Chapter 14: Diner Talk

Rake noticed Sunny and was quite shocked. 

Of all the people he thought he would meet here, Sunny was last on his list. He thought he would be alone here with the research team living close to him. 

But it seemed that the place that he was allocated to live in was actually near the place where Sunny bought his house. 

Well, it somewhat made sense. This was a somewhat remote place. Among the places to live somewhat luxuriously, this must be one of the less known ones. Otherwise neither he nor Sunny would live here.

"Sigh, of all the people. It had to be him. Guess I've got no choice. I need to advance my plan for a bit."

Murmuring that, he waved his hands towards Sunny, beckoning him to come closer. 

Sunny was about 100 meters away. Which meant he was somewhat far away. He looked pretty small from that distance. But both Sunny and Rake could see each other very clearly. Both were masters after all. 

Seeing Rake beckon him, Sunny started to come closer. It would seem that he also had questions about who this random master was. Especially someone who seems to live close to his sister and also happened to be in the awakened academy during a very important time for him. 

Sunny had to make sure whether he was a spy sent from Valor or something more dangerous.

**

Rake's house was in the same neighborhood as Sunny. And since Sunny moved there with one of his purposes being to keep an eye on his sister, Sunny was very alarmed at the situation.

Not to mention Rake, who was also somewhat alarmed. He assumed that this was done by either Saint Cor or the people there. 

'Do they still think that I might be a humanoid monster?'

That might perhaps be a legitimate reason for this. If I'm really a monster, then the SSS grade Master Sunny might be able to keep an eye on me to make sure that nothing bad happens. 

However, they didn't know that his sister also lives here. Hmm, maybe that worked out in their favor. Now Sunny will also have a legitimate reason to keep an eye on me. 

Sigh…..

'No worries. I also need to discuss some things with him. This might just work out perfectly in my favor. Let's see where it goes.

**

Two men sat in a living room in Rake's new house. 

Beforehand he welcomed Sunny into his home. 

"Last time we met, I forgot to give you my name. My name is Rake. When we first met, I just ascended. That's why I was a bit alarmed that there were so many masters in the building. Please feel free to come in."

Saying that Rake turned to the inside of the house and brought Sunny inside. 

Sunny just observed him for the moment. 

After reaching the living room, Rake sat on a sofa and invited Sunny to sit across from him. Which Sunny did. 

"How did you know my nickname then?"

Sunny asked directly as they sat. 

This was a question that sat inside Sunny's head for quite a while. And if what Rake said was true, then there was no way for Rake to know his nickname 'Sunny'. Instead, he should've called him 'Sunless'. The name that Sunny gave him. 

"Hmm, that has an explanation. But it's a bit hard to explain." Rake said in response. There was a subtle air of nervousness in his voice. 

The 'Sunny' incident was a mistake on Rake's part. He had been so used to calling him Sunny in his mind that he had completely forgotten his real name. And the name just popped out of his mouth. Then he practically ran away from the place as he wasn't prepared to handle the 'cast' or MC. 

He actively avoids all thoughts about this world being something from a 'web novel'. An existential thought. 

What does it mean for this world to be a world from 'fiction'. Does that mean that everything is meaningless? 

Is he also just a character in a 'web novel'?

Is he also a character? Is this just a fanfic where he is the MC? IS he even the mc? Or is he just a peculiar side character in this 'web novel'.

He can't answer that.

How can he? 

He has avoided this line of thought for all this time. And he will continue to. But it's different. It's one thing when he is on an island fighting random monsters to survive. It's something completely different when he is interacting directly with a bonafide 'fictional character'. 

Understanding something and facing it are completely different experiences. 

But he is here. With the main character from a web novel that he was a fan of. But with a very different perspective. 

As a reader, the world of Shadow Slave looked and felt like a fun experience.

A post-apocalyptic world ravaged by monsters. A cunning MC with the inability to lie. Many power fantasy elements. 

But those same things become very different when seen from a character's POV.

In front of him is a man who has fought against hell and come back. 

And so has he. 

"Sigh, stop looking at me like that. I can explain. I mean you no harm. Just give me a moment. 

Have you had breakfast yet? Let's go eat. I just woke up and I'm extremely hungry. We can talk more while eating."

Rake decided to be honest and save himself all the hassle for later. 

"Uhh, you wouldn't happen to know a good dining place around here? I am new in this area." Rake asked awkwardly. 

**

"We're being followed," Sunny stated as they walked towards a diner.

"Nothing to worry about too much, they are sent to monitor me," Rake replied with a small bit of exasperation in his voice. 

The people were definitely sent by the government team. 

'Sigh, idiots. This is going to gather more attention towards me. Resulting in the chance for me being captured going high.'

The people 'monitoring' them weren't that bad at their job. In almost any other case, they wouldn't have been noticed. But this just happened to be two people that are extremely tough to fool.

Rake's senses and instincts have been honed to near perfection. And Sunny was also just as good. Tailing these two people is almost impossible without them knowing. 

**

Inside the diner, Rake and Sunny sat at a table next to a wall. They were not sitting in a corner. They don't need to worry about being overheard because their senses are good enough to monitor everything and everyone in a large area. 

Also, all electronic devices or spell tech items use some form of signal. Whether they be electromagnetic signals, essence, or a combination of both. 

All of these can be felt by these two masters. So, there is no need to worry about that. 

The waiter came by for the order. 

"What would you like to order, sirs?"

"Hmm, do you have Roti or Tortilla?"

Rake asked. 

"Yes sir, we have both on the menu."

"Perfect. Then I want three rotis with three omelets. Add extra onions to the omelets.

Anything you want Sunny?"

Sunny hadn't really heard of these before, nor had he eaten them. After all, he was pretty new to eating in a diner. He happened to notice this place when traveling. And these seemed to be fancy food that only the rich could afford. So, he was genuinely interested in these novel food items. 

"I'll have the same." Sunny just simply replied. He had eaten omelettes, but not the rotis. He wondered how they would taste. 

"The rotis are just simple flatbread. I like eating them with omelets by rolling them up. They taste perfect together. Are you sure you want those?"

"Yes. I'm curious about them." Sunny replied.

"Alright then. So, the order is 6 rotis and 6 omelets." Rake confirmed.

"Yes sir, coming right up." The waiter confirmed and wrote it on her note before heading to the kitchen. 

"So, shall we begin?" Rake asked. 

"Go ahead. I've been quite curious about your 'explanation'."

"Alright. What do you think would happen when someone loses their first nightmare, then instead of being corrupted and turning into a monster, a random soul is instead inserted into that person? Should the trial continue for that new 'soul'? Or has he passed the trial and should now become a sleeper?"

-end-

**

AN: So, are these conversations boring? Am I butchering them? Feel free to criticize and point out my mistakes. I'll gladly fix them. 

Also, if you guys are bored by these, say that as well. There are plenty of flashbacks and first nightmare trial events that I need to tell. I'll happily insert them. But I just can't seem to pinpoint the perfect time. 

Also, the flashbacks will become useless after I show all his runes because the flashbacks are needed to justify how he got those abilities. I can't just show his abilities without justifying them. 

I'm just looking for that perfect time between a potential battle and a time of boredom to insert those exciting flashbacks. 

....

Hmm, I forgot to justify Sunny's fascination with Rake....dang it....

hmm. There's also the point of Rake trying to 'explain' to Sunny about things. There's also a reason for that. Gonna have to explain that too. 

Well, hopefully, I'll be able to tackle these in the next chapter. I wonder what you guys think the reasons are. Shoutout to el_here who said Sunny might detect the killing intent from Rake. 

Logical. And it does fit the theme. I might incorporate it. 'Might'. No confirmation yet. 

Regardless, thanks for reading this chapter. I hope you guys loved it. 

I hope you all have a great day. Goodbye.