'What the hell is this bitch on!?
Sunny's blood was boiling, his heartbeat thudding against his ribs like a war drum. Anger curled inside him, hot and sharp, as his fingers tightened around [Twin's Bane].
First, she had dragged him away from Cassie while the girl was still rattled. Then, she had taken his sword—his sword!. Then, she had monologued at him, and now she was threatening him like he was some villain she had to put down.
'What the actual fuck?'
"Damnation," he spat, exasperation lacing his voice, "what the fuck are you even on about? Like, really—what in the name of Jesus is Valor?"
He knew she had the upper hand in a straight-up fight. Nephis was stronger, faster, better—but [Twin's Bane] would level the playing field, and if that wasn't enough, [A Stubborn Legacy] would.
She wasn't giving him an inch. Her eyes, cold and unreadable, bore into his.
"Don't play dumb. I know you're working for them."
The accusation hit like a slap, but Sunny barely flinched.
"You suck at hiding the fact that you're an assassin," she went on, her tone flat. "Next time, don't show off the Memories they gave you. Oh, and maybe don't use their style."
The words cut deep, mostly because they were his words—ones he had thrown at her not long ago, mocking her poor attempts at lying.
His lips curled into a sneer, but before he could fire back, she continued, her voice turning to steel.
"The only reason you're not dead is because of Cassie."
Something in him snapped. His grip on the hilt of his blade twitched.
A little more, and he might've cut her throat right then and there.
But the mention of Cassie—that stopped him.
He let out a slow, measured breath, willing himself to calm down.
"Okay, first of all," he said, voice low but steady, "I got these Memories from my teacher at the academy." His patience was wearing thin, but he forced himself to stay in control. "Second, I use a bunch of different styles—or pieces of them! You remember Rock's classes? I just copied the other students there."
Nephis didn't move, her sword still aimed at him, sharp enough to split a hair. But her expression… shifted, just slightly.
"Why would a teacher give away such powerful Memories?" she asked, suspicion still laced in her voice.
Sunny scoffed. "He didn't just give them to me. I earned them. I was told I could exchange information about myself and my first Nightmare for Soul Shards. But I found a teacher willing to give me Memories instead."
Nephis studied him, but whatever she was looking for, she didn't find it.
"You still haven't denied being an assassin," she pointed out.
'Damnation, damnation, damnation!'
Panic flickered in his gut, but then—'wait'.
'I can use her hero complex.'
Sunny almost smirked.
'I just need a sob story.'
He sucked in a breath and let his shoulders slump slightly, shifting his expression into something more guarded. Carefully, he let just enough vulnerability creep into his voice. And started a retelling of a mixture of his two lives.
"Look… Neph…" He exhaled shakily, as if he were trying to find the right words. "I… I didn't have the easiest life."
He made his voice crack just a little. Not too much—just enough.
"I grew up poor—no, worse. I'm from the Outskirts." He let that sink in, watching her reaction. "Do you know what that means? It means the next meal is never a given, and you're considered old if you make it past twenty."
Frustration, real and raw, bled into his voice. He wasn't even acting anymore.
"So I needed some way to take care of myself. To take care of my baby sister after my parents died." He clenched his jaw. "So… so I joined the Celik."
Nephis didn't move, but her grip on her sword shifted—just a fraction.
"At first, it was small stuff," Sunny continued, running a hand through his hair. "And it made good money. Really good money. You wouldn't believe how relieving it was to finally know I could put food on the table."
He hadn't even noticed he was slowly sinking to the ground as he spoke. He wasn't even trying to deceive Neph anymore.
"I was good at it. They took a liking to me. I did what I was told, and I was smart enough not to get caught." He let out a dry, humorless laugh. "But it just kept getting… more. More money. More responsibility. More pressure."
His voice lowered.
"And… I did things that couldn't be undone. Because that's what the Celiks wanted. And I had nothing."
For a long moment, there was silence.
He was struggling to keep his emotions in check, to hold himself together. He refused to cry. He wouldn't cry.
Then—
*Clank.*
The sound of metal hitting stone.
Nephis's sword had fallen to the ground.
She lowered herself beside him and, without a word, wrapped an arm around his shoulder. It was awkward—stiff, hesitant—but she was trying.
An imitation of how he had comforted Cassie.
"I didn't know," she murmured.
The words hung in the air, fragile and heavy at the same time.
Sunny took a deep breath, forcing himself back into control.
"You couldn't have," he admitted after a moment. Then, voice quiet but firm, he asked, "But can you finally tell me what you were on about?"
Nephis hesitated.
Then, finally, she spoke.
"My family has enemies."
That was all she said.
But it was enough.
Sunny knew better than to push further.
For now.
Instead sunny decided to move on from the awkward moment.
"I still expect you to keep your end of the bargain." He said his voice a bit to soft for his liking.
Nephs eyes light up at the opportunity to rectify her mistake, and the mention of something she knew, instead of dealing with the emotions of others .
She shot up and they began there training, sunny knew of multiple forms and how to perform them, some he even knew the reason for why he did the things thanks to caster, but that wasn't enough for her, so they worked on his understanding. Neph would perform a Katar and sunny would follow her with her shadow. They spent the next hour in a comfortable silence.
With there bodies sweaty and there muscles sore, there training came to an end once cassie announced that she was ready to talk.