Shadow Slave

Master Jet remained silent for a second, then asked calmly:

"Are you sure? This place has been swept multiple times before we arrived."

Sunny nodded.

"He is here. Underground."

She looked down, her face slowly turning somber.

"...Well, I guess we should go and say hi."

Sunny nodded and made a step toward the door of the small office. However, she suddenly stopped him.

"Wait."

He looked at her with a bit of confusion.

"Yes?"

Master Jet hesitated for a few moments. There was a complicated expression on her face. Finally, she said:

"There are very few people with a shadow affinity Aspect in the world, and even fewer who frequent places such as this."

Sunny frowned.

"What are you trying to say?"

She looked at him darkly.

"I'm saying that I might know this guy. In fact, when I heard that there was an incident in the Slaughterhouse, I already had a suspicion of who was responsible."

He blinked a couple of times.

"You know the murderer?"

Master Jet shrugged.

"There are hundreds of thousands of Awakened in the world. That seems like a big number, but in fact, it is not. If you live long enough, sooner or later, you will know of everyone who is worth knowing… more or less. It's a small world."

She paused for a moment, and then added:

guy is not someone who has spent his whole life behind a Citadel wall. He is… was

glanced at the five Hollows, then frowned

what a

meant. Most of the Awakened were thrust into the Spell and tried desperately to survive, striving to return to a semblance of a normal life. A much smaller amount, for whatever reason, embraced their new nightmarish reality and adapted to it… even thrived in it. They shaped their lives to suit the deadly challenge of the

these specialists himself,

is such a specialist, then

Jet shook her

the most compromised Awakened? Folks who spent as little time as possible in the Dream Realm and then return to their actual lives?

a bit, then

so what? You are an

Jet shook her

will get you killed. No matter how powerful you are, one mistake is all it takes. Raw power doesn't always decide the outcome of the fight. You should know this already… every Aspect has a Flaw, and every power has a counter. So keep your guard

was right. His own experience served as the perfect proof. Harus had died by his hand because Sunny's Aspect was a

silent for a few moments, and then

your shadow. Don't

then gave him a simple

and then found another heavy metal door. Behind it, a narrow staircase led further down, to the

larger than Sunny had imagined, and looked more like a luxurious theater than a fighting pit. The rows of seats were furnished with red velvet, and there were private boxes for the

with deep shadows nesting between the areas of light. Still, one could more or less

studied the interior of the arena, then said

"There's no one here."

walked over to a control panel hidden in one of the

bright spotlights ignited on the ceiling, flooding the arena with a bright radiance. The wave of light chased away the shadows, and suddenly, a figure of a man could be seen

then raised his head to stare at the lights with a dark

they just live

eyes. There were several used stimulant packs lying on the floor around him, as well as shards of a broken

with blood, but the

gaze and slowly focused it on Master Jet and

recognition slowly appeared in his eyes, which

that you, Soul Reaper? Hell… they sent the attack dog herself after

Sunny sighed inwardly.

what

forward, piercing the man with a cold,

Long time

the man called Kurt

lately, haven't you, Jet? Funny that a government lapdog like you finds it beneath herself to associate with upstanding people like me. Back in the day,

his insult,