The Spell whispered in his mind:
[You have slain a dormant human, Han Li Caster.]
[Your shadow grows stronger!]
A strange emptiness settled in Sunny's chest, but he pushed it aside. He turned away, stepping back into the ruins, his mind already shifting to the next battle.
He had to return to the Gateway. The others should have made it inside by now. He moved swiftly, his shadows slithering around him. As he ran, his mind was drawn to the lingering sensation of the Spell's touch. Something had changed. His attributes.
Frowning, he pulled up his status screen. His eyes scanned through the familiar details - until they landed on something new.
[Soul Conduit: Only one may pass.]
Sunny came to a sudden stop.
Only one may pass.
His breath hitched. His fingers clenched.
He read it again, hoping, praying, that he had seen wrong.
But the words did not change.
His heart pounded as he turned toward the looming tower in the distance. Toward Nephis. She had to know. She had to have felt it too. A bitter, sinking feeling twisted in his stomach.
There was only one way this could end.
By the time he reached the top of the tower, Nephis was waiting for him. She stood before the Gateway, her white armor dimmed by the crimson glow of the Spire. Her blade rested in her hand, but she did not raise it... yet.
Their eyes met. No words were needed. The truth was already written in both their gazes.
Finally, Sunny broke the silence. "Only one of us can go back."
Nephis didn't flinch. She merely nodded, as if she had already accepted it.
"I won't let you stay behind," he said, his voice low and firm.
Her fingers tightened around her sword. "Neither will I."
A gust of wind howled through the ruins, carrying with it the distant echoes of battle. The weight of fate pressed down on them both.
There was nothing left to say.
Under the tower, Lost from Light and Changing Star prepared their blades.
------
Their swords met in a flash of steel, the force of the impact sending sparks into the air.
Sunny attacked relentlessly, pushing forward, forcing Nephis back. She blocked each strike effortlessly, her movements precise and controlled.
But there was something wrong.
'She's not fighting at full strength.'
His eyes narrowed as he pressed harder, faster, forcing her to parry and dodge. He landed a blow against her shoulder, forcing her back another step. And still, she did not strike back with everything she had.
Sunny gritted his teeth. "You're holding back."
Nephis didn't answer, but he could see it now. The slight hesitation in her movements, the fraction of a second where she could have countered but didn't. She wasn't trying to win.
His anger flared. "Fight me."
Nephis hesitated for only a moment. Then, finally, she moved with real intent.
Flames erupted around them as she surged forward, her sword a blur. Sunny barely managed to parry in time. The force of her strike sent him skidding back, his arms aching from the impact. He had fought Nephis before.
But this was different.
This was the Changing Star.
Their battle raged beneath the shadow of the tower, the ground beneath them cracked and broken. Sunny fought with everything he had, shadows twisting around him, his body strengthened by his own stolen power. Nephis met him strike for strike, light clashing against darkness.
But she wasn't fighting to win. She was fighting to lose.
And that was why, in the end, Sunny defeated her.
Nephis fell to one knee, her sword slipping from her grasp. She was breathing hard, her face pale. Sunny stood over her, his own body trembling from exertion. He had won. But it didn't feel like victory.
She looked up at him, and for the first time in a long time, she smiled. A quiet, tired smile.
'Why.. Why are you smiling at me like that?!'
His grip on the Moonlight Shard tightened. "Why?"
Nephis exhaled softly, the dim glow of her flames flickering around her before vanishing entirely. "Because this is the only way."
The only way.
Sunny's mind raced. He thought back to the moment he checked his attributes.
The Soul Conduit.
The realization that had hit him like a blade to the gut.
Only one of them could leave.
It had to be him.
Nephis had known that from the start.
Or rather, she had wanted it to be him that left.
His heart pounded in his chest, a terrible weight settling in his stomach. "You planned this."
Nephis only painly smiled.
Sunny took a step back. "No."
Nephis stayed on the ground, looking at him. "Leave me Sunny. Please, Leave."
The weight in his chest twisted into something sharp, something painful. He had spent his entire life fighting, clawing his way up from the abyss. He had survived impossible odds.
And now, she was asking him to just accept this?
"No." He shook his head, his head looking at the floor. "I don't want to."
Nephis opened her eyes and looked up at Sunny with a pained expression.
"Go, Lost from Light."
Before Sunny could react, before he could move, he felt it.
An unbearable pain erupted in his chest, deep and consuming, as if his very soul was being torn apart. His knees buckled, his vision darkening. A familiar, all-consuming force gripped his body, shackling him in place.
She had spoken his True Name.
"H-How.. How do you..."
Sunny was in complete shock. How had someone found out his True Name?
"How did I know? ...Cassie told me."
Neph sighed and looked away.
"She was the first one to understand the meaning of her vision. She knew that the two of us will end up fighting each other, and that I was gonna lose. Maybe even die. She just didn't know how, when and why. So, Cassie told me your secret, in hopes that it will save my life one day. But I... hoped that I would never have to use it.
Sunny stared at her, too shocked to say anything. She smiled sadly.
"So then. I guess... I guess this is goodbye. Ta... I hope you'll take care of yourself, Sunny. Now go. Escape before it's too late."
Sunny tried to fight it, tried to resist, but his body betrayed him. His limbs refused to move, his own essence turning against him.
He turned and headed to the gateway.
Step, step. Another step.
'Stop. Stop!'
But his body wouldn't listen. Who would dare disobey the orders of their master?
'Stop!'
There was nothing he could do.
'No! I refuse!'
But it was too late.
'No!'
The world around him twisted, light swallowing his form.
The last thing he saw was Nephis standing in the ruins of the Forgotten Shore, watching him with quiet, unshaken resolve.
Then, everything turned to white.