Shadow Slave

There was some rustling inside the tent, and then Kai emerged from it, looking as handsome and dazzling as ever. No... even more so.

Sunny's face became a little dull. His friend had reached borderline criminal levels of attractiveness after becoming a Master, mesmerizing most mundane humans by simply appearing in front of them, but Sunny had thought that a couple of months in the mud and muck of Antarctica would rub some of that glamour off.

However, he had been sorely mistaken.

If anything, Kai only became more captivating. His natural charm had acquired a hint of reserved military valiance, becoming more subdued, but also much more arresting. His green eyes were still as electric as ever, but now, there was a quiet, almost melancholic depth to them that made one deeply desire to comfort and console the young man. Those eyes were nothing short of compelling.

Kai smiled, making all three of them - Sunny, Effie, and Jet - hold their breaths for a moment. "Sunny! Ascended Jet. It is so good to see you."

Even his voice was like a soothing melody.

'That bastard...' Sunny wasn't even angry about how stunning his friend was. What really disheartened him was what Kai was wearing.

The archer was clad in a beautiful suit of ivory armor that seemed to be made out of impregnable scales, with a few insets of burnished bronze blazing between them with reflected sunlight. It was tied at the waist by a sash of burnt umber color, which emphasized the rich auburn splendor of his hair.

The armor was made of dragon scales, and was a Transcendent Memory Kai had received after slaying the Ivory Dragon Sevirax.

Both Effie and Kai had come into possession of a Transcendent Armor in the Second Nightmare.

used to have an armor like that, too, which he had gotten for killing Solvane for the first time. But, of course, it had

he was the only

who smiled and stretched her hand out for

time the two of them met. Sunny glanced at Soul Reaper bleakly. 'At least she is not a

shake Effie's hand.

tent that stood nearby, serving as the

a somewhat different view of the charming archer, and of what his

led soldiers

was what haunted his friend the most. But after experiencing the burden... and privilege... of being in command, and learning how

Now, he thought differently.

for asking, Sunny... but I really am. I... feel like I'm

always had these naive notions of what was right and wrong, and what a good person was

Come to think of it, the merry huntress had lost people in the Nightmare, too. She watched all the other girls perish

Night Temple - including

of them had felt

had lived through in the Second

on it. A topographical map of the

his thoughts. After a while, he shook them

simply no other path. The creature will definitely try to cross the river near the ford, and