Kael didn't lower the wrench.
Nyra Voss noticed immediately.
Most people relaxed the moment a blade was sheathed. Kael didn't. His grip stayed tight, knuckles pale, stance angled slightly sideways balanced, ready to move.
She smiled faintly.
"Good," she said. "Means you're not stupid."
Kael exhaled slowly through his nose. "And you're not friendly."
Nyra shrugged. "Depends on the day."
The Grayline District stretched around them ruined streets, skeletal buildings, twisted metal frames silhouetted against the dim, system-muted sky. The air smelled faintly of rust and ozone.
Kael's panel hovered at the edge of his vision, quiet for now.
Nyra's eyes flicked briefly toward it.
"So," she said, "first day?"
Kael hesitated, then nodded. "That obvious?"
"You didn't hesitate when the stalker rushed you," she replied. "But you fought like someone who's learning in real time."
"Is that bad?"
She shook her head. "It's rare."
Before Kael could respond, a low growl echoed from the street ahead.
Nyra's expression sharpened instantly.
"Company," she said.
Kael turned.
Three shapes were moving between the wrecked vehicles larger than the stalkers he'd fought earlier. Bulkier. Their limbs were thicker, armored with jagged plates of dark chitin.
His panel responded.
Enemy Detected:
Grayline Brute
Level: 4
Threat Assessment: Moderate
Moderate was a step up from manageable.
Nyra drew her blade again. "You want to run, do it now."
Kael glanced at her. "You?"
"I don't run from Grayline brutes," she said. "I kill them."
That answered that.
Kael adjusted his stance, shifting the wrench into both hands.
"Any advice?" he asked.
Nyra smirked. "Don't get hit."
The brutes charged.
They were faster than they looked.
The first brute slammed into the wreck of a delivery truck, shattering metal as it pushed off and lunged toward Kael. He barely managed to dive aside, the impact cracking the pavement where he'd been standing.
Nyra moved like a shadow.
She slipped behind the second brute, blade flashing. Sparks flew as steel scraped against chitin. The armor held, but the creature roared, staggering.
Kael didn't wait.
He rushed the first brute, swinging the wrench in a tight arc, activating Basic Strike. The impact rang through his arms as the blow connected with the brute's knee joint.
Crack.
The creature stumbled.
Kael pressed the advantage, striking again and again, targeting the same point. The system subtly guided his movements, shaving wasted motion, sharpening angles.
The brute howled and collapsed.
Nyra whistled. "Not bad."
The third brute turned toward Kael, eyes glowing faintly red.
Too slow.
Nyra crossed the distance in a blink, leaping onto the creature's back. Her blade slid between armor plates at the base of its neck.
The brute convulsed, then dissolved into blue light.
The street fell quiet.
Kael leaned forward, hands on his knees, breathing hard.
His panel chimed.
Enemy Defeated.
Experience Gained.
Level Up!
The warmth flooded through him again.
Level: 3 → 4
Free Stat Points: 5
Nyra tilted her head. "Already?"
Kael straightened slowly. "Yeah."
She studied him with new interest. "That's fast."
He allocated the points without hesitation.
STR +2
AGI +3
STR: 13 → 15
AGI: 17 → 20
His body adjusted instantly. Balance improved. Weight distribution felt… right.
Nyra frowned slightly. "Your growth rate isn't normal."
Kael shrugged. "I keep hearing that."
They moved deeper into Grayline together.
This time, Kael noticed the difference immediately.
With Nyra nearby, his awareness felt sharper. Not because of the system—because she was efficient. Calm. She moved like someone who belonged in places like this.
They fought again.
And again.
Stalkers. Crawlers. One more brute.
Kael took fewer hits. His timing improved. Nyra began coordinating without speaking subtle gestures, positioning herself to funnel enemies into his range.
Something clicked.
His panel pulsed mid-fight.
[Notice]
Relationship Data Updating…
Kael didn't have time to read it.
A crawler lunged.
Nyra shouted, "Left!"
Kael reacted instantly, pivoting and swinging. The crawler dissolved mid-air.
The fight ended seconds later.
The system chimed again.
Bond Level Increased.
Nyra Voss: 12% → 18%
Kael blinked.
Nyra noticed his reaction. "You saw something again."
"Yeah," he said slowly. "It… went up."
Her lips curved slightly. "Figures."
They stopped near the shell of an old rail depot. The building was partially collapsed, providing cover and a vantage point over a wide intersection choked with debris.
Nyra leaned against a concrete pillar, wiping her blade clean.
"So," she said, "what exactly did you get?"
Kael hesitated.
Then decided half-truths were better than lies.
"My system does… fusion," he said. "Skills. And apparently relationships."
Nyra raised an eyebrow. "That's new."
"You don't have anything like that?"
She shook her head. "Most people don't even get skill fusion. Relationships?" She snorted. "Sounds messy."
Kael opened the tab.
[RELATIONSHIPS]
Slot 1:
Nyra Voss
Type: Companion
Bond Level: 18%
Status: Active
Slot 2:
— Locked —
He stared at the numbers.
"What happens at… higher levels?" Nyra asked.
"I don't know," Kael admitted. "But I get the feeling it's not just cosmetic."
Nyra watched him for a long moment.
Then she smiled.
"Interesting," she said. "Very interesting."
The ground shook.
Both of them snapped to attention.
A heavy, rhythmic thud echoed from the far end of the intersection. Each step sent vibrations through the cracked asphalt.
Nyra's expression hardened.
"…That's not a brute."
The shape emerged slowly.
It was massive nearly three meters tall, armored head to toe in layered chitin. Its arms ended in heavy, mace-like growths. Blue system glyphs pulsed faintly across its chest.
Kael's panel flared urgently.
Enemy Detected:
Grayline Enforcer
Level: 8
Threat Assessment: High
High.
Nyra swore under her breath. "That thing shouldn't be this close to the outer zone."
Kael's heart hammered.
"Plan?" he asked.
Nyra glanced at him. Then at his panel. Then back at him.
"…We try something," she said.
The Enforcer charged.
The ground cracked beneath its steps.
Nyra moved first, darting to the side, drawing its attention with a flurry of strikes. Her blade sparked uselessly against its armor, but she was fast too fast for it to pin down.
Kael circled wide, heart pounding, searching for an opening.
The Enforcer roared and swung.
Nyra barely escaped, rolling across the pavement.
"Kael!" she shouted. "Now!"
He ran.
The system reacted.
[Notice]
Relationship Fusion Threshold Approaching.
Kael didn't question it.
He leapt, wrench raised, activating Basic Strike with everything he had.
The blow landed against the Enforcer's knee joint the same tactic as before.
It didn't crack.
The wrench bent.
Kael was thrown back, slamming into the pavement hard enough to knock the air from his lungs.
Pain flared.
Nyra was already moving.
She drove her blade into a seam at the Enforcer's shoulder deeper than before. The creature staggered.
Kael's panel exploded with light.
Relationship Fusion Available.
Target: Nyra Voss
Bond Level: 25%
Fusion Effects:
AGI +15%
Critical Rate +10%
Fusion Skill Unlocked:
Phantom Sync (Lv.1)
Kael gasped as the effect hit.
It was like his nervous system rewired itself mid-breath.
Nyra felt it too.
Her eyes widened. "What the..."
"Trust me!" Kael shouted.
He moved.
Faster than he ever had before.
The world seemed to slow, edges sharpening, movements aligning perfectly. He slipped past the Enforcer's swing, positioning himself exactly where Nyra needed him.
She reacted instantly, blade flashing in a perfect arc.
Kael struck at the same time.
The Enforcer's armor cracked.
Nyra's blade pierced deep.
The creature let out one final roar before dissolving into cascading blue fragments.
Silence followed.
Kael collapsed to one knee, chest heaving.
Nyra stared at him, then at her hands.
"…What did you just do?" she asked.
Kael laughed breathlessly. "I think… I fused my relationship."
The system chimed softly.
Relationship Fusion Active.
Synchronization: 61%
Bond Level Increased.
Nyra Voss: 25% → 29%
Kael looked up at her.
Grayline stretched endlessly ahead.
And for the first time since The Convergence
He knew he wasn't facing it alone.