Chapter 1635: Message to Myself

Chapter 1635: Message to Myself

A few days before, far away from the harsh splendor of Ravenheart, Sunny was looking at Cassle while hiding his emotions behind a polite smile.

"Oh, and by the way..."

Her tone was neutral.

"...Happy Birthday."

For a split second, his mask cracked.

Sunny's face did not move, but his gaze changed. For a short moment, his eyes were much deeper and darker than before - the lightless depth contained within them was much too vast, much too cold, and much too unfathomable to fit the image of a harmless shopkeeper.

He froze, a storm of emotions raging in his heart. For a second, Sunny was stunned, not knowing what to say.

The shadows stirred.

But then, he quickly composed himself.

"Why, thank you. But how did you know?"

An irrational, but desperate hope had ignited in his chest, trying to burn away his judgment. A hope that someone anyone remembered him... that Cassie did. The thought of it was both blindingly sweet and ruthlessly painful.

Because it was impossible, The [Fateless] Attribute, as he had called it, was thorough. So, Sunny discarded that futile hope and hid his rattled state.

How had she known that today was his birthday, though?

'Maybe... just maybe...'

Cassie was facing him, remaining silent. Her smile slowly dimmed, replaced by a strange and solemn expression. Sunny felt uncomfortable because her eyes were hidden by the blue fabric, but he did not show it.

Come to think of it...

He had not noticed it immediately, but Cassie looked a little strange.

How could he describe it? She seemed a little... haggard.

Of course, a stranger would not have noticed, blinded by the stunning beauty of the blind seer. But to Sunny, she looked out of sorts. Her clothes, which had always been neat and tidy, were a little messy. Her hair was like a waterfall of pale gold, but it did not seem properly combed. There were signs of fatigue on her delicate face.

Much more importantly, there was a hint of restless intensity to her which had never been there before. As if Cassie was... not quite stable, having lost her innate state of composed balance.

He coughed.

"Ah. Well, why not? My house might not be able to fly like your Citadel, but it can walk. it's convenient."

The more Important question was... what did she see when looking at him? Weaver's Mask was all the way in Godgrave, and while the Nebulous Mantle could hide his presence, it was nowhere nearly as potent at deflecting divination.

Nevertheless, Sunny was not worried. He was mostly certain that Cassie's powers were based on a subconscious ability to perceive the strings of fate, and sense when they were trembling. Since there were no strings of fate connected to him anymore, she should be powerless against him.

As if to confirm his words, Cassie spoke calmly:

"Do you know what I sense when I look at you, though? Nothing. You are like a black void, completely empty."

Sunny raised an eyebrow.

"That is not something a man wants to hear on his birthday, Saint Cassia."

She did not seem to have heard his words, continuing in the same tone:

"But this is perfect. This is exactly what I've been looking for, Oh, Master Sunless... you seem to be strangely well-informed about my abilities, considering that you are not at all surprised to hear these things. Well, just in case, let me tell you... I used to be able to see the future.

He hesitated for a while, a little startled by that statement.

...Used to?"

Cassle nodded.

"Yes. This ability of mine has been in complete disarray after my Third Nightmare. Not just mine, actually... all Awakened with high affinity to fate are suffering a reduction in their ability to discern the future. Not that there are a lot of us. It is almost as if fate itself has been thrown into chaos."

Sunny forced out a smile.

"How terrible."

She remained silent for a while, seemingly distracted. Then, she said with a subtle hint of relief:

"Yes. It has been rather terrible. And I've been... I've been trying to find the cause for the past four years, without any success. So, the message that I seem to have sent myself made me think that you might be of help. And won't just think that I am crazy

Cassle paused, then faced him and said tensely:

"Master Sunless... how would you react if I told you that there is a man-shaped hole in the world?