The Mansion's Grand Hall – Day One
They were escorted into a massive chamber lined with red carpets, marble columns, and an energy of "we own half the continent." Rudy tried to keep a professional face.
Sans? Still floating one of Aisha's old rattles in his hand like it was a stress toy.
Then she arrived.
Eris.
Ten years old, wild red hair tied back just enough to stop her from looking like a tornado, and with eyes that screamed "I've bit people for less."
She stormed in, glanced at Rudy... then at Sans... and immediately scowled.
"So you're the ones?"
Sans gave her a two-finger wave. "yo."
Rudeus bowed politely. "It's an honor to meet you, Lady Eris. I'm Rudeus Greyrat, and I'll be your magic tutor."
She raised a brow. "And he?"
"support character," Sans replied. "i summon dramatic pauses and make sure this one doesn't explode."
Rudy winced. "Sans.... "
Eris folded her arms. "You're short."
"so is your attention span," Sans shot back, already unimpressed.
That was all it took.
She lunged.
Rudeus yelped, diving out of the way. Eris's punch missed him by a hair, but Sans? He didn't even move. A bone rose from the floor on its own and bonk, gently intercepted her forehead with a dull thunk.
She froze, blinking.
"that's one" Sans said, voice calm.
She snarled and tried again, this time with a roundhouse kick.
Two bones formed a spinning wheel beneath her foot, making her slip and land flat on her butt.
Sans sighed. "that's two."
Eris scrambled back up, cheeks burning. "You're cheating!"
"nah," he shrugged. "just been fightin' tantrums since before you were born. literally."
Rudeus tried to help her up. "L-Lady Eris, please, we're just here to teac-"
"SHUT UP!"
Sans leaned against the wall, watching them struggle like he was watching an old comedy.
"y'know," he said idly, "if this was a video game, we'd still be in the tutorial. and i already hate the boss."
Later That Night - Guest Room
Rudeus nursed a fresh bruise on his arm. "I... think we made a bad first impression."
"nah" Sans said, tossing a blanket over his head like a tired ghost. "you made a bad impression. i was incredible."
Rudy sighed. "How are we supposed to teach someone who'd rather throw punches than read?"
Sans shrugged. "guess we teach her how to throw spells first. sneak the learning in with the violence."
Rudy blinked. "...That might actually work."
"also," Sans added, "next time she lunges? just phase outta the way. amateur mistake."
"Humans can't phase, Sans!"
"skill issue."
Meanwhile - Eris's Room
Eris rubbed her forehead where the bone had tapped her. Her pride still stung more than anything else.
But under the frustration... a flicker of curiosity stirred.
That skeleton wasn't like anyone else she'd met.
And neither was the boy with the polite voice who didn't flinch even when she screamed.
"...Hmph."
She turned over in her bed and muttered into her pillow.
"Idiots."
The Setup Falls Apart
Dinner was extravagant. Too extravagant. Loud laughter. Toasts to new beginnings.
But Sans noticed the subtle cues, the way two guards subtly nodded at each other and left through opposite halls. The way Eris's personal maid never looked her in the eye. The way a waiter didn't blink once.
And then, it happened.
The lights flickered.
A thundercrack outside.
Then a scream.
Rudy was halfway through a bite when a hand shot through the window and grabbed him by the collar.
Sans was already moving.
"get down."
Bones erupted from the floor, ivory-white and glowing faint cyan, snapping upward like blooming flowers. They encased Rudy in a ribcage shield just as a masked figure smashed through the window, dagger first.
"Assassins?! Who-" Rudy choked out.
"No," Sans said, stepping between them and the intruder. "these ones ain't just hired muscle. they're here for keeps."
The masked man lunged. Sans sidestepped, left hand glowing with soul-fire, blue and bright and merciless.
"you picked the wrong house."
He snapped his fingers.
The attacker froze midair, suspended by an invisible force. Sans's eye glowed brighter, then....
CRACK.
The man's spine bent the wrong way before he hit the ground like a puppet with its strings cut.
But more were coming. Shouts from the hall. Smoke bombs. Screams of confused staff.
And amidst the chaos, Eris was gone.
The Chase
"they took her" Sans growled, scanning the broken window.
Rudy coughed, standing up, coughing on smoke. "They got her? Then we-"
He didn't finish. Sans had already grabbed him by the collar.
"hold on."
He snapped his fingers again. A platform appeared under their feet, hovering off the ground. With a wave of his hand, it launched them through the broken window into the night sky, trailing neon-blue magic as they flew over the rooftops of Roa.
Below, dark figures were fleeing down alleyways, dragging a red-haired girl.
"can you fight?" Sans asked.
Rudy nodded, fire in his eyes. "If they've hurt her, I swear-"
"good. i'll clear a path. you get her out."
"Wait, what about you?"
Sans's smirk returned, cold and dangerous. "i'm just gettin' started."
They landed hard in the dirt of a narrow alleyway. Rudy rolled, staff already in hand. The kidnappers were ahead, three cloaked figures dragging Eris, gagged and thrashing, toward a waiting carriage.
She wasn't crying, she was furious, kicking and biting, fire in her eyes even as they hit her again.
Rudy's face twisted. "Eris-"
But before he could run, Sans raised a hand.
"wait."
One of the kidnappers turned, eyes widening at the sight of the two boys.
"Oh hell..... That's the other one! Get them!"
Big mistake.
Sans stepped forward slowly, bone-cracking sounds echoing from his back as his hood fell. His body shifted, skeleton form, white bone, black jacket, glowing left eye flickering with rage.
"so... this was never a test, huh?" he said softly. "they sent real dogs this time."
"Kill them!" the leader roared.
A barrage of throwing knives launched toward them, silver, fast, tipped in something that sizzled the air.
Too slow.
Bones burst from the ground, intercepting every knife mid-flight, spinning like fans of death. One impaled a man to the alley wall, pinning his shoulder clean through.
Rudy didn't hesitate. He sprinted past Sans and into the fray, flames igniting along his staff.
"Stone Bind!" he yelled, and the road beneath one of the kidnappers liquified, turning to mud and sucking his legs in.
Eris elbowed her captor hard enough to make him stumble.
She didn't recognize Rudy right away, not with blood in her eyes.
But then Sans was there, blinking behind the last kidnapper with a lazy yawn.
"kidnapping a noble's daughter? tsk tsk. haven't you heard? that stuff's bad for your health."
Snap.
The man's soul flickered in Sans's hand—pure blue light, vibrating with fear.
He crushed it.
And the man collapsed.
No One's Laughing
The alley was quiet again. Blood soaked into the cobblestones. One man groaned, still pinned to the wall. The rest were dead or dying.
Eris pulled her gag off with shaking hands. "W-what... What the hell was that?!"
Rudy looked back at Sans, who was still glowing faintly.
"...Our bodyguard" Rudy said with a shaky grin.
Eris blinked. "That's not a bodyguard. That's a monster."
Sans just stuffed his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "eh. i've been called worse."
Guards were coming now, real ones, with swords and panic and noble crests on their chests.
Too late.
The Setup Revealed
Later that night, the truth surfaced. The original test, the fake kidnapping, had been hijacked. Real mercenaries had infiltrated the plan, paid off the decoy crew, and intended to ransom Eris for real.
Only, they didn't expect Rudy to fight.
And they sure didn't expect Sans.
Ghislaine stood silent in the shadows as Lord Sauros raged at his staff. She didn't speak much, but when she looked at Sans, there was no contempt.
Just quiet recognition.
And maybe... a flicker of respect.
The Next Morning - Rage, Bruises, and a Training Proposal
The sun broke over Roa, golden light painting the stone walls of the Boreas estate. Servants bustled about nervously, whispering behind doors. The air still smelled faintly of smoke from the night before.
In one of the guest rooms, Rudy sat upright, nursing a bruise on his shoulder. He had barely slept, too wired, too sore, too overwhelmed. His staff leaned against the wall, singed and cracked at the tip.
Then came the banging.
BAM. BAM. BAM.
The door flew open before he could answer.
Eris stormed in, bandaged, hair wild, bruises across her knuckles. Her usual noble pride had taken a hit, but in its place burned something fiercer.
Her eyes landed on Rudy, then darted to the far end of the room, where Sans sat in the corner, levitating a bone lazily like it was a fidget toy.
"You" Eris growled.
Sans didn't look up. "mornin'. sleep well, princess?"
"Don't mock me."
"wasn't mockin'. was hopin' you'd be less loud after all that yelling yesterday."
She ignored it. Took a step forward. Then another.
"I want you to train me."
Sans blinked slowly. " ...come again?"
"You heard me," she said, fists clenched. "You saved me. You crushed those men like they were insects. You didn't even blink. I want that. I want to be strong enough that no one ever drags me away again."
Rudy stood, surprised. "Eris, Ghislaine's already going to-"
"Ghislaine's a swordswoman. I want to learn from him." She pointed at Sans, unwavering.
"whatever you think i did, kid," Sans said, voice quieter now, "you probably don't wanna learn it."
"I do." Her tone didn't shake. "You fight dirty. You don't play fair. You don't care about honor, you care about winning. That's what I need. Teach me."
Sans finally looked at her, really looked. His single glowing eye flickered blue, scanning her soul like a scanner.
She wasn't lying.
She wanted to be terrifying.
Not to hurt others, but so she'd never be helpless again.
He sighed, bone lowering to the ground.
"alright, then~" he said. "you want training?"
Eris nodded, heart pounding.
Sans stood up, cracks echoing from his joints as he stretched.
"first lesson starts now."
He raised a finger....
BONK.
A small bone struck her in the forehead and knocked her flat on her butt.
"Ow! What the hell?!"
Sans grinned. "lesson one: don't ask for power you can't dodge."
A New Regimen Begins
Within days, a strange routine forms.
Ghislaine trains Eris in swordsmanship, refining her stance, strength, and form.
Rudy? Magic and stuff, what he's good at.
Sans? He trains her in unpredictability, awareness, and ruthlessness.
Sneak attacks. Magic traps. Soul pressure games.
He pops bones up from under her chair during lunch. Throws pebbles at her from rooftops. Once, he even fakes a kidnapping on Rudy to test how fast she reacts.
Eris hates it.
But she gets faster. Sharper. Angrier, but more controlled.
Rudy watches from the sidelines, amused and worried in equal measure.
Because for the first time in her life, Eris is learning how to fight like a monster.
And Sans?
He's starting to feel something close to pride.
...
The Boreas Winter Ball
The Boreas estate had transformed. Silks draped from the ceilings. Ice sculptures glistened under crystal chandeliers. Nobles mingled in rich colors and louder voices, cups clinking and gossip floating like perfume.
Tonight was the Winter Ball, and every powerful family in Roa had sent someone to show face.
Eris looked stunning, a deep red dress with silver accents. Rudy looked... extremely uncomfortable in formalwear.
And Sans?
He stood out like a burn mark on white velvet.
No suit. No tie. Just his usual black hoodie, slightly less dusty than usual, and glowing eye dim behind his upturned hood. A servant tried to hand him a mask for the masquerade theme.
He just stared at it until they backed away.
The Shark Tank
The moment he entered, the whispers began.
"That's him."
"The one who ripped a man's soul in half."
"Why is he even here?"
Hilda pulled Eris aside. "Keep him in line tonight. If he causes a scene, it reflects on all of us."
Eris scowled. "He saved my life. That's more than most people in this room ever did."
Across the hall, a minor noble, Lord Caldo, small and ambitious, decided to test Sans.
He approached, wine in hand, smiling too wide.
"Ah, the famous Greyrat pet. Tell me, are you trained to sit? Or just to kill?"
Rudy flinched, already casting a silent defensive spell.
Sans didn't move.
Didn't blink.
Didn't smile.
He just whispered:
"tell me, caldo... you ever wonder what your soul sounds like when it screams?"
The noble went pale. Dropped his glass. Backed away without a word.
Eris cackled.
The Unexpected Dance
Later, the orchestra played something slow and glittering.
Rudy was dragged into a dance by some overeager merchant's daughter.
Eris stood alone by the refreshment table, half-glaring at everyone.
Sans drifted near.
She smirked. "Don't even think about it. I'm not dancing with you."
"good," he replied, sipping his drink, he'd somehow gotten ketchup into a wine glass. "i got two left tibias anyway."
Eris rolled her eyes, but her smile lingered.
They stood in companionable silence, watching the nobles spin around like dolls.
Then, across the hall, Hilda and Ghislaine shared a glance.
The swordswoman approached Sans quietly, voice low.
"She's never laughed at one of these before," Ghislaine said. "Not once."
Sans tilted his skull slightly.
"guess she just needed better company."
Afterparty (aka Sneaking Out)
After the party, while the estate snored and the candles burned low, Eris, Rudy, and Sans slipped out onto the balcony under the stars.
Rudy tossed his mask into the wind. "I hate noble stuff."
"seconded," Sans said.
"Thirded" Eris added. "But... tonight wasn't awful."
She glanced at Sans.
"Thanks for not turning anyone into a bone sculpture."
"tempting" he said, "but figured i'd save the art for another night."
They laughed. The stars were cold and quiet above them.
For a moment, everything felt normal.
Almost peaceful.