Shadow Slave novel Chapter 2796

Eventually, Rain made it to The Ivory Island. It seemed more deserted than it had been before, which meant that most veterans of the Fire Keepers had been dispatched to somewhere else. She should have expected as much — considering what was going on in the world, the elite forces of the Human Domain had to be scrambling to put out multiple fires.

Since there was no one around, her brother rose from the shadows and assumed his human form. She studied him carefully.

“Are things... not going great?"

He smiled, but the smile did not reach his eyes.

"Yes, it is a bit of a mess."

Rain considered everything she knew, slowly realizing that the situation was probably far more serious than she had assumed. Sunny had not told her everything, but because of the few pieces of information that he did let slip, she was able to form a few unsettling theories.

However, she had never once imagined the possibility of a true calamity... until now. As far as Rain was concerned, her brother and Nephis possessed truly unimaginable power. There were profane creatures out there who could wipe them out, sure, but they were few and distant — no different from a scary legend. But now, the threat suddenly seemed close and real.

She hesitated for a moment.

"Is there a possibility that you will lose?"

He chuckled, remained silent for a bit, and then shook his head.

"No. I don't think that our defeat, at this stage, is possible.”

His expression turned grim then.

"However, our victory might come at a price that we are not ready to pay. That is the real problem."

With that, he guided her to the Ivory Tower. Sunny seemed quite busy, so he handed her off to Lady Cassia in the Gateway Hall and disappeared somewhere. Seeing the blind seer only made the ominous feeling in Rain's heart stronger.

Lady Cassia looked like her usual self, but something about her was not quite right.

‘Oh... her rapier.'

She usually wore the rapier in a sheath on her belt, but today, the sheath was nowhere to be seen. Additionally, for some reason, the familiar blue blindfold seemed to sit a little awkwardly on her face.

Was Rain only imagining it, or did Lady Cassia seem a little paler than usual?

“Welcome."

When the radiant Saint smiled, Rain briefly forgot about her worries.

“Oh... good day, Lady Cassia.”

She had visited the Ivory Tower often in the past, but this would be her first time staying here for a prolonged period of time.

"Come. Let's say hi to Nephis, and then I'll show you to your quarters."

Today, they climbed to a higher floor of the Ivory Tower than the ones familiar to Rain. In fact, there was only one floor left above them now — Changing Star's personal quarters. The second-to-last floor was where Lady Cassia's office was, but other than that, Rain did not really know much about it.

They stopped near a closed door and waited patiently there for a while. Eventually, the door opened, and Nephis walked out before carefully closing the door behind her.

In that brief moment, though, Rain could see the brightly lit chamber hidden behind it.

It looked like someone's bedroom, but was peculiarly barren. There was a bed, a wardrobe, and a nightstand. A vase with a bouquet of pretty flowers stood on the nightstand — the flowers looked fresh, as if Nephis had just put them there.

There was also a wheelchair standing in front of the window, with a stunning woman sitting calmly in it. Rain could only see half of her face, so she wasn't sure who she was... she thought that there was a strong resemblance between her Nephis, though, even if the woman was slightly older.

Rain couldn't tell how large the age gap was, considering that Awakened of the higher Ranks aged differently from ordinary people. They looked like they could have been sisters... however, Rain knew for a fact that Changing Star was an only child. She was not called the last daughter of the Immortal Flame clan for nothing, after all. So who was this woman?

There was a strange air of passiveness about her, as if she was not simply calm, but rather absent. Rain wasn't sure if she was serene or merely hollow.

Before she could see more, the door closed, and Nephis looked at her neutrally.

"Ah, Rain. You're here."

Rain tried to hide her curiosity and nodded. "Yes, Teacher.”

Nephis was not the most expressive person, but at that moment, she seemed to be surrounded by a subtle air of melancholy. The next second, however, it was gone.

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