Chapter 55
Kael finished his treatment and returned home.
His limbs were all intact, and he was satisfied with that alone.
The first thing that washed over him upon arriving home was exhaustion.
A series of major incidents had happened one after another in a short span.
Looking back, the days had been far too intense.
Even when he had just been dumped in the lower levels, he had not been this tired.
Kael sat on the bed and did not move for a long time.
In the quiet room, he slowly closed his eyes.
Meditation.
It was a method his body had grown accustomed to long ago.
Before recovering his mana, it was the process of returning his disordered breathing and senses to their proper state.
That was why Kael barely left the house for several days.
He kept his meals simple.
Most of the time, he ate the food Nia left in front of his door.
At first, she knocked cautiously.
“M-Mr. Kael… I’ll leave some food here…. You have to eat….”
After saying that in a small, trembling voice, she left the food in front of the door and quickly disappeared, presumably to go to work.
And several days later.
Kael finally rose from his seat.
His condition was not perfect, but he was definitely better than before.
Now, he needed to move.
Returning to his daily routine was the final stage of recovery, after all.
He opened the door and went up to the fourth floor.
Last Round.
Only a few days had passed, but it felt as though it had been quite a while since he had last come here.
However, it was a little noisier beyond the door than usual.
Since it was still daytime, there should not have been any customers.
A familiar voice came from inside.
“I mean, how badly did you work Kael to the boneee….”
It was Lin Arclight’s voice.
Kael paused with his hand on the doorknob.
That was because of Rea’s voice on the other side.
“Overwork? That’s a bit harsh, Princess.”
“Don’t call me Princessss….”
“Then Miss Lin?”
“I don’t like that either.”
“Then what shall I call you?”
“Don’t change the subject like that. I came here knowing Kael had been lying in the hospital. You didn’t even tell our side right away, and only contacted us later. Grandpa said it was fine, but it’s not fine, is it!”
Kael remained silent by the door for a moment, then thought briefly.
Should I go back?
However, he was hungry, so Kael eventually opened the door.
Jingle.
The old bell above the door rang.
Mira stood behind the bar counter at Last Round.
She was polishing a glass with one hand, but her face looked so resigned that she seemed to be looking at nothing at all.
Rea and Lin were sitting across from each other at the table in front of her.
Rea was as neat as usual, but she looked somewhat tired. Even so, she had not forgotten the relaxed smile around her lips.
Lin, on the other hand, had a small glass in front of her. A little pale-colored liquor remained inside it.
It did not look particularly strong, but the problem was that Lin did not look like someone who handled alcohol well.
Her flushed cheeks and moist eyes were proof of that.
She was glaring straight at Rea.
“Anyway.”
Lin tapped her finger against the table.
“Kael’s the kind of person who recklessly throws himself into danger, so you’re supposed to stop him from the side, but you took him somewhere even more dangerous! If that’s not overworking him, what is?!”
Rea propped her chin on her hand and smiled.
“Overworking him? I gave him a reward, if anything.”
Lin flinched at her words.
“…A reward?”
“Yes.”
“What kind of reward?”
Rea’s smile deepened slightly.
“What else would a reward between a man and a woman be?”
“….”
Lin could not say anything for several seconds, and then her eyes began to waver.
“Uh.”
Rea covered the corner of her mouth with the back of her hand and laughed.
“Hehe.”
“Uh… uh….”
Lin’s face turned even redder.
“Y-you’re lying.”
“Who knows… Maybe I am?”
“What? What…?”
Lin half rose from her chair.
“What do you mean? No, no, right? That’s impossible. Kael wouldn’t do something like that… No, if it were Kael… No, but you… Wait a second. A reward? That wording is weird. Really weird!”
Kael stood by the door and watched the scene.
At that moment, Rea and Lin both looked at him.
Silence fell.
It was as though time inside Last Round had stopped, and the two women froze.
The smile gradually disappeared from Rea’s face, and her eyes widened ever so slightly.
The relaxed attitude with which she had been teasing Lin was gone, replaced by the expression of someone who had been caught saying something she truly had not expected him to hear.
“Ka….”
The tips of Rea’s ears turned red, followed soon by the rest of her face.
“Kael?”
Lin reacted even faster than she did.
She shoved herself out of her chair and rushed toward Kael.
“Kael!”
She failed to stop right in front of him and grabbed the sleeve of his coat instead.
“…You’re lying, right?”
“About what?”
“Tell me you’re lying.”
“What are you talking about?”
“Th-that reward thing!”
Lin’s voice cracked.
“It wasn’t like that, right? Tell me it wasn’t. She just made some weird joke, right? Kael isn’t that kind of person. No, then what kind of person is he? No, that’s not what I mean….”
As she spoke, her expression became one that did not even seem to know what she was saying anymore.
Kael looked down at Lin for a moment, then lifted his gaze toward Rea.
She was still frozen, only opening and closing her mouth.
“That….”
Rea finally managed to open her mouth.
“I mean….”
Lin whipped around.
“So you were lying?!”
“Princess, calm down first.”
“I told you not to call me Princess!”
“Then, Miss Lin, calm down.”
“I can’t calm down!”
Rea pressed a finger to her forehead.
Kael watched the scene, then slowly turned his head and met Mira’s eyes as she set down a glass behind the bar counter.
Her face held a resignation that was difficult to express in words.
Kael stared at her with a blank expression.
“….”
Mira looked back at him in exactly the same way.
“….”
A brief silence passed.
Lin was still holding Kael’s sleeve, while Rea stood beside the table with her face flushed, avoiding his gaze.
Nia had been quietly watching the situation through the crack of the kitchen door, but the moment she met Kael’s eyes, she hid behind it.
Kael looked down at Lin.
“Lin.”
“Yes.”
“Day drinking?”
Lin’s eyes wavered.
“A little…. Hehe….”
***
Unable to withstand Mira’s disapproving glare, Kael eventually took the two of them to the office on the second floor.
Kael sat facing the two women and spoke.
“So why did you come?”
Lin did not hesitate.
“Because of course we were worried!”
An immediate answer.
She said it with an expression that made it seem obvious.
Rea did not say anything for a moment beside her.
Perhaps because Lin had answered so quickly, Rea seemed briefly at a loss for words.
When Kael’s gaze turned toward her, she lightly rubbed her arm with her fingertips.
“Me too….”
She took a moment to choose her words before quietly adding,
“Same.”
Lin’s eyes widened beside her.
“Of course, that’s not the only reason.”
Rea cleared her throat softly.
“I had something else to say too.”
Kael did not answer and waited.
Rea glanced at Lin, then shifted her gaze back to Kael.
“Actually, this is something someone from another corporation shouldn’t hear.”
“Someone from another corporation?”
“You’re Lin Arclight of Seraph Industries, aren’t you?”
“I came because I’m Kael’s friend right now.”
“Is that so?”
Rea smiled.
“Well… I suppose it’s fine if it’s just a kid.”
Lin immediately bristled.
“A kid? You’re the same age as me!”
Then Kael said briefly,
“Get to the point.”
Rea shrugged.
“Fine, the point.”
Lin was still huffing, but she did not interrupt their conversation any further.
Rea erased the smile from her face for a moment and looked straight at Kael.
“I wanted to thank you again.”
“You already did.”
“I know.”
“Then that’s enough.”
“It isn’t enough.”
Rea’s voice was lower than usual.
“Back then, you were in the capsule, and I didn’t even know if you were fully conscious. And I… don’t know if I expressed myself properly.”
“I remember.”
Rea gave a small laugh, then looked at Kael with a serious expression again.
“Even so, I’ll say it. Thank you. Once again.”
Lin quietly watched the two of them.
Unlike her sharp mood from earlier, she seemed to know that this was not an atmosphere she could interrupt.
Kael gave a brief answer.
“I’ll accept it.”
Rea’s eyes widened slightly.
“That’s enough, then.”
Kael leaned back slightly against the chair.
“Has Orelian not interfered since then?”
Rea’s expression sank.
She tapped the armrest once with her fingertips.
“Strangely, no.”
“He hasn’t?”
“Yeah. To a truly strange degree.”
She smiled, but disbelief was mixed into it.
“My disciplinary confinement was revoked, and he hasn’t touched my position as head of Archeon Genetics. There haven’t been any moves to restrict my authority on the board either. At least, not so far.”
“What’s he plotting?”
“Don’t ask me. I don’t know either.”
Rea shrugged lightly, but there was considerable concern in her eyes.
“Father isn’t someone who backs off for no reason. He must have seen something. Either in you, or in that fight itself.”
She continued,
“Oh, and about the reward for the bet you proposed….”
Kael’s gaze fixed on her.
“He said he’d contact you when an opportunity came up.”
“An opportunity?”
“A position that would let you access matters involving Tier 6 or higher ACUs. He hasn’t specified whether it would be an issue directly connected to HCAB or an internal White Society meeting. But he said he’d keep his promise.”
Kael thought for a moment, then asked her,
“What are the odds he’s lying?”
Rea unexpectedly shook her head.
“I don’t think he is.”
“Why?”
“More than anything, he values credibility.”
It was the assessment of someone who had watched Orelian for a long time.
“Whatever he does, he doesn’t operate by breaking promises. At least, he keeps his word when he gives it under his own name. Of course, that isn’t out of goodwill. It’s simply that, to him, credibility is his most important asset.”
Kael listened quietly.
“So.”
Rea said,
“If Father said he’d contact you, he really will. But there’s no guarantee it’ll be in a form favorable to you.”
“It could be a trap.”
“It’s closer to a test than a trap.”
She gave a bitter smile.
“He isn’t someone satisfied with seeing something once. He may test you one more time. Perhaps in front of people from the White Society or HCAB, at that.”
….”
***
After Rea and Lin left, the office grew quiet again.
Kael sat in his chair without moving for a long time.
He had closed the office as well, and he did not intend to take any urgent commissions.
At least for today.
That was when it happened.
Knock knock.
Kael opened his eyes at the sound of someone knocking on the door.
Knock knock.
Someone knocked on the door once again.
Kael looked toward it.
It should clearly have said that the office was closed for the day.
Before he could speak, a familiar voice came from beyond the door.
“Um, Mr. Kael….”
It was Nia’s voice.
Kael straightened his posture.
“What is it?”
A brief silence passed through the door.
“I’m sorry, but… do you have a moment right now?”
She spoke in a trembling voice.
“Come in.”
The doorknob turned carefully, and a lock of yellow hair appeared through the opening first.
Nia Goldentail hesitated by the doorway.
“Excuse me….”
She carefully entered, but even after closing the door, she stood there for a while.
She was clutching the hem of her clothes with her fingers.
“Sit.”
“N-no, I’m fine….”
“Sit.”
When Kael repeated himself, Nia nodded slightly and sat on the edge of the chair.
She could not lean back fully, hunching herself as though she might stand up at any moment.
Kael pushed a glass of water toward her.
“Drink.”
Nia accepted the glass with both hands.
“Th-thank you.”
She took a small sip of water.
Perhaps her throat had been parched, because she only managed to exhale after that first sip.
Kael did not rush her. He simply waited for her to speak on her own.
Nia opened her mouth.
“The thing is….”
She bit her lip as though it was difficult to bring up the subject.
Seeing her restless attitude, Kael asked, just in case,
“Did someone threaten you?”
Nia hurriedly shook her head.
“N-no. It ain’t that…. Ahem…. It’s not that anyone did anything to me or anything.”
“Then is this about Mira?”
“That too… Ah, no, it isn’t.”
“Nia.”
Kael’s voice was low, but not cold.
“You can take your time.”
Nia’s eyes widened briefly at his words, then she lowered her head slightly.
“I’m sorry. I wasn’t sure if I was allowed to tell you something like this, Mr. Kael….”
“I’ll decide that after I hear you.”
“Yes….”
Nia placed both hands on her knees.
She drew in a breath, then finally opened her mouth with difficulty.
“I-I think some belongings of scary people may have gotten mixed in with my things….”