Shadow Slave

The old man, meanwhile, met his deadpan gaze with a mildly surprised expression slowly appearing on his face.

All around them, the Ivory City was being devoured by fire.

After a while, Mordret shifted a little, and then said with amusement:

"...To be honest, I expected you to attack me."

Sunny scoffed.

"Why would I bother? You seem to be hellbent on committing suicide. I can just wait until Hope kills you, then carry on with my initial plans."

He thought for a bit, and then added:

"Plus, in the improbable case that you somehow succeed, I don\'t really lose anything. I will still become a Master. Sure, the great and mighty clan Valor might suffer as the result, but what do I care? I have no relationship with them."

The old man glanced at him with a pleasant smile.

"That bow of yours suggests otherwise."

Sunny chuckled.

"My warbow? Do you like it? Well, I like it very much. What a beauty… your family really knows how to craft a Memory! However, you are mistaken if you think that I received it for rendering some service to Valor or being close to your father. In fact, they don\'t even know that I have it. Uh… I would prefer if it stayed that way, too."

Mordret tilted his head a little.

"Have no worry, Sunless... your secret is safe with me! All your secrets, actually. I have to admit, though, with how paranoid you are, I thought that you would try to silence me at all costs. Aren\'t you afraid that I will reveal them after escaping from the Nightmare?"

Sunny smiled lazily, then shrugged.

"Not really."

He sighed, and then said in a serious tone:

"While it pains me that you know so much about me, you and I are similar in many ways. We both believe that knowledge is the origin of power, don\'t we? So, sharing my secrets would be no different from giving your power away. Why share the leverage you have on me with anyone when you can have it all to yourself?"

Sunny\'s expression grew a little dour.

"Of course, I would gladly kill you to destroy that leverage. However, the benefit of destroying you is not worth the risk of fighting you. You are one scary bastard, Mordret, you know that? Plus… I don\'t even know how to kill you… so what\'s the point?"

He was not lying. Although Sunny had grown more powerful than he had expected inside the Nightmare, Mordret was much older and had vastly more experience. He also had a far greater background.

If Sunny\'s suspicions were correct, not only had the Prince of Nothing inherited the lineage of War God, but he had also been raised by both Great Clan Valor and Asterion… he was a monster created by not one, but two Sovereigns.

A monster capable enough to, maybe, outshine both of them.

How could an outskirt rat like Sunny compete with that upbringing?

He couldn\'t…

Yet. At least not in a direct fight.

A competition of wit, on the other hand...

Who could say which one of them was more devious?

As Sunny stared at him with a smile, Mordret remained silent for a few moments, and then slowly stood up.

"What remarkable restraint… are you sure you don\'t want to attack me, Sunless?"

Sunny shook his head.

"I really don\'t want to."

The old man looked at him, then said with uncertainty:

"Well… I\'ll be going then?"

He lingered for a few moments before turning around and taking a step away.

Sunny cleared his throat.

"There is one problem, though."

Mordret froze, then faced him again, an amused smile appearing on his lips.

His eyes glistened dangerously.

"Oh?"

Sunny sighed.

"As much as I don\'t want to fight you… and as much as I wish you luck in ending this Nightmare… I am a very, very petty person. I also have a great memory. I tend to remember my grudges."

He raised a hand and started counting on his fingers.

"You used me, lured me into a trap, put me in hot water with clan Valor, caused me and my friend weeks of terrible suffering, almost cost us our lives, and then even tried to kill me yourself! You really, really owe me a lot, Mordret… don\'t you think?"

The old man grinned.

"Ah, I see how you could have been a little upset with my actions. Well, how do you suppose we should settle my debt, Sunless?"

Sunny made himself more comfortable and smiled. Then, he said in a cheerful tone:

"...I accept Transcendent Memories. Six or seven should do."

Mordret stared at him for a bit, then laughed.

"I see. Sadly, that would not be very convenient for me. Anything else you might consider?"

Sunny looked at him with regret.

"Well… in that case, there is one other thing. I guess I can just prevent you from killing Hope, ruin the plans you\'ve been making for the better part of the decade, torture you ruthlessly for a few weeks, and then slowly destroy your body. That should make us even, I think."

Mordret looked at him with a somber expression.

"...I thought you couldn\'t lie. Didn\'t you say that you wouldn\'t attack me?"

Sunny shook his head.

"I said that I don\'t want to attack you. Never said that I won\'t."

The old man sighed.

"Yes, I noticed. Pity. I hoped to avoid this…"

With that, the shadows around Sunny suddenly shifted and moved.

A moment later, five identical four-armed devils rose from them, each at least three meters tall. They wore fearsome onyx armors, with darkness veiling their bestial faces and black eyes.

Each had four horns, and each had one of them broken. The devils radiated a suffocating, frightening feeling of malice and furious power.

Still sitting on his chair, Sunny stared at the five shadowspawns that surrounded him with trepidation. His face grew still.

Gripping the Extraordinary Rock, he shivered and said glumly:

"Well, that\'s… that\'s not good at all…"