Shadow Slave

Slayer’s fourth Ability, which corresponded to Orphne’s Transcendent one, was easy at first sight. In fact, Sunny could have already guessed what it was, having seen it in the visions bestowed upon him by Ariel’s Game.

It allowed her to take the shape of beasts she had seen, heard, smelled, touched, or whose flesh and blood she had tasted. She was a shapeshifter.

Such a Transformation Ability was certainly versatile, and could be a powerful weapon when faced with a certain kind of adversary... but that was not what piqued Sunny’s interest.

Instead, it was the fact that Slayer was a being who had existed for thousands of years, and had therefore met and killed a great number of beasts — and the fact that the definition of ”beasts” the runes described was quite vague. Their direct meaning was ”bestial things”, which was not exactly precise.

He had seen her take the shape of a hawk, as well as of a fearsome black leopard powerful enough to kill one of the Sacred Spirits of Heart God’s forest. Who knew what other shapes she could assume? Could she turn into a Nightmare Creature? Most Monsters fit the definition of a bestial thing despite not being Beasts. Humans, meanwhile, were Beasts, but not bestial things... most humans weren’t, at least. What about other kinds of creatures? Could Slayer take Transcendent Forms of human Saints, as long as they were bestial? Could she take the shape of mythical beasts?

For example...

Could Slayer turn into a dragon?

Sunny gave her a long look.

It was full of suspicion.

‘I’d better keep her away from Kai, just in case...’

He shivered.

‘And Nightmare. One hellish horse is enough!’

Slayer ignored his pointed gaze, continuing to stare at Saint with her usual air of cold malice.

Sunny smiled and leaned back.

She had a fifth Ability, as well, although it was unlike those of human Supremes. Slayer was not a Sovereign, after all, and neither was she a Tyrant. So, she had no Domain and did not rule over anyone.

Her fifth Ability was connected to the very essence of Supremacy, instead — to the will.

Just like the Supreme Abilities of Sovereigns, it seemed like the extension and culmination of her other powers. It allowed her to clearly sense and understand the Will of other beings, as well as communicate her own better — she could imbue her weapons with her Will in a direct manner, for example, making them that much more deadly.

‘It’s interesting.’

Slayer’s powers, unlike her personality, were more subtle and understated rather than fierce and furious. Despite the nature of her Aspect, though, Orphne had been far more lethal than any other human Sunny knew of, and had achieved far more frightening feats.

An Aspect was not complete without a person’s Attributes, though. It was Slayer’s Attributes that made her powers shine... one of them in particular.

Sunny knew that Orphne of the Nine had possessed an Attribute similar to his own... his former greatest benefactor and most terrible foe, [Fated].

However, Slayer did not.

Whether it was because Slayer was not the same being as the original Orphne or because she had already fulfilled her fate, he did not know.

In any case, he was thinking of a different Attribute — an Attribute that seemed to explain the unique composition of her soul, the fatal purity of her battle technique, as well as why she had been able to persist in the Shadow Realm for thousands of years without being consumed by it. 𝙍𝖆Ｎȏ𝐁Еs

It was called [Pure Soul].

Orphne of the Nine had possessed a pure and unyielding soul that shone with stunning light and refused to be blemished. That, perhaps, was the source of her tenacious resolve and single-minded determination, as well as why Slayer was always able to be true to herself, both in thought and in action.

And that, in turn, was the reason she had been able to persist in her quest to slay the Demon of Fate until both of them perished, even as the world was coming undone around them. That was also the reason why her soul shone with pure light even after she became a shadow, and why she had been able to withstand the jaws of the Shadow Realm for thousands of years.

That Attribute had a more practical side to it, as well. After all, one of Slayer’s powers allowed her to imbue her attacks with soul essence, and her soul essence was similarly pristine — and therefore far more potent. Her Will was pure and sincere, too, and thus could be expressed more effectively.

‘Who could have thought?’

The most accomplished killer in the world was also the most sincere person in the world.

Sunny was not sure if that was deeply fitting or reflected poorly on what kind of world they all lived in.

Regardless of that, he felt lucky that Slayer had not possessed these powers when they fought atop the shadow of Condemnation. Feeling fortunate to have survived that encounter, he glanced between Slayer and Saint with a thoughtful expression.

Sunny was quite curious which of these two Supreme Shadows would win if they were to duel.

His money was on Saint... probably... since her powers lent themselves better to direct combat. Slayer was a fearsome fighter, as well, but she excelled in subterfuge more than she did in direct confrontations — she was first and foremost a huntress, not a warrior.

That said, he could not be sure.

After all, Slayer could simply summon wings and fly high into the sky, then unleash a barrage of arrows at Saint from dozens of kilometers away. If Saint summoned her true darkness to blind her, she could continue to fight by relying on her other senses...

Hell, she could probably shapeshift into a Dark Drifter — the eerie Creature of Darkness Sunny and Slayer had fought in the Shadow Realm — and be just as at home in the embrace of true darkness as Saint was.

Well, that was before Saint raised her Shield of Nothing to negate Slayer’s powers. Sunny was not sure who would win that fight, but he was certainly curious to see.

‘I won’t be seeing it today, though.’

After all, he was too busy to procure another Citadel.

And even if he did not know how the battle of two Supreme Shadows would end, he knew that it would definitely reduce the Nameless Temple to rubble.

‘Some other time, then...’