Shadow Slave

1484 Radiant Depths
Surrounded by darkness, the Chain Breaker continued to travel down the twisting
underwater tunnel. Cassie had taken up the steering oars, which alleviated some
of Sunny’s nervousness — while she was the most experienced helmsman
among them, he barely knew what he was doing.
So, the chances of the flying ship colliding with the walls of the tunnel and being
torn apart by the water current were reduced by a lot with the blind seer at the
helm.
Still... no one knew what waited for them in the depths of the Great River. They
were nervous, apprehensive, and full of grim anticipation.
The cohort rested, consumed a hearty meal, and went about repairing the slight
damage dealt to the flying ship by its crash landing on Aletheia's Island. The
enchanted hull weathered the rough landing well, only receiving a few shallow
scrapes. However, there were more delicate parts of the ship that had to be
mended or replaced.
Sunny, Nephis, Jet, and Effie were not carpenters or builders, but their skill was
enough for the task — after all, Sunny was a specialist in wilderness survival,
while Nephis had been able to build boats all the way back on the Forgotten
Shore. Effie had the experience of surviving in the Dark City for years, while Jet...
was Jet. She was somehow capable of doing anything that needed to be done.
Later, they gathered on the deck and silently observed the darkness below.
After a while, Sunny grew bored and summoned the Covetous Coffer. Borrowing
Effies locket, he began comparing the two weaves with each other. He was very
curious to see if he could make the storage inside the Coffer habitable, as well...
for now, it seemed incredibly far-fetched.
But then again, many of the things he had accomplished seemed far-fetched
once. If he was not capable of doing something today, he might be able to do it in
the future. Becoming a competent sorcerer was a gradual process.
Time slowly passed.
And as it did, the depths of the Great River slowly changed.
It was not something that they could see or hear, but more of a vague, eerie,
oppressive feeling. Although the Chain Breaker was surrounded by water and
had descended deep below the surface of the River by now, none of them could
perceive what hid beyond the spinning walls of the twisting tunnel.
However, it seemed as if... the absolute darkness that surrounded them was
somehow growing darker and darker with each hour that passed.
Sunny felt... a sense of immense threat. Cassie was pale, as well. It was as if
they were surrounded by terrifying danger from all sides, worse even than it had
been in the flowing mist of Aletheia’s Island.
However, if there was some harrowing being in the water, it did not enter the
tunnel to swallow them whole.
...Remembering how much the dreadful whirlpool resembled a colossal maw,
Sunny could only hope that it was not because they were already in the being's
intestines.
“Maybe whatever creatures dwell in the unfathomable depth simply can't exist
outside of water... or maybe the current of the tunnel walls is as dangerous to
them as itis to the Chain Breaker."
Calming himself like that, he tried to find distraction in weaving.
A few more hours passed.
Eventually, Nephis stood up and looked around with a slight frown on her face.
"...Don't you think that it's getting brighter?"
Then, the others noticed it, too. The darkness seemed slightly less impenetrable
now.
The process continued. Slowly but surely, the dark mass of water was starting to
glow. The darkness was dispelled, and instead, a blinding radiance surrounded
them from all sides. It was so bright that Sunny couldn't open his eyes for a while.
“What... what's this..."
The abyssal tunnel was now a tunnel of radiant light. It was as if they were
traveling through the depths of a star.
"It's the suns!"
Sunny was confused by Jet's words at first. But then, he understood.
"Ah... of course..."
Every evening, the seven suns seemed to dive into the Great River. And every
night, the Great River started to glow. Its shine was soft, dreamlike, and
iridescent.
However, that was on the surface. What would that light look like in the
unfathomable depths?
They were currently learning the answer.
Soon, Sunny's eyes adjusted to the brightness, and he cautiously opened them.
The members of the cohort were all frozen still, observing the radiant world
around them.
It was... beautiful.
But also harrowing.
A moment later, Sunny shuddered and took an involuntary step back.
Somewhere out there, in the blinding light... a shadow suddenly moved, so
colossal that it dimmed the radiance of the water for a few moments. Its size was
so immense that he struggled to comprehend it. And its shape...
As soon as Sunny tried to ascertain it, it was as if he had lost consciousness for
several seconds. When he came back to his senses, the shadow had
disappeared somewhere far below, and he was covered in cold sweat. His head
was pulsing with a splitting ache.
“T—that thing... how far away was it?'
What was it?
He looked at the members of the cohort and found them in a similar state to his.
Especially Cassie, who was blind, but also saw much more than anyone else...
Then, the brightness of the water changed once again as another inconceivable
shadow moved through its radiant mass, far in the distance.
He shivered.
"Go inside."
Cassie's voice was hoarse. Lowering her head, she sighed and repeated herself:
"Go inside. Don't return until it's dark again. It's not good for you to stay here."
Nephis looked at her for a moment, then frowned:
"What about you? We won't leave you alone."
The blind girl shook her head.
"I'l be fine. I won't be able to see anything if you leave, anyway. Most
importantly..."
She shivered slightly.
"...nothing will be able to gaze back at me. Go."
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Sunny knew all too well that some
Nightmare Creatures felt when
someone was looking at them. That
was why people h qtabe caret

jie
where thé urned their eyes in the
Dream Realm, especially in those
regions of it where true horrors
dwelled. That was why he did not try
to dissuade Cassie and silently pulled
Nephis toward the entrance to the
lower decks. The content is on
popsnovel.com! Read the latest
chapter there!
He recalled his shadows, as well.
Jet and Effie followed.
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They spent some time together at the
mess deck, but no one was in the
mood to talk. It Ea
poms aquid be®ea by the beings
that moved in the depths of the Great
River... and so, after a while, the
members of the cohort left for their
cabins and tried to fall asleep. The
content is on popsnovel.com! Read
the latest chapter there!
The merciless light bathed the Chain Breaker for a few more hours, and then
grew dim.
Finally, it disappeared entirely, replaced once again by absolute darkness.
The spinning tunnel continued to lead them down, down, down... down into the
unfathomable depths.
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The Great River was rumored to be
bottomless, and ery py the
cried Buhh§Eco d easily believe
that it was. The content is on
popsnovel.com! Read the latest
chapter there!
However, he also felt that if they survived a few more days of the descent...
Perhaps they would prove the rumors wrong.