Shadow Slave: Eternal Madness

[Volume 2: Madness] Opening quote: All hail ****** the one who will Devour the World.

—————————

Raphael ran as though his life depended on it, even though he was immortal. He needed to reach the Forgotten Shore, specifically The Crimson Spire.

The problem was, he didn't know which way led to the Forgotten Shore.

Raphael had also considered the gateways in the Nightmare Desert... but they were too dangerous, especially for him, an immortal.

That was because of one monster: the Skinwalker. If that thing took control of his body, he would be doomed.

He would live as a puppet for the rest of his life!

The thought terrified Raphael to his core.

As he kept running, a plan began to form in his mind.

'First, I need to find the Hollow Mountains. If I can find them, they'll lead me directly to the Forgotten Shore.'

'Second, once I reach the Forgotten Shore, I'll go straight to the Crimson Spire. If my calculations are right, my journey will take about a year—which isn't ideal, considering the Siege of the Crimson Spire is scheduled to happen in a year.'

'If I'm too late and can't reach the Crimson Spire before it's destroyed... then I'll join Nephis, gain her trust, and conquer the Second Nightmare with her.'

"It's not a perfect plan, but it will do the job. But first, I need to find somewhere to hide."

Night is coming.

Raphael continued searching, but found nothing.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!!"

Night fell, and with it, the dead rose, continuing their endless battle.

But among them was an imposter... a living being.

Raphael looked around, seeing thousands of monsters staring at him.

He couldn't fight them all—there were thousands targeting him.

So he kept running, but that wasn't enough.

The undead were getting closer by the second.

Suddenly, Raphael tripped. He tried to get up, but to no avail. He felt something was wrong—very wrong.

He looked behind him to see if the undead were close, but what he saw was something else entirely.

His legs were cleanly severed. Raphael took a second to process what was happening, and then the pain hit—three times worse than normal.

The pain was so overwhelming that he forgot about the undead and the monsters roaming this place. He screamed at the top of his lungs.

"Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaah—"

'It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts It's hurts.'

Raphael looked up, only to see the undead closing in on him. He began crawling, trying to escape, but it was of no use.

An undead raised his sword and plunged down at Raphael stomach, another took one of his hand and ripped it from his body.

Ripped, crushed, stabbed, Slashed. All type of physical pain came at him like a tsunami.

The funny thing is that he is still conscious thanks to his ability. He couldn't Speak or scream because his vocal cords had already been ripped out.

'I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die I wanna die.'

Finally, above him, an undead lifted its leg and slammed it down, crushing Raphael's face into a meat paste.

…

..

'Ah.. I died.'

—————————

The sun rose high into the sky, signaling the start of a new day.

In the middle of nowhere, a body lay sprawled—a grotesque sight. The left cheek was missing, exposing part of the skull. Its right hand was missing three fingers, and its abdomen gaped open, revealing a tangled mess of organs.

An hour went. Suddenly, the body opened its eyes. There was a strange calmness in them, but beneath that calm was a swirl of conflicting emotions.

Raphael stood up. He didn't feel pain—nothing at all.

He began to walk. Then, he sprinted. And soon, he was running.

For twenty minutes, Raphael kept running. Then, his legs gave out, and he collapsed.

Tears streamed down his face like a floodgate had burst. He tried to scream, to speak, but the words caught in his throat.

'What did I do to deserve this? Why was I summoned to this hell?'

But the answer never came. Only silence greeted Raphael's cries.

Gritting his teeth, he clenched his fists so tightly that blood trickled from his palms. The pain triggered his Flaw.

"Argh!"

He gasped, forcing himself to his feet. 'I can't stop now. My family is waiting for me... I can't let them down.'

Raphael staggered forward and resumed his journey.

Night fell, and Raphael died again. This time, a clean cut severed his head from his body. There was no pain—he was lucky.

The sun rose and fell. Night came and went. Again. And again. And again.

A week passed in this relentless nightmare. In that time, Raphael learned two crucial truths. First, he could escape pain by using his ability to obliterate his mind, briefly severing his connection to his Flaw. Second, he discovered he could survive without food, water, or rest—though it hardly felt like survival.

————————

Raphael sat in a cave, hiding from the undead soldiers that roamed the land. It was his first day in this place without dying. For the first time, it felt like a victory.

"No wonder Sunny was so desperate to escape his fate," Raphael muttered, staring at the stars. "This [Fated] is no joke."

He exhaled, gazing into the vast, indifferent night. This is going to be a long journey.

————————

Two months passed since Raphael had been summoned to the Nightmare Desert.

In those two months, he died 46 times. His ability kept him sane, but the repeated deaths were wearing him down.

Frozen in place, Raphael stood still, staring ahead with a faint smile.

How could he not smile? His goal was finally within reach.

Before him loomed a chain of mountains, their jagged peaks tearing into the sky like the fangs of a monstrous dragon. They were cloaked in a thick mist, concealing whatever lay beyond.

"Finally," Raphael whispered, his voice trembling. "I've reached it."

The Hollow Mountains.

————————

The start of Volume 2 is here. What do you think of the beginning?