Shadow Slave

Wind Flower remained silent for a while, seated comfortably on her opulent bed. Eventually, she sighed.

"We made a deal, he and I. I never thought that I would make a deal with a Defiled abomination one day, but then again... I never thought that I'd be imprisoned in a whirlpool of time, forever, either."

Sunny grew tense, staring at the beautiful Saint with a grim expression. The news of her making deals with one of the Six Plagues did not bode well for the cohort...

Noticing his reaction, she chuckled.

"Don't look so worried, Sunless. I did not sell my soul, corrupted as it may be. The Mad Prince... he only wanted to know about Aletheia's Island, and especially about how my father had managed to kill that Great Tyrant in the tower. The creature remains dead no matter how many times the loop resets, which seemed to be of great interest to him. I, on the other hand... wanted to know what had happened to Twilight and the other human cities on the Great River. And how it was that he appeared wearing my father's crown."

Her gaze once again brushed across the Crown of Twilight. She smiled softly.

"Now, I know."

Sunny lingered for a few moments. There were a lot of things he wanted to ask about, but it did not seem wise to press Wind Flower for answers... too much.

The Mirror of Truth was safely hidden in his sleeve, ready to grant him Neph's [Longing] Ability at any moment. Eventually, he asked:

"How did Daeron make that Tyrant stay dead?"

Wind Flower tilted her head a little.

"...You want to know, as well? It was with the help of a very special Memory. A Legacy Relic left behind by a dear friend. It's gone now, of course. Just like everything else is gone."

'Why was the Mad Prince so interested in the dead Tyrant, though? Unlike me, he did not have to destroy the loop to escape the island. What did he want?'

Sunny tried to understand the motives of his future Defiled version, but failed. It wasn't a good idea to try understanding madmen, anyway.

"How did you know that one of my companions has the Guiding Light, then?"

The beautiful Saint chuckled.

"How else? The madman told me that you would."

Sunny froze.

His eyes narrowed.

'Wait...'

he pierced Wind Flower with an intense

that the Mad Prince knew that we would arrive here one

She simply nodded.

you surprised... you are the same

let out a

the Mad Prince was the future version of him, then the bastard would have already experienced

something about it didn't make

already possessed the memories of meeting Wind Flower and learning about the island from her, like Sunny

had already met Sunny by the time the Mad Prince arrived, wouldn't she have already had the answers to

make any sense at

like Undying Slaughter and Jet existing at the same time did not make sense. The same went for Devouring Beast and Effie. Or everything

anything, though, the new revelation made it seem as though the Six Plagues were somehow alien to this timeline... more alien than Sunny and his

at hand.

his teeth, remained silent for a few moments, and

how do I destroy the

He suddenly hesitated.

could answer, Sunny raised a hand and added, his

If I do destroy the loop...

Saint simply looked at him with a

Island, after all... this is the only place where

would be... he would be

him for a bit,

I... Wind Flower of the Twilight Sea... will indeed cease to exist if the cycle

leaving behind only coldness. The beautiful Saint looked at him somberly, then

why we are going to make another

her heavy gaze and shifted

might

for a

really. I will teach you how to break the cycle of

expression cracked for a