Somewhat dazed, Sunny struggled to open his eyes. As he slowly fell to his knees, he saw Neph's pale face looming above him. Her short silver hair was wet, sticking close to her skin.
"Are you hurt?" she asked, kneeling beside him.
There was something strange in her expression—fear, but also resignation. As though she'd been afraid of something… and expected it.
"No," Sunny muttered.
A visible wave of relief washed over Nephis. She turned away to Valen, who lay sprawled on the ground, clutching his leg.
As she approached, her breath caught. The damage to his leg was brutal. When the massive monster had fallen on him, it had crushed the calf completely. Bone had splintered, white shards protruding through torn flesh, soaked in blood.
Valen gritted his teeth, his jaw tight, eyes closed in intense focus. He didn't scream. Didn't cry. Didn't even curse. He just gripped his ruined leg and endured.
Nephis knelt beside him, her expression darkening. Gritting her teeth, she gently placed her hands on his broken leg.
The moment she made contact, pain exploded through Valen's body.
Then a soft, radiant glow sparked beneath Nephis' palms. It reflected in her eyes—two flickering white flames.
Almost immediately, Changing Star's face contorted in a grimace of excruciating agony, and she let out a terrible, muffled scream.
Her skin became white as a sheet of paper, and as she bit her lower lip, drops of blood soon rolled to her chin.
As the radiance grew in intensity, Nephis shut her eyes tightly, tears streaming down her tortured, bloodless face.
But then—
A blade slashed toward her head.
Nephis jerked back just in time, dodging the attack. She stumbled away, panting, pain radiating from her chest.
"As expected," she thought grimly.
She had managed to heal him a little, but not enough. The damage was too extensive to heal in such a short time.
Valen still lay there, gripping his leg. He opened his mouth to hurl insults but no words came out. Only a scream tore free, low and guttural.
It was a miserable scream—like a wounded beast too proud to die in silence.
And as she watched him struggle to sit upright, refusing help, refusing pity, Nephis felt something settle in her heart.
Pity.
Not just for the pain—but for what was beneath it. The stubborn pride, the unrelenting need to appear strong, even now. Especially now.
This flaw fueled attempt to protect his pride just made him look pitiable.
"Maybe, he had it worse than all of us."
***
By the time the storm passed, night had fully settled over the cliffs. The group huddled together for warmth, slowly drifting into sleep. All except Valen, of course.
He sat with his back against a stone, gripping his injured leg, watching the others doze off one by one. Even so, sleep eventually overcame his stubbornness, and he, too, fell into a restless slumber.
Luckily, the night passed without incident.
By morning, the pain had returned. Valen groaned and shifted his weight. His shin was fractured badly, and he needed a crutch—or something to act like one. He'd made a makeshift splint with some branches, hoping his recovery would be fast.
None of them rushed to make plans that day. After everything that happened, they were content to gather meat from the fallen scavengers and the Carapace Centurion, collect the soul shards, and move to the far side of the island. The corpses would only attract more danger.
And they were right.
Not long after they left, a dark spot appeared in the sky. It grew quickly, descending in a whirlwind of sound and wind.
Sunny crouched behind the rocks, eyes wide. He had never seen anything like it.
The creature was massive, easily twice the size of the Carapace Centurion. Its body was muscular and corpse-white, like a monstrous lion. Two thick hind legs supported it, but six more limbs protruded messily from its wide chest—each ending in long, deadly talons.
Its neck and wings were draped in black feathers, and its head resembled that of a raven, with large circular eyes and a jagged, black beak.
It landed near the Centurion's remains and feasted, tearing the armored body apart with horrifying ease. After devouring its fill, it grabbed several scavenger corpses in its claws and beat its wings, rising back into the sky with a small hurricane.
It flew west.
Sunny followed it with his eyes until it vanished.
"Neph," he said. "What do you think that thing was?"
Nephis stared at the horizon. After a long pause, she said, "I have no idea."
Sunny just nodded and got back to his routine. He still had to perform his thousand strikes.
Valen was there again, sitting on a rock nearby.
Like before he started with a weird question.
"Do you believe in gravity?"
Sunny blinked. "What kind of question is that? Are you planning to throw me off a cliff or something?"
Valen tilted his head. "Just answer it."
"Uh yeah? I mean....stuff falls"
Sunny leaned forwards.
"Is it not real?!"
Valen smiled a little at this stupid question.
"It's a philosophical question, dumbass."
"How!?"
"When I ask 'Do you believe in gravity?', I'm not just talking about whether you think things fall down. Think about it – gravity is this invisible force that constantly pulls everything together, shaping the way the universe works, right? In a way, fate is similar."
Sunny raised an eyebrow.
"It is often thought of as this unseen force, these circumstances and events that seem to pull our lives in certain directions, sometimes in ways we don't fully understand or control. So, what I'm really asking is if you believe in that unseen pull of destiny, the forces that seem to guide our paths...Do you believe in fate?"
Sunny frowned.
"Well... I like to think we make our own choices. Our own futures."
Valen's smile grew.
"If that's true... then how do you explain Cassie's visions? Why are prophetic Aspects so highly valued by all the clans?"
Sunny's frown deepened.
"Isn't it because they can glimpse fate? Like they're seeing the strings tying everything together? If their visions come true... weren't we predetermined to walk that path?"
He looked Sunny dead in the eye.
"Isn't that why you trust Cassie's visions? Or rather— why we all do?"
Sunny was quiet.
Fate...
Did it truly exist?
Valen's voice dropped to a whisper.
"Do you remember her vision? This is advice I'm giving you... because you saved my life."
He leaned closer.
"Do not trust Cassie."
***
Later that day, they made a fire and roasted the centurion's meat. The meal was rich, heavy, and well-earned.
After fighting scavengers, surviving a flood, climbing cliffs during a storm, and killing an Awakened monster... they needed a break.
Sunny lay on the ground, full and relaxed. But something still gnawed at him.
It wasn't the fight, or the trauma. It was something else.
Ever since he broke through the mental fog yesterday, something had changed inside him.
The clarity never faded.
It stayed, right at the center of his being—like a new lens through which he saw the world. Everything seemed sharper. Faster. Easier to grasp.
His thoughts were clearer. His instincts calmer. The world itself felt more... predictable.
It was like he had tapped into a deeper layer of reality. He could sense patterns, read movement, think quicker.
It wasn't a power upgrade. Not in the traditional sense. No shadow fragments consumed. No new Aspect unlocked.
But somehow, it was bigger.
He wondered... was this how Nephis always felt?
Still, his thoughts returned to Valen.
Don't trust Cassie.
What did he mean by that? And if Valen truly believed it, why was he so chummy with her like he had a crush on her or something.
Sunny narrowed his eyes.
If Valen warned him not to trust her... did that mean Valen didn't trust her either?
He would need to keep a close eye on him.
Slowly, silently, Sunny's shadow crept a little closer to Valen.