Shadow Slave

When Sunny heard the white-haired War Maiden refer to her disciple as a feral child, he assumed that she was speaking about an especially ferocious female warrior being trained in the ancient sect of War.

…What he had not expected, however, was that his enemy would turn out to be a literal child.

'...Damnation!'

As Sunny watched with a grim expression, two of the Awakened maidens dragged a girl of about eleven, maybe twelve years of age into the hall, then threw her on the stone floor in front of him.

The girl had a scrawny, juvenile body that did not seem to have touched on the path to maturity yet. Her short, wild hair was of a vibrant red color, almost the same as the torn silk garments she wore. Her skin was pale and white… or at least, it was supposed to be.

Instead, it was blue and black, almost the same color as Sunny's own, which had been made to resemble obsidian by the embrace of his shadows. The girl had obviously been often and cruelly beaten, to the point that it was hard to notice a spot free of bruises on her once tender body.

The whites of her eyes were hidden by the cloudy red layer of blood that had burst from ruptured vessels, making the child look like an actual beast. Hitting the floor, the girl remained motionless for a few moments, then let out a long sigh and slowly stood up, lean muscles rolling under her bruised and lacerated skin.

Even though she seemed tall for he age, she was still too small to reach up to Sunny's chest.

'Curse these mad witches…'

Suddenly full of fury, he glanced at the three Ascended War Maidens with a dark expression, then looked down at the abused child in front of him.

Was this… was this whom he had to kill?

Just a few moments ago, the task seemed so easy…

The girl, meanwhile, finished picking herself from the floor and faced the War Maidens with an insolent, contemptuous expression on her bruised face. With wild flames burning in her eyes, she spat a bit of blood on the floor and then bared her teeth in a feral grin.

"...What now, you old hags? More training? Ah, and here I was just starting to enjoy my daily punishment!"

tone, the girl's voice was soft and childishly high, and as the result, what she had meant to sound defiant ended up sounding comical instead. Flustered by that, she gritted her teeth, and

cold. His flinched slightly,

'No… no, no, no…'

be a battle to the death, whether he wanted to or not. The War Maidens

girl spoke, things took a turn

was pretty sure that the inhabitants of the Kingdom of Hope were not in the habit of expressing their meaning with their middle fingers. That was a thing humans in the

left only one

feral child in front of

Was Effie.

'Goddammit!'

there was no chance at all that he would kill his opponent and follow the ritual set for them by the Maidens. All that stuff about not having to fight the entire sect he had felt relieved about a few minutes ago?

to get

his teeth, a low growl escaping through them. Hearing it, the senior War Maiden smiled

We have guests today, you see… kill them, and I might order your older sisters to

face. She hesitated for a moment, and then turned around, searching for these guests she was supposed to

walls — Saint, Kai, and dozens of War Maidens who were here to witness the challenge — appeared as dark silhouettes. The only one whom

few moments, confused. Then, she slowly craned her neck, looking higher, and higher, and then higher still. Her face gradually grew paler and paler, until a

hey there, big

glanced back at her

I am supposed to kill

Maiden shook

A demon. Why…

moments, then asked

any weapons, at

warrior