Shadow Slave

Sunny had already faced off against a Spire Messenger once.

Back then, the vile creature had killed several experienced hunters in a span of just a few seconds, and the rest had only been spared this fate because of Effie's strength…

That and the fact that the Messenger had no need to fight them and chose to retreat and search for easier prey.

There was nowhere to retreat in this hidden cavern. Sunny didn't even know how the flying abomination had gotten here in the first place.

However, he was not the same inexperienced kid he had been all those months ago, either.

Sunny had grown considerably stronger. His arsenal of Memories was better now. His skill and technique were far beyond what he had known in the past, and his kill count had crossed a hundred Nightmare Creatures a long time ago.

There was the Stone Saint, too.

But, most importantly, his Memories were empowered by the Crown of Dawn.

Theoretically, Sunny could stack three augmentations on the Midnight Shard — one from his shadow, one from the miraculous crown, and one from the Blood Blossom, as long as someone managed to make the Messenger bleed.

Hopefully, that would be enough to breach the gap between a dormant human and a Fallen Beast and allow him to actually wound the abomination, unlike the previous two times he had tried to cut into the flesh of similar horrors — Corpse Eater and the giant eel that had tried to hitch a ride on the ancient colossus.

…But first, he had to survive.

that the Puppeteer's Shroud had a decent chance of withstanding a blow from the Messenger thanks to the enhancement of the Dawn Shard, but also not even reamotely willing to put

shields — one belonging to Effie, the other to the Stone Saint. The terrible beak came down,

apart, as if it was made out of paper instead of metal. But

Even Shadow Saint, whose flesh was made

they had bought the cohort the precious second

creating some distance between them and the ferocious abomination, Nephis and Caster attacked from

Memories wielded by the cohort might have been enhanced, but their masters remained the same. They couldn't compete with a Fallen creature in

of the beast's six front limbs swiped forward, deflecting the swords. Two more shot at

its neck and caught Kai in its

small hurricane that threw Nephis and Caster aside. Using powerful hind legs to throw itself into the air, the abomination lunged at the retreating archer, who twisted his body in a desperate attempt to aim his

suddenly, a triangular blade cut an arc around one of the legs and tied

'Crap!'

time to think before his hand was

exactly what

blur behind his back, Sunny used the momentum of the pull to

the direction of the Messenger as though someone had launched

air and bit into the

'Do it!'

cut

But it was enough.

all the speed given to him by the combination of using the Dark Wing to levitate and the Prowling Thorn to