Shadow Slave

1421 Joy of Life

Sunny was so dumbfounded that he found himself listening passively as Effie gave him the talk about the birds and the bees, her face absolutely straight. In the middle of it, he was suddenly shaken awake and pointed an accusing finger at her.

"No! That's not… I mean… I know how this stuff works, damn it! What I mean is how? Since when? Who's the father?!"

Effie stopped talking and looked at him with a grin. Then, supporting her belly with one hand, she wobbled past him and pulled her spear out of the stone. Leaning on it, she sighed and shrugged.

"I think we already ascertained how. As for since when… should be since five months ago? Somewhere around that."

She patted him on the shoulder and added:

"Oh, and I'm glad to see you too."

Sunny froze for a few moments.

Five months? Thirteen had already passed since the start of the Nightmare, but for Effie, it had been only two. Which meant… which meant that she had already been pregnant during their journey through the white desert, the battle of the Black Skull, and most of her time in Antarctica.

But not all of her time in Antarctica.

Suddenly, he slapped himself on the forehead.

'I'm… I'm such an idiot!'

A flood of memories surfaced in his mind. All the signs had been there. He should have noticed it much sooner!

Back when the cohort traveled across the Chained Island, Effie had been acting strange. Her appetite had been unstable, and her choice of snacks had been odd… which would have been normal for any other person, but not for the gluttonous huntress!

He had even teased her for suffering from motion sickness aboard the Chain Breaker. In hindsight, that sickness had nothing to do with the motions of the flying vessel at all.

There were other hints, as well… like Effie hesitating for a while before refusing Beastmaster's offer to take her back to the waking world and leave the rest of the cohort behind.

If Sunny had been more attentive, he would have realized that the Effie he knew would not have needed any time to think. She had lingered with the answer because she had been considering not just her fate, but also that of her unborn child…

'Ah! A child! Just thinking this word is weird!'

He covered his face with a hand for a moment, then forced out a few words:

"Yeah… I'm glad to see you as well. Of course."

His mind was still in turmoil. Sunny remained silent for a few moments, then added weakly:

"So… I am going to be Uncle Sunny soon?"

say that, Effie

Her voice was warm:

think you mean

her words were

stared at

Don't you dare corrupt my precious

safe, and how to get back to the Chain Breaker, the dangers of

stuck on Effie… Effie, the

it even

know how… and she's a perfectly healthy young woman… stupidly attractive, too… but still?

her, then

which bastard knocked you up? Do

His eyes widened again.

do I need to beat Kai

for a few moments,

Sunny. Relax… Kai is not

indeed,

mix of relief and disappointment, both emotions

hell. Did I want Kai to be

in bewilderment, Sunny lingered for a bit,

"So who is?"

She smiled.

to know in Antarctica. A very nice guy, from the Evacuation Army. We met by accident, and, well… one thing led to another. You know — war, adrenaline, the exhilaration of having survived another day, the fear of impending death… all these things make one want to feel

had always been a physical person, and one that rejoiced in her physicality — precisely because it had been denied to her prior to becoming a Sleeper. Chained to a wheelchair, she had been a prisoner of her own body for most of her life. So, she exulted in being healthy and able ever since the Spell had

how Effie would have let passion take over in the middle

Still…

He shook his head.

"What's his name?"

She suddenly coughed.

Sunny's frown deepened.

"What's with that reaction?"

hesitated for a moment,

that… I don't

stared at her,

"Effie!"

voice was full of

raised her hand defensively, a rare look of embarrassment

Evacuation Army. He was wounded in Falcon Scott and shipped east with the other injured soldiers during the last round of evacuations. That's how we met,

like the basta… the guy. And he was from the

how come you don't know

Effie coughed again.