Sunless, accompanied by Yuki, Cassie and Nephis, went to meet Jet.
He had a terrible feeling about this.
Before they said goodbye, he'd told Jet that the next time she sees him in the Academy, she'll find him with a beauty in each hand.
Well!
It seems he's not only kept his word, but he's also brought another one with him.
Sunless had tried to court Jet before, though he never tried to be too aggressive. And in his gentlemanly ways, it always ended in an embarrassing defeat for Sunny and Jet who laughed at him.
Now, who knows how she will react at this?
'It would have been better to just go straight to the Dream Realm.' Sunny thought.
Despite everything, it was precisely with this kind of approach that he had managed to build this affectionate bond with Jet. Those moments spent with her were truly tender, and even though she'd never admit it, Jet could say the same.
Sunless looked at the girls holding his hands.
'Gods! Why am i always surrounded by beauties?'
But Sunless wanted exactly this. After all, he himself said that he wanted this kind of life. Furthermore, having taken the protagonist's role, he didn't even have to feel guilty towards no one.
Why should he?
HE IS SUNLESS NOW.
Not some random bum self-insert who desecrate his role on the story.
He sighed, this was quite the change after more than ten years spent in the Outskirts.
Who knows if the school years of his previous life...
...OUCH...
...
...
What was he thinking about?
Right! The Outskirts.
Nothing to say, these times in the Outskirts have been a living hell, but luckily his life has improved since meeting Jet.
Pushing his thoughts away, Sunless brought his focus back to the present.
They had just exited the main gate of the Academy where a PTV was parked a few steps away.
Jet was leaning against the door of her PTV, her back to the Academy, as she took in the view before her.
Her black-raven hair, lifted by a light winter breeze, accentuated her Ascendant beauty.
Sunless released Yuki's and Cassie's hands as soon as he arrived next to her.
"Hi, Jet! How are you? Did i miss you?"
Jet turned to him, seeing the girls with him, and raised an eyebrow, amused.
"Well! Little devil! I see you took my advice to the letter. Although that's not what I meant when I said 'get along with your peers' to you."
Her sarcasm was all too obvious.
Sunless was a little awkward, but then again, he had expected some teasing.
To bring some seriousness back to the conversation, he made the introductions.
"What can I say? I'm a very charismatic man. You should already know Yuki. Jet, they are Cassie and Nephis. Nephis, Cassie, this is Master Jet." Said Sunless.
"Nice to meet you!" Cassie and Nephis said simultaneously to Jet.
"Likewise!" Said Jet, then turned to Yuki. "It's good to see you again."
"Me too. Good afternoon Master Jet." Said Yuki slightly bowing her head.
"I hope this scoundrel hasn't caused you too much trouble. He can be quite annoying when he wants to be."
Cassie and Yuki chuckled lightly, while Nephis simply shook his head.
"What's your opinion of me, Jet?" Sunny asked, mortified.
Jet laughed too.
"No, these past few days he has been... a dear friend," Cassie said.
These words hurt Sunny deeply, even if there was nothing wrong with them.
"Hm! That's a rather peculiar way of putting it." Jet said, crossing her arms.
Cassie smiled with a little hint of pink forming in her checks.
Yuki nodded, while Nephis... does Nephis-things: to accidentally say something inappropriate without even realizing.
"He wasn't annoying, but he should hit me harder when we are alone in the gym."
Her words made his world tremble, Sunny turned slowly to her only to see her unaware of the double meaning of what she had just said.
Nephis was clearly referring to their spars, but the tone of the conversation gave it a whole different meaning.
"Neph! Please rephrase that." Sunny begged her, massaging his forehead with two fingers.
Nephis tilted her head, clueless, "Did I say something wrong?"
"YES!" Sunny said, exasperated by her cluelessness.
The girls and Jet burst out laughing at their interactions.
The conversation continued like this, Jet immediately got along with Cassie and Nephis. Even Yuki, strangely, showed more emotions.
Sunless had his suspicions about her before, but now they're confirmed.
Yuki isn't naive in social interactions; her flaw simply makes her seem like this.
During these days at the Academy, she seemed to improve. In fact, at first she barely said more than a word or two, but now it seems she's adapted to her flaw and learned to express herself better.
In contrast, she seems to be able to sense other people's emotions all too well, and every time Sunny spoke, she herself admitted, he had never said a lie. Not because she realized of Clear Conscience, but because this, too, is another aspect of her flaw.
Sunny finally discovered how she always managed to notice his shadow.
Simply put, if Sunless can sense the emotions of the others through the shadows of the livings, Yuki can sense their emotions through her flaw, even those of his shadows.
Poor girl! She must have been a real extroverted person to have such a flaw.
The same can't be said for Nephis; despite the time they spent together, she had barely learn how to smile properly.
It's true that they were all busy to prepare for their first journey into the Dream Realm, so there were almost no moments of 'romance's youth', to Sunny disappointment. However, the way she kept speaking ambiguously didn't help.
Of the three of them, Cassie has improved the most. Her fears haven't disappeared; in fact, they've only increased as the date approaches, even though she was hiding them well, but nothing escape from the shadows, and neither from Sunny.
Luckily, Julius managed to find a Memory to help her better orient herself; it was a bracelet with a cube-like shape gem on it.
Still, she had learned to have some self-confidence and was slowly starting to use her senses to navigate the world. She was quite the fencer before, now she is it again, but not on the same level of Nephis and Yuki.
Unfortunately this it's not enough to face the dangers of the Forgotten Shore, but she should be doing better this time.
During the conversation, they never failed to tease Sunny whenever possible.
He obviously didn't like this.
However!
He was relieved.
Sunny knew the difficulties that awaited them from here on, especially given the unpredictable differences from the original timeline; so, if they can laugh now -even if it's at his expense-that's fine.
It's really fine for him.
After a while, the girls went to sit on a bench outside the Academy, allowing Sunny and Jet to have some privacy.
The bench was next to a tree, the girls were watching the sunset.
Sunny and Jet were instead both standing on her PTV, silently watching the sunset and enjoying the company of each other.
A serene, intimate atmosphere had formed around them.
Somehow, he hoped this moment could last a little longer.
And why not?
In a bed, somewhere in a small house, with all the comforts.
But this was more of a lustful wish than a hope.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
[You have received a Memory]
[You have received a Memory]
[You have received a Memory]
[You have received a Memory]
[You have received a Memory]
[You have received a Memory]
Handing him the Memories, Jet released Sunny's hand.
Jet pulled her arms behind her back as a pillow.
"I see you smiling strangely, little devil. Pray tell! You are thinking of something pervert, aren't you?" Asked Jet.
Only now Sunny realized the large smile he had.
He was really euphoric for his new Memories and couldn't wait to study their weaves.
"Uh! No, I'm not thinking about anything pervert right now." Sunny said in his defense.
Jet's expression became more playful. "Oh oh! So you were thinking about something pervert earlier, right?"
Sunny sighed, his eyes cast downward.
'Maybe I should tell her of my flaw before she asks me something inappropriate -more inappropriate, I mean.'
Turning back to Jet, he smiled.
"Perhaps I was thinking about something pervert or romantic. Either way, I'd ask you to be careful, because my flaw prevents me from lying and if asked, I have to answer."
Jet blinked, stunned.
Then, sulking, she hitted Sunny's forehead with a finger.
"Didn't I tell you to keep your flaw a secret?" She said, her voice more offended than angry.
Sunny rubbed the hitted spot on his forehead.
"Yes, and so I did. You're the only one who knows so far. It's fine with you, after all, I already discovered yours a couple of years ago."
Sunless had gotten Jet to confess her flaw a few years ago.
Little by little, he managed to get her to tell him, though it required great caution. It wasn't something she was proud of.
Jet sighed again, putting an hand on her head, however, she couldn't help but made an happy smile covered by her hand.
"Well! I think this is worth of a kiss at least." Said Sunny, choosing to strike while the iron is still hot.
"Do you want to die?" Jet said a little menacingly.
Sunny raised his hands in defense.
"No, but it's worth the risk." His black eyes were really playful right now.
Jet shooked her head with a small laugh.
She, then, watched toward the girls who were still sitting on the bench, near the Academy's walls.
She noticed the eyes of the blond girl. Unlike the other two, she was not watching directly to the sunset. Her gaze was lost somewhere ahead of her.
Those sapphire-blue eyes were completely blank.
"The Memory for boosting senses. That was for her, isn't it?"
Sunny also looked toward Cassie.
"Yes, that was for her."
"I'm sorry I didn't find it." Jet said regretfully.
Sunny met her ice-blue eyes again.
"Don't worry! Professor Julius got her a similar Memory a few days ago. Besides, finding certain Memories isn't easy, you have been almost too good at finding these."
"I also didn't find the other one to burn stuff that you told me." Jet added.
"Same thing." Sunny shook his head. "It obviously was meant to be like this, it's just fate."
Jet smiled, then looked more closely at the girls on the bench.
She turned to Sunny with a caring smile.
"They're good people, you've found excellent companions to brave the Dream Realm. Hold on to them!"
Sunny smiled, "Of course I will, I care about them. These days spent with them have been really lovely, that's why I'll protect them with everything I..."
Suddenly, Sunless lowered his head, clenching his fists as his black eyes moistening for a moment before he chased that memory away.
Jet noticed it and placed a hand on his shoulder, pulling him into a comforting embrace.
"Hey! It wasn't your fault. It never was. They were cowards, cowards who chose to pick on the weakest. I..." Jet shook her head, tightening the embrace. "You and I made sure they couldn't hurt anyone again. Don't think about it anymore."
Sunless returned the hug. He was not really sad, he had already stop to cry in that night long ago, but this wasn't a bad way to chase the thought away.
After, Sunless and Jet talked a bit more, he said goodbye to her and returned to the girls.
Back with them, Yuki went to Jet, saying that she also wanted to talk to the Master alone. Sunless, out of courtesy, didn't let Gloomy go to eavesdrop; if he had, she would have found out anyway.
After she had done as well, the four of them went back into the Academy.
It was time to talk about Caster's matter.