And before Kai had time to come to his senses, he was already near the tower, not even a bit out of breath from the whole run.
Stopping in front of the entrance to the tower, he wondered whether to go in or not. But, having thought it over well, he turned around and began to move away from the tower slowly.
And Kai noticed that no one was paying attention to him and was not afraid of him, like in that place. Without thinking for long, he assumed that this was because they were adventurers too, like him, and for them this was not something strange.
— Oh!?
While Kai was moving through the crowd, his eyes landed on a fountain and whatever it was called. Stopping and thinking, he decided.
Closing the distance to the fountain, he quickly dipped his hands into the water. The water was cool, but that did not bother Kai at all. He began quickly scrubbing his hands from the dried blood, then his face. And so, after a few minutes, he finally moved away from the fountain, completely wet, and resumed his pace, continuing his exploration of the hero's city.
Completely ignoring the looks of those around him, who were clearly looking at him unfriendly. But he did not even notice them — for Kai, in his understanding, he had done nothing wrong, he had simply washed himself with water. He could not even imagine that the fountain was meant for beauty, and not for washing.
Time later.
Kai impatiently waited for the building in front of him to open, so much so that he did not notice how he fell asleep on the roof of the same building. Waking up from the bright light, he opened his eyes in confusion, but seconds later they filled with understanding.
Bang.
Jumping down from the building, his lips stretched into a smile.
— Library.
He read the sign above the building and immediately went inside. He had barely entered when the smell of books hit his nose, which only increased his excitement.
Of course, he did not come here to have fun, but to get more information about the world and its rules. And with renewed determination, he began to gather books that were at least somehow related to history.
And, finding a secluded place, he got to work, but not even an hour passed before he got bored of reading it. Why did he need to know about the lineage of several kingdoms? So he quickly returned those books and began looking for novels about heroes, and of course, he found them.
And Kai did not notice how he spent the whole day reading — he was so focused.
— We are closing, please return the books or buy them… can you hear me?
— …Yes.
Raising his gaze to the old woman who spoke to him, Kai said. He fully understood what she told him, but he did not want to stop — he was now at the most interesting moment: the main hero against the main villain. He had no money to buy this book.
— Hurry up.
The old woman urged him.
— Of course!
Kai exclaimed, suddenly standing up, which frightened the old woman, but she quickly recovered. And anger was visible on her face. She had already waited too long for this boy to leave on his own, but as night approached, her patience went beyond its limits, and she decided to take matters into her own hands and drive him out. She was no longer as young as before — she needed rest, and by this time she would already be home.
— Get out of here! Time is up!
— Of course.
Kai shouted, heading toward the exit, and when there was only one step left to the exit, at that moment the old woman turned away from him and began tidying up. Kai took advantage of this, and in an instant he disappeared and found himself above, holding onto the ceiling, which did not cause him any difficulty.
— Oh, finally…
The old woman said with relief, closing the door behind her, but when she saw that it was already night outside, her face twisted with irritation.
— Damn boy.
The old woman hissed, moving farther away from the library. Due to his good hearing, Kai heard this, but did not pay it any attention. Right now, his whole mind was filled only with the book and how this story would end.
And all night long he read books, and the next day he read books without a break until one day.
— That's it, leave, I'm closing.
Snatching the book from Kai's hands, understanding that words would not reach him — he would simply ignore her and continue reading as if she were empty space, which certainly irritated her, but she had already gotten used to such behavior.
Kai looked at the old woman in surprise — the sun had not even risen yet, and she was already closing. He did not believe her words, so he took another book — anyway, that one was boring. But he had not managed to open it before she snatched it from him again.
— I said we are closing! If I miss everything because of you, I will kill you! Ungrateful boy!
— What? The sun has not even risen, and you are already closing!
He said, snatching the book from her hands, which only made her even more irritated. And without warning, she began pushing him toward the exit. Kai did not resist the old woman's attempts to drive him out — in fact, he simply did not want to stoop to such a level as to fight a helpless old woman. Heroes do not do that.
Before he realized it, he was already outside, and the old woman had already closed the library and walked away from him quickly.
Not knowing what to do, he followed her, because he noticed that most of the people were also going in that direction with faces filled with anticipation and joy.
— Where are you rushing to?
— Are you kidding me?!
Looking at Kai's relaxed face, which even had a small smile, she thought that he was mocking her again. How could he not know that today there would be a battle between the Apollo Familia and the Hestia Familia — such an event that the whole city was talking about.
But remembering that in recent days he had only been in the library as if he lived there, she doubted. Carefully looking at his face for any sign of mockery, she saw nothing — only that his smile became even wider from her gaze.
She realized that perhaps he truly knew nothing. So she decided to calm down and explain it to this ungrateful boy.
— The Apollo Familia challenged the Hestia Familia, and today their battle will take place.
— Mm? I see.
He said, not the least bit interested in this event. Of course, the name Hestia sounded somewhat familiar to him, but he did not want to think too much about it.
Thinking about her words, a spark of interest flared up in Kai.
"Challenge? That means they will fight?"
And the more he thought about it, the more the flame of interest grew. He could only hope it would be interesting.
And the rest of their path passed in silence, and before they knew it, they had arrived at the destination.
— Interesting.
Kai said, looking over the crowd — he was seeing such a huge crowd for the first time. There were all kinds: humans, elves, amazons, hobbits, and of course, demi-humans. Many of them argued about something, some simply waited silently. Not knowing what to do, he decided to listen to the conversations around him.
— Who do you think will win?
— Are you kidding? Of course the Apollo Familia. They are more numerous, more experienced, and as I heard, they have to defend while the Hestia Familia attacks, and most importantly…
— They have a level three, and Hestia doesn't. That's the whole story.
The man did not manage to finish before another interrupted him.
— Hey!
He exclaimed, clearly unhappy about being interrupted, but the other man was not embarrassed at all and simply continued.
— So you still doubt their victory?
— N-no.
The boy said under a piercing gaze.
— That's good. So who will you bet on?
Completely changing, he said cheerfully with a smile.
— Apollo!
Kai became uninterested in their conversation, so he quickly switched to another, but it was about something completely different. After spending a few minutes listening, he still did not hear anything useful.
So he decided to gather everything in his head into one whole and get a full picture of the events. And from all the information he understood that the Apollo Familia surpassed the Hestia Familia in everything.
"What is the point of their battle then?"
Kai wondered, not understanding all of this. Slowly but surely, his interest began to fall to the very bottom regarding this event. And he began to think that it would have been better to trick the old woman and spend another day reading.
Kai thought so deeply that he did not notice how everything began. And while he was thinking, his gaze caught a familiar face, which surprised him greatly — he could not believe his eyes. And then he remembered that his hero Bell was in the Hestia Familia. And after realizing this, his interest in this battle shot up to the skies, and all his attention was focused on the screen in front of him.
But remembering that his hero was only level two, while his opponent was level three, as he knew, the difference between them was enormous. If Bell at level two possessed such strength that he could defeat that monster with one blow, then a level three adventurer should be significantly stronger.
"Ah!!?"
Kai was suddenly struck with realization — understanding what would happen in this battle, he would once again go beyond understanding, shocking everyone, and show something that only he could do — he was a hero.
"That's exactly how it will be!"
And from this realization, he felt like jumping with joy, that he would again see such a wonderful moment that could only happen in a book.
And finally it all began — he watched without blinking, without looking away for even a second, to capture every moment in his memory.
From the very beginning, he liked their tactics, how they deceived everyone, and especially how that hobbit girl, as he understood, could change appearance — it was simply magnificent, and he began to involuntarily admire her.
And when they finally faced each other — the technique of that girl, which completely immobilized everyone around her.
And finally the moment came when the strongest of the two familias met in battle, and every second of their fight, their clash, his arrogance and Bell's desire to win brought unimaginable pleasure to Kai. And when Bell shouted, and at that very moment a large fireball appeared out of nowhere, changing the situation in Bell's favor.
Which greatly amazed Kai, and not only him, but everyone present.
— This is magic without chanting a spell!
— I thought only high-level mages could do that!
— This is just madness!
— I knew it, he's a dark horse, haha!
— Thank God I bet all my money on the Hestia Familia.
And when someone shouted this from the crowd, everyone suddenly fell silent and turned their attention to the man who shouted it. Under their piercing gazes, he lowered his head in embarrassment and confusion, not understanding why everyone was looking at him like that.
And slowly but surely, on each of them, no matter who they were — elves, dwarves, humans, demi-humans, girls, men — each had expressions of shock and horror, but a smaller part had expressions of joy. They were so confident in the victory of the Apollo Familia that almost no one thought to bet on the Hestia Familia — in their eyes it was a doomed idea.
But now they realized that perhaps it was not such a bad idea. And then chaos began, but it was quickly suppressed by guards from some familia.
But Kai did not notice any of this — he was too mesmerized by what he saw.
In his head, thoughts began to fly at the speed of light. Thinking through the entire battle that had taken place, their strategy, which was extremely effective, he was slightly disappointed, of course, that the Apollo Familia turned out not to be as strong as he had heard from others: no teamwork at all, and aside from their level three leader, no one caught his attention.
They simply did not stand out at all. For example, the black-haired girl could completely suppress enemies around her, no matter how many there were; the hobbit girl who could change her appearance, and by doing so deceived their vigilance and used it to her advantage.
And, of course, Bell — his hero. But, of course, he had no doubts about him. Of course, he was impressed that he used such destructive magic, but he wanted to see the magic with which he defeated that monster. But that did not happen, which disappointed Kai a little, but this feeling quickly disappeared, turning into admiration when the Hestia Familia was declared the winners.
"It really was beautiful after all."
Kai thought, finally noticing the gloomy atmosphere around him. But some faces were burning with joy and happiness. Kai did not understand why the atmosphere had changed so much and so quickly.
But Kai did not focus too much on this — he began to look for a familiar face in the crowd. But the crowd was too big, so it took him quite a long time, but it led to nothing except the realization that the old woman had probably already left.
Casting one last glance, he was already about to leave. When suddenly a familiar face flashed in the crowd, so he focused all his attention on that spot.
— Oh?! Hi, Kai.
But that was no longer necessary, since that figure was already standing in front of him, and of course it was a familiar face that he immediately recognized. Smiling widely, Kai spoke.
— Hermes! How glad I am to meet you again!
A few days earlier.
Hermes's search yielded nothing useful — no matter how hard he tried, he could not find Kai on his own. That is what he thought until he checked the last place where he might be.
After all, he clearly remembered that Kai talked a lot about the novels he read, that he liked heroic stories. Even knowing this, Hermes did not want to start with the library, because what difference does it make whether Kai likes reading or not if he does not know where this library is, and the chance that he would stumble upon it was quite low.
But who could have imagined that he would meet him here.
Hermes watched Kai from the side, not showing any intention to move or start a conversation. The fact that he was standing just a few steps away from him, as if nothing was happening, staring at him, and he did not even notice it.
— And how long has he been reading?
Hermes asked, finally looking away from Kai and turning his attention to the old woman.
— How should I know!
She said in a tone that made it clear she was not interested in this conversation.
— You're the same as always.
Hermes smiled, not at all embarrassed by her behavior, and handed her a small pouch.
Taking the pouch, she only smirked but said nothing.
— I'll ask again. How long has he been reading?
— Since opening. I don't even manage to open before he's already here, and it's been like that for several days.
— Mm, how interesting. From your words, he reads all day long and has been doing so for several days? From opening until the library closes?
— Yes.
She said in a bored voice.
Hermes again turned his gaze to Kai, who had not moved at all during the entire conversation. If not for his eyes, which moved back and forth, he would have thought he was a statue.
But in fact, Hermes was satisfied with this situation. Kai, who reads heroic novels all day long — what could be better.
If he likes these books, then the very essence of heroism also appeals to him, and the more he reads, the more he will want to become like his idols.
But another question interested Hermes as well. If Lady Yami's words were true, which he did not doubt knowing her, he had spent the last days only in the library — didn't he need biological needs? Hermes wondered. Of course, he knew that adventurers, especially high-level ones, could go much longer without food and water. But even so, they could not simply live without it completely.
— Lady Yami, have you seen this boy do anything else? For example, eat or drink?
Hermes did not torture himself further and simply asked the old woman, without even looking at her.
— Eating is forbidden here, and what else can he do in a library besides read books?
She looked at Hermes strangely.
— Yes, true. What a stupid question.
He said quietly, but not quietly enough for Yami not to hear.
Of course, he knew how stupid this question might seem to others, but not to him. Knowing how meticulous this woman was, he understood that she would not allow anyone to break the rules here.
And Kai, like a newborn child, could not know this, unless, of course, he was caught red-handed eating while reading.
Thinking all this over and running it through his head, the more he thought about it, the more questions appeared.
Where does he sleep? Does he eat or not? How did he find this place? And with every second, more and more questions appeared, so he decided not to think about it anymore and left Kai alone for now.
But before leaving, he approached Yami — he wanted to ask one more question, which was no less important.
— Lady Yami, I have one last question.
Hermes said with a sly smile.
— Yes? And what do I care. If you're not going to read or buy a book, then get lost.
She said грубо, with a harsh gaze, looking straight into Hermes's eyes. At her words, Hermes's smile faded a little.
— You're as greedy as ever.
He extended another small pouch to her.
— You understand yourself, Hermes, free cheese is only in a mousetrap.
Snatching the pouch from his hands and, without even checking it, putting it away immediately, her expression instantly became more friendly.
— What do you think about this boy? I want to hear your opinion. How do you see him?
— He... I cannot feel his presence no matter how hard I try. — Hearing this, Hermes's eyebrows rose slightly, but only for a moment. But it did not go unnoticed. — Surprised? I, who in my youth was a level three adventurer focused on reconnaissance, cannot feel his presence, as if the world itself does not want to notice him... And...
— And?!
Hermes said impatiently.
— He reads fast. He can read several books in a day. Even I cannot do that.
— Ah?.. I see. Is that all?
— Yes.
...
...
— Right.
...
Hermes again handed her a pouch.
— Too greedy.
But she paid no attention to his words, taking the pouch with a joyful smile on her lips, she spoke.
— This is the only oddity I noticed in him over the past days, otherwise he is just an ordinary insolent boy. An ungrateful brat who just wants to mock me.
— ... I understand. See you.
Turning around, he headed toward the exit, disappointed that he fell into her trap so easily.
— Hermes!
But before he managed to leave, she called out to him. Because of that, Hermes looked at her again, but now her face had a cold expression.
— You'd better leave that boy alone, for your own good.
— ... I don't understand what you're talking about.
He said as he left the library. A faint smile played on his lips.
— As always, too anxious.
Hermes did not take Yami's words seriously, because unlike her, he did not believe that her ability was all-powerful. In this world, nothing is perfect, just like her ability. So there was nothing surprising in the fact that her ability might fail to sense someone.