Shadow Slave

Sunny shut down the illusion. The underground dojo was silent and submerged in darkness, almost like the lightless expanse of his soul.

Crawling out of the Dreamscape pod, he glanced at it, and then walked to the middle of the hall. There, he sat down on the cold ceramic plates of the floor, crossed his legs, and closed his eyes.

Back in the illusory world created by the will of an eccentric Saint, the tournament was coming to an end. There were spectacles, festivities, and accolades being given to the winners. But he didn't care.

He didn't care about the legend of Mongrel, either. Sunny had no doubt that his inexplicable refusal of the final reward and daring challenge had created quite a stir. Were people praising Mongrel for his resolve and ambition? Or mocking his defeat and calling him a fool? In any case, the network must have been boiling right now.

Sunny couldn't be bothered to check.

He had much more important concerns.

There was the final reward he had received, given to him by Morgan of Valor despite his failure, as well as previous rewards he had no time to study well.

And there was Shadow Dance. This was what he had to concentrate on now.

Sitting in the darkness with his eyes closed, Sunny thought back to the revelation he had received during the battle with the monstrous Master and started to slowly digest it. He had the key now… all that remained was to absorb it, turn it from a fleeting feeling into an inseparable part of his mind, body, and soul.

That was going to take some time.

Fragments of Morgan's battle will helped him find unity in the discordant collection of battle styles he had amassed. His comprehension of the fundamental, governing principles of battle techniques was vastly elevated, allowing him to understand them on a deeper level.

This enlightenment was going to help Sunny grasp various styles much faster, as well as mirror more complex and sophisticated battle arts with ease. At this level, he needed to be able to recognize patterns of essence control from how the enemies moved, breathed, and attacked. The new understanding was going to help with that, too.

He just had to assimilate it all.

Time slowly passed. Sunny continued to meditate, making slow progress toward his goal. After a while, his thought began to wander.

The Dream Tournament… gave Sunny much more than he had expected.

Yes, there were powerful Memories and a breakthrough in his comprehension of Shadow Dance, but there was also something else. Different, but no less valuable.

Fighting the best of the best that the Dreamscape had to offer had helped him to put his own prowess into perspective. Facing formidable champions one after another showed Sunny just how much more powerful and experienced than them he was.

Sunny was always comparing himself to Nephis, and inevitably finding himself falling short. He chased after her with desperate resolve, but was never able to catch up. Mongrel might have been only defeated once, but Sunny had been defeated countless times. He lived in the shadow of constant failure.

But it was exactly because he had been chasing after Changing Star without rest that he had left everyone else in the dust without even noticing. Now that he had a chance to look back, Sunny finally saw just how wide the gap between himself and all the rest of the Awakened had become.

It was so wide that he had been able to cut the best of them down while barely using a quarter of his power.

Back on the Forgotten Shore, Sunny had learned a simple truth — if one wanted to better themselves, they had to challenge those who were stronger than them. Nothing was more beneficial to one's growth than fighting against a superior opponent. That was why and how he had transformed himself into a lethal killer in the span of a single year.

And even though Sunny had not understood it before, using Nephis as a reference point achieved the same result. Even if the goal of surpassing her often seemed bitterly unattainable, he had come far by struggling to do so against all odds. So, so far.

He saw it clearly now.

…But he also saw how much further he had to walk.

Just as fighting the participants of the Dream Tournament had shown him his strength, fighting Morgan had shown him his weakness.

Yes, Sunny was incredibly powerful for an Awakened of his age. But there were other giants out there, no less terrifying than him. They were older, stronger, and had years of battle experience and vast resources that he lacked. In front of them, Sunny was like an ant…

A subtle smile appeared on his face.

'...Or, maybe, like a cockroach.'

Morgan was a Master of the Great Clan Valor, and as such, she was a peak existence among those below the level of a Saint. She was kin to one of the Sovereigns. So he could use her as a benchmark to know what was the worst he could expect. Another reference point to strive for, one more superior opponent to temper himself against.

One day in the future, they might have to cross swords again. And when that happened… he knew that her vermilion eyes would not end up full of disappointment again.

Instead, they would be full of fear.

…All these thoughts traveled idly at the edges of his consciousness, while most of his mind was occupied by absorbing the key to the second step of Shadow Dance. And just as that last thought disappeared, he finally felt that the process was complete.

A moment later, the silence of the underground dojo was suddenly destroyed by the voice of the Spell. Sunny flinched, not accustomed to hearing it in the real world, let alone inside his home.

The Spell said:

[Your Aspect Legacy mastery level has increased.]

[You have received the right to claim a Legacy Relic.]

[...Your Shadow has evolved.]