My Living Shadow System Devours To Make Me Stronger

Life was truly mysterious.

Damon spread his wings and looked around, a baby girl cradled carefully in his arms. Before taking off, he traced several protective runes across her small body, each symbol glowing faintly before sinking into her skin to shield her from the crushing air pressure.

His mastery of rune magic had grown immensely.

So had his domain.

He leapt into the air.

The wind howled past as he crossed over a massive mountain range. Then he angled his wings, caught the current, and descended in a smooth dive before landing several kilometers away.

In the distance, he saw a city suspended among clouds.

He folded his wings immediately.

He did not want to risk being seen with demonic wings. This was Goddess Race territory, and he was very far from the Demon Continent.

He was in the Sky Continent.

“Gahhh gahhj guiu.”

Ranar made strange, excited sounds as they landed. From her tone alone, Damon could tell she was enjoying this far more than she should.

He lifted her slightly with one hand.

“You really like danger, don’t you?”

She lunged toward his face with both tiny hands open, full of restless energy.

Damon began walking toward the distant city. From afar, it looked beautiful, with clouds drifting so close they seemed to brush against its walls.

Over the past few days, Damon had been thinking deeply.

About many things.

One of them was his philosophy.

The belief that had shaped his life. The mantra of the Unknown God.

We are not asked to be born.

But now, from the perspective of a parent, Damon wondered.

Would his daughter one day see her birth as an act of cruelty? As being forced into existence without consent?

Damon did not resent his parents for his birth. He idolized his father. He loved his mother.

What he hated was the meaningless monotony of life.

Yet when he looked at Ranar, he did not see monotony.

He saw the sun.

Bright. Beautiful. Precious.

And the more he felt that way, the more he feared he might be wrong for bringing her into a world like this.

Lost in thought, Damon reached the city gates and entered without drawing attention to himself.

For now, he wanted to return to Soltheon. With his luck, wandering blindly without knowing which routes were safe would only invite trouble.

The first inn he found looked decent.

Two rooms. A bed. Basic amenities.

He looked at it.

Then he looked at Ranar.

And decided it was not good enough.

He left.

The next one was more expensive.

Still not enough.

He spent hours searching from one inn to another, judging them with increasing severity, until Ranar began to cry loudly in his arms.

Damon froze.

He had no choice but to settle for the nearest acceptable place.

Inside the room, he tried to check the outside world through his shadow clone, only to realize it was gone. Being unconscious for three years must have caused it to dissolve.

“Ah…”

He sighed and closed his eyes, hoping to rest for a moment.

The instant he fell asleep, Ranar woke up and began crying.

Damon jolted upright and tried to console her, rocking her awkwardly and whispering nonsense sounds, but he was completely out of his depth. Her crying only grew louder.

Before he could panic further, Scar snatched her smoothly from his arms.

Croft began fanning her with his wings.

Damon’s shadow produced a vial of minotaur milk and handed it over.

Within moments, they had her calm and drinking quietly.

Damon scratched his head, watching the practiced efficiency with mild embarrassment.

“Erm… thanks.”

The next day, Damon found an airship headed toward Soltheon and purchased a ticket for departure the following day.

Before leaving, he spent time gathering supplies Ranar might need for the journey.

The trip took nearly three weeks due to the dangers of air travel across the Sky Continent. There were no seas here, no coastlines, only endless sky and floating landmasses.

Finally, the airship descended.

They landed in the capital city of Valtheron.

Damon stepped off the airship with a very irritable Ranar in his arms.

He peered into her tiny mouth. Her first milk teeth were pushing through, and it explained her foul mood.

The first thing he noticed was the atmosphere.

The capital was in celebration.

Banners hung from towers. Airships drifted overhead, releasing showers of rose petals that fluttered down onto cheering crowds.

“What the hell is going on here? Did we win the war or something?”

That was clearly not the case. From what he had learned during the journey, the war was still ongoing. The Outsiders had made no significant moves beyond taking the Coil. The Demon Race had made landfall in Soltheon during the past three years, but they had avoided major cities.

Damon stopped a passerby and pulled him aside.

“What’s going on here? Why the festivities?”

His hood concealed most of his face, but the man did not seem bothered. He smiled sheepishly.

“My, haven’t you heard? Lord Ravenscroft is getting married today.”

Damon blinked.

Ravenscroft.

The only unwed lord was Xander.

Which meant—

“Today is his wedding? To who? Who would marry that bastard?”

Of course, Damon knew the answer. Emilia Highgon. They had been practically engaged the last time he checked.

So Xander was winning at life while he was still—

“Where is the wedding?” Damon asked.

The man pointed toward the imperial palace.

Damon nodded slowly.

“I see. Did they do this to raise morale?”

Why else would they make it this extravagant? Whether Damon wanted to admit it or not, Xander was a war hero. Young, talented, handsome, honorable. A perfect poster figure.

“They must have made this wedding overly glamorous to reassure the people that everything is going well,” Damon muttered.

He rubbed his chin.

“Which means everything is not going well.”

Well, he might as well attend. It would be troublesome if everyone believed he was dead.

He could already imagine the tearful reunions.

Lilith would be there. So would everyone important.

He glanced at Ranar, who had fallen asleep in his arms.

Introducing her might be awkward, but it would be fine.

He also needed to bury Wendy in the Brightwater family tomb so her daughter could visit her in the future.

The venue was far grander than usual.

Knights stood in formation. Military parades passed in disciplined rows. Floating pavilions held distinguished guests above the main grounds.

The noise was overwhelming, so Damon slipped into his shadow and passed unseen.

A massive projection hovered above the square, showing the interior of the ceremony for the commoners outside.

Damon walked through the main doors. The fourth class advancement guards did not notice him at all.

Inside, the grand hall stretched wide and tall. At the altar stood Xander and his bride, facing a priest from the temple who was officiating the ceremony.

Damon leaned casually beneath a pillar as the music softened for the vows.

“Do you, Xander Ravenscroft, take Emilia Highgon…”

While the vows continued, Damon scanned the hall.

Nearly everyone he knew was here.

Lilith stood with her father and grandmother.

Leona was present, along with Matia, who surprisingly wore a white dress that suited her far better than Damon expected.

Eva stood with Luna and Iris.

His grandfather was there.

The Elf King and Queen were present as well, with Sylvia beside them.

Damon frowned.

Why were so many powerhouses gathered here in person during wartime? They could have sent representatives.

“Is there a reason all of them are in Soltheon at the same time?” he muttered.

He did not notice that Ranar had woken up.

As the bride and groom kissed, breaking the silence, a baby’s cry pierced through the hall.

Every head turned toward the source.

Toward Damon.

He looked down at Ranar and sighed.

“There, there. Don’t cry…”

The moment they heard his voice, Xander froze.

His eyes widened.

“Th-that voice… Damon? You’re alive?”

Damon raised an eyebrow, mildly irritated.

“In the flesh. What did you think? That I wasn’t alive?”

Leona rushed forward.

“You’re alive. You’re really not dead. I knew it. You wouldn’t die.”

Damon was about to respond when Ranar let out an angry cry at Leona’s proximity, baring her tiny milk teeth aggressively.

He pulled her back into his chest as her eyes remained locked onto Leona.

“Shush. Don’t make noise. You’ll scare my friend,” he said gently.

Leona blinked in confusion.

Perhaps it was time to address the obvious.

“…Where did you get a baby?” she asked carefully, concern creeping into her voice as if she feared Damon had kidnapped someone’s child.

Damon was about to answer when his eyes fell on Evangeline.

A slow, wicked smile spread across his face.

“Oh, this? You can tell from her looks she’s not mine. She actually belongs to Eva. Look at the hair and the eyes.”

Every head turned toward the baby.

Then toward Evangeline.

The resemblance was disturbingly convincing.

Evangeline’s mouth opened, but no words came out.

The evidence was false.

But damning.