Shadow Slave: Reaction

"Lady Changing star. It's okay to kill this Sunless right? You may have been formerly comnected in some way but you have forgotten about him."

It is not Lady Morgan nor Summer knight who said that. It was one of the most loyal subordinate of Anvil, one of the former vassal of the sovereign's father. Jest of Dagonet.

"I suggest you to calm down Sir Jest. There is a possibility that he is on our side, or at least used to."

It wasn't Nephis who answered but it was Cassie. Her voice calm and collected unlike the scenes of her shown in the video.

Jest on the other hand smiled. The not so funny old man that everyone treated like a corny uncle suddenly drowned everyone in an uncomfortable atmosphere, making everyone realize that saints are truly fearsome beings.

Cassie though, did not back down.

"It is even possible that he used to be someone serving the King of Swords."

Jest Laughed out loud, making those who were not familiar with him extremely uncomfortable.

"That would be impossible Saint Cassia. Even though forgotten, I know for a fact that he is not from any legacy clans hence its impossible for him to be a vassal. "

He sighed and then shrugged as his eyes sharpened.

"That is what my intuition is telling me. "

Cassie's eyes narrowed as she nodded.

"But it's not impossible."

A smile appeared on Jest's face as faint white light hit it.

The video has continued again.

Rain's teacher... was a strange existence.

Rain blinked a few times when she saw herself in the video. Immediately after her scene was shown, gazes swept their interest on her. It's not only the saints but even all the people inside the theater, which sent shivers to every part of her body.

'd-damnation! Why me out of all these people!'

Out of all the gazes, one particularly made Rain question. the rate of her survivability after they escape this theater.

Mordret on the other hand was smiling. His thoughts earlier were correct. Rain is connected to this 'Sunless' friend of him and now he will finally know some interesting information about his friend, especially his connections to other humans.

Usually, he resided in her shadow, only showing up when no one else was around. At first, she thought that she had gone insane and was hallucinating, but after spending some time with the mysterious apparition, Rain slowly realized that it was real.

'Could it be?'

Cassie's eyes widened as she stared at Rain. Reluctance was in her eyes yet she insisted on asking her.

"Is your master perhaps Sunless?"

Rain in the midst of the gazes froze. Her head slowly turned towards Cassie as she said with a confused voice.

"Yes...?"

Cassie smiled at the woman and nodded.

"I see"

Meanwhile Sir Jest who wanted to shout the fact that Cassie is blind is being restrained by multiple Saints just to stop his mouth from opening

And not only that, but also immensely powerful.

"If master Sunless is not really master Sunless but in fact is Saint sunless then I want to fight him. "

Effie said while puffing her chest out proudly. Although that comment immediately sparked a debate on how strong Sunless is, it was futile as no one can really prove it.

Of course no one doubted the strength of one of Changing Star's cohort. But they can't be sure about how the unknown Saint. His feats of breaking fate is something unheard of even to the sovereigns.

Luckily, the apparition was mostly benevolent, and did not seem to harbor any ill will toward her. On the contrary, it... he... treated Rain with something that resembled familial affection. It was almost as if he was the spirit of her distant ancestor.

She did not think that her family had such an ancestor, though. But then again, Rain was adopted, and didn't know much about her biological parents. So... it might have been possible that there was an eccentric dark deity in her family tree?

"Maybe he is truly someone important for this young woman? A saint hiding in Bastion wouldn't risk his life by accompanying a random girl he found somewhere in Ravenheart."

Rivalen of Aegis Rose said. Her emphasize of Ravenheart's name didn't get past the people of Song.

"My, My.... I thought we would cooperate in this situation as agreed with Lady Changing Star? "

Beast Master said as she smiled towards the people of Bastion. A fake smile.

"Who said we are not? we are cooperating."

Summerknight once again faced the Beastmaster.

"Is that so? "

Smiling as she tilted her head sideways, the Beastmaster looked like am innocent child, yet the intent she's producing says the opposite.

Her teacher did, indeed, look a little bit like her. A much more glamorous, handsome, and male version of her, to be precise.

...Even if he was on the shorter side.

"That what's make him an eye candy though! "

"Yeah! ... wait who said that? Dude... did you just call-

"Hell nah that ain't me! "

In any case, her teacher - who called himself Shadow was a strange being. When he emerged from her shadow, he looked like a young man with flawless alabaster skin, raven-black hair, and beautiful eyes that resembled two pieces of glistening onyx. His exquisite appearance was perfectly human, if a bit too sublime.

That said... her teacher did not have a shadow of his own.

"So he can seperate his own shadow off his body? Interesting. I wonder how will he do against me."

Revel said as she asked her sister. But now, she didn't ask Deathsinger. Instead, she asked Seishan, who unanimously is a better conversationalist than the former.

He also avoided mirrors like a plague, to the point that she was prohibited from having any in her vicinity. So, although Rain couldn't confirm it, she suspected that he did not have a reflection, either.

"Ah..."

Effie looked at Mordret with an annoyed look as he looked back. He smiled at her in a very innocent manner which made Effie's mouth twitch as she probably wants to beat the bastard.

Smiling still, Mordret said:

"Did'nt I told you? he probably ks my friend."

Effie on the other hand couldn't hold back.

"Fuck you! your humor is much worse than that old man in Bastion! "

"C'mon! respect this old man!"

"Shut up!"

Which led her to believe that her teacher was a vampire.

Saint Cor was watching the scene with interest and amised with the young woman's naivety. He wanted to know more about this Sunless but also wanted to see a glimpse of what the youth is doing right now. His old age and experiences just wants himself to relax and enjoy the rest of his life but his duties as a saint suggest the literal opposite.

He wasn't afraid of sunlight, though, and did not seem interested in drinking her blood. Or any blood, for that matter.

"Well for a fact, master Sunless looks like those vampire in thw movies. A top tier handsome vampire."

"But vampires arw usually on the taller side of the spectrum. "

"Yeah... I didn't think of that. "

In short, even after spending four years in the company of her teacher, Rain still had no idea what he was.

Any attempt to ask him questions about his identity resulted in nonsensical answers that simply couldn't be taken seriously.

Like:

"Teacher... please tell me. Who are you, really?"

"Haven't I told you already? Gods, how many times do I have to repeat it? I am... your long-lost brother."

"I'm pretty sure I would remember having an older brother."

Silence grew as they realized that some dots are actually connecting. This woman, Rain is somehow connected to Sunless in the past yet she also have forgotten about him.

"The possibility of him being your brother became high after this realization."

A hoarse voive came from Rain's left which made her jump because of the surprise.

She looked at her right and saw a man with an imposing image. His hair is long and braided, accompanied by his simple yet regal clothes. He looked like a royalty, a king from another land.

Through her nervousness and confusion, Rain still managed to answer the man.

"I-I don't know. My master had been beside me for years now. And because of how complicated the dream realm is, I wouldn't be surprised if that is true. "

The man just smiled at Rain and nodded. That simple gesture made her more at ease and confident.

"You would assume so, wouldn't you? Ah, but, you see... after I killed the evil version of myself and reached the estuary of the river of time, which flows inside the great pyramid that a dreadful demon had built from the blood and flesh of an Unholy Titan, I was attacked by a vile, odious, very nasty, no good bird and had my fate stolen. So, no one in the world remembers me."

"Is he just blatantly lying? something about what he's saying is likely impossible to happen. "

A fire keeper said as no one of the saints answered him. They all knew that the information that he just said is the accurate information of the Tomb of Ariel.

"No it's the truth. "

Yet one Saint have answered him. That is the Saint Nightingale Kai. Which made a lot of people in disbelief.

"Although I do not know about the last part of his statement."

"I-is that so? Thank you Saint Nightingale. "

Jet immediately looked at Kai with eyes wanting answers but Kai shooked his head.

"It does not work on the video. "

A sigh of disappointment escaped Jet's mouth as she continued to just watch the video.

"...Uh-huh."

"haha, she doesn't take him seriously at all."

"Oh, but before that, I was very famous. Not only was I famous, but even my secret alter ego was famous. World-renowned, even. I was a war hero, too. And extremely wealthy. In fact... do you know Princess Nephis? Changing Star of the Immortal Flame clan? I was practically her boyfriend."

"I now see why she doesn't believe him at all. "

"How can someone lie avout auch things? Isn't he ashamed? "

Effie on the other hand had his eyes on Nephis which showed confusion.

"So... princess, what do you think? "

Nephis sighed as she looked at Effie.

"Blatant lies. "

"Welp I can't really defend him on this. "

"Uh-huh..."

Or:

"Teacher, tell me the truth... you're not an evil god, are you?"

"Of course not!"

"He does have an evil villain vibes but its good that he's denying it. "

"I hope hes not really an evil god."

"Really?"

"Sure. I mean... the blood of an ancient demon does flow in my veins, and I did devour the alabaster phalanx of a nebulous deity after being cast down into the darkness of a bottomless abyss. And technically, I am indeed the master of a lightless fragment that was torn from a divine realm. But, an evil god? Preposterous!"

Noctis paled with the mentions of those words. He knows what is and knows what exactly is Sunless talking about.

Solvane beside him looked him in the eye.

Noctis smiled and nodded. His thoughts are still flooded with the information in front of him. His instincts told him how dangerous Sunless is yet it also told him that the man had never lied before.

"l... I see."

"I mean. I am a demigod, at best..."

After a while, Rain had stopped asking questions.

"I would've stopped too."

Lady Morgan of Valor said, gaining agreements of the people.

"Why? His stories are interesting."

Morgan looked at who spoke and saw Revel looking at her with an apathetic face.

"Then why don't you hire him as your personal story teller? "

"Your tongue is not as sharp as your skin, Miss Morgan. "

"Climb on, brat."

"Huh?"

"The scene changed!"

It was not something that they have seen before. It usually give videos that continous until the end. Although the video pauses whenever someone talk, this is the first time where it ultimately change the video halfway.

"There's nothing we can do. All that is left is just watch and discuss."

Nephis said to the people. Her influence to them made it easy to unite the crowd.

Rain didn't make him ask twice. There were ways to traverse a swamp, but none that were both safe and timely. Not to mention that she had just disinfected her wound and didn't want to get it wet and dirty again.

Plus, her battered body was exhausted. Why would she refuse a piggyback ride offered by a powerful deity?

"This looks like after a battle. Perhaps you awakened and did this? Sunless is a saint so his powers will be much destructive than this, and even if its a weaker enemy, then he would've disposed it more quietly. That place belongs to the territory of the queen."

"It seems that you have awakened young woman. "

Rain being commented on by both Summerknight and Beastmaster couldn't help but be amazed. She was starstruck. Although she met Changing Star's cohort before as their neighbor, being complimented face to face ia still different.

"Yes yes thank you. "

"It seems that Sunless isn't a bad master to you. "

"Ah yes. Although he sometimes say the most impossible things, he is still a good teacher. "

Climbing onto her teacher's back, Rain wrapped her arms around his neck and smiled.

He lifted her like a feather, not showing any strain at all despite how thin his body looked, and headed for the swamp.

"Ah... how humiliating... a divine shadow like me being reduced to carrying ungrateful mundane girls... gods are truly dead..."

"A divine shadow... "

"Is this another one of his lies or is it true? ....I mean he's aspect is about shadows and he's powerful."

Hearing th comments of some ascended, Saint Cor replied:

"It is possible but also could be a lie, maybe half the truth. But do not trust him, or rather do not trust anything in the dream realm. "

Ignoring his grumbling, Rain rested her head on his shoulder and allowed her consciousness to drift into a relaxed state. The familiar sound of her teacher's voice was almost like a lullaby.

Walking to the edge of the island, he didn't even try to slow down and stepped directly into the muddy water. However, his foot never plunged into the murky sludge - instead, the shadows moved and coalesced into a glossy black plate under it. Then, another plate appeared as he took a step.

A lot of people were amazed on how he used his aspect. His control and mastery over it that everyone couldn't help how this man use it in a fight.

"The question is.... is he a fighter? "

"What the hell are you saying? He's a saint. You think he can beat the third nightmare by being a non-fighter? "

"Well, Lady Changing Star is with him in the third nightmare right? As well as her cohort. It could be the same situation as Saint Athena's child. He didn't do anything but still became a Saint. "

Hearing this, Effie laughed. She can see that Sunless could fight but she's sure that it's not the best compared to the top Saints.

Like that, her teacher walked across the swamp as if he was walking on a paved road, the black plates dissipating behind him after a few moments. The water sloshed and surged, but never managed to touch his leather boots.

"Huh, that reminds me of that time we fought the Drowned in the lost temple of Fallen Grace... back when I was still wearing the Serpent King's crown... who knew that I would end up becoming a swamp rickshaw one day? Damn, life is sure full of irony..."

"The Serpent King..."

Nephis said as her eyes narrowed.

"The assumptions before can be debunked. If it's the truth that he wore that crown, then he is a very capable fighter. Maybe even the most. "

Amusement were on the faces of the Saints while shock were on the faces of those below them. They have never seen Changing Star compliment someone's strength, yet alone someone she's unfamiliar with.

"So what do you think now princess? "

"He is still suspicious. "

"Oh, c'mon! "

Rain did not know what the words Drowned, Fallen Grace, and Serpent King meant, but they sounded exciting. Was her teacher a king once, in ancient times?

...No, knowing him, it was more likely that he had stolen a king's crown and wore it to gloat and boast about his nefarious deeds.

"Her description is the opposite of the humble shopkeeper that we know. The Dream Realm is really a mysterious place. "

The walk to the shore was both comfortable and uneventful. Rain could have climbed off her teacher's back once they reached solid ground, but he simply continued to carry her without saying anything, and so, she didn't say anything either.

Perhaps he saw through her bravado and realized that her condition was worse than she was letting on, and that she was too exhausted to hike through the forest while suffering the pain of her wound.

Still...

After a while, Rain spoke:

"We should take down the corpses of the fallen Awakened and give them a burial."

Usually, the Queen would have taken the dead. But the Huntsman must have prevented them from leaving on a pilgrimage to her palace, and as a result, their bones had been left unattended.

Her teacher stopped.

Rain couldn't see his face, but she felt a subtle change in his mood. Suddenly, the shadows populating the frozen forest seemed much deeper, and the world felt much darker.

"Did he sensed something? Danger perhaps? "

Beastmaster heard this and replied immediately.

"That is part of the Queen's domain. A creature that could pose threat to a saint or even a master is impossible to come by."

"B-but my lady, why did he stop? "

Beastmaster smiled at him.

"You'll know soon if you shut up and watch the video. "

Her breath escaped as a cloud of cold vapor.

'Does he not want to bother with burying them?'

"Base on her description, he is quite selfish and narcissistic so that's possible. "

"Tsk, a Saint can't even honor a fellow awakened?"

"Although I somehow disagree, how is someone like him a Saint? There should've been someone much better. "

"Climb off."

He bent his knees, allowing Rain to stand firmly on the ground. She was a little confused.

'What...'

But then, she heard it. A branch snapping somewhere behind her.

Placing her hand on the hilt of her sword, Rain turned around and looked back.

There, she saw several human figures walking in their direction. They seemed like a cohort of Awakened... no. A Master and his retinue, perhaps? One, two, three people... one of them was waving his hand in a friendly gesture...

"Humans? he is wary of humans? "

Saint Cor immediately replied at the man with a voice full of hate.

"Who said that that thing is human? "

"Pardon? but it is... "

Saint of all kinds did not speak about this matter leaving most people in the theater disturbed.

Who wouldn't? The strongest people in the both worlds is wary against these humans.

Before Rain could discern any details, though, something strange happened.

Her teacher's hand appeared from behind and covered her eyes.

She froze.

Something was very wrong.

"What is wrong? They are humans!"

"Maybe Rain does not think its them but in her master? Maybe he's acting strange somwhow? "

Voices of many awakened were exchanged. Even some masters were confused on what is happening in the video. Yet the saints arw not saying anything. They are more focused om what's happening on the screen.

His voice sounded very calm... too calm, even, which only made Rain feel more nervous.

"Hey, brat. Listen to me very carefully. From now on and until I tell you otherwise, no matter what happens, don't open your eyes. Alright?"

Nephis looked at Mordret for a split second. Mordret who noticed the gaze smiled as if saying:

'Close enought but that is not me.'

She nodded slowly.

"Yes, teacher."

He remained silent for a moment.

"Alright. Stand here and don't move."

With that, her teacher removed his hand. Rain's eyes were tightly shut, so she couldn't see anything, but she felt him walking past to stand between her and the approaching people.

Their steps were drawing closer.

'Wrong, wrong! This is very wrong!'

"Again what is wrong? They are humans. If ever, she should be wary of her teacher. "

"I'm confused too... "

Rain was not stunned by the fact that he had covered her eyes. What truly disturbed her... was the fact that her teacher had not retreated into the shadows.

In all the years that she had known him, he had never, ever shown himself to other people, It was to the point that Rain had considered him a hallucination at first.

But now, her teacher remained in the open in front of absolute strangers.

"I see... that guy earlier was right. It's not those people. It's her master who is acting strangely. "

"Why would someone who is hiding for years suddenly go out to talk to these people? "

'Why?'

Her silent panic was Interrupted by his bright, carefree voice:

"Greetings! Who might you be?"

The sound of steps halted, and a deep baritone answered in a friendly tone:

"Greetings, greetings! I am Master Sean, and these are my companions, Master Skif and Awakened Ardon. We were on our way back to Ravenheart... are you headed that way, as well?"

"Those are not from Ravenheart."

Hearing this from someone from Ravenheart, a firekeeper asked:

"How did you know?"

"A master is much more famous than you think. A master of Ravenheart would be familiar to someone from Ravenheart."

Rain frowned.

'Master Sean? Master Skif?'

She had not heard of these Ascended before. Granted, there were thousands of Ascended in the world, but still. Each of the Song Domain's Masters was like a minor celebrity, especially those in Ravenheart.

There was something else that seemed strange about these people, too. She was standing there, frozen, with her eyes closed... but they did not seem to care enough to react in any way, Wouldn't it be natural to ask what she was doing?

"Are they after Sunless? But why? Who are these people? "

"They are from the Clan of Night."

Morgan said as she shifted on her seat.

"I have met one of them in Antarctica years ago."

"But why would they go to Ravenheart? "

Morgan sighed because of the naive and clueless answer.

"They? You mean, it?

Her words brought more confusion about everything that is happening.

Her teacher lingered for a few moments.

"Yeah, we were on our way back to Ravenheart too."

Then, there was a long stretch of silence. Eventually, Master Sean asked, his voice sending a chill running down Rain's spine, for some reason:

"You look a little familiar, young man. Say, have we met before?"

"Isn't he forgotten? How could he know?"

Effie seems tired of the Saints and their silence as she began to speak.

"Because that thing isn't something normal. Just watch the godamn video and see what I meant."

The tone of his voice was perfectly friendly, and so were his words. But she suddenly felt suffocated, as if there was something eerily, maddeningly wrong with it all.

Her teacher's answer was a little somber:

"As a matter of fact, we have indeed met before. Although I doubt that you'll remember. In any case, why don't you and your friends continue onward? Let's part on friendly terms and go our separate ways. How about it?"

"This is giving me creeps. Whay in the hell is this conversation. "

"It is weird. As if they're talking about something we're unaware of. "

There was another lengthy silence.

Shivering, Rain heard a strange rustle come from the direction of the three strangers. Their surroundings were slowly turning colder.

'What was that rustle?'

"How about it... how about it. How how how about it"

"What the fuck?"

"That's the master's voice right? "

"Why is he tweaking?"

Whispers among the people started to grow as more and more of them are getting confused.

The saints however paid attention on what's about to happen.

Master Sean's voice still sounded human, but his speech had turned strangely incoherent.

Another voice joined, its mannerisms and Intonations too similar to the first:

"We are on our way back to Ravenheart. These are my companions... Master... we are on our way. How about it?"

Rain was still stuck on her previous thought, unable to throw it out of her head.

"What... what was that rustle?"

"That is...! could it be?"

"What is it? "

"An abomination pretending to be a human?"

"Don't be ridiculous. "

She had never heard a sound like that before.

Just at that moment, the disturbing rustle grew louder, and a third voice added amicably:

"These are my companions."

"My companions..."

"My companions."

"That rustle..."

"How about..."

"...How about you become my companions, too?"

Her teacher took a deep breath. Rain could hear his voice turning dangerously cold:

"Listen here, bastard..."

"He looks pissed. "

Effie grinned as she finally can see the prowess of Sunless.

While other saints are still cautious. The skinwalker is something that can even victimize saint and it is something that should be avoided at all cost.

She had never heard such coldness in his voice before, and the unfamiliarity scared her.

"You might have managed to claw your way out of Dread's Tomb, but so did I. You might have survived in the depths of a thousand hells, but so did. So save me the theatrics and be on your way Otherwise, I'll stop being gracious and skin you alive!"

Rain shuddered.

'Skin... skin him...'

Suddenly, a thought flashed in her mind.

'The Skinwalker!'

"What?! "

"That's in Ravenheart? "

"Could the Clan of Night be... "

"No, no that's a great clan. That's impossible. "

"But these masters... "

"Fuckin hell"

The Great abomination that had been the nightmare of humanity for the past four years!

A Great... A Great abomination...

Three of the indescribable horror's vessels, no less!

Her terror was so vast that she couldn't even move. All Rain could do was keep her eyes closed and tremble.

'I'm dead, I'm so dead...'

"Have some confidence! You have a saint by your side! "

"But it can even kill and possess Saints. "

A sense of doom crawled doen their spirits as the abomination seemed very formidable.

"B-but the sovereigns can right? "

"Yes but the skinwalker already possessed a lot. They can't kill everything of it."

"Shit"

No, death would be a mercy.

At that moment, Master Sean - Skinwalker's vessel spoke with a hint of curiosity in his voice:

"You... whose companion are you?"

Her teacher scoffed.

And then, the world quaked.

The world quaked, and then, Rain was suddenly enveloped by absolute darkness.

"He's protecting her. "

"At least he's fighting these abominations. "

A lot agreed to this comment made by an awakened from the government. If there is a battle between evil, then people tend to support the lesser evil.

It was as if an Impenetrable wall rose to surround her from all sides. The deafening cacophony of terrible sounds coming from the outside was muffled and dampened by that wall, and nothing but slight tremors reached her.

For the moment, at least, she was safe.

But those sounds...

Feeling a cold dread grasp her heart, she took a shaky breath and tried to comprehend them.

"I will use all the luck I have for this life to not even see the skinwalker ever. "

"Same"

"let me join in that"

There was the sound of trees snapping. There were the screams of the air being torn. There was the roar of the ground being upturned.

"Damn, I wanna see the fight"

Effie said as she crossed her arms. Although she indeed kind of perceive the fight, she still prefers to see it in action.

"I say thay he's beating the shit out of those three. "

Jet said as she looked at Nephis to see some reaction. But Nephis is simply looking at the screen with a straight face.

Meanwhile, Cassie was... okay. She trust Sunless that he will survive. While Kai is anxious more than anyone else. It's not that he is worried about Sunless but he is worried for the fact that the Skinwalker will take over the mysterious Saint's body.

These were the sounds that she could recognize.

But there were other sounds, as well.

Inhuman howls. Chilling groans that sounded like... like the world itself was weeping. Eerie and revoltingly organic rustling, as if a mountain of flesh was ripping as it expanded while consuming itself.

And many more that Rain simply could not describe, and was afraid to fathom.

The ground was shaking violently, and she was struggling to stay standing.

Her fingers turned white on the hilt of her sword.

'Teacher... be safe. Please...!'

But how could anyone stay safe when facing the Skinwalker? Countless people had fallen to its menace and were consumed, becoming vessels of the abomination's corruption. Mundane humans, Awakened, Masters... even Saints.

Not even the Sovereigns could eradicate this living curse.

"T-that's right. But he should win! He might be untrustable but at least that guy is a human! "

One by one, cheers for Sunny emerged from the crowd. Even though they could be enemies, the enemy of humanity is against this man, and they want this man to win.

Shrouded by darkness, Rain realized how painfully weak and helpless she was.

Just a few moments ago, she had been full of pride, praising herself for slaying an Awakened Demon.

But now, she remembered that in the world of the Nightmare Spell, she was nothing but an ant.

An ant who couldn't even do anything when her teacher was fighting to protect her.

'Strong... I want to be strong.'

Saint Cor smiled at this sight.

'That's right. Get strong, you kids are the future of humanity.'

...The world continued to scream and quake for several minutes.

Then, an eerie silence suddenly enveloped it. The tremors stopped, and the terrible sounds ceased.

Rain remained motionless, keeping her eyes closed.

She didn't dare to think about how the battle had ended. The thought of imagining her teacher... her teacher not being there anymore was too appalling. More appalling than what would happen to her if he was truly gone.

Suddenly, the wall surrounding her disappeared. She knew that it had because light suddenly shone through her eyelids, and cold wind scraped against her face.

The air was permeated by the smell of wet wood and soil.

'Please...'

A moment later, a familiar voice spoke from somewhere near:

"Brat, you can open your eyes now."

"He's alive!"

"Thank god! "

A wave of relief was visible from the crowd's faces. Yet the saints are not. If this is truly true, then they have found a saint that could kill greay abominations without eveb struggling.

The clans have already set their eyes on him.

The relief Rain felt at that moment was strong enough to make her sway.

She slowly opened her eyes and looked around, then froze in shock.

"N-no way..."

The frozen forest... was gone.

"Holy shit"

"I have never seen such a devastation in my whole life. "

"Is this really in Ravenheart? "

"What will happen to the world with these Skinwalker walking freely there? "

The relief they felt was immediately replaced by worries. They have realized that the only thing Sunny fought were three vessels. And out there in the world are thousands, if not millions of these creatures.

It was obliterated entirely, and everywhere she looked, nothing but a barren expanse of flattened and upturned land could be seen. The trees had been reduced to mere splinters, and the ground itself was broken, with dark fissures covering it like bottomless scars.

Here and there, the splinters were wet with blood. Buried under them, broken corpses of the unfortunate Nightmare Creatures who had populated the forest lay, their macabre sight mercifully hidden by the debris.

That scene of devastation stretched as far as the eye could see.

"Is this how Saints battle?"

"If this is how it is, then I wouldn't want to see what happen in Antarctica. "

The entire landscape had been drastically changed in a matter of minutes, redrawn by the fury of the harrowing battle.

The scale of the dreadful destruction... was simply unfathomable.

Rain took a trembling breath and finally looked at her teacher.

He was standing a few steps away, as nonchalant as ever.

His hair was ruffled, and there was a smudge of something dark on his cheek... but other than that, he was the same pale, roguish scoundrel she knew.

Of course, Rain struggled to perceive him in the same light.

She had known that her teacher was a powerful being, of course... but this was the first time she really witnessed his power.

"He destroyed a vessel just like that, unharmed. "

As Effie looked at Nephis, she finally found an expression on her. It was a frown.

"Princess, why are you frowning?"

Nephis blinked as she saw all of the cohort looking at her.

"I am just trying to imagine what happen and how he killed it. "

Although they wanted to say thay she is lying, they never did. They knew that Nephis know something but decided to stay silent. All that they could do is respect her decision.

Where were the vessels of the Skinwalker?

Rain tried to compose herself.

"The.., the Skinwalker?"

Her teacher remained silent for a few moments, then silently took a step back.

Behind him, three human corpses were piled on top of each other, each missing the head and with a deep wound where their hearts should have been.

'Three vessels of a Great Nightmare Creature!...'

Rain swallowed.

Her teacher had just killed three Great abominations. Just like that.

"He is scary...."

"And strong as fuck"

"Hey... I wonder, what really happened to him before he's forgotten? "

That one question created more questions on the people's mind.

Just who is Sunless?

Who is he before?