Nephis walked inside the hospital complex, with two guards and a nurse following her.
Behind her, more guards were stopping a horde of reporters that somehow found their way into the academy.
All of them asked the same question: Does she know why many sleepers become hollow and what exactly happened to cause such tragedy?
Of course Nephis didn't answer them; she just stayed silent and watched as the guards of Valor stopped them and escorted them out.
Reaching their destination, Nephis looked at the nurse behind her.
"Is she here?"
The nurse nodded her head.
"She forbade anyone from entering."
Nephis ordered the three to stay outside and opened the door to the room.
The moment she did this, a flying machine hurled toward her.
Nephis casually caught it and spoke, "Cassie, it's me, Nephis."
As she said this, she saw her friend on a bed and felt pain in her heart.
Scratches on her body, bruises, broken nails, blond hair on the sheet, disheveled hair, a ripped hospital dress, and blood covering many places on her body.
"N-Neph, you... you are alive, hic, hic."
Cassie started crying again.
Nephis ran toward her and hugged her and bathed her in warm white flame.
Her bruises and scratches healed, and she didn't bleed any more.
Cassie continued to cry on Nephis's chest.
"It's all right, Cass, I'm here; no one will harm you. I swear."
After a few minutes, Cassie stopped crying, closed her eyes even if she didn't see, and lay down on Nephis's lap. The latter caressed Cassie's forehead and hair.
They didn't speak for a while, but the silence was broken by Cassie.
"Did you do it?" There was a lingering hope in her voice.
"No. I was too late."
Cassie gritted her teeth, and her hands moved to her arm, but Nephis caught it.
"Stop. It isn't your fault. Stop harming yourself."
She gritted her teeth more.
"It is my fault! Because of me and my cursed powers, he will forever be slaved to that monster! I betrayed him!" Tears spelled out of her eyes... "He... Sunny will hate me, Neph..."
Nephis bit on her lip, "Cass, it wasn't your fault. You were tortured for spell's sake, and believe me, he won't be slaved forever. I'll kill that monster even if it means sacrificing my life."
Cassie didn't respond as she buried her face in Nephis's stomach.
The two didn't speak anymore, as after a few minutes Cassie finally slept.
Time passed like this, Cassie sleeping on Nephis's lap, and Nephis caressing Cassie and gazing at the ceiling, thinking.
Suddenly, the door of the room knocked.
"Come in."
The door opened and a guard walked inside.
"Lady Chaning Star, someone wants to meet you."
"Who?"
"It is the Princess of Valor, Morgan of Valor."
Nephis nodded her head, and slowly with care, she held Cassie in her arms and put her on the bed and covered her with a sheet.
As she left the room, she ordered the nurse to take care of Cassie.
The guard led the way, with Nephis walking behind him.
The two stopped in front of a door; the guard made way for Nephis and stood like a statue.
She opened the door and walked inside.
"You've finally come."
Sitting on a couch was a young woman with dark wavy hair and alabaster skin. She was dressed in a perfectly tailored, elegant business suit, which was entirely black, with buttons and cufflinks forged out of silver steel. Her hands were protected from the cold by leather gloves. Her eyes were as cold as the sharpest of swords. They were also of a strange, vibrant color — bright red, the same as her full lips.
"I never thought I would see you still alive," Morgan spoke.
She raised a cup of red wine and drank from it, then sighed.
"But again, you did surprise us a lot. Surviving impossible odds, I mean."
Nephis sat at the opposite side and looked at Morgan's red eyes.
"Do you know Caela Valor?"
Morgan frowned.
"Why are you speaking of the dead?"
"Tell me, have you found the killer yet?"
Morgan stayed silent for a while, then sighed.
"So that fucker is alive... and I suppose you met him there, in the Forgotten Shore."
Nephis rose from her seat and asked.
"Where is he?"
Morgan looked up at Nephis's silver eyes.
"Dead. At least in the waking world. Uncle Madoc shredded his body to pieces in a moment of anger three years ago. It was a foolish choice, really; he should have waited until the fucker came back or was confirmed hollow."
Morgan spoke in disappointment, but Nephis didn't even continue listening as she ran out of the room, praying to the dead gods for her imagination not to happen.
Reaching a door, she opened it. Inside was a sleeping pod with medical machines around it.
Inside the pod was a young man with pale skin and short black hair. It was Sunless body.
Looking at the reading on the pod, Nephis sighed in relief, but then an ominous thought came to her.
'If that monster has no physical body to go back to... then does that mean he returned to the Forgotten Shore?'
If that were true, then... Sunny was in danger.
She closed her hand in a fist and punched the wall.
"I should've not left him. I should have stayed there. Now he might die because of me..."
***
In another world, in a desolate land filled with desert and corpses. Two young men glanced at each other.
One of them was sitting on the ground with boredom as the other tried to attack him but couldn't, as his body forcefully stopped him from doing that.
The young man sitting on the ground sighed.
"For spell's sake, can't you stop?"
"I'll kill you!"
"You have been trying for hours, but with no fucking result!"
"Because you told me not to attack you!"
"Oh yeah?! Then deal with it, imp! Just like I'm dealing with being stuck in this god-forsaken place with a slave that tries to kill me every second!"