammer's head and let out a shaky breath. Without wasting any time, he dislodged the Prowling Thorn and pulled it into his hand, then wedged the dagger in a narrow crack on the surface of the giant hammer.

Landing on it was one thing. Staying here, though… that was something else entirely.

The colossus was swinging his arms as he walked, so Sunny basically found himself on top of a giant pendulum. Not only was the hammer swaying back and forth, but the angle of the surface he was standing on also constantly changed, making it hard not to fly off or slid into the raging sea.

Almost kneeling, Sunny held onto the kunai and tried to keep himself from falling. Then, his face pale and grim, he looked up and glanced at the eel.

"I'm right here, you slimy worm!"

The abomination lingered for a few moments, considering whether it should continue to climb up or follow the sound made by the prey. Finally, it twisted its long, repulsive body and slid over the shoulder of the giant, crawling down his arm.

Toward Sunny.

'Come on, come on!'

same effect on the giant eel as it had on the Corpse Eater.

cut himself with the

effect on the eel whatsoever. The monster continued to

embued my blood with the odd quality of always being attracted back to the larger mass

were crushed. Now, Sunny was stuck on the swinging hammer, with his only path of

"Damn it all!"

slashed at the slender tentacle that approached him. Even enhanced by the

'Not good, not good…'

few in number. These ones were used to

These were the ones that Sunny now had to dodge and

the eel got, the more tentacles assaulted Sunny from all sides. Dodging and deflecting them while maintaining his balance on the chaotically swinging hammer was an

Its steadiness and indomitability were translated through grounded footwork, which allowed him to plant himself

but think that Nephis was right. The best fighters weren't those who were

him well on the streets of the Dark City. But if he had continued to follow it narrowly and neglected to add flexibility to his technique

Take this situation, for example… what kind of a person would imagine that, one day, they would have to fight a translucent eel the size of a train atop a walking stone

expected to find himself in

the most important trait an Awakened fighter

numbered. The onslaught of the slender tentacles was already too much for him to handle. And they were only growing

'Twenty-eight.'

and rush toward the approaching eel. Instantly weakened, he gritted his teeth and tried to resist the attacking tentacles as

Shard with tremendous force, sending it flying from

almost sliding off the surface of the hammer. Catching himself at the last moment, he pushed away and rolled, barely avoiding being pierced through

had nowhere to

But it was fine.

'Twenty-nine.'

strained her muscles and hurled the thing entrusted to her by