Amon looked at the deep well leading back to the catacombs with a frown. Lord of the Dead… a bum, but a powerful one. Like Zaratul. Dealing with him would be a problem, no doubt. But would I lose? Nah, I would st-

"Shit! I almost turned myself into a KitKat!"

Amon gulped, a flicker of fear crossing his face as he stepped back. Kai, observing his strange boss, sighed.

"What are we doing here?"

Amon exhaled and sat down on a stone, a curious glint in his eyes. To be honest, he was sick of this place. He had already digested the Swindler, but for some reason, he still couldn't advance. There was only one explanation he could think of: rank. Yes... his current rank was limiting his growth. That had to be it. And it was something he needed to inform the others about as well.

Which meant... he would have to start acting like a Cryptologist. Even if he had to bullshit his way through it. Only by acting the part now could he cheat his way forward.

And then there were the Shard Memories. He didn't have all of them. Not yet. He had stolen the Midnight Shard from Sunny and the Zenith Shard from Effie. That little incident had caused both of them great distress. Sunny had cursed half the day away, thinking he was going mad. Effie hadn't shown it outwardly, but she had been shaken.

One Shard remained: Starlight. Spell would give it to him once the Lord of the Dead was destroyed.

Glancing at Kai, Amon smiled faintly, a mysterious curve to his lips.

"We're here for the Starlight Shard."

Kai nodded, then froze. He blinked once, twice, and stared at Amon in disbelief.

"Wait... didn't you tell Seishan you already had it? And it was the truth. I felt it was the truth. So... did you give it to someone, and now you need it back?"

A reasonable conclusion but still flawed. Amon's grin widened mischievously.

"Nope. I never had it."

Kai was silent for a long while before blurting out in disbelief:

"Then... how? Just how?"

Amon stroked his imaginary beard with exaggerated solemnity, like some wise Chinese master. Never mind that he wasn't Chinese. At heart, he was still a cultivator. A pity no one here was courting death.

"Kai, there's one thing you need to understand about your flaw. Just because someone says something and your flaw registers it as truth doesn't mean it is truth. It's about belief, not facts. Everyone has their own truth. My truth might be your lie. So, if I believe the Starlight Shard is already mine, then even without possessing it, your flaw will still mark my words as truth."

Kai was left speechless for a long while, then finally nodded, grateful. Maybe... maybe others had deceived him this way before. Hearing Amon's explanation was enlightening. It helped him see how his flaw could be turned against him.

But the truth was, Amon had deceived him yet again. He had never actually confirmed that he believed the Shard was his. He had only said 'if he believed'. Even Amon wasn't that insane. If it wasn't his, then it wasn't. What he had used back then wasn't belief, but mental disruption, twisting Kai's perception so he would feel Amon's words as truth.

That was all.

Soon, Medici arrived with Ben and Rodrick, the three of them laughing about something. Well, Ben and Rodrick were laughing while Medici, for some reason, looked pissed.

Amon waved at them with a bright smile.

"Yo. Sup?"

Medici shot him a glance, then grinned.

"Nothing. Just someone annoyed me on the way. Where's Luna and… Seishan?"

Amon rose to his feet with a proud gaze, placing a hand dramatically on Medici's shoulder. A single tear rolled down his cheek.

"I see… already starting your quest to gather demonesses."

Medici barked out a laugh, shaking his head before suddenly grabbing Amon and digging a finger into his forehead.

Amon winced, irritation flashing across his face. It hurt, damn it. Time to show off. Twisting out of Medici's grasp with acrobatic ease, he flipped onto the broken tower, then dropped gracefully back to the ground.

Landing in front of Ben and Rodrick, he frowned and set his hands on their shoulders.

The two blinked in confusion, then their eyes went wide as Spell notified them of a transfer.

"The fuck? When did you get Memories, Amon?" Ben asked, stunned.

"Yeah," Rodrick added, tilting his head. "You're a lazy bum who never works. So what's with all these Memories?"

Amon's mouth twitched in irritation. Really? I give you guys Memories. Two each! And this is the reaction? Where's the gratitude? Ingrates…

Then he froze.

"…Wait a second. How do you know what a bum is?"

Rodrick shrugged, leaning lazily against the wall with a yawn.

"I don't know. Heard you call Tessai that. Liked the way it sounded."

Amon blinked, then burst into laughter.

"Heh. Well, what can I say? I'm already spreading brainrot."

Medici groaned while the others just exchanged confused looks. Sighing, he dropped into a seat.

"So what's the plan this time? I got Kido to do me a favor, she gave me a bone-eating vine, and I dumped it on the Lord of the Dead. That was a month ago. Now what?"

Amon smirked, a crystal monocle materialized in his palm, gleaming as he set it against his right eye and adjusted it with a flourish.

"Now we… ahem, you guys will kill it."

"Fucking coward."

"Thanks for the compliment. I'm flattered."

They kept up the banter, tossing insults back and forth. The longer it went, the more creative they somehow became, each jab sharper than the last. Kai, meanwhile, stood awkwardly on the sidelines. They tried to drag him into the game, but his "insults" came out sounding more like flattery.

"Dude's an angel," Amon muttered under his breath. The rest silently agreed, leaving Kai to watch while they resumed their trash talk.

After a while, Luna and Seishan returned… but they weren't alone. Gemma was with them and so was Kido.

That actually made Amon blink. He hadn't expected this. Sure, he wanted his crew to start brushing shoulders with the top dogs of the Forgotten Shore, but still… Gemma and Kido? That was a surprise.

Medici's eyes flicked to Gemma. A small, sharp smile tugged at his lips. Both of them were lieutenants of Bright Castle but not equals. Gemma had once been leader of both the Pathfinders and the Hunters. That was before Medici showed up.

Little by little, Gemma's authority had eroded until, just a few days ago, Medici replaced him as leader of the Hunters, leaving Gemma with only the Pathfinders.

And honestly? No one was shocked. The Hunters liked Medici. His traps always worked, his awareness was razor sharp, his Memories invaluable. More than that, he was charismatic, even inspiring in his own arrogant way.

Sure, he looked down on everyone. He even argued with the Bright Lord himself, Gunlaug, once. An argument that nearly escalated into a fight. But Gunlaug had swallowed his pride. Losing a man like Medici wasn't worth it. Not with Changing Star's influence steadily growing.

So Gunlaug hadn't punished him for refusing to bow. He'd settled for neutrality, keeping Medici on paper as his subordinate.

Medici, of course, didn't give a damn about Gunlaug's orders.

"So what's up, man? Still salty I took your spot, hah?" Medici asked with a laugh.

Kido's eyes narrowed into a glare, but Gemma raised a hand to stop her. He shook his head calmly.

"No. I don't care about titles handed out by mortal men anymore."

Medici and Amon both froze, staring at him like he'd grown a second head.

Meanwhile, Luna quickly looked away, whistling innocently as if the cracks in the wall were the most fascinating thing she'd ever seen.

Seishan caught that little act and smiled faintly. Luna… she really is something. Somehow she managed to bring Gemma and Kido over. Was it her kindness? Her empathy? That gentleness that softened even the hardest edges?

Medici still couldn't wrap his head around it. Gemma looked like… a zealot. Not like Changing Star's worshippers, but… different. Calmer. Stronger. Almost cool. He didn't even know if "cool zealot" was a real category, but Gemma's quiet conviction made it feel like one.

Before he could ask, though, something tugged at his mind. He frowned, glanced at Amon, and lowered his voice.

"Hey. How the hell did you fix the Mantle of the Underworld?"

Amon only smirked. He threw an arm over Medici's shoulder and leaned in with that infuriating, mischievous grin.

"I stole a very neat Memory that helps you control essence. See, as Sleepers, we can't manipulate essence, that only starts after Awakening, when you gain your second ability and control. But I still had essence in me, even without control. So…" He tapped his temple with mock solemnity. "I exploited the loophole. With that Memory, I turned myself into a pseudo-Awakened and restored the Mantle."

Medici just stared at him, dumbfounded.

Only this idiot, he thought. Only this idiot could notice a loophole in the Spell's workings… and decide to break it even more until it worked.

Seishan quietly observed their antics. She didn't say a word, though she couldn't help feeling a little confused. Why do they laugh like cheap, third-rate villains in some webtoon? she wondered. Still… her eyes lingered on Medici for a moment. Handsome, she admitted reluctantly.

But that wasn't what they were here for. They needed to talk business.

Before she could redirect things, Kido strolled up with a sly smile.

"What's wrong? You like that tomato?"

Seishan frowned, puzzled, until it clicked. Red hair... Red eyes... Tomato, huh?

"…No. It's just that he's strong."

"Sure, sure. Whatever you say." Kido's grin widened with mischief.

Seishan stared at her blankly, then shook her head. Kido, unfazed, turned to Luna and asked with a teasing laugh:

"And what about you? You like someone? Come on, Luna. There's gotta be someone."

She hugged Luna tightly, ignoring her attempts to wriggle free.

"No, it's not like that…" Luna muttered.

Kido ruffled her snow-white hair, chuckling.

"You're way too cute for this messed-up world. But I'm sure there's someone. Everyone needs comfort in this godforsaken Shore. I've got Gemma. Our icy princess over here is eyeing that tomato. So what about you?"

Luna blinked, then stared at Seishan in disbelief. Then at Medici, who was laughing like an idiot. A single tear slipped down her cheek. So the little capitalist is starting his quest… Strange, I'm proud. Wait. WHAT?! Not Seishan! No way!

"So who's the guy, then?" Kido pressed, smirking.

Luna coughed awkwardly. Her gaze flicked toward Amon… then darted away.

Kido froze. Seishan tilted her head, equally stunned.

It's Amon?! they both thought in horror.

And really, who could blame them? Amon was… well, Amon. The most notorious troublemaker in the Dark City. A fraud. A menace. Shameless, insufferable, and utterly unreliable. Practically everyone who knew him agreed on that much.

Luna shifted uncomfortably, the faint blush on her face fading into something more tired, more real.

"Alright, I'm not some schoolgirl. Yeah, it's him. We've got history. And cut the crap, Kido, I sleep with whoever I want. It's not like I haven't slept with him before. Anyway… he's a little misunderstood by others."

Kido just gawked at her. Where's the cute Luna?! Who the hell is this? Or maybe… maybe this was the real Luna. Gentle with those who needed it, but underneath? Blunt. Honest. And brutally practical. Anyone who had seen her fight already knew her softness was reserved only for those who truly needed kindness and to show that it isn't a sin or weakness, despite what this world claimed. Luna's fighting style was among the most brutal and horrifying in the city, after all.

Still… misunderstood, huh? Kido narrowed her eyes. Uh-huh. Sure. You're just biased, girl.

Meanwhile, Seishan looked away with an unreadable expression, as if something had cracked inside. Her sweet, gentle little sister… liked that... Thing.

Damn it.

***

[A/N: Well, I went with a little slice-of-life here. It's easier to write, so here's your second chapter. Seriously, you guys won't let me rest, damn it! I'm a little drunk too. I may or may not have had a beer… nothing much, just a liter, but it's still a headache to write while dizzy. Anyway, don't misunderstand Luna's character. We all act differently with different people. I'm kind to someone who needs help. I'm polite to elders, while I trash-talk my friends. So understand that Luna's being kind to those who need it. She's not that soft, comrades. Also, that's how Amon managed to fix the Mantle of the Underworld. Lol, bro exploited a loophole in the Spell's workings. That's it for now. Enjoy the meal!]

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