Shadow Slave

Kai poured more tea into his cup, then cradled it in his hands and looked away. He remained silent for a bit, then continued the ominous story:

"After many weeks of battles and bloodshed, the Warmongers were pushed back, and my centuria was recalled back to the Ivory City, to rest and recuperate from the hardships of war. We were met by a jubilant crowd that showered us with rose petals and sang our names… my name, too, louder than all the rest. Ah, what a beautiful sight it was! Victorious, we returned home, and everything was well. For a while, we enjoyed the beauty of the city and the warm company of our fellow citizens."

He took a sip, then shook his head slightly.

"The more I explored the beautiful Ivory City, the more elated I was by its prosperity and its harmonious way of life. It seemed as though people there were all content and happy, treating others with sincere kindness, love, and respect. It was as though they didn't have a care in the world… and there was a reason for that. The people of the Ivory City could live this way, and be this way, because they were protected by the mighty dragon, Sevirax, a true descendant of Sun God. Their lord and protector."

The young man shivered, then added in a hoarse voice:

"The dragon protected them, provided for them, and guided them with his wisdom. It was because of him that the Ivory City was safe, sound, prosperous, and welcoming. Why its citizens were so kind and happy. This… was a paradise of his creation."

Kai took a sip of tea and smiled sadly.

"...Sounds too good to be true, doesn't it? Ah, but it was. I was just too slow to see it."

He remained silent for a bit, then let out a long sigh.

"At first, I only felt it. A slight, vague… wrongness. As if something was off with these kind, happy, beautiful people. As if there was something hidden behind their sincere smiles. I dismissed it, thinking that it was just my prejudice speaking. A mindset that I brought with me from the waking world. But the more time I spent with them… the more strange details I started to notice. And soon, a harrowing suspicion took hold of my heart."

Kai looked at them, his face growing dark.

"...A suspicion that there was madness hidden deep in their lustrous eyes. The same madness that the Warmongers were infected with, albeit of a different shade. I had never… had never felt as disturbed and afraid as when that thought first entered my mind. I was so afraid, in fact, that for a few days, I closed my eyes to the truth and pretended that nothing was wrong. But the suspicion kept gnawing on my heart, and so, I decided to investigate. It wasn't hard to confirm it."

A bitter grimace contorted his hideous face.

because of the dragon. Its people were indeed protected and provided for

young man clenched the teacup, almost

"...To feed him."

teeth for a moment, then

And the kind, warm people of the Ivory City… were more than happy to provide. Ecstatic, even. Being devoured by the dragon was considered to be a sacred honor, and having a loved one chosen

young man grew silent, then said

chose the best and the brightest. The most beautiful, the most talented, the most innocent, the most desirable. And there we were, young heroes who had

Kai smiled bitterly.

to death with zealous smiles, husbands sending their wives into the dragon's maw with wild joy, friends and neighbors singing and laughing as they led their fellow humans to be eaten by a hungry beast. Only little children did not share in their glee… they cried when their mothers, fathers, brothers, and sisters were torn away

then put his cup down and looked

worth? …Worthless. It's worthless. And even if it's not, at least the wretches could have made the sacrifice without the ghoulish joy. Without the songs, and the zeal, and the kind, warm, sincere smiles on their beautiful

took a deep breath, remained silent

The jubilant crowd disappeared, and soon after that, we heard the rustle of mighty wings. The dragon landed in front of the cliff, as majestic and fearsome as

fingers. Finally, she couldn't bear it anymore and asked in

Why didn't the dragon's flames

smile appeared

When Sevirax appeared, I broke my chains and shielded my comrades, ready

by an expression of anger,

Lord. One of the Hope's eternal shackles, a Transcendent whose Transformation Ability allows him to turn into

The young man sighed.

We spoke, and what he told me… it broke me, a little, I think. You see, I had it all wrong. The dragon… he had never once asked the people of the Ivory City to sacrifice anyone, or anything, to him. They had invented the story themselves, and chose the number of the victims themselves, and started bringing him sacrifices of their own free will. Because doing so made them feel as though they were binding themselves to the dragon… that they were becoming a part

Kai shook his head.

rarely appeared in his Transcendent form before them. But as centuries passed, he noticed that people were disturbed by his human face, and were only at peace when he came as a dragon. As if they needed him to be something else… something greater than them. And so, after a while, he abandoned his human form completely.

a few moments, and