It's been a few days since that incident occurred. Kylin hadn't had any outbursts for a long time. Everything was going normally for him. His world revolved around university, lectures and Amire.
"Alright, will meet you tomorrow then."
"Mhm... Goodbye."
As Kylin bid farewell to Amire, he started on his way home, feeling uneasy.
It wasn't the usual kind of uneasiness that Kylin felt frequently; it was something else. Kylin felt someone's gaze on him, observing his every move. He wasn't sure if it's just his mind playing tricks on him or if it's genuine.
He didn't stop moving for a single second, as if getting home was his topmost priority. Each step felt like a battle with the unknown entity.
Finally, Kylin reached his home and felt he had just survived an assassination attempt, but much to his horror, that was just the start of the events that would turn his world upside down.
As he closes the door and heads inside, he finds someone already waiting for him, sitting on the couch, observing the flowerpot nicely kept there.
The man stood up after noticing Kylin, giving a clear view of his tall frame. He looked like he was in his mid-thirties, his hair sleek with a brunette shade, and his golden eyes radiated a mystical aura. He greeted Kylin with a faint smile.
"Hello. You are Kylin Reid, right?" He said, trying to confirm the fact that he already knows is true.
"Yes... But what are you doing inside my house?" Kylin asked, finding the situation strange.
"Well, I merely sought an audience with you."
"By breaking into my house?" Kylin was sure that he locked the house; there was no way for someone to come inside without even breaking the lock.
"Pardon me. I am not accustomed to the rituals of the human realm." The stranger tried to explain.
"...What?" Kylin was now even more dumbfounded. He has seen people talk like that only in Shakespeare's plays, not in real life.
"Who even are you?" Kylin continues to question the stranger.
"Ah… It appears I have yet to properly introduce myself. I am Primus, hailing from Velmora." The man put his hand on his chest in a sort of formal gesture.
"Velmora? Never heard of that place..."
"Yes, you haven't... Not with what you remember." The man tries to explain. "Listen here, Kylin. You must've realized by this time that you are different from other humans."
Kylin couldn't deny that fact. This stranger knew a secret that Kylin hadn't told anyone except for Amire. Maybe he knows more? Kylin couldn't let this chance go by so easily.
"You seem to know a lot about me... But how do I trust that you mean no harm?"
"If I had meant harm, I wouldn't have tried to talk to you peacefully." The stranger tried to convince Kylin. "For what my goal is, your cooperation is required."
"What is your goal?" Kylin inquired, wanting to know more.
"To take you to Velmora with me." His tone was blunt, stripped of any attempt to soften the blow.
Kylin was surprised by the audacity of the man. There was no way he would agree to follow a stranger to a place that he'd never heard of.
"Where is Velmora?" He asked, trying to dig out more information.
"I can't tell you much about that—at least not until I'm sure you'll agree to come with me."
"Well, I won't agree to follow you. You got your answer?" Kylin crossed his arms, his patience wearing thin.
Primus's smile didn't waver. "You will. If not today, then some other day. It's not like we're running out of time."
Kylin's eyes narrowed. "Are you threatening me?"
"No." Primus's tone remained steady. "Merely stating a fact."
"And I'm stating a fact when I say this—leave." Kylin didn't want to entertain the man any further.
Primus remained still for a moment, his expression unreadable. "Very well. I'll wait for you to change your mind."
He turned and walked toward the door. Kylin followed him with his eyes, but the moment Primus stepped outside, he was gone—just… gone.
"Just what was that? I should probably tell Amire about this… His mind works wonders in stuff like this."
***
"So... You're saying that a man was sitting right here, on this sofa, when you entered the house?" Amire questioned, his gaze locked onto the sofa in the middle of the room.
"Yeah" confirmed Kylin, sitting across the room, arms crossed.
"None of the windows were broken, the lock still intact?" Amire questioned further, pacing to and fro across the small room.
"Yeah…" Kylin confirmed again.
"The man then asked you to come to a place called 'Velmora' with you?" Amire inquired, delving deeper into the mystery of the strange man.
"Sums it up… so what do you think?" Kylin's voice sharpened with anticipation.
"I think I know what it is…." Amire's gaze darkened, his voice dropping into a low murder.
"Really?" Kylin's pulse quickened, hope sparking in his chest. Finally, answers.
Amire stopped pacing and turned toward him, his eyes filled with something unreadable. "Kylin… How could you do this to me?"
Kylin froze "What… what did I do?"
"I can't believe it… After all this time that we've been friends…"
"What are you talking about?" Kylin's mind raced, searching for some hidden crime he didn't remember committing.
"If you were getting high, you could've at least invited me."
"Seriously…?" Kylin's expression crumbled into a flat stare.
Amire shrugged, a teasing glint returning to his eyes. "What else could explain you hallucinating strangers in your house?"
"You're no help at all," Kylin muttered, running a hand through his hair.
"Okay, seriously though, are you sure you weren't hallucinating?" Amire's tone sharpened, but his usual playful edge lingered beneath it.
"No… He knew things about me—things I've never told anyone. He knew I was… different." Kylin's eyes darkened.
Amire's brow furrowed, "Did you ask him more about himself?"
"I tried. He said he'd only tell me if I agreed to go with him."
"I'd almost say it looks like some kind of prank, but you don't have any friends except for me."
Kylin shot him a dry look. "Uhm… thanks"
"Anyways… he said he'd wait for you to change your mind, right?"
"Yeah…"
Amire's gaze sharpened with sudden focus. "Well... I guess we should wait to see if he tries to meet you again."
Kylin frowned. "And what if he is dangerous?"
Amire grinned, "Come on. You've got your powers, right? You could blast him into oblivion if it came to that."
Kylin didn't smile. "I've been feeling someone watching me... for days now. Before I even met him. What if it's him?"
Amire's smirk faded. "Wait—what? You never told me that!"
"I wasn't sure. I thought maybe I was being paranoid. But now…" Kylin's voice trailed off.
Silence fell for a moment before Amire took a deep breath. "Alright. Then we stop waiting."
Kylin raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
Amire's eyes gleamed with sudden determination. "I have a plan."
Kylin hesitated, dread creeping into his voice. "What kind of plan? Please tell me it's not something reckless."
Amire leaned forward, his grin returning—but colder, calculated this time.
"Just listen carefully..."
Meanwhile…
Not far away from the city, in the crumbling ruins of an old aristocratic mansion, the man who had previously introduced himself as Primus sat on a throne made up of pure dark energy, its ghostly glow casting fractured shadows across the decaying walls.
A soft echo of footsteps stirred the silence. A slender figure approached- the same girl who had witnessed Kylin's sudden outburst in the dead of the night. Her long cloak whispered against the stone floor. She stopped before the throne, her eyes glinting with dark amusement as she offered a low, mocking bow.
"Well, if it isn't our esteemed Lord Primus. It's not every day you can be seen in the human realm." The girl said, a wicked smile twisting her lips.
"I see you've failed," she continued, eyes flashing with dark amusement. "The boy didn't come with you, did he? I wonder what the Sovereign will say when he hears about this."
"Flemmi…" Primus's voice was calm, cutting through the tension like a blade. "The Sovereign has entrusted this task to me, so how about you stop stalking me…"
"Stalking? Oh, I wouldn't dare," Flemmi's smile sharpened. "I'm merely fulfilling my role."
Flemmi stepped closer, her eyes glinting like a predator's. "But really… are you going to wait until he comes to you? You know that will never happen."
Primus's jaw tightened, but he said nothing.
"Let me handle it," Flemmi whispered, her smile widening. "I'll make him crawl to you… beg you to take him."
Primus's eyes narrowed. "Not yet. He deserves a chance to make the choice himself."
Flemmi's smile curled into something colder. "We'll see how long that mercy lasts…"