Shadow Slave

For a moment, Sunny’s heart grew heavy, his mind consumed by murderous darkness. He thought that he had been betrayed again…

There were very few people in the two worlds who knew the secret of his Flaw. Nephis was one, but she was far away. Kai and Effie probably had their guesses. However, they chose to remain silent out of respect for his unwillingness to speak about this matter.

That left only Cassie.

Cassie, who was right here in the Night Temple and had already turned on him once…

But after thinking about it a little, Sunny realized that there had been another being who possessed the knowledge of his Aspect. The problem was that it had been dead for a long, long time.

The Mirror Beast.

The Ascended Reflection had mirrored his Aspect, so it had to have glimpsed it somehow. And it was connected to Mordret far more thoroughly than Cassie ever could be.

The Prince of Nothing had not known everything about the Shadow Slave Aspect before, Sunny was sure of it. Back in the abyss of the Sky Below, Mordret had expressed genuine curiosity and surprise about things that he would have already learned otherwise.

Which meant… which meant that he had most likely only received that information after the mirror shard was brought into the Night Temple. It also meant that he was only informed about what the Mirror Beast had learned, and what had been true then. If this guess was correct, maybe Sunny would be able to use a gap in Mordret’s knowledge to his advantage.

…Or he was wrong, and Cassie had really betrayed him again.

A lot of things depended on whether or not he was ready to trust her again. His very life, most likely.

Sunny frowned, then said, his voice even:

“You seem to be having fun. So… now that you know that I have nothing to do with Asterion, whoever that might be, are you going to rethink your previous plans and leave me be?”

Mordret chuckled.

“…What do you think?”

Sunny sighed.

“Honestly, I don’t know what to think anymore. Not when it comes to you, at least… you really are a devious bastard, you know that, right? Oh, don’t take it as an insult, by the way. Coming from me, it’s actually a compliment.”

The Prince of Nothing shook his head, then took another step forward.

“Well. A mirror can only reflect what is in front of it, Sunless. Is it my fault that the things in front of me are cruel, vile, and deceitful? I think not… then again, maybe it is. Either way, I don’t really care. Blame your bad luck for being of use to me, if you wish.”

His eyes ignited with a hypnotic scarlet light, and although Sunny’s own were closed, he suddenly felt slow and sluggish, strength draining from his muscles. He swayed, and used the Cruel Sight to support himself.

“Argh! W—wait… before we start this, answer me one last question…”

Mordret smiled.

“…Sure. Why not. What do you want to know?”

Sunny strained, as if trying to speak. His mouth opened…

But instead of saying anything, he simply attacked.

The Prince of Nothing laughed, amused by this little deception. His saber flashed forward to meet the blade of the Cruel Sight.

A moment later, though, his laugh abruptly stopped.

***

Sunny had no illusions about his chances in the fight against Mordret… not when the bastard occupied the body of a powerful Master, one whose Aspect allowed him to weaken his enemies and strengthen himself, no less.

But then again, when had Sunny ever fought fairly?

From the start of it, he had been subtly manipulating the banished prince. Every step back he had taken was meant to bring them into the right positions. The angle at which he held the Cruel Sight had been calculated so that the mirror blade only reflected what Sunny wanted Mordret to see…

Or rather, so that it didn’t reflect what Mordret was not supposed to see.

And at the moment of his attack, his efforts finally paid off.

…Because, in the end, he had chosen to trust Cassie after all.

The blind girl silently appeared at the entrance of the hall, behind the banished prince. Her eyes were hidden by the silver half-mask, but the polished steel armor and the midnight blue coat were gone. Instead, she was wearing the familiar light tunic and a cloak the color of sea waves.

This was the Memory gifted to her by Nephis, one that Changing Star had received after slaying an Awakened Terror in her First Nightmare. The armor that possessed an enchantment which made enemies less likely to pay attention to its wearer.

Unnoticed, Cassie knelt and placed something on the floor in front of her.

It was a large wooden box, its surface engraved with a complicated weave of a beautiful, but disorienting pattern. The lid was still slightly opened, rising above the lip by a few millimeters.

Sunny suppressed a grin.

‘Good thinking…’

The box had not been part of the plan, but Cassie seemed to have made a correction when a beneficial opportunity presented itself.

The moment the blade of the Cruel Sight met Welthe’s saber, the blind girl grabbed the lid, threw it open… and then poured her soul essence into the box.

Inside, the mirror trap was lined with plates of polished silver, each reflecting the one opposite it, thus creating an infinite labyrinth of reflections. The pattern on its surface shined with a pale glow.

Mordret staggered, his laughter cutting short. His hand seemed to weaken.

Sunny easily pushed the saber aside and thrust his spear forward, aiming to end the fight with one ruthless strike. However, the Prince of Nothing wasn’t done yet.

He recoiled, narrowly avoiding the killing blow. Even though the tip of the Cruel Sight pierced Welthe’s flesh, the wound wasn’t fatal. In the next moment, Mordret disengaged, jumping back and staggering as he raised the saber into a defensive stance. His eyes darted toward the wooden box.

“That cursed thing…”

Blood was streaming down his side, but the banished prince didn’t seem to care.

Neither did Sunny. He dashed forward, feinting a downward slash, then turning it into a swift thrust. Who knew how long Mordret would be slowed down by the mirror trap? It hadn’t helped the forces of Valor. He had to finish this fast…

Mordret barely deflected the attack, moving with visible strain. His mouth twitched.

“Hey Sunless… why don’t you… go and destroy that box?”

Sunny pushed forward, closing the distance between them and simultaneously turning the Cruel Sight into a sword. It flashed through the air, but was deflected once again. Even with his powers reduced so direly, the prince was still a formidable fighter.

Mordret bared his teeth.

“No? Ah… but I must insist. Why don’t you go and kill that little oracle of yours…”

His eyes gleamed with vicious amusement.

“…Lost from Light? That is your True Name, is it not? Do it!”

Sunny froze. His sword trembled.

Then, as his face become pale as a ghost and his pupils widened in horror, he slowly turned, facing Cassie. A strange sound escaped from his lips.

Mordret smiled, slightly relaxing his guard.

…It was at that moment that the Cruel Sight shot toward his body, easily sliding past the slender saber.

Sunny scoffed.

“…Why don’t you go to hell? I already have a master.”