Some time later, in the Estuary, Sunny met the Vile Thieving Bird, and upon his return to Antarctica, he realized the true cost: his fate was stolen. His True Name gone, his connection to the Spell was gone. He was free.
He heard a loud sound, then stared into a giant ball of white flame in the distance.
"Nephis!" he whispered, a name that felt alien on his tongue, yet still held a phantom ache.
He approached. This was the moment he would finally confront her. Tell her that he was no longer her pawn, that he was free of her manipulations, that his heart was not hers to own...
Nephis turned, her face illuminated by the eerie glow. Her eyes, pools of burning grey, met his.
"Identify yourself."
She showed no recognition. She had forgotten him.
He knew there was a price to pay for his wish, he just didn't know what it would be, but the Mad Prince, he did. He remembered the description of the Key of the Estuary:
"The answer is oblivion."
And just like the daemon of oblivion, Sunny had too lost the chains connecting him to other's hearts, and with that, all his connections were gone too.
In that moment, his heart broke. He realized that despite the bond being gone, His feelings for her have remained.
They were real. They had always been real. Her subtle attempts to steer his heart in her direction were nothing but pointless. He was probably in love with her even before she became his Master; he had just been too blind to see it, too distrustful to accept, too much of a liar to accept the truth. Meanwhile, Nephis had not been good enough at reading people to realize his feelings for her.
After hearing the sound of rubble and losing interest in Sunny, Nephis left in search of Cassie.
Sunny stood alone amidst the ruins.
"I have made a huge mistake...", he murmured, the words hollow in the vast silence. He cursed himself for having listened to the Sin of Solace, the cursed sword whose only goal was to drive him mad.
He cursed Nephis, her pointless attempts at manipulating him into becoming hers, which he already was, had has inadvertently, caused him to believe the contrary, and set the course for him to ruin the happiness they would eventually have.
She was truly, the Star of Ruin