THERE'S NO TIME TO DELAY!
LET'S MOVE, QUICKLY!
WHY DO I FEEL SO GUILTY?
HE GOT WHAT HE DESERVED.
...THERE'S ONLY THREE OF US LEFT, NOW.
JUST AS I WAS ABOUT TO FALL INTO DESPAIR, WE FINALLY FOUND IT.
NEVER IN MY LIFE HAVE I BEEN SO HAPPY TO SEE A FLAT SURFACE.
EPISODE 9
I TOOK FIRST WATCH WHILE THE OTHERS SLEPT.
AND FOR A FEW HOURS, I WAS ON MY OWN.
DESPITE THE FACT THAT WE HAD MANAGED TO CLIMB QUITE HIGH DURING THE PREVIOUS DAY...
I COULD STILL SEE THE PLATFORM WHERE THE FIGHT WITH THE TYRANT HAD TAKEN PLACE.
IS SOMETHING MOVING?
T-THE MOUNTAIN KING!!
DAMN IT!
DID... DID IT SPOT ME?
IT TURNED AWAY...?
THOSE WHITE, EXPRESSIONLESS EYES.
COME TO THINK OF IT, I NEVER SAW THE TYRANT MOVING ITS EYES AT ALL.
IS IT... BLIND?
IT'S GONE.
WHAT'S GONE?
SHIFTY'S BODY. IT'S GONE.
OH, RIGHT. THEY DON'T KNOW THAT SHIFTY'S NAME IS SHIFTY.
AHEM. AWKWARD.
IT'S THE MONSTER.
IT'S FOLLOWING US.
YOU ARE RIGHT.
AND IF IT IS THAT CLOSE, WE WILL INEVITABLY BE FORCED TO FIGHT IT SOON.
NOT NECESSARILY.
EXPLAIN.
HERE IT COMES.
THE BEAST TRACKED US THIS FAR IN JUST A DAY.
THAT MEANS THAT THERE ARE TWO MOST PROBABLE POSSIBILITIES.
EITHER IT IS SMART ENOUGH TO REALIZE WHERE WE ARE GOING...
OR IT IS FOLLOWING THE SCENT OF BLOOD.
WHETHER IT IS ONE OR THE OTHER...
WE CAN THROW THE BEAST OFF OUR TRAIL AND BUY SOME TIME.
HOW DO WE DO THAT?
WHY ARE YOU NOT ANSWERING?
SPEAK!
WE'LL JUST HAVE TO... MAKE THE BOY BLEED.
DRAG HIM DOWN THE PATH, THEN LEAVE HIM THERE AS BAIT AND GO UP INSTEAD.
HIS SACRIFICE WILL SAVE OUR LIVES.
RIGHT ON TIME.
WHAT DO YOU MEAN, 'MAKE HIM BLEED'?
IT'S SIMPLE, REALLY.
IF THE MONSTER KNOWS WHERE WE ARE GOING...
WE HAVE NO CHOICE BUT TO ABANDON OUR PLANS TO REACH THE MOUNTAIN PASS AND GO OVER THE PEAK OF THE MOUNTAIN INSTEAD.
IF THE MONSTER IS FOLLOWING THE SCENT OF BLOOD, WE HAVE TO USE ONE OF US AS BAIT TO MISLEAD IT.
ONLY BY LEAVING A BLEEDING MAN FURTHER DOWN THE PATH CAN WE RELIABLY AVOID THE PURSUIT NO MATTER HOW IT IS TRACKING US.
HOW CAN YOU BRING YOURSELF TO PROPOSE SOMETHING SO VILE?
IT PAINS ME TOO, OF COURSE!
BUT IF WE DO NOTHING,
ALL THREE OF US WILL DIE HERE.
THIS WAY, AT LEAST, THE BOY'S DEATH WILL SAVE TWO LIVES.
THE GODS WILL REWARD HIM FOR HIS SACRIFICE!
GEE, WHAT A SILVER TONGUE.
I'M ALMOST CONVINCED MYSELF.
IF IT COMES DOWN TO IT, COULD I FIGHT MY WAY OUT OF THIS?
THAT OLD SCHOLAR IS ALREADY HALF A CORPSE. HE'S NO REAL PROBLEM.
BUT HERO...
...HE PRESENTS AN OBSTACLE.
DAMNATION!
SO IN THE END, MY LIFE IS IN HIS HANDS?
Shadow Slave Chapter 9 follows the three remaining survivors after they reach flat ground, as the narrator faces a brutal turning point over whether to sacrifice the wounded boy. After taking first watch, he spots the Mountain King watching from the distant platform and suspects its white, expressionless eyes mean it is blind. The discovery that Shifty's body is gone proves the beast is following them, leading to a furious argument when a plan is proposed to bleed the boy and leave him as bait on the lower path.
