Nephis walked forward, her wavering footsteps evidence of her exhaustion. The heavy smell of blood was unrelenting.
Around her, broken statues and human remains were scattered everywhere. With every step, she either stepped on stone or bone.
Looking at her left hand, which was being consumed by a white flame, she sighed.
She glanced at the sky, but there was nothing but darkness. Her power was far weaker in the domain of darkness.
The sun that once loomed over Godgrave was now nowhere to be seen, swallowed by the darkness.
The same sun that had killed thousands of humans was now the very thing every human longed to see.
Gritting her teeth, Nephis looked around. There was nothing but endless battles between humans and statues.
Even a child would know that the humans didn't stand a chance.
She wanted to use her flames to heal everyone, but the darkness shackled her. Her flame was like a torch surrounded by an abyss.
Looking down at her shadow, her expression turned sorrowful.
In the darkness, there were no shadows, making him far weaker. He had fought valiantly, yet even he had lost. Fortunately, he had escaped into her shadow at the last second.
Shaking her head, she continued searching for Cassie or the Fire Keepers. But in this battlefield, filled with the screams of those fighting for their lives, she couldn't recognize anyone she knew.
On the frontlines, two people were fighting against their opponents. As for the third... he had already been killed by that 'thing', ripped apart into two pieces.
If it hadn't been for that 'thing', they might have stood a chance against "Him". But his selfish desires had doomed humanity.
Suddenly, information flooded her mind. Nephis's eyes widened as she looked at her shadow. Her mouth moved, trying to say something, but no words came out.
Then, she felt the world around her changing... no, not the world itself, but the essence of the world shifting under someone's will.
As a Saint, she could clearly sense it. She looked up at the darkness... or what lay beyond the veil of darkness.
Boom!
The sound of thunder striking something echoed across the battlefield.
Crack.
Nephis's eyes widened as the darkness above her began to fracture. A small amount of light seeped through the cracks.
Boom!
The darkness that had loomed over her from all sides finally shattered, and light descended upon the battlefield.
Those who had been blinded by darkness were now blinded by light.
From the blinding light, a man descended. His long black hair waved as the wind swept through it. His onyx eyes, with a hint of gold, looked down at the battlefield like a god. His black wings, streaked with gold, flapped in the sky.
The man raised his hand and slashed through the sky.
The once-solid darkness fell onto the dead god's bones like liquid.
The stone statues collapsed, lifeless, without a single scratch.
Behind the stone statues, the man who had sat motionless on his throne throughout the battle rose to his feet.
He extended his hand toward the man in the sky and spoke solemnly:
"Come, my last piece."
The man in the sky summoned his weapon and descended toward the Daemon of Destiny.
The sound of steel clashing against steel echoed across the battlefield.
***
Three months until the Day of Redemption.
...
Adam sat in his office in the Nameless Temple. In front of him was a map of Godgrave.
He picked up a pencil from his desk and began drawing on the map.
After a few minutes, Adam set the pencil down and sighed.
Over the past few months, he had been trying to predict when Nether would attack.
There were many possibilities, but only three stood out.
The first would be at the Battle of Godheart, where the two armies were destined to clash for the first time. This was the scenario Adam hoped Nether would avoid.
The reason was simple: while most of the soldiers from both armies were in good shape, the main characters were not. Not only was Sunny's Nascent Domain incomplete, but his plan was also far from ready.
The second possibility would be at the Siege of the Crossings. Adam was certain that the Song army would lose against the Sword army—quality always triumphed over quantity. The Lord of Shadows and the Changing Star would effortlessly take down most of the Song Saints.
Although Adam hoped Nether would attack at this time, he was sure he wouldn't. Not only would Nether be at a disadvantage due to the battlefield's location, but he would also face attacks from both the front and the rear.
Nether was not stupid. He was the one who had waged war against the gods; such obvious tactics were beneath him.
Finally, there was the last possibility: The Last Battle. When both armies were tired and exhausted.
Adam was as blind as everyone else. He didn't know how it would happen, where it would take place, or how it would end. Unfortunately, he couldn't see the future, thanks to the fractured state of fate itself.
This was both a blessing and a curse. Since fate and destiny were intertwined, just as fate was in disarray, so too was destiny. This made it impossible for Nether to see the future, even if he needed to.
"Hmm... It seems we have guests."
Standing up, Adam left his office and walked through the Nameless Temple toward the Throne Room.
As he approached, he heard someone speaking.
"Nephis of Valor… welcome. I did not expect to be visited by someone as exalted as the last daughter of the Immortal Flame."
Adam entered the throne room. Both the Fire Keepers and Nephis herself turned to look at him.
Approaching the throne, Adam bent slightly and placed his hand over his chest, speaking respectfully:
"Lord Shadow, please forgive your foolish subordinate for not greeting you upon your return."
There was a moment of silence before Sunny responded, "You are forgiven."
Adam nodded and walked to stand beside the throne.
Sunny, his face hidden beneath the Weaver's Mask, was visibly flustered.
'You're not forgiven, Adam! Why did you have to show up at this particular moment?'
That was what Sunny wanted to say, but he couldn't—thanks to the Weaver's Mask and the fact that Adam was a Supreme.
Nephis glanced at where Adam had stood before he vanished into the shadows.
[Cassie?]
[I couldn't see...]
Nephis frowned at Cassie's words and replied.
[Cassie, I know you can't see.]
[That's not what I meant. I couldn't see anything about him... it was just like how I couldn't see Raphael's status before.]
Nephis frowned deeper as Cassie mentioned Raphael. They had been searching for him throughout the Walking Realm and the parts of the Dream Realm controlled by humans.
On that day, she had been in awe—not just her, but everyone in Antarctica. His voice, his presence, was intimidating. The moment he spoke, she felt as though the world itself bent to his will.
He defied all logic, achieving Supremacy while still an Ascended.
She didn't know how, but he had done it. He had achieved Supremacy without the Spell.
With him, she had thought he would help her against Ki Song and Anvil. But he had vanished from Earth, never to be seen again.
So she had searched for him in the Dream Realm, hoping to ask for his help against the Sovereigns and to learn how he had achieved Supremacy. Yet, he was nowhere to be found.
The only place he could be was beyond the Hollow Mountains, and Nephis had lost hope of reaching there, as she wasn't strong enough.
Adam, standing beside Sunny, was aware of Nephis's thoughts but remained silent.
Nephis stared into the darkness, then bowed slowly. "Greetings, Lord of Shadows. I hope you don't mind being addressed this way… or would you prefer I call you something else?"
"I would not. But you may call me Shadow," the Lord of Shadows responded.
Adam glanced at Sunny, his face as stoic as ever. There was quite a resemblance between him and Saint in that regard.
'Look at him, trying to be a lion when he's just a cat,' Adam thought, shaking his head.
Sunny was aware of Adam's gaze but paid it no mind.
"To what do I owe the honor of being in the presence of Lady Changing Star? What do you want from me?"
Nephis didn't respond immediately, taking her time before finally speaking. And when she did, she didn't disappoint...
"Then, Lord Shadow, I won't be coy... you asked me what I want? It's simple."
She paused for a moment, then added in her usual impassive tone:
"I want you."
Adam's face twitched for a second. Even he, who knew little about human romance, wasn't that dense.
He glanced at Sunny, whose face was hidden beneath the Weaver's Mask. Though he couldn't see it, he was certain it was beet red.
At this point, Adam stopped listening to their conversation. The only reason he was there was to ensure Sunny didn't do anything foolish.
Before he knew it, the Lord of Shadows was engaged in a duel with the Fire Keepers... though, in truth, Adam had known it would happen.
Walking over to Nephis, he asked, "Lady Changing Star, would you like tea or coffee?"
Nephis looked at him and replied, "I don't need anything."
Adam nodded and stood beside her, watching Sunny spar with the Fire Keepers.
'He's certainly having fun.'
From his right, he heard Nephis speaking to him.
"Have we met before... ah..."
"It's Adam, Lady Changing Star. As for whether we've met before... it would have been an honor, but unfortunately, this is our first meeting."
"I see..."
Nephis was certain she had met him before. Though her memory wasn't as sharp as Cassie's, she was confident in it. She was sure she had seen his face somewhere.
She sighed and continued observing the Lord of Shadows. The battle had already ended, with the last Fire Keeper falling.
Looking at the Lord of Shadows, Nephis walked toward him, unsheathing her sword.
Adam glanced at her and said, "Good luck, Lady Changing Star."
The two dashed toward each other, each wielding their own Transcendent battle styles—though one of them was using a fake one.
Over the past year, Adam had sparred with Sunny multiple times. Though he wasn't on Medici's level, he was still one of humanity's best fighters.
Thanks to their duels, Sunny had perfected his Transcendent battle style.
Unfortunately, his Nascent Domain was still incomplete.
The duel between the two continued for some time. The winner was clearly the Lord of Shadows. Not only was his Transcendent battle art far superior to her imitation, but she had also underestimated him by not using her true Transcendent battle art.
In the end, the duel ended in a draw. Not because Sunny couldn't defeat her, but because he didn't want to. His plan had been to let her win, but he had been having so much fun that he momentarily forgot.
The Lord of Shadows admitted defeat, even though he had clearly been winning, and made a secret deal with the Changing Star.
And Adam remained in the shadows, watching it all unfold.
***
Hello everyone I'm finally back after a whole week, I would like to say I'm sorry for not uploading. Anyway for an apology I gave you a little teaser about the end of the volume.
And for every Muslim there Ramadan Mubarak! Hope you have a great year!
If you have any questions, you can find me in the official Shadow Slave discord. just go to the Fanfiction room, and search for mine, it's named after the FF name.
Leave a review on this fanfic, chapter and some power stones, so more people can read it.
See you again next time👋