Shadow Slave

The dark sea was gone.

And all the horrors that dwelt in its cursed depths were gone with it, too.

The world was bathed in pure sunlight. The surface of the Labyrinth suddenly became vibrant and bright, with stark shadows hiding under the jagged pillars of the crimson coral. The furious white sun burned above the Crimson Spire, as if frozen in the middle of the sky.

Sunny even had to cover his eyes for a few seconds.

Laying on the ground, he allowed himself a few moments of rest. A short laugh escaped from his lips.

'I actually did it?'

Speak about the unlikely events...

Unfortunately, he couldn't really rest yet.

The battle wasn't over. The horde of Nightmare Creatures was not defeated yet.

…And somewhere in the Spire, the Crimson Terror itself was not defeated, either.

With a deep sigh, Sunny collected himself and rose to his feet. They were almost there. They almost escaped. Now, all that was left was to make one final push. Even if it was going to be the hardest one yet...

Looking at the tall mound of coral towering above him, he squinted against the light and began climbing it.

Was it always so bright?

As Sunny climbed, he summoned the runes and glanced at them.

Shadows: [Marble Saint].

'Thank gods.'

He knew that Saint was alright, but still wanted to check. The taciturn demon had been heavily damaged and was bound to spend a long time restoring herself, however, her existence was not in danger.

eyes

Shadow Fragments: [999/1000].

'...Crap.'

simultaneously excited and scared to find out what was going to happen once he saturated the Shadow Core. It was bound

several weeks, as Saint had? Or suddenly become incapacitated amidst furious combat, as Nephis had been after defeating

could cost

like I can do

the very top of the coral pillar.

he saw a drop of blood rolling off his skin. A moment later, another fell on the

Sunny raised his hand and swiped it across his upper lip. It came away wet

bleed? What the

think of it, why did

his hand in confusion, a violent

***

Army were at the precipice of turning

been drowning in the rising flood of black water and the relentless onslaught of the horde, lost in the fury of a cataclysmic storm. But now, things

retreated. The sun shined brightly in the sky, drowning the battlefield

their claws and fangs reaping one life after another. But the survivors of the Dreamer Army

zeal, fervor, and murderous will. More and more Nightmare Creatures fell to their blades, and

but their faith in Changing Star now burned even brighter. She had promised to guide them out of this

victory was not impossible anymore.

and slowed her sword dance. A confused, alarmed frown appeared on her face. Dodging the claws

monsters for a few short moments, she lowered

looked at

***

Kai

'What is happening?'

of lightning and the cursed Spire Messengers, pushing the limits of both his body and mind… the

Let alone react…

body ached, and his vision was slowly