Sunny let out a long sigh. It was his sigh number... he wasn't keeping track, but he had been aware for a while now of how frequently he was sighing. Was there something wrong with that? Probably not, at least not that he knew of, but those sighs were still a reflection of his current state.
He had given Effie a small scolding about her behavior, but it seemed that everything he said to her went in one ear and out the other.
Right now he found himself alone; there was no one around him. Aiko was in the kitchen, Effie had gone looking for Morgan, and lastly, there were no customers either.
Faced with the sudden loneliness, Sunny's shoulders, which until recently had been stiff, relaxed as he leaned back against the backrest of the chair.
'What is more exhausting? Striking down a horde of nightmare creatures, or facing... whatever my life has become now?'
Sunny knew the answer to the question, yet he still didn't feel comfortable being aware of it.
His body and mind demanded a cessation of everything.
Sunny remembered a tale from the already distant times before the Nightmare Spell, even before the great wars. Apparently, there was a group of people who were a kind of monks living in the mountains, who voluntarily deprived themselves of the worldly pleasures of life, living in harmony with themselves and the universe somehow.
It had only seemed like psychobabble to Sunny at the time, but at this very moment, Sunny considered becoming one of them.
'Why can't I be a monk? Shave my head, meditate all day, and... do monk things, I suppose... But now that I think about it, haven't I already done something similar? I crossed the Hollow Mountains in complete solitude, focusing on reaffirming my existence. Am I not already a monk?'
Sunny's train of thought continued until he remembered the condition of celibacy.
There, the idea no longer pleased him.
But some of his ideas remained persistent.
He wanted to rest.
It wasn't a matter of lying in bed and sleeping for a day or two until he fully recovered.
It was a matter of freeing himself from all the problems that tormented him, which did nothing but grow bigger and bigger. The small snowflake had turned into a snowball rolling down the mountain, falling relentlessly, and the further it went, the larger it became.
What would he do when the snowball became an avalanche?
Sunny felt that the ball was already reaching dimensions beyond his control.
"Hot springs... I heard they are beneficial," he said to himself.
His thoughts remained swirling around the idea of a future rest, perhaps not so distant.
His eyes had wandered while he thought; by the time he realized it, his gaze was fixed on the empty seat across from him, causing his brow to furrow.
"What am I going to do with her?" he asked himself in a tired voice.
With that question, another doubt settled into his subconscious, adding a little more snow to the ball.
Sitting in the dining room, Sunny heard the faint creak of the door hinges. He turned toward where the sound came from, which was the main entrance.
In the span of a blink, his body froze and all his thoughts came to a sudden halt, leaving him blank, completely perplexed by the newcomer.
Sunny stood up abruptly from his chair.
He walked as if he were wading through the mud of a dense swamp, each step heavy and cumbersome.
His mind began to stumble; the wave of questions he had asked himself all morning about what happened last night resurfaced, drowning out everything else in his head.
She was standing there, almost as perplexed as Sunny was. He looked at her intently. Her golden hair was messy, and she wore the same clothes from last night, only now they had clear wrinkles and traces of dirt from having rolled around on the floor. When he focused on her face, he felt the air somehow grow denser, making it difficult to breathe.
Her face was still beautiful, even with how unkempt she was; she still looked charming... and yet, her swollen eyelids and amber-gold eyes were subtly bloodshot, telling Sunny that things were not okay.
He had already expected a similar scenario; he had rehearsed over and over how to face the imminent conversation. On paper, this was one of the best situations he could have had—just him and her alone. It seemed Saint Tyris wasn't there to accompany her; he had a clear path to explain himself and seek the best outcome... but when the moment of truth arrived, he froze, and his mouth refused to vocalize words.
Sunny stopped a few paces from her, both of them staring at each other in complete silence.
He didn't know what to do or say. The situation was as delicate as a spider's silk; if he made the wrong move, everything would crumble. Faced with that, doubts began filling his mind.
'What to do? What to say? What will she say? What is she thinking?...'
All his thoughts swirled in an anxious vortex.
Then Telle took a step forward, shattering all his thoughts. She took another step, and then extended her arms and lunged forward, wrapping her arms around Sunny and clinging to him.
"Ah," escaped Sunny's mouth in surprise.
He looked down and found Telle's head buried between his neck and clavicle.
Her hands gripped Sunny's back tightly, with a measured firmness.
Sunny opened his mouth with the intention of saying something, but nothing came out.
In the end, he just closed his eyes for a moment and sighed.
With his left arm, he wrapped around Telle's back, pressing her against him, and his right hand caressed her head, running his fingers through her golden hair.
Only then did the words begin to flow.
"I'm glad to see you," Sunny said in a low voice.
Seconds passed, and Sunny's words hung in the air until the head hiding in his neck pulled away and looked up.
They looked at each other's faces up close.
"Me too..." she whispered in a tired voice.
Sunny took a strand of her hair and tucked it behind her ear. As he did, the tense muscles of Telle's face relaxed.
Sunny's expression grew complicated, and he looked to the side.
"Telle... listen to me before anything else... I—"
Sunny tried to finish his words, but some strange noises coming from behind him distracted him.
"Who is she?" whispered a voice.
"I don't know, looks like she's new," another voice replied in a whisper.
"What do you mean by new?"
"New, as in a novelty, as in someone who is new."
"But new to what?"
"Well, I haven't explained it to you yet, but... oh, she's looking at us."
Effie was looking at them, and Morgan abruptly turned toward Sunny, casting him a nervous glance.
Even Telle noticed something and tilted her head to the side, looking at Effie and Morgan. Her expression twisted into one of bewilderment upon seeing Raised by Wolves leaning against the wall, and next to her was another woman, but she couldn't recognize her.
Telle looked back at Sunny.
"Did I come at an inconvenient time?" Telle asked in a low voice.
Sunny turned back to Telle urgently.
"No! No, of course not. I just had a visitor. The inconvenient ones are..." Sunny turned to look at Effie. "...the inconvenient ones are others, don't worry."
Following his words, Telle nodded silently, lowering her face again.
Effie suddenly coughed, echoing throughout the place and drawing the attention of everyone present.
"Well! That was a nice walk, but I have to go. See you, Master Sunless, I'll be back soon!" She waved goodbye, walked a few steps, passing quickly by Sunny's side, but abruptly stopped and turned around.
She grabbed Morgan's arm and pulled her.
"You're coming with me."
Morgan's eyes widened as she stumbled, being dragged by the hurried Effie.
"Hey! Wait, wait!" Morgan protested.
Morgan turned back to look at Sunny, opening her mouth to say something, but nothing came out.
The door closed, and Effie vanished from sight along with Morgan.
Sunny and Telle remained embraced, looking at the door where the visitors had vanished.
"That was strange," Telle said.
"Yeah... I'm never going to get used to it."
After a while, the two stopped looking at the door and turned to face each other. Some of the initial tension had dissipated, but what remained unsaid still soured the mood.
Sunny could see it in her eyes; bitterness flooded his palate as he took in the sadness her eyes conveyed.
Sunny broke the embrace and took Telle's hand.
"Come, let's talk."
Behind them, at the door, a dark hand emerged from the shadows and flipped a sign, which now read Closed.
Gently pulling Telle's hand, they both walked to Sunny's room.
They sat on the bed side by side. Telle had gripped Sunny's arm with both hands.
Ever since they sat down, both felt the need to look away. For Sunny, the awkwardness grew sharper, but this was something he had to face.
He took a breath.
"Telle, I know this will be hard for you—it is for me too—but... I'm so sorry, for everything..."
Sunny felt a subtle tug on his arm; Telle's grip on his hand tightened.
"Don't apologize," Telle replied in a delicate voice. "Neither you nor I wanted it to end like this. It's not your fault..." Her voice turned bitter as she uttered the last words.
Sunny furrowed his brow.
"Even so... I allowed it. I let everything escalate to that point..."
"Stop right there," Telle ordered in a tone he had never heard from her before. "I'm not going to let you blame yourself for this. You are the victim here. Even if you could have done many things to avoid it, you didn't choose your position. The one who caused everything was my mother."
Sunny turned to Telle, finding her brow furrowed in annoyance, though that annoyance was not directed at him.
Both of their gazes softened as they met again.
Sunny's jaw was tense; he hadn't realized it until now.
"Yeah... you're right." Sunny looked away, and after a few moments of silence, Sunny focused back on Telle. "So... what do you plan to do now?... I mean, with you and me... after what happened, do you want to keep going with this?"
Telle huffed and deepened her grip on Sunny's arm, leaning over and resting her head on his shoulder.
"Of course I do..." Her tone became deeper and softer. "I was going to ask you the same thing. I was afraid you wouldn't want to see me anymore."
Sunny turned halfway and extended an arm to hug her.
"That won't happen."
He felt Telle let herself collapse against him.
A few seconds passed in complete silence. Sunny eventually leaned back, lying face up on the bed with Telle lying by his side, hiding her face near his neck again.
Sunny looked at the ceiling; a weight had been lifted off his shoulders. He had been terrified of how all of this might turn out. Of all the possible scenarios, this was undoubtedly one of the best. However, there were still things to face.
"Sunny," a voice said.
"Mh?"
Telle raised her head from his chest.
"I didn't want to bombard you with intense questions right from the start, but there are things I want to know."
Sunny gave a slight nod.
"Tell me."
"My memories of that night are a bit blurry near the end. I remember my mom behaving extremely rudely, and from there things started getting fuzzy... and we ended up getting a bit violent, but I don't remember it all that well. Maybe I drank too much?"
As the words were spoken, Sunny's eyes grew wider and wider. He froze completely, listening.
Snapping out of his stupor, Sunny looked at Telle with incredulity.
"You don't remember anything else? You don't know what happened?"
Telle shook her head.
"Things became blurry, I don't have a clear picture... My mother was extremely rude and violent, but if anything else happened, I don't remember. So... what happened?"
A second passed and Sunny said nothing. His mouth opened, but for a moment nothing came out as he looked at Telle, who was waiting expectantly.
Nothing was passing through his mind; it was peaceful and profoundly silent. His flaw began to throb with pain. He wasn't holding back words; he was simply too bewildered to express anything. But he had to do it, and what came out of him were words he hadn't planned, even getting ahead of what his flaw would force him to say; something else came out.
"At one point you drank too much alcohol, then you passed out, and I was left alone with your mother... Things somehow calmed down... or rather, they became simpler. Still, she got a bit intense; we wrestled for a bit. She was too drunk, so after a while, I took an opportunity and left, but she... she didn't cause me any harm."
Beads of sweat began to roll down Sunny's forehead, his breathing growing heavy.
In a way, none of that was a lie... but it wasn't the absolute truth either. He was already an expert at doing that—distorting the truth.
By skipping events and changing the right words, the meaning of a story becomes completely different.
He wasn't lying, but... he was deceiving her.
Telle sighed heavily.
"I see. She behaved even worse than I thought," she said with deep exhaustion. "But don't worry anymore, you won't have to see her again. I don't want to either."
Telle pulled away from Sunny's chest and sat up on the bed, flashing a timid smile.
"Let's just say... I made the decision to distance myself from her indefinitely. So... I don't know if running away from home is the right word, but I think I find myself homeless now." Telle clasped her hands over her lap and looked away to the sides. "I know it's very, very fast, everything is moving in giant leaps, but... I was wondering if I could... um... live here?"
Sunny got up, sitting down, and took her hand, causing their eyes to lock onto each other.
"There's no problem at all," Sunny replied. "You can stay as long as you want. This will be your home..." Sunny scratched his head with a smile. "Besides... wouldn't you like to have a job too?"
Telle's eyes widened, looking as if they might pop out. Joy settled on her face, and she lunged forward to hug Sunny.
Both tumbled backward onto the bed again.
Sunny wrapped Telle in an embrace, running a hand over her head, caressing her blonde strands.
A smile had formed on his face too, but that smile quickly vanished, and as the embrace continued, Sunny's expression tightened and darkened.
He had deceived her, and deep down, that hurt him. But he couldn't focus on that fact for long.
A new opportunity had arisen, and the snowball that seemed so massive could be completely destroyed.
If everything that happened was only in his memory and Tyris's... there was a chance to change things, to fix everything in silence. Perhaps not now or tomorrow, but if the opportunities presented themselves, the best possible ending could emerge.
But everything carried its risks. It had all begun with a deception; if everything were to come to light in an unfortunate way, an even worse outcome could occur.
'I'm going to fix things with Saint Tyris.'
He had made up his mind.
XXX
"You certainly don't look happy," said a voice that sounded like a fly buzzing in her ear.
Morgan remained silent as she walked. They had left the emporium a while ago, and she was wandering around the area in search of a quiet space, but there was an inconvenience: wherever she went, annoying noises seemed to follow her.
"Hey, stop ignoring me! I have something that might interest you!" the voice insisted.
Morgan felt the urge to walk faster, then the urge to start jogging, but the noise wouldn't disappear.
"Why are we running?" the voice pressed.
Morgan clenched her jaw and huffed heavily, slowing down until she came to a stop. Effie, who was hounding her, did the same.
She shot her an irritated look and, with whatever remaining patience she had left, said politely:
"Raised by Wolves, I am not in a good mood right now, so I will be honest with you: I wish to be left in peace at this moment... You have a child, don't you?" A slight hint of irony seeped into her voice. "I imagine he is a very charming boy. Wouldn't it be better if you went to see him? He must miss his mom very much!"
Effie nodded, puffing out her chest.
"Just as you say, he's a great kid! A bit destructive, but what can you do? A little transcendent wolf cub requires special care!" she said with particular excitement.
"I see, I see." Morgan nodded at her words with a strained smile. "Then you should go see your offspring, and I will go my own way, alright?"
"No need, he's with his father! An excellent househusband, if you ask me!"
Morgan's smile cracked.
"Then may I know what else you want from me?" she said, barely containing the irritation in her voice.
Effie placed both hands on Morgan's shoulders.
The sudden grip disconcerted her. She looked into the tall woman's eyes and saw Effie smiling, but there wasn't a single shred of mockery on her face.
Effie looked around; they were in an area secluded from everything else, where no one was passing by.
"Listen to me, Princess Morgan. This is important. There are a few things you need to know, but before that... how are you feeling?"
Morgan's discomfort almost made her take a step back. The look of bewilderment that had formed on her face quickly vanished, replaced by a pensive expression.
"I'm not sure... I think... disappointed? It turned out he was in a relationship after all." Her voice grew more tired. "...And when I saw them hugging... I didn't like it. It felt wrong." Her last words sounded quieter and quieter.
Morgan let out a heavy sigh, seemingly brushing away the brief moment of sentimentality.
"Let's make this quick. What do you want to tell me?" She sounded annoyed.
Effie released her grip on her shoulders and her smile widened. She looked at her for a few moments, just smiling, then placed her hands on her hips and murmured:
"Jealous."
That word hit the mark.
Morgan clenched her fists, and her eyelid twitched with rage. She was making superhuman efforts not to lash out violently against that woman.
Her tongue burned, holding back unrefined words. The laughter that came from Effie only made Morgan boil with more anger.
"Alright, alright! I'm serious now. There are some things you need to know. I'll tell you on the way. Follow me."
Morgan let out a long sigh and closed her eyes, dispelling at least the sharpest part of her anger.
'One more piece of nonsense and I'll mince her, I really will,' she thought, beginning to follow Effie.
"And where exactly are we going?" Morgan asked with a distant air.
"We're going back to the emporium," Effie replied.
Morgan slowed her pace and looked at Effie with a raised eyebrow.
"Didn't we just leave? Why would we go back?" A sense of urgency rose within her; the idea of returning to that place right now put her on high alert. "Sunny must be busy with... that person... I don't... I don't want to go."
Effie kept walking.
"Relax, we're not going inside. I'm just going to settle some matters, and then we're out of here... We'll go at a slow pace, there's no rush on my part. Oh, about what I was going to tell you, well..."
Effie slowed her steps and looked at Morgan enthusiastically.
"All is not lost, Princess. You still have a great chance, so don't be discouraged! I'm on your side! I'll help you get your Prince Charming... though there might be a few snags regarding some things, but as for him being yours, he will be... more or less yours."
Morgan received all her words of encouragement with skepticism. She didn't know whether to feel hope or bewilderment; she didn't understand half of what Effie was saying, and in truth, she hoped she wouldn't. Still...
"I would prefer a knight," she murmured to herself.
The two walked at a slow pace through the streets of Bastion. The area, considerably removed from the city, could have been considered rural—full of trees and greenery. Morgan wondered how much longer this place, relatively isolated from the hustle and bustle, would take to fill up with houses and people passing through it. With the arrival of more and more people into the Dream Realm, she doubted it would last much longer.
The nonsense words Effie occasionally told her threw her out of her thoughts. She tried to pay attention, but preferring to keep her brain cells functioning, she decided not to pay much heed to her words.
When they arrived outside the emporium, instead of going through the main door, Effie walked to the side of the cabin and headed around the flanks. Morgan followed her cautiously, without much enthusiasm.
Effie approached a window and knocked on it carelessly with her knuckles.
After a few moments, the window opened, and a black-haired woman emerged from it. Morgan recognized her—it was the waitress who had served her so politely.
"Eh? What's wrong?" she said, leaning further out.
Morgan stepped closer, and through the glass panes, she could see that the woman was in the kitchen, but above all...
"Hmph," she snorted upon seeing how she was floating.
Effie stepped closer to the woman.
"Hello, little fairy! How are you?" she said tenderly.
The "little fairy" made a face.
"Don't go acting all friendly now. You didn't come to say hello earlier," she said with annoyance.
"You're the one who didn't come to see me! You're the one serving the guests," Effie argued.
"I had my reasons. I wanted to stay out of it and not break the mood that had formed between..." The little fairy's gaze landed on Morgan's figure, and her eyes widened subtly. "Ah, there she is! Hello!" She waved her hand.
Morgan took a second, but returned the gesture tentatively.
"But back to the point, what do you want?" she asked, focusing on Effie. "I have things to do. Besides, it seems we have a somewhat complicated situation inside. I don't have the gossip yet... Ah, I'm rambling. In short, answer me."
Effie nodded, took a step toward the floating woman, and leaned in to whisper something in her ear.
While Effie whispered to her, the small woman nodded her head and said a few things.
"Uh-huh... is that so?... Oh... yeah, it could be."
During their exchange, the woman kept turning toward Morgan, casting quick glances at her. Morgan felt a bit strange about the way she was looking at her; she was analyzing her from head to toe, but more than that... it felt as if she were being evaluated.
"Well, can you do it?" Effie asked, pulling away from the woman.
"Mh... in the evening, when it's getting dark, it could work. If you're lucky, we might even have one more, though I don't know how that will turn out."
Effie smiled and nodded.
"Sounds good to me! I'll be there at that time!"
The woman closed the window and went back to her business, while Effie turned to Morgan.
"Everything is set. At first, I wanted to tell you things directly, but a better idea occurred to me. You'll see it for yourself. I'm going to need us to meet up later. When it's sunset, we'll meet at the park closest to here, alright?"
Morgan remained silent, looking at Effie with uncertainty.
She crossed her arms and leaned against the wall of the emporium.
"What for?" Morgan asked, sounding distant.
"I can't tell you, it's a surprise," Effie replied.
Morgan's eyes narrowed, and she struggled not to roll her eyes.
"So... we simply see each other later?"
Effie nodded. "Exactly, don't worry about anything else, I'll bring everything! So, if you like, you can leave, but if you want to hang out a bit longer, I could..."
"Thank you very much, I'm leaving now," said Morgan, who was already turning the corner.
She heard Effie saying something to her, but she didn't pay the slightest bit of attention.
She sighed and let her shoulders drop.
Morgan felt exhausted, as if she had drained all her strength. Nothing similar had ever happened to her before. She usually had the stamina to run across all of Bastion several times, but if she tried right now, she wouldn't even be able to start.
Finally, she found herself alone with her thoughts. Where she walked, there were still people populating the streets—she had entered a more crowded area—but no one was breathing down her neck at that moment. She could think and digest things.
'Damn it, I think I'm discouraged...'
She kept walking until she reached the great castle of Bastion. In a secluded spot, she took off the attire and memories she used to form her alter ego, "Moira," and equipped her black plate armor.
As if she had put on a flashy hat, all eyes were now fixed on her.
'Despite having always lived with these looks... after having been rid of them, they feel somewhat strange.'
Morgan eventually reached her room, where she collapsed onto the bed.
At the beginning of the day, she had gone out with all the excitement in the world, barely containing herself enough not to look like some kind of hopeful girl... but looking at it at this moment, she was exactly that.
Disappointment reigned now. She replayed in her mind the things that went wrong.
'That would be... from start to finish?' she thought, sounding annoyed even in her own mind.
Morgan brought her gloved hand to her chest and closed her eyes.
She could still see Master Sunless—now Sunny to her—and even new images filled the darkness of her vision.
Her heart still shuddered, and the blush kept rising to her cheeks.
Effie's words sounded like a whisper in her ear.
'All is not lost, Princess. You still have a great chance, so don't be discouraged!'
Morgan replayed these words a couple of times in her mind.
'Do I still have a chance?' she asked herself, turning the question over several times. 'Even if I do... doesn't he also deserve something better?'
She looked toward her window; it was still broad daylight.
'I think... the only way to know what to do will be tonight... Ah, damn it, am I really going to an invitation from that woman?'