Shadow Slave

In a dark underground chamber, a metal sarcophagus stood shrouded in silence. Nothing had disturbed the silence and no light had penetrated the darkness in a long, long time.

Until now.

Suddenly, the sarcophagus came to life, and a scattering of lights ignited on its surface. A crack appeared on the smooth alloy surface, revealing where the edges of a heavy lid were. The lid smoothly slid away, and a flood of radiant light chased away the darkness of the underground chamber.

Cold vapor shined as it rose from inside the sarcophagus. Then, a pale hand rose from within it and forcefully grabbed the metal lip, easily bending its armored alloy.

Sunny struggled to climb out of the sleeping pod for a few moments, then lowered his feet to the cool plates of the dojo's floor. A moment later, he swayed and fell down with a yelp.

"Damnation!"

Sunny remained sprawled on the floor for a few seconds, trying to understand what had happened and why he suddenly lost balance. Then, his eyes gleamed.

"Wait… I can speak again? I can speak again!"

A happy smile slowly appeared on his lips.

Of course… he was back to being a human! He had returned to his own body. Trying to move like a towering demon was not going to do his sense of balance any good…

With a mad grin, Sunny nimbly jumped to his feet and looked down, enjoying the sight of his slender, pale body. Then, he suddenly spun and performed several lightning-fast strikes and kicks.

"Ah, it is good to be home!"

himself. It was as though a giant weight fell from his shoulders, quite literally — the shadowspawn must have weighed three times

enemies to stick their blades in. And although having only two hands seemed rather inconvenient and silly, shedding the cumbersome shell

now that Sunny was a Master, his slender body packed more punch than the shadowspawn could ever hope to muster. Not to mention how in tune it was with shadow essence now, and how explosive

forcefully turned into a lumbering monstrosity did he learn to appreciate

the underground dojo, he let out a satisfied sigh and glanced at the crumpled metal of the lip of the sleeping pod. He had inadvertently damaged the armored alloy by simply grabbing it too hard. Getting used to his new strength was going

had done to the expensive machine. Replacing the bent panel was not going to be cheap. It was well within his means,

then, he tilted his head

why do

would he worry about the luxurious sleeping

need it

Dream Realm, he would travel there

he could never go back to that hell. He could just remain in the comfort and safety of the real world, enjoying all that it offered

Nightmare Spell, Sunny was free to refuse it. He had won his right to have a choice. He… he was not a slave to the whims of the world

For now…

sorcery, creating a thriving enterprise would not be a problem. Sunny would be able to grow filthy rich and enjoy a lavish or even decadent lifestyle without having to risk

could even sleep in an actual bed, and see actual

a beautifully happy ending for a homeless

Slowly, a

that

the Spell would be that easy. Even if he learned how to manage

designation, he was bound to attract the utmost attention of the forces that governed humanity. Neither the government nor the Great Clans would leave

Now that he proved his mettle and elevated himself to the venerated status of an

on a message that trying to become a Saint without pledging allegiance to one of them would