SHADOW SLAVE: CROWN OF HOLLOW SCORN

That evening, Nephis made Sunny perform the thousand strikes again. But this time, Valen was watching him. His gaze was sharp and calculating.

"Tell me, Sunny… who do you think you are?"

Sunny, panting, shot him a confused look.

"What?"

"I'm... Sunny."

Valen sighed.

"I'm talking about your mindset. Do you think of yourself as a dominator? A coward? A fighter?"

"Who do you think you are?"

Sunny frowned. "I... I guess I'm a survivor?"

"And what is that?"

"Uh—someone who survives?"

Valen scoffed. " Yea (No shit) What I'm trying to say is that how you view yourself shapes how you fight. Whether you use trickery or brute strength, it reflects your psychology to some extent. So, Figure that out first."

Sunny fell silent, the words lingering.

***

That night, they ate the last strips of dried scavenger meat and took turns sleeping. Someone was always keeping an eye on Cassie—most of the time, that person was Valen.

Nothing happened in the night.

When the morning came and the dark sea retreated, they prepared to leave the giant statue.

Nephis was going to climb down, but before that, she had something to say:

"Today will be different. There will be many more scavengers roaming the labyrinth. We might not be able to avoid combat."

Her cold eyes fell on Valen.

"If anything happens, your job is to get Cassie out. Use the narrow passages—they can't follow us through those. If we get separated, go to the high point alone. Don't wait for me. Understood?"

Valen felt his temple pulse with a sharp, aching pressure. The crown dug into his mind, whispering like a phantom pressing down on his skull.

I WILL KILL YOU.

His fingers twitched. The taste of iron coated his tongue.

"Shut the fuck up."

Nephis was still watching him.

"And lower your eyes when speaking to me."

The words left Valen's mouth like a growl, his breath slightly ragged. But he gave her a nod.

"Time is of the essence," she said. "Let's go."

Without another word, she descended.

Valen carried Cassie, moving with an ease that still amazed Sunny. Within moments, they reached the ground.

Entering the labyrinth, they moved forward with haste. The shadow was ahead of them, scouting for monsters and optimal paths. Despite that, their progress was slow and chaotic. They had to constantly change direction to avoid groups of scavengers, often ending up in dead ends or moving further away from their destination

Sunny, who played the role of the scout and navigator, felt his brains slowly starting to boil.

At some point, however, they ended up in a situation where a fight was avoidable. But Valen jumped in without any warning.

Without hesitation, he launched forward, his sword carving through the air with unnatural fluidity.

Sunny blinked.

'He's... faster than before.'

It wasn't just his speed—it was everything. His movements were sharper, his reactions too precise. Like he was improving too fast. Unnaturally fast.

He cut down two scavengers in an instant, severing their limbs as easily as slicing through water. Another lunged at him—Valen stepped aside just enough, his blade flashing. A head rolled.

By the time the last one fell, he was already looking for the next.

Another pair of scavengers came into view.

Valen stepped forward—

"Valen."

Nephis had spoken.

The tone was commanding. A simple call, but it sounded like an order.

Valen froze mid-step.

Slowly, he turned to look at her.

There was something wrong about his face. His lips stretched into a grin, but his teeth were bared—too wide.

His voice was low, almost amused.

'What did you just say?"

He let the silence stretch, his eyes narrowing. Then, he scoffed and he took a slow, deliberate step toward her, tilting his head.

"Remember your place In front of me."

Nephis met his gaze, unreadable.

Then, she glanced toward the scavengers. "If there's only two, we can take them." (no diddy)

Sunny hesitated.

"But there's no time to set up an ambush."

"It's almost the same," she said. "I'll attack first. You follow behind in the shadows and finish one off once they turn. Then, we kill the second one together."

It was a dangerous plan.

The whole plan was based on the assumption that Nephis could survive under the onslaught of two scavengers, both attacking her simultaneously. Sunny was very impressed by her prowess, but he wasn't sure that it was possible. There was a large probability that Nephis would die.

Sunny swallowed hard.

He still remembered that she wasn't present in Cassie's first vision.

But what else could they do?

A bit rattled, Sunny gritted his teeth.

"Alright."

He glanced at Valen, who had turned back to Cassie, whispering something to her and her whispering something back

Sunny's grip on his sword tightened.

Nephis stepped forward.

And the fight began.