Shadow Slave

Sunny stared at the little girl, trying not to lose his composure.

'...What is wrong with these people?'

He had two horns, a mouth full of sharp fangs, long claws, and four damned arms… and yet, the first thing that both Effie and Kai had reacted to was his height. Was he not allowed to be tall, for once?!

Continuing to pretend to fight the monstrous child in earnest, he pointed to his chest instead of an answer. Effie, too, slowed down her relentless assault a bit — just enough to give him some breathing room without making her changed attitude obvious.

A few moments later, when they were close to each other, she hissed quietly:

"Let me guess, you saw the message I left that said to not come to the Temple of Chalice… and, naturally, decided to do the exact opposite."

Sunny spun, avoiding her fist, and raised two fingers.

The girl frowned.

"Two… someone else is with you? Cassie? Kai? Ah, it's Kai… so, both of you decided to ignore my warning!"

She deflected his dagger to the side, grimaced when it slid over a barely healed laceration on her forearm, and then squeaked in her childish voice:

"Well… good! I, uh… I might have been too full of myself, thinking that I would be able to actually escape this damned place. So... I am really, really glad that you came…"

Sunny thrust his greatsword forward, narrowly missing the girl's head, and then let out a low growl.

Effie gritted her teeth.

"But, Sunny… we have two problems. One is that these lunatics never let their disciples leave the sect alive. The second… the second is that if one of us doesn't kill the other in this duel, my teachers are going to kill us both… so…"

She caught his sword with one hand, then brought her fist on its blade, shattering it and making Sunny stumble.

you have a plan! No, I know you do!

cheerful. Knowing that Effie was confident in his ability to get them both out of this dire situation alive, somehow, Sunny felt

have a plan. In fact, he didn't have the slightest idea about how to survive

Yet.

his head, making Effie pale and

He didn't see any chance of escaping the Temple of the Chalice without a bloody

was not Solvane. She would not have been able to fight her way out

didn't look too

the powerhouse. Even though his physical might was lesser than that of the huntress, overall, he was a much, much deadlier creature.

War Maidens, at least. Effie would have to handle the third one… which would leave Kai alone against dozens of Awakened warriors gathered in the hall. That wouldn't work. No matter

the War Maidens had been defeated in the future, after all, so they were

hesitated for a moment, and then glanced at the massive stone chalice towering in the center of the hall, full of furious white flame. Unlike in the future, it was still whole and imposing, the complex enchantment that

His face grew dim.

no, I don't like it at

because it would be extremely dangerous and

Sunny thought, he couldn't come up with anything else to do. If moving the elements did

a few moments, and then gestured Effie to

same time, several

suddenly became shrouded in a swarm of white sparks. She took a small step to the side to shield Kai with her body. Both actions caused the War Maidens surrounding them to grow tense, their hands gripping

onyx threads that ensnared his body. One of his four hands was enveloped by a swarm of scarlet sparks, one in a black fog, and the other two in a swirling

undergo a strange transmutation. Although just a little, their stances shifted, revealing

move yet, reluctant to intrude upon the duel without an

the odachi she held silently slid into the shadows.

that seemed to be made out of a

[Midnight Shard], [Morgan's Warbow], [Strike of Thunder]... and [Mantle of the Underworld]

time, knowing that he might not have a chance to do

was one last Memory that he