On one of the enormous chains, the shapeless creature sat.
The vast links stretched away into darkness in both directions, slowly shifting against one another with a dull metallic groan that carried through the silence.
The creature remained there, leaning slightly forward, its gaze lowered into the depth below.
Its form did not hold steady for long. The outline softened, shifted, gathered itself again.
The chain swayed almost imperceptibly.
The creature continued to look down into the void.
***
Kiyotaka sat on the medical bed, looking up at the ceiling.
The fan above him turned slowly, pushing cool air through the quiet room while thin sunlight slipped through the window and stretched across the floor.
He watched the blades rotate for a while, his eyes following the same motion again and again.
Everything had already returned.
Sound drifted through the medical wing: distant footsteps in the corridor, the faint clink of metal instruments touching trays somewhere deeper inside the ward, the low hum of the fan above him.
The rhythm of the blades remained steady, cutting through the silence again and again.
Yet even now, the sounds felt strangely heavy.
For seven days the world had been reduced to sight alone.
Kiyotaka had walked through the academy watching people speak without hearing their voices, watching doors close without ever hearing the sound they made. Conversations had existed only in the movement of lips and the shifting of expressions.
Silence had followed him everywhere.
Above him, the fan continued its slow rotation.
Touch had vanished as well. Objects rested in his hands like distant shapes he could only confirm with his eyes. Books, railings, door handles, he could see them clearly, but they never truly reached him.
Even something as simple as running a finger across a page had meant nothing.
He had continued moving anyway.
Every corridor of the academy remained the same, filled with Sleepers training, arguing, laughing, struggling to prepare themselves for what waited beyond the solstice. Life moved around him with the same careless rhythm.
Kiyotaka simply walked through it without participating.
A blade of the fan caught the sunlight for a brief moment as it turned, sending a thin flicker of light across the ceiling.
He passed the cafeteria several times during those days.
Other Sleepers gathered there after training, their trays filled with food they devoured with satisfaction. Some complained about the taste, others argued over portions, a few simply ate in silence.
Kiyotaka walked past them without turning his head.
Food had never been something he chose for himself. For most of his life every meal had been measured and bland, prepared only to push his body closer to its peak condition. Taste had never been the point.
Only recently had that changed.
For a short while he had been able to eat food that actually had flavor. It had been unfamiliar at first, but he found that he liked it.
And then even that small privilege had been taken away.
Taste and smell disappeared, and food became nothing more than something he could see but never truly experience.
So he continued walking.
The world had narrowed until it was nothing more than sight and thought.
Anyone else might have broken under that kind of existence. A life built only on vision slowly began to resemble a painting instead of reality, something you could observe, but never truly live in.
Kiyotaka endured it.
He endured it the same way he had endured everything else life had offered him.
Silently.
The fan above him kept turning, indifferent to the passage of time.
This world had already thrown him into its harshest trial the moment he arrived.
The lowest power among those of the highest rank.
Suffering had greeted him like an old acquaintance.
And just as he began adapting to it, another challenge had appeared.
Live for a week without senses.
It was almost amusing.
The man who had once wished for something simple... to laugh with others, to make mistakes, to experience the small foolish emotions people carried so easily had instead been given silence, numbness, and isolation.
If life had a sense of humor, it was a particularly cruel one.
Now the world had returned.
Kiyotaka lowered his gaze from the ceiling and looked at his hands.
***
As Kiyotaka was still turning his thoughts over in silence, the door opened and three people stepped into the room.
Two nurses and a doctor.
His gaze moved toward them.
The doctor entered first. He looked to be in his early thirties tall, with neatly combed black hair and thin rectangular glasses resting on the bridge of his nose. His posture was straight.
Behind him came the two nurses.
The first looked to be in her late twenties. The moment her eyes landed on Kiyotaka, the softness she carried while entering disappeared. Her face settled into something colder and more focused, her posture subtly straightening.
She had dark hair tied tightly behind her head, and her features were sharp, well-defined, and elegant.
The second nurse reacted very differently.
She looked younger.
Early twenties, perhaps.
A small smile appeared on her face the moment she noticed him, and she stepped forward slowly while the other two remained slightly behind.
Her hair was a light brown tied into a loose ponytail, a few strands resting near her cheeks. Her features were softer than the other nurse's clear skin, gentle eyes, and an expression that carried warmth.
She was pretty.
The sort of face people would probably describe as "pleasant."
Objectively speaking, she ranked fairly high.
Hospitals apparently had good hiring standards.
As she reached the bedside, she opened the file she was carrying and pulled out a small photograph.
Her eyes dropped to it.
Then they lifted toward Kiyotaka.
Back to the photograph.
Then to him again.
The comparison lasted several seconds.
She tilted her head slightly while looking between the two.
***
Eventually the smiling nurse approached Kiyotaka, sliding whatever photograph she had back into the file before closing the distance. She knelt beside the bed and reached for his wrist.
Her face carried a gentle smile meant to reassure patients before they even realized they were worried. It was calm and natural.
Kiyotaka briefly shifted his gaze past her.
The doctor stood a few steps away, watching quietly, his eyes following the examination with patient focus.
Beside him stood the other nurse.
Her expression remained distant. The earlier cold seriousness had settled into something controlled, her eyes resting on Kiyotaka.
The younger nurse's fingers settled lightly against his wrist as she checked his pulse, her eyes flicking down to the watch clipped to her uniform.
Her touch felt warm.
The warmth spread faintly along the skin beneath her fingers, lingering just long enough for him to notice.
After several seconds she spoke in a calm, soothing tone.
"How are you feeling right now? Any discomfort anywhere?"
Her voice carried a steady rhythm meant to put patients at ease.
Kiyotaka thought about the question before answering.
"I feel normal, I suppose. Nothing really hurts. My head feels clear."
The words left him slowly. Speaking still felt unfamiliar after such a long silence.
The nurse tilted her head slightly while listening. The flatness in his voice seemed to catch her attention for a moment, though her gentle smile remained unchanged.
Kiyotaka looked at her quietly.
For the briefest moment his expression turned cold.
The shift passed almost instantly.
His eyes drifted slightly as his attention moved inward, his surroundings fading from focus while memories surfaced one after another.
The quiet rhythm of life at the academy returned in fragments.
Classrooms filled with ordinary conversations, the strange sense of freedom he had experienced there, the countless small moments that had once seemed insignificant while they were happening.
The memories continued unfolding in silence.
Kiyotaka remained still while they passed through his mind.
Gradually something changed in his expression.
The tension that had been quietly sitting inside him loosened slightly, leaving behind a faint sense of relief that settled deeper in his chest.
The corners of his lips began to rise.
At the side of the room the nurse standing beside the doctor noticed it first.
Her eyes narrowed.
The calm detachment on her face vanished for a fraction of a second, replaced by something colder as she watched the subtle shift in the boy's expression.
Then, just as quickly, the coldness disappeared.
A small smile came to her face.
The doctor noticed it next.
His gaze sharpened as he looked toward the bed.
Because the boy lying there was smiling now.
It was not a large smile.
Only a faint one.
Yet something about it felt strangely out of place.
The doctor kept looking at Kiyotaka's face, the quiet smile resting there while the room remained completely silent.
The smiling Kiyotaka thought...
'Wow~ Out of the frying pan and into the fire, At least the scenery's something to admire.'
***
As I smiled, she paused for a moment while still holding my wrist.
The counting had clearly stopped, yet her fingers remained resting lightly against my pulse. Her eyes lifted toward my face, studying it for a brief moment before drifting toward the other two standing behind her.
The movement was subtle, more of a quiet confirmation than anything else, and when her gaze returned the calm smile she had been wearing faltered just slightly.
I considered the most logical explanation.
Perhaps she had fallen in love with me.
That would not be entirely unreasonable. I had not seen my reflection recently, but past experience suggested that my appearance tended to have a noticeable effect on people.
Exceptional talent often came bundled with certain inconveniences.
This was likely one of them.
My gaze wandered toward the other nurse standing beside the doctor.
She had been watching quietly the entire time. As my smile widened just a little, the corners of her lips lifted as well.
My attention returned to the nurse in front of me. She had leaned slightly closer while maintaining contact with my wrist, presumably to make counting easier. The reduced distance made certain details more noticeable.
Her uniform was neat and carefully fitted, the fabric resting properly along her posture as she bent forward slightly. The shape beneath it was balanced in a way that was difficult to ignore.
Not particularly large.
Not small either.
Something comfortably in the middle.
A very respectable medium.
I arrived at this conclusion through objective observation. Any healthy sixteen-year-old placed in the same position would likely reach a similar scientific result.
After a moment my eyes drifted slightly higher and landed on the badge pinned neatly to her chest.
Kath.
Right.
That was clearly what I had been looking at this entire time.
Unfortunately she seemed to have followed my line of sight during that exact moment. Her gaze lowered toward the same area before slowly lifting back to my face.
The pleasant smile she had been wearing shifted slightly.
That was unfortunate.
This situation had become somewhat unfair.
From an objective perspective I was the victim here. I was a weak sixteen-year-old patient lying quietly in a hospital bed while an adult nurse had been holding my hand for an extended period of time without asking permission.
I had not even been consulted about this arrangement.
If anything, I should have been filing a complaint.
"Just how long are you planning to hold my hand, Miss Kath?" I asked calmly. "Checking a pulse doesn't normally take this long."
Her eyes flicked briefly toward the badge on her chest.
Kath.
The name I had clearly been reading with full concentration.
The misunderstanding should have resolved itself naturally at that point. The badge was placed in a highly visible location.
I would never lie.
No one had ever been able to prove otherwise.
She maintained her composure impressively well as she began withdrawing her hand.
I watched the movement with growing concern.
First she had taken my hand without asking, and now she was simply reclaiming it as though nothing had happened.
Before she could pull away completely, I caught her hand again using both of mine. The motion was gentle, though firm enough to stop her.
My smile widened slightly as I looked directly into her eyes.
"I've been without senses for so long that everything still feels a little strange," I said. "Suddenly feeling everything again is... unsettling."
Inside my mind I briefly imagined myself as a fragile young boy abandoned in a harsh and uncaring world.
Someone please help me.
My fingers remained loosely wrapped around her hand. Her skin felt warm compared to the faint chill lingering in my own body.
"Your warmth somehow makes it easier."
She remained silent.
For a moment the two of us simply looked at each other while her hand stayed trapped between mine.
Then the meaning of my own sentence quietly caught up with me.
Ah.
That may have sounded slightly strange.
A faint warmth crept up my face.
Blushing was still an unfamiliar sensation, but the heat spreading across my cheeks made it difficult to ignore. I maintained my smile and eye contact as though nothing unusual had happened.
It was probably fine.
After all, I was merely an innocent patient who had been subjected to prolonged hand-holding by a nurse.
If anyone here should have been embarrassed, it definitely wasn't me.
The other nurse had begun blushing faintly while glancing between the two of us.
That level of interest felt somewhat excessive.
***
It slowly occurred to me that I had already said several questionable things to Kath.
Words like warmth, comfort, and holding hands sounded harmless on their own. When combined in a single conversation, however, they began forming a pattern that could easily be misinterpreted.
Considering she was a medical professional and I was technically her patient, certain invisible social rules likely applied to situations like this.
If she began feeling disgust toward me, the consequences could be devastating for my reputation.
Naturally, I looked up to confirm the situation.
Her fingers still rested lightly against my wrist as she counted my pulse. The warmth of her skin contrasted pleasantly with the lingering chill in my body.
Her expression remained unchanged. The same calm smile rested on her face as she watched the small clock pinned to her uniform.
That level of composure was impressive.
After all, it would be extremely difficult for someone to hate a person as good looking as me.
"Does your body feel weak? Any dizziness?" she asked.
Her voice was soft.
"The only thing making me weak right now is your voice," I replied while keeping my hand loosely around hers. "If you suddenly let go, I might collapse."
Her fingers pressed slightly deeper against my wrist as she continued counting. At the same time her other hand moved across the clipboard beside her, writing something down with steady precision.
Professional.
Extremely professional.
"You've been without sensory feedback for seven days," she said. "Even for a Sleeper that can cause disorientation."
That explanation seemed incomplete.
The reason I did not feel weak, hungry, or thirsty felt much simpler.
"Is there anything your body is craving?" she asked. "Something sweet or spicy?"
Heat rose into my cheeks as I looked away.
I tried to hide my face behind my hand, but since I was still holding hers the movement guided her fingers upward until they brushed lightly against my cheek.
That did not improve the situation.
"Just your love," I admitted quietly.
She paused for a moment.
Then she wrote something down.
"Noted."
I watched her pen move across the paper for a few seconds while trying to determine what exactly she had written.
Only afterward did the meaning of my own sentence fully register.
That may have sounded like flirting.
That was unfortunate.
A moment later she freed one hand and reached into her pocket, pulling out a small penlight.
"Look straight ahead."
Her fingers lifted my chin while the beam of light shone into my eye. She leaned closer, observing my pupil carefully.
At that distance something else reached me.
A faint scent.
Clean and soft, blending into the sterile air of the hospital room.
"You smell nice," I said.
"You regained your senses recently," she replied calmly. "Can you see clearly?"
"Very clearly," I answered. "Especially from this distance."
The penlight moved to my other eye before she slipped it back into her pocket. The stethoscope around her neck was already in her hand when she moved again.
The cold metal touched my chest.
"Take a deep breath."
I inhaled slowly.
"Your perfume is subtle," I commented.
"I'm not wearing perfume."
I considered this information for a moment.
My previous theory collapsed almost immediately.
"I see," I said thoughtfully. "Then it must be natural."
She said nothing.
"And breathe out."
I obeyed.
After several seconds she removed the stethoscope and let it rest around her neck again before turning my hand over.
Her fingers examined my nails before pressing the back of my hand lightly and releasing it. The skin slowly returned to its original shape.
Then she pinched it.
"Ouch," I said.
She pinched again.
"Ouch."
Her eyes lifted toward me.
"You seem very relaxed."
"I trust the doctor."
"I'm a nurse."
"I trust you more."
The examination continued for a while as she checked my breathing again and asked several routine questions.
Eventually she stepped back.
"That concludes the examination."
A quiet sadness filled my heart.
So this was the end of our romance.
I slowly stood from the bed and stretched while the doctor who had been observing nearby finally approached.
"Kiyotaka, correct?"
"That's right."
He extended his hand and I shook it politely.
"Your recovery is remarkable," he said.
"I'm glad to hear that."
***
After the brief exchange, Kiyotaka stepped out of the medical compartment and into the hallway with the same small, polite smile resting quietly on his face.
His pace remained calm and unhurried as he moved through the corridor until the washroom entrance appeared ahead.
He turned inside without hesitation. The door closed behind him with a dull sound that settled into the quiet room.
He walked past the sinks and toward the stalls at the back, stepping into one before pulling the door shut and sliding the latch into place.
For a moment he simply stood there. Then his back leaned slowly against the wall, shoulders resting against the cold surface while the polite smile remained fixed on his face.
Gradually it began to change.
The corners of his lips lifted higher, stretching just a little too far while his eyes narrowed.
Something beneath the calm expression surfaced now that no one was watching.
A breath slipped out of him, followed by another that trembled faintly in his chest.
A quiet laugh followed it.
"Ha. Ha."
At first it sounded restrained, almost accidental, but it returned again and again.
"Ha. Ha. Ha."
Forcing its way out between breaths. His shoulders trembled lightly while the laughter continued, uneven and strangely excited, carrying a tone that felt wrong in the small, silent stall.
His hand rose to cover his face, fingers pressing against his forehead while the sound slipped through them.
Eventually the laughter slowed. His breathing steadied while his hand slid down his face until one eye became visible through the gap between his fingers. The eye lifted toward the ceiling, narrow and cold.
"They're so stupid," he murmured softly.
For a brief moment his grin stretched wider than before, pulling across his face in a way that looked almost unnatural.
Then it slowly faded.
The tension drained from his expression until nothing remained except the same calm smile he had worn in the hallway.
Then slowly it dissapeared too as his eyes and smile became monotonous again.
He pushed himself away from the wall, unlocked the stall, and stepped back into the quiet washroom as though nothing had happened.
***
Kiyotaka left the washroom and continued toward the cafeteria. According to the health professionals, his body showed no signs of dehydration or starvation.
Apparently becoming a Sleeper allowed the body to endure conditions that would normally leave an ordinary person bedridden.
That was fortunate, because the last thing he wanted after regaining his senses was to deal with headaches, nausea, or migraines while his body was still adjusting.
He released a quiet sigh as he walked, though his thoughts had already drifted elsewhere.
The medical wing.
The conversation.
The people inside it.
Kiyotaka's eyes narrowed slightly as he replayed the encounter in his mind, examining every word and every reaction with quiet precision. Every small detail passed through his thoughts again, slowly fitting into place.
Then his steps stopped.
The questions in his gaze faded just a little as his eyes grew colder. He closed them for a moment before opening them again, his expression returning to its usual calm composure.
"Sunless, meet me in the cafeteria. It is urgent."
His shadow remained still.
For a moment nothing happened.
Then it twitched.
Sunless had been observing him from inside the doctor's shadow during the entire examination, But how did he know?
Kiyotaka lowered his gaze slightly and glanced toward his own shadow with mild curiosity.
"Wow, you were actually there. Color me impressed... actually don't. I would rather not let my flaw take over again."
The shadow made a fist in anger.
***
Kiyotaka sat at a table in the cafeteria with a tray of food placed in front of him.
The dish had only just been cooked, and a faint sizzling sound still rose from the oil spread across its surface.
He listened to it quietly for a few moments. The sound was soft and ordinary, yet it lingered in his ears in a way that felt strangely unfamiliar.
The last sounds he had clearly heard before today had been very different.
Screams from Vowalkers tearing themselves apart in their attempts to reach him, the cries of people who realized too late that they could not escape, and the desperate final prayers spoken by those who already understood how things would end.
Eichiro had been one of them.
He had prayed that Shirou would kill him.
That prayer had never been answered.
Compared to that, the quiet sizzling of oil from a freshly cooked meal felt almost difficult to place.
Kiyotaka's gaze rested on the plate for a moment before he leaned forward slightly as the smell began to drift toward him.
The scent was warm and heavy with oil and seasoning, simple but rich enough that he paused and drew in a slow breath, letting it settle in his chest.
The smell stirred a memory he would have preferred not to recall.
In darker places the scent had been very different, thick with the rot of Vowalker corpses and the metallic trace of blood that had soaked into stone after too many bodies had been torn apart.
His eyes narrowed faintly.
'I prefer this smell.'
His hand moved toward the glass. He filled it with water and lifted it to his lips.
The cool liquid touched his tongue as he began to drink, and while it slid slowly down his throat another memory surfaced without invitation.
He remembered swimming at the bottom of a well while hundreds of Vowalkers crowded around its rim before jumping in, their bodies pressing against each other while they clawed and climbed in their attempts to reach him.
They had been relentless in their efforts to kill him.
They had failed.
Kiyotaka swallowed slowly and tilted the glass again, drinking until it emptied before lowering it and remaining still for a moment as the water settled in his throat.
After a short pause he filled the glass again and set it down.
'It is quite refreshing.'
Only then did he reach for the food.
The first bite entered his mouth and he paused before chewing.
Another memory followed immediately after the taste touched his tongue.
The owner of his Nightmare body had begged to eat the flesh of the Vowalkers surrounding them, the hunger growing severe enough that the body had begun to consume itself in its attempt to remain alive.
Kiyotaka exhaled quietly.
Salt spread across his tongue, followed by the warmth of oil and a deeper flavor that lingered behind it.
The taste was exactly how he remembered it, yet experiencing it again after days without senses made it feel strangely vivid.
'If I had eaten Vowalker meat, the remorse of the owner would have strengthened Remorse Eater.'
The thought lingered for a moment.
'That would have been inconvenient.'
He began chewing slowly.
His movements remained calm while the fork returned to the tray again and again, the food gradually disappearing piece by piece.
Every now and then he paused long enough to breathe in the smell rising from the plate before taking another bite.
'This is much better.'
Across the table his shadow had gathered quietly.
Sunless had been watching the entire time. Normally a remark would have appeared by now, something sarcastic forming the moment he noticed what was happening.
None came.
The shadow simply remained still, resting along the edge of the table while it watched Kiyotaka continue eating.
Kiyotaka noticed.
His eyes lowered briefly toward the shadow before returning to the tray.
'Even he is quiet.'
The glass emptied again somewhere in the middle of the meal, and then once more shortly after that.
The tray slowly lost another portion of food while Kiyotaka continued eating with the same patience, occasionally breathing in the scent of the meal before taking another bite.
'Yes... I prefer living like this.'
***
Kiyotaka sat at the cafeteria table while finishing the last of the food on his tray. The glass beside it had already been emptied again, and after confirming that there was truly nothing left inside, he placed it down quietly before leaning back slightly in his chair.
Across the table, the shadow that had been resting near his feet stirred.
It slowly stretched away from him, sliding across the floor like a lazy patch of darkness before drifting back toward Sunless.
The shadow gathered behind him again and settled there naturally.
For a moment neither of them spoke.
Eventually both of them stood up from the table and began walking through the cafeteria. Most of the other Sleepers had already left, leaving the room quieter than before.
Their footsteps echoed faintly across the polished floor as they headed toward the exit.
Kiyotaka walked beside Sunless for a while in silence before finally speaking.
"It is quite strange that you are not making fun of what happened in the medical room."
Sunless did not immediately respond. He simply continued walking with his hands in his pockets, his expression calm and almost thoughtful. For a moment it genuinely looked as though he had not heard the question.
Then he shrugged slightly.
"What exactly would I gain from doing that right now?"
Kiyotaka tilted his head and studied him from the corner of his eye.
The answer did not quite match the question.
For a brief moment he wondered if something unusual had happened overnight.
Had Sunless somehow developed restraint?
The possibility seemed unlikely.
Kiyotaka glanced toward him again just as Sunless continued speaking, his tone still calm but carrying a faint edge of amusement.
"If I mock you now, only you will hear it. That seems like a very poor use of such valuable material. Situations like that should be saved for the correct audience."
They passed a row of empty tables as Sunless spoke.
He gestured vaguely toward the rest of the cafeteria.
"Eventually people will approach me because they want to get closer to you. That will be the appropriate moment to retell the story."
A dark smile slowly appeared on his face.
"Preferably in great detail."
Kiyotaka sighed quietly.
Yes.
That explanation sounded far more believable.
Sunless continued walking beside him, clearly satisfied with the logic of his own plan.
"Besides," he added after a moment, "I still haven't fully decided how to present the scene. There were several memorable parts. The moment you refused to release her hand was particularly impressive."
Kiyotaka narrowed his eyes slightly.
"It was my Fl-"
Sunless immediately cut him off without even looking at him.
"It's fine. You saw an attractive nurse and lost your composure for a moment. These things happen."
Kiyotaka stared at him.
Sunless continued speaking with the calm confidence of someone who had already reached a firm and irreversible conclusion.
"But honestly, you should eat something better before saying things like that again. What exactly did you mean by 'just your love'? Do you realize how strange that sounded?"
Kiyotaka already regretted bringing the topic up.
Sunless frowned slightly as though recalling the moment more clearly.
"For a moment I genuinely thought you were asking permission to devour-"
Kiyotaka raised one hand and stopped him from continuing.
They kept walking.
The moment he regained his senses, he had already begun getting roasted.
Kiyotaka decided it would be safer to change the subject.
"So what do you think about the current situation?"
Sunless's expression shifted slightly.
The faint amusement faded from his face, replaced by something far more grounded. His gaze moved forward as though he was quietly evaluating something only he had noticed.
After a moment he spoke again.
"To be honest, I am simply relieved about one thing."
Kiyotaka glanced toward him.
"What?"
Sunless studied his face for a moment before answering.
"If you had a pleasant voice to go along with that face, I might have seriously considered arranging for you to lose all your senses again."
He paused briefly before continuing with complete seriousness.
"The consequences would be catastrophic. People are already strangely tolerant of attractive idiots. If you also sounded pleasant while saying things like that, the damage to society might be irreversible."
He looked ahead again and exhaled quietly.
"But fortunately your voice sounds like it belongs to someone who has been dead for several days."
Sunless shook his head slightly.
"The universe clearly noticed the potential problem and corrected it in advance."
***
The corridor outside the cafeteria was quiet as the two of them walked side by side, their footsteps echoing faintly against the pale floor while scattered Sleepers moved far away at the other end of the hall... Talking about Kiyotaka but that's not the point.
Sunless kept his hands in his pockets and his expression relaxed, but his mind remained alert as he remembered the strange scene his shadow had witnessed earlier inside the washroom.
The laugh itself had not been loud, yet something about that brief sound had made the shadow linger longer than necessary, as though even it had sensed something unsettling about the moment.
Sunless glanced sideways at Kiyotaka while recalling that scene, studying the calm face beside him and wondering what exactly had been amusing enough to draw that kind of reaction.
The silence stretched between them for a few more steps before Kiyotaka finally spoke.
"Sunless, it is probably time for me to fulfill the promise I made a few days ago."
Sunless raised an eyebrow slightly while a faint grin appeared on his face, though the sharp focus in his eyes made it clear he was paying close attention.
They had agreed on a simple arrangement where Sunless would quietly gather information through his shadow, while Kiyotaka would later help him grow stronger once his senses returned.
"And here I was starting to think you had conveniently forgotten about that little agreement," Sunless replied with a light shrug, his casual tone only partially hiding the interest behind his words.
Kiyotaka shook his head once while continuing to walk beside him at the same steady pace.
"Before that, I want to explain something about human nature, because understanding it will make the rest of what I say easier to follow."
Sunless glanced at him sideways, already feeling the first hint of annoyance creeping into his thoughts.
Whenever someone began speaking like that, it usually meant an unnecessary lecture was about to follow.
Still, he kept walking and waited for Kiyotaka to continue.
"Humans are the most adaptable animals in the world," Kiyotaka began calmly. "When someone is born blind, their hearing and smell often become sharper because the mind compensates for what the body lacks."
Sunless listened without interrupting, though the direction of the conversation already felt suspiciously familiar.
"In much the same way," Kiyotaka continued, "people who grow up weak in harsh environments tend to develop other methods of survival, usually relying on intelligence rather than physical strength."
Sunless let out a slow breath through his nose as the meaning behind the explanation became obvious.
So that was where this discussion was heading.
Kiyotaka kept speaking without turning his head.
"When someone cannot overpower their enemies directly, they survive by observing carefully, thinking ahead, manipulating situations, and avoiding confrontations they cannot win."
Sunless scratched the back of his neck before responding, sounding mildly amused even though the words irritated him more than he wanted to admit.
"You are speaking as if you personally studied my entire childhood, which would be impressive considering you only met me a week ago."
Kiyotaka did not react to the remark.
"I am simply describing a pattern," he said calmly. "Your circumstances happen to align with it very clearly."
Sunless clicked his tongue quietly, though he continued listening.
Kiyotaka walked beside him while maintaining the same calm, analytical tone.
"However humans adapt to comfort just as easily as they adapt to hardship, which means the habits created by weakness rarely remain unchanged once strength becomes available."
Sunless frowned slightly before replying, his voice carrying a dry edge of sarcasm.
"So your grand wisdom is that people suddenly become stupid the moment their lives stop being miserable?"
Kiyotaka shook his head slowly.
"My point is that intelligence born from necessity often fades once that necessity disappears."
Sunless let out a quiet laugh that carried little actual humor.
"That might be the most depressing description of human nature I have heard today."
Kiyotaka turned his head slightly toward him.
"It also happens to be an accurate one."
Sunless stared forward for a few seconds before responding.
"You seem remarkably confident that I will suddenly become an idiot the moment I start getting stronger."
Kiyotaka answered without hesitation.
"I am saying that you rely on intelligence because strength has never been available to you, not because you consciously decided that intelligence was the better path."
Sunless felt irritation flare immediately at the certainty in those words.
The statement sounded far too confident for someone who barely knew anything about him.
Kiyotaka looked at him calmly.
"I understand patterns better than individuals, and you happen to fit one of those patterns very clearly."
Sunless slowed his steps slightly before continuing forward again.
Something about that calm certainty made him far more uncomfortable than he expected.
"And what pattern would that be?" he asked.
Kiyotaka answered without hesitation.
"The pattern of someone who survived through intelligence because strength was never an option."
Sunless scoffed quietly.
"That is a very poetic way of saying that I grew up poor."
Kiyotaka continued speaking without acknowledging the sarcasm.
"People who grow up that way eventually face a turning point once they gain power."
Sunless glanced sideways again.
"And what exactly happens at this dramatic turning point you are describing?"
Kiyotaka looked directly at him while answering.
"They begin trusting others more easily and relying less on caution because their circumstances finally allow them to feel secure."
Sunless felt his jaw tighten slightly.
"You are making a lot of assumptions about someone you barely know."
Kiyotaka's voice remained calm.
"Jet predicted something very similar when she observed you."
Sunless stopped walking for a brief moment before continuing again.
Hearing Master Jet's name irritated him far more than he expected.
"She said that someone who spent most of his life without trust might become dangerously willing to accept it once it finally appears."
Sunless felt anger rise in his chest.
"That is ridiculous," he said sharply. "I did not survive the outskirts by trusting people who smiled at me for five minutes."
Kiyotaka observed him quietly before responding.
"The Sunless who truly trusted nobody would not react emotionally to a simple prediction."
Sunless stopped walking completely and turned his head toward him.
"What exactly is that supposed to mean?"
Kiyotaka answered calmly while meeting his gaze.
"It means that my words alone were enough to make you visibly angry."
The corridor felt strangely silent around them as the statement settled in the air.
Kiyotaka continued speaking with the same steady tone.
"A week ago you carefully measured every reaction and avoided revealing anything unnecessary."
Sunless stared at him without replying.
Kiyotaka finished his observation calmly.
"Now you argue openly with someone you barely know, which suggests you already feel comfortable enough to stop hiding it."
***
Sunless clenched his teeth slightly before looking away and continuing to walk beside Kiyotaka, the irritation from their earlier conversation still lingering even though neither of them mentioned it again.
For several minutes they moved through the corridor in silence while their footsteps echoed faintly against the pale floor.
Sunless kept his hands in his pockets while staring forward, though his thoughts were far from quiet. Kiyotaka's earlier words about patterns and change continued to circle in the back of his mind in an annoyingly persistent way.
After a while he glanced sideways.
"You really enjoy analyzing people," Sunless said with a dry tone. "Do you spend all your free time predicting how others will ruin themselves?"
Kiyotaka did not react to the sarcasm.
"It is not prediction," he replied calmly. "It is simply recognizing tendencies that appear often enough to become noticeable."
Sunless scoffed quietly, but the irritation in his expression did not fade.
The conversation that followed was short and unpleasant. Sunless challenged the idea that gaining strength would make him careless, while Kiyotaka calmly repeated that habits born from hardship often disappear once those hardships fade.
Neither of them changed their opinion.
Eventually the corridor opened toward the large glass panels overlooking the training field outside.
The fading sunlight stretched across the grass beyond the glass while the two of them continued walking side by side.
Sunless exhaled slowly.
"And here I thought you were trying to fix my personality."
Kiyotaka stepped toward the exit, the evening light stretching their shadows across the floor.
"I have no interest in changing you," he said calmly. "I am simply keeping my part of the deal by telling you what can happen in the future."
***
They reached the training ground and stopped several steps apart as the evening sun stretched long shadows across the grass.
For a moment neither of them moved.
Then the shadow at Sunless' feet stirred.
The dark shape slowly peeled away from him, As the shadow spinned his hand in a circle.
Sunless glanced down at it briefly.
"Look at that... my shadow seems more motivated than I am."
He stepped back a few paces to give Kiyotaka room.
The shadow slid forward across the grass, moved behind Kiyotaka, and quietly dissolved into his shadow.
Kiyotaka finished stretching his shoulders and legs before speaking.
"So, when you watched me fight Caster, you said the movement looked like a dance. You also mentioned that it gave you the same sensation you experienced before your breakthroughs."
Sunless still carried a trace of irritation from their earlier argument, but he forced it aside and focused on the training instead. He took a slow breath and let it out.
"Yeah. It was the third time I felt that sensation. The first two times always led me to an awakening."
Sunless really didn't wanted to tell this to Kiyotaka... But the solstice was near.
Kiyotaka nodded slightly.
Without another word he began moving.
His feet started bouncing lightly against the ground, his weight shifting forward and backward in a smooth rhythm while his heels barely left the grass.
It was boxing footwork.
Sunless immediately felt it.
His shadow was merged with Kiyotaka's, the movement echoed faintly through the connection, translating into a subtle sensation in Sunless' legs
Sunless took a deep breath before following in.
He tried copying the movement.
His first hop was too high.
The second landed too heavily.
By the third he had already lost the rhythm completely.
While maintaining the steady bounce of his feet against the grass, Kiyotaka began explaining without breaking the rhythm of the movement, his body rising and falling in controlled repetition while Sunless struggled to mirror even a fraction of the same balance.
"We only have three weeks before everything changes," Kiyotaka said evenly, his feet sliding forward and back with effortless precision while the tempo remained consistent. "That is why we will focus entirely on footwork, because attacks themselves are not important right now when a Sleeper's strength already produces enough force without relying on complicated techniques."
Sunless listened while forcing his legs to copy the sensation he felt through the connection of the shadow, refusing to slow down despite the fact that his movements looked embarrassingly clumsy compared to Kiyotaka's smooth rhythm.
"Weapons, punches, kicks, all of those will eventually develop through experience once you begin fighting properly," Kiyotaka continued while maintaining the same steady bounce. "What matters first is positioning, balance, and the ability to control distance, because those are the real foundations of combat."
Sunless kept trying.
He failed repeatedly, but he never stopped attempting the movement because the embarrassment of looking ridiculous could wait until he actually stopped improving.
His feet moved correctly for two seconds before the rhythm collapsed again and forced him to reset the motion while he exhaled slowly through his nose.
"Guess this is going to take a while," Sunless muttered while trying again, his tone calm but faintly irritated.
Kiyotaka did not slow down.
Instead, while still bouncing in place, he shifted his stance mid-movement and allowed his feet to slide diagonally across the grass while his center of balance dropped slightly lower.
The rhythm immediately changed.
Sunless felt the difference through the shadow connection as the light bouncing sensation transformed into something heavier and more grounded, forcing his own body to react instinctively to the altered pattern.
The sudden shift nearly made him fall.
He caught himself with a quick step before regaining his balance, realizing that although the rhythm felt slower, it demanded far more control over his weight distribution.
He tried following it again.
His attempt still looked terrible, but the pattern itself felt easier to understand.
"I feel like this rhythm is designed for hitting someone very hard," Sunless said while adjusting his stance awkwardly.
Kiyotaka glanced at him briefly before nodding.
"Correct. This is Muay Thai footwork, which sacrifices mobility for stability so that every strike carries more weight without destabilizing the attacker."
For a while they continued moving like that across the grass, Kiyotaka sliding smoothly while Sunless butchered every step with admirable persistence.
Then, without warning, Kiyotaka spoke again while maintaining the rhythm.
"Tell me something, Sunless. Why do you think Kane did not deliver the information to Caster the moment he obtained it or immediately the next morning?"
Sunless blinked in surprise at the sudden change of topic while still trying to keep his feet moving, the mental shift colliding awkwardly with the physical concentration required to follow the pattern.
The pressure of his Flaw tightened slightly around his thoughts as the question demanded an answer.
He cursed under his breath.
"I have absolutely no idea," Sunless admitted while continuing the uneven rhythm of his steps. "For a moment I even suspected you were manipulating me instead."
Inside his mind the irritation grew sharper.
'Why the hell is he asking this while I'm trying not to trip over my own legs.'
Kiyotaka's expression remained calm as he continued the motion.
"As expected," he replied, his tone neither mocking nor disappointed. "You understand survival extremely well, but your understanding of hierarchy is still limited."
Sunless kept moving while silently cursing him.
'Right, my mistake for growing up poor instead of attending noble etiquette classes.'
Kiyotaka continued explaining without slowing his movement.
"It is simple once you consider their background, because both Kane and Caster were raised as Legacies who spent their entire lives surrounded by people beneath them."
His steps shifted slightly again, still grounded but adjusting angles across the grass.
"Kane would never sacrifice his own sleep or convenience simply to please someone else, even if that person is another Legacy, because people like him instinctively choose the moment that benefits themselves."
Sunless narrowed his eyes while attempting another step that almost ended with him stepping on his own heel.
Kiyotaka continued.
"And when we formed the Vow, you probably noticed that despite me placing two conditions, his single condition still held equal weight."
Sunless nodded slightly as pieces of the memory resurfaced.
Kiyotaka finished the thought calmly.
"That equality existed because he is a Legacy, and exposing the fact that a legacy was forced to drink filthy water while he went nearly unconscious would cause significant political embarassment for their families."
Sunless processed the explanation while continuing the uneven rhythm of his steps.
Slowly the situation from earlier began forming a clearer picture inside his mind.
He spoke after a moment.
"So the reason you pushed him that hard during the confrontation was because Caster belongs to the Han Li clan, which holds more influence than Kane's family."
He adjusted his footing while thinking aloud.
"That means even if Kane arrived late, he would never attempt to sabotage Caster, and seeing Kane in that position only pushed Caster closer to acting against you."
Inside his mind another thought surfaced.
'And Kane's footwork was terrible too... I was inside his shadow when he met Caster, and copying that mess almost made my own legs give up.'
Kiyotaka nodded slightly.
"Correct."
He continued moving while adding another calm observation.
"The only way for you to properly understand hierarchies is through direct interaction with people weaker than you, stronger than you, and equal to you, because theory alone cannot replace experience."
Sunless frowned slightly.
"You are suggesting I join some kind of organization."
"It would accelerate your understanding," Kiyotaka replied simply.
Sunless wanted to reject the idea immediately.
However a small part of him reluctantly acknowledged the usefulness of that knowledge.
'Information is information, and information keeps people alive.'
He said nothing.
Kiyotaka suddenly changed the rhythm again mid-step.
His feet loosened and began sliding in curved arcs as his stance shifted into a flowing circular motion that forced his center of gravity to constantly adjust.
Sunless felt the pattern change through the shadow connection.
He attempted copying it.
The result looked less like martial arts and more like someone trying to dance while negotiating with gravity.
His balance wobbled and he barely corrected himself before falling.
"This is definitely the worst one so far," Sunless muttered while trying again.
Kiyotaka ignored the complaint and instead asked another question while continuing the circular motion.
"Tell me something else, Sunless. Inside that medical room earlier, how much of the situation did you manage to decipher?"
Sunless frowned as the memory resurfaced while he continued struggling with the unfamiliar footwork.
His body moved poorly, but his mind worked quickly.
"The nurse Mint mirrored your emotional state almost perfectly," he said slowly while recalling the scene. "The doctor never approached you, and you suddenly falling to your Flaw created a situation that felt... staged."
He shook his head.
"None of it made complete sense."
Inside his mind the memory sharpened.
'Something about that room was completely wrong.'
Sunless continued speaking while forcing his legs through another clumsy step.
"While copying footsteps through shadows these past few days, I memorized how most workers move through the academy at specific hours, and those three definitely should not have been walking through that corridor at that time."
His eyes narrowed slightly.
"So when I noticed them moving, I assumed they were heading toward you and simply followed them through their shadows."
Kiyotaka nodded slightly as they continued moving across the grass.
"You noticed most of the irregularities," he said calmly. "However you memorized movement patterns rather than names, correct?"
Sunless grimaced slightly.
"My memory isn't perfect right now."
Kiyotaka's tone grew colder as he continued explaining.
"Those three individuals do not actually work in the academy, at least not within the Sleeper section."
Sunless nearly lost his balance when he heard that.
He recovered quickly while staring at him.
"When they entered the room, only one nurse performed the examination," Kiyotaka continued. "The other two simply observed the situation from the background."
Sunless remembered that clearly.
"And Mint's expression changed the moment she entered," he added quietly. "She walked in smiling, but that smile vanished almost immediately."
He looked toward Kiyotaka with sharper focus.
"Mint must have an Aspect that allows her to sense emotional states."
Kiyotaka nodded.
"Correct."
Kiyotaka continued the circular footwork without interrupting the rhythm, his body shifting through smooth arcs while the grass bent quietly beneath each controlled step.
"And Nurse Kath possesses an Aspect related to pleasing others," he said while his feet traced another quiet curve across the field. "That is the reason she never released my hand even after I behaved in a inappropriate manner."
Sunless stopped mid-step for a fraction of a second as the implication settled into place, his balance nearly collapsing before he forced his body back into motion.
The circular rhythm resumed awkwardly under his feet while his eyes narrowed slightly.
Kiyotaka continued speaking with the same calm tone.
"She wanted the contact to continue, which meant my behavior only made the situation easier to manage. They were not there to treat me, Sunless. They were there to notify me that the government had taken interest."
Sunless' feet slowed before stopping completely as he turned his head toward Kiyotaka with visible disbelief. His expression shifted into something sharper.
"The government does not work like that," Sunless said slowly while tilting his head. "And even if they did, how exactly would you know that was their purpose when none of them actually said a word about it?"
Kiyotaka glanced at him briefly but did not stop moving, his feet continuing the flowing pattern across the grass as though the conversation carried no urgency at all.
"Sunless," he replied calmly, "you must have already understood how my Flaw functions, and you must have noticed how deeply the events around Caster were orchestrated."
The circular motion shifted slightly, his stance turning with the ease of someone who had practiced the pattern countless times.
"Even now," he added quietly, "Caster continues to follow the direction I guided him toward."
Sunless remained expressionless while listening, though inside his mind the memory resurfaced clearly.
He had never believed that Kiyotaka collapsing in front of Caster and Cassie had been an accident.
Not even for a moment.
Kiyotaka's next words confirmed it.
Sunless exhaled slowly before answering, his tone rougher than usual while he forced his feet back into motion.
"Yeah... I figured that part out," he admitted while continuing the circular steps with uneven rhythm. "From the moment you arrived inside the dojo to the way you suddenly lost consciousness, the entire sequence felt arranged."
A flash of irritation passed through his eyes.
"And I will admit something honestly," he added. "Realizing that you planned it while pretending otherwise was incredibly irritating."
Inside his mind the thought echoed more harshly.
'Of course it was staged... the bastard never does anything without ten layers underneath.'
Kiyotaka listened without reacting.
Then he spoke again.
"If a Sleeper like you was capable of recognizing the pattern," he said calmly, "then an intelligence network operated by the government would certainly notice it as well."
His feet shifted again, the circular pattern tightening slightly as the motion grew more deliberate.
"They saw the potential value of my Aspect," he continued. "An ability that removes the possibility of betrayal is not something any structured authority could afford to ignore."
Sunless felt a quiet chill settle into his thoughts as the implication fully formed.
Inside his mind the conclusion became disturbingly obvious.
'An Aspect that eliminates betrayal...'
His expression darkened slightly while he processed the idea.
"So they noticed your schemes," Sunless said slowly while trying to maintain the circular motion beneath his feet, though his steps still stumbled occasionally. "And they decided that someone capable of planning that far ahead would certainly notice three suspicious staff members walking into a room."
He looked directly at Kiyotaka.
"You recognized that only one nurse performed the examination, that her touch strangely produced comfort, that the other nurse mirrored your emotional state, and that none of them belonged to the academy."
His eyes narrowed further.
"So answer me something honestly."
The rhythm of his movement slowed slightly.
"Did you collapse to your Flaw on purpose?"
His voice carried quiet suspicion.
"Because there is no chance they failed to investigate your Flaw as well."
Sunless could not stop thinking about the scale of what he had witnessed.
Kiyotaka had constructed that entire situation within seconds of waking up.
Even now the thought irritated him.
Kiyotaka's response came calmly.
"Yes."
His steps never faltered as he continued moving through the pattern.
"Even if they later conclude that my reaction occurred because of my Flaw, the impression will remain that I experienced pleasure when Nurse Kath maintained physical contact."
Sunless' brows lowered slightly as he listened.
Kiyotaka continued speaking in the same steady tone.
"They will review every action I have taken recently and arrive at the conclusion that I possess a strong attraction toward physical intimacy."
He stepped lightly across the grass.
"They will also notice that I frequently escort Cassie and interpret that behavior through the same assumption."
Sunless felt an unpleasant realization forming.
Kiyotaka finished the thought calmly.
"Eventually they will decide that the most efficient method of interacting with me is through Kath."
A quiet pause followed.
"Without realizing that the method they chose is exactly the one I want."
The wind brushed across the grass between them.
Sunless' eyes slowly widened as the next implication surfaced.
"So you intend to use her."
Kiyotaka nodded slightly.
"Through her I will eventually gain access to the government structure itself."
His voice remained calm.
"And once that position becomes accessible, I will decide how to proceed."
Sunless felt something between disbelief and irritation rising inside him.
Kiyotaka continued speaking while stepping lightly through the circular pattern.
"They already possessed a photograph of me despite the fact that I never submitted one to the academy records."
He paused briefly.
"They also knew that my senses had been absent for exactly seven days."
Sunless' eyes shifted instinctively toward the buildings surrounding the field.
Kiyotaka finished quietly.
"It is possible they are observing us even now through the academy surveillance systems."
Sunless stopped moving.
The rhythm collapsed completely beneath his feet as he stood still staring directly at Kiyotaka.
For several seconds he said nothing.
Then he lifted a hand to his forehead and began laughing quietly while staring down at the grass.
Inside his mind one thought repeated endlessly.
'Damnation...'
'Why did I have to meet this person.'
When the laughter faded he raised his head again and looked straight into Kiyotaka's eyes.
"So let me understand this properly," Sunless said slowly while the irritation in his voice returned. "You created a plan complicated enough to manipulate Legacies, the academy, and possibly the government itself."
He paused.
"And now involved me in this while the goverment is watching you right now."
His gaze sharpened.
"You dragged me into this."
Kiyotaka finally stopped moving.
He looked at Sunless with the same calm expression he had worn since the beginning of the conversation.
"Sunless," he said gently.
"Did you forget something important?"
For a moment the field remained completely silent.
Then Kiyotaka finished the sentence with quiet certainty.
"We are best friends."
Sunless stared at him for a moment before letting out a quiet breath.
Then he resumed the footwork.
His balance still wavered, but the rhythm lasted longer this time.
Kiyotaka watched silently.
Without realizing it, Sunless was becoming more dangerous with each passing day... Not just physically.
******
And this chapter ends.
This chapter might have some Grammar issues, I just rushed it to completion without polishing it much.
Might have been a boring chapter. Do tell me if it was boring or not.
It was mostly just a setup chapter.
Also, my cat bit me. I had to take a rabies injection, which caused me a severe headache, fever, and nausea. Life, I guess.
But hey, the next two chapters are going to be reallllllly good. Everything that has been hinted at will finally be revealed.
AND LOOK AT THIS ART MADE BY arliet3928 on Insta
[Amazing art. The first three have been edited into Dramatic Irony (1) and Dramatic Irony (2) respectively.]
Next chapter → Idk why you are asking me. I might be the author but I am dumb asf.
That's it. Peace.