[Soul World]
It was nighttime. Yui was fast asleep, while Kael stayed awake, quietly watching the glowing lights of Soul City beneath the stars. His thoughts grew heavy. "I have to get stronger if I want to protect the ones I love. But this time, I'll do it differently—I'll get stronger with everyone's help. I still don't know how I was reincarnated in this world… I need to be careful, but I must also live my life."
After a long reflection, Kael finally closed his eyes and drifted into sleep.
The next morning, Yui woke and saw Kael resting peacefully. She didn't want to disturb him, so she simply sat beside him, watching quietly.
Then, without warning, a loud noise echoed from the eastern side of the city. The peaceful morning shattered in an instant.
Kael's eyes snapped open. "Yui, what was that sound?"
Yui's breath caught. Her heart raced as a chill ran down her spine—the voice behind that cry was painfully familiar. In a trembling, worried tone, she whispered, "K-Kael… it was my mother's voice."
"What!?" Kael's expression turned sharp. "Then let's go!"
He leapt down from the tree with urgency and stretched out his arms. "Jump—I'll catch you!"
Yui hesitated, fear flickering in her eyes, but she trusted him. She leapt, and Kael caught her securely, lowering her gently to the ground. Yui's heart pounded—caught between fear of the unknown and relief at his embrace—but the warmth of his arms gave her a moment of comfort before the danger ahead.
"We're not going to reach there that quickly. Yui, you said this route takes about two hours by foot… but the voice reached us all the way here. Wait—" Kael's eyes narrowed as he suddenly stopped. "That means the place must have grown stronger. If that's true, then it's possible that—"
He cut himself off, motioning for Yui to stop as well.
"Kael, why did you stop?" Yui asked, her voice filled with confusion.
Kael glanced at her, determination hardening in his eyes. "Because walking won't do. I'll get us there faster."
Before Yui could question him, Kael lifted her into his arms. He steadied his breathing, focused his strength into his legs, and launched forward. The ground blurred beneath them as his speed increased—far faster than before.
Yui barely had time to react. By the time she realized what was happening, her cheeks flushed red. "K-Kael…"
"Sorry," Kael said without slowing down, his voice calm but firm. "But if we want to reach in time, this is the only way."
Kael and Yui reached Yui's village in 40 minutes. They were at the entrance. Kael carefully laid Yui down.
They entered the village. It was destroyed. The remaining people who had lived there lay on the ground, and the houses were damaged.
A half-dead old man saw Yui and shouted, "Yui! They took your father…"
Yui instantly rushed to him.
"Hey, can you heal him?" Kael slowly asked the blood beast.
"Firstly, I have a name… no, on second thought, you're not worthy to know my name," said the blood beast.
"Shh, I'm not interested in your name. Just tell me if you can heal him," Kael said firmly.
"Why should I?" the blood beast asked angrily.
"Please, please do it. If I can be helpful, I want to help—that's what he always taught me," said Kael.
"Ahhh, you little brat… just this once," the blood beast relented.
"Thank you…" Kael whispered.
The blood beast thought, "Thank… don't know what he's thinking…"
Kael went near the man. Yui had tears in her eyes. Kael held the old man's hand.
"I knew it… they are different. Their bodies are different—they have faster regeneration," the blood beast thought.
The old man's wounds healed.