Shadow Slave

Sunny was not sure that he was buying what Ananke believed... but at the same time, he couldn't completely discard it.

'Damn Weaver...'

Just why did the creator of the Spell have to be a nebulous and elusive creature - not only surrounded in mystery, but also obsessed with lies? Could there be anyone more untrustworthy? Even though Sunny had inherited Weaver's forbidden Lineage, wore Weaver's Mask, and had a high affinity to fate, which was Weaver's Domain... he still knew close to nothing about the Demon of Fate.

Where had Weaver come from? Who hid behind the fearsome black mask? What motives had guided them? What goals had they pursued?

He shook his head with resignation and looked at Ananke, frowning.

'Whatever. If I can't learn about Weaver, I should at least learn everything else.'

Sunny collected his thoughts before asking the next question.

"Grandmother, you said that the purpose of the Nightmare Spell is to save the future from the doom of the great war between the daemons and the gods. To be honest... I am not entirely sure what that really means. What exactly is that doom? What made the war so terrible?"

The old woman gazed at the flowing expanse of the Great River, lingered for a moment, and sighed.

"It was indeed terrible. Of course, I have not experienced the horror of those days myself. What I do know was passed down to me from my elders, who had... granted, they escaped the war before the end came, so even they didn't know how and why the true devastation happened."

catch her breath, then continued in her creaky

against the gods. It happened soon after the Demon of Desire escaped her chains. The youngest among them, the Demon of Destiny, called upon his siblings to

steering oar a little, her frail hand as dark as

grown... distant, and people quarreled with each other, forgetting the days when everything stood together against

old woman was imagining the wide world

that they were not immediately defeated. After all, there were many lesser deities, but none of them were as feared as the

The old woman trembled.

the war only continued to grow fiercer. Those loyal to the gods took up arms, and in response, the Demons recruited more allies - mortal champions who had suffered the

Great River and remained silent for

fields turned to deserts, the rivers dried up. A passing blow from the fighting deities could destroy entire cities. Over time, countless humans were displaced or lost their lives. That was when we started calling it the Doom War, believing that it would become the end of everything... it was also when Weaver created

the ruin that had befallen that land when the shining figure fell from the sky. Was that radiant creature one of the

Or... an actual angel?

Realm, then it was no surprise

Ananke sighed.

offered us a path to salvation, but... back then, the Demon of Fate was despised by all - the followers of the gods, the followers of the daemons, and even those who did not want anything to do with the war. We, the priests of the Nightmare Spell, were despised as well. Few listened to us... still, some did. The Nightmare Spell

Sunny tilted his head.

"...Alluring?"

The old woman nodded.