Tessai was kept in the dungeon beneath the Bright Castle. Unlike Harus, who had undoubtedly committed several heinous crimes and sins — enough to warrant a merciless execution at the hands of Sunless — he was still considered a competent, if a tad bit maniacal, leader of the Castle Guard.
Nico, however, was hard-pressed to agree. The giant had all but tried to instigate a mass slaughter between both the outer settlement and former Host. Even after enduring the torture of having his mind pervaded by Nico's Devil, he refused to submit. He refused to serve anyone except the late Gunlaug or himself.
Too dangerous to be allowed free, and too human to be simply killed, Nico had proposed he be imprisoned for now. In order to guarantee his stay, Shaman was placed as the guard, corrupting his thoughts whenever his cold Aspect began to arouse.
No day went by when he was unguarded. No day passed where the glowering man escape.
No day, but today, would Nico offer to set him free.
***
Tessai sat hunched on a bench at the back of his cell. He glared at the wraith in front of him — the unmoving silhouette of a ghostly human with flames for eyes.
It stared back at him.
Failure stared back at him.
Because, for twelve long years, he had been trapped in this forsaken land. Most people glossed over it. Most people never paid much attention to the fact Tessai was twenty-eight turning twenty-nine. All it meant was that he was older, stronger, and more knowledgeable than most if not all of his comrades.
But for the giant himself… it still meant nothing. He had been here the longest, and as a result he had given up hope too long ago to remember. All that was left was an empty hole that he refused to acknowledge, buried under a timeless well of servitude, a desire for menial comfort, and a hatred directed at those beneath him.
Like those rats in the outer settlement.
Or that wench, Changing Star.
Or Nico, that insufferable weasel whose only strength was his Echo.
Oh, how he loathed him. Nico, who had only shown up two years ago. Nico, who had become a lieutenant without even wanting to. Nico, who had done the jobs of experienced Hunters, Artisans, and his very own Castle Guard without problem.
Then, he did Harus' job better than him too, slaughtering both the Bright Lord and butcher on the day his ally was supposed to die.
Tessai's calloused hands clenched. His muscles strained against his tunic. His icy-blue eyes bore into the bars ahead of him with vitriolic anger.
'Without an ounce of desire…'
Perhaps that fact was what made him so angry. Aside from the humiliation, envy, and wrath, he was indignant that someone so far beneath him could achieve everything he'd wanted without a shred of the resolve it took him to struggle for it.
"Fate can be cruel."
A dull, deep voice dispersed the man's thoughts.
Betraying no surprise, Tessai's cruel eyes refocused.
Standing tall with statuesque features and broad shoulders, Nico was looking down at the former lieutenant. Wild, untamed hair cascaded down his shoulders. Rivers of water flowed through his eyes.
Tessai's face contorted savagely. He rose even higher than Nico, towering down as he spat:
"What did you say?"
Nico didn't flinch or move. He waited a moment, then blinked and said:
"I'm here to set you free."
The giant's face split into a menacing scowl. He charged forward and threw a hand against the bars, bending one out of shape with his monstrous strength.
"Don't you dare mess with me, brat! I'll tear you apart before that pathetic Echo can stop me! I'll tear apart you and the rest of the filth out there!"
"I wonder, then, if you were so averse to subordination, why did you follow Gunlaug?" Nico mused. "Was it respect? Inferiority? Hopelessness?" The flame of a nearby torch flickered beside him, casting deep shadows across the weathered stone walls. Tessai squinted, his grip tightening. "Indifference? Complacency? Greed?"
A ghost of a smile crept onto his face. It was unnatural and eerie.
"Or something more esoteric — perhaps your Flaw."
Tessai's brow twitched. He exhaled with a hiss of vapor. The bent portion of the bar finally snapped, his clenched hand frosty and tinged blue.
"So it is," Nico confirmed, watching the cold, shattered piece of iron clatter to the ground and dew. "No matter."
The increasingly frigid space became warmer as Nico pulled one of the torches off the wall and held it in front of him.
"We will be attacking the Crimson Spire not long after the solstice. I need to take my Devil off of guard duty for a very important task, and your impudence is hindering my plans. I can no longer expend time watching over you."
The temperature dropped several degrees. Nico's head tilted, observing the pitiful state of the cramped cell.
"You're powerful. Your core is fully saturated. You're a warrior with an Aspect whose use is palpable."
He locked eyes with the simmering giant.
"I want to bring you to the battlefield. If you believe that working with Changing Star is beneath you, then think of it as serving me—"
"You think I'll serve under a pathetic whelp like you either?!" Tessai bellowed, a ferocious grin twisting his defined features as he snarled and laughed. "At least Gunlaug was human! You're a freak! An emotionless—"
Tessai stuttered. Gasping, his body twitched, and he fell to one knee, desperately clutching the bars with both hands and trying to keep the world from spinning.
"That I am."
Tessai felt his head forcefully tilted up. Nico had crouched down next to him, and their faces were inches apart — torch flame hot against his cheek.
He could see the bottomless depths of the man's sparkling eyes clearly.
They were like the open sky. Like the clear ocean. Like the purest, shiniest blue diamond.
And there was a strange sense of… empathy in them.
It was like he understood what the dreary man was feeling. More than that, he felt it too.
"You forget yourself. I had too. But now, you must remember that we aren't beasts. We are civilized men, and here, we are all working towards one goal. To that end, you will follow me, do what I ask, and use your strength to ensure your own return to the waking world — penalty by death."
Letting his head fall gently, Nico stood and ordered Shaman to release him.
The roots of his soul spread outward. He grabbed two opposing bars, easily bending them and the ones next to them out of shape. The gap was large enough so that even a man like Tessai could walk through.
The former lieutenant slowly rose. Dark emotions nestled deep within his eyes.
Still, he didn't spit vile words or attack.
Tessai leveled him a long stare, ducked, and stepped out into the corridor, the image of those strange eyes bearing into him looped end on end.