Shadow Slave

For a few seconds, both of them stood without motion. On Caster's face, shock and disbelief were mixed with fury, indignation… and fear.

Slowly, he raised his head and pierced Sunny with a hateful gaze.

"You scum..."

His voice was trembling with suppressed rage.

'Good. Rage is good. Anything that makes him lose control is g…'

In the next moment, Sunny got hit in the chest and flew back with a pained scream. Although he somehow managed to deflect the tip of the enchanted jian, the Legacy still ended up slamming into him like a speeding train. The blade of his sword pierced the Puppeteer's Shroud once again, slicing Sunny's forearm.

'Godammit!'

This was just unfair. The Shroud was a tier-five Memory of the Awakened Rank. Where did the bastard find a weapon that could cut through it so easily?!

…Well, Sunny more or less knew where. Who was to say that the ghostly green jian wasn't of the same tier, if not higher? Legacy clans had a lot of powerful Memories in their treasuries.

Unlike him.

Hitting the ground in a roll, Sunny dashed to the side and used the pommel of the Midnight Shard to slam Caster's hand away. He barely saved himself from being decapitated.

Shaken, Sunny threw a handful of coral dust into the air and retreated. A moment later, his enemy emerged from the dust like a vengeful demon. The damned jian was once again aimed at his heart.

But…

Caster looked different.

It seemed that Sunny was right on the money with his guess about the proud scion's Flaw and the purpose of the mysterious charm Memory. Before, Caster had already looked slightly older that the other members of the cohort… which was strange, considering that both Effie and Kai were supposed to be the oldest among them. This was what had initially caught Sunny's attention, because back at the Academy, there had been no such difference.

However, now that the crystal sandglass was broken, time seemed to be catching up with the Legacy. If anyone were to see him now, they would have assumed that he was in his late twenties, perhaps even early thirties.

Instead, a handsome, mature, powerful man was attacking him, his dark skin still smooth, but already showing the signs of future wrinkles at the corners of

parried the deadly thrust, then dodged to the left. Once again, he was a fraction of a second

'Curses!'

evaded, parried and blocked, continuing to retreat and create distance between himself and Caster.

Why are you running like

struggling to breathe, Sunny gritted

"No… reason… in particular…"

powerful physique became even more formidable, his broad shoulders straining the metal of the sturdy scale armor. His temples were grey, and his beard had silver streaks running through it. He looked like the kind of older man

away, then dashed back. The Midnight Shard flew from one side to another, from low to high, not stopping even for a split second. The ringing of steel fused into a

was going to cost him

is not much worse than

worse. So much

resist Caster's furious onslaught. He was stronger and much more resilient, but that was the thing about sharp weapons — they were created to make the

like Sunny, Caster was a nightmare. If not for the Blood Weave, he would have grown weak

yet, he resisted and continued to retreat, desperately deflecting

look at the proud Legacy, he felt a cold shiver

and his hair and beard were completely grey. There was almost no sign left of the handsome youth he had known… and

vigor, though. His fury was still as murderous and scathing as it had been

"Die, mongrel!"

ghostly jian down on Sunny, who was still reeling from the previous blow. Desperate, Sunny raised his tachi into an awkward semblance of a block. When their swords collided, the Midnight Shard flew aside

fell backward,

appeared on the old man's weathered face, he lunged forward to finish the defenseless

second, a calm

voice he hated, but knew

somewhere behind him, Nephis ordered in

"Back!"

raised his sword,

he