CHAPTER 32: CHAPTER 32 - DONE WITH THE MORNING CHORES.

Lyra finally stopped beside Selene, and although her breathing was controlled, her chest was still rising from her short sprint.

Her crimson eyes flicked toward the towering tree, then to Kael, who was now teasing the twins as if summoning colossal miracles was nothing more than stretching before breakfast.

"What... What is he doing?" Lyra whispered, her voice polite, almost cautious.

Selene’s silver gaze didn’t waver from Kael.

"Building order, I guess," she replied.

Lyra blinked. "Order?"

"Water. Waste. Flow." It was Alenia who spoke now, her lips curved faintly. "The things you never notice until they’re gone. He’s giving them to you before you realize you need them."

Lyra frowned softly, curiosity swelling.

It wasn’t a full answer—far from it—but the calm certainty in Selene’s and Alenia’s tones eased her worries.

If it was Kael’s doing, then perhaps chaos was not chaos at all.

Meanwhile, Kael gave Rue and Rina a little bounce in his arms, making Rue squeal and Rina bury her face against his shoulder. "Well then, time to finish this little miracle before my morning nap."

The crowd stiffened as he rose again into the air, the twins clutching him like bundles of fur.

"Where are you going?" A hedgehog boy called.

Kael tilted his head mid-flight, golden eyes glittering. "To make sure your shiny new thrones don’t overflow. Back in a jiffy."

With that, he shot toward the river.

The wind whipped through Rue’s hair as she squealed, "We’re flying again! Weeeee!"

Kael smirked, angling them smoothly through the trees. "Of course. You think I’d let you walk when I can make you soar?"

Rina peeked one nervous eye open, then gasped as the glittering river rushed beneath them.

Kael slowed, hovering above the water. His hand flicked lazily, and the surface shivered.

Roots slithered upward from the riverbed, appearing like a big mouth underwater.

With a rumble, the flow of the river diverted—streams of clear water surging into hollowed channels beneath the village.

The river remained, but a lot of the water was now flowing from below the village.

Back in the square, the ground gave a faint hum. The villagers nervously glanced at one another.

"What’s happening now?"

"The ground is vibrating...?"

"Did he say jiffy? What’s a jiffy?!"

Still, they didn’t move.

Kael had said that he would return, so they waited for him to return.

Kael, on the other hand, had already moved further downriver, the twins clutched easily in one arm as he drew a circle in the air with his finger. The earth obeyed, tearing open with a deep groan.

Another network of roots surged up, carving an outlet.

A rush of broken roots and mud swept through it, then cleared as the channel snapped into place—an exit that carried waste far downstream, where the current would take it toward the distant sea.

The best thing about all this was that everything Kael did was natural, and nothing artificial was involved; hence, nature remained safe.

Even the waste, once ejected from the system, would become food for the fish.

So, with that, Kael dusted his hands, as if the entire act was no more troublesome than folding laundry. "There. A perfect loop. Nature’s plumbing, elegant and efficient."

With a smooth twist of air beneath his feet, he returned to the square.

The villagers gasped as he descended once more, Rue giggling with delight, Rina clutching shyly to his collar.

Kael set down lightly, his robes rippling like shadows in the breeze.

"All done," he announced, flashing a lazy grin. "Water flows in. Waste flows out. Our village is now fully equipped for... let’s call it civilized living."

A beat of silence—then the square erupted into thunderous cheers.

Some wept openly, others shouted Kael’s name, while children darted toward their homes, eager to test the spouts and thrones for themselves.

Kael didn’t even glance at the celebration.

He strolled instead toward the women waiting for him, Rue and Rina still perched in his arms like spoiled cats.

He stopped before them, the faintest smirk tugging his lips. "Well, ladies. Morning chores complete. Anything else before I claim the nap I so richly deserve?"

"It hasn’t even been an hour since you woke up," Alenia exhaled, shaking her head, a weary smile marring her face. "Also, only you can call all that you did trivial, Kael, despite just altering the lives of every soul here."

"Mm," Kael hummed, his golden eyes glinting. "Trivial to me. Life-changing to them. That’s balance, isn’t it?"

Evethra lowered her head with reverence, crimson eyes gleaming. "Master... even your casual efforts eclipse miracles."

Kael chuckled, patting Rue’s head as she puffed her cheeks proudly. "It’s really nothing special, as once people reach a certain level of power, they can do things like this."

Kael wasn’t jesting, as that was true.

His actions only looked grand to everyone here because they had never seen someone as powerful as him.

Lyra, standing a little apart, clasped her hands at her chest. Her gaze softened as she watched him—this untouchable man who could bring laughter and miracles with the same ease.

"No," she whispered gently, replying to his question, "you’ve already given more than we could ever ask for."

Kael arched a brow, catching her words. His smirk turned playful. "That’s good. Now, I would like to get some rest, and this time, I don’t want to be treated like pillows for some foxy girls."

"Big brother!" Rue whined in mock outrage, while Rina flushed crimson, hiding her face in his shoulder.

Laughter rippled among the women at the sight, but Kael merely shrugged.

.........................

Some hours later.

The golden light of the setting sun slanted through the wooden shutters, casting long stripes across the modest chamber. Dust motes drifted lazily in the glow, rising and falling with the faint evening breeze.

Kael stirred, his golden eyes blinking open.

A long yawn escaped his lips as he stretched out across the bed like a great cat, his limbs sprawling without care.

"Well, that was a decent nap," he muttered, his voice rough with sleep. "Could’ve gone for another few hours, though."

Only then did he notice her.

Evethra sat quietly at his bedside, a woven fan in her pale hands, her crimson eyes fixed on him.

She had not moved for hours, her every motion measured, her posture straight yet patient, as though she had merely waited for his waking breath.

Kael tilted his head, a lazy grin tugging his lips. "Eve... tell me you weren’t sitting there the whole time?"

Her smile was soft, a little mischievous, but mostly tender. "Of course I was, Master. Someone had to make sure you slept in peace."

He groaned, dragging a hand over his face. "You’re ridiculous. Sitting there, fanning me like some prince of old. You’re my maid, not my personal statue."

"You say that," she murmured, eyes lowering, "but I am content."

Kael propped himself up on an elbow, watching her for a long moment. His golden gaze, usually filled with playful mischief, was calm now—curious and searching.

"...Eve," he said at last, his tone quieter than usual, "why did you decide to stay with me? To be my maid?"

She blinked, taken aback.

"I mean," Kael continued, running a hand through his messy black hair, "I know I saved you. But that was on a whim. Not pity, not obligation. I just... wanted to. Felt like I should. That’s all."

He leaned back, shrugging. "I didn’t mean to bind you with that."

For a heartbeat, silence stretched. Then, slowly, Evethra’s lips curved into a true smile—small, radiant, and tinged with sadness.

"And that," she whispered, "is why it means more than anything."

Kael arched a brow.

"You did not save me because of duty, nor because of guilt. You saved me simply because it was you. Because you chose to, without reason, without gain, and that is proof enough of who you are inside."

Her fan stilled. Crimson eyes glistened faintly in the low light as she spoke, voice trembling at the edges.

"My life before you walked in..." She hesitated, then exhaled slowly. "It was like a clock ticking backwards. Each day was not life—it was a step closer to an end I dreaded. I lived in fear of the day I came of age, when I would be taken, as my sisters were, to serve men in ways I did not want. That was the fate carved into me since birth."

Kael’s grin faded, his gaze sharpening with something unreadable.

"And then," Evethra’s lips curved into a wistful smile as she recalled the worst and the best day of her life, "the day I thought my world would end, you appeared. Like the merriest wind I had ever felt. You didn’t ask. You didn’t hesitate. You merely broke my chains as though they were cobwebs... and gave me back a life I didn’t believe I deserved."

She lowered her gaze, bowing her head. "That is why I serve you, Master. Not because you saved me—but because you saved me without ever meaning to make me serve."

Kael was silent. His golden eyes softened, shadows passing through them.

He exhaled slowly, almost a sigh, and reached out, brushing his thumb against her soft cheek.

"...Eve, you’re making it really hard for me to stay the lazy scoundrel I pride myself on."

Her laughter trembled, wet and quiet, but full of warmth.

For a fleeting moment, the chamber was still, the world outside forgotten. Just a man and the woman whose broken clock he had unknowingly set forward again.

The atmosphere seemed to be heating up as Evethra’s heartbeatrose, her cheeks turning red.

She didn’t know why, but the way Kael looked at her made her nervous yet eager at the same time.

But then—

"BIG BROTHER!"

The door slammed open. Rue barreled inside with all the subtlety of a storm, Rina trailing shyly behind her.

"Wake up, wake up, wake up!" Rue shouted, bounding straight to his bedside. "You can’t sleep all day! The sun’s already going down!"

Kael groaned, flopping back dramatically into his pillows. "See? Can’t even get five minutes of heartfelt sentiment before the fox twins raid my peace."

Rina peeked from the doorway, her voice soft. "Um... sorry. Rue wanted to..."

"Wanted to save you from wasting away in bed!" Rue finished, puffing her chest proudly.

Evethra quickly dabbed her eyes, regaining her composure, though her smile lingered as she rose to her feet.

Kael cracked an eye open, smirking. "Fine, fine. You win, Rue. But only because you’re cute when you’re bossy."

Rue giggled triumphantly while Rina flushed pink, shaking her head.

Then just like that, the heavy silence melted away, replaced with laughter and the faint glow of a family that had begun to form, fragile and strange, yet unshakably real.