Shadow Slave

Sunny had not gotten a good look at Condemnation the last time he visited the Ruins. Back then, he and Nephis were too preoccupied with surviving and rescuing the pair of Sleepers. Now, however… even though he was embroiled in a furious fight against the Asuras, he could not help but study the ancient Cursed One.

Condemnation was definitely one of the most imposing Nightmare Creatures he had even encountered, if for no other reason than sheer, inconceivable size.

Sunny had seen and fought many gargantuan abominations, had even slain many of them. Some were even the size of a mountain, like Goliath or the Black Turtle whose corpse had served him as an island-ship in the Third Nightmare.

However, even Goliath had conceivably proportions, towering above the ground by more than a hundred meters, but less than two hundred.

Condemnation dwarfed the Fallen Titan effortlessly.

It was so gargantuan, in fact, that watching it rise felt like watching a natural disaster happening, not a living being moving.

At its full height, the Cursed Tyrant was no less than several kilometers tall. It was so tall, in fact, that Sunny could only see its full form because of the distance… if he was any closer, he would have had to lay down on the ground and look up to truly see the dreadful scale of Condemnation.

It was vaguely human-like in shape, possessing two legs, two arms, and a head. However, the semblance was rough and distant, as if created in the image of a human by a consciousness that either did not really know what humans looked like, or simply did not care.

The dark behemoth was awesome and imposing, but most of all, the chaotic contours of its mountainous body were utterly dreadful. In fact, simply looking at it was maddening, as if Sunny’s resilient mind was deeply wounded by the unfathomable sight.

The first time Sunny had seen the Cursed One, he assumed that, since it had risen from below the overgrown ruins, its body was covered by soil, roots, moss, pieces of rubble, and debris.

But now that he could see it clearly, he knew that he had assumed wrong. The body of Condemnation was not covered by a crumbling layer of the ruins… instead, it simply consisted of the ruins. And everything else around it, really, as if assembled from what was there to take.

Stone, soil, vast fragments of the shattered bone, countless trees and vines, pieces of stone and entire crumbling buildings were held in the air by an invisible force, comprising the colossal figure.

There were other, less tangible things constituting Condemnation, as well. The twilight of the subterranean ruin, the vast swathes of ancient shadows, the howling wind, the clouds of mist… any even more abstract concepts, most likely, which Sunny was unable to perceive.

Truthfully, he was mostly certain that he could not perceive all of the Cursed Tyrant, instead witnessing only the surface of its harrowing being.

It was as if a malevolent spirit had possessed the nameless city, and then built itself a body out of its remains.

Entranced, Sunny stared at the slowly straightening colossal figure of Condemnation for a moment or two. Then, he shuddered and looked away hurriedly, just a heartbeat before the Cursed One opened its eyes.

It was suddenly hard to breathe.

Sunny felt as if his mind was about to shatter and his body was about to fester with a vile darkness… and he wasn’t even whom the Cursed Tyrant was looking at.

Towering at kilometers in height. Condemnation was unmistakably looking down… at the King of Swords, who was still approaching it with measured steps.

’This madman…’

Without slowing down even a little or showing the smallest sign of fear, Anvil stepped forward easily and suddenly soared into the air.

He did not possess the ability to fly, like Kai did, and neither was he using a Memory to take flight. Instead, it seemed as if he simply willed himself to rise into the darkness, forcing gravity to release its hold on him. 𝐑𝘼ΝỖʙĘŞ

Of course, there was a simpler explanation. Sunny knew that Anvil’s Dormant Ability gave him tremendous affinity to metal and the power to control it — which was how he was able to control the sea of flying swords, most likely. Meanwhile, his suit of intricate plate armor had also been forged from mystical steel, so he could have been simply exerting his power on it to fly.

In any case, the King of Swords rose high into the air and hovered there like a black dot, his vermilion cloak billowing in the wind. He was positioned right across Condemnation’s colossal, inhuman face.

The two stared at each other for a few moments… from afar, it was like watching an ant stare down a giant.

But then, the situation changed.

That was because an enormous cyclone of scarlet light manifested itself into reality behind the King of Swords, drowning the ruins of the ancient city in a bright red radiance.

The cloud of scarlet light cut the world in two like an enormous wall, flowing and swirling hypnotically. It was composed of myriads of radiant sparks, of course.

The wall of scarlet radiance and the darkness surrounding Condemnation seemed to be at odds for a few moments, just like their masters were. Sunny was sure that there was also another, invisible confrontation going on.

It was the confrontation between the Sword Domain and the will of the Cursed One. Anvil was invading Condemnation’s land, after all — and his Domain was invading foreign territory, too.

Then, finally, the ocean of scarlet sparks manifested into a sea of beautiful swords.

Surrounded by them like a steel stormfront, Anvil looked at the Cursed Tyrant coldly.

Then, raising a head, he sent the sword forward.

Two enormous torrents of rustling steel flowed past him at tremendous speed, aimed at the colossal body of Condemnation.

The battle between a Sovereign and a Tyrant had begun.