Shadow Slave novel Chapter 1995

Chapter 1995 Grim Reality

Rain had been experiencing this strange feeling as of late…

It was as though she was walking through life while asleep, stuck in a long and lurid nightmare. The first months of the war had been a dreadful and appalling ordeal, but she had always felt wide awake back then. Ascending the titanic arm of the dead deity, crossing over to the collarbone, establishing a camp in the middle of the abominable jungle, and marching into its depths to claim the Citadel for the Song Domain… those were the horrors she knew and accepted. What had happened next, however, was not. Rain was a bit lucky, perhaps, to be a part of the Seventh Legion. After playing an important role in the conquest of the Collarbone Citadel, they had been allowed to rest and recover for quite some time. Even later, the Song Army had held the Seventh Legion back as much as possible, letting other divisions spearhead the offensive on the Breastbone Reach.

It had taken a long time before Rain saw people killing other people, and was forced to spill human blood herself. She had been dreading that moment for a long time, but when it happened, it happened quickly. It was kill or be killed — the other person would not hesitate to end her life if given the chance… Only they would, if they were like her. And that was precisely the point — they were like her. The soldiers of the Sword Army were fellow humans, no different from Rain, and the thought of killing another human for no good reason was just as appalling to most of them as it was to her. They were all Awakened, and therefore no strangers to bloodshed. In fact, they were all natural killers, having experienced the visceral rush of fighting and slaying living beings many times. However, there was a stark difference between killing Nightmare Creatures and killing humans — real humans, not nameless phantoms conjured by the Spell in the illusory Nightmares.

If anything, their experience only made the act of killing harder. Those who routinely faced Nightmare Creatures knew how precious human lives were, after all, because they knew that humanity was surrounded by the enemy — by the abominable other — from all sides.

The soldiers of the two great armies might have been enemies, but they weren't… the other. They were the same. Still, war... was war. The first time Rain had to aim at a human, she felt nauseated and afraid. She froze for a moment, unable to let go of the string, and then lowered her bow a little — an action that was somehow both involuntary and completely conscious. As a result, her arrow struck the enemy archer in the thigh instead of piercing his heart. It had never become easier. There were a few of these moments later on — sometimes, Rain was sure that while her arrows seriously wounded many, they did not kill anyone…

Sometimes, she was not. But it was all happening so quickly. There was no time to think. Before she could even fathom the implications of her actions, there was a new enemy rushing at their position, and after one battle was over, another would be starting too soon. Strangely enough — or maybe quite predictably — the aim of the enemy archers was often just as terrible as hers.

Melee fighters like Tamar and Ray did not enjoy the same privilege. And yet, they too did not seem burning with a feverish desire to see the enemy die. In the bloody havoc of battles, they often aimed to incapacitate their opponents instead of killing them… as often as they could, at least. But how often could that be?

People were still dying.

The skirmishes in Godgrave were swift and brutal. One army attacked, and the other one defended. Usually, it quickly became apparent which side held the advantage — the other side retreated, unwilling to suffer heavy casualties for an empty cause.

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