Ariandel lay down, using his hands as a pillow. Without giving it much thought, he fixed his gaze on the Starless Void, waiting. The sound of rolling waves and Cassia's presence beside him made the moment strangely relaxing.
After a while, he left his Refraction on watch and fell asleep.
-
--
---
Suddenly, he noticed a subtle change in the sound of the sea.
It was as if something had begun to move. Through the eyes of his Refraction, he saw a corner of the sky begin to shade gray. Soon, the pale glimmer of a sun peeked over the horizon.
A new day was arriving at the Forgotten Shore, bringing with it a singular spectacle. The dark sea, suddenly stirred, seemed like a living creature—desperate to avoid the light of dawn. Ariandel rose slowly, his heart pounding in anticipation, and walked to the edge of the stone platform.
He bent forward, blinked, and then knelt, gazing upon something that had until then existed only in dreams.
The sea had begun to retreat.
Slowly at first, then with greater speed, the water level dropped. The coral formation where he had taken refuge—once nearly submerged—now revealed meters of wet surface, rising from the restless waves.
As the sun climbed, the low tide reached monstrous proportions. Ariandel soon found himself at the edge of a towering cliff, with a hundred-meter drop separating him from the churning waters below.
Then, something unusual began to emerge. The black surface was pierced by sharp, crimson-red blades rising from the depths. As the sea withdrew, a forest of scarlet-red coral slowly rose, defying the vastness of the sunlit void.
The structures were colossal, dotted with irregular protrusions that intertwined and grew in chaotic directions. They looked like twisted, imposing monuments, born of primordial chaos. The maze of this reef stretched as far as the eye could see, dotted with isolated cliffs, deep chasms, and distant landscapes that defied logic.
Half an hour passed.
Ariandel, completely absorbed, watched the scene below. The sea had vanished completely. Were it not for the black seaweed clinging to the rocks and the towering scarlet coral, it would be hard to believe it had ever existed.
The small island had now become the peak of an imposing cliff, jagged and carved by time. From where he stood, Ariandel felt a mix of freedom and connection to something vast and unknowable.
As night fully gave way to morning light, he allowed himself an exclamation:
"This is simply fantastic!"
***
Sunless stored something in an improvised backpack made of black seaweed and looked at the sun.
The day was still young. He had a good chance of reaching the distant hill before the sea returned. However, his left leg—wounded during the fight with the carcass beast—was slowing him down. Gritting his teeth, he began to limp.
Hours passed.
Due to his bruises and the need to stay alert, his progress had slowed considerably. Sweat trickled down his face as he battled the pain of each step. To make matters worse, the labyrinth's paths grew more confusing and tangled. Even with the shadow's help, he often had to backtrack, struggling to stay on the right course.
'Damn, damn, damn...'
If nothing changed, Sunless wouldn't reach his goal—and that meant he'd be crushed by the returning tide.
Determined not to give in to despair, Sunless tried to walk faster. But he couldn't rush too much: a wrong turn could cost him precious minutes, and he needed to stay alert for potential deadly ambushes.
"Curses!"
Just as desperation began to take hold, the shadow saw something that caught his attention, leaving him momentarily stunned.
Farther ahead, beyond a few bends, the coral widened, forming a small clearing.
At its center, a figure walked through the mud.
The first thing Sunless noticed was her fair skin, visible through the openings of a simple tunic. The tall and agile girl wore a cloak the color of sea waves, flowing softly around her without hindering her movements. With a serene expression, she stopped and looked back. The wind played with her short, silvery hair.
It was Nephis, the Star of Change.
Right behind her, the flowery bastard followed with a calm that felt out of place in such a deadly environment.
He wore a white-gray sleeveless tunic, elegantly cut and cinched at the waist by a simple cloth belt. Wrappings bound his forearms and shins as he walked barefoot.
He guided Cassia, the blind girl, by the hand. Despite her blindness, she moved forward with surprising confidence, her staff in the other hand merely assisting her stride, as if Ariandel's firm yet gentle guidance was all she needed.
The gray sky, black mud, and crimson sea formed a surreal backdrop, where three beautiful figures walked through the maze. They looked like characters from a painting Sunless wished he could paint—if only he were an artist. But he soon pushed the daydream away—there were people there! Maybe they knew how to reach the tall hill and escape the deadly tide.
Despite his antisocial nature and the poor reputation he'd built, Sunless knew he could be useful. With that hope in mind, he hid in the shadows and observed the group, preparing to approach them.
Ariandel exchanged a glance with Nephis and then stopped. "So..." he said, before looking to the sky and continuing, "Do you think we should go back?"
There was a brief silence before she blinked and replied:
"Yes."
Sunless found their exchange amusing.
'Is she the strong and silent type?'
Then he returned to his own dilemma and grimaced.
'How the hell do I approach them? Damn it... why is this so hard? Just go over and say hi!'
But just as Nephis began to move again, Ariandel turned and looked directly at the spot where Sunless was hiding.
With a polite smile and a slightly casual tone, he asked:
"Sunless, would you like to come with us?"
He felt his blood freeze.
The sound of the words still echoed in his mind, as if the world had paused for a moment.
'Sunless, would you like to come withus?'
His heart skipped a beat.
'How! How did Ariandel know? I'm well hidden!'
Sunless clenched his fists and held his breath, trying to decide whether to run or face the situation.
Nephis stopped walking. Her posture, almost imperceptibly, grew more rigid. Her gray eyes turned slightly toward Ariandel's gaze, scanning the surroundings, though her face remained expressionless.
Cassia, on the other hand, turned her head toward the voice, a gentle surprise etched on her angelic features.
"Sunless?" she said calmly, but with unmistakable curiosity.
He swallowed hard. His Flaw only heightened his panic.
"You know him?" Nephis asked Cassia directly, but without emotion.
The modestly beautiful girl gave a small nod.
"Yes. He used to sit at the same table as us in the dining hall... before all of this began."
Sunless saw a shadow of recognition pass over Nephis's impassive face, but she said nothing.
That was when the pain of his Flaw became unbearable. He should respond—but what to say? How to approach someone like her, especially someone who already knew he was there?
"Ah..."
His voice faltered for a moment.
He cleared his throat, trying to sound calmer than he felt.
"Yes... it's me."
Ariandel's smile widened, as if his initial question hadn't been completely disconcerting.
His mystical eyes gleamed with something Sunless couldn't quite decipher.
"So will you come?"
Sunless felt blood pulsing in his temples. Why did it feel so hard to simply agree? After all, it wasn't like he had any other choice.
And yet, the tension in the air was palpable, even in the face of that otherworldly, affable calm of the always-strange flowery bastard.