Shadow Slave

She had long known that he had the capacity to be a killer because of the cruel past the two of them shared, and more than that, she had access to the records about the events of the Forgotten Shore that the government agents had compiled.

Out there, Sunny had killed his fair share of people. He had not been the most active participant in the civil war for the throne of the Bright Castle, but his hands were covered in blood, too. There were very few survivors of the Dark City who, like Aiko, managed to go through that morbid ordeal without staining themselves with human blood.

And then there were other lives that almost no one knew that he had ended — Caster, Harus, the hunters who had kept Kai locked in the dark well… and Harper.

Even before that, he had killed the old slaver, Shifty, Scholar, and Auro of the Nine without batting an eye.

…Honestly, it was not a big deal. Except for maybe Harper, Sunny never lost sleep over any of the humans that had died by his hand. If he was honest with himself, he had to admit that some of them he even enjoyed killing, a little.

And it was precisely the fact that he didn't think of it as a big deal that proved Master Jet's words. Sunny was a killer, and not in the sense that he had killed before or had been taught how to. He had an innate aptitude for that sort of thing, and there were not a lot of people who did.

In fact, he only knew three. The first one was himself.

The second was Nephis. She was the one who had taught him about murder, after all.

…Maybe that was one of the reasons why Changing Star had chosen to impart her family battle style to Sunny. Maybe she had recognized that the two of them were similar… that both of them had seen and known the truth of this world. That he would be able to understand.

The third one was Master Jet.

Sunny suddenly realized that he didn't know much about her, apart from her Rank, her past as a kid from the outskirts, and her role as a government operative. Everything that he thought he knew about Master Jet had come from what others told him about her, painting an intimidating and imposing picture of the fearsome Soul Reaper.

That picture, however, did not reveal the real human hidden behind the loud nickname. In fact, it only served to obscure her more.

What nightmares Jet herself had survived on her path to becoming a Master? What were her hopes, her convictions? What were her goals?

He had no idea.

Thinking about it, Sunny hesitated for a while, and then said:

"Master Jet? Can I ask you a question?"

She glanced at him briefly and smiled.

"Sure."

Sunny carefully chose his words before formulating a question. In the end, he asked simply:

"...Why are you not a Saint?"

Master Jet laughed, her voice full of amusement.

"What a peculiar question. You say it as though becoming a Saint is something that just anyone can do."

He shook his head, not willing to let it go.

"But you are not just anyone. Sure, you might be younger than most Masters out there, but very few of them can compare to you in terms of talent and power. The fact that you chose to challenge the Second Nightmare proves that you have ambition. So why stop?"

She spared him another glance and asked with an easy smile:

"Why? What have you heard?"

Sunny shifted uncomfortably.

'Crap...'

"I've been told that no one wants to go into a Nightmare with you because of your… problematic personality. Murderous savage and psychopathic killer — these were the precise words they used. Uh… sorry."

Her smile turned wider.

"Really? Haven't heard those before. Huh… I like it. But what do you yourself think?"

He remained silent for a bit, and then said with a bit of doubt:

"I don't think I buy it. I just took it at face value as an inexperienced Sleeper, but after the Forgotten Shore, that statement doesn't seem to make sense. Sure, it is important to trust those who you enter the Nightmare with… but at the end of the day, strength is strength. And you are very strong. You also work for the government, which proves your ability to be an adequate part of a larger collective. To work in a team. So, I simply don't understand."

Master Jet did not speak for a while, concentrating on the road. Eventually, she answered, a hint of darkness finding its way into her voice:

"...That is because you don't know enough. You're young, and haven't had to deal with the Awakened affairs a lot. Plus, some of these things people only learn after reaching a certain stage. You're not at that stage yet, but since you asked, I'll answer."

She looked at him, the smile disappearing from her face.

"It is very simple, really. Basically, you need the right people to help you become a Master. But to become a Saint… to become a Saint, you need for the right people to not obstruct you. Take it as you will."

She didn't say anything else, and Sunny did now ask, a deep frown appearing on his face.

'For the right people… to not obstruct you…'

He understood what Master Jet was hinting at, of course. He knew enough to come to the right conclusion.

What she just told him was that to become a Saint, one had to... receive permission.

And it wasn't too hard to realize who had to give that permission.

The Sovereigns.

Who else but them? The three Supremes who ruled the most powerful Awakened — the Legacy clans — from the shadows. Come to think of it, such an arrangement made a lot of sense.

There were just a few dozen Saints in the world, and each of them possessed unbelievable, mind-boggling powers. Would the Sovereigns have allowed for such powerful individuals to exist outside of their control?

From everything that Sunny knew about the vile nature of power and how the world worked, the answer was obvious - no.

So… did every Saint out there actually belong to one of the Sovereigns?

It seemed that they did. Even Sky Tide of the White Feather clan, who gave Sunny an impression of being a reclusive and fiercely independent woman, was beholden to a Great Clan… and, therefore, to Anvil of Valor — Vale of Aster, Song, and Vale — the Sovereign of that clan.

What about people like Master Jet, then? Someone capable enough to become a Saint, but either labeled as undesirable or simply unwilling to submit to one of the Supremes? What was the obstruction she had spoken about?

Was it a simple lack of support, or would the Sovereigns go much further to prevent an independent Saint from appearing in the world?

If they had no problem with sending assassins to kill the six-year-old daughter of their former comrade and companion, then they would surely have none with making someone like Jet meet an unfortunate end, should she act out of line.

He lowered his head and briefly covered his eyes with a hand.

'It's the same… it's absolutely the same crap as what Gunlaug had done in the Bright Castle. Gods, how unoriginal…'

But that was the thing about vile things. People loved to romanticize evil and those who committed it, creating countless alluring characters to act as compelling and brilliant villains. But in reality, human evil was almost always banal. It always followed the same disgusting, predictable paths, and led to the same hateful end.

No wonder Nephis wanted to destroy them so much…

Sunny's thoughts were suddenly interrupted by the PTV coming to an abrupt stop. Looking out the window, he saw that they had arrived at a dark and narrow alley, which was currently blocked off by a police cordon. Blinking lights of several armored police vehicles drowned it in an unsettling glow, and there were many officers on the scene, their faces pale and tense.

Master Jet yawned, stretched, and gave him a crooked grin.

"Rise and shine, Awakened Sunless. We've arrived..."