"What brings you here today, Mike?"
"Ball."
His voice was blank.
The therapist adjusted her glasses, pen pausing above her clipboard.
"And... what are your current symptoms?"
"I chased a ball and found a ghost child... two demons... and a flaming swordsman."
His voice cracked. "I don't think I'll ever touch grass again."
She looked up, frowning. "How would avoiding grass help you, Mike?"
He stared ahead.
"You're right. It won't."
He looked down, whispering ,
"They live inside."
His hands shook.
And then...
He broke.
Drip. Drip. Drip.
Cold water mixed with blood spun down the drain.
I stood in the shower, unmoving, eyes closed, breathing quiet.
The water stopped.
But I didn't move.
The bar was loud. Neon lights flickered. Country music clashed with drunken laughter.
I sat with the family that invited us. Blaze wasn't here ,his injuries were too much.
I stared at the Neapolitan pizza. I wasn't hungry. Just... trying to see if it was real.
"Uhm... Mr. Kael, sir?"
I blinked. The waitress looked nervous.
"Would you like a different order? Everything's on the house."
"Everything's too loud."
I muttered.
She tilted her head. "Pardon?"
I didn't repeat myself.
She crossed her arms ,under her chest , unintentionally lifting her balloon-puffed cheeks.
"Would you like the VIP section?"
Then the ground shook.
A low rumble rolled through the city.
The lights flickered. People paused mid-laugh.
Deep beneath the city, an unsealed gate hissed open.
Something huge awakened.
I stood.
Took one last sip of wine.
Outside, people screamed as a titanic beast walked between buildings like they were pets. Its legs were thick as towers. One breath cracked glass five blocks away.
I stepped outside.
"This is exactly what I needed."
I disappeared , darting up rooftops, gliding over glass, body weightless.
The beast moved slowly. But it was thinking. Watching. Aware.
It swung , fast.
A building crumbled.
I flipped through the attack.
Time slowed.
Shattered glass hung in the air like stars.
Through one shard, I saw my own reflection.
Empty.
I let go.
I allowed myself to fall.
The wind screamed past me.
"I didn't know if I wanted to land."
I closed my eyes.
Then , instinct kicked in.
I twisted. Drew my katana. Slammed its sheath against a rusted pipe and bounced midair.
The monster blinked. It didn't understand.
I hovered , for just a second.
Then I fell again.
But this time ,with purpose.
The katana hummed.
I exhaled.
My blade shimmered like a breath held too long.
One swing.
A silent flash.
The monster didn't scream.
It just... turned to ash.
Cheers roared from below.
People pointed, clapped, shouted my name.
But I heard none of it.
I stood alone on that rooftop.
Sword humming softly.
And I whispered:
"They only cheer once it's dead."
I I placed my hands in my pockets as I came down.
People clapped, cheered. Girls screamed.
I sighed.
Is this how Lucen felt? Or is it just me?
I was ready to walk away ,
Until a girl in a nightdress hugged me.
She held a one-eyed teddy bear. Her arms were trembling.
"Thank you."
I froze.
I didn't know how to respond.
So I just stood there... and patted her head.
Far above us, the Head Commander stood in his dark office.
Clouds churned outside the wide glass window.
Only lightning lit his face.
"Seems a storm's coming," he murmured.
His gaze didn't shift.
"Right, Kaein?"
Kaein's red eyes glowed in the shadows, hanging upside down like a bat.
"What made you tell the kid that story?" his voice whispered.
"He's special," the Commander replied.
"He should've died. And yet, when I sent him to that place... the System spared him."
He sighed, as if aging ten years in one breath.
"Even you've taken a liking to him. I wonder what she sees in him."
Back on the street, the girl sang:
"Twinkle, twinkle little star... how I wonder what you are..."
My heart dropped.
Her voice turned to a whisper.
"We finally meet, Kael."
"Who are you?"
I blinked. She placed her head gently against my chest, right above my heart.
"We're just ants in this world, huh?" he said, barely breathing.
"All this time, all this fighting in hopes of facinga god... but the System is a child"
"That boy has proven to be different from you people,"
Kaein's glowing eyes vanished with the next thunderclap.
The Commander stood in silence, alone with his thoughts.
"It's so mean for you to forget me, Kael," she pouted, puffing her cheeks like a balloon.
"I was going to wipe out this entire city... until I saw you were here."
"How... convenient."
My mind raced.
Wipe out the city?!
"Maybe you think I'm evil now, after all your loyalty," she whispered.
"But let me show you why I chose this."
Everything turned white.
And then , I saw life.
The history of the family in that house played before me...