CHAPTER 196: CHAPTER 196: BACK HOME

Chapter 196 – Back home

After all that was over, it was already midday.

Kaden and Vaela were still together, but the time to return to each of their homes was near...very near.

That was exactly why Vaela was looking at Kaden the way a puppy looks at its master when it wants something, the infamous puppy eyes. And doing that with her immaculately striking gaze, Kaden was barely holding himself back from giving her whatever she desired.

Truly, he was a hair’s breadth away from standing up, spreading his arms wide, closing his eyes, and shouting: Take them! Take everything from me!

Vaela...was insufferably cute.

She reminded him of his sister, strangely enough.

But there was a stark difference between them. While Daela’s cuteness came from her apathetic expression and subtle shyness, Vaela’s came from her constant, vivid expressiveness.

Kaden found himself truly liking Vaela. She was, in fact, easy to get along with if you knew what triggered her madness. You just had to avoid those things after all.

Granted, easier said than done, but who was Kaden?

If there was one thing about him that defined him, it was his emotional intelligence. He could understand you in a way that was almost frightening, and by understanding you, he would know exactly what to say to put you in his bag, to coax you, to draw you in.

And that was exactly what was happening right now, in this forest that had witnessed something worthy of being etched into the annals of history.

Vaela, unsurprisingly, didn’t want to return to the Cerveau and separate from Kaden.

She wanted to stay with him and was already planning how to fake a mission, anything that would allow her to spend more time with her one and only family.

But Kaden couldn’t allow that. He had to return to Fokay for his evolution quest, so...

"Vaela," Kaden said, staring at the puppy eyes she was giving him, "stop looking at me like that...it won’t work." His voice shook slightly at the end, and he averted his gaze, struggling to resist the allure of her eyes.

Vaela gave him a small smirk. "Are you sure about that?"

Gods...being that beautiful should have been illegal.

If Alea’s former appearance was like a trickster god idly toying with the bodies of monsters, stitching them together at random and calling it creation, then Vaela looked as though a council of immortal beings had gathered around a table that bore the weight of countless worlds and creatures, beings who should have been debating the end of an era but instead spent eternity arguing over how to shape her in the most perfect way possible.

She was...a work of art.

Even Kaden had no choice but to admit it.

He clicked his tongue and grunted. "You’ve been here longer than you normally would. Your family might get suspicious, and if they do, problems will arise."

He paused, then leaned playfully closer to her face. "And do you know what would happen if problems arise, Vaela?"

He didn’t wait for a response.

"Me..." he pointed at himself with that strangely elegant finger of his.

"You..." he pointed at Vaela, whose expression was turning funnily solemn.

"Not see each other anymore." He crossed his two fingers, making a sad and exaggeratedly forlorn face.

It was as if he were trying to explain something to a five-year-old girl. And the worst — or maybe the best — was that Vaela nodded cutely, showing that she had finally understood.

Kaden nearly burst out laughing at the sight. Then, without thinking, he extended his hand and pinched Vaela’s cheek.

She froze. Her eyes went wide, her heart shook like an earthquake ready to swallow everything in its depths. Her body twitched, and only then did Kaden realize what he had done.

A dry — so dry it was like old cotton — smile crept onto his lips as he stuttered, "I...it’s not what you think..!" scrambling for words, not even knowing how to explain his sudden action.

He braced for something bad, but instead he saw a sight that would etch itself into his mind forever.

Vaela’s face was drenched in crimson, like a sea of red had been poured over her. Her eyes darted around the forest as if searching for escape, her fingers twitched on her lap, and then slowly, a voice slipped out...small, low, almost like a whisper.

But he heard it clearly.

"Pinch...pinch me again."

It was Vaela’s voice.

Kaden stood shocked for a moment, then an open smile spread across his lips.

"Vaela, you should meet my sister...I think you’d get along very well," he said, already picturing the two of them together while he watched from afar.

Ah...if that ever happened...then life would truly be worth living.

After that event, and after promising her they would meet again soon, they parted. each heading back toward their own homes.

Kaden appeared in front of his house, and as always, Daela was sitting on the doorstep, her expression as apathetic as ever. She slowly opened her mouth at the sight of her brother.

"...you took your time, little brother."

Kaden’s face split into a wide smile.

"I missed you too, dear sister."

Meanwhile, Vaela appeared before her home, where one man was waiting, his posture relaxed, yet exuding a chilling aura.

He wore a blue suit with intricate white gloves that suited him perfectly.

Neron Cerveau, the Strategist.

He looked at Vaela calmly, a small smile tugging at his lips.

"...you took your time, my dear Vaela."

His voice was smooth and pleasing to the ear, but to Vaela it sounded like the hiss of a venomous snake.

Her face did not change. She stared at him for a while, then walked past without bothering to respond.

Neron’s blue eyes flashed with a strange light. He spoke as she walked away.

"I’ve heard something intriguing lately...do you care to hear it?"

He didn’t wait for a response.

"It went something like this: an enemy is just a friend whose story you’ve yet to hear..."

Vaela subtly shivered.

Neron grinned lifelessly and continued.

"...and a friend...is just an enemy whose mask has not yet fallen."

He turned toward Vaela, who had stopped in her tracks.

"What do you think of that, my dear Vaela?

His grin sharpened like the edge of a blade.

"I am curious...what the mask you are wearing?"

...

Fokay — City of Pain.

It had been weeks since Rea had begun searching for a higher-grade evolution stone for her quest.

So she turned to the Tycoon’s Merchants, hoping to find someone with the right connections. Such people undoubtedly existed there, but the true question was how to make them willing to deal with her.

The answer came quickly.

They were merchants, blacksmiths, alchemists, and runesmiths. What they needed most were rare materials, formulas to enhance their craft, or opportunities for greater profit.

So Rea had to bring them something along those lines.

She didn’t simply choose one at random and leave the rest to luck.

No, she studied each potential contact, weighed them against her own criteria, and then chose the one she believed was best.

Strangely, she chose a blacksmith who was only in the City of Pain for a trade before returning to Asterion.

A dark-skinned dwarf with a pipe always in her mouth and a notoriously foul temper.

Rea liked that type of person. They were direct and wouldn’t waste time trying to trick her.

So she prepared the best blacksmithing material she could afford with the Church’s support: a grey powder.

It was a rarity exclusive to the Church of Sorrow, a powder infused with pain and sorrow itself. Whatever was forged with it could subtly influence the pain and sorrow of enemies.

It was the kind of material blacksmiths would covet, and sure enough, this one accepted eagerly, as if that had been her goal all along.

In return, she offered Rea a Unique-rank evolution stone she carried herself.

And so Rea returned to her room in the Church of Sorrow, pacing back and forth with excitement and unease.

She had obtained a Unique rank, not what she would have preferred, but hoping for a Legendary origin at her current level of status was pure foolishness.

She didn’t like it, she hated it even...but she had no choice but to accept this.

Delaying her evolution quest further would be unwise.

So after calming her nerves, Rea sat cross-legged on the grey carpet. She lifted the evolution stone, studied it intently, then cut her finger and let a drop of blood fall upon it.

DING!

{You have used a Unique-rank evolution stone.}

The Will paused, then...

{Rea Thornspire, you are holder of a Legendary-rank Origin and Heiress of the Fallej Thornspire family.}

{You are a being of pain, of sorrow, and of eternal woe.}

{Your path can only be one thing...pain.}

{You have received your evolution quest.}

{Quest: Bear the pain, the sorrow, the insecurities, the trauma, the sin of everyone inside the prison within the City of Pain...and do not lose yourself while drowning in them.}

{Time limit: 2 months.}

{Might Unending Woe be with you, Rea Thornspire.}

—End of Chapter 196—