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[ Shadow Monarch in One Piece].
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Third POV:
"…Fucking stupid…" he muttered under his breath.
The words came out low, almost inaudible, meant only for himself. His jaw tightened slightly, his teeth pressing together, his tongue running across the inside of his cheek. He wasn't sure who he was calling stupid—her, himself, or the whole situation. Maybe all three.
"So… you know that you are?"
The voice came from behind him.
Sharp.
Drenched in sarcasm.
The words cut through the air like a knife, precise and deliberate, carrying the kind of tone that didn't just ask a question—it delivered a judgment. There was no warmth in it, no curiosity, just the cold certainty of someone who had already reached a conclusion and was simply waiting for confirmation.
Adam didn't even need to turn to know who it was.
He recognized that voice. Recognized the rhythm of it, the way it rose and fell, the way it could shift from sharp to sharper in the space of a single sentence. He had heard it enough times to know it in his sleep.
Still—he did.
Slowly.
His head turned first, his neck rotating with deliberate ease, as if he had all the time in the world. Then his shoulders followed, then his chest, then his whole body, shifting in the chair until he was facing the source of the voice.
And there she was.
Hermione standing with her arms crossed, looking down at him like she had just caught him committing a crime against intelligence itself.
Her posture was perfect—back straight, shoulders back, chin lifted. Her arms were folded tightly across her chest, her fingers pressing into her sleeves, her knuckles pale from the pressure. Her brown eyes were fixed on him with an intensity that could have set fire to dry grass.
Her hair was slightly messy, strands escaping from whatever style she had tried to put it in this morning, falling across her forehead and cheeks. Her robes were neat, her tie was straight, her whole appearance screamed I have my life togethe ...which made the look on her face even more intimidating.
A small smirk formed on his lips.
The expression came naturally, slipping onto his face like it had never left. His eyes crinkled at the corners, his mouth curved upward, and for a moment, he looked like the same lazy, teasing boy who had been arguing with her an hour ago.
"…Ohhh… baby, I lost everything when it comes to you."
The words came out smooth, playful, carrying none of the tension that had been in his voice when he was staring after Cho. His tone was light, almost musical, the kind of voice someone uses when they know exactly what they're doing and don't care who knows it.
---
Her eyes narrowed instantly.
The shift was subtle but immediat .her pupils contracting, her eyebrows drawing together, her whole face tightening into an expression of focused annoyance. The look she gave him was the kind that made most people take a step back, the kind that had ended countless arguments before they even began.
"Don't call me that."
Her voice was sharp, clipped, each word a small blade aimed in his direction. Her arms tightened across her chest, her fingers curling into her sleeves, her whole body radiating disapproval.
"Why not? Sounds cute."
His smirk widened slightly, his teeth showing, his eyes gleaming with amusement. He didn't lean back. Didn't flinch. Didn't give her the satisfaction of seeing him react to her tone.
"It sounds stupid."
"Well, it suits you then."
The words came out before she could stop them, quick and automatic, like a reflex he didn't bother to control. His head tilted slightly, his eyes never leaving her face, watching the way her expression shifted from annoyance to something sharper.
"Oh really?" she stepped closer, voice rising slightly, "because the last time I checked, you're the one who thinks waving at people like an idiot counts as social skills."
Her footsteps were quick, purposeful, carrying her across the space between them until she was standing just a few feet away.
Adam chuckled.
The sound was low, warm, genuine—the kind of laugh that came from somewhere real, not from politeness or obligation. His shoulders shook once, then settled, and his smirk softened into something almost fond.
"At least I have social skills."
"Oh please," she shot back, "sitting with random girls and making ridiculous comments isn't a personality."
"Jealous?"
"Disgusted."
"Same thing."
---
A few nearby students slowed down, clearly entertained by the ongoing war.
Their eyes darted toward Adam and Hermione, watching the exchange with the kind of fascination usually reserved for sporting events or natural disasters.
One girl whispered something to her friend, her hand covering her mouth, her eyes wide. A boy grinned, elbowing the person next to him, nodding toward the pair like he was watching a show he had paid to see.
Hermione leaned forward slightly, her tone sharper now.
"You're unbelievable."
"And you're predictable."
"At least I don't act like I own the entire castle."
Adam tilted his head, amused.
The movement was small, barely noticeable, but it changed the angle of his gaze, made him look more relaxed, more confident, more in control. His smirk didn't waver. His eyes didn't blink.
"…I don't act."
That made her pause for half a second.
Her mouth, which had been open and ready to fire back, closed slowly. Her eyes narrowed further, studying his face, trying to read something behind his words. The silence between them stretched, thin and fragile, ready to break.
Then—
"God, you're insufferable."
"And yet here you are."
---
She opened her mouth again—
The words were already forming, already gathering on her tongue, ready to be launched at him like arrows from a bow. Her cheeks were slightly flushed, her eyes bright, her whole body coiled with the energy of someone who was about to say something devastating.
But Adam raised both hands suddenly.
The gesture was quick, unexpected, cutting off whatever she had been about to say. His palms faced her, fingers spread, a universal sign of surrender.
"Alright… alright."
A sigh.
The breath left his lungs in a long, controlled stream, carrying with it the last of his teasing energy. His shoulders dropped, his posture relaxed, and the smirk on his face faded into something smaller, softer.
"I give up."
He leaned back, stretching slightly before looking at her with a teasing grin.
The grin was different from his usual smirk—wider, more open, less guarded. It reached his eyes, crinkling the corners, making him look younger somehow. Less like someone who was always playing a game and more like someone who was actually enjoying himself.
"But you know what?"
A pause.
He let the words hang in the air for a moment, building anticipation, watching her face shift from ready for attack to curious-despiteherself.
"If you continue like this…"
He pointed at her lightly.
His finger extended toward her, not accusatory, more playful than anything else. The gesture was casual, almost lazy, like he was pointing out something obvious that everyone else had missed.
"…you'll end up an old lady. Alone. Angry at the world."
A small laugh escaped him.
"…Hehe."
The sound was soft, almost gentle, carrying none of the sharpness that usually accompanied his humor. His head tilted back slightly, his eyes half-closing, his whole body relaxing into the moment.
---
Hermione's eyes widened.
Her pupils dilated, her eyebrows rose, her whole face shifting from controlled annoyance to genuine surprise. Her lips parted slightly, her breath catching in her throat, her hands uncurling from her sleeves.
Her expression sharpened—
She was ready to destroy him.
The words were there, lined up and waiting, ready to be deployed with precision and force. Her mind was racing, pulling together arguments and insults and counterpoints, building something that would leave him speechless.
But before she could....
Adam leaned forward slightly and cut her off.
The movement was sudden, unexpected, bringing his face closer to hers. The space between them shrank, the air grew heavier, and whatever words she had been about to say died on her tongue.
"I'm joking…"
A softer tone.
Unexpected.
His voice dropped, becoming quieter, more intimate. The teasing edge faded, replaced by something warmer, something that sounded almost genuine. His eyes held hers, steady and unblinking, and for a moment, the mask slipped.
"…I'll love you even more."
---
Silence.
Just for a moment.
A very small one—
But enough.
The world seemed to pause....
Her face flushed instantly.
The color rose from her neck, spreading across her cheeks, reaching her ears, warm and unmistakable. Her skin, which had been pale a moment ago, was now a deep, vivid pink that she couldn't hide no matter how hard she tried.
Red creeping up her cheeks.
Her lips parted—
But no words came out.
Her mouth opened and closed, opened and closed, like a fish out of water, gasping for air that wouldn't come. Her eyes were wide, her pupils dilated, her whole body frozen in place.
She looked at him.
Really looked at him.
Not with annoyance, not with frustration, but with something else. Something she didn't have a name for. Something that made her chest feel tight and her stomach feel strange and her thoughts scatter like leaves in the wind.
---
Adam saw it.
Of course he did.
His eyes tracked the color spreading across her face, watched her struggle for words, noted the way her breathing had become slightly uneven. He saw all of it—every small sign, every tiny tell, every crack in her armor.
A small victory.
A known weakness.
And he used it.
Like always.
His smirk returned, slow and satisfied, the expression of someone who had just won a battle and was enjoying the spoils. He leaned back in his chair, stretching his arms above his head, looking every bit the cat who had caught the canary.
---
But this tim...
Something felt… different.
The thought came unbidden, slipping into his mind like water through a crack in a dam. His smirk faltered for just a moment, just a fraction of a second, before he caught himself.
For just a second—
Even he wasn't sure.
Was that a joke?
The question sat in his mind, heavy and uncomfortable, refusing to leave. He replayed the words in his head, heard his own voice saying them, tried to find the teasing edge that should have been there.
Or...
Something else?
The thought flickered...
Then disappeared.
He pushed it away, buried it, locked it in a box somewhere deep in his mind where he didn't have to look at it. His smirk returned, wider this time, more confident, more in control.
Whatever had flickered across his face was gone now, hidden behind the mask he wore so well.
---
Hermione looked away quickly, clearly refusing to give him the satisfaction.
Her head turned sharply, her hair swinging across her face, hiding her flushed cheeks from his view. Her eyes fixed on a point somewhere down the corridor, somewhere far away, somewhere that wasn't him.
"…Idiot."
Her voice was quieter this time.
The word came out soft, almost gentle, carrying none of the sharpness it usually held. It was the kind of insult that wasn't really an insult at al ..the kind you said when you didn't know what else to say.
Then she turned...
Her body moved quickly, almost too quickly, her robes swirling around her ankles as she pivoted away from him. Her footsteps were fast, purposeful, carrying her across the stone floor with the kind of speed that suggested she was trying to put as much distance between them as possible.
And walked off.
Straight toward Harry and Ron who had just approached them and immediately noticed her expression.
Harry's green eyes widened slightly, his eyebrows rising, his mouth opening as if to ask a question. Ron's face went through a series of expression confusion, concern, and then a kind of knowing resignation, like he had seen this happen before and knew better than to ask.
They exchanged a glance, then looked at Hermione, then looked past her toward Adam, then looked back at Hermione.
None of them said a word.
Well..... As always for their safety and sanity.
---
Adam watched her leave.
His eyes followed her as she walked away, tracking the movement of her shoulders, the sway of her robes, the way her hair bounced with each step. She didn't look back. Didn't slow down. Didn't give him any sign that she knew he was watching.
For a second longer than necessary.
Then...
"…Maybe I'll take a walk to the Black Lake."
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[ End of Chapter 47 ].
To Be Continued...
__
If you want to read more about my works or just to support me then here is my patreon:
Patreon.com/Doflamingo4 .
__
If you liked this one. Cheek also my other stories:
[ Shadow Monarch in One Piece]
Patreon.com/Doflamingo4 .
__
Thank you all for reading....