Shadow Slave novel Chapter 507

Chapter 507 ln the Spotlight

Master Jet remained silent for a second, then asked calmly:

"Are you sure? This place has been swept multiple times before we arrived."

Sunny nodded.

"He is here. Underground."

She looked down, her face slowly turning somber.

"...Well, I guess we should go and say hi."

Sunny nodded and made a step toward the door of the small office. However, she suddenly stopped him.

"Wait."

He looked at her with a bit of confusion.

"Yes?"

Master Jet hesitated for a few moments. There was a complicated expression on her face. Finally, she said:

"There are very few people with a shadow affinity Aspect in the world, and even fewer who frequent places such as this."

Sunny frowned.

"What are you trying to say?"

She looked at him darkly.

"I'm saying that I might know this guy. In fact, when I heard that there was an incident in the Slaughterhouse, I already had a suspicion of who was responsible."

He blinked a couple of times.

"You know the murderer?"

Master Jet shrugged.

"There are hundreds of thousands of Awakened in the world. That seems like a big number, but in fact, it is not. If you live long enough, sooner or later, you will know of everyone who is worth knowing… more or less. It's a small world."

She paused for a moment, and then added:

"Point is, if I am right, then this will be dangerous. This guy is not someone who has spent his whole life behind a Citadel wall. He is… was the real deal. A specialist."

Sunny glanced at the five Hollows, then frowned slightly.

'A specialist… what a peculiar word.'

But he understood what Master Jet had meant. Most of the Awakened were thrust into the Spell and tried desperately to survive, striving to return to a semblance of a normal life. A much smaller amount, for whatever reason, embraced their new nightmarish reality and adapted to it… even thrived in it. They shaped their lives to suit the deadly challenge of the Nightmare Spell, and not the other way around.

Sunny was one of these specialists himself, after all.

"If he is such a specialist, then how did this mess happen?"

Master Jet shook her head.

"Who do you think are the most compromised Awakened? Folks who spent as little time as possible in the Dream Realm and then return to their actual lives? No, it's people like us, the professionals."

He thought on it for a bit, then said with confusion:

"I don't get it… even if he is a seasoned fighter, so what? You are an Ascended. Surely, dealing with him will be easy."

Master Jet shook her head.

"Nothing is ever easy, Sunny. That is a mindset that will get you killed. No matter how powerful you are, one mistake is all it takes. Raw power doesn't always decide the outcome of the fight. You should know this already… every Aspect has a Flaw, and every power has a counter. So keep your guard up."

Sunny had to agree that she was right. His own experience served as the perfect proof. Harus had died by his hand because Sunny's Aspect was a perfect counter to his formidable Ability, and Caster had been undone by his Flaw.

He remained silent for a few moments, and then said:

"When we confront this guy, pay attention to your shadow. Don't let him get anywhere near it."

Master Jet frowned, and then gave him a simple nod.

Together, they returned to the dance hall, and then found another heavy metal door. Behind it, a narrow staircase led further down, to the underground arena.

The arena itself was larger than Sunny had imagined, and looked more like a luxurious theater than a fighting pit. The rows of seats were furnished with red velvet, and there were private boxes for the most affluent of the visitors. The arena itself resembled a stage and was surrounded by a protective barrier fashioned out of transparent alloy.

The whole space was sparsely illuminated, with deep shadows nesting between the areas of light. Still, one could more or less see everything.