The cohort fell into heavy silence following Cassie's tale. Though much had been revealed, one question still lingered—thick, unspoken, and unsettling. Sunny frowned, his voice low and grim as he finally gave it form:
"There's still something we don't know. Something that could change everything. Mordret… What is his goal? What will he do once the Chain Lords are at war?"
He hesitated, then glanced at Klaus, his expression bitter with frustration and a gnawing lack of answers.
"What do you think? Any guesses?"
Klaus gave a lazy shrug, as though he'd been asked whether it might rain tomorrow. His posture was slouched, almost bored, one leg crossed over the other, his eyes half-lidded like a cat too tired to care.
"Hm. I've got a few ideas…" He scratched his head absently, then gave a lopsided smile. "But don't worry about it—it's suicidal. The plan, I mean. Not Mordret. Well, maybe him, too. He might have a few fried neurons rattling around up there, but I doubt even he's that far gone. Probably. I think. I hope. Eh… maybe."
A tired sigh escaped him as he ran a hand through his hair, the corners of his mouth twitching into something too weary to be called a smile.
"I understand the nature of this nightmare—and how it ends. This entire thing revolves around Hope, the Demon of Desire. Her freedom hinges on the outcome of this war. We could try and oppose Noctis to keep her chained… but in the end, it won't matter. The chains are breaking. Two have already shattered, and her influence is seeping into everything like rot. Madness is spreading. Even if we kill Noctis, another chain will break. Eventually, the other Chain Lords will either give in—by death or despair—and when they do, her prison will crumble entirely. A duty like theirs doesn't last forever. It wears you down."
A quiet tension settled in the air like mist.
"I suppose," Sunny said finally, his gaze sweeping across his companions, "it's time we make our choice."
For a long moment, no one spoke.
Then, Effie broke the silence, her tone dry yet firm:
"…I mean, it's not much of a choice, is it? Sure, fighting three immortal Saints isn't exactly a stroll through a sunny meadow—but we already know they were defeated somehow. So it's not impossible. And what's the alternative? Keep Hope chained? How do we even do that? Killing Noctis would only delay the inevitable. This place is already cracked and crumbling under her influence."
She bit her lip, hesitant now.
"That Hope… she terrifies me. Honestly, I'm not even sure what she is. What kind of creature can twist an entire region into madness? Is she Unholy?"
Klaus raised a brow, amused by the question. With a wry smile, he stood, lazily chewing on a strange fruit that bled crimson like half-coagulated blood.
"No, not Unholy Demon. Hope is the Demon of Desire. 'Demon' isn't even the right word. People call Daemons 'demons,' but it's a misnomer."
He paused to wipe the thick, red juice from his lips, then continued, his voice distant.
"Back in the grand ol' days of the gods—after the Age of Chaos but before the world became a flaming trash heap—Daemons and deities actually worked together to fight Abominations. Daemons were beings that were partially divine or even almost as powerful as the gods themselves. They are mysterious creatures described as having power almost equal to that of the gods but of a different nature. Each Daemon was forbidden from siring offspring, so they created legacies in other ways. The Nether birthed the Stone Saints. Hope… well, she grew fond of humans. Tried to guide them... She's the one who gave humans runes. Writing. Sorcery. And what did humanity do in return? Slapped a collar on her and threw her into a pit. Classy."
"Oh, and she's probably a Divine Titan, by the way," Klaus added with smile, licking blood from his fingers like it was jam. "Just a little trivia for the apocalypse."
He turned back toward the others, a grin tugging at the edges of his lips.
"So, kids—any questions? How was my little lecture?"
Cassie blinked. She hadn't expected him to actually share something so valuable—or explain it with such clarity, even if it was wrapped in dripping sarcasm.
Effie, unbothered, snatched a berry from his hand and popped it into her mouth with a shrug.
"Well? That just proves my point. Isn't it easier to kill the Saints and be done with it?"
Kai shifted uneasily, his brow furrowed.
"In the end… I think we should do what's right. Maybe it's naive, maybe it's stupid—but it matters. Doing the right thing matters."
Sunny shot him a sharp look, his voice biting:
"And who decides what's right? How can you know that releasing Hope won't doom every soul in this world? A thousand years in chains… I'd be furious."
Klaus rolled his eyes and waved a hand dramatically.
"Oh, here we go. The brooding realist speaks."
"I'm not brooding," Sunny snapped. "I'm realistic."
Klaus let out a short laugh, leaning back and stretching like a bored cat.
"Right, right. Realism: the art of saying depressing shit with confidence. And unfortunately... You're right, edgy kid. This entire realm will be annihilated. Ever wondered why there's no Crushing here in the past? Why it only begins in the future? Hope's escape will spark the birth of the Crushing. It'll reduce entire cities to rubble, turn everything to dust. Her freedom will trigger a war that makes every other look like a tavern brawl. That's what we're setting into motion—a cataclysm that devours realms, ends civilizations, and gives birth to a nightmare without end."
He glanced sideways at Kai, his voice softening—just slightly.
"You're not wrong either, Legolas. Killing the Saints might help. But what's 'right' or 'wrong' anyway? Morality isn't black and white—it's a bloody oil painting. Everyone thinks they're holding the brush, but really, we're all just smearing the same mess."
He spread his arms and let out a loud, wild laugh.
"Bottom line: we're walking into genocide, kids! A little light war crime with your morning rations! Hope you packed your ethics along with your swords!"
They all stared at him, stunned into silence. Even Sunny, halfway to another rebuttal, just... stopped.
The group stood quietly, the gravity of the conversation settling into their bones like winter frost.
After a long, cold moment, Sunny inhaled, glanced around at his comrades, and finally said, voice tight with resolve:
"…Alright. I guess it's time we give Noctis our answer."
Sunny remained silent for a moment, the air taut with tension. Then, with a glance toward his companions, he exhaled heavily, his expression grave.
"Before we begin… there's something I need to tell you."
His eyes flicked to Klaus, who was lazily reclining in a plush chair. The pale young man was already halfway buried beneath a blanket, adjusting a pillow behind his head as if preparing for a midday nap. The picture of ease and apathy.
Sunny ground his teeth. That insufferable bastard. How could someone like Klaus exist—so irreverent, so devoid of urgency, so utterly untouched by the weight of reality? It was maddening. With a frustrated sigh, Sunny tried to push down the bile rising in his throat.
"Can you leave us?" he asked stiffly. "I need to speak with my friends. Alone."
Klaus arched an eyebrow, his relaxed demeanor shifting into something sharp and irritable. He leaned forward, eyes gleaming with venomous disdain.
"Oh, how delightfully noble of you," he sneered. "But let me clarify something, you self-important hemorrhoid—this is my chamber. If you want a private little tea party with your merry band of misfits, then kindly piss off and find your own bloody room."
He clicked his tongue and took a casual sip from a crystal glass filled with juice, like a king swatting away a buzzing insect.
"Imagine that," he muttered. "Evicted from my own room by a gremlin with abandonment issues. This cohort makes me want to start a genocide…"
Sunny's lips curled into a smile, but it was not kind. Tilting his head with mock sweetness, he lashed out with petty cruelty.
"Oh? You think we'd ever accept you in our cohort? I'm sorry, Klaus, truly—but no. You'll never be one of us. Must sting, huh? All that trying, all that lurking on the edges, hoping someone would throw you a bone."
Klaus stared at him blankly… then, ever so slowly, a wide smile unfurled across his face. It wasn't friendly. It was the kind of grin worn by wolves before the kill.
"My dear Sunny," he said, voice as smooth as silk and twice as dangerous, "you seem to have me confused with someone who gives a single, festering fuck."
He chuckled—a soft, condescending sound—and leaned back, folding his arms.
"Let me offer you a truth too heavy for that shriveled walnut you call a brain. No matter how many jokes you tell or secrets you share, if people don't see you as one of their own from the start, you'll always be a guest at the door. Present, but never truly welcome."
Cassie rose from her seat, the weight of his words hitting her like a punch. She could see through the act. Even if Klaus meant what he said—especially if he did—it still hurt. He mattered to her. And this… this wasn't easy.
Then, Klaus looked back at Sunny. The clownish mask was gone. In its place stood a man who wore pride like a cloak and dignity like a crown. In that moment, he seemed like a monarch surveying a peasant who dared insult him.
"So no," Klaus said coldly. "I don't care if you accept me. I don't care what you feel or think. But remember this: who pulled your broken little body out of the fire? Who saved your friends when you couldn't? Who you're speaking to."
He stood up slowly. The doors creaked open on their own, like servants bowing to royalty.
"I am the Oldest Dream. I cannot be killed. I cannot be dethroned. And I sure as hell don't need validation from a glorified street rat with mommy issues."
He stepped closer, voice darkening.
"Take a good, long look at yourself, Sunny. You are pitiful. A petty, bitter, spiteful maggot gnawing on scraps and calling it pride. You strut like you matter, but all I see is a trembling coward wrapped in delusions. Do you really think you and I are equals?" He laughed, cruel and rich. "Please. You wouldn't be worthy of licking the blood off my boots."
Sunny shot to his feet, rage igniting in his chest—but in a blink, Klaus was already there.
His hand shot out like a viper, grabbing Sunny by the face, fingers tightening around his eyes with terrifying precision.
"You want to bark now?" Klaus hissed. "Because Cassie's here to shield you? You think her presence makes you invincible? You little fucking parasite."
Sunny screamed as Klaus's fingers began to close, digging into the delicate flesh around his eyes. His chair shattered beneath him, his body crumpling to the floor in a heap of agony.
Effie tried to move—but runes erupted across her skin, binding her to her seat. Kai reached out, only for Miseria's shadowy hand to brush against his arm, and he froze like a statue.
Too easy. Klaus could have killed them all in seconds. It would've been trivial.
Then—
"Enough!"
Cassie grabbed Klaus, her voice cracking, raw with pain. "You've made your point. Please. Stop."
Klaus blinked, as though returning from somewhere far darker. He shrugged, picked up his blanket and pillow, and turned his back on them all without another word. Lich and Miseria vanished like smoke, their presence fading into silence.
Effie and Kai rushed to Sunny once the bindings broke. No one dared speak.
At the door, Cassie paused. She looked back—eyes full of something between longing and heartbreak. She bit her lip, hesitated… then closed the door quietly behind her, leaving Klaus alone.
The chamber fell still.
Klaus collapsed onto his bed, every inch of his body aching like glass cracked under pressure. He yawned, pulling the blanket over himself with a sigh.
Sleep came quickly, heavy and dreamless.
***
Well, Klaus's isn't holding back anymore. I always wondered, why is everyone letting all the bullshit Sunny's pulling slide? Like, his personality is so annoying that people would want to murder him just because of it. Anyway, Klaus's prideful so he wouldn't slide everything so it's natural, i guess.
If there's anything that could be improved, any critiques, any idea that could improve story, feel free to share.
Thanks for all your support once again and happy that you're enjoying story.
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