The black table barely managed to bear the sack's weight, straining until it creaked. The inside of the sack glowed with its own light, subtly illuminating the naturally dark room of the storeroom. Sunny's expression relaxed as his eyes read the paragraphs of the note that came with the sack; before saying anything, he let out a deep sigh, somewhere between tired and relieved, after finishing reading.
"So?" Aiko, with her arms crossed, spoke beside him, looking at him expectantly. Still holding some tension in his face, he turned to answer her.
"I don't know what to say, really. At first, I thought it was something more worrying, given how you literally came flying in and screaming so exaggerat- "
"Floating! I don't fly; I float!" "…floating, yes. Anyway…"
He pinched the bridge of his nose with his fingers as he spoke with resignation in his voice.
"I have a strong feeling that I'm going to lose control of my life and won't be able to do anything to stop it."
He wasn't the only one worried in the room. Aiko, as unnatural as it seemed, wasn't attracted to the exorbitant amount of money in the middle of the table, even though it was just a couple of steps away or, in her case, a nudge of her Aspect from taking a discreet handful of coins. In reality, she felt intimidated, as if she were seeing something that was truly wrong with the vision before her.
"Boss, I need you to tell me something about the money… Are you sure it comes from a safe place?" Her little voice came out with slight tremors, she tensed her already intertwined arms even more, as if she were facing something truly dangerous, and threw a nervous look at Sunny.
"I know these kinds of dirty strategies well, if you ask me. You receive a large amount of money out of nowhere, they wait for you to spend at least a little and bam! They end up getting you into impossible troubles and debts. And, of course, I never did anything like that! My aunt did!"
Sunny arched an eyebrow at how suspicious that last part sounded, but he ignored that fact since he found her doubts had merit.
He nodded his head. "Yes, the money itself is clean, so there will be no problem using it. As for why I received it, I'm not so sure, actually…"
"Could you explain yourself?"
His answer didn't come immediately. In retrospect, the events weren't so simple to explain on one hand, as they were complicated on the other. Since he returned from his vagabond vacation, it was sometimes complicated to answer, but after a few breaths, he managed to construct a response that seemed convincing to him.
'Yes, that will work'.
"…it was given to me by an old acquaintance. When I first saw her, she stole my heart, you know? Well, a few days ago she visited me after a long time. I was afraid something like that would happen again or even worse. Then, one thing led to another and now I have a small fortune. Do you understand now?"
Aiko looked at him in silence with a furrowed brow.
"Nope! I didn't understand a thing, but… you say she stole your heart?" A hint of interest filtered into her voice in her question.
Sunny made a subtle nodding gesture with his head.
"That's right. I was younger back then. She took my heart as easily as if it were something she normally did with anyone else. She pulled it out of my chest and played with it before breaking it in her hand. After that, she showered me with gifts and praise, giving me some of her most prized possessions as a gift for impressing her. It was a painful experience, but I learned a lot from what happened!"
Aiko narrowed her eyelids while arching an eyebrow. Sunny tilted his head subtly.
"Is something wrong?" He said with genuine doubt.
The girl's answer didn't come immediately; she had to endure an uncomfortable look from him for a few more seconds.
"Eh… Haven't you ever thought about improving your metaphors?"
Sunny's mouth opened slowly, ready to give an answer, but before any nonsense could leave his mouth, she interrupted him.
"Forget it, please. I don't want to hear the answer... Instead, I want to hear more about that woman. From what you've told me about her, I can infer she's, at the very least, interesting. Also that she might have a few screws loose, but that's beside the point. I want to meet her and ask her a few questions."
Her eyes changed their focus, slowly turning in another direction. A gleam appeared in her eyes, now glancing sideways at the sack almost overflowing with its contents from another perspective, now that she was assured that at least the money wouldn't be dangerous for her. Inherently, she felt attracted, as if it had a magnetic effect on her.
"I'd like to owe her a few favors." She didn't even try to disguise the hunger and greed in her voice.
'That look… nothing good comes from that look,' thought Sunny with chills running down his back as he remembered the last time she had that look in her eyes. Before, he didn't even notice it, but now it was the clearest sign that things wouldn't go as he liked.
Discarding his anguish in a tired sigh.
She turned sharply towards him. Aiko was fiddling with her hair while containing the saliva in her mouth. "So, can we use our money?".
Sunny adjusted his posture, crossing his arms and narrowing his eyes, resembling a wall that explicitly expressed a "no" with its stance.
"Our? I don't see you mentioned anywhere as the owner of MY money."
The girl's playful expression shattered instantly, while at the same time slowly darkening.
She shot him a strangely hard look, considering her zero capacity to intimidate, making the wall waver. She rose, lifting into the air, floated until she was at face level with him, and grabbed him by the lapel.
Her cold gaze persisted as she maintained eye contact. With a voice as icy as her gaze, uncharacteristic of her, she spoke to him with slowness and clarity.
"Ah, yes, that's right. It's your money and I can't argue with that." The force in her wrist intensified, pressing against his neck.
"But just as I respect that, I don't want you to forget who you spend the night with, hiding in their arms, and also who allows you to have a relationship with so many freedoms that hundreds of thousands, if not millions, dream of having, you bastard."
The wall crumbled instantly.
Another wave of cold sweat covered Sunny's body. 'Damnation, I think I stepped on a landmine,' he thought in panic.
Constantly receiving that gaze that didn't diminish in intensity, his hands began to tremble with primordial fear. It was a fear so profound he thought he wouldn't feel it again after years and years of constant life- or-death struggle.
Failing to find another way out, he announced his surrender with a trembling sigh.
"A-alright, you can take some from there... Even if we spent and spent, I don't think we'd see the bottom for a long time, really, but just... don't do anything crazy, okay?"
The cold expression vanished in an instant, replaced by a bright smile. Aiko let him go and raised her arms in victory.
"Relax! It's not like I'm going to cause a worldwide economic crisis that will leave people eating synthpaste for my personal benefit!"
"Yes... Exactly, don't do anything like that, please."
After the conversation was over, each returned to their routine. The day passed without anything relevant. Beth was doing a favor for Aiko elsewhere, so it was just Sunny and her. By the afternoon, Sunny dedicated himself to forging in the same place where the safeguarded bag lay.
While he hammered the alloys on the anvil, his gaze continuously strayed towards the sack full of shining gold. Each time it did, the force in his blows faltered, losing concentration. After a bad strike and bending the blade incorrectly, he set the hammer aside. Sweat dripped from his forehead, falling onto the incandescent alloy, evaporating instantly upon contact. Placing his arms against the anvil, supporting his body, he began to review the series of questions that had been gnawing at him from time to time these past few days.
'Morgan… What is she supposed to achieve with this? I simply can't see the logic in whatever she's trying to do here. Does she really want something? Gods, in fact, I don't even have a solid basis to suspect her, but everything she does is too suspicious! But what if it's all coincidence? Damn, I'm just going in circles with this…' After letting out a long sigh he didn't know he was holding, he took the hammer back and resumed striking the blade.
The blows resonated throughout the room, with sparks illuminating his face for brief instants before going out. He couldn't concentrate fully; his mind still housed the memories of the visit he received.
He had re-read the note left with the bag several times for no particular reason. Each time he did it was a new experience; he wasn't looking for some coded or subliminal message, he just did it.
In his mind appeared the image of Morgan, or rather that of Moira. He vividly recalled her expression, the abnormal yet genuine smile she constantly gave him. It had been etched in his mind. It wasn't the questioning of Morgan's intentions that distracted him from his work; in reality, it was the insidious image of her smile that broke his concentration.
He swallowed hard at the emerging idea that caused pressure in his chest. He tried to find an explanation for why she kept appearing in his mind, and when he did, he stopped the hammering for an instant.
'No... I don't think so, but it makes sense in a way...'
'Morgan... she to me... did she...'
He swallowed once again with some difficulty and a complicated expression appeared on his face. 'Did Morgan traumatize me?'
'I mean... All her behavior was something extremely uncharacteristic of her, to the point of being disturbing. It's like one day you see your dog eating cereal sitting at the table; it's something you really don't want to experience.'
The noise of clashing metal resonated again.
'But I haven't really seen a dog either, apart from little Ling, but he isn't a dog either; he's actually a saint who transforms into a wolf. So, on what basis do I have to say a dog doesn't eat cereal at the table? Maybe they do and I'm the ignorant one about a common fact for others... and since when do I take the liberty to think so much garbage?'
He let out a laugh at his own stupidity, and wiped the sweat from his forehead with his forearm. He had taken off his clothes from the waist up a while ago; the sweat, a product of the forge's heat and his effort, covered him.
When he was finally managing to get Morgan's thoughts out of his head, his concentration was broken again.
The door to the room swung open. Instantly, his eyes moved, focusing his attention on the two figures that burst into the room.
The one who particularly caught his attention was the figure of a blonde girl who accompanied Aiko behind her.
Aiko, as soon as she arrived, turned to leave, but before crossing through the doorway, she turned to the newly arrived girl.
"He's the one you need to talk to. If you want the full service, you can look for me." She said the last part winking at her.
"Hope you enjoy it!"
"Enjoy?" Bewilderment filtered into his voice, contrasting with his cold and serene expression. Quickly closing the door behind her, she abandoned the girl.
Sunny blinked and tilted his head, left the hammer next to the anvil, postponing his work. "Excuse me, do you need something?"
The young woman turned towards him; the moment she did, her eyes widened. She witnessed Sunny's exposed skin. She gulped loudly upon seeing the snake-shaped tattoo that ran from his arms to his chest. She was completely absorbed in how the drops of sweat traveled from his pectorals to his abs.
Raising her gaze a little, she met a handsome face also covered in sweat. His long hair stuck to his skin due to the humidity, but that only served to highlight his deep obsidian eyes that watched her fixedly.
She felt heat, a lot of heat suddenly. The room was hot, burning.
The golden pupils dilated and her mouth opened enough for a curious fly to pay a visit. "Hey! Are you alright?" Sunny raised his voice.
Regaining lucidity, she blinked a couple of times before shrinking under his gaze. Her face remained just as serene and cold; instead, her eyes took care of transmitting her emotions, filtering her nervousness through them.
"Ahh… yes, yes I am…" After saying that, her gaze automatically fixed back on the mounds of his muscles.
Sunny arched an eyebrow; the girl seemed to be ignoring him while having all her attention on him. He coughed, trying to get her attention.
"You're here for something other than looking, I suppose?"
The girl's eyes jumped and trembled slightly; the muscles in her face tensed. That subtle gesture would have gone unnoticed, but not by someone as observant as Sunny.
"I'm sorry… I…"
The blonde shook her head, dispelling the confusion in her mind.
"The young lady told me you offer memory services. She told me to speak with you, sir…" "I'm Sunless, Master Sunless. And you?"
The girl's demeanor changed suddenly, adjusting her posture as if she had practiced it dozens of times, and introduced herself:
"Awakened Telle, of the White Feather."
Upon hearing the girl's introduction, his mind connected some wires. Now that he looked, some of her features seemed familiar, reminiscent of two individuals in particular.
'It's as if a man and a woman had a child… What stupidity did I just think? Of course they did, that's how it works, you damn idiot.'
"By any chance, are you the daughter of Master Roan?" "Saint." Telle replied.
"I am the daughter of Saint Roan and Saint Tyris," she said with a hint of pride. A faint and fleeting smile appeared on Sunny's face.
"Saint Roan, then."
Leaving the questions that sprang from his heart about the state of those two people in his mind for later, he focused on the potential business. Moving away from his workstation, he walked to where Telle was standing. With each step he took, Telle's eyes trembled more noticeably. As quickly as that hint of pride for naming her parents had arrived, it dissolved with every step he took.
"It's a pleasure, Lady Telle. So, tell me, what exactly are you looking for?"
Telle retreated half a step when he approached, shrank back again, played with her fingers as she spoke.
"Well, several things, actually, but… Can I know what you were doing?" She pointed with her finger, indicating the blade taking shape on the anvil.
"Ah, that thing over there, nothing special really. I'm just working on something random to keep from getting rusty. I haven't sold much lately, so sometimes I just practice my skills and…" Sunny's voice slowly faded when he realized he wasn't being listened to.
"…my eyes are up here, Lady Telle." The blonde looked up instantly.
"Y-yes!"
He looked at her, perplexed. He had to suppress a grimace born of his growing discomfort.
"Do you truly need something, my lady? If you wish for a memory, I have a few ready to sell you." Telle hesitated before answering, observing both him and the forge behind.
"Do you work with custom orders?"
"Yes, I do. I do everything, in fact; I don't limit myself to a specific area."
She nodded subtly with her head. Her eyes looked to the side; for the first time since Telle arrived at the forge, she showed a real expression on her pretty face, breaking her mask of serenity. Her cheeks colored and she furrowed her brow.
"Space…" Telle's voice came out as a whisper, almost as if talking to herself. "Excuse me?" Said Sunny, not understanding what she meant.
Squeezing her eyes shut and letting her embarrassment out completely, her cheeks finished coloring entirely. Speaking with the force of a whisper, she pleaded again.
"Space, space, please."
That's when Sunny took in the situation they were in: Telle was pressed against the wall and he was almost on top of her.
"Oh…" Escaped his lips.
Telle had been retreating and, in response, Sunny had taken another step. Trying to get closer unconsciously, without realizing the situation; he had advanced until he had the girl cornered.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable!" He said, taking a step back and waving his hands in denial.
'Damn it! Gods, I didn't look like a predator, did I? Leading a young girl into a dark room and cornering her against the wall…'
His train of thought was cut when he felt the softness of a hand on his skin. On his chest was the outstretched palm of the young Telle. She still refused to look at him.
The hand moved slowly over the area; it was slippery due to the sweat. Sunny didn't react, stunned by the sudden action of the shy Telle.
"It's okay…" Left her lips softly.
Her expression, previously impassive, had broken. It seemed in that situation she was unable to restore it. The girl, just a few centimeters shorter than him, refused to look him in the eyes.
Sunny's breath hitched, his chest tensed at the sudden touch. The words died in his mouth, both from surprise and from embarrassment.
His heart began to pump forcefully. When Telle felt the strong pulsations, she moved her hand in response towards where they came from.
Telle, as if trying to mirror it, her heart also began to jump like crazy. "I want armor, the best you can make."
The expression on her face was hidden by her golden hair; she had lowered her gaze, hiding from the smith's stare.
"The best you can make; money is not a problem."
Forcing himself to respond, Sunny spoke with all the calm he could muster, trying to sound professional: "I-I don't have many orders lately, so it should be ready in… in a little over a month..."
He took a second to breathe before continuing, trying to calm down.
"As for payment, I just need an advance after I start making it, and at the end I'll ask for the rest." The room fell into a deep silence, both of them still as statues, forgetting to breathe.
"We can discuss the matter more thoroughly another time. As you can see, I have something on my hands right now, so... that would be all."
She nodded slowly, but refused to withdraw her hand. However, she slowly raised her head. Telle seemed disappointed.
"So… that's all?".
"Were you expecting something more, Miss Telle?"
"N-no… I don't know."
The girl's hand trembled on Sunny's chest, before closing into a fist and withdrawing it.
Once Sunny was freed from Telle's touch, he was finally able to step back a few paces, almost staggering.
"I-I think I have to go. A thousand apologies."
Telle turned around quickly, grabbed the doorknob, opened it, and shot out like a bolt, but carefully closed the door behind her.
Sunny raised his arm in her direction, but when he did, Telle was already gone, leaving him standing in front of the door.
He tensed his jaw and clenched his fists.
He let out a grunt of frustration, threw a punch towards the wall. His fist traveled at full speed against the nearest wall, but stopped centimeters before his blow hit the mark.
The entire emporium shook as if afraid.
The strength in his fists waned and he let out a tired sigh, one that was becoming common in his daily life. He brought his hand to the wall, giving it a few pats.
"I'm so sorry. It's just that... These days have been complicated for me..." The house walls stopped trembling, stabilizing.
Withdrawing his hand, he now directed it to his temple, stroking it.
"By the dead gods! Why can't I find peace even in my own shadow?... Why am I a disaster with women?"
From the shadows, a chair appeared which caught him as he let himself fall backward. "Well, at least I hope she's still interested in buying the armor."