Shadow Slave - One Shots

this takes place BEFORE THE CONFESSION OF SUNNY AND NEPHIS, just need to build them and bring all the minor characters so sorry if this is kinda boring

Sunny woke up, his body moving on instinct as he slipped into the motions of his usual routine.

He washed his face, tied his dark hair bac-

Yeah, you already know how it goes.

But something had changed.

He had gotten his fate. And today was his first day on the job.

He exhaled as he walked downstairs, preparing to open the café.

'This is gonna be quite troublesome…'

The scent of freshly brewed coffee filled the air, and he relished the familiarity of it.

He had arrived to the kitchen, being relatively early so he didn't expect anyone to be there.

Instead, he saw Aiko there.

The moment Aiko saw him, she froze, eyes wide. Then-

- Crash!

A plate shattered against the floor.

Aiko blinked at the broken mess, then slowly turned back to him. "So, you're telling me we used to work together? But… I forgot?"

She frowned, looking him up and down.

"And what happened to the malnourished, bastard-like kid I knew from the Forgotten Shore?"

Sunny chuckled. "That bastard-like kid you know fought agaisnt a vile bird and grew up."

She shrugged. "Meh, whatever. As long as I get more money from you."

He laughed, shaking his head. Some things never changed.

The day went on like normal.

But at the same time, it wasn't.

As he served drinks and took orders, familiar faces walked through the door, their eyes lighting up in recognition.

***

"Hey.. is that?" A girl whispered to another girls ear.

"Yeah, Yeah!" The girl responded quietly.

***

"That mister was in the forgotten shore?"A young boy asked his mother.

"Honey, it seems so."

***

"So you're telling me.. that bartender was the devil of antarctica and is the supposed saint that killed the winter beast?" A cocky noble asked.

"It seems so." A well refined man, that looked to be his bodyguard responded.

It was disorienting, the way people suddenly remembered him when just days ago, and already is the hot topic of their conversations.

He paid it no further as he continued his dream.

Then, the bell above the door rang again.

Sunny turned - and froze.

Standing there, lively as ever, was an old man with messy grey hair and absent minded eyes.

His bushy eyebrows twitched as he took in the sight before him, then-

"Finally, you're back!"

'Awakened.. No..'

Teacher Julius exclaimed, his voice carrying through the café. "I never doubted that you would return, not even for a moment. No student of mine would allow himself to die, let alone get forgotten that easily, you know!"

Sunny felt something tighten in his chest.

Julius strode forward, shaking his head in exasperation. "Wait, what am I talking about… of course, you know. You're one of my students yourself, after all! Well, you were.. back in the academy you were just a scrawny kid. Ah! Not saying you're scrawny now since you're a saint. But, my boy… 4 years! I know I had some pretty crazy students back then but crossing the Hollow Mountains, reaching the Forgotten Shore and killing the Winter Beast in 3 years? You must be crazy, you brat! And to top it all off, you were forgotten by fate itself! Gods, Sunny.. Did you not think that your old teacher would be worried sick?"

Sunny opened his mouth, but no words came out.

He clapped Sunny on the shoulder, his grip firm.

"Tell me, did my lessons serve you well? Did you use the survival techniques I taught you? You see, I'm a pretty good teacher after all."

He rubbed his non-existing mustache, feeling pride in himself.

"And boy! Those reports you made on the tomb of ariel and the forgotten shore! They were amazing! So amazing! How did you do it!" His eyes dazzled with light, clearly intrigued before realizing what he did.

He stepped away, clearing his throat a bit, allowing Sunny a chance to speak.

"More than you can imagine. If it weren't for your teachings, I probably would've died the second I ended up on"

Julius grinned. "Good, good! That's what I like to hear. And i'm guessing you didn't want to take up on that job."

Sunny smirked.

Julius sighed dramatically. "Ah, of course. You young ones are always too busy running off into danger." He paused before realizing what he had said.

"Well, you certainly aren't the boy I once knew. Being a saint and all.

…

But it's good to see you alive, my boy. It really is."

Sunny hesitated, then murmured, "It's good to see you too, Teacher."

Julius smiled, and for a moment, it felt like things had never changed. Like Sunny had never been forgotten. Like he was just a student again, eager to learn, eager to survive.

And maybe… just maybe… that wasn't such a bad thing.