The restaurant smelled of sizzling garlic and pepper, though nobody was eating. The only sounds were the occasional scrape of cutlery, the whisper of waiters too nervous to linger, and Selindra's nails still tapping a patient, predatory rhythm on the table.

Her eyes stayed locked on Lucen like she'd already decided he was prey worth chasing.

"You hide behind words," she said finally, her voice low, deliberate. "Behind jokes, smiles, that lazy posture. It's a mask."

Lucen tilted his head, the smirk tugging lazily at his mouth. "'Maybe I just enjoy talking. You ever consider that? Some people knit, some garden. I needle.'"

"Not like you." Her eyes narrowed. "You're… careful. Even when you pretend not to be."

Varik's gaze shifted slightly, but he still didn't move.

Lucen leaned forward, elbows on the table, chin resting on his knuckles. His voice dipped quieter, amusement curling every word. "'Careful people live longer. Especially around hunters who ask too many questions.'"

Selindra's smile sharpened. "You think I'm dangerous?"

Lucen let the pause linger just long enough before answering, "'No. I think you're bored.'"

That earned him the faintest blink, a tiny crack in her composure.

He pressed. "'And boredom's worse than danger. Makes people dig in places they shouldn't.'"

Her lips curved into that same blade-thin smile. "So where shouldn't I dig?"

Lucen's smirk twitched wider. "'Anywhere you don't want your fingers bitten off.'"

For a moment, the air between them pulsed like a live wire. Selindra leaned forward, her gaze burning. "You're reckless, talking to me like this."

Lucen shrugged, casual, unflinching. "'Reckless is fighting monsters with a butterknife. Talking? Talking's just… foreplay.'"

Her laugh came sharp, sudden, and far too loud in the tense quiet of the room. A few tables flinched. "Gods, you are insufferable."

"Already agreed on that," Lucen said smoothly, raising his glass again.

Her gaze flicked sideways to Varik. "And you sit here and let him run his mouth? That's not like you."

Varik finally moved, slowly, deliberately. He set his glass down, leaned forward just enough that the leather of the booth creaked. His voice was calm, steady, carrying weight without volume.

"It is exactly like me."

Selindra's brows rose. "You've grown patient in your old age."

"Not patient," Varik said. His eyes cut briefly toward Lucen before settling back on her. "Selective."

Selindra studied him for a long moment, then exhaled through her nose. "Selective enough to keep a level twenty-eight at your table."

Lucen grinned faintly. "'Still can't get over that number, can you? You want me to flash the badge? Would that help?'"

She ignored him this time, focusing on Varik. "You know how this looks. You of all people, keeping company with someone who doesn't fit. The guilds will talk."

"They always talk," Varik said simply.

Selindra leaned back, folding her arms. Her braid shifted over her shoulder with the movement, glinting faintly under the low lights. "So you don't care."

Varik didn't answer immediately. When he did, his voice was softer, but no less firm. "No."

Lucen smirked, swirling the last of his wine in the glass. "'That's the trick, isn't it? Don't care, don't crack. Makes you harder to read.'"

Selindra shot him a sharp look. "And you? You care too much about being unreadable. Which means you've got something worth hiding."

Lucen leaned in again, lowering his voice as if sharing a secret. "'Or maybe I've just got a face you can't pin down. Drives you mad, doesn't it? Not knowing whether I'm hiding a dragon or a handful of smoke.'"

Her gaze locked with his, fierce and unwavering. "So which is it?"

Lucen's smirk widened, teeth flashing. "'Why would I ruin the fun by telling you?'"

For the first time, Selindra's smile faltered into something else, curiosity, maybe, or irritation wrapped in intrigue. Her fingers tapped the table once more before she finally sat back, exhaling slowly.

"You're going to cause problems," she said.

Lucen lifted his glass in mock salute. "'Wouldn't be me if I didn't.'"

She shook her head, gaze lingering on him like she was memorizing every detail for later. Then, finally, she looked back at Varik. "Watch him. If he slips, if he drags you down with him, don't expect me to pull you out."

Varik's reply was immediate. "He won't."

Selindra studied him, eyes narrowing, but Varik's face was a stone wall. Eventually, she clicked her tongue and leaned back again.

"Fine. Keep your secret, both of you. But don't pretend you can keep it forever."

Lucen's smirk softened into something subtler, more dangerous. "'Forever's a long time. Let's start with tonight.'"

The silence that followed wasn't hostile anymore, not entirely. It was heavier, stranger, laced with threads of challenge and interest both.

Selindra's tea arrived then, set carefully on the table by a trembling waiter who looked like he wanted to disappear. She lifted it slowly, gaze still fixed on Lucen.

"You're either the dumbest lucky bastard alive," she murmured, "or the most dangerous liar I've met in years."

Lucen chuckled, leaning back against the booth, eyes half-lidded. "'Why not both?'"

Selindra's laugh this time was softer, genuine but edged. She shook her head once, sipping her tea. "I'll be watching you."

Lucen raised his empty glass in return, smirk curling sharp. "'Good. Makes it easier when I don't have to watch you back.'"

For the first time since she'd sat down, Selindra looked… unsettled. Just for a heartbeat. Then the mask slid back into place, sharp and polished.

She set the cup down, eyes flicking between the two of them. "Enjoy your dinner. I won't intrude further."

Lucen watched as she rose, coat shifting smoothly over her shoulders. Every eye in the restaurant followed her as she walked toward the door, her braid swaying like a pendulum.

At the threshold, she glanced back once. Her gaze didn't touch Varik, it landed squarely on Lucen. Her lips curved into that same faint, dangerous smile.

Then she was gone.

The restaurant exhaled as one, chatter resuming in cautious bursts, forks scraping against plates once more.

Lucen leaned back in the booth, exhaling through his nose, his smirk curling lazy again. "'She's fun. You didn't tell me SS-ranks could be entertaining.'"

Varik's eyes didn't leave the door. "She's not fun. She's persistent."

Lucen chuckled. "'I like persistent.'"

Varik finally looked at him, gaze steady, voice flat. "Careful. Persistent cuts deeper than you think."

Lucen met his gaze, smirk never fading. "'Guess we'll find out.'"

The wineglass rolled between his fingers, catching the low light, the reflection sharp as the tension still humming through the air.

And though the restaurant buzzed with noise again, at their table the silence felt louder than any roar.

—

The night outside hit cooler than expected. The city streets were washed in the orange glow of lamps and neon signage, car horns echoing somewhere in the distance. The restaurant door swung shut behind them, muffling the murmur of resumed conversation inside.

Lucen tugged his hood up again, stuffing his hands into his pockets like nothing of note had just happened. He tilted his head back, breathing in the crisp air, his lips curling faintly.

"'Well,'" he said lazily, "'that was stimulating.'"

Varik didn't answer immediately. His gaze swept the street, sharp and methodical, as if Selindra's presence had left a shadow on the pavement itself. Only when he was satisfied no one lingered did he start walking.

Lucen fell in step, boots scuffing against the sidewalk. "'You know, I thought the food would be the highlight. Turns out it was the company. Who knew SS-ranks could be so… curious.'"

"She wasn't curious," Varik said, voice level. "She was probing."

"'Same difference. Curiosity with a sharper edge.'" Lucen smirked, glancing sidelong at him. "'Not my fault she found me irresistible.'"

Varik's eyes flicked toward him, calm but edged. "You let her circle too close."

Lucen gave a short, low laugh. "'Oh please. I danced. She bit. I gave her just enough rope to choke herself on.'"

Varik stopped at the corner, waiting for the pedestrian light. The glow painted his features harsh, shadowing his jawline. "She won't let go."

Lucen's smirk twitched wider. "'Good. Means she'll keep things interesting.'"

The light clicked green. They crossed.

"You don't understand," Varik said.

Lucen raised a brow. "'No, I understand perfectly. She thinks I'm a liar. Which, technically, I am. But what's she going to do, audit my soul? Last I checked, guilds don't hand out magnifying glasses for mana signatures.'"

Varik didn't respond. His silence pressed heavier than any argument could.

Lucen sighed, tilting his head. "'You're wound tight tonight. More than usual. Care to enlighten me, oh mighty level-one-hundred-plus?'"

Varik's voice stayed steady, low. "Selindra isn't like the others. She watches until she finds the seam. And when she finds it, she pulls until something breaks."

Lucen's smirk dimmed, though only slightly. "'Sounds familiar. You sure you're not projecting?'"

"Lucen." Varik's tone carried warning now. Not loud, not sharp, but weighted enough to still the night air around them.

Lucen's eyes narrowed slightly from beneath his hood. Then, after a long beat, he chuckled under his breath. "'Alright, fine. She's dangerous. Point taken. But don't act like you're not enjoying this a little. Admit it, watching me tie her up in circles was fun.'"

Varik's lips pressed in the faintest line. He said nothing.

That, of course, only widened Lucen's grin. "'Knew it.'"

They turned down a quieter street. The lamps here buzzed faintly, moths fluttering against the glass. Their footsteps echoed sharper.

Lucen broke the silence again. "'You trust me, don't you?'"

Varik didn't slow. "I wouldn't be here if I didn't."

"'Then why the warning lecture?'"

"Because trust doesn't stop someone like Selindra," Varik said.