Shadow Slave

After drinking her fill, Nephis sat silently on the edge of the pool for a while, staring into the distance.

Her eyes, however, were moving, as if reading an invisible book that floated in the air above the calm waters.

Some time later, a pale shadow of a smile touched her lips.

'That guy… he did something crazy again, didn't he?'

She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply.

'How is he so fast…'

In the past months… years, lifetimes?... spent traversing the Dream Realm, surrounded by nothing except for pain and bloodshed, Nephis had started doubting the memories of her previous life. Sometimes, all of it seemed like something that she had simply imagined… a bittersweet dream she had invented to escape from the horrors of the real world. This world.

The world of neverending nightmares.

The change of the runes describing Sunny was the only connection she had left to the actual reality. Perhaps, it was the only thing keeping her sane.

...Even if the things she saw in the shimmering runes were sometimes hard to believe.

The impossible Lineage that should not have existed, the divine Memory of the seventh Rank, the strange essence of his soul, the true nature of the taciturn stone demon… and of course, of his Flaw.

It seemed that Sunny had much more secrets than Nephis had suspected. With that knowledge, many things made much more sense now… but at the same time, many others seemed much more incredible.

Well, it was not like she didn't have secrets of her own.

And anyway, it was all in the past.

Everything was in the past.

All that remained was the future.

...She did hope that he was doing well, though, out there in the real world. With Cassie...

up from the water, Nephis shifted her gaze to the ancient tree and saw two weathered skeletons cruelly nailed to its white bark. Both stared at her with empty eyes, their teeth bared in

time, one of

I that

strained, trying to wrestle free of the large silver nails impaling it to the tree. However, no matter how

with a calm expression,

skeleton

that… is that living blood I smell? Gods! What terrible sins have you committed, girl, to be cast into this hell alive? Even for a revolting nephilim like you, this is too harsh

mouth and said hoarsely, in a voice of a person who had almost forgotten

language do

The skeleton laughed.

place, of course. Why? Do

a long

seek a way back to the waking world. Do you know how to escape

at

world?

skeleton suddenly spoke, his voice deep and full of

the stench of a daemon on this abominable thing? She is one

skull a little,

In that case, you will not find guides better than the two of us. Just take us off this damned tree,

for a while, then turned

two guides. Which one should I

skeleton strained to free himself

shores of the

spared him a glance, then said to

"...What about you?"

first skeleton answered in an

I am no

lingered for a bit. Finally, she

the two of you… nailed to this

who had called himself Azarax

you are, abominable creature?! I am here because I led my armies into the

her gaze to the other