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.

you

shrugged with

would do. But if you think about it, why would they do that? Even if the Sovereigns only care about the Dream Realm, they still need Awakened to populate it. And Awakened cannot exist

used were very cynical, the underlying message held true. Indeed, there had to be an immense

indeed destined to be consumed by the Dream Realm, the Sovereigns could not allow themselves to abandon it completely

Sunny had learned

He frowned, feeling confused.

shook his head and

third one? Asterion, what does

words were spoken, Mordret's smile dimmed,

do me a favor, try not to speak that name

couple of times,

"Come on. Really?"

a long sigh,

a bit beyond comprehension. If you feel threatened

leaned back, crossing

Come to think of it, where does he come from? There is almost nothing written about him in the history books. Is he a Legacy? Does

Mordret shrugged.

is that his Domain is different from those of the 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 are fighting over territory. But not his… his is more of an idea

for a

of Sun, House 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

Sunny shook his head.

lineage of

What kind

took a deep

always been like that. But, in fact, there were many powers competing for the right to shape the world as they saw fit, back in the chaotic time after the Spell first descended. Some more terrible than others. The old man is the last

maintaining the world order together — 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 have been much more

that was what he

for a

more extreme than anyone you could have met among the Legacies. Now, those people… they were really in favor of abandoning the waking world completely, believing that the Nightmare Spell was meant to pave the way for a new beginning. That the Dream Realm was a wild garden meant for

He shook his head.

world, establishing an isolated colony 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