Crackle!
A surge of electricity lit up the air as Ginny appeared in front of Sugar, smiling brightly.
"Sugar, you're causing trouble again."
Robin and Sugar both froze. Sugar even forgot that Ginny was still tugging on her ear, staring at her in surprise.
"Ginny!? You have a Devil Fruit power now too??"
Ginny released her grip with a smile, casually snapping her fingers to produce a silver spark.
"Want to guess what my ability is?"
There was hardly any need to guess — what Ginny had just shown was as good as an open declaration. Robin immediately blurted out,
"It must be the Rumble-Rumble Fruit!"
Ginny placed one hand on her hip and grinned.
"That's right! Pretty cool, huh?"
Sugar nodded vigorously.
"Cool! It's lightning!"
Robin spoke seriously.
"It's more than just cool. Among Logia-types, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit can definitely rank second. It's the power of lightning — it doesn't just grant unmatched destructive force, it also gives the user speed comparable to the Glint-Glint Fruit! Most importantly, it's not as difficult to control as the Dark-Dark Fruit, making it practically a perfect Devil Fruit."
Sugar clicked her tongue.
"Figures it's you who'd say that… huh!?"
Without her noticing, a pair of slender white arms sprouted from her neck and waist. One hand plucked away the book she'd stolen from Robin, while the other grabbed her cheeks, stretching them like rubber.
Robin crossed her arms and stepped up beside her, expressionless.
"Did you really think I couldn't deal with you? A woman like the wind? Hah, more like a lunatic."
Even pinned by Robin, Sugar still refused to admit defeat.
"This was a sneak attack! If not for Ginny-san, you'd never have caught me!"
Robin smirked coldly.
"And you were the one who stole from me first. We're even."
Seeing Sugar still mouthing off, Robin's gaze swept her up and down — then her lips curled into an evil smile.
Sugar shivered involuntarily, about to shift into her elemental form again, but Robin didn't give her the chance.
At this distance, all it took was a thought. More arms sprouted across Sugar's body, each one wrapped in haki, locking her in place.
Realizing escape was impossible, Sugar put on a pitiful face and glanced at Ginny for help.
Ginny just spread her hands with a smile.
"Sugar, you picked a fight with Robin. You're on your own."
Sugar's eyes widened in alarm.
"W-what are you going to do to me!?"
Robin's smile was serene.
"Ginny-san understands the situation. This brat's just itching for trouble… let me cure her of that."
Her fingers began to dance. The arms restraining Sugar started tickling her all over. Sugar's skin was delicate and, unfortunately for her, she was extremely ticklish. Within seconds she was laughing uncontrollably, tears streaming down her face.
After a few moments, Robin stopped, watching the now limp Sugar with a mischievous grin.
"So? Still want to keep it up?"
Sugar's big eyes darted around, lips pursed, unwilling to answer. Robin gave a short laugh, curling her fingers to attack again — and Sugar finally broke.
"Wait! I'll ne— huh!? Young Master, you've come to save me!?"
"...Young Master? Where?"
The moment Robin heard "Carl," she froze and instinctively looked around — only to hear Sugar's laughter right in her ear.
"Hahaha! Idiot Robin! You fell for it!"
Robin spun around, but Sugar was already gone — only a few wisps of pale-blue wind drifted in the air.
Ginny, who had been watching their back-and-forth the whole time, shook her head with a chuckle.
"Robin, I didn't think someone as clever as you would fall for that girl's tricks."
Robin's cheeks flushed as she quickly searched for Sugar, eventually spotting her on the chandelier, hands on her hips in triumph.
...
In the bedroom, Monet had been drawn out by the commotion in the hall. The moment she looked up and saw Sugar on the chandelier, a bead of sweat rolled down her forehead.
"What are you doing up there?! Your skirt! Your skirt! Ugh, you're hopeless!"
Sugar was wearing a pale-green short dress, and with her hands on her hips and legs apart, the green-and-white panties beneath were plainly visible from below.
Robin clicked her tongue.
"Shameless."
Reminded by Monet's scolding, Sugar finally realized the situation — but instead of blushing, she scoffed.
"Tch, what's the big deal? Aside from Young Master, we're all girls here. Nothing to hide! Young Master said we should be open with each other! This is nothing!"
Monet nearly fainted from the audacity. Snow swirled around her as she became a white hurricane and shot up to the chandelier.
Though she often joked with Monet, Sugar was still afraid of her deep down. She meekly let herself be carried down.
"What was that for, Sis? You don't even know how Robin bullied me just now~"
Monet didn't buy it for a second. She twisted Sugar's ear sharply.
"Don't even try it. You must've been the one to start trouble. Am I wrong?"
"...I just took one of her books to read. We're friends — we should share! Young Master says so!"
"A book? That one… never mind that! We're talking about you!"
"Tch! You wanted to read it too!"
Robin's face flushed again as she snapped,
"It's not that I won't let you read it! I told you it's not finished yet!"
"You've written so much already, why wait until it's finished? Stingy Robin!"
Thinking fast, Sugar tried to turn it back on her. That was enough to make Robin grit her teeth and ready her powers again.
"Don't! If you bully me again, I'll tell Young Master!"
"Hmph! He wouldn't take your side!"
This time, Sugar wasn't going to sit still. She shifted into her elemental form — and then froze when she saw Carl standing in the doorway.
Beside him stood Shirahoshi. Carl smiled warmly at her.
"Now, who's trying to bully my little Sugar?"
-----------
+110 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg