Shadow Slave

Slowly walking away from the edge of the chasm, Sunny stopped opposite Nephis and looked at her.

In his dark eyes, there was nothing but coldness.

"Well… it's not like we didn't know for a long time that this would be how things end. Did we?"

She stared at him for a while, then smiled bitterly.

"...We did."

Indeed, they knew.

From that terrible day when Sunny had first understood the meaning behind Cassie's vision, he suspected that one day, in order to survive, he would have to kill Nephis.

This was the truth he had chosen to hide from, even if it meant losing his mind. The final and most unbearable reason for why he had spent months alone in the Dark City, hunting monsters and slowly turning into one of them.

How does one come to terms with the knowledge that, one day, they will have to kill the person they care for the most?

…Knowledge, indeed, was the heaviest thing in the world.

Back at the beginning of it all, far away from the Dark City, before they had even known that the Crimson Spire existed, Cassie had shared with them a terrible vision.

She said:

"At first, I saw a… a boundless darkness locked behind seven seals. Something vast was churning in the darkness. I felt like if I directly saw it, I would lose my mind. As I watched, terrified, the seals broke one after another, until only one remained. And then that seal broke, too."

described the day when the Vessel of the Artificial Sun had gone mad, and the curse of the all-consuming darkness had escaped

human castle again. Only this time, it was at night. There was a lonely star burning in the black skies, and under its light, the castle was suddenly consumed by fire, with rivers of blood flowing down its halls. I saw a corpse in a golden armor sitting on a throne; a woman

lonely star shining in the black skies was Nephis, the herald of ruinous change, who had drowned the halls of

was Gunlaug, who had died on

archer were Effie and Kai, who had almost perished fighting

was being consumed by hungry shadows. When I saw the angel bleed, I suddenly felt

locks were the heads of the giant statues, who stared

the last part of the prophecy… it

the dying angel, the precious thing that was going to be taken from Cassie, and Sunny

It was their fate.

little remained of my sanity seemed to disappear. That was when I woke up… I

the last thing Cassie had

Nephis, Sunny

warned you, didn't I? I told you that this story won't have a happy ending. That there will be only sorrow, pain,

words he said on the day Neph had asked him

end up as enemies

that had given him

Sunny had been preparing for this moment

that he had decided to incorporate Saint's methodical style into his technique, why he trained without rest, day and night, not sparing himself from the pain and hardship. If his only skill was one that

the Hunter's statue and spent a night alone there, steeling himself for

that he had refused Changing Star's offer to heal him. How could he allow her to endure the terrible pain

not tried to learn all of her secret plans, remaining comfortable in his role as a hired mercenary. An outsider. He had known that, no matter what, they would end up here, in this moment, forced to fight

fate was a terrifying enemy to fight against. He