The cafeteria was bustling with voices, a sharp contrast to the quiet focus during yesterday's speech.
Sunny sat at a corner table, staring down at a plate of seared steak and glazed root vegetables.
It was objectively good—high-quality ingredients provided by the government to ensure the Sleepers were at their physical peak before the Solstice.
He took a bite, chewed thoughtfully, and felt a twinge of longing.
'It's fresh, well-seasoned... but far from perfect. The fibers are a bit tight, the heat was too high. If I had my corrupted devil kitchen at hand, I would have marinated this in nectar for three hours and finished it with a quick burst of Shadow essence on the sides for the crispy touch.'
He would be using pure nectar taken directly from the flowers by him, flowers that stood nowhere near those accursed bees.
The chair across from him scraped against the tile. He didn't need to look up to know who it was. Her shadow alone was enough.
Nephis sat down. She didn't say anything, but the weight of her presence was almost physical.
She began to eat with silent efficiency, not because she enjoyed it, but because she viewed food as nothing more than fuel for the fire burning in her soul.
"You know," Sunny said, breaking the silence with a light, easy tone, "most people take the time to taste the steak. It's actually quite good today."
Nephis looked up, her silver eyes scanning his face for any sign of a lie. "It is sufficient. Why are you staring at yours like it's a puzzle you can't solve?"
"Just thinking of ways to improve the sear," Sunny responded smoothly. "A hobby of mine."
Before she could press him, a rhythmic tap-tap-tap approached their row.
A blonde girl with a slender cane was navigating the gap between the tables.
Cassie looked exhausted, her face pale and her movements hesitant, as if the floor beneath her feet was made of glass.
She was heading right for the empty seat beside Sunny. Simply because that was where she had eaten yesterday.
Sunny felt a pang of guilt. He knew she was scared. And he knew, in a future she hadn't lived yet, exactly what he had done to her.
The cane was actually a Memory Sunny recognized immediately, it was the staff that created a blast of wind when needed. It seemed that her tutor was not present today.
In the past the tutor had been present all days without failure, this was a small detail that Sunny didn't fail to note, his regression was having effects already on the world.
"Careful," Sunny said, his voice dropping into a gentle, sincere register.
He didn't reach out—he knew how much she valued her independence—but he spoke clearly to guide her. "There's a stray bag by the chair leg to your left."
The tap stopped.
To any other student in the cafeteria, it was a non-moment.
Cassie didn't scream; she didn't jump. She simply stood still for a heartbeat longer than necessary.
Her fingers tightened on the grip of her cane, and her breathing hitched—a tiny, ragged catch in her throat that only someone listening intently would catch.
Sunny didn't notice the depth of it. He assumed she was just surprised by a stranger's help.
But Nephis noticed.
She saw the way Cassie's pulse jumped in the vein of her neck.
She saw the minute tremor in the girl's hand and the way she seemed to shrink away from the sound of Sunless's voice, as if the air around him had suddenly turned freezing.
Nephis looked at the blind girl, then back at Sunny. She didn't say a word. She simply filed the reaction away—another piece of the puzzle that was the boy sitting across from her.
For a long moment, it looked like Cassie would turn and flee. Her feet shifted, ready to retreat into the safety of the crowd.
But then, she stopped.
Yes she was blind, yes she was scared, but she would never again let the feeling of helplessness she felt that night crawl back into her mind.
With slow, deliberate movements, she didn't retreat. Instead, she navigated around the bag and sat down.
Not next to Sunny, but directly beside Nephis.
"Thank you," Cassie whispered. Her voice was thin, barely audible.
Sunny nodded, with an expression of slightly confused concern.
"Just trying to be helpful."
'I guess sitting on the table with the two maniacs who went rogue on day 1 makes her a bit uncomfortable.
This was her seat yesterday, she must be asking herself why we're here.'
Behind the two girls, the Sin of Solace shimmered into existence.
It leaned over the table and looked at them.
"The three of you united again. How beautiful." He said while laughing maniacally.
"Who will betray you first this time? The way this little star is looking at you is hilarious, you must've noticed she's ready to draw her sword at any moment.
And the girl… well she has a track record. You have no idea how much I tormented her in the Great River. You must've forgotten, but me? Those were glorious days indeed.
Oh but don't worry I came nowhere close to the true horrors you inflicted into her. Corruption is a blessing compared to what you kept doing."
With that he smiled at Cassie and disappeared again, having used the little time available while all Sunny's current defenses were up.
Sunny acted like he was ignoring the ghost but the shiver in his hand while taking another bite betrayed his looks.
Cassie could not see the abhorrent manifestation, not yet at least, but he was sure she could feel something.
And indeed she could. While their one sided conversation took place. Cassie was using her innate ability and reading Sunny's attributes.
What she saw shook her.
[Death], [Prince of Shadows], [Flame of Divinity] and… [Fate Defier].
Fate was supposed to be immovable, unchangeable. She knew that well thanks to her first nightmare. And yet here in front of her stood someone who had defied it.
'If he can defy fate, can he change my vision? Or does his "Defiance" involve the atrocities I saw?'
Unfortunately she found it extremely difficult to think at the moment.
The reason for her inability to do so was very simple.
Cassie was terrified, the moment she tried to see Sunless attributes she was hit with the feeling of absolute, atrocious dread. She could sense it just behind her back.
It was completely different from the thing in her vision. While that one felt like an idea of a being that was alive.
This one felt like a curse composed of pure malice. She could not hear what it said, she could not see it, but she was sure it was looking at her.
And then it simply vanished.
Cassie quickly noticed how the demeanor of the boy changed, he too was afraid and unlike her, he was forced to listen to whatever it was saying.
'It must be his flaw…'
"So… have you two thought about which classes to attend?" Sunny was trying to break the awkward silence that for some reason had taken place.
"Combat Class" Nephis said, without elaborating further.
"I don't think there is any class suited for me." Cassie said crestfallen.
Sunny looked at her, remembering how easy it was to pity one of the strongest saints to ever live.
"I wouldn't say that, Wildernesses Survival has an amazing course with a capable teacher, there's also Flaw Management classes that could be useful.
Your Flaw is a heavy one, but surely that means your aspect has great potential. The spell is a cruel bastard but in his own convoluted way it is also just."
He took a moment to drink some water and then continued.
"I will be joining both Wilderness Survival and Combat Class. It's not like I really need to but it will be good to see the current level of my peers and perhaps correct some of their stances.
As for Wilderness Survival, no matter how much I know about the Dream Realm, I'm sure Professor Julius will still find a way to teach me something new.
I might be fated to kill my enemies and bring them solace but at heart I am an explorer and historian."
Nephis observed and carefully studied every word he said, trying to figure out what was true and what not. Unfortunately this was not her field of expertise.
Thankfully they were going to meet again during combat classes and she would be able to receive her answers when steel met steel.
Cassie instead considered his words.
"I won't be joining Wilderness Survival but I will take a look at Flaw Management".
She had heard that no one ever enlisted in the class Sunless was so interested, and Cassie didn't wish to be alone with the boy.
'His concerns seems genuine enough'
"Very good, I… I'll see you two around I guess" .
They both nodded and went back to eat. Sunny took the moment and decided it was time to fill out the forms.
Getting up from the table he awkwardly waved at them and proceeded walking towards Teacher Julius class.
'That was… Not terrible?'