Shadow Slave

Grasped in the Shadow's fist was a strange, beautiful, and ominous gem. It was utterly black, as though suffused with impenetrable darkness. The glossy black surface seemed to devour light, turning the vast hall of the ruined cathedral even darker than it had been before.

Deep within that black void, crimson flames burned with a menacing red glow. It was pulsating in a slow and bizarre rhythm, drowning everything around in dim red light. Painted by it, the Stone Saint seemed to be drenched in blood. The gem she held looked like a bloody, still-beating heart that she had torn out of someone's chest.

Gazing at it, Sunny felt a strange sense of foreboding.

'What the hell is this thing?'

The gem looked sort of like a soul shard, but… different. He had never seen a black shard, to begin with, or one radiating such an intense glow. It also didn't seem like a piece of a broken core. On the contrary, it appeared… whole?

'Is that what a soul core of a Nightmare Creature looks like?'

No, not a soul core.

A soul?

Stunned, Sunny counted the crimson flames burning in the depths of the black gem. One, two, three… four.

Four flames for the four cores of Fallen Devil.

The thing that his Shadow held in her hand was the Black Knight's soul… or some sort of his essence, at least. By how had it turned into a material form?

Did the Stone Saint do it? If so, how… no, why?

'What is she doing with it?!'

As Sunny and Nephis looked in stunned silence, the Shadow finally moved. Bringing the black gem close to her face, she lingered for a moment. A hint of a dark, macabre emotion appeared in her eyes.

And then, the Stone Saint… swallowed it.

Sunny blinked.

'...What?'

bit into

the soul of the Black Knight was devoured. The red glow it emanated disappeared, returning the

the Stone Saint

her. What the hell is

looked at him with a perplexed

just happened? What did she

truth and deceive anyone. Opening his mouth, he

"I have no idea."

had been destroyed, Sunny moved it around with his foot for a

shards

for a few moments,

Finally, she said:

Echo is very

***

everyone was recovering from the fight and tending to their wounds, Sunny walked to

of motionless shadows standing at the edge of it, Sunny noticed

rest of them. There was no trace of

Sunny grinned.

you bastard. Make yourself at home. You're not going anywhere else ever,

at the motionless form of his sworn enemy, Sunny had to stop himself from kicking

would have been like kicking the

I won't deny it, you got me good. But I'm still breathing while you're dead.

and the real one were full of creatures that were bigger, stronger, and more powerful than Sunny. Many of them had either threatened his

all of them, neither destroyed nor subjugated. He was free, alive, and growing stronger

be the ones cowering in front of him or

Sunny turned away and walked to stand beneath the black sun of his shadow core. Then, he summoned the

…But nothing happened.

effect. Suddenly worried, he willed the runes to

true. The

what is going on