My will commands armies of Lazhers, Wyverns, and Beasts. A single wave of my hand can raise a mountain, and a punch can shatter steel. Yes, that must mean, it’s time to venture outward.
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Natasha froze as she stood up, her eyes carefully scanning Kai’s body, who remained unaware of the shock he caused the woman. She approached him with soft, careful movements, and reached toward him. Her hand trembled, hesitant, unsure, and a pang of guilt knocked at the back of her head. However, she bit down on her tongue and suppressed that feeling.
With a racing heart and sweaty palms, she put the blanket away and reached toward Kai’s shirt, and, with a quick jab, pulled it completely. She gasped, as what greeted her was not the scar-covered pale white skin, the one she had bandaged up countless times. Instead, what graced her pupils was fully healed skin with a healthy, normal color and a decent amount of fat.
Her fingers laid flatly on his belly, feeling his newfound, higher body temperature. She stood up, the look of shock never leaving her face, and walked out of the bar after leaving Kai half-tucked in.
…
The night passed, and morning came, yet Kai had yet to awake from his slumber. Karfi and Tausi didn’t yet either, however, Onyx did. He yawned with a wide mouth, his tongue reaching way past his snout, and bent his back like a cat. With a low gruff and a quick shake of his head, he circled around lazily a few times, then sat back down. Karfi’s door gently creaked open, and Tausi’s small figure dashed out from it like a cartwheel. Without hesitation or waning, she jumped on top of Onyx, his fluff taking most of the damage.
However, that didn’t stop him from crying out loud and rolling over to the side to get her off of him. “Rawuuawu!” He said toward the young girl, scolding her through whatever means he had. Yet, Tausi didn’t seem to mind, and grabbed his fat, fluffy face, then gave it a big kiss. What putrid smell of meat, rotten breath, or bacteria? The little girl didn’t care for such trivial things as she showered Onyx with as much love as she had.
The Obborik dodged most of her kisses, and eventually broke free of her grasp, losing only a few bits of fur in the process. Shaking his head, he stared at Kai, and, with what looked to be a mischievous grin, leaped toward him.
In less time than it took to blink, he was already on top of his companion, whose reaction was much grander than his. “Agh what the fud-” Kai yelled out, his breathing quickening and heart racing, and prepared to punch his attacker in the throat. However, his hand stopped mere inches away from Onyx’s fur after realizing who it was that assaulted him. Without hesitation, he grabbed his neck and pulled down the Obborik, and after a quick tussle on the couch, Kai began tickling Onyx’s belly.
He protested, with kicks and yelps, however, that didn’t stop Kai from scratching every bit of Onyx’s belly, bits of white fur flying about everywhere.
Tausi jumped in and began playing with Onyx’s face. He snarled jokingly, then imbued his back legs with mana, kicking at Kai. That time, however, caught unawares and unprepared, Kai got sent flying down from the couch, landing on the hardwood floor.
The violent sound woke Karfi up, who rushed out of the door with a large wooden bat in hand. He let out a sigh, though, upon seeing who it was that created such a disturbance early in the morning. “Tausi, you nearly gave your old man a heart attack. C’mere you silly girl.” He beckoned, and kneeled down, waiting for his daughter to rush into his arms.
And so she did, with a large, wide smile on her face, and a soft giggle that would melt anyone’s heart. Kai stood up brushed the dust off his clothing, and turned toward the man.
An awkward silence descended in the room, and neither of them said anything for a good while. The boy’s lips parted, and he inhaled sharply, however, Karfi cut him off as soon as he wanted to speak.
“Come on, we’ve never had breakfast together, have we?” He said with a light chuckle and walked to a room to the side, behind the staircase that led upstairs. “Will fried eggs do?”
Kai stared at Karfi with a weird expression, however, nodded and followed the man, and Onyx, in turn. Passing a door that was nothing more than a cloth hanging from a rotten doorframe, a humble, yet cozy kitchen appeared before Kai. It had a hardwood floor, like the rest of the house, and a small table with three chairs off to the side, against a wall. A tiny stove decorated that same wall, alongside a sink that had no tap and a few half-broken and repaired cupboards.
Tausi watched her father rummage through what seemed to be a makeshift fridge, and pulled out three eggs, then scratched his chin and pulled out another two. With those eggs, he also picked up a few pieces of dried, salted bacon, and then placed them all inside a pan with a tiny bit of seed oil. The meat started sizzling, at which point he took it out and placed it in a pan, then did the same to the eggs after they finished cooking.
The three sat at the table and quietly ate the fairly ordinary breakfast. Kai’s heart filled with warmth as he stared at the plate with barely salted eggs and warm bacon jerky. He pulled his mask to the side, just enough to reveal his mouth, and took small bites. A shiver ran down his spine as the taste of salted dried bacon and barely seasoned eggs graced his tongue. However it was given to him by the man that showed him so much kindness, so he gulped and swallowed without hesitation.
The small bites became large bites, and he quickly finished the plate under Karfi’s surprised gaze. “You seem to have quite an appetite in the morning huh.” The man remarked as he cut away at his bacon and eggs.
Kai nodded, then wiped his mouth and hid his face once again. “It seems like so.”
Onyx barked softly from below the table and rubbed his snout against Kai’s leg. The boy chuckled, pulled out a small piece of meat from the game he hunted earlier, and threw it toward the Obborik. Karfi glanced with interest at his ring but didn’t comment as he finished his plate.
“Say, if you don’t mind me asking. How come you’re awake this early?”
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“Hmm?” Kai replied, taken aback by the question, and took a moment to ponder it. There was no good reason he could give, after all, he avoided the sun like the plague for the past months. How could he explain this sudden change in character without sounding suspicious? “Well, it’s been… a rough day, rather, night.” Was all Kai could muster as a response without outright lying to his face. And it wasn’t completely untrue.
“I see,” Karfi acknowledged the boy’s slight hesitation and didn’t pry any further. Glancing at Tausi, who barely just managed to finish her plate, he stood up and picked up the dishes. He brought them over to his sink and prepared to leave and grab a bucket of water.
“Allow me,” Kai said as he stood up and quickly pulled out his wand. After making sure the sink was sealed, he summoned a few water spheres, which he heated up with a bit of fire magic. Tausi watched the boy let the scalding water fall upon the dishes, filling up the sink, and a bright, cheerful smile broke on her face.
“Woah, daddy look, magic!” She giggled and walked up to Kai, who just put his wand away. Karfi quickly caught her, afraid she could hurt herself, and turned to Kai. “I didn’t know you were a Mage.”
“I don’t boast about it much.” The boy replied simply, then picked up the soap from the edge of the sink and began washing the dishes, bearing through the water’s moderate heat. “And I’m more competent with the sword.” He added, not looking away from his task.
“I hear you’re going to be leaving soon, with Yasa?” Karfi changed the subject, taking the clean plates from Kai and handing them to Tausi to dry with a clean cloth.
“Yeah, as per our agreement. I think she’s annoyed with me, for delaying so much.” He chuckled innocently as he handed another plate.
“Right, she did tell me of that. But not too much, she said she had some business to take care of over here as well. I’m not sure what about, but apparently, some Inquisitors were involved.”
Upon hearing that name, Kai’s hands stopped abruptly, but continued a moment later as if nothing happened. Inquisitors? In this place, what for…? A traceless shiver ran down his spine as he thought about the consequences of getting caught by these people. The books his father had warned him of them, their history as dark as the night, and a bane to any regular vampire. Looks like I’ll need to leave soon if they’re present here. Kai sighed, then asked. “What of them?”
Karfi rubbed his chin with one hand, the other holding Tausi. “Well,” he hesitated slightly, but in the end decided to say whatever he knew. “Apparently some… vampires were caught running an operation of some sort. Distilling blood with wine and selling to other vampires that somehow escaped their kingdom. That’s as much as Yasa told me last time she visited.”
Kai’s hands grew weak as he recalled the bar he had been at, having been attracted to it for some reason. The strange aroma and Barhm’s revelation after analyzing the wine made him question how they could be in business for so long. Now it all made sense, and it looks like I was the reason they got caught. Of course, Hideyoshi would tell Raymond about it, and then… He gulped, unable to think of the result had Raymond considered him a threat… He will though, after seeing what I did to Hideyoshi. Just the thought brought the taste back into his mouth, and he felt his body yearning for more. His pulse increased, however, he did well to control himself and kept on acting normal.
“That’s… surprising.” He managed to mutter, “How could they have a thriving business right under everyone’s noses?”
Karfi only shrugged his shoulders as he put away the dishes, then placed Tausi down and leaned on the counter. “Leaving that aside, how come you’ve changed your hair color?”
Suddenly, a knot formed inside Kai’s throat, which he swallowed, and quickly replied. “We-well, it was just dyed before, but after so many storms, it got washed away.” He sighed reluctantly, deeply regretting not taking better care of its protection. I’ll have to tuck it behind my cloak now… until I find someone to dye it for me, or my core reaches three stars… or two.
“Dye, for hair? Well, I never heard of that before.” Karfi said as he took a closer look at Kai’s silver hair color. Althoughgh this shade is much nicer than the one before, why even bother hiding it?”
“Same reason I wear a mask,” Kai replied simply, finishing up the last of the dishes.
“How many enemies could a child have?” He asked, clueless, then glanced at Tausi who was bothering Onyx’s tail.
“Many,” Kai said softly. “Mainly because of who my parents… were.”
“Ah,” Karfi exhaled, surprised. “Right, sorry kid.”
“It’s alright mister Karfi, it’s just… been like that.” The boy’s tone turned melancholic and slightly bitter, the fork within his hand trembling slightly as he recalled the past few years.
Karfi didn’t make mention of that anymore and wiped clean the last fork. Afterward, Kai picked up the water with magic, walked toward the window, and threw it high up into the sky. “Aren’t you worried that might hit someone?”
Kai paused, and lowered his head, bringing a hand to his chin. “I didn’t think of that.”
“Hahahaha,” Karfi’s hearty laughter rang loud in his ears, which reddened from shame. “Kid, you’re weird.”
“Haha…” Kai chuckled awkwardly, unsure if that was a compliment or an endearing insult. He took it as both, however, his mood couldn’t stay high for long. Turning toward Karfi, a man older than him by a few decades, whose already lived through countless disasters, he took a deep breath. He’s helped me since I arrived here, when no one else accepted me, he did. Taking me in, feeding me, healing me… who knows what prices he paid to help me? Kai’s lips itched to part, as his heart raced, filling his body with warmth.
However, the words he wanted to say never came out, regardless of how much he wanted to plead with him for help. For aid, for advice, for anything. He stood there, struggling to get a word out, and, by the end, he sighed.
Karfi took notice of his behavior, however didn’t pry and simply walked toward the open window. “I hope your journey goes well, kid. Wherever you may end up, just know that… well, you have some sort of family here.”
Kai nodded slowly, behind the mask, a soft smile creasing his lips. “Thank you,” He replied in a low voice, a tear swelling up in his eye. However, he restrained it and walked beside Karfi, the sun landing on his skin through the gaps in his clothes and mask. Flicking his wrist, a bag materialized in his hand, the same bag Raymond gave him, which he placed in the man’s hands. At first, feeling its weight, Karfi pulled away. “It’s not money I need for my travels, but it’s money Tausi needs.” Kai persuaded Karfi, the man glancing at his daughter who playfully bit Onyx, then clenched his hand around the bag. “Don’t think of it as pity, because it’s not. This is my repayment.”
Karfi remained silent for a moment, then nodded. “Thank you, Ichor.”
Ichor. The name stung Kai slightly, needing to keep lying to the people he grew close to, even after so many months. It’s for their own good, and mine, too. He told himself through gritted teeth. He turned to leave, heading toward the little excuse for a door, however, at that moment, Natasha’s figure stormed through the bar, slamming the wooden door open.
She quickly glanced around, a look of exasperated panic in her eyes, and finally spotted Kai and Karfi in the kitchen. Dashing toward them, she shouted as calmly as she could muster.
“Ichor, the Inquisitors, they’re coming!”
The panic and urgency in her voice couldn’t be hidden, however, and a shiver ran down Kai’s spine. He didn’t have time to think or ask how she could know, or why she rushed to warn him. He ran, pushing Karfi away from the window, and jumped out into the alley. His eyes widened in surprise as he sent out his mana, and sensed two very powerful figures smashing and breaking open doors.
Alarmed, he didn’t wait for Onyx to follow him and dashed away as quickly as he could, his mana spread out as much as possible. His heart skipped a beat, though, upon sensing a third, frightening aura grabbing onto his sense, which then rushed toward him through the street.
Shit!