Shadow Slave

In the morning, Sunny was woken up by the gentle rustling of leaves. Opening his eyes, he saw rays of sunshine falling through the scarlet crown of the Soul Tree, painting the world in soft shades of pink. The sight was beautiful and tranquil. It felt as though none of the dangers and terrors of the Dream Realm could reach him here.

A soft breeze touched his skin, bringing with it coolness and the smell of fallen leaves.

For the first time in a long while, Sunny felt at peace.

'Is this what a vacation feels like?'

If so, their decision to have one was the best decision ever.

He sat up with a yawn and lazily looked around. Cassie and Nephis were already awake. Seeing them put a smile on Sunny's face.

'Why the hell am I grinning?'

Shaking his head, Sunny put on a serious expression and said:

"Good morning."

The girls greeted him. Then, Nephis slightly tilted her head and asked:

"Hey. Do you remember why we didn't leave anyone to keep watch last night?"

Sunny blinked. Indeed, why hadn't anyone guarded the camp?

"Uh. No. I guess we were too tired? Plus, it's so safe here. Why deprive ourselves of sleep?"

She frowned. Sunny expected Changing Star to berate them, but, unexpectedly, she just shrugged.

"...I guess."

'Huh. That's not like her. Am I not the only one in a great mood?'

To make Neph feel better, he pointed down and said:

"Don't worry. My shadow would have warned us if anything had happened ."

She seemed to have forgotten about her question already, returning to whatever she had been doing before. All three of them were easily distracted these days. Sunny sighed.

"So… what are you guys going to do today?"

Cassie turned to him with a smile and answered in a teasing tone:

remember? So we're just

like a plan. Speaking about

and said with a comically strict

plan, plot and scheme. Just

back of

"Alright."

felt as though

But what?

Nephis, Sunny hesitated

you

at him in

don't really remember.

mention of the miraculous fruits

'Yeah. That makes sense…'

***

spent them idling away, not concerned with anything in the

minds

sat around the fire, talking or simply

themselves, enjoying the almost forgotten feeling of privacy. Sunny had been a loner for most of his life, so these past few weeks that he had spent side by side with other people, without even a minute to himself, were a taxing experience. He relished the opportunity

large enough for the three of them to stay apart if they didn't wish

it

gently swaying branches of the Soul Tree, caught in a blissful reverie. In moments like these, he would lose track of time, often realizing that

in general, had become strangely hard to grasp. Sunny wasn't entirely sure how many days they had spent on

something had become a common occurrence. All three of them were turning increasingly absentminded and forgetful. Sometimes, Sunny would catch himself straining to remember details of his previous life or notice the strangeness of their behavior. But a minute later, he would forget about these concerns,

how delicious and refreshing the magical fruits were, how pleasant it was to live under the shade of the

protected them from the cursed blight of the crimson labyrinth, kept the monsters away and provided nourishment both for their bodies and for their soul

leaving its gifts behind and returning to the horror

they were

at least two

was as carefree and tranquil as Sunny and Cassie in the beginning, as time went by, she grew strangely despondent and gloomy. It seemed as though she

time sitting on the western edge of the island alone, staring into the distance

about her. Not even the frequent, insistent lapses of memory managed to overcome his concern

to split from pain. For some reason, he kept forgetting the reason for

wanted to check

was sitting at the ridge of the western edge, gazing into the distance. Sunny climbed onto the

"Hey, Neph."

him. Her indifferent expression was back,

it was clear that she was not

"Hey."