There was a red and black flag fluttered on the ramparts of the walls. Behind it, hidden in the harsh glare of the sun Nirvana finally had her time with Faust.

Faust stared out into the fields, his red hair shimmered like the flecks of fire. His blue eyes always held an amused light, like the blackened field and the dead bodies on it were beautiful.

Nirvana watched him out of the side of her eye, internally she was a storm of thoughts, but externally?

Well, she still looked like she was having a panic attack.

"What’s wrong," she asked immediately, drawing strength from taking the lead. "Do you need help with anything?"

Faust faced her slowly. "Your summoning skill. Can you explain how it works? Like the process you go through."

A spark of annoyance flared through her as he asked about something other than the both of them. But what did she expect? In the near ten years she had known Faust, he had never talked about anything personal.

It was a personal effort she made to learn everything she could about him ever since the day they met. There was no one who knew more about Faust than her. No one.

Not that he remembered.

"Oh. Yeah. The skeletons," Nirvana muttered. "Well, their summoning has a few auxiliary strategies I’ve been using as I experiment. But I’d say the core of Necromancy is the most important part."

Faust raised an eyebrow. "The core of Necromancy. Is there a core to magic?"

"Yes. Magic is connected to our souls. When we use it we’re drawing a layer of ourselves and using it to warp reality. A type of Para-reality is what Thalia calls it."

"So by drawing the right part of ourselves we can imbue the right type of ’core’ to a spell," Faust nodded. "What is the core of necromancy?"

Briefly stunned by the speed of his inference, Nirvana felt the brief pull of longing once again. The veins in Faust’s neck glimmered with such attractive crimson light.

She just barely stopped herself from licking her lips. When she answered him her voice was low and husky.

"The Core of Necromancy is ’Loss.’"

Faust’s eyes widened in a momentary flash of pure emotion. Knowing why it did made Nirvana even hungrier. Only she held this knowledge. It was their treasure.

Suppressing the emotion, Faust nodded with deep interest. "That’s interesting. But why Loss? I would have expected Corruption or something."

"Necromancy is about taking i think," Nirvana ruminated. It was a topic she too thought about a lot. They were so alike after all. "Corruption is about destroying what is, twisting it. But Necromancy is love."

Faust’s confused expression soured her feelings a bit, but he could learn to understand.

"Because you know loss, you love what is and don’t wish for it to pass. To crystallize a moment and keep it forever to return it when you need it to protect you."

Faust drank her words in and turned away, deep in thought. "That’s interesting.... What would be the core of Fire magic or Pyromancy?"

She didn’t want to talk about anything else. Necromancy was more interesting after all. But Faust was talking to her. Really talking. Not just asking for things, but wanting to learn from her.

She was no longer just another person in his eyes. But someone important.

Heat bubbled through her chest.

"I want to say Pyromancy is love too, but that would be repetitive. But it does feel like a fire in your heart."

Faust clicked his fingers, pointing at her. "I don’t think you’re wrong. It’s like excitement. Energy. Every time I use Fireball I’m excited. I’m always excited of course, but it carries the power better when I’m concentrating on being excited."

She was glad to help. And Faust continued to talk even though hisnquestions were answered. They talked about using many things, finally coming to using his golems in the gate and applying her necromancy techniques to his ’Golemancy’ as he called it.

"It’s a bold idea," Nirvana said as he spoke about his suspicions of the gate. "Invading the invaders is something only you would come up with."

This drew a real smile from him. "What can I say? I want to show our enemies some hospitality."

The conversation flowed so smoothly, so perfectly. Nirvana was in heaven. It was finally happening. She had been worried he saw her following him earlier, but those suspicions seemed unfounded.

"I hope I can get a good spear in after this wave," Faust hummed.

The event had started with giving skill, now weapons and potions. Nirvana doubted the next rewards would be weapons again. But she prayed the system would grant his wish.

Faust faced her fully this time. "But I have Amelia doing her best to improve the naginata you gave me just in case."

Her blood turned cold at that moment. A hollow feeling was being slowly carved in her chest. But she did her best to control herself.

Improve what she had gifted to him? That woman?

She lips the inside of her mouth. "That’s nice."

"Yeah. She’s been very... nice to me. Ever since I saved her."

The fury pounding at her skull made her a bit dizzy. Leaning against the ramparts of the wall to stabilize herself, she turned away before she spoke.

"You two seem close. You like her?"

Faust remained silent for so long, she turned and found him staring into this distance. The forlorn look on his face broke her heart. It was like being trapped in a well for an eternity, wishing for the sun’s return.

She would destroy the world to see him smile again. She would do anything.

"I... don’t think I’m looking for romance in the near future," he said slowly. "I think the Trials are more important.... What about you?"

The hollow feeling in her chest was full once again. She yearned to reach out and touch him. But also to drain every last drop of blood from his body.

The conflict made her twitch erratically for a second.

"I am also not looking for that, right now," she lied with great effort. "But I wouldn’t mind it finding me."

Faust smiled again after what felt like eternity. "Don’t we all?"

Nirvana decided at that moment to kill Amelia. Faust was weak now, scarred by that bitch, Liora. Anyone might be able to come in and steal his heart. Even someone so different from him like Amelia.

She would wait until he was ready again, slowly worming her way into his heart, then he would desire her. Then she would have his blood and only his.

They would have to leave her friends behind. She loved them. But she needed Faust to only rely on her. She was all he needed.

The system chose then to disturb this beautiful moment.

[Attention! The Third Wave is about to start!]

Reality broke silently. A ripple of light of various colors—blue, red, purple and many others—erupted one thousand meters west of the Novice village.

A tension filled the air as commands were shouted and people moved quickly. The gate had spawned so close to the wall!

But the silence between Faust and Nirvana continued. They stared into each other’s eyes. She swam in the deep blues of his gaze searching for something. But eventually he sighed.

"I guessed we should get to work," he said calmly. Turning and walking towards the section of the wall exposed to the gate.

Nirvana watched him for a moment, then followed, whispering.

"I suppose we should."