CHAPTER 67: CHAPTER 67: WANT TO SEE HIM?

Chapter 67 – Want to see him?

Daela had disappeared, leaving behind only Garros, Sarena, and the still-trembling guard collapsed on the floor.

Garros’s face remained calm, neutral even.

There was no anger, no grief, no flash of emotion.

And Sarena was the same too.

Their expressions were almost...unbothered.

"Someone dared to attack us first, huh?" Garros said, his tone tinged with something close to amusement.

Sarena smiled softly. "It seems so, dear husband," she replied, shaking her head gently.

"I think we’ve been a little too calm since Kaden’s birth," Garros continued, finally turning to look at his wife.

"It’s your fault, Sarena. You’ve been too unwilling to go out because of Kaden. And now look...some monsters out there dared to attack us..."

His voice dropped lower.

"Us... The Warborns..."

Then it rose.

"US! THE WARBORNS!"

BOOOOOM.

The entire dining room trembled violently as shockwaves erupted from Garros’s voice alone. The air rippled like water. The guard on the ground began to cough, violently, blood pouring from his ears and nose.

Sarena watched it all, then slowly raised her hand. A veil of her mana wrapped around the guard, shielding him from Garros’s littler fury.

She turned her gaze to her husband—who was already looking at her.

"I know. It was on me. I didn’t want to leave my dear baby behind and go off to war against monsters again. I wanted to stay beside him, to hold him when he was young, to be there like I couldn’t be for Dain and Daela."

She laughed softly, almost fondly.

"And look at them now. Dain does whatever he wants, never tells us anything. Daela barely even opens her mouth when she’s around us or even anywhere else."

She paused.

"But now that my little baby is old enough to take care of himself..." Sarena murmured, and a smirk slowly curved her lips.

Not a warm one.

A bloodthirsty one. A deadly one. A merciless one.

"We can go all out now, husband."

As she spoke, behind her appeared the vision of a deep black spear—not real, not solid, but there.

It looked like an illusion, a pressure or maybe even a concept.

And even that was enough as objects around them began to dissolve, slowly, like they were being eaten by the void.

The guard trembled harder.

He always forgot.

Garros wasn’t the only bloodthirsty monster in this house.

Sarena was one too.

And hers was a monster no one wanted to meet.

Garros held her gaze for a moment, then looked down at the guard protected by Sarena’s magic.

He smiled. But not warm one.

"You’ll be compensated for this. Now, tell me, little one..."

"...who was responsible for this?"

Garros asked.

And Sarena’s gaze joined his, landing cold and sharp on the trembling man.

He swallowed hard.

"It was... Goremaw."

"...Goremaw the Ironbound."

...

Meanwhile, back in Fokay, Kaden had just stepped inside Tycoon’s Merchants.

But something felt... off.

’Lisa... isn’t here?’ Kaden thought, glancing across the counters. No sign of her. He scanned again. Still nothing.

He shrugged casually, unbothered, and walked over to wait in line like always.

But this time, his presence didn’t go unnoticed.

"Hey, hey! That’s him. The guy that purple-haired goddess was fawning over," someone whispered behind him.

"Oh yeah, that’s definitely him. Where’s he been? Did he complete a quest?" another added.

"He’s so handsome... and manly. Do you see his eyes? Oh... I think I’m fainting," a girl said, red in the face, hands clutched like she was praying to a god.

Immediately, every guy around her turned with faces full of disgust.

"She is for the streets," one of them muttered.

"Absolutely."

"Without a doubt."

The girl didn’t even blink. "You’re just jealous," she said, eyes still locked on Kaden like he was carved by divinity itself.

The whispering continued.

A few girls gathered the courage to approach him, but every time one tried, some guy would hiss, "That’s the purple-haired goddess’s man."

Some didn’t care.

A couple tried to talk to him anyway.

Kaden didn’t even look at them.

This game of admiration and blocked attempts continued for a solid half hour.

And finally, his turn arrived.

Kaden sighed in visible relief and stepped forward, voice quick and tired, like he wanted to be out of here already.

"Here. I’ve completed my mission," he said, handing over his quest paper. "If you want me to show the body I can... but the space here is a bit tight. Do you have a room or something?"

The merchant behind the counter smiled politely. "No, sir. Old Smith handles all the verifications for her missions. She’ll be available tomorrow morning."

Kaden’s lips twitched. Irritation, just a little. But he nodded anyway and turned to go but then paused.

He glanced back.

"I didn’t see Lisa today. She okay?"

The man nodded. "Oh yes, she’s fine. She just took a few days off to visit her family in her village."

Kaden nodded again and didn’t think too much about it.

He walked away, going to his inn, brushing past a few lingering stares from girls still waiting for a glance.

’Ah... being handsome is such a burden,’ he lamented inwardly...

...with a smirk stretching across his face.

What a narcissist.

...

Night fell over Fokay.

The capital now was bathed in pale moonlight— soft, silver, and serene.

It was a very beautiful moon. Something people can observe all night.

Inside the Elamin Estate, far from the marble halls and golden chandeliers, deep in the basement where no one was allowed to step foot—

Meris sat.

Calm and quiet on a simple wooden chair, surrounded by darkness.

Behind her, stood Lari—silent as always.

Meris looked down at her runic communicator. Her lips curved into a soft, delicate smile.

"It seems my dear Kaden has returned," she whispered, her voice oddly joyful.

Joyful, but chilling.

Because the joy didn’t match the room.

Didn’t match the air around it.

Lari didn’t respond. She knew the words weren’t meant for her.

And they weren’t.

Because Meris turned her head toward the corner of the basement and there, in the dark...

Hung a girl.

She was brown-haired but tied tightly by chains from the ceiling, arms stretched above her head.

Lisa.

Her face was clean. There were no bruises and no blood.

But her eyes...

Her eyes were wide. Terrified.

Hollow.

Meris looked at her and smiled again.

A smile that meant nothing.

A smile that felt like nothing.

It was absolutely empty without any feeling inside.

"Lisa... my Kaden has returned," Meris said sweetly.

Then she smirked.

"Want to see him?"

—End of Chapter 67—

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