Wealth, fame, and power. It's an irony, though. I have accumulated everything, yet even though I have everything, at the same time I have nothing.
The way I dealt with the situation with Hancock… I thought about it for a long time. Days turned into months, and finally years.
'Why did I act so out of character?' That question bugged my mind for the longest time.
I had countless ways to make her fall for me even after being rejected, but I still didn't.
When I finally realized the answer, it was laughable.
I wanted to be 'chosen' by the most beautiful woman in the world…
Even though my strength had reached stages even I can't fathom, I still cling to these human emotions.
In both of my lives, I have never been chosen. In the first life, I was an orphan. In the next, it was even worse. I was sold by my parents. That's why I unconsciously acted out of character, so desperate to prove that even I could be chosen and loved. I probably did everything I could think of to raise affection points from her. However, the results were disastrous.
I was disappointed, obviously by the rejection. But I felt even more disappointment in myself. I was disappointed that I had acted that way.
I have everything, and at the same time nothing. Every relationship I have is built on lies and manipulation.
I've grown closer with many women, yet funnily enough I have never been told one simple word. The confirmation that they loved me.
I think they probably would say it if I asked. However, if I go around and make them say it, is there really any point?
I guess a man who didn't get loved by his parents in two different lives is just not meant to be loved.
——
"Hey, Shun. Are you really sleeping?"
A sweet voice gently woke Shun from his short nap.
"Yawn~ What happened to me?" Shun asked, still half-asleep. Just moments ago, they had been returning from Edolas inside one large paw bubble that was supposed to send them back to Earthland.
"You fell asleep for about half an hour…" Sorano spoke sweetly from beside him while the others watched with curious eyes. It would normally take an instant, or at most a minute, for Shun to teleport them around. Yet this time they were still inside the paw bubble, and the transportation was still in progress.
'It's rare for me to take a nap… Am I getting sick? Haha.'
Shun silently laughed at his own joke.
"All right, I'll take us back soon. Sorry for the delay," Shun said as he waved it off and prepared to continue.
"Don't worry about such things. Take your time, my love~" Sorano wasn't the type to miss a chance to show off her good side to Shun and her relationship with him in front of the others in their little squad.
"…"
Except for little Yukino, everyone else was surprised by how shamelessly affectionate the girl was acting.
To their surprise, Shun's reaction was completely unexpected. In their minds, Shun would never tolerate such shamelessness and would usually find a way to tease whoever said something like that.
However…
"Mm, thank you," Shun said with the brightest smile they had ever seen from him, not the usual scheming or mischievous one.
Looking at their dumbfounded faces, Sorano took one of Shun's arms and hugged it affectionately.
Sorano spent most of her life observing Shun. Lately she had even started stalking him while he took a bath.
However, that was no longer necessary. After all, last night their relationship status had suddenly reached its peak. While they were having their fun, the ever-observant Sorano had noticed exactly what kind of actions and words had the strongest positive effect on Shun.
'It's cute that the strongest mage has the simplest desires…' Sorano smiled fondly as she observed Shun's face while he smiled back at her.
——
Creaak—
"Hm?" As soon as the group entered, they noticed the strange atmosphere. There were a bunch of people in uniforms, and the usually noisy and chaotic guild main hall was completely silent.
"You brat! Where did you disappear to? You're making the chairman wait for you!" Makarov shouted, veins popping on his forehead.
"I missed the part where that's my problem. If you arrived without informing me beforehand, you'll just have to wait," Shun shrugged and walked past the angry little old man.
"Oh, you guys are back?" When Shun and his small squad walked inside, they saw heads of pink, red, and blonde hair sitting at a table.
"Shun! You're back! Let's fight!" Natsu, wrapped up in white bandages all over, approached while saying his usual line.
It was an everyday occurrence for Natsu to talk about fighting and then get dragged away by Erza or Mira, sometimes even Gray. However, this time…
Something unprecedented happened.
"Sure."
"Huh?" Everyone, including Natsu who had asked for the fight, was surprised.
"Take your stance," Shun spoke without expression.
"I-I'll pass this time after all," Natsu, who had eaten Etherion and been unconscious for a day before returning to the guild, was really not in any condition to move around wildly. He had only been saying it casually.
'Then why did you ask for a fight?!' was what everyone in the main hall thought, but they didn't have time to voice it out because Shun had already removed the simple black gloves he wore to hide his paws.
Swoosh—!
As soon as the gloves came off, everyone felt like a cold wind blew through the guild even though the doors were closed.
The next moment, Shun vanished without a sound. Even his signature noise was absent this time.
When Shun placed his paws on Natsu's back in the blink of an eye, only then did the sound catch up…
POP—!
When everyone was still doubting their senses, the sudden noise brought them back to reality.
"Woah—! What is this?" Natsu, who was now staring at a red paw bubble coming out of his chest, screamed in confusion. Then…
"Ohh—! I'm no longer feeling tired or in pain! Now let's fight!"
"…"
"I've removed the fatigue and pain you accumulated over the last few days during the mission. However, that red bubble will start following you around until you give that pain to someone else. I personally recommend the Vulcans from the northern mountain. Before, you were fine because you accumulated it slowly over time, but if you take that pain bubble now… all the pain will hit you at once and knock you unconscious for at least a week." Shun's long and dreadful explanation finally ended with Natsu's face turning pale.
"Aghh—! This thing just moved!! It's following me! Happy, take that thing away from me!"
"Don't say crazy stuff. I'm just a cat," Happy ignored his so-called partner's suffering and continued munching on a raw fish.
KICK—!
Natsu kicked the guild door open and ran off toward the mountain.
"You're quite the cruel one," Shun spoke to the member of the elite race from Edolas.
"Heh, you're not bad yourself," Happy replied while still munching on his fish.
The unusual duo, Happy and Shun, continued chatting. The subject was also unusual: Happy was accusing Shun of copying his character with those paws!
It was then that an old man with an air of authority approached the duo.
"Hoho, that was a fascinating magic," the old man with the giant white beard spoke with a feigned wise expression, though he couldn't fully hide the fear in his eyes after witnessing Shun's mastery of magic.
"Did you prepare a reward worthy enough to match the mission?" Shun didn't want to waste time and asked directly.
"Cough, cough." The chairman of the Magic Council faked a few coughs and signaled with his eyes.
"All right… let's go to the guild master's floor," Shun said on purpose and led the way.
Before leaving the floor, Shun grabbed Mavis' hand, and the three of them entered Shun's office.
'Mavis has been sending me angry glances from time to time. I have to settle this before I go to different worlds,' Shun thought.
——
When Shun was seated in his chair, Mavis stood behind him while the chairman sat in the guest chair.
"So… what did you prepare for the reward? Get straight to the point," Shun spoke without expression.
"That's… we have decided to grant you one wish. As long as it's not too outrageous, like using Etherion or other banned magics." After some hesitation, Chairman Crawford spoke his terms.
"A wish?" It was unexpected for both Mavis and Shun.
"Yes."
"I was planning to reject the mission if you said you would give me money or some crappy reward. But a wish, huh…"
"What should I wish for?" Shun turned back to Mavis and gently grabbed her hand.
When the question was suddenly thrown her way, Mavis was surprised and spoke without thinking.
"…Why don't you ask Sorano that?"
As soon as she said that, Mavis covered her mouth with both hands.
"…"
The three people gathered in the room were collectively at a loss for words.
'Crap, seems like I came at a bad time. I'll just finish this fast and leave before this guy starts accusing me of offering a bad reward that started a fight between them or whatever petty excuse.' Crawford thought, running through many things in under a second.
"Cough, cough."
Feeling awkward, Crawford faked his coughs again.
"If you think of a wish, give me a call. If it's possible, we would like you to complete the mission as soon as possible."
"Mm. Thank you," Shun nodded expressionlessly.
Creaak—
Crawford left the room and asked Makarov to lead him outside.
When the two were left in the room, neither of them spoke. Only Shun still held Mavis' hand and occasionally rubbed it as if teasing her.
"…Are you feeling jealousy?" Shun asked with a smile.
"I don't know."
"…You know that's not the type of emotion a 'mother' should have, right?"
"…"
Mavis didn't reply. She kept her gaze lowered, not meeting Shun's eyes, as if she had suddenly found the floor very interesting.
"Kyah—!" A sweet noise escaped her when Shun suddenly scooped her up and made her sit on his lap.
The two were now facing each other while Mavis' arms rested on both of Shun's shoulders, creating a rather ambiguous position. Mavis' face had turned completely red, and she didn't utter a word for a while.
"Sorry," Shun broke the silence.
"Eh? For what?"
"It was unfair of me to force such roles upon ourselves when in reality both of us had no experience of either giving or receiving affection while growing up."
"…"
Mavis was at a loss for words. Things were changing too fast for her. But she knew she had to say something.
"N-No, I was happy and had a lot of fun."
"Me too, but let's stop all of that."
"!"
"And redo it from the start."
"W-What do you mean by that?" Though she suspected where this was going, she still had to ask.
"Hmm, I actually had a plan for today but… never mind that. Let's go on a date."
"…A date?"
"Yes. I'll show you something that I have never told anyone before."
After saying that, Shun created a paw bubble that enveloped both of them. Then he finally touched the bubble with his paw.
POP—!
Once again, Shun's office became completely silent as the two individuals vanished without a trace.
——
When Mavis opened her eyes, she saw a huge archipelago below them as she and Shun stood high above inside the paw bubble.
POP—! POP—!
Occasionally, the sound of bubbles popping, which weren't Shun's doing, echoed in the area. It was the Sabaody Archipelago's specialty.
"Where is this place? It kind of reminds me of Tenroujima…" Mavis asked curiously, a nostalgic look on her face.
"It's a place called the Sabaody Archipelago."
"…"
"It's a different world than ours."
"Huh? Like Edolas?"
'Visiting Edolas was useful in softening the shock of visiting new worlds, huh.'
"Yes, but it's way bigger than Edolas. Well, let's go see it ourselves." Shun said, then used Mira's magic, Take Over, to turn his hair black.
'For the past few years, I have mastered pretty much every magic of the Fairy Tail members, except for useless ones like Wakaba's smoke magic where they turn smoke into a fist to punch others. Learning transformation magic isn't really much to brag about, after all even Happy was able to learn it after only a few hours of training.'
"Huh? Why did you change your hair color?" Mavis asked curiously.
"I'm a bit popular in this world. Like a celebrity?" Shun replied, a little unsure of his identity in the One Piece world.
"White is good too, but I missed this…" Mavis muttered, then started playing with Shun's now-black hair.
"…"
'Well, as long as she is having fun.' Shun didn't stop her as he noticed her gleaming smile.
As soon as they landed, they became the center of attention.
"Wow, who are they? Nobles from somewhere?"
"How the fuck would I know?"
"That girl is beautiful like a fairy…"
"Hey, you should try to approach her."
"N-No, you do it."
"I would… normally. But the man with her… his facial expression is too dangerous."
"Yeah, I agree. That arrogant expression, they must be some kind of royal blood. Or even Celestial Dragons."
"Idiot, would Celestial Dragons go around with only two people? Also their clothes are different, but that man's arrogant expression does look similar to the Celestial Dragons."
The citizens of the Sabaody Archipelago were gossiping among themselves in quiet voices. Shun, with his enhanced sensory magic, was able to catch every word.
'Arrogant, huh? With great power comes great arrogance. When I was weak, I was quite the diligent individual.'
"Hey, let's try that dessert. It looks like a bubble!" Mavis said from the side, her eyes shining with excitement.
Newcomers to Sabaody would often take interest in the unique bubble rides, but Mavis wasn't interested in them at all. The reason was obvious, she was far more interested in trying various sweets.
"Mm, delicious! It's really sweet. Try it." Mavis said and tried to feed Shun while he led both of them toward Grove 13.
"You're right."
"Where are we going?"
"A friend of mine runs a shop here. Let's drink something there, then we'll go to our main stop."
Shun said as he led her toward a suspicious-looking store.
'I would like to directly take her to Gran Tesoro, but since the Gran Tesoro ship is always on the move, I have to get to Sabaody first and then use Baccarat's Vivre Card. Since I'm here, I might as well meet one of my few friends in this world.'
Creaak—
"Oh? Shu-chan has a partner today?" The former generation's most beautiful woman in the world, now wiping a glass behind the bar, spoke to her guests. As always, the place was empty except for her.
"Yeah, but Shu-chan? You're gonna shorten my already short name?"
"Oh? You don't like it?" Shakky spoke as she led them to their seats.
Mavis and Shun sat on the sofa placed by the window.
"I'll have a glass of milk," Shun said, then asked Mavis what she wanted to drink.
"Then I'll have an orange juice."
"Pfft—" Shakky seemed to find something funny.
"Huh? This place laughs at the customers' orders now?" Shun wanted to call the manager.
"Fufu, sorry, but seeing a couple radiating such a noble aura and then ordering such childish drinks…" Shakky covered her mouth and went behind the counter to prepare their orders.
After a minute, Shakky came back, placed the drinks on the round table, and sat on the sofa as well.
"So… is she your new lover?"
Hearing Shakky's casual tone, Mavis' face turned red as she glanced at Shun's face. She also wanted to know what their relationship was now.
"Her name is Mavis Vermillion… As for the relationship, she isn't a new lover."
"Huh?" ×2
"She is a special person for me, so she'll become my first wife. Unless she refuses." Shun laid bare his intentions with a shrug, then stole a glance at Mavis.
She was just silently slurping her orange juice through a straw with a bright red face.
'Oh? So she's not totally against the idea?' Shun thought.
"Main wife, huh? I thought you were head over heels for our Hancock," Shakky asked as she lit up a cigarette.
Hearing an unknown name, Mavis came back to her senses. As she realized that his greed knew no bounds, she was starting to get annoyed. The girls in the guild she could somewhat tolerate since she had known them for years. They were good girls. But this Hancock girl, she had no clue who she was. Luckily for her, she didn't have to worry about her.
Noticing Mavis' expression, Shun decided to come clean before it got messy.
"About Hancock, it's been more than a year since I saw her."
"Huh? You guys had a fight?" Shakky asked. Since Rayleigh hadn't come back for more than a year, she had no clue about what was happening around Luffy and Amazon Lily.
"Not really. Just that I was brutally rejected," Shun said and put on a heavy expression as if he was in pain.
"…"
The two women were obviously surprised by the turn of events… until—
"Pfft—" once again, Shakky seemed to find something funny.
"…"
"Are you seriously laughing again? I thought this was a moment where I should be getting comforted?"
"Fufu~ sorry, but you shouldn't use the word 'brutally' for a moment like this."
Shakky continued laughing, and even Mavis had a small smile tugging at her lips.
'Is this some old people humor?'
Shun eventually stopped thinking.