Shadow Slave novel Chapter 3165

The shadow's words seemed to work - to a degree, at least, because the girl eventually stopped trembling. She still seemed frightened, trying to stay as motionless as possible... but a child was a child.

Soon enough, she grew bored and restless. Looking around with an expression of curiosity - a senseless gesture, since she could not see anything in the darkness, the girl spoke in a brighter tone.

"My name is Tatal. I'm this many years old." She raised a hand, proudly showing the darkness her five tiny fingers.

The shadow did not respond. What did it care what this human child was called, let alone how old she was?

The girl did not seem to understand its reluctance to engage in a conversation, though, and asked after growing uncomfortable with the silence.

"What is your name, Dark One?"

The shadow frowned.

It did not care what it was called, either. But since the girl asked, the shadow tried to remember.

Its names were as countless as its past lives, the sea of them vast and meaningless. Eventually, its cold voice resounded from the darkness once more:

"I've been called by countless names in the past, in countless places. None of them have any meaning anymore, so... you can simply call me Shadow."

The girl turned her head this way, then another, as if trying to determine where the shadow's voice was coming from. Her attempts were futile, though, since it came from all directions.

She scrunched her face in confusion, then asked tentatively:

"Are you... are you hiding somewhere in the darkness, Shadow?"

The shadow was amused.

"No"

It paused, then added a helpful explanation.

"I am the darkness."

The girl trembled again.

She remained silent for a long while, then suddenly asked in a curious tone:

"Shadow God's name is Shadow. Aren't you afraid that he will get angry at you for stealing his name?"

Hearing the question, the shadow felt something stir in the depths of its soul. It was an old, vague memory - a memory of a life it had lived once, a long time ago. Perhaps the very first it had been forced to endure in this cruel, never-ending nightmare.

The shadow remembered a chilling cold, the rattling of chains, and the pain of shackles biting into the tattered skin of its wrists. Step, step, another step... someone had asked something similar of it back then, all those many years ago - in the distant future.

What had it responded with?

The shadow stirred and spoke, its voice distant:

"Why should I be afraid of a half-forgotten, weakling god?"

Shadow God was dead, anyway.

All of them were, even if they were alive and well, terrifying the shadow with the unfathomable magnitude of their existence.

'Nothing makes sense...'

Feeling unpleasant, the shadow turned its thoughts away from the contradictory nature of its strange existence.

The girl seemed very impressed by its absent-minded statement.

"Because gods are scary!"

The shadow smiled in the darkness.

Eventually, it spoke from the darkness, sounding tired:

"Go home, child."

Its voice was as cold as before, but now, there was a hint of emotion in it.

"Go home and give your people my message."

Tatal blinked a few times.

"W-what message?"

The darkness around her stirred, and then the cold voice spoke again.

This time, it felt like it was resounding from somewhere closer.

"Tell them that if they bring me a human sacrifice again..."

Even though Tatal was sitting on cold stones, suddenly, it felt as if she was being embraced by the shadows... drowning in them.

The shadow's embrace felt peaceful.

As she sensed the world shifting around her, Tatal heard the last of its words.

"I will kill them all."

In the next moment, somehow, she was not in the vast cave anymore.

Instead, she was in the heart of the village, having appeared there in the blink of an eye.

The light of day was harsh and blinding, and her visit to the dark cave seemed like a strange, frightening dream.