Shadow Slave

1528 New Eden

Mordret studied him with a neutral expression. Then, he smiled pleasantly.

"How should I know? Am I a Sovereign?"

Sunny stared at him silently for a few moments. Eventually, he shook his head.

"No… but you are a son of one, was raised by another, and currently serve the third. If you don't know, then who would?"

Mordret laughed.

"Well, if you put it like that, it does sound like I should know. However, Sunless, you seem to be mistaken about something. The thing is… I don't care to know. Why should I care about the waking world? Whatever happens to it has little to do with me."

Sunny frowned.

Indeed, Mordret had spent most of his childhood in the Dream Realm, so he had little attachment to Earth. More than that, he was not someone who would care about the lives of hundreds of millions of innocent people, let alone feel inclined to do something to save them.

All Mordret cared about was his revenge against the Great Clan Valor.

A faint smile appeared on Sunny's face.

"Sure, you might not care about the waking world. But you do care about your father's plans — at least as far as to be able to try and ruin them better. So cut the crap and just tell me what you know. If you don't mind."

Mordret stared at him with amusement for a while, then sighed and shook his head.

"Well, why not? But I'm afraid that you are overestimating me. I really do not know what my father and the Queen of Worms are planning. I am not exactly on speaking terms with the former, and the latter does not trust me enough to share such secrets. All I know is that they are serious about having a war with each other. That was why I joined Ki Song."

He lingered for a moment and added, his voice losing its usual lightheartedness:

"I'll warn you, though. Don't presume to understand the Sovereigns, Sunless. You might think that you have them figured out, but you don't. They are far older than we are, and far more powerful. They are also not some cardboard villains. My father, Ki Song, and the third one… are the most exceptional individuals of their generation, or maybe even of all generations. They did not end up on their thrones by accident."

Sunny looked at him somberly.

are you

shrugged with

only care about the Dream Realm, they still need Awakened to populate it. And Awakened cannot exist without mundane people. You can't make an omelette without breaking eggs, and you can't get a stable supply of eggs without a poultry farm.

about what Mordret had said. Although the terms he used were very cynical, the underlying message held true. Indeed, there

was indeed destined to be consumed by the Dream Realm, the Sovereigns could not allow

Sunny had learned about them

He frowned, feeling confused.

head and asked, his

about the third one?

those words were spoken, Mordret's smile

not to speak that name aloud. Otherwise, he might

a couple of times, staring at

"Come on. Really?"

long sigh,

to scare you, I'm just telling the truth. The old man… his powers are a bit beyond comprehension. If you feel threatened by Ki

back,

scary about him? If he's so powerful, why isn't he participating in this war Song and Valor started? Where is he? Come to think of it, where does

Mordret shrugged.

other two. Yes, Domains can be different in nature. Most are like what my father and Ki Song possess, territorial. That is why Valor and Song

for a few moments, then said

of Night from the Lineage of Storm. Clan Song rose to prominence later, after Ki Song discovered the Lineage of Beast. The old man is the one who has the Lineage of Heart… however, there is no clan he belongs to.

Sunny shook his head.

of Heart

memory, hunger, and growth. What kind of Aspect could Asterion possess, then? What powers did he wield? What

deep breath,

there were many powers competing for the right to shape the world as they saw

— was established after several other, fringe factions had been defeated by the first Legacies. Even with all the sins of the current regime, the ones that could have been would

what he had

lingered for a

far more extreme than anyone you could have met among the Legacies. Now, those people… they were

He shook his head.

in the Dream Realm not long after the first Masters Ascended. The man who would one day become the third Sovereign… was actually born there. In fact, he was the first human child born in the