Shadow Slave

Rain looked at him with a serious expression, thinking.

Inwardly, Sunny sighed.

He still didn't know how to change her mentality and make her vicious enough to survive the Dream Realm. He didn't even know if he wanted to, and if that was the right thing to do.

At least she seemed to understand a little bit more about the truth of the world after surviving the Gate opening. For now, that was going to have to be enough.

And this conversation was his attempt to make the lesson stick.

After a while, Rain said with uncertainty:

"Survival?"

Sunny raised an eyebrow, looking at her with surprise.

What were the chances that, despite their different life experiences, his sister would answer the question the same way he had, all that time ago, in the desolate hell of the Forgotten Shore?

He remained silent for a while, remembering those terrible, wonderful days. Then, he shook his head.

"No. The essence of combat is murder."

Rain shivered slightly.

"M—murder?"

Sunny nodded.

"Of course. What else would it be? You have to kill your enemy, or die. Either way, someone ends up murdered, and someone ends up as the murderer. So, the purpose of combat training is to make sure that you're the murderer. It is really that simple."

He paused, and then added:

"Survival is important, of course… but that can't be your primary goal. Such a goal is a terrible one to have. Even in life, it is not enough. You have to survive to continue living, but if you only live to survive, then what is even the point? More than that, if you don't strive for something bigger, something better, then you will only ever do what is required and nothing else. Which will make you weaker than those who want and dare to do more, and that weakness will cost you your life…"

trailed off, and Sunny suddenly fell silent. Rain looked at him in

"Uh… Sunny?"

a couple

"Yeah. Sorry. So…"

do you know? I guess it's true what they say, the best way to learn is to

about his own desperate desire to grow stronger. Everything Sunny had told Rain could be applied to himself. He had long ago abandoned

his desire to live free and with dignity really comparable to Neph's passionate, immolating obsession? Would he really be able to surpass

gave Sunny a lot to think

glanced at Rain, and

Mastery of the body, and mastery of the mind. Your body can be trained through exercise, but your mind… is much more tricky. If you can understand the true essence of combat, however — truly grasp it with

***

time explaining the fundamental laws of combat — at least to the extent that he himself understood them — to Rain. In the end, he wasn't sure that she really grasped the knowledge he wanted to share with her, but it was at

First Nightmare and several days of fighting for his life on the Forgotten Shore. Even then, it had taken being nearly killed by a carapace centurion

Sunny certainly wasn't going to run her through

this was going to have to

Saint's style, and watch her struggle to replicate them. The progress was slow, but she was

Her body could be trained… of

like Caster or Master Roan in terms of physical might. However, this could be mitigated by Aspect Abilities, absorbing fragments, and mastering precise essence

to apply to deliver a lethal blow. Unless

style could make that inherent

seemed to be sufficiently exhausted, and pushing further would not do her any good. He gestured for her to stop and placed

glistening with sweat. Noticing the beautiful

that

his head

are you

grabbed the Endless Spring and studied it from all sides, then cautiously took a

never seen a real

at her in

is real. What are you talking

scorn, drank the water greedily, and then handed the Endless Spring back

you get it after defeating some terrible monster?

frowned, hesitated for a moment,