Shadow Slave

Sunny looked at the terrified young girl, and then… laughed.

...His laughter sounded more than a little bit unhinged.

His lady shuddered:

"Sir, you… you…"

Sunny waved a hand in the air.

"No, no. No need… I understand. I sound crazy."

The night sky above them was covered in an impregnable veil of clouds, and the one below them was empty and dark. The ancient stones they stood upon were slick with rainwater, and it was too dim to see anything except for vague silhouettes.

The silhouette of the Awakened hunter was towering, menacing, and embodied the very concept of terror.

But Sunny didn't care that much.

Massaging his chest, he smiled crookedly and said, his voice hoarse and raspy:

"...But then again, this whole world is insane. Someone told me once… ah, I don't quite remember who… that we can only reflect what is in front of us. Is it my fault that there is nothing in front of me except for madness?"

He looked down, his smile turning into a wicked grin.

"And someone else once told me that they wanted to destroy the world. Back then, I thought them insane… I think… but now, I wonder…"

monstrous voice permeating

his mind

Sunny laughed again.

be able to

at his sword,

Actually, while some of those nightmares… gods, how cruel they were… did hit a nerve, overall… I am surprised to admit that... they really weren't that

Awakened hunter with a concerned expression, then scratch

you have already been gutted once, nothing else can impress you that much. Or if you have already watched your mother die once, the second time won't be as… well… maybe it would? I don't know… I am a bit confused about what is real, and what is not. Maybe I am myself

young girl slowly backed away from him, her face painted with fear. The

"What?"

Sunny shrugged.

to break. As it turns out. At least not to the point where I'll

sword and

is that my heart always seems ache, doesn't matter whether it's in a nightmare or in the real life. So, that demands a question… if the heartache is the same, then maybe

forward, a confused expression

fragments of feelings, ideas, and judgments that I have to cause to possess will just appear on their own. Easy to explain in a dream… not so much in the waking world.

laughed again and assumed a defensive position,

a few nightmares to realize that those were soul cores. Strangely, once again, this ability pursued

ready to meet his

I met all kinds of creatures. Awakened warriors, Corrupted monsters… even Transcendent immortals. Some of them had one soul core, some two

his enemy, at the mighty black steed standing motionless behind him, barely visible in the

why does this damned horse always have

the opposite direction from where the hunter's sword flashed, abandoning the young girl

jumped to his feet, putting all of his weight into an attack

menacing killer… instead, it