shadow slave: Avatar of Apocalypse Chapter 43 43: Sunny Being the Hero

The Carapace Demon was approaching the great tree, its massive body still hidden behind the enormous obsidian trunk.

Beneath the branch, the ground trembled with every thunderous step.

Sunny's shadow instantly slipped beneath his feet and wrapped itself around his body like a living cloak.

"Now!" Nephis whispered.

Catching the golden rope, Sunny practically launched himself upward. His arms burned as he climbed with desperate, adrenaline-fueled speed. Every second felt like an eternity.

Below them, the sound of tearing tal echoed across the Ashen Barrow.

The demon was close.

Too close.

Sunny finally reached the branch and nearly threw himself onto it. Cassie imdiately grabbed his arm to steady him while Nephis reached for the rope, trying to pull it back before the monster noticed the golden shine.

But there wasn't enough ti.

Sunny's eyes widened.

"Oh no…"

The massive steel creature stepped around the trunk of the tree.

At that exact mont, Nephis dismissed the mory.

The golden rope vanished into thin air.

The four of them imdiately crouched low against the massive branch, barely daring to breathe.

A second later, the Carapace Demon erged beneath them completely.

Its polished steel armor reflected the dying sunlight like liquid chro. Jagged spikes covered its body, and the crimson glow in its eyes burned with murderous fury. The giant scythes on its four arms slowly shifted as it searched for prey.

The monster looked around carefully.

There was nothing beneath the tree.

Sunny pressed himself flat against the branch, his heartbeat hamring in his ears. Beside him, Cassie remained perfectly still despite the visible tension in her posture. Nephis crouched silently like a statue carved from moonlight, her calm expression sohow unchanged even now.

A little farther along the branch, Senrix and Elysia remained hidden among the scarlet leaves.

Senrix had one hand resting against the bark, crimson flas faintly flickering between his fingers. Unlike before, his usual lazy deanor was completely gone. His sharp gaze stayed locked on the demon beneath them, calculating every movent it made.

Elysia quietly steadied her breathing while holding her bow close to her chest. Even in the suffocating tension, her expression stayed strangely gentle, though the tightness in her grip betrayed her nerves.

The demon slowly raised its head.

Sunny nearly stopped breathing altogether.

Thankfully, the branch was enormous, wide enough to hide all five of them beneath its thick canopy of crimson leaves.

The Carapace Demon stared upward for several long seconds.

Then it lowered its gaze again.

Its burning eyes scanned the ground beneath the tree, searching for tracks.

But there were none.

Earlier, Sunny had used Cassie's enchanted staff to summon a powerful gale, while Senrix added bursts of scorching wind with his flas to scatter the remaining sand even farther. Together, they had erased every trace of the group's movents.

The demon found nothing.

For a mont, silence returned.

Then the giant creature turned and slowly walked away from the tree, heading toward the outer edges of the island.

Only after it disappeared behind the roots did Sunny finally exhale shakily.

"That thing is terrifying…" he muttered quietly.

Elysia let out a small nervous laugh. "I think my heart stopped three tis."

Senrix clicked his tongue. "If it looked up a little harder, we were dead."

Nephis simply kept watching the demon's movents in silence.

Far below, the Carapace Demon eventually reached the edge of the area cleared by the magical wind.

There, it stopped.

Sunny's stomach dropped.

Two sets of footprints remained beyond the cleared ground.

One belonged to him.

The other belonged to Nephis.

The demon released a furious roar that sounded like grinding steel and exploding tal combined. The entire Ashen Barrow trembled beneath the sound.

Then it charged down the hill.

The giant creature rushed across the wasteland with terrifying speed, following the trail toward empty grey sands.

But there was nobody there.

Only endless ash illuminated by the crimson light of sunset.

At that mont, a distant rumble echoed across the Forgotten Shore.

The dark sea was returning.

Cold wind surged through the wasteland, carrying the sll of salt and decay.

The Carapace Demon stood motionless for several seconds before finally turning back toward the Ashen Barrow.

Watching from above, Sunny slowly relaxed again.

"That was way too close," he whispered.

"No," Senrix replied quietly, eyes still fixed on the demon. "That was exactly close enough."

Sunny stared at him in disbelief.

"…You're insane."

Elysia covered her mouth, trying not to laugh.

Soon, darkness swallowed the world completely.

The Ashen Barrow beca an isolated island surrounded by the endless black waters of the dark sea. Above them, the scarlet leaves of the giant tree swayed softly in the cold wind, whispering against one another like distant voices.

The five of them waited silently on the branch.

Every ti the demon passed beneath the tree, tension returned instantly.

Sunny leaned back against the bark and closed his eyes briefly, trying to steady his breathing.

The failure of the first stage still weighed heavily on him.

The Echo had nearly died.

If Elysia had not fired that arrow earlier to interrupt the demon for even a second, Sunny would have lost the scavenger completely.

Even now, he still felt guilty about risking it.

Beside him, Cassie gently squeezed his hand again, sensing his thoughts without needing to see his face.

Sunny almost complained out loud—

—but stopped himself.

For so reason, the simple warmth of her hand actually cald him down.

A little farther away, Elysia quietly humd to herself while adjusting the string of her bow.

Senrix sat near the edge of the branch with one knee raised, silently staring at the dark sea below. The crimson glow of his flas faintly reflected in his eyes before fading again.

"You're thinking too much," he suddenly said without looking back.

Sunny frowned. "And you're not thinking enough."

"That balances things out."

Elysia snorted quietly while Nephis shook her head slightly.

Eventually, the final light disappeared from the horizon.

Night had fully arrived.

Nephis slowly stood.

In the darkness, clad in pale armor beneath the scarlet canopy, she looked almost ethereal.

Sunny inhaled deeply.

The real plan was about to begin.

He carefully pulled the seaweed rucksack closer and opened it.

Inside were two clay jars filled with the oils harvested from the centipede monsters. Alone, each substance was harmless.

Together—

They beca a violently corrosive inferno.

Sunny carefully handed the makeshift bone torch to Nephis.

Nearby, Senrix quietly summoned faint flas into his palm, ready to ignite the entire island if necessary.

Elysia's expression softened slightly as she looked toward the distant darkness beneath the tree.

"This is either incredibly brave," she whispered.

"Or incredibly stupid," Sunny muttered.

Senrix grinned faintly. "Usually both."

Nephis closed her eyes.

White flas suddenly ignited around her hands, lighting the darkness beneath the scarlet branches.

The torch burst into brilliant fire.

In the endless black void of the Starless Night, the tiny fla looked like a lone star.

At the sa ti, Sunny stepped toward the edge of the branch, inhaled deeply—

—and scread with everything he had.

"HEY, ASSHOLE! CO GET IF YOU DARE!"

For one brief mont, the world beca silent.

Then all hell broke loose.