For four days, Sunless had moved according to a steady rhythm — a rhythm that made the days blur together until they felt almost dreamlike.
Morning to noon, he would oversee the tournament. Sleepers fought each other, fought Awakened beasts, fought themselves, really — all desperate to grow stronger. He stayed silent at the edge of the arena, learning their styles through the subtle echoes of their shadows, cataloging everything with a clinical detachment.
Later, he would meet with Alice and Harus, exchanging terse, low-voiced discussions about the state of the Host. Names, alliances, betrayals — maps drawn in blood and ambition. Every conversation left him feeling a little more tired, a little more wary.
And when that was done, he returned to the strangest task of all — making sure Effie didn't accidentally kill herself, not by blade or Nightmare, but by sheer gluttony. Sunless wasn't worried about the monsters lurking in the Dark City, not really. He was worried about her clearing out the entire grove of Prince's forbidden fruits and exploding in the process.
He would find her lazing beneath the Soul-Devouring Tree, cheeks full like some mythological raccoon, then sigh, haul her to her feet, and escort her — grumbling and pouting the whole way — to the Cathedral, the half-ruined temple where she would spend the night.
And so, another week passed.
'*'
Now, the two of them sat side by side, precariously balanced on one of the massive support beams hidden high in the shadows of the cathedral's ceiling. The ancient wood creaked softly under their weight, though neither paid it much mind.
Far, far below, like a toy soldier patrolling a dollhouse, the Black Knight stalked through shifting patches of darkness and cold silver light. His armor devoured what little illumination touched it, and every step echoed faintly into the rafters.
Effie scowled and leaned in to whisper, her voice barely a breath: "So this is the bastard?"
Sunless gave a grim nod, keeping his voice low. "Yeah. In the metal."
She turned to give him a long, appraising look. "How the hell did you survive fighting that fiend?"
He grimaced, the memory unpleasant even now. "Barely. And calling it a 'fight' is generous. I had some Fallen creatures try to dogpile him while I made myself very, veryscarce. He never leaves the cathedral — that's the only reason I got away."
Effie shivered slightly, her broad grin faltering for just a second. "And you're sure he can't hear us?"
Sunless pointed to a massive cracked column below. "As long as he doesn't cross that line, and as long as we keep our voices down, we're safe. Trust me. I've been studying him for two whole months."
Effie's grin returned, wicked and mischievous. "So... how loud are we talking about? Because I can promise to—"
He cut her off with an eye roll. "We have to meet up with Neph and the others, if you remember."
He didn't need to hear the end of her sentence to know it was going to be something highly inappropriate — and probably involving some very dangerous acrobatics in very precarious places.
Effie gave a muffled giggle, pressing her knuckles against her mouth. "I didn't hear a no."
They fell into a comfortable silence after that, the cathedral breathing around them like some ancient beast. As the minutes crept by, Sunless noticed the pale gloom of dawn slowly beginning to creep into the vast emptiness, painting the cracked stones below in faint, bruised light.
Time to move.
He shifted slightly, then turned to Effie, an odd heaviness settling in his chest. "Hey, Effie. Can I ask you something?"
She raised a brow but shrugged casually. "Sure. Go ahead, doofus."
Sunless hesitated, strangely nervous — it was stupid, really, but the words still felt heavier than they should. Looking away, he muttered: "Tell me honestly... were you dropped on your head a lot when you were a kid?"
Effie blinked, stunned for a moment. Then she slapped both hands over her mouth to stifle the laughter that burst out of her, nearly tipping off the beam in the process.
"Heavens, Sunny... are you trying to get us killed?!" she hissed, still giggling uncontrollably. "No, you idiot, I wasn't dropped on my head!"
He eyed her suspiciously. "Could've fooled me. You're way too cheerful all the time. It's not normal. You're like a crazy person — and trust me, I know crazy."
Effie's laughter softened. A strange, almost melancholic expression crossed her face — fleeting, like a cloud over the moon.
"It's simple, really," she said quietly.
Sunless waited. Something about the softness in her tone made him pause.
Effie looked out across the cavernous hall, her smile a little crooked. "It's because... I don't think this place is as bad as everyone else seems to think. You guys walk around like you're trapped in a nightmare. But me?"
She shrugged. "To me, it's a paradise."
Sunless stared at her, frowning. "How so?"
Effie tilted her head back and let out a slow breath. "You wouldn't understand. But for some of us, the real world... was a lot worse than this."
Sunless turned away, letting her words sink in. He thought about the gray, broken outskirts where he had clawed and scraped to survive. About the way people had looked at him, like he was something less than human.
Maybe he did understand, a little more than he liked to admit.
"...Word," he said simply.
Effie flashed him a crooked grin, but her eyes were a little distant now. "Who knows how many of us would still be alive without the Spell? Maybe none. Maybe it saved more people than it damned. And maybe... one day, others will see the Dream Realm the way I do."
On that strange, heavy note, she pushed herself up with an easy stretch — all taut muscles and lazy grace.
Sunless hastily looked away, feeling his face heat up despite himself. Pure thoughts, Sunny. Pure thoughts.
"Anyway," Effie said breezily, "it's morning. Time to go find Princess and the others."
She flashed him a wink, balancing easily on the beam as if the yawning void below them meant nothing at all.
"And maybe this time, try not to ask me about childhood head trauma, yeah?"
'*'
Soon enough, they were standing before the cathedral once again.
The morning sun was clawing its way up the horizon, smearing the ancient city with pale light like a faded memory. Long shadows stretched across the broken streets, catching on the jagged ruins and half-toppled towers. The air was cool, heavy with the faint scent of ash and stone.
Sunny and Effie didn't have to wait long.
From the tangle of ruins across the square, three figures emerged — ghostlike at first, then growing solid with each step.
Sunny narrowed his eyes.
There she was: Changing Star herself, as serene and distant as ever. Beside her, Cassie walked carefully, the blind girl's delicate face turned slightly toward Nephis as if listening to something he couldn't hear. And...
Sunny blinked.
...Kai?
What the hell was he doing here?
The four Sleepers approached and offered brief greetings, the kind worn thin by exhaustion and familiarity. As soon as the words were out of the way, Sunny turned to the handsome archer, staring at him like he'd grown a second head.
"Night... uh... why are you here, buddy?"
Kai beamed at him, radiant as ever. "Ah! I'm very happy to see you too, Sunny, my friend. Lady Nephis has graciously asked me to accompany her on this expedition. After some careful thought, I have decided to accept."
Sunny just stared. Then slowly, solemnly, he dapped Kai up.
"Alright. When exactly did you lose your mind too?"
Kai gave him a wounded look, as if Sunny had just kicked a puppy. "Wait...lose it too? What, do you mean you're crazy?"
Sunny sighed, rubbing his temples. "Nevermind. It's a long story."
Turning away from the bewildered archer, he faced Nephis. Her silver eyes met his, calm and steady, with the same implacable certainty that always set his teeth on edge.
"About your offer," Sunny said. "I'm ready to join the expedition. But on one condition."
Nephis tilted her head slightly, waiting.
"I'll become part of your cohort," he continued, "but only if you prove you're worth it."
For a moment, Nephis simply stared at him, her face carved from cold resolve. Then she spoke, voice even and razor-sharp: "Do you have something in mind?"
Sunny grinned — a sharp, wolfish grin.
"As a matter of fact, I do." He turned, gesturing lazily toward the battered cathedral behind them. "You see that magnificent old heap? Inside lives a creature known as the Black Knight. He's a Fallen Devil.
In return for my help during the expedition, I want yours afterward. When we get back..."
He paused, savoring the moment.
"...I want you to help me kill it."
A heavy silence fell over the small square.
The ruined city seemed to hold its breath, the weak sunlight catching on shattered glass and broken marble.
Finally, Kai found his voice, his face a mixture of disbelief and horrified concern. "Sunny... my friend... did you perhaps misspeak? We are only Sleepers. How are we supposed to kill a creature like that? A Nightmare Creature of his rank... we barely survived an Awakened Devil, and that was with all of us fighting together."
Sunny's grin only widened, a wicked glint lighting his dark eyes. He clapped Kai on the shoulder.
"...It's just a Fallen Devil," he said, utterly deadpan.
Kai stared at him in open betrayal, as if Sunny had just personally dragged him into a death sentence — which, to be fair, he had.
Effie cackled under her breath.
Cassie simply sighed.
And Nephis...
Nephis nodded once, without hesitation, as if Sunny had merely asked her to fetch something from the market instead of fight a nightmare from the depths of hell.
The looks on Effie and Kai's faces were simply priceless.
Sunny had to physically bite the inside of his cheek to stop himself from bursting out laughing right then and there. ...His four shadows, however, had no such restraint.
They clutched their ghostly bellies and shuddered in silent, convulsing fits of laughter — thank the heavens they had no vocal cords, or the whole cathedral square would be echoing with their howls.
'Hey! You little bastards... behave yourselves!' Sunny thought furiously, shooting them a dark glare.
Meanwhile, Nephis simply regarded him with her usual composed indifference. If anything, the corner of her mouth quirked up by the tiniest fraction — a hint of amusement flickering across her otherwise impassive face.
After a beat, Cassie found her voice, though it wavered slightly: "Just a Fallen Devil? Did you actually say j—"
Before she could finish, Nephis cut her off.
Glancing once at the looming silhouette of the cathedral, she shrugged and said calmly: "This is acceptable."
Silence.
Everyone just stared at her, slack-jawed and wide-eyed, like she'd casually agreed to wrestle a dragon bare-handed.
Sunny allowed himself a small, satisfied nod.
"Don't look so shocked," he said lazily. "We're not walking into that fight blind. I've spent months studying the bastard. I know his every move, every trick, every weakness. More than that…"
He paused, letting the weight of his words sink in.
"If you can't even handle him... how do you expect to challenge Gunlaug? Or more importantly..." He pointed toward the distant horizon, where the crimson spire of the city stabbed into the sky like a bloody spear. "The Crimson Spire? Isn't that what this expedition is all about?"
The others shifted uncomfortably, stealing glances at each other.
The truth was... Sunny had debated long and hard about when to push this. Part of him had wanted to strike now, to challenge the Black Knight before they ever left for the deeper ruins. But caution had won out.
They needed time. Time to grow stronger, to gather more soul essence, to expand their arsenals of Memories.
Most importantly, they needed time to learn how to fight together.
The Labyrinth was teeming with Nightmare Creatures — and while many of them were deadly, not all of them were so impossible to defeat. By the end of the expedition, they would be stronger. Sharper. Hungrier.
Ready.
Nephis gave a slow nod, her voice cool and certain: "Sunny is right. It's not impossible to kill a Fallen creature. Gemma and Tessai both did so during the tournament. Gunlaug, too. It takes preparation... and a little bit of luck. But if we work together, and learn its secrets in advance..."
She glanced toward the cathedral again, her silver hair catching the faint morning light. "...We can win."
Sunny grinned.
"Exactly! See? Reasonable!"
Then he clapped his hands together with a bit more enthusiasm than necessary. "Oh, right. Speaking of preparations…"
He turned, throwing a mischievous look over his shoulder as he started toward the winding streets.
"Follow me to Prince. We got something special waiting for you."
Behind him, the others hesitated briefly... then fell into step, their excitement warring with apprehension.
'*"
The air was thick with swirling black and red pollen, casting the world in a dark, shimmering haze. No sunlight could pierce the oppressive botanical cloud.
Within it, the enthralled Fallen creatures prowled in eerie silence, their twisted forms blending into the suffocating gloom.
Moving carefully between them, Sunless led their small cohort through the labyrinthine undergrowth toward the ancient, towering entity known only as Prince — the soul-devouring tree. Its gnarled trunk stretched into the sky like a monstrous skyscraper, impossibly vast.
After a tense journey skirting around the beasts, they finally reached the base. Without a word, Sunless began the climb, the others following close behind as they scaled the living colossus.
Higher up, on a particularly thick branch that stretched out like the arm of a giant, Sunless turned back to them.
"Wait here," he said curtly.
Before anyone could ask questions, he slipped away into the deeper boughs.
Minutes later, he returned — carrying two heavy sacks slung over his shoulders. With an easy toss, he hurled them down to the others, the bags thudding heavily against the bark at their feet.
Everyone blinked at the sudden offering.
Well... everyone except Cassie. She simply tilted her head slightly, her expression unreadable, as if she'd known all along that this was coming.
The others — Nephis, Effie, and Kai — stared at the sacks in clear confusion.
Without ceremony, Sunless pulled out a knife and sliced both bags open. The mouth of each sagged wide, spilling a radiant cascade of soul shards onto the bark, their soft glow gleaming like a bed of captured stars.
Straightening up, he spread his arms wide, a wicked smile dancing on his lips.
"Welcome," he announced, "to Sunny's Brilliant Emporium!"
He gestured grandly at the glittering pile.
"This right here is a few hundred shards, all Awakened rank... and about twenty-five Ascended-ranked beauties, too. Since we're about to dive into the horrors of the Labyrinth, I've decided to give you all the chance to toughen up before the blood starts flying. Naturally, since you're family…"
He gave them a mischievous wink. "...You'll get a discount."
Effie folded her arms across her chest and gave him a long, suspicious stare.
"Are you kidding me?" she barked. "You drag us through hell, then suddenly turn into a freaking street merchant?! You've gotta be joking, Sunny."
Kai, meanwhile, was staring at the soul shards like they were a bomb about to go off. He forced a polite, nervous smile onto his face.
"T-thank you, Sunny… very generous of you. But, ah... why exactly are you so eager to collect our Memories?"
Cassie, predictably, said nothing. She simply stood there with a faint, knowing smile on her lips, as if this scene had been scripted long ago.
Nephis's pale eyes remained cool and steady, watching him intently, weighing every word.
Of course, Sunless hadn't done any of this out of the kindness of his heart. From Aslan's memories, he knew the simple truth of wealth — money must never sit idle. Riches had to work, had to grow, had to feed upon themselves.
In the language of the powerful, this was called investment.
And Sunny knew no better investment than the survival of the people he had to rely on.
He was going to make it back. He was going to see Rain again. He was going to celebrate another birthday with Cassie and the others in the waking world.
And if he could improve their chances by a few precious percentage points? It was worth every shard.
He grinned wider. "The rules are simple. You give me a Memory — any Memory. The worse, the better. Trash, junk, scraps gathering dust in your Soul Sea, I'll take it. No junk? No problem. Promise me one from the Labyrinth, and we're square."
He beamed at them, all fake benevolence and charm. "No need to thank me. Really."
Kai swallowed hard, his politeness struggling against the growing sense of unease. "Sunny… buddy… forgive me, but... why do you need all these Memories?"
Sunny opened his mouth, a glint of amusement sparking in his eye — but before he could speak, a low, rasping voice answered from the shadows behind him.
"He collects them," the voice croaked. "Experiments with them. Sees if they can be improved."
Everyone tensed instantly.
A figure slithered into view, hunched and crooked — the twisted silhouette of Harus, Gunlaug's infamous assassin. His presence was like a knife drawn quietly in a dark alley: understated, but undeniably lethal.
Effie immediately reached for her weapon, her eyes flashing with outrage. "You have got to be kidding me. That creep is here?! Sunny, what the actual hell —"
Kai instinctively backed a step closer to Nephis, looking as though he very much wanted to be anywhere else. Even Cassie's relaxed composure slipped slightly, her brows knitting in concern.
Nephis didn't move, though. Her gaze flicked from Harus to Sunny, cold and weighing.
Before the situation could explode, Sunny raised his hands casually.
"Yah, mostly that," he said lightly, as if Harus's sudden appearance was the most normal thing in the world. "For example, we managed to attach the claws of a Cursed Herald to his chains. Pretty neat, right?"
He smiled even wider, oblivious to the tension. "Oh, and Harus is joining us. Hope you don't mind. After all…"
He shrugged. "We all play for the same side now."
Effie muttered something obscene under her breath. Kai looked like he was seconds away from fainting. Cassie gave a tiny sigh, bracing herself for the inevitable.
And Nephis, after a long pause, nodded once, sharply. "If you vouch for him, Sunny... I'll accept it."
The cohort shifted uneasily around the branch, the soul shards still glowing at their feet — but the real weight now hung heavier in the air.
'*'
Sunless was just about to pull Kai aside for a quiet talk — to finally ask why he had so suddenly decided to join their cohort — when a strong hand clamped onto his arm.
Startled, he turned — only to be yanked unceremoniously sideways by Nephis.
"Neph— what the—" he started, baffled.
But then Neph shot him a look. A single, cutting glance that said, very clearly, Shut up and come with me.
Sunless, recognizing the rare sharpness in her expression, wisely closed his mouth. He pulled free from her grip, but didn't resist, following as Nephis grabbed Cassie's hand, too, and led them both away from the others.
They moved swiftly across the wide, shadowed branch, weaving between gnarled roots and darkened leaves, until they were tucked into a hidden alcove where the pollen clouds hung less thickly.
The moment they stopped, Nephis turned to face them. "Explain," she said flatly — her voice still cold and even, but... There was something under the surface.
A small, painful crack. Urgency. Hurt.
Sunless raised an eyebrow lazily, trying to buy time. "Explain what, exactly?"
Of course, he knew perfectly well what she meant. But she needed to feel, for once, how irritating it was to be treated like she treated everyone else — with cryptic, clipped demands and blank expectation.
Cassie shifted uneasily beside them, her small hands nervously wringing the fabric of her cloak. She tilted her head toward Sunless, her blind gaze soft with guilt.
"I… I haven't explained the whole plan to her yet, Sunny," she murmured, reaching out to hug Nephis's arm tightly. "She must be really surprised... seeing Harus show up like that."
Sunless scratched his head awkwardly. "Ohhh," he said dumbly.
Across from him, Nephis looked… Well.
She looked like a confused, betrayed puppy — if a puppy could have a steel mask for a face but still somehow radiate pure wounded confusion.
"What else haven't you told me?" she asked, her pale eyes locking onto Sunless like a needle pressing into skin. She wasn't even asking Cassie. She knew who the guilty one was.
Sunless rubbed the back of his neck, wincing internally. "Well… funny story, that…" he said, voice dropping into a guilty mumble. "So, uh… turns out Gunlaug's kinda in on the whole 'overthrow Gunlaug' thing now."
Nephis blinked once, very slowly, like she was trying to process absolute nonsense.
"I convinced him," Sunless continued sheepishly, "that if he played along, he'd come out looking like a hero. Y'know, 'tragic leader makes good after catastrophe' kinda angle. Especially after the loss of over four hundred Sleepers to the Mimic attack. In the waking world, it'd set him up for a redemption arc. Politicians love redemption arcs."
Cassie tightened her hug around Nephis's arm, her small fingers trembling slightly. Cassie bit her lip, squeezing Nephis's sleeve even tighter.
"And we didn't tell you because—" she hesitated, face burning, "—because… you're really, really bad at acting."
Cassie cringed into herself, looking like she wanted to disappear.
"We're sorry, Neph!" she burst out desperately. "We didn't want to lie to you, but we had to make it believable! We didn't want to hurt you!"
Nephis didn't answer right away. She just stood there, unnervingly still. Her silver hair caught faint glimmers of light from the soul shards spilling down the tree above, gleaming like a halo.
She lowered her head slightly, brushing a lock of hair from her cheek. The silence stretched.
"Is there anything else," she said finally, voice soft now — too soft — "that I should know?"
Sunless swallowed. Well, in for a penny, in for a pound.
"You remember Cassie's prophecy, right? About a shadow killing a flaming angel?"
Nephis nodded wordlessly.
Sunless raked a hand through his messy hair. "Yeah, so… I think I know what it's about. Effie and I found an ancient temple — one that worshiped a sun goddess or something. I couldn't study it properly because the Black Knight's immune to Prince's influence, but... I don't think the Knight's even a Nightmare Creature. Might be an automaton. Maybe even tied to the gate guardian."
He hesitated, then added:
"I think the 'flaming angel' might be waiting for us at the end of all this."
A long pause.
Cassie tucked herself closer to Nephis, pressing her forehead gently against her arm, as if silently begging for forgiveness she wasn't sure she deserved. Sunless looked away, feeling the weight of everything — the lies, the risks, the inevitable blood to come — sinking into his bones.
Nephis stayed silent. Then, slowly, she raised her arms and, to both their shock, pulled both of them into a hug.
Cassie gasped softly, surprised. Sunless froze for a second — but only for a second — before awkwardly lifting his arms and wrapping them around the two girls.
They stood there, tangled together, holding on tightly as the heavy pollen swirled around them like a shroud. There were no words. There didn't need to be.
Nephis, for all her coldness, for all her aloof pride, leaned into them — just a little — and let them feel, for the first time, that underneath the perfect warrior mask was simply a girl who had trusted them completely. And who, even now, was trying to trust them again.
The world outside the little hollow could wait. For now, the three of them simply held each other, steady against the storm that hadn't even broken yet.