Shadow Slave novel Chapter 1641

Chapter 1641: First Impressions

Sunny studied Cassle's face, trying to guess what she was thinking about. Having left her alone for several weeks, he did not feel particularly... safe. Who knew what conclusions she had drawn in that time? What plans she had formulated? He was a stranger to her, now. Which meant that the blind seer would not afford him the same grace she afforded her friends.

Facing Cassie as someone she might perceive as a potential enemy... was a nerve-wracking experience. Sunny felt like he finally understood why Mordret was so wary of her.

...But then again, he was someone worthy of being feared, himself. He was powerful and lethal enough to be an existential threat to anyone who would dare stand in his way. Sunny did not have to be afraid of anyone, or any thing - instead, everyone had to be scared of him.

If they knew who he was, of course. But no one did, which only made him more terrifying.

"Well, no matter.”

It was not like he wanted to frighten Cassie. Sunny was pretty sure that she would treat him with sincerity - he had what she wanted, after all. Still, a relationship of a transactional nature was not the most stable, It was in his best interest to build a better connection with her... and maybe even reach a point where they shared mutual trust.

Sunny looked at Cassle, who was wearing a white tunic and a seawave cloak, her eyes hidden behind a strip of blue cloth. Then, he glanced at his own black bodysult. The two of them did not exactly look like a natural pair. Currently, they were accomplices at best, not allies.

So, how do I go about building trust?"

One small step at a time, most likely.

He looked at the shattered moon, then at the restless waters of the dark lake. Finally, he said:

"The ambiance here is truly lovely. However, the lake is rather dreadful. Wouldn't it be better if we left before something very terrible came out of the water to spoil the mood?"

Cassie remained silent for a moment, then smiled faintly.

"Didn't you come from the water yourself, Saint Sunless? Are you very terrible, as well?"

He coughed.

"Well... yes, I did. And yes, I guess I am."

She tilted her head slightly.

"I am surprised that you made it all the way here, actually. How did you traverse the lake without being torn apart? Or alerting anyone to your presence?"

That was an obviously probing question, but Sunny didn't mind. He shrugged and answered in a nonchalant tone:

"By being patient and very good at hiding”

She sighed lightly and turned around, walking slowly in the direction of the castle ruins.

"Let's go."

Sunny hesitated for a moment before following

As he did, he looked up, at the figures patrolling the remnants of the toppled walls.

This was the problem he had not been able to solve yet.

Finding an entrance into the hidden realm had not been too hard. Avoiding the Echoes patrolling the lake and finding a path through the graveyard of swords at its bottom had not been much of a problem, either. Even traversing the dark depths of the true lake, where great horrors dwelled, was well within his power.

But getting inside the ruined castle itself was troublesome. There were many powerful Knights of Valor inside... there was the King of Swords himself, as well. Worse than that, the members of his clan were versed in runic sorcery. Their stronghold was protected by an array of enchantments that Sunny could not hope to unravel, let alone bypass silently.

He knew a thing or two about Hope's sorcery, but not nearly enough to compete with real experts.

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