Shadow Slave

A few days later, Sunny was in his living room, watching as Rain performed the same strike over and over again, her eyes full of stubborn determination. The practice sword rose and fell, over and over again, cutting the air with a whistling sound.

…Actually, her form wasn't bad.

Effie was currently traveling between Citadels, so she had not come out of her sleeping pod for a while now. Sunny and Rain were alone, which made the training session much less lively.

'Finally, some peace and quiet…'

Despite thinking that, Sunny couldn't help but feel that his home seemed a little bit empty these days.

He sighed.

There were other things on his mind, too.

Now that his part of the deal with Cassie was complete, the journey into the Nightmare was drawing close. No matter how aloof about the whole thing Sunny wanted to remain, he was aware that there was a real possibility that he would not return from that trial alive. Even if he did, there was no telling how long conquering the Nightmare would take.

Which meant that his remaining time with Rain was limited, and he couldn't waste it.

He had to accelerate her training and teach her some actual battle skills.

Observing the teenage girl, who continued to swing her practice sword while drops of sweat rolled down her face, Sunny was in deep thought.

What style was he going to teach her?

Rain was his sister, so his first instinct was to share his legacy, Shadow Dance, with her. Almost as if they were members of an actual clan...

However, that wasn't a very good idea.

Not only was her mentality poorly suited for his shapeless and insidious battle art, but she was also physically incapable of learning it.

Since everyone received extensive combat training in school, there weren't really a lot of weak people in the waking world. But Shadow Dance was simply not meant to be practiced by mundane humans. It demanded a physical constitution of an Awakened, at least.

Sunny was only able to master the first step as a Sleeper because of his unique Aspect, hundreds upon hundreds of shadow fragments he had absorbed on the Forgotten Shore, and the fact that this style was tailor-made for him, by him.

What, then?

The flowing and unpredictable battle art that Nephis had taught him obviously came to mind. It was designed to be a perfect foundational style, after all. However, Sunny didn't like the idea of teaching it to Rain. Not only because he felt that he didn't have the right, but also because it came from the Immortal Flame clan.

Sunny suspected that this ingeniously adaptable battle art had been created by the martial genius, Broken Sword himself. He also had an idea of who Broken Sword's killers were. Who could tell what problems knowing this style could drag along?

By now, Sunny had also learned a plethora of various battle styles in the Dreamscape. However, none of them impressed him too much.

That meant that there was only one choice left. Coincidentally, he felt that it was the most fitting.

Saint's solid, grounded battle style.

It seemed to suit Rain's quiet, thoughtful, and meticulous personality very well. It was also the most precise and methodical technique Sunny knew, and one that provided the best defense. His goal was to ensure that Rain survives for as long as possible, and having a flawless defense went a long way if one wanted to not die.

More than that, his sister seemed to share a connection with Saint. If she was such a big fan of the graceful demon, perhaps there was a reason for that. In any case, learning the style of her idol would not be the worst thing in the world.

…Noticing that he was staring at her with a dark expression, Rain stopped and gave Sunny a questioning look.

"...What? Did I mess up?"

He slowly shook his head.

"No. Actually, your form was perfect for the last hundred strikes."

A wide, incredibly bright smile suddenly appeared on the teenage girl's usually calm and collected face.

"Aha! See! I practiced every day while you were gone on your trip. All my classmates think that I lost my mind. What do those fools even know!"

The corner of Sunny's mouth twitched.

'...Since when does she refer to people as fools? She was such a polite girl before… uh… before meeting me?'

Rain blinked a couple of times, then asked:

"But if I was doing it right, why were you staring at me with that "curses and damnation" expression of yours?"

'A what now?! I don't have a…'

Sunny cleared his throat.

"That… uh… I think that you're ready to learn more than one strike."

Rain beamed.

"Yes! Finally!"

She looked around the living room, and then said:

"So, are you going to show me some real battle techniques? Effie said that you are decent with the sword. At least I think that was what she meant. Are you?"

Sunny hesitated, then shrugged and stood up.

"Yeah. I do know my way around a sword. Let me just… actually, this place is too cramped. Follow me."

Turning around, he went toward the hallway and pressed on a certain wall panel, which then moved aside, revealing the doors of an elevator.

Rain stared at all that with a funny expression.

"Uh… you have a secret door in your house?"

Sunny smiled.

"Sure. Actually, I have two. One for the stairs, and one for the elevator."

The girl thought for a second, and then gave him an understanding nod.

"Ah. You have an underground shelter. That's smart… we don't have one in our home, since building it is very expensive."

He gave her a strange look.

"Aren't your parents rich?"

Rain laughed.

"For a wildly successful young entrepreneur, you don't know a lot about money, do you, Sunny? Sure, our family is not poor. But there's rich… and then there's rich. And we're not that kind of rich."

Sunny tilted his head, trying to make sense of what he had just heard.

'What the hell is that nonsense? Rich is rich… isn't it?'

He frowned.

"I know lots about money, kid! I know to make it, and how to spend it. What else is there to know?"

Rain stared at him for a few moments, and then silently shook her head.

Together, they entered the elevator and descended into the underground dojo.