413 Mirror Beast

The apparition stood motionlessly, frozen in place by Sunny's quiet command. He could see his face reflecting in its dark eyes, even paler than usual, beads of sweat glistening in the sun. The creature was completely still, all its terrifying strength shackled by the four simple words Sunny had whispered to it.

It was... enslaved. No matter how powerful the strange abomination was, no amount of power could ever allow it to disobey the command of its new master.

...Sunny.

By stealing his face and his powers, the creature had also inherited his Innate Ability, Shadow Bond. Sunny had made use of that bond to subjugate the devil, and now, it was at his mercy.

For now, at least.

With a pained grimace, Sunny fell to the ground and drew in a hoarse breath.

'That… that was close.'

The wound on his thigh was not too serious, but the cut he had received as a shadow was long and deep. Blood Weave had prevented him from losing too much blood and was going to ensure a fast recovery, but it had its limits. The wounds needed to be tended to… however, they could wait.

Right now, Sunny had to decide what to do with the former ruler Reckoning... the dreadful creature that had slain plenty of humans, and only gods knew how many Nightmare Creatures, which was now under his full control.

Such a powerful abomination… it would surely be very helpful to have something that fearsome serving him, unable to disobey any command.

He glanced at the frozen creature and shivered.

Looking at it was still like looking in a mirror, after all. Despite knowing that the thing in front of him was a Nightmare Creature, he couldn't help but see a slight young man with pale skin and dark eyes… couldn't help but see himself.

Yes, having a Fallen Devil do his bidding would be extremely beneficial, especially because the apparition looked exactly like him. With a bit of cunning and preparation, Sunny would be able to seemingly appear in two places at the same time. If he ever needed to prove that he wasn't Mongrel or accomplish something shady without drawing any suspicion, that would be a perfect way to do so… there were countless scenarios where such an ability would be incredibly useful.

But there lay the problem.

The creature was only enslaved because it had assumed his form. Since the creature could take any shape, it was going to stop possessing his Aspect Abilities — including Shadow Bond — as soon as it turned into something else. Then, it would be free of its shackles and able to do whatever it wanted, including unleashing its wrath on Sunny.

That was why he had dismissed Saint before attempting to subjugate the apparition. He needed it to remain as his own reflection, and no one else's.

Yes, he could circumvent the possibility of losing control over the terrifying creature with a long series of complex orders that would limit when and how it could use its shapeshifting. But coming up with a foolproof net of prohibitions was a herculean task… Sunny wasn't even sure that it was possible.

He had spent a long time thinking of ways to escape this exact fate, so he knew better than most — better than anyone, perhaps — how hard it was to keep an unwilling slave under control. Especially if the enslaved being was more powerful than its master.

There would always be a way to twist words, find a loophole, and turn the orders given by the master against themselves. Sunny was sure of it.

He had to be.

So... what was he supposed to do with the frozen abomination?

Standing up with a grimace, Sunny faced his perfect copy and looked at it with regret.

The main reason for what he was about to do, nevertheless, was way less complicated. He simply didn't want to be a slaver. He didn't want to own any living thing.

Sunny lingered for a while, and then said:

"Don't be scared. I won't make you a slave. That would be too cruel of a fate, don't you think? Even… even for a Nightmare Creature like you… "

With that, he raised his hand, as if to caress the cheek of the pale young man, and then swiped it swiftly across his neck.

Almost invisible in the bright light, the ghostly blade of the Moonlight Shard trembled as drops of crimson blood fell from it into the vibrant grass.

The young man didn't move, but his pupils widened. A few moments later, blood flowed from between his lips, painting his pale skin red.

Sunny looked at the dying apparition, deeply disturbed by the visage in front of him.

…It was not every day that one got to see himself die.

'That's... that is...'

He paled slightly, but did not look away.

In front of him, a person who looked exactly like himself was slowly drowning in blood, a crimson torrent flowing from his cut throat.

A few moments later, when the creature was on the death's doorstep, its body suddenly trembled, and then shifted slightly. A tortured smile appeared on its face.

The apparition's lips moved, but just as before, no sound escape from them. However, Sunny thought that he had managed to read a few words:

"…we… never… searching."

That was what the apparition had tried to say.

Then, the light in its eyes extinguished. A strange ripple spread over the young man's body, and a moment later, thin cracks appeared on his skin.

After a second or two, the creature shattered into a rain of silver glass, which then turned into a stream of light and disappeared.

Only one jagged mirror shard remained laying in the grass, reflecting nothing but cold darkness.

As Sunny stared at all this in bewilderment, the Spell whispered:

[You have slain an Ascended Reflection, Mirror Beast.]

Sunny blinked.

'Wait… what did it just say?'

The Spell, however, wasn't done speaking.

[...You have received a Memory.]