Shadow Re: Slave

After that they continued their discussion for a while until everything was settled, they only needed the answer of Changing Star.

So Sunny said, "I'll go and ask her real quick. I'm getting impatient."

And as soon as he said those words, he disappeared—vanished like a ghost into the air, without a sound or trace.

The others looked at each other with wide eyes.

Seishan, however, just shook her head slightly and began to chuckle in her soft, husky voice.

"He's sometimes like an old man," she murmured. "And at other times, he doesn't even realize a lady might get angry if a guy just pops up in the middle of the night in her bedroom."

Kido and Gemma both turned to look at her with confusion plastered on their faces, clearly unsure if they were supposed to laugh, nod, or be concerned. So they just stared at her in silence.

Seishan only smiled more as she sipped from her cup.

Meanwhile, Nephis was lying in her bed, safe and sound asleep, when she suddenly felt something move in her room. Her eyes snapped open—just in time to see Sunny's smiling face leaning toward her out of the shadows.

And before she even realized what was happening, her body moved on its own.

She punched him.

Hard.

Right in the face.

Sunny was flung across the room, crashing into the wall a few meters away from her bed. He groaned, jumped up, and gestured wildly toward her while clutching his nose.

"What the hell, Neph?!" he exclaimed, exasperated. "I just wanted to ask you about some changes in our plan! Why did you punch me like that?!"

Nephis blinked, still half-asleep and only now processing what had just happened. Then her expression twisted with cold disbelief.

"What the hell did you think would happen when you creep into someone's bedroom in the middle of the night?! What were you expecting?!"

Sunny scratched his head sheepishly, still rubbing his nose. "I just… wanted to talk to a very good friend of mine. And I knew she'd be asleep, but I figured—wait… oh. Oh."

His eyes widened with dawning realization.

"Oh… yeah. That… that makes sense now. Sorry, Neph. I didn't mean to intrude on your privacy or scare you or… yeah, your punch was fair. I deserved it."

She stood up—barely dressed—and walked over with slow, deliberate steps.

Then she slapped him across the face.

Again.

Sunny reeled a little but didn't protest.

"Yes," she said flatly. "You impatient little idiot."

At first, she'd been flustered and annoyed. Who just appears in someone's bedroom like they own the place?! But then she heard the sincerity in his voice, his clueless honesty, and the way he talked about his intentions like it was the most natural thing in the world… and she found herself smiling. Faintly. Secretly.

He was so dense. So ridiculously innocent, it seemed like the idea of impropriety hadn't even occurred to him until she pointed it out.

She couldn't stay mad at him.

"He was just… too cute."

"Wait—what?"

"Where the hell did that thought come from?"

"…Anyway. Let's just hear him out, then kick him back out again. I've never seen him this impatient."

—

So Sunny explained everything they had discussed—what he'd decided with Seishan, the possible adjustments to the plan—and they went over a few details together. In the end, they only made a few small changes.

Then Nephis looked at him, suddenly serious.

"Do you trust Seishan?"

Sunny immediately shook his head. "No. Not yet. Maybe never."

Then his voice lowered slightly.

"But she knows too much to let her go. She saw me retrieve a Divine Memory—and translate runes that maybe only the Sovereigns can understand. I don't like killing people just because it's convenient… so this is her test. If I take her back to the waking world, and she betrays me…"

He didn't finish the sentence.

Nephis stared at him. "Wait… you have a divine Memory?"

Sunny nodded. "Didn't I tell you? I'm the bastard son of Weaver, the Demon of Fate. I found a personal Memory—made by his hand."

His tone was casual, but his words were anything but.

"I found it in a hidden underground chamber. One of the high priests of the Nightmare Spell had been imprisoned there."

Nephis couldn't believe what she was hearing. Every time she thought Sunny couldn't surprise her anymore… he did. Over and over again. A Sleeper from the outskirts, who now held a divine Memory? That was unheard of.

Before she could even ask the next question, Sunny gently took her hand in his.

He squeezed it softly and smiled.

"Good night, Neph. Sorry for intruding. And… thanks. For not taking it the wrong way."

Then he disappeared into the shadows, leaving her alone in the room.

She looked down at her hand, feeling the lingering warmth, and then climbed back into bed.

Despite everything, she smiled.

She really liked having him around.

And that night, she slept like an angel.

In the Great Castle, meanwhile…

Seishan had already explained the details of the Mark of Shadows and then left Gemma and Kido alone—to give them some space to be, well… lovers.

Sunny would have cared about their privacy. Usually. If he'd been thinking a little more clearly tonight. But he wasn't. And, crucially, he didn't check the shadows before stepping through.

So when he reappeared in the room…

There was no sign of Seishan.

But there was Gemma—with one hand around Kido's waist and the other under her shirt.

Kido had one hand on Gemma's back… and the other in a place that really made Sunny wish he hadn't come back right now.

The moment they felt the air shift—felt the shadows ripple and the temperature drop—they looked up.

…And there was Sunny.

Face still smeared with blood, one hand holding his nose. A red imprint of a slap still glowing on his cheek.

Gemma and Kido froze.

He blinked at them.

They blinked back.

Then Kido started giggling.

Gemma was grinning, clearly trying not to burst out laughing. But it wasn't working.

The awkwardness only lasted another second or two before Seishan reappeared with perfect timing and immediately burst into laughter, her voice soft and husky as always.

She smirked at Sunny.

"You got what you deserved," she said, still chuckling. "What did you think was going to happen when you barged into a princess's bedroom? You're lucky you only got slapped. She must like you more than she lets on."

Sunny tried to look annoyed… but it didn't quite land.

So he just sighed. "Yeah, maybe. But still… you could've warned me."

Seishan raised an eyebrow and stared at him.

"I would have," she said dryly. "I tried. But you'd already vanished. Right, Gemma? Kido?"

The two looked at her, trying to wipe the smirks off their faces and compose themselves.

Gemma cleared his throat. "Yeah. We even took bets on whether she'd kill you or you'd come back bleeding."

Kido added with a mischievous grin, "She must really like you. If someone I didn't like popped into my bedroom, they wouldn't leave in One Piece."

Sunny nodded, pretending to take it seriously.

"Good to know," he said with a smirk. "Thanks for the tip. I'll put that to good use."

Then he clapped his hands.

"Anyway. What's done is done. She agreed. We made some minor changes to the plan."

They all regrouped briefly to go over the revised strategy.

And then—finally—they separated for the night.

Everyone was exhausted.

Sunny considered, for a moment, just shadow-stepping back into Neph's room and crashing on the floor. But he quickly got a grip on himself. He didn't want to pull the bowstring too tight—he knew all too well how easily those snapped.

So instead, he simply shadow-stepped up to the top of the wall, lay down there, and stared at the dark sky above.

He closed his eyes with a tired smile.

Everything was finally moving forward.