When things calmed down, the earlier talk of a fight seemed to have been forgotten. One of the middle-aged women from Shun's side spoke up.
"Shun, I'm grateful for your words, but I'll follow the young lady."
Ghislaine spoke up, her determination clear in her eyes.
"Really?" Eris's eyes lit up, and she jumped to hug Ghislaine. Meanwhile, Rudeus's expression turned nervous again.
'As expected of Ghislaine, she knows no fear. A true warrior! But now isn't the time for such things!' Rudeus complained to himself.
"Is that so…"
"!"
"Then good luck, and be careful with strangers and take care of your health."
"…"
'Huh? That's it? What was the whole talk earlier? 'Rudeus, who had expected Shun to act like a tyrant, was pleasantly surprised once again.
'Seems like they misunderstood when I said I've grown attached to them, as I only meant Aisha and Hilda. I haven't even spoken much with Ghislaine and Lilia, after all. I don't mind if Lilia joins them too,'
Shun thought, but even he wasn't cruel enough to utter those words.
"Thank you." Ghislaine bowed her head gratefully.
Shun nodded, then used his Observation Haki toward the sky.
As expected, there's something huge flying, a castle… Shun located the group that had sent the fox earlier. Although Shun had said he killed it, those were only familiars, and they wouldn't die just like that. That was why there wasn't any gore, and why Shun had felt comfortable using a cruel method to deal with it.
Creak!
Shun sighed and walked outside to meet them, since the other side must have noticed their contracted familiar had been destroyed.
"…"
The group left behind was unsure what to do, but somehow Aisha led them to follow Shun.
Shun looked back, enveloped them in a paw-shaped bubble, and floated them all toward the flying castle, Chaos Breaker.
"Woah! This is amazing, we're flying!" Eris was honest with her emotions, while Rudeus and the others were curious about this peculiar magic.
"Excuse me, what is this magic bubble made of?" Rudeus asked, to which Shun replied curtly.
"Air." After saying that, Shun removed the simple gloves on his hands.
"A paw? Were you a beastfolk?" Eris finally started to have a favorable opinion of Shun.
"No, I'm a human with a paw. If a human is born with a paw, they can repel things. It's common sense." Shun said, then aimed his paw forward, not at anything in particular, just to show the process of repelling the air.
POP!
A small, paw-shaped bubble flew off at a speed an average person's eyes couldn't keep up with.
"…"
As much as they wanted to focus on this strange magic, their attention was drawn by the giant castle floating above the clouds.
"Seems like I've underestimated this guy… he's got good taste," Shun muttered as he saw the floating castle, which sat on another giant floating island.
The exterior was a colossal, inverted mountain peak drifting high above the clouds. A majestic, multi-towered castle made of gleaming white stone sat on top of the island. The architecture was unique to the dragon tribe, featuring sharp spires all over.
"It's amazing!" Eris was as expressive as ever, while the others didn't say as much, though they were breathtakingly stunned by the sight.
"How is it floating?" Rudeus asked.
"The bottom of the island is hiding massive magic circles inside that rocky underside," Shun explained casually as he pondered deeply.
"Will you be fine? This Perugius is a legendary figure, the kind with tales about him in children's books." Rudeus tried to explain, hoping to settle things peacefully.
'Though he already killed one of the servants,'
Rudeus sighed, as he subconsciously considered himself an ally of Shun.
"Hmm, should we steal it, or will it be too annoying to do maintenance on this giant thing?"
If only I had the Float-Float Fruit…
"…"
"Are we going inside?" Aisha wanted to explore the interior instead of just watching from outside.
"Of course," Shun said, and was about to direct the floating paw toward the castle.
"Wait!" A woman's voice caught their attention.
"Another person with a mask and the same uniform as Sir Almanfi… I mean, Almanfi." Rudeus misspoke, still feeling a sense of gratitude toward Almanfi.
The masked woman wasn't alone. Behind her was someone they had seen before.
"Almanfi?!"
"He's alive?"
Almanfi conveniently ignored their questions and stares with a fake cough.
"Cough, cough. I'll be leading you guys to Lord Perugius… but on one condition."
Almanfi's tone no longer held arrogance, but it wasn't too subservient either.
"Condition?"
"Everyone except him can enter the castle," Almanfi said, pointing toward the bald man with the spear.
"Huh? Ruijerd? What did he do to you?!" Eris immediately started complaining.
Rudeus tried to stop her, but—
"I don't mind. I'll be waiting below," Ruijerd spoke; he wasn't a stranger to being discriminated against.
After speaking, Ruijerd looked at Shun. Shun nodded, and with a signature "POP," he disappeared from the bubble.
"…"
"Lead the way." Shun ignored their stares and spoke to the two masked individuals.
"…Yes." Almanfi replied, then handed them a golden baton.
"Please, everyone hold onto it together."
Whoosh!
'That's a complicated way to just enter the castle,'
Shun sighed, then opened his eyes to find they were in a throne room.
When the group looked forward, they saw many people standing on two sides of the throne in the massive room, all dressed in the same white uniform and mask. In the center sat a man with silver hair and golden eyes. His entire demeanor radiated the aura of nobility.
"Hello." Shun wasn't particularly surprised by him or the appearance of the other familiars.
'When you spend time in the One Piece world, there are many weird people with weird appearances. This time, it's just a few furry servants and a guy with mean-looking eyes.'
"…You're the Magic God?" A heavy voice came from the armored Dragon King.
"I've heard stories about you…"
'I guess he is well-informed, since he's an old soul.'
Shun nodded. "Why did you want to meet me?"
Everyone's attention gathered on Perugius's response; depending on his reply, the situation might get messier than it already was.
"…The Teleportation Disaster. Do you have any clue what might have caused it?"
"!"
The group's attention shifted to Shun.
'Wait… didn't he call himself a space-time magic expert?' In Rudeus's mind, a dangerous suspicion started to form.
Not only Rudeus, but everyone there, except for Shun's original group of middle-aged women and Aisha's group, gained the same suspicion. Meanwhile, Shun turned completely silent.
"…"
'What was the Teleportation Disaster? It was a massive magical calamity that vaporized the Fittoa Region of the Asura Kingdom, randomly scattering all of its citizens across the Six-Faced World. Until now, until this guy asked this question, I never even thought about it from others' perspectives. But… this whole incident and my sudden appearance after it…'
'Shit… am I the most suspicious person in the world?!!!'
Shun was struck by the reality of the situation. Having remained silent under their gaze, he couldn't help but slap his forehead in shame.
Smack!
"Eh?!" The group was stunned.
"…I don't know anything about it," Shun replied honestly. He no longer had the energy or the thick skin to act arrogant.
'I came here to fight them, even planning to fuse this entire castle and the island with the Fusion-Fusion Fruit, depending on their motives, but…' Shun shook his head to clear his thoughts.
"…Are you capable of causing the disaster?" Perugius changed his question.
"I could do it."
'In fact, there is similar magic in the Fairy Tail world, the one Irene used when she met Acnologia.'
"!"
"I get it that my existence is the most suspicious one in the world regarding the Teleportation Disaster, but… if I wanted to cause a disaster, I would do it myself instead of using such a roundabout and inefficient way."
"…"
It was very crude, but his explanation somehow worked as proof for everyone, especially since he hadn't thought twice before dealing with Almanfi.
"…I see."
With that, the small skirmish between them seemed to end.
"…You're different from what I heard about you," Perugius spoke.
"Really?" Shun had no clue what rumors were circulating about him, since no one else had recognized him before.
"…I heard that you're a fool who wouldn't kill even his worst enemy."
That information was exactly why Almanfi had even dared to act arrogant earlier. Normally, even Perugius and his allies wouldn't be hostile toward one of the Seven Great Powers. Almanfi's strength was barely around Sword King level, after all.
"I guess that's not false, since he's still alive," Shun shrugged with a smile.
"…Heh." Perugius let out a small laugh, to the surprise of his familiars. It had been years, or perhaps decades, since they had seen him smile, probably since the last fight with the Demon King Atoferatofe, where he managed to punch her once.
"What else have you heard about me?" Shun was curious, he thought the system had lied to him, since no one had recognized him in this world, yet now he had finally met someone with knowledge.
Shun's group was curious, too. Since Shun had literally shown up one day, they had thought he might be an alien, but now they knew he had an old acquaintance.
"It was told that you became a heretic and fought an army of demons and humans. You eventually lost and disappeared without a trace. It was assumed you were dead." This time, it was Almanfi who answered.
"!"
'So he really is a dangerous dude!' Rudeus was still figuring out Shun's character until…
"…But you are famous for not killing a single person in that fight."
"…"
'Yes, he is a madman,' Rudeus concluded his evaluation of Shun, but he unconsciously started to drop his guard around him.
"So, Master held back against millions of people and held his own?" Aisha seemed to focus on something else, stars in her eyes.
"I have a few more serious questions," Shun turned to Perugius. Seeing his stare, Perugius signaled toward his servant, a female familiar.
"Please follow me, I'll prepare tea and snacks." Shun nodded towards Hilda and Aisha.
With that, only Rudeus and Shun remained with Perugius and Almanfi.
'Is he supposed to be guarding him?' Shun almost let out a laugh but didn't show any emotion.
In the now-silent room, Shun broke the ice with a strange word.
"Chair."
With his chant, Shun created two luxurious chairs inspired by furniture from the house given to him by the King of Shirone. They had red seats with golden frames.
"Sit."
"Yes." Rudeus and the others were openly amazed by the short chant and the unusual magic. They were starting to realize that the title of Magic God wasn't just a rank of strength.
"I wanted to ask about where to find a guy named Hitogami," Shun immediately dropped the bomb, at least for Rudeus.
"Hitogami?!"
The three turned toward Rudeus.
"Ah… that guy often appears in my dreams and gives me advice," Rudeus explained innocently.
"I was targeted by that guy, and that was why the fight happened, leading to my disappearance."
"!"
Rudeus's smile froze.
"So, are you an apostle of Hitogami?" Shun asked Rudeus as a joke, but Rudeus was so nervous his voice started shaking.
"N-No, he one-sidedly tells me things… I swear!"
"…So who is this Hitogami guy?" Perugius was curious; he had never once heard of a god by that name in his long life.
"He is just a manipulator who influences people by appearing in their dreams, often giving advice that, in the long term, benefits him. Like how all those people were led into fighting me."
"…Never heard of him," Perugius's answer was short.
Shun already knew that. He just wanted them to help him find a way to enter the space where everything seemed white. While the two talked about Hitogami and Laplace, who was the "Hitogami" of Perugius's life, everything started to click for Rudeus. He considered the words and future foretold by Shun and the fact that he was being targeted by someone.
Rudeus stole a glance at Shun.
'This guy acts ridiculous, but he doesn't seem to be the type to lie. So I've been fooled until now?' Rudeus was struggling with who to believe, as he had recently even started to trust Hitogami's words.
"Rudeus, you are kind of similar to me in that you're being targeted by a rat; that's why I helped you earlier with the information."
"…T-Thank you."
"In exchange, I want you guys to help me find him so I can kill him."
——
The initial plan to fight and rob the castle was ditched, as Shun had become somewhat of an ally to Perugius. The deal was that if Perugius could help him find a way to locate Hitogami, Shun would help him fight Laplace in the future should he ever resurrect.
"Let's return."
"Yes." Shun and Rudeus left the throne room and walked together through a large hall to meet the others.
"You're from Earth, aren't you?" Shun dropped a bomb on him once again.
"W-What? Could it be you too?!" Rudeus, still in deep thought, found an even bigger question to ponder.
"Yes, but not the same world. A parallel world or something similar. I've been reincarnated."
Shun and Rudeus soon met with the others and returned to the house. The whole time, they spent talking and laughing.
"What's the deal with those two?" Eris mumbled, feeling a bit jealous.
'Maybe weirdos attract each other'
Lilia wanted to say, but she didn't dare. They were two people she respected, even though she found them strange, especially with Rudeus's habit of worshipping panties.
——
Rudeus's group spent three days with Shun's group before leaving to find Rudeus's mother. Shun could have told them where Zenith was, but with their current strength, they would have been wiped out. Before leaving, Shun gave them necklaces made with mind-magic protection, which would help them avoid meeting Hitogami in their dreams. As always, it was the magic of the Fusion-Fusion Fruit.
'Ghislaine joined them, but surprisingly, Lilia stayed,'
Shun thought, not minding either way.
'I guess Rudeus trusts me completely now, since he is the key to finding Hitogami. I went a bit all-out this time,'
Shun sighed as he drank his tea while looking at the moon from his bedroom veranda. Usually, Hilda would be with him, but for some reason, Aisha had forcibly dragged her away to sleep in her room.
'What is that little manipulator planning…'
Knock! Knock!
While he was thinking that, someone knocked on the door.
"Enter." Shun didn't care who it was; he wouldn't have cared even if it were Orsted or Hitogami.
"Excuse me…" A familiar feminine voice spoke softly. It was Lilia.
"Hm? What's wrong?" Shun and Lilia hadn't spoken much to each other during their time in the house.
"I know I'm not in a position to ask for things, but I have a favor to ask of Shun-sama." Lilia was straightforward, which Shun liked.
"Go on."
"It's about Rudeus-sama's future. If you were to help him, would you be able to prevent his misfortunes?" Lilia had been distressed by this question for the last three days. If she could somehow persuade Shun to help Rudeus, who had saved her and Aisha's lives, she would give anything.
"Of course." Shun's reply was curt and confident, much to Lilia's relief.
"But if I were to run around helping everyone in trouble, when will I get to live my own life?" What Shun was saying was reasonable, and Lilia didn't find it unfair.
"If you help Rudeus-sama, though I am lacking, I will give my everything." Lilia's determination was clear, however…
"I'm not interested in married women."
"…"
Initially a bit shaken by this, Lilia steeled herself and spoke again.
"I'm not married; it's only a verbal agreement. If you want, when I see him again, I'll cut things off with him."
With Lilia going as far as saying this, Shun didn't continue to be stubborn. He replied with only one word.
"Come."
End of Flashback.