Based off their individual fights with Mordret. Who is stronger, Nephis or Ki Song?
--
Smoke curled into the night sky, carried by the wind that swept through the forest. A massive fire roared in the centre of a clearing, its flames licking hungrily at the spit-roasted carcass suspended above. The scent of sizzling meat and seared spices filled the air, rich and intoxicating.
Sunny stood beside the fire, his pale hair tied up, tinged orange by the glow. His hands worked methodically, brushing a quick layer of seasoning over the browned flesh. A mix of crushed herbs, coarse salt, and dried peppers clung to the surface, sinking into the little amounts of fat as it crackled under the heat.
A crude blade, far behind the ones Sunny used for battle in all respects lay beside him on a makeshift wooden table. Nearby, a stack of split bones and discarded sinew glistened in the firelight. He had gutted and butchered the horse with brutal efficiency, stripping it down to the most useful cuts before impaling the body on a reinforced spit.
With a flick of his wrist, he turned the spit, allowing the meat to cook evenly. Juices dripped into the fire below, sending up bursts of fragrant smoke. His eyes remained fixed on the roasting flesh, scanning for any inconsistencies in the cooking process.
The night behind him was silent, despite the women watching the process with almost addicting gazes, save for the occasional rustling of distant leaves and the rhythmic crackling of the fire. A shadow shifted behind him, Clara's. Watching patiently.
"How much longer?" She whispered, staring over his shoulder with a barely restrained smile as she took in his scent along with the meat's. She was close, too close for most men to be comfortable and not react. Yet Sunny didn't show a visual reaction as his eyes remained fixed on the food.
"Not long, this won't take long at all." Sunny muttered, dragging a chunk of roasted fat between his fingers before tasting it. A slight hum of approval followed. "I wish he would taste me like tha—" The voice responsible for the statement was quickly shut up. Lucky that Sunny's focus was elsewhere.
As he finished, he quickly handed out paper plates, filled with cuts of horse meat on them as he took his own piece. Each of them thanked him, their eyes glimmering with barely restrained greed as none of them wanted to be the first one to dig in.
That was until Sunny began eating feverishly. As he took the first bite, all hell broke loose.
Quiet conversations took place under the moonlight, Sunny continued to wear a small smile at the company as he stared at the fire with a wistful gaze. Eubin took her opportunity to sit next to him, placing herself on his left. Nephis, not wanting to lose out any further than Eubin did sat at his right, both careful not to touch him.
"How did you light the fire? I don't really remember bringing lighter fluid." Eubin asked quietly, Sunny stared at her for a moment before smiling brightly. Pulling out one of his knives, he ran his finger across the edge, drawing a light line of blood that quickly healed before turning to her.
"I put charcoal on the blade, then I swung hard enough till it caught fire." He explained, Eubin stared at him with a shocked expression as her jaw remained slightly agape. "Don't say that like it's easy!" She exclaimed, eliciting a laugh from Sunny as he quickly returned to his food.
"If you beg me long enough, I'll teach you how to do it. It's all about the speed." He mumbled between bites, almost moaning at how good he prepared the meal. Both Eubin and Nephis shared a quiet laugh at his expression as he finished eating, already moving to take another meal.
As he made his way there, he paused, as though something had occurred in his mind that he had forgotten. Walking away from the crowd, Sunny took off his food smelling shirt as he stretched his body. His hatred for mirrors still remained, so he would need someone else to confirm his suspicions.
Walking back, he noticed everyone's heads snap in his direction, a unanimous blush arose on all their faces as they gazed at his form for a moment before Clara spoke. "It's scary too because he actually does have the stamina to satisfy us all." Her voice was a low whisper, directed to Jessica and yet in the silence everyone heard her.
Sunny placed a hand over his face, which had turned bright red from the statement before turning around, refusing to meet Clara's eyes as he tried to compose himself. "You're not prepared for what he has to offer, trust me." This time, it was Nephis who spoke surprisingly.
Her attempt to cut through the awkward wall she had built between herself, and the Song sisters seemed to have succeeded as a resounding laugh echoed through the clearing. Eubin stared at Nephis for a moment, her glare flickering in and out of existence as she studied her for a moment.
"And I heard you were limping afterward, so you clearly weren't prepared either." She commented, her voice neutral as another resounding laugh echoed across the field. Sunny felt like disappearing for a moment as the blush he held on his face made him resemble a tomato more than a human.
After about thirty minutes, the barrage of innuendo finally ended. Leaving Sunny with a light blush still lingering across his face as he finally found himself with the ability to speak coherently. Each and every one of them focused on his form intently, Eubin wiping drool off her lip as he began speaking.
"Does anyone notice anything different about my body?" He asked, his voice tentative and uncertain as he looked around for their opinions. Surprisingly, each and every one of them began nodding. He himself hadn't been able to notice it, maybe due to his lack of mirrors but that was besides the point.
"You've been steadily getting more muscular or no, that isn't it. Your body is becoming more perfect, you're healing way faster too." Eubin commented, based off her knowledge of the Immortal Flame's experiments, his body was going to reach the limit of what was physically possible when he reached eighteen.
"I'd have to test that." Sunny mumbled, pulling out a knife before slicing off his entire hand in a single motion. It wasn't a major wound, it would heal in a few days, but the pain was still there, no matter how dull it was. Everyone watched the scene with horror as blood escaped from Sunny's hand for a split second.
But then, something odd happened. His entire hand, bones and all began regrowing rapidly till eventually his left hand had regrown without any traces or differences. Flexing his arm, Sunny stared at it with a curious expression. Usually, it would take him at least a week to heal that. But now, it took moments.
Staring at his discarded appendage, Sunny noticed Eubin walk up to him before she slapped him directly across the face. His head turned slightly, confused at the sudden source of her rage before she sighed and threw his hand into the fire.
"Stop fucking hurting yourself, I don't care if you can't feel it. It's a bad habit." She barked, her voice firm as though speaking to a child. Sunny cocked his head to the side, confused at the sudden outburst before running his hand across his cheek. "Is this what it's like for someone else to worry about your safety?"
His question was quiet, yet everyone caught it. Nephis moved to speak but was quickly silenced by a glare from Jessica as she took the opportunity feverishly. "Yes, it is. It doesn't matter how many times we need to hammer it into your thick, handsome skull. We'll keep caring." She proclaimed, receiving cheers of agreement from all present.
Sunny smiled; his smile directed at Eubin completely which ripped her anger from her soul as she mirrored a smile back to him. "Hm, that felt better than I imagined it would be." Sunny muttered under his breathe as Eubin's smile quickly became mischievous. "That's what your into? Duly noted."
As Sunny sat down once more, allowing minutes to fade into hours as each of them spoke until midnight, Sunny could only smile brightly at the scene. 'So, this is it, this is the fate that Morgan, Anvil, Asterion, Immortal flame, all of them didn't want me to have. I simply don't understand how a fate can be coveted so selfishly yet be so beautiful when shared.'
Soon enough, the group all prepared to sleep, readying themselves for the next day. Sunny stretched slightly, working off the stiffness from sitting down extensively as he clapped his hands to gain the group's attention.
"I'll say this before you sleep. I'm really grateful for all of you...no matter what you've done to me." He stated with a glance at Nephis.
"And I'm sure you've all already realised this, but I'll say it anyway. Tomorrow, we'll be taking over our first Citadel."