The sun still hadn't dared to peek over the horizon of the Dark City when the sound of steel clashing against steel broke the morning silence. Ash stood, breathing controlled and sword at the ready, facing a figure that seemed made of marble and determination: Nephis.
"Is this really necessary?" Ash asked, adjusting his grip on his weapon. "I can barely see my own feet, and you already want me to try not to die?"
Nephis didn't change her posture. Her clear eyes evaluated him with that intensity that always made him feel like he was under a microscope.
"Danger doesn't wait for the sun to rise, Ash. Training while tired is the only way to know how you'll react when your life hangs by a thread," she replied with a serene voice. "Again."
Ash nodded, accepting the reality of their situation. Without further ado, he lunged at Changing Star.
The combat was fluid. Ash was no longer the same lost boy who had arrived at the Labyrinth; his experience in real battles had polished the rough edges of his movements. Although Nephis was still superior in pure technique — each of her parries was perfect and every thrust calculated to the millimeter — Ash compensated for that gap with chaotic creativity. He used the environment, changed the rhythm of his attacks unexpectedly, and made feints that tested even Nephis's reflexes.
After half an hour of incessant exchange that left them both covered in a thin layer of sweat, Nephis lowered her sword.
"Enough," she declared.
They both sat on the stone ground, letting their muscles relax. Ash searched through his belongings and pulled out the Endless Spring, handing it to Nephis. She took it and drank gratefully, letting the cool water quench her thirst before returning it.
After a moment of silence, Nephis glanced at him sideways.
"So... what did you discover last night in that gaming hall?" she asked, resuming her role as strategic leader.
Ash let out a small laugh and began to recount the events. He told her about Andel, about the broken nose from the day before, about the desperate Jubei, and how he ended up emptying everyone's pockets. But when he got to the final part, Nephis blinked, bewildered.
"Wait..." she interrupted. "You're telling me you won eighty fragments and left a Gunlaug hunter ruined... simply by throwing the cards that looked 'prettier'?"
Ash puffed out his chest with genuine pride, with no trace of irony.
"Exactly. I already told you, I fully trust the heart of the cards," he replied with complete seriousness. "If a card has an elegant drawing, it's most likely a good sign. It's pure intuition."
Nephis fell silent, looking at him as if trying to find hidden logic in his words. Finally, she shook her head, rubbing the bridge of her nose with a gesture of absolute bewilderment.
"It's a miracle you're still alive, Ash," she murmured, though a shadow of a smile passed through the corner of her lips.
"Luck, Nephis. Some are born with technique, others are born with a lucky star."
---
As the sun began to tinge the ruins of the Dark City with a dying orange, the atmosphere changed. Ash stopped joking about his cards. His body tensed and his gaze — those yellow eyes that seemed to shine with their own light in the twilight — fixed on an uncertain point among the collapsed buildings.
His Sleeper Ability was reacting. It wasn't just a sense of direction; it was a strange bond that allowed him to trace a route toward whatever he desired. And at that moment, upon desiring an encounter with danger, the trail of abominations lit up in his mind like a brand of fire. He could feel them: their weight, their direction, and that bloodlust they emanated.
"Nephis, something is coming," Ash said, his voice losing all trace of humor. "It's coming from the ruins. I can't pinpoint its rank or class from here, but it's big."
Changing Star's expression changed instantly. The relaxation of rest evaporated, replaced by an icy seriousness. She stood up with a fluid motion, drawing her sword.
"Let's go," she decreed. "We can't let it get closer to our shelter. We need to deal with it now."
Ash let out a resigned sigh, rubbing the back of his neck.
"Not even a second breakfast?" he complained, but after meeting Nephis's cutting gaze, he raised his hands in surrender. "Okay, okay. Let's go kill the morning monster."
They descended from the elevated plateau cautiously. Their shelter — that house patched with rotten wood scraps and loose stones that they had made their home — was left behind as they ventured into the stone labyrinth of the city. The echo of their boots on the rubble was the only sound to be heard.
After a few minutes of tense advance, Ash raised his hand to stop the group.
"It's there," he whispered, pointing toward a block of collapsed buildings. "About a hundred meters ahead, straight ahead. It moves fast."
He didn't have to say more.
From the shadows of an ancient plaza, the creature emerged with a heavy stride that made the ground vibrate. Its appearance was a biological nightmare: the front part resembled a deformed wolf with dislocated jaws, but the rest of its body transformed into a mass of jointed legs, like those of a giant insect, moving with disturbing coordination. It stood at least three meters tall, and its skin had the color of rotten flesh.
Nephis tightened her grip on her sword, her voice barely a firm whisper.
"That size... that presence... It's, at minimum, a Fallen Beast. Get ready, Ash."
The creature let out a howl that ended in a metallic screech, fixing its multiple eyes on them.
---
The confrontation exploded in the blink of an eye. The Fallen Beast charged with a speed that defied its enormous size, its multiple legs clattering against the shattered pavement like a burst of hammer blows.
"Now!" Nephis shouted.
Ash lunged forward, becoming a living distraction. He knew he couldn't beat that thing in a brute force clash, so he trusted his reflexes. He slid between the creature's legs, provoking it with quick attacks that barely scratched its tough skin but managed to keep its multiple eyes fixed on him. The abomination lunged with ferocious bites, its wolf jaws snapping inches from Ash's throat.
The battle was frenetic. Unlike Awakened beasts, this creature possessed a malevolent intelligence; it anticipated movements and adjusted its center of gravity with its additional legs.
In a desperate move to create an opening, Ash feigned a stumble. The beast didn't waste the opportunity and lashed out with a sideways claw. Ash twisted his body in the air, but he wasn't fast enough: one of the claws tore across his cheek, leaving a line of crimson fire on his face. However, the sacrifice worked. The beast was extended, exposing the side of its neck.
"Nephis!" Ash roared, his mouth full of the taste of iron.
Changing Star appeared like a ray of white light on the creature's back. Her sword descended with terrifying precision, imbued with icy determination. The blow went straight to the base of the skull, piercing through flesh and bone with a dull crack. The abomination shook violently one last time before collapsing, raising a cloud of dust and debris.
Ash tried to stand, but the world began to spin. His legs failed him, and he fell to his knees, his breathing ragged.
"What... what's happening?" he managed to say before letting out a violent cough.
A clot of dark, thick blood hit the ground. Ash's eyes widened at the color; it wasn't bright red. That thing's claws had poison, a type of paralyzing toxin that was already beginning to chill his veins.
Nephis didn't waste a second. She knelt beside him and placed her hands on his shoulders. Immediately, her white flames began to burn, but this time not to destroy, but to purify. Ash gritted his teeth as he felt the searing heat of Nephis's light coursing through his bloodstream, burning the poison and closing the wound on his cheek until only a thin scar remained.
The dizziness subsided. Ash took a great gulp of air, feeling life return to his limbs.
"Thanks..." he whispered, looking at Nephis with sincere gratitude. "You saved my life again."
She nodded slightly, though her gaze had already shifted to the beast's corpse. With a practical movement, they extracted the soul fragment; it was large and shone with the intensity of a Fallen class, a small fortune in terms of power.
"It was a Fallen Beast," Nephis said, her voice returning to its usual calm. "But there was no Memory. Not even an Echo."
Despite her neutral tone, Ash could notice the slight shadow of frustration on her face. In the Dark City, every confrontation with something so dangerous was a gamble; winning only a fragment after nearly dying from poison felt like an incomplete victory.
---
Ash finished wiping the remnants of black blood with his sleeve, still feeling a slight tingle where Nephis's flames had purified his skin. Silence reigned again in the ruins, interrupted only by the crunch of rubble under their feet.
"Are there any other abominations nearby?" asked Nephis, keeping her hand on her sword pommel, her senses still alert.
Ash closed his eyes for an instant, letting his ability expand through the ruined alleys. The invisible network of his instinct detected no immediate hostile presence.
"No. The closest one is a few kilometers from here," he replied, opening his eyes. "Apparently, this nightmare creature had been in a fight or was so hungry it didn't care about throwing itself at the first thing that appeared before it. Which do you think is the right answer?"
Nephis didn't respond immediately. In her hand, the Fallen-rank soul fragment shone one last time before she crushed it, absorbing its essence with relentless efficiency. Her expression didn't change, but the air around her seemed to vibrate for a second at the influx of power.
"Whatever it was, it doesn't matter," she said with her usual pragmatism. "It's dead now."
Ash lowered his gaze to the beast's deformed corpse. Its multiple legs were now rigid, and its jaws — which had nearly torn off his head — hung inert. Despite the danger, Ash's stomach emitted a slight rumble of protest, reminding him that his "second breakfast" had been canceled by the battle.
"We're not going to eat that, are we?" he asked cautiously, looking at the monster's grayish flesh.
Nephis gave him a brief, almost incredulous look.
"No. It has poison," Changing Star replied dryly.
"Right. I forgot the detail that I almost died five minutes ago," Ash murmured, scratching the back of his neck with a somewhat forced smile. "So, do we go back?"
He looked at his companion, waiting for the order. Nephis scanned the horizon one last time, evaluating the shadows of the buildings that were beginning to lengthen with the morning light. After a few moments of silence, she nodded slightly.