Redmont Manor,

Serisis.

7:49 p.m. 20th Banem 1092.

"I'm an A.I."

Lunette's confession rang like a hammer against wood, sending the room into a tense silence. The songstress' hands trembled as she struggled to hide her growing unease and fear, prompting her to turn away from Kashi in fear of seeing his reaction. Despite convincing herself otherwise, it appeared Lunette did not truly believe Kashi wouldn't have an adverse reaction to her bombshell.

The silence continued for a while longer, each moment increasing Lunette's panic. Luckily, just before her nerves frayed altogether, someone grabbed her shaking hands. Lunette looked up to see Kashi standing in front of her, lips inched up in a somewhat sad smile.

"You were honest with me," Kashi said as he closed his hands around hers, and then looked into her eyes. "Now, it's my turn." The daeben took a deep breath and then assured, "I do not care that you are an A.I. I like to—no," he remarked with a shake of his head, and then continued, "I want to believe that there's more to us than what those who made us intended. No, that's not it, either. I need to believe we are more than our whatever our creators intended."

"Creators?" Lunette muttered, brow raised in confusion. "No way. It can't be," she exclaimed as he covered her mouth with her hands. "Are you an A.I too?"

Thwack!

"Of course not!" Kashi rebuked with a snort as he stretched his hand into a knife and playfully rapped the songstress' head. "But, to be honest, I am not so sure it is much better." The daeben took a deep breath and then said, "You know how I always refer to myself in the real world by Suzuki?"

"Mhmm," confirmed Lunette with a nod as she massaged her head. "I thought it was weird, but didn't want to pry."

"I see. It was that obvious, huh?" Kashi murmured as he turned around and looked at his reflection in the obsidian mirror. Lunette had done an impressive job with his hair, choosing to cut down the sides, and combing the middle back in a sleek waterfall that fell below the daeben's shoulders. The hairstyle fit nicely with the daeben's sleeveless dress code, adding a roguish aura and charm to his profile.

Kashi acknowledged his reflection with a brief smile and then, steeling his resolve, turned around and faced Lunette once again. The daeben drew in a deep breath, and began confessing, "Truth is, I am only a split personality created by Suzuki to help with a trauma he experienced as a child."

Lunette's eyes widened in shock, but she immediately recalled what Kashi told Rider about him being Razznik. "...Razznik?"

"Yes," confirmed Kashi. "Razznik was also a split personality made by Kashi. He was created to aid Suzuki deal with his endless rage. When his mission was complete, Razznik had to die." The daeben fell silent as he stared at his hands, "One day. I too will have to die when my mission is complete." Kashi let out a bitter smile as he continued, "Do you want to know the worst part?"

"What?"

"I don't feel at all bad about this," Kashi revealed. "I have accepted that one day I will die like it's a natural cycle of life. It's the only restriction placed in us by Suzuki to prevent a situation where we try to fight him for supremacy of the body." The daeben looked at Lunette and said with a light shrug, "Since you're honest, I thought I should let you know. I can die at any time, without warning. Initially, I didn't care at all, but for some reason, I find myself concerned about how you'd feel when I eventually die."

Kashi sighed as he muttered, "I think I finally understand how Razznik felt. Wonder if I'll feel the same when I di—".

"Stop!" Lunette yelled, nearly causing Kashi to jump in shock. Tears brimmed in the songstress' eyes as she punched him and complained, "Why do you keep talking about death so nonchalantly? Who says you're going to die?"

"Life does," Kashi replied with a bitter smile. He grabbed Lunette's hands, and then held onto them with his left hand, while he gently wiped her tears with his right. "Two personalities should not inhabit the same body for longer than necessary. It'll only result in tragedy for both somewhere along the line."

Still crying, Lunette frowned, half in anger and half in resignation, "What are you talking about?"

"Ah, how to explain this," mumbled Kashi as he released Lunette's arms. "To understand, you must first know who Suzuki is and how we came to be in this situation." The daeben led Lunette over to a couch and then sat down with her. "Everything started just about ten years ago when Suzuki was 10..."

Lunette listened as Kashi relayed the truth about the relationship between Suzuki, his parents and further on down the line, Razznik and now himself. By the time he was done, Lunette's eyes were red with tears, brimming with the pain Kashi was incapable of feeling. Covering her mouth, the songstress choked as she muttered, "Th-that's horrible. None of you deserve to live like this."

"It is what it is," replied Kashi with a shrug, and then swiftly changed the topic to avoid talking about himself any further. "What about you? What is it like, being an A.I? Any cool stories from your past?"

"Not particularly, no," Lunette replied with a shake of her head. "Before L.N.E, Shadow and I were kept in stasis because the developers were not sure what to do with us."

"Stasis?" Kashi asked with a raised brow. "What's that like?"

Lunette shivered, her gaze wavering as she muttered, "Initially, it was terrible. We were kept in what was essentially a void. We didn't need anything to survive, so the developers did not put much thought into designing an environment specifically for us." The songstress wrung her hands as she revealed with a tight smile, "It was hell for us. You know how humans go into their own head when they are alone, or bored? For an A.I, it's a billion times worse. We could go through a million thoughts in the span of a second, which made the boredom and lack of stimuli much more overbearing than you can ever imagine." Lunette sighed as she admitted, "If Shadow wasn't there, I might have lost whatever 'mind' an A.I has. It is also the reason Shadow and I fear death so much. Even if we don't get deleted when we die like other A.I, without the resurrection system, we'll be stuck in a void. Neither of us has any desire to go throught that again."

"Oof..." Kashi muttered as he looked at the songstress with pity. "That does sound terrible. And you were in there until Line? For how long?"

"No. Not until Line," Lunette corrected. "Three years after our designer left, some bigshot repurposed a small world he designed for us to live in, populated with other A.Is." Smiling, Lunette looked at Kashi as she revealed, "Later, that little world would become the location for King's Journey." Lunette laughed as she said, "Shadow and I didn't really participate in much of King's Journey. We just traveled the world, seeing new things and meeting new people."

"Oh! So, that's what you were doing in the swamps!" Kashi clapped in realization. "I've always wondered why you went there. So, you're the explorer type."

"Mhmm," Lunette replied with a small laugh. "I like singing to people I've never met before. It's my dream that one day, I'll have sung to at least one person in every corner of the world."

"That's a big dream."

"Yeah, it is," Lunette confirmed with a chuckle. "The programmer who made Shadow and I, Rai-sensei, always said he loved my voice. He said he wanted everyone in the world to hear my songs one day." The songstress revealed a proud smile as she added, "Very few people know this, but he developed the first real virtual world just for Shadow and I. It was only after he left that Genaco took the world and upgraded it to the one in King's Journey."

Kashi raised a brow, amused by Lunette's overall body language. "You seem like you really like this Rai-sensei."

"Yeah," Lunette agreed with a happy grin. "Rai-sensei was the coolest person you'll ever meet." The songstress paused for a moment, and then added with an embarrassed smile, "He did not do too well with people though. Tended to rub many the wrong way at times."

"How so?" the daeben asked, intrigued by this character.

"He was far too straight-laced," Lunette boasted with a wide grin. "Everything had to be by the book, and on time with Rai-sensei. The people in his group really hated him because of this." The songstress's eyes gaze dropped, her tone turning somber as she muttered, "I guess that's why he left soon after Shadow and I's final tests. We were the only things holding him back. Once he was done with us, he left for good."

Kashi hesitated, unsure of what to say in this situation. Eventually, however, he muttered, "Sorry. That sucks."

Lunette shrugged. "As you said, It is what it is." The songstress revealed a bitter smile as she said, "I don't mind that he left, just that we never got to say goodbye. While developing us, right from the moment we gained true sentience, he made it his personal mission to ensure we did not suffer in any way. And for that, I will be eternally grateful."

Momentary silence descended onto the room as both Lunette and Kashi dwelled in their thoughts, recalling memories from a distant past.

Knock! Knock!

A series of knocks on the door pulled them out of their reverie. Kashi shook his head and rose to his feet as he called out, "Come in."

"Yes," a maid replied as she opened the door and walked in. "Master Kashi, Ms. Falsetto, it's din—" The maid froze in place, mouth agape as she stared at the daeben.

Kashi raised a brow, and remarked as he pointed at his face, "Is there something on my face?"

The daeben's action seemed to pull the maid back to reality as she immediately bowed and frantically apologized, "M-My apologies! That was rude of me." The maid winced, hating herself for staring for so long. It's not like it was the first time she had seen a handsome man before. It was just that the contrast between Kashi's previous messy hairstyle and this charming, rogue-like style was much too great.

"Do not worry. We do not mind," Lunette said with a hint of pride in her eyes as she looked at Kashi. The songstress turned to the maid, and asked, "You were saying something earlier?"

"Ah, yes!" The maid exclaimed upon recalling her purpose. "Dinner's ready. I am to escort you to the dining hall."

Kashi looked at himself in the mirror and murmured, "Hmm... I should probably change, but I'm not sure I have any formal attire in my inventory."

"I knew this day would eventually come." Lunette's lips spread in a smile as she took out a dashing jet black coat, pants and a formal shirt from her inventory. "I had someone make a pair of formal wear for you just in case something like this happens. I even got them to dye everything black as you like it. Go on, put them on!"

Kashi revealed an uneasy expression as he looked at the articles of clothing. From what he could see, there was an undershirt, an actual long-sleeved frilly shirt, an undercoat, and finally a leather knee-length leather coat to complete the look. These were far too many layers for someone who was used to wearing just the one shirt.

However, when he caught Lunette's eyes, he could not find it in himself to disappoint her. So, he accepted the clothes, placed them in his inventory, and then selected them from his inventory. A flash of light enveloped Kashi, hiding his body as his old clothes were removed, and replaced with the new ones.

The light disappeared a moment later, revealing an uncomfortable Kashi tugging at his coat's sleeves, oblivious to the stars in both Lunette and the maid's eyes.

Lunette caught the maid's gaze and had to stifle a laugh as the maid sent her a discreet thumbs-up. She instead, pushed Kashi's hand from his sleeves saying as she patted out the creases on the coat, "Stop messing around. You look handsome."

"If you say so," muttered Kashi as he resigned himself to fate. "I'll bear with it until tomorrow."

"Oh, this is only for tonight," Lunette said, causing Kashi to raise a brow in disbelief. "Don't worry!" she consoled with a chuckle. "You can wear whatever you like tomorrow. It's the Maggots' Guildmaster's stage. You should wear what you're most comfortable with." She, however, then added with a sly smirk. "I do have a few gifts though. I don't know if you'll like them."

Kashi looked at Lunette with an apprehensive gaze. "What are you planning?"

"You'll see," Lunette replied with a smile as she opened her inventory. The songstress tapped on an option, and light enveloped her. When it dissipated, Kashi was left speechless by the stunning, strapless, sky-blue gown which hugged Lunnete's waist and flowed down to her feet. A knee-high slit at the front of the gown added an innocent, sultry allure to the dress as it accentuated her beautiful legs.

Kashi stared at Lunette for a while, and only after he firmly resisted the urge to take out his sketchbook, did he clumsily muttering, "...You're beautiful."

Lunette blushed, her cheeks beet red as she leaned into, and then pecked Kashi on his cheek. "Thank you." With that, she wrapped her arms around Kashi's and then followed the maid to the dining hall.

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