Shadow Slave

As it turned out, Nephis had not found a Gateway to escape the Dream Realm and Awaken.

Instead, after two long years of solitude and relentless battles for survival, she had found a Seed of Nightmare and conquered the Second Trial of the Spell as a Sleeper.

She had done it alone.

At least that was the only way Sunny could explain the runes he was staring at.

Ascended.

'That is impossible.'

Surviving the Second Nightmare was already not easy for a cohort of prepared Awakened. More people perished while trying than returned victorious. How could a lone Sleeper accomplish the same?

No one had done it before.

However… no Sleeper had been a Tyrant before.

No Sleeper had escaped alive from a battle with a Corrupted horror of the depths before.

No Sleeper had slain a Fallen Terror before.

Nephis had long established her penchant for accomplishing the impossible. Why was Sunny so surprised that she had done it again?

No, he wasn't surprised. He was… dismayed.

A deep, unsettling emotion nestled in his chest, making his face grow dark and his eyes grow dim. The shadows around him seemed to become deeper.

is that

did matter. To him, it was of paramount importance. His obsession with becoming more powerful than Nephis was not born out of simple vanity or empty pride. Someone else might have been tempted to chase power just for the sweetness of it, but to Sunny, being anything else than the strongest was an existential

saw Effie pushing her way through the crowd. She was not shy about using her prodigious strength,

man had been the person to send Nephis into the Dream Realm. It was no wonder that he dropped everything to come and wait with the rest

them and froze for

Is it true? Princess

looked at her for a

I… I passed her to the healers with my

not move for several seconds. Then, a wide grin split her face. It looked as if she was on the verge of starting

Nightmare Creature exists that

couldn't help but smile a little, infected by

as well. Usually, his appearance would have caused

an expression of profound relief appeared on the young man's beautiful face. Kai swayed a little, and then leaned on the wall to

"Gods… thank the gods…"

behind all that time. He was truly too decent of a person for this vile world, and infected by a misguided sense of nobility to boot. Knowing that he had escaped the hell of the Forgotten Shore because of someone else's

sincere

him, they had no reason to feel

Sunny decided to ignore the darker part of

happened, he would have to deal with it then. If he had to die to avoid becoming a slave, he

now, he chose to just share this rare

of their cohort was back, after

of the Awakened healers in the employ of the Academy appeared from

of Valor looked up from her communicator, strange sparks igniting in her vermillion

of the government agents couldn't

how is she? Lady Changing