The shadow Devil and the mangled girl stared at each other for awhile. Sunny raised one of his four hands and palmed his face.
"…So, you knew I was me the whole time, and not once did you think… I don't know… that you should have said something?!"
Veliona scratched the back of her head, glaring at him with a singular eye.
"Why wouldn't I know that you're you? You're the weird one for not recognizing me."
Somehow, it seemed that she had previously assumed that Sunny had already realized her identity when they first met. Considering how he was practically ignoring her the whole time, how she didn't realize the truth was beyond him…
'Well, at least she isn't stupid enough to not catch a hint.'
At the very least, Veliona now understood that Sunny never recognized her in the first place, so that didn't need to be explained.
What did need to be explained, however, was how she figured out that the four-armed Devil was Sunny in the first place!
"Huh? Hey, where are you putting your—!"
Veliona recoiled when four Devilish limbs began to encapsulate her.
***
A few seconds later, Sunny had placed himself behind Veliona, locking her arms with his upper pair of limbs, and locking her legs with his lower. Considering how large his body was, it wasn't too difficult to restrict her despite her struggles.
She had said that he either had to explain his plan or die. Naturally, she was completely willing to assist him with the latter. As such, since Sunny had to figure out some things without having to worry for his life, he had to restrain her.
"Let me go!"
Sunny sighed as he sent a cautious glance at her fingers. Despite all the horrors he was forced to confront in this maddening Nightmare, he still has not seen a weapon as deadly as Veliona's fingertips… or any weapon she chooses to wield, for that matter.
Not that she's particularly great at swinging a weapon around, but his point still stands.
After a couple of moments of deep contemplation, Sunny nodded in understanding as he pushed her away, diving through the shadows to avoid a swipe. He sent her a disdainful look as she huffed and turned away, dissatisfied.
'What a psycho…'
Sunny looked off towards the distance, wondering why the first person he encountered — and second, technically — were Seele and Veliona. Practically anyone else would have been more helpful.
Either way, he had at least deciphered how Veliona had been able to recognize him. He could be wrong, but he guessed that the 'lines' that she tends to talk about must have been identical between his real body and his Devil body. In any case, that still didn't explain why she found it so strange that he couldn't recognize her.
Sunny glanced at her again, trying to decide whether she was more trouble restrained or left to her own devices. Honestly, neither option seemed particularly appealing.
"…You're a pain."
Veliona clicked her tongue.
"And you're slow."
He gave her a flat stare, then waved one of his hands dismissively.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
She shifted her weight, hugging her knees like she wasn't just a mangled mess seconds ago.
"I mean you're slow. I thought you were ignoring me on purpose. Didn't think you actually couldn't tell who I was."
Sunny frowned.
"How the hell would I have recognized you, exactly? Completely different body, remember."
Veliona smirked, though it came out a bit bitter.
"Of course I don't. I'm not Seele."
That answer didn't help much. His scowl deepened.
"You're not making sense."
She rolled her eye, then tapped her temple.
"It's obvious if you think about it. I only see things one way now."
She paused, frowning.
"When the hell did you get extra arms? I thought the only change you had were the fake fingers."
Sunny hesitated.
"…Wait. You mean you're blind? And, uh… I'm a Devil now. I got put into its body."
Veliona gave a humorless chuckle.
"So that's why you felt so tall. I knew there was something wrong… and yeah, I can't see normally anymore."
Sunny tilted his head, trying to process that. No wonder she recognized him despite his body being so different — if she only saw those damned lines, then of course she'd know.
But before he could say anything, Veliona's expression darkened. Her voice dropped low.
"And Seele? She's not here. We're not in the same body anymore. I don't know where she is."
Sunny froze, his thoughts grinding to a halt.