Shadow Slave - Paralyzed Demon

She had returned from her hunt, bringing along three newcomers. As they reached the outskirts, Effie frowned. A large crowd had gathered around something, their excited voices audible from a distance.

"Does this usually happen?" asked the silver-haired girl. Effie shook her head. "No. Something's going on. Let's take a look." They moved towards the crowd.

The crowd had surrounded something—a large, winged creature, its head severed cleanly from its body with a single cut. In front of it stood a man clad in black armor, holding a sword. The surrounding crowd occasionally erupted into cheers, their faces visibly filled with joy. As they got closer, they began to hear the armored man's voice.

"... ready. Until then, make yourself useful. We are leaving this place soon." He then began walking towards the castle through the crowd. Sunny, Cassie, and Nephis recognized him immediately.

"Morpheus!" Sunny called out. Effie turned to him and asked, "You know him?"

"Yes, he was part of our cohort. After bringing us close to here, he left for a while."

Morpheus looked at them and smiled. Effie took a step back at the sight of his smile—he still couldn't control his facial expressions properly.

"Are you sure he's your friend? He looks like he's coming to kill us," Effie muttered, reaching for her spear.

Sunny sighed and yelled at Morpheus, "You still need to work on your smile. You look like a monster."

Morpheus had never managed to improve his ability to smile properly. He had trained his limbs far more than his facial muscles.

"Hey! We haven't seen each other in days, and you call me a monster? That's rude," Morpheus responded. Despite his complaints, he sounded happy—it was nice to see his friends again.

"And whose fault is that? You could've brought us with you, and we wouldn't have had to walk all that way," Sunny retorted.

Morpheus shrugged. "That's part of the training. Besides, I'm not a taxi. You need to learn to fend for yourself."

Then, he turned to Effie. "Hello, my name is Morpheus. Sorry if I scared you. It's because of my Flaw," he said, extending his hand.

Seeing that the others truly considered him a friend, Effie relaxed and withdrew her hand from her spear before shaking his. "Effie."

"I'm heading back to the castle. Come with me. We need to finish preparations as soon as possible," Morpheus instructed. Sunny and the others followed him.

Sunny asked, "Preparations for what? And what was that creature? It felt incredibly powerful."

As they walked toward the castle, Morpheus answered, "That was a Spire Messenger. We're leaving this place. I've already convinced the people in the castle. To persuade the rest, I decided to take this approach."

Effie was shocked. He had killed a Spire Messenger. How strong was this man?

"He's very powerful," Nephis commented from the side. "He could have left alone, but he waited for us. Training us took time. Now, I guess he's doing the same for everyone else."

Effie glanced at the black-armored man walking ahead. "How did you convince Gunlaug? Did you kill him?"

As they passed through the castle gates, Morpheus replied, "No, I didn't kill him. Why would I? Even if he has given up on getting out, he's still the strongest among you. Losing that strength would be a waste."

The guards who once guarded the castle gates were gone. Entry was now free—everyone was on the same side, and every person was needed.

"He's currently in the throne room, planning with the others. Sunny, Cassie, Nephis—you'll be part of this. You're going to help us escape from here," Morpheus declared.

They made their way to the throne room, where Gunlaug and his men, along with Caster and Seishan, were deep in discussion around a large table. As soon as Morpheus entered, they stood up, their conversation abruptly stopping.

"Go on," Morpheus said. "I've brought people who can help. A Prophet, a Scout, and a Warrior." Then, turning to Effie, he added, "I hope you'll join the planning as well."

Effie nodded, though his words felt more like a command than a request.

"Good. You will devise a plan to get us out of here. Until then, you'll have other tasks. These people still need food and shelter. The castle will remain open to everyone. You will join the hunting teams for food. With your strength, that shouldn't be a problem. Sunny, Nephis, and Cassie—you'll join these hunts as well. Cassie, since you're blind, this is even more important for you. You need to learn to defend yourself. Don't worry, I'll assign people to help you and ensure you don't die."

Morpheus then looked at everyone, his gaze sharp. "If you don't come up with a plan by the end of the month..."

He met each of their eyes.

"I'll leave you all behind."

Then, he walked out of the throne room, leaving everyone frozen. No one doubted that he meant what he said.

As soon as Morpheus left, Effie let out a relieved breath. "Who the hell is this guy? Just looking into his eyes is unsettling."

Gunlaug and his men remained silent.

Effie turned to the people she had accompanied. Nephis explained, "He's Morpheus, the former prince of the Valor clan. He used to be known as the Sword Demon. But he was cast out of his clan because of the Flaw he received from his Nightmare."

The people in the room looked at her in shock. How could someone so powerful be exiled just because of a Flaw? Everyone was now curious about what it was.

"What is his Flaw?" Effie asked. Everyone focused on Nephis, hoping for a weakness they could exploit.

Sunny chuckled at their eagerness. "He's paralyzed. His Flaw left him unable to move."

No one believed him, of course.

"We just walked in with him—how could he be paralyzed?" Effie protested, and the others agreed.

Sunny smiled. "When we first saw him, he was in a wheelchair, completely unable to move. I think his clan exiled him as soon as they found out about his Flaw."

"His Aspect allows him to control blood. He moves his body by controlling his own blood. He's been training himself ever since he arrived at the Academy. Now he can walk and wield his sword."

"I brought you here to make a plan, not to gossip. Get to work," Morpheus called from the doorway.

Everyone quickly pretended to be busy.

After making sure they were focused, Morpheus returned to his room.

It was time to form his second core.