Shadow Slave novel Chapter 889

The Awakened warrior was simply gone. The whole facility was swept, both by the soldiers of the garrison and Sunny's shadows, but no trace of him were found. Verne even made the decision to unseal the dome of the old observatory. However, there was nothing but old equipment, darkness, and dust inside.

Sunny then sent his shadows to scour the coastal plain outside the fortress, hoping to discover a clue. He did not.

A sense of unease and foreboding spread through the isolated fortress.

As people were crowding together to alleviate this tension, Sunny, Verne, and Professor Obel gathered in the security center to have an emergency discussion. However, none of them

seemed too eager to speak first.

They simply had nothing to say.

Eventually, Sunny rubbed his face with a sigh.

"Well, there are only three possibilities, right?"

Verne looked at him darkly.

"And they are?"

Sunny hesitated for a moment.

"First... he might have really deserted."

The stern Master simply shook his head. There was no hostility or defensiveness in this gesture, since Verne was not the type of leader to be insecure about his people or himself. He did not have the kind of fragile pride that would make the statement sound offensive.

"That is improbable. I know this Awakened very well. He was... is a stalwart man."

Sunny moved on with a shrug.

"Still, that would be the best outcome. The other two possibilities are much more troublesome."

A tired frown appeared on his face.

"The second possibility is that he was killed, for whatever reason, by another person stationed at LO49. The killer subsequently disposed of the body and removed the signs of the crime. Considering that it is not easy for a mundane human to kill an Awakened, the most likely suspect would be one of your people, Verne."

Professor Obel let out a heavy sigh.

"Surely, you don't think that one of these brave soldiers..."

Sunny looked at him with a somber expression.

"I am just exploring what could have happened. However, don't be mistaken. We Awakened are always only one step away from turning into monsters. With how much pressure Antarctica exerts on people... many will inevitably start to break. In any case, we should pay attention to those Awakened that have Aspects suitable for getting rid of incriminating evidence. Verne, you know your soldiers best, so this task will be on you."

Verne pursed his lips, but then silently nodded.

"What about the last possibility?"

Sunny lingered for a few moments.

"There might be a Nightmare Creature that has infiltrated the facility and is now hiding somewhere within these walls. Considering that we failed to find any traces at all... it has to be either very powerful, very elusive, or both. Since I am the best scout among us, investigating this possibility will be my task."

Verne remained silent for a while, then said somberly:

"That sounds like a plan. However, what happens if neither of us discovers anything?"