Shadow Slave novel Chapter 3226

Sometime before the day the Oracle spoke to her people, far away...

There was a land shrouded in fog, with tall evergreen trees rising from it as black masts tinged with an emerald hue. The silence of the misty forest was broken only by the cawing of crows... that was because the grotesque creatures that dwelled in the fog moved noiselessly, hidden in its cold embrace.

Until the silence was shattered by the sound of battle.

Far away, in the depths of the forest, there was an overgrown ruin. The ruin was vast, as if it had been a prosperous city once. If one looked closely enough, they could still discern the shapes of man-made structures buried under layers of moss.

There was an imposing city wall, now breached and crumbled. The field of tall mounds had been streets and houses once. The stronghold at the heart of the city was now a misshapen hill, and there were innumerable human bones hidden beneath the roots of soaring pines that stood like gravestones above the ruin.

There was a place, though, that the trees and the moss seemed reluctant to approach. That peculiar island of desolation revealed the true face of the ruined city — the fractured cobblestones, the stone buildings turned into piles of rubble, the grotesque skeletons littering the ground like a white pallisade... the gentle slopes of the shallow crater hidden in the fog.

Soon, the cawing of the crows grew deafening, and innumerable black streaks fell from the sky, assembling into a human form.

A few seconds later, there was a tall man standing in the fog, wearing a dark military coat and gazing ahead with a grim expression. His gaunt face betrayed his age, but his hair was as black as raven feathers. Drops of blood were still falling from his gloved fingers.

The man remained motionless for a few seconds, then walked forward.

He walked past the collapsed building, navigating his way between the skeletal carcasses of dead abominations. The closer he got to the crater, the more grotesque remains he encountered. Passing them with unhurried steps, he reached the crater.

The fog obscured what was hidden at its bottom, but he could see gigantic bones protruding above the slope. A truly monstrous creature must have perished here... or possibly it had perished trying to get to the heart of the crater, where he was headed as well.

The man moved down the slope. He walked along the towering bones, circling around them from time to time. The bones created an eerie maze, but he did not seem bothered.

Soon enough, he was close enough to the bottom of the crater to almost see what was hidden in the fog.

Before he could take another step, however, he felt a cold blade touching the side of his neck.

The man stopped.

Without looking back or changing expression, he said in an aloof, grating voice:

“Don't get cute with me, creature."

There was no response, but the blade pressed deeper, and a drop of blood rolled down his neck.

The man smiled darkly.

“Your master's friend sent me — the blind seer. I am here to help."

The sharp blade remained motionless for a few seconds, then disappeared.

Not long after, a nebulous figure shrouded in wisps of ghostly black smoke revealed itself from the fog. Beneath the smoke, the graceful silhouette of a slender woman could be gleaned, moving with the poised elegance of a dancer.

When the man glanced at the shadowy figure, he could not help but feel a chill run down his spine — even if he had long forgotten the meaning of fear, his body still responded to the presence of an absolute predator.

His brief smile disappeared like a fleeting dream.

“You must be the one they call Slayer."

Instead of responding, the woman studied him for a moment, then turned away and walked into the fog.

The man followed.

Soon, the fog around them changed, as if infused by a soft radiance. Then, rays of radiant light shone through it, illuminating the world — before too long, it was as if the sinister shadow and the gaunt man were walking through a celestial haze.

A vague form revealed itself in the radiance ahead of them.

Taking a few more steps, the man stopped and glanced up.

In front of them was the source of the radiance — it was a towering crystal, its depths hiding the unclear silhouette of a winged woman.

The man studied the crystal for a bit, then looked at the silent shadow.

Eventually, he sighed.

“Might as well get comfortable. It will take me a long while."

With that, he pulled something from the inner pocket of his coat — it was a papyrus scroll covered in an intricate weave of runes. Unfurling it, the man pulled a knife from the sheath on his belt and crouched, tracing the first rune in the soil.

The shadow observed him with cold indifference.

Hours later — or possibly days — the man was done with his task. A complicated runic circle surrounded the crystal, shimmering with its own pale light. He straightened and sheathed his knife, then studied the circle for a while.

Eventually, the man shrugged.

“Looks faithful enough. But what do I know? Sorcery has never been one of my talents."

He paused for a moment and then added in his hoarse, grating voice:

"One way to find out."

With that, the man pressed his hand against a particular rune and poured his essence into the circle.

The lines etched into the ground swelled with light, producing a wavering hum. The hum grew louder and louder, coming in waves — eventually, the man grimaced and covered his ears.

Soon, the sound became loud enough to be deafening, and each of its peaks was like a devastating shockwave. Any mundane human would have already been reduced to a bloody pile, but the man endured. The fog was torn apart and dispelled, allowing sunlight to shine upon the bottom of the crater for the first time in countless years.

Finally, the crystal responded.

Its surface rippled as if made of water, then shifted, forming peculiar geometrical shapes.

A moment later, the crystal exploded into a myriad of radiant shards.

The winged figure trapped within fell to its knees and drew a stifled breath — at the same time, the runic circle dimmed, and the harrowing hum grew quiet.

The man glanced at the scroll in his hand with a hint of amusement.

"It actually worked, huh?"

Then, he glanced at the young woman who had been trapped in the crystal.

His stern expression softened for a moment, while his cold eyes revealed complicated emotions.

The young woman, meanwhile, finally caught her breath and stood up with a stagger. She glanced around tensely, her gaze finally stopping at the gaunt man.

She seemed confused for a moment. Then, her eyes widened, and an expression of shock appeared on her face.

Taking a step forward, the woman asked:

"M—master Cor? Is that you?"

The man smiled wistfully.

“Actually, it's Saint Cor now."

She froze for a moment, glancing at the sinister shadow standing beside him, then gazed at the ruins.

A hint of sorrow flashed in her eyes, but then she shook her head and turned around to the man — Saint Cor, Wake of Ruin.

“Are you... are you a challenger in this Nightmare, as well?"

He shook his head simply.