Sunny often finds himself wondering what went wrong in his life.
Getting adopted?
Getting infected by the spell?
He can find no reasonable explanation as to why he is facing nightmare creatures in an arena while being watched by saints.
He was recalled urgently to the manor, 3 days before the winter solstice no less, because 'They found some really good practice.'
By 'good practice', they meant 'Nightmare creatures that Beastmaster thralled during a category 2 gate nearby.'
And the audience for today was Beastmaster herself, and Hel.
Looking at him with a maniacal stare, the creature circled him with the chilling grace of a hunter.
Its body was lean and sinewed, covered in jagged, obsidian-like scales. Long limbs ended in hooked talons, with sickle-shaped claws on its feet like curved blades. A narrow, predatory head bore deep-set eyes and a mouth lined with uneven, serrated teeth. Bone ridges crowned its skull, giving it a twisted, regal menace.
Sunny mimicked the creature's movements and also circled; he stared into its eyes.
It was definitely intelligent.
A dormant demon.
He tightened his grip on [Burrower's Claw], its smooth bone handle firm and steady in his hand.
Bin called this 'training.'
Sunny called it 'Attempted murder.'
"Oh! The sweet symphony of Death!" Hel exclaimed.
The audience wasn't any help.
The demon paused, tilting its head ever so slightly, mirroring him with eerie precision. Its obsidian scales shimmered faintly under the pale overhead lights.
Sunny tried to fake stumbling...
But the creature wasn't fazed, simply staring as Sunny picked himself back up.
That display of intelligence alone sent a shiver down his spine.
The air between them grew thick, filled with a silent anticipation.
Sunny hunched over slightly, lowering his center of gravity.
He didn't want to reveal [Puppeteer's Shroud] unless absolutely necessary; a memory of that caliber would spark interest.
And with interest came questions.
The creature noticed these movements and prepared itself as well.
He silently ordered his shadow to wrap around his body, an action that the demon didn't notice.
It snarled, revealing a row of dagger-like teeth, and then —
It moved.
A blur of black came racing towards him, claws gleaming with murderous intent. Sunny barely managed to pivot aside, ducking under its slash and stabbing towards its legs.
The fiend seemed to anticipate this. It swung its tail towards him with ferocious strength.
He managed to stab its thigh; the memory dug through the flesh like butter.
The creature let out an ear-splitting shriek.
Sunny crashed against the far wall with a painful thud, the wind knocked out of him in an instant. Pain bloomed across his ribs like fire, a deep, jarring ache that told him at least one had cracked — if not worse.
He groaned and rolled to his side, coughing as he forced himself up.
From the observation deck, Hel clapped politely, her expression rapt with childlike delight.
"Encore!" she chirped. "That spin at the end was quite dramatic."
Beastmaster just nodded in satisfaction.
Sunny stumbled upright, wheezing. His vision wavered, but he didn't dare take his eyes off his opponent.
The demon was already approaching. It no longer circled Sunny; instead, it was approaching him directly. Blood gushed out from the wound on its leg, but it hardly slowed it.
Raising the [Burrower's Claw], Sunny could feel the entire blade slick with blood.
It lunged again, fast — too fast for its size — claws outstretched and jaws wide open.
Sunny threw himself sideways, rolling across the hard floor and barely avoiding another fatal swipe.
He came up on one knee with his knife already raised.
The demon skidded to a halt and pivoted, shaking slightly on the wounded leg, but otherwise there was no difference.
This thing wasn't overwhelmingly strong — it was just relentless, nimble, and far too smart for his liking.
He pivoted as the creature charged again, ducking under its jaws and slashing upward, grazing the underside of its jaw. Another spray of dark blood followed, but it didn't back off — it clawed at him wildly, nicking his shoulder.
Sunny growled in pain but stepped into the attack instead of away, jamming the hilt of [Burrower's Claw] into the demon's throat.
The creature reeled back, gagging, but Sunny didn't stop there. He followed it up with stabs to its side and chest.
The creature spasmed violently.
But it still wasn't dead.
He gritted his teeth, grabbing the neck of the creature. He kicked off the ground with all his strength and swung onto the creature's back.
The demon tried to shake him off desperately, jumping and running around.
He grabbed its sides with his legs desperately and raised his dagger and brought it down towards the creature's abominable head...
And missed.
The demon was moving around too much, bucking and charging around, for him to accurately stab its head. Instead, he grazed its neck.
Realizing what he was doing, the creature rolled on its back and violently pushed against the floor in an attempt to impale him on its spiked back.
But Sunless wasn't deterred. He quickly got out from under the creature before it could press its full weight.
Dust and debris flew from the impact, but Sunny was already on his feet, bruised and bleeding, dagger in hand.
Without hesitation, he brought down the dagger towards the creature who was still on the ground.
It pierced the creature's throat with ease.
The creature gave a weakened cry. Writhing on the ground, it hopelessly tried to do something.
Anything.
But with a twist of the dagger...
It stopped moving.
Sunny staggered up, looking towards the two audience members.
"Next time," he said, his voice hoarse, "I'd rather study from a book."
Beastmaster smiled. "Next time, you will face two."
Hel grinned and nodded in agreement. "More death!"
Sunny collapsed on the ground, regretting his choices.
Then he heard the familiar voice of the Spell whisper in his ears:
[You have slain a dormant demon, Obsidian Howler]
[Your shadow grows stronger]
Immediately, he felt a slight change. His body grew a little bit stronger, his vision a little sharper, his skin a little smoother. The change was minimal, but apparent.
'What was that?'
He had a guess, and it was easy to confirm. Sunny summoned the runes.
[Shadow Fragments: 16/1000].
A/N:
WELCOME, to the first day of the tomato chapter-thon.
So basically, the way it will work is that every chapter there will be a goal.
If you reach the goal, there will be a chapter tomorrow, if you don't then Chapter-thon ENDS!
FIRST GOAL: 30 stones and 2 reveiws!