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Chapter 2322: Beast Sacrifice
Shadow Slave

Sunny considered the peculiar vision he had received for a while. Eventually, his eyes gleamed darkly.

'They were playing for truths.'

Ariel had been a collector of truth, but one mystery he could never solve was Weaver. Weaver, meanwhile… seemed to have been interested in finding a way to change fate.

That truth alone was priceless. Sunny had suspected that the Demon of Fate had a complicated relationship with their own… source element? Domain? Aspect? In any case, the Nightmare Spell seemed to have been designed with the explicit purpose of training its carriers to defy and twist fate.

Sunny firmly believed that the appraisal the Spell gave to those who conquered Nightmares was connected to how much they strayed from the original flow of fate, at least. But having a strong suspicion and hearing it with his own two ears were two different things. Granted… Sunny only learned that Weaver was searching for a way to change fate, not why. He did not know what the Demon of Fate had discovered, either.

In any case, the two daemons had played Death Game - the winner was supposed to be rewarded with a truth. And Weaver had utterly crushed Ariel, in the end.

'Rewarded, huh?' Was that what had happened to him? He had sacrificed the figure of a slain figure… and received a truth as a reward.

But why that truth, in particular?

Sunny stared at the remaining Snow Beast figure, then at the pit opening into the main vent of the volcano.

'Wait,' Was it simply because he wondered who the players of this game had been? 'My head was full of questions, though. Why this one in particular?' Was the answer given at random, or did the strength of a sacrificed figure play a role?

Would he learn something far more important if he sacrificed a Snow Monster figure? A Demon, A Devil…

A Tyrant?

Suddenly, Sunny was very glad that there were twelve whole Snow Abominations left on the board. He had many questions.

Sunny had spent a decade slowly learning the secrets of the world. By now, he knew more about the truth of existence than almost anyone… but he still desperately wanted - needed - to know more. Why had the Doom War started? How did it end? How did the gods die? How did daemons perish? Was the Forgotten God still imprisoned in the Void? Where had the Nightmares and the Dream Realm come from?

What had been Weaver's goal? Why was the Nightmare Spell created? To what end? And countless less grandiose questions, as well… For example, what did he need to do to kill Eurys? What lay at the heart of Shadow Realm? When had the Demon of Oblivion died? How could she have been dead before Nether and his siblings rebelled against the gods?

'I think…'

A strange smile slowly bloomed on Sunny's face.

'I think that coming here may have been the best idea of my life, Kai.'

Twelve Snow Abominations, and the Snow Beast figure in front of him…

Sunny had just discovered a way to pry thirteen truths from Ariel's Game.

Kai gave him a peculiar look.

'Sunny, can you please snap out of it? You're scaring, uh… your elegant Shadow over there. Yeah.'

Sunny blinked a couple of times and glanced at Slayer. Slayer seemed perfectly at ease. Kai, however, looked a little nervous. Sunny chuckled.

'Alright, alright. It's just that I discovered a use for the figures of slain Snow Abominations. I'm a little excited.'

What answer would he receive next?

Sunny reached for the remaining Snow figure, but then halted.

His expression turned guarded.

'Am I… letting my curiosity trump caution?'

They had just recently talked about how some truths were too dangerous to learn. Sunny did not need to think too much to remember a dreadful example… they were the runes containing the knowledge of the Void that Ariel had left behind in the Estuary of the Great River.

The closer one's soul was to being Divine, the more resistant it was to the corrupting influence of the Void. That was why Awakening could destroy the Seed of Nightmare blooming in an Aspirant's soul… that was also why Sunny could endure knowing more about the Void as a Supreme as he could as a Master or a Saint. But that did not mean that he could endure much of such knowledge… not at all. And he definitely could not endure what Weaver and Ariel could. Even they had not been entirely immune to Corruption, so what hope did Sunny have?

If Ariel's Game granted him a truth that he could not endure, what was he going to do?

Sunny hesitated for a while.

'Wait. Isn't it wonderful, though?'

This incarnation of his was currently separated from the other six. Their minds and memories would fuse once again after Sunny escaped Ariel's Game… but not before it. So even if his mind was infected by Corruption as a result of learning something he was not supposed to know, he could simply kill himself. That way, his other incarnations would never come in contact with the forbidden knowledge.

Kai frowned a little.

'What… are you thinking about?'

Sunny shrugged absentmindedly.

'Killing myself…'

Kai was suddenly standing very near, looking at him intensely.

'No, you mustn't!'

Sunny glanced at him in confusion.

'Huh?'

Kai grabbed his shoulders, a rattled expression on his face.

'You… we don't know each other that well, and I won't presume to know what scars lay hidden in your heart… but you must not, Sunny! In this world we live in, a human life can be lost in an instant. But that only makes it more precious - just like your life is precious, too…'

Sunny scowled.

'What are you on about, fool?'

Then, realizing how his words must have sounded to Kai, who could feel their sincerity, he winced.

'Oh, you misunderstood. I wasn't really thinking about killing myself… just this version of myself, should the need arise. It's not that big of an issue. Plus, this wouldn't even be the first or second time I killed myself. As you can see, I'm still perfectly alive!'

Kai stared at him silently for a while, then slowly let go of his shoulders, turned away, and coughed a couple of times.

'Oh. Oh, I see. Never mind, then.'

Then, his expression turned cold and wary, full of concerned apprehension.

Sunny sighed.

'This guy… such a handful, really!'

'Listen, why would I kill myself? I am filthy rich, drop-dead gorgeous, have an awesome castle, and my girlfriend is literally the most gorgeous woman in the world. Who would want to die and leave all that behind?'

Kai glanced at him and shook his head.

'No, it's not that. I just looked beyond the castle.'

Sunny raised an eyebrow.

'And?'

A dark expression appeared on Kai's face.

'Do you remember saying that we'll have to wait for the adversary to make the first move? Well…'

He sighed.

'I think they're making the move now…'

Shadow Slave
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Comments 58

  1. Offline
    Darrell Amp
    + 2 ⋅ 8 -
    i kind of suspect slayer and Kai for a love ❤️ affair
    Read more
    1. Offline
      Kiber
      + 2 ⋅ 0 -
      Да, у убийцы которая давным давно сошла с ума и хочет убить все что движется если Санни не остановит и у человека который не обидит ни мухи если не будет причины определенно есть связь, да.
      Read more
    2. Offline
      Sumer
      + 0 ⋅ 0 -
      An explicit kinda murderous affair
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    3. Offline
      LustyReader69
      + 0 ⋅ 0 -
      kai should just build a harem with aiko morgan slayer and song sisters tbh wiseacre
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    4. Offline
      Blessme
      + 0 ⋅ 0 -
      That makes no sense💔
      Read more
  2. Offline
    Magmun
    + 8 ⋅ 9 -
    i really like slayer but i feel like salyer is trying to replace Saint
    Read more
    1. Offline
      ArMiks
      + 16 ⋅ 0 -
      i don't think it's replacing as putting the right person for the right job.

      it's been know for so long that saint is a weapons master who is proficient in all sorts of weapons and combat styles, from daggers to bows and everything in between. she's also well, less murderous, plus she does her work for free. the shadow clan members also require an instructor since there are very few of them, and they're stretched thin, so who better to teach than someone who never tires.

      meanwhile, slayer is still a wild stallion who's only barely docile whenever she gets some sugar cubes ie sunny's blood. she's proficient in killing, but mostly using bows and daggers and short swords, plus she's not really conducive to teaching. another is that she needs constant supervision and specific orders from sunny, otherwise, there's a high chance she goes rogue.

      and since sunny still has no idea on how to increase saint's rank for the time being, it's ideal that g3 shifts the focus on slayer since there is still progress to be made with her. and there's a good chance that a significant portion of the lore is tied to slayer and the cohort of nine so fleshing them out through her is a subtle way to feed us some bits of info.
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      1. Offline
        Kiber
        + 3 ⋅ 0 -
        Убийца состояла в одной группе с чертовым убийцей богов, так что да, я считаю что она ОЧЕНЬ важна для истории.
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    2. Offline
      Storybook646
      + 1 ⋅ 0 -
      Kinda. Yeah
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  3. Offline
    LewdPinecone
    + 4 ⋅ 0 -
    River??? I hardly know her!
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  4. Offline
    ArMiks
    + 20 ⋅ 0 -
    A few things.
    1. Kai actually managed to get slayer to react to him neutrally. A shrug, can you believe that?
    2. Remember kai saying that jade palace's component is terraforming? And that the volcano it stands on was formed by the palace itself, then the great bridge. What if the main piece of the jade palace is the game board death of a tyrant, while the jade palace outside and its surroundings are merely it's manifestation?
    3. Also, kai said the cold seemed to spread from outside of ravenheart's domain and was slowly creeping in, seemingly a mystical phenomena, could it also be because of the situation in the game? Since the snow tyrant was winning, the snow covered ravenheart's surroundings. But what if the situation was reversed and the ash tyrant is the one dominating, would ravenheart's surroundings become covered in ashes for the majority, and snow on merely on the core like now?
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    1. Offline
      SrgtLock
      + 1 ⋅ 0 -
      This right here! What a wonderful hypothesis.

      This right here! What a wonderful hypothesis.
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  5. Offline
    SHIV
    + 30 ⋅ 2 -
    2323 Golden Dawn

    A second later, Sunny was standing on the edge of the volcano's vast caldera. He had stepped through the shadows while pulling Slayer and Kai with him - Slayer remained impassive, long used to such treatment, while Kai seemed a little startled. Sunny remained silent for a moment.

    'Come to think of it… that castle is a really awful fortress, isn't it?'

    The Ash Castle stood above the main vent of the volcano, at the very heart of the caldera - which meant that its walls and towers were lower than the surrounding slopes. One could not see the snowy peaks even from the roof of donjon, while the adversary would be above the castle as soon as they scaled the volcano and reached the caldera. It was a truly terribly designed defensive fortification…

    'With respect… I don't think now is the proper time to ponder the merits and flaws of an old castle's design.'

    Kai's voice sounded tense. Sunny glanced at him and raised an eyebrow.

    'What do you mean? We are about to be attacked, so when would there be a better time?' Smiling faintly, he turned to face the three snowy peaks towering in the distance.

    The moon had fallen beyond the horizon, and the sun was rising. Now that Sunny knew where east was, he could determine where the rest of the cardinal directions were, as well. The Ash Castle stood on the southern edge of the game board, while the three lonesome mountains - and the Snow Castle as well - were in the north.

    Dawn had painted the sea of clouds below in soft shades of mauve and lilac. The world was darker above the volcanoes, where clouds of smoke and ash obscured the sky, but in the north… Sunny frowned.

    Hurricane winds were blowing above the distant mountains, and a vast snowstorm was rolling from the north, its billowing wall slowly devouring the world. A few moments later, it crashed into the three peaks, sending great plumes of snow into the air. Infused with a dreamy radiance by the golden dawn, the plumes of snow extended south, carried by the wind like streaming tendrils.

    'There is something peculiar about the wind.'

    Sunny looked at Kai.

    'How do you mean?'

    The charming archer hesitated for a few moments, then shrugged.

    'I'm not sure how to describe it. Awakened archers always pay attention to the wind - the speed and direction of the wind matter a lot when making long - distance shorts, after all, so it becomes an instinct. And my instinct is telling me that there is something wrong with the wind.'

    He hesitated for a few moments, and then added with a sigh:

    'Actually, we tend to rely on instinct a lot. Many things affect the flight of an arrow - altitude, temperature, humidity, even the Coriolis effect… anything that has to do with ballistics. Naturally, none of them behave reasonably in the Dream Realm, so there is no other choice than to develop an instinctual sense of all those things. If you want to hit a target from a great distance, that is.'

    Sunny scratched the tip of his nose.

    'Really? Huh… I just sort of toss things with as much force as I can and hope for the best. Well, I don't rely on sight to aim, so I guess my situation is a bit different.' Then, he looked at Slayer and smiled.

    'What about you? Are you a walking encyclopedia of ballistics, as well?'

    Instead of answering, his Shadow pointed to the tendrils of snow extending from the lonesome mountains.

    At that moment, the first snowflakes had reached the slopes of the fuming volcano. Then something peculiar happened… The snowstorm swallowed three mountains, and at the same time, the tendrils of snow glistened, seemingly absorbing the golden light of dawn. A ripple spread through the sea of clouds below, and the snow seemed to solidify, turning into glass. Soon, unimaginable, ethereal bridges of frozen glass arched above the vibrant sea of golden - pink clouds, spanning dozens of kilometers as they glistened with dreamy light. It was a gorgeous and fantastical view…

    What mattered the most to Sunny, though, was that the crystal bridges were connecting the snowy mountains to the volcanoes.

    'Are they making a move?'

    He scrunched his face faintly, then looked at Kai and Slayer.

    'I think you guys should prepare to shoot.'

    He could barely see the distant mountains behind the billowing veil of snow that swallowed them. However, he could feel it… A heavy and oppressive feeling that permeated the air, screaming of a looming threat.

    Kai shivered, prompting Sunny to ask:

    'What do you see?'

    The charming archer hesitated for a few moments, then spoke quietly:

    'On the eastern mountain… the clockwork giant is coming to life. Ice is falling from his joints, and he is reaching for an enormous sword that was thrust into the snow. On the western mountain, the huge worm is slowly unfurling its long body. It's slithering through a tunnel - its head is, at least. That thing is even more enormous than I thought.'

    His gaze shifted a little.

    'And on the mountain right in front of us, the hive of the crystalline insects is in a frenzy. They have already awakened from their slumber and are rushing outside, clearing the entrances of the ice caves from the snow and ice that had blocked them. There are… much more of them than it seemed.'

    Sunny frowned.

    Each of the mountains was connected to one of the volcanoes. So, it was reasonable to assume that the clockwork giant would conquer the eastern volcano, the snow worm would conquer the western volcano… While the crystalline hive would attack the Ash Castle.

    He had expected the Snow Abominations to either go for the empty squares or attack the castle together. But it seemed that they were going to act independently, going for both targets.

    'So, what does it say to me?'

    He had no idea.

    What Sunny did know at the second was that a swarm of Great Beasts would soon descend upon him and his companions.

    He gave Kai a long look, then outstretched a hand…
    Nothing happened.

    'Damn it.'

    Sunny had wanted to summon the Shadow Chair, but alas, he had no access to his Memories.

    So, instead, he brushed the ash from a nearby boulder, sat down, and gestured at the ethereal glass bridge.

    Noticing a confused expression on Kai's face, Sunny smiled.

    'They're all yours!'
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    1. Offline
      SHIV
      + 22 ⋅ 1 -
      2324 Enemy Move

      Sunny wanted to see how Kai would fare in a battle against Great abominations. The crystalline insects seemed like good practice… naturally, there was a possibility that the entire hive consisted of Cursed Ones, instead. But if that was true, the three of them were already dead. There was nothing much to do.

      Kai stared at Sunny with a stunned expression. 'You're… really not going to do anything?'

      Sunny smiled pleasantly. 'How can you say that, buddy? I'll do plenty, naturally… enjoy the view, relax, appreciate the weather. Oh, I'll craft new arrows while you waste the ones I already made, too. So make every shot count.'

      Kai kept looking at him for a few more seconds, then turned to look at Slayer. He did not say anything, but his expression was quite telling. It was as if Kai wanted to ask… 'That's what you're dealing with on a daily basis?' Slayer spared him a short look and shrugged.

      Sunny, meanwhile, leaned back and closed his eyes. 'Let me tell you, Saint Nightingale… my previous disciple set quite a high bar. Ah, she was such a joy to train. What other teacher can boast that their student earned a True Name before even becoming an Aspirant? So, no pressure, but please don't disappoint me. I have high standards because of her!'

      Kai sighed and nocked an arrow on the string of his bow. 'She is my student, as well.' Sunny blinked a couple of times. 'Huh?' Kai smiled faintly. 'A girl who earned a True Name before becoming an Aspirant… you mean Rain, right? The only person in the world who Awakened without the Nightmare Spell. I was her archery tutor for a short while back in NQSC, numerous years ago. I think Effie introduced us. Small world, huh?'

      Sunny cleared his throat. 'Right,' 'Oh… I see. I think she mentioned knowing you.' 'I was the one who convinced you to give her lessons, fool!' Naturally, Kai did not remember that. He took a deep breath, raised his bow, and slowly drew it. Then, he spoke evenly: 'Strike true.' His clear voice was not loud, but it somehow managed to drown out the howling wind. The stalwart authority contained within it moved the world, making the world listen. Sunny sensed a faint flow of essence, and the arrow he had crafted suddenly seemed much more than it had been before. 'Hmm…'

      As Kai allowed the string to escape his relaxed fingers and sent the arrow flying, Sunny remembered his battle against the Dread Lord. 'Actually, I might have been wrong.'

      Kai seemed to be plagued by doubt, which did not lend itself well to being a Sovereign. But, on the other hand, the very nature of his Aspect forced him to constantly practice exerting his authority… in a way. A Supreme like Sunny could bend the world to his will. But Kai did not have to… the world simply listened to him, following his commands voluntarily. Was that preparing him for Supremacy, or was it a detriment instead? Sunny was not sure, and he had no time to ponder this issue at the moment, either. What he was sure of, though, was that a giant tentacle would not rise from below the clouds to destroy Kai's arrow - not this time. His certainty was based on the fact that when the tendrils of snow turned into crystal bridges, he was suddenly able to extend his shadow sense forward, to the lonesome peak that was now hiding in the embrace of a snowstorm.

      Sunny could sense the entire ice hive, now. And what he sensed did not make him happy. 'Oh, they are Great Beasts, all right.' There were about a hundred of them. Each was the size of a bull, with a small thorax and a large abdomen. Their legs were thin and delicate, but frighteningly powerful. The bodies of the insect-like abominations seemed like they were made out of glass, and glanced deceptively fragile. They were strangely breathtaking…

      Sunny knew that they would glisten gorgeously in the sunlight. He also knew that once they drew closer, he would see gnawed bones in their transparent bellies… possibly even a human skull or two, Gods only knew what these nightmare creatures looked like soon after feasting on the flesh of their enemies. The sight of the bloody paste sloshing inside their crystal stomachs had to be indescribably gruesome… and Sunny hoped to never learn what nectar these creatures produced, and what kind of hives they built when not trapped in a desolate realm made by a daemon.

      Had it been Ariel who turned the crystalline insects into a figure, or Weaver? Whoever it was, they had done a great favor for the world by imprisoning these abominations here.

      Kai's arrow was still flying when Slayer raised her bow. Sunny saw lean muscles roll under her ebony skin, drawing taut like steel cables, as she pulled the string. Her graceful figure was like a work of art sculpted from smooth obsidian, with every little detail carved with obsessive care. A moment later, she released the string, and a powerful gust sent her long braid fluttering in the wind. Sunny shivered, feeling a cold killing intent wash over him. Reaching into the shadows, he went about crafting another arrow.
      'Did you feel that?'

      Kai responded without looking at him: 'Feel what?'

      Sunny smiled faintly. 'How utterly focused on one thing and one thing only our killer gorgeousness is… on killing whoever it is that her arrow is aimed at.'

      Kai frowned.
      In the next moment, his arrow hit the target. It was an amazing shot, really - very few people would be able to hit a moving target from dozens of kilometers away, despite the raging wind. However, it was all for naught. Because Kai's arrow simply bounced off the crystalline insect's gorgeous carapace.

      His expression dimmed. Then, suddenly… Slayer's arrow struck the exact same Nightmare Creature, piercing its gemlike compound eye and making its head explode into a million glistening shards. Sunny pursed his lips and glanced at his Shadow with reproach. 'Listen… with you aiming for the eye, it is hard for me to illustrate the point. Couldn't you have pierced its carapace, instead?'

      Slayer gave him a cold, murderous look. Her inky-black eyes were quite expressive, saying… 'How about I pierce your caprice, instead?' Sunny coughed. 'Fine, fine…' He outstretched a hand, but then remembered that he could not summon the Endless Spring either.

      Sunny sighed. 'What are you guys waiting for? Keep shooting. There's a hundred hungry Great Beasts out there, you know. They'll be here in less than a minute… how numerous do you think you can kill before then?'

      No matter how many it was, he knew that it would not be enough.
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      1. Offline
        Earthly Desert Fox
        + 1 ⋅ 1 -
        Since he could extend his Shadow Perception to the other mountain, he could use Shadow Transfiguration and kill everything there without even moving from his chair ?
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        1. Offline
          Lost from sight
          + 0 ⋅ 1 -
          I don't think he can use his power on another square than the one he is, that should be against the rules, no?
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          1. Offline
            Mr.Rogers
            + 0 ⋅ 1 -
            I think he was separated before the glass bridge formed. Now he has shadow sense for the square that connected to him up to the mountain peak. I assume he can use shadows in any of those areas since his shadow sense can reach as well
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            1. Offline
              Lost from sight
              + 0 ⋅ 1 -
              Before he was unable to find Slayer until she send an arrow to him, and he could not teleport that's why he asked Kai to bring her. Maybe it changed now the creatures wake up but I'm not sure.
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        2. Offline
          Svetoslav
          + 0 ⋅ 0 -
          Sunny can only affect shadows of living creatures who are much weaker than he is. So it's not clear if he can control shadows of corrupted nightmare creatures and it's obvious that Sunny can't do that with Great beasts.
          Plus before crystal bridges were formed Sunny couldn't sense any other mountains (he didn't even know who was on his neighboring volcanoes).
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  6. Offline
    Threshold of Reality
    + 2 ⋅ 0 -
    estou sentindo que um dos melhores arcos esta por vir, Kai é bom telo de volta em cena, seria ainda melhor se encaixassem Jet, sinto que desde o terceiro pesadelo ela é a que mais perdeu sua presença. Sei que deve ser difícil pro G3 lidar com ela, já que colocou ela como referencia de poder para o Sunny muitas vezes, e desde que se tornou mestre a mais de 1000 cap, ela perdeu relevância já que sempre que se encontravam existia um comentário do tipo: "Agora sou um desperto, tenho certeza que poderia pelo menos fugir de Jet se necessário" ou "Agora como mestre poderia derrota-la se contornasse seu poder insidioso". Desde o ultimo arco perfeito vulgo Antártica, sinto falta do meu morto-vivo favorito...
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  7. Offline
    AsterionHater
    + 2 ⋅ 11 -
    Where's that one guy who posts chapters? Did your benevolence run out?
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    1. Offline
      ArMiks
      + 4 ⋅ 1 -
      Wait. The chapters were released barely an hour ago
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  8. Offline
    Kosnat
    + 18 ⋅ 0 -
    Only if the Extraordinary Rock was there. He would have ended the game immediatly with his MIGHTY presence.
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  9. Offline
    PhantomGira
    + 11 ⋅ 0 -
    Kai should run a suicide hotline
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  10. Offline
    ErectileReptile
    + 17 ⋅ 1 -
    It’s possible that the Nightmare Spell was created by Weaver to produce a Flaw in Fate so that he could break it.
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    1. Offline
      alex silent
      + 18 ⋅ 1 -
      Do you know who else have no flaws? Cats. Now that you've found out the truth, check if one of them is sitting next to you, pretending not to understand anything...
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      1. Offline
        ArMiks
        + 19 ⋅ 0 -
        Cats are void beings
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        1. Offline
          Tung Sahur
          + 3 ⋅ 0 -
          No wonder they are so horrifying. No better way to defeat enemy then become the cutest animal.
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      2. Offline
        Kiber
        + 0 ⋅ 0 -
        Увы, у котов есть 1 недостаток, они смертны.
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