With 7,000 fresh eons, we already began prep plans, “Let’s head to a restaurant! I wanna see if cola transcends reality, just like stress did! I haven’t had one of those in a good… minute…?”
I really wanted a cola, okay!
Anyway, Kai didn’t argue against the idea, he, himself, wished to check those too, especially since Avatars have extra sensitive taste buds.
He was, in fact, quite ecstatic at the idea.
We almost begun motion, suspecting Ryna to lead the way, however something unexpected happened.
“Can Ryna and friends… detour?” she began her request while shaking.
I raised an eyebrow, wrapping myself around the nature of the question.
Was the kid getting home sick?
“Pretty please?” she pleaded further, something new to us. An act we could not go against, thus agreeing almost instantly without pressing for further details.
As we left the pawnshop, we stepped onto the city streets.
The scenery was simplistic. The medieval houses and streets blending in harmonious sync with some modern buildings and the hum of passing vehicles.
A stark contrast to the quiet resolve etched on Ryna’s face.
She walked ahead, her small frame weaving through the crowd with a sense of urgency.
Me and Kai followed, the earlier excitement over their newfound wealth, now replaced with curiosity and concern.
The city around us shifted as we moved deeper into a less affluent area. The towering blocks gave way to smaller, older buildings with faded paint and cracked facades. Shops became fewer, replaced by street vendors selling simple wares and food carts emitting savory aromas.
The streets were narrower here, lined with uneven cobblestones that echoed their footsteps. The crowd thinned, and the buzz of the city dulled into the quiet murmur of neighbors chatting from open windows or stoops. Despite the clear signs of poverty, there was an undeniable charm in the area—a sense of community in the way people greeted one another or shared small jokes.
Ryna finally stopped in front of a modest apartment complex. It was a squat, three-story building with weathered brick walls. The metal railing of the external staircase was rusted in places, and the sign above the entrance was missing a few letters. Yet, small touches spoke to the tenants’ efforts to make the place a home. A patch of flowers grew in a makeshift garden by the entrance, and a string of colorful lanterns hung across the stairwell, casting a warm, inviting glow.
I, before setting foot inside the building, looked back one more time. A sense of beauty was hidden in this place, in the park-like garden that served as playground for the kids living inside the buildings surrounding it. It even had swings and slides of violet, red and yellow.
An enjoyable sigh, to be fair.
“Lucifer?” Ryna claimed his attention before continuing, “This is it”, her voice laced with a mix of embarrassment and pride.
We climbed the narrow stairs to the third floor, where the girl pushed open a door to reveal her family’s apartment.
The apartment was small but clean and well-kept. The living room, kitchen, and dining area were combined into a single space. A tiny, worn sofa sat against one wall, its cushions patched in several places. A low table in front of it bore a few neatly stacked books and a small vase of wildflowers. The floor was spotless, the wooden planks polished to a dull shine despite their age.
The walls were adorned with a few framed photos and hand-drawn pictures, most likely Ryna’s creations from her childhood. A threadbare curtain separated the main room from the small bedroom where her little brother lay.
Despite the obvious poverty, the home radiated warmth. It was clear that every item, every detail, was cared for with love and effort. The space, though limited, felt like a sanctuary—a stark contrast to the hardships it concealed.
I and Kai stood quietly, taking in their surroundings. The simplicity of the apartment was humbling, yet it held a quiet dignity that could not be ignored.
An ugly, rasping cough broke the silence, cutting through the room like a jagged knife. It came from behind the threadbare curtain, raw and wild, carrying with it the unmistakable weight of pain and struggle, and from that very room a woman appeared before the trio. She was visually older than the two goofs tagging alongside Ryna, so it was safe to assume it was her guardian. She and the girl traded looks as if holding an extremely long conversation in just under a moment.
“My name is Reina, and I’m this girl’s mother” she revealed to nobody’s surprise.
She was a picture of quiet resilience, the kind born of years spent battling the relentless tides of misfortune. Her appearance was plain but dignified—shoulder-length dark hair, streaked with threads of silver, was tied back into a practical braid. Her eyes, a deep, cosmic black, held both weariness and a fierce determination that refused to fade despite the struggles she bore. Those same eyes also betrayed the sleepless nights she succumbed herself to. There was a quiet grace about her movements—a deliberate economy that wasted neither energy nor time.
The woman stood aside, allowing her daughter to take a step towards her twin. Ryna froze mid-step, her cat ears twitching sharply at the sound. Her tail bristled slightly as she turned toward the source, her face pale with worry.
“Salio…” she whispered, her voice trembling. She rushed toward the curtain, her movements hurried but careful, as though afraid to disturb the fragile peace of the home further.
I exchanged glances with Kai, our expressions somber. The cheerful bravado that had filled the earlier part of their journey was gone, replaced by the heavy realization of the hardship this family endured. I followed slowly, with deliberate steps. Behind, Kai lingered, his gaze momentarily fixed on the small details of the room—the repaired furniture, the careful arrangement of items—a testament to a mother’s tireless effort to create a haven amidst hardship.
As Ryna pulled back the curtain, the dim bedroom was revealed, and inside it a little boy, bedridden. This little girl had an even little-er brother...
These details began to click inside my mind. The reason Ryna was scratching throughout the dungeon...
The boy’s face was pale, beads of sweat glistening on his forehead despite the cool air. His chest heaved as he struggled to breathe, each cough rattling through him with a force that seemed too great for his fragile body to endure.
“…too slow...” she mumbled, her whisper breaking character, “If only... faster…”
I took note of the phrasing with a raised eyebrow.
She collapsed to her knees beside the bed, clutching her brother’s frail hand as sobs wracked her body. Her guilt and frustration spilled out, filling the room with heartache.
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What else could I do, other than wait silently within the doorway. My usual confident demeanor was replaced with a pensive expression as I processed the scene.
Ryna’s mother stepped into the room, placing a comforting hand on her daughter’s shoulder.
Her voice steady but filled with sorrow. “This sickness...”
“We don’t know much about it or the situation at all” Kai continued, pressing for further details “If you could, kindly, tell us what’s going on here”
“It… it took their father too,” she said. “He worked hard through it, hoping to earn enough for… at least one cure, if not two. But... he didn’t make it.”
Her words were dark. An unfamiliar feeling of frustration bubbling within me.
This body?
Capable of crushing down the very thread of reality, a power no fool would stand against…
But it was not a power that could build…
Nor heal…
In other words, I was powerless for the first time in epochs.
The room drowned in sorrow.
I pointed towards a coin I pulled out, asking the girls if the 7,000eons were enough. The mother frowned, appreciated the gesture, however it was only enough to move and keep him into a hospital for a little bit.
That sickness was special. It was not easy to obtain, after all.
One would have to go to lengths in order to acquire it... or would need extreme bad luck.
The mother began, offering a glimpse into the awful luck they've lived with so far. "The sickness itself cannot be contracted normally. Simply being in the presence of someone who has it is not nearly enough to spread it..." She took a deep breath, as if calming her fury directed at the universe, and continued. "Blood... Blood is the only liquid that can carry the bacteria to others. A scratch is enough, and he worked in construction... That's how, I assume, he's got it... A disease that will only react to type 0 blood, the same blood that runs through both the boy and his father's veins."
The ill will eventually, and guarateedly, pass from the disease.
The only hope was to find about the infection early…
And they…
Did not.
Ryna has gone through too much turmoil by now. This, combined with the stress from the dungeon dive, exhausted the kid. As a result, she had fallen asleep on the floor beside the bed. Her mother draped a blanket over her, her expression softening as she picked her up and moved her into a nearby bed.
My mind whirled at the sight of Ryna’s sick brother, lying motionless on the bed, his skin pale and body weak. The boy’s shallow breaths were a stark reminder of the fragility of life—something I, despite all this power, could not control. I began to understand why Ryna was so driven to dive into dangerous dungeons. Her family’s struggle weighed heavily on her, and now it burdened me too.
A deep, sorrowful realization washed over as I let silence drown me in...
I had fought against beings from beyond the stars, monstrous invaders from alternate realities, and had massacred them effortlessly—crushing all there is to be, eventually (albeit against my will, yet is still the same body!). Gods and similar creatures of immense power like the one that governed hell, known as Hades, reduced to nothing by the acid of this stomach. I had acquired countless titles, from Soldier, to The Spear that pierced the Unbreakable Shield, and then, Angel of Demise. Yet, despite all these feats of mindless destruction, despite wielding raw, supreme power, I felt small at this moment. Strength had always been at my access and disposal, but against something as simple as a disease… something as humane as sickness, it was useless. There was no shield, no weapon, no defense. Nothing I could do.
I clenched my jaw, unable to tear them eyes away from the boy, whose condition seemed to be worsening by the second.
Kai, noticing my distant gaze, raised an eyebrow, a small, knowing smile tugging at the corners of his lips. "…don’t you?” he murmured softly, an inaudible phrase meant more for himself than me.
I, still deep in thought, turned toward him, preparing to ask him to repeat his words. But before I could, Kai was already moving past me, placing a hand gently on the mother’s shoulder. His voice was calm and soothing as he spoke.
“Ma’am,” Kai said quietly, “if you don’t mind, I’d like to try a healing spell on the boy. If it doesn’t work, it’ll at least make his pain more bearable.”
The mother didn’t respond with words. Instead, she simply nodded, a quiet hope in her eyes, as if even the smallest bit of relief might be a mercy. She didn’t believe it could save him, but she prayed for something—anything—to ease his suffering.
I, lingered in the background, leting the mind drift aimlessly into oblivion until a a familiar calculation sprouted: if x=Concept of Survival, then perhaps hope wasn't entirely out of reach. The weight of helplessness pressing on me began to lift, gradually dissolving into cautious relief.
Kai stood before the boy, his presence almost serene. He reached out, gently placing a finger on the child’s forehead. The moment his touch made contact, the atmosphere in the room shifted. The air seemed to settle, and within seconds, the boy’s once-pained expression softened, his labored breathing easing into a steadier rhythm.
The mother stood frozen for a moment, her eyes wide as she watched the boy's pain fade away almost instantaneously. His breathing, once shallow, had now steadied itself, and the pained expression that had been etched on his face became a peaceful sleep instead. Her gaze darted between Kai and her son, as if she couldn’t quite believe what she was seeing.
She took a cautious step forward, reaching out to gently touch her son’s hand, as though confirming that the change was real. The boy’s skin, which had been cold and clammy, now felt warmer and more natural to the touch.
Her lips parted in a gasp, the disbelief in her voice palpable. “I… I don’t understand. How…?”
Kai simply gestured towards the medicine, implying to not stop caring for the child, before rising and heading towards the door.
My gaze snapped to Kai, with a serious face. Emotions stirred within—curiosity? gratitude? perhaps even some measure of awe. But when our eyes met, I just exhaled deeply, a soft sigh escaping my lips. I let the seriousness fade as quickly as it had arrived.
I didn’t need to ask how or why. The action spoke for itself.
I would not pester Kai for details about something he had not been obligated to do. It would be poor manners, and more than that, it would diminish the value of the kin?dn?es??s Kai had shown. The boy’s pain had lessened, and for now, that was enough.
Without another word, I looked back at the boy, a small, silent acknowledgment passing between me and Kai, who simply offered a nod in return.
The room was filled with a quiet calm after the healing spell had taken effect. The mother, Reina, now gently stroked her son's hair, her heart filled with a mixture of relief and disbelief. Ryna, still curled up in bed, slept peacefully, as if the atmosphere change from Kai’s spell had an effect even on her.
My focus was still on Kai’s simple gesture of kindness. Using his power to ease the boy’s suffering, stood in stark contrast to the relentless violence of mindless annihilation—the only thing this body was capable of...
As we prepared to leave, Reina broke the silence. “If you two wish, you could stay for the night! It’s not much we can offer, but if you’ve got nowhere to go for the night…” She stopped abruptly, choking of her own, previously, worried breath. One moment later, after an instant recovery from the awkwardness, she continued, “I couldn’t let the ones who helped my son go out in the night like that!”
I glanced at Kai, waiting for his reaction—perhaps a decline, but no such response came from his blonde companion. “It’s fine,” I said as if pleading to him. “We don’t occupy a lotta space! We don’t even sleep!”
Kai raised an eyebrow, but before he could respond, Reina’s eyes widened in alarm. “Oh no! Is it the beds? I know they’re modest, but maybe we could—”
Kai, deciding to step in before the misunderstanding spiraled, held up a hand. “No, no, it’s nothing like that. It’s more of…” He intruded the conversation without properly thinking of an excuse, thus unable to finish the sentence.
“A curse!” I tuned in, clearly happy to join in their jest. “We were cursed by a beast and lost the ability to sleep. That’s all.”
Reina’s jaw dropped, her hand flying to her mouth in shock. “Cursed? By a beast? Are you… are you two all right?”
I waved off her concerns with a casual grin. “It’s not as bad as it sounds. We’re perfectly fine, I promise. It’s not pain or suffering—it’s just that we lost…” A silence loomed over me as I readied to finish the sentence. A phrase I’d rather not say, yet did so anyway, “…we simply lost… something human. That’s all.” The voice... My voice, though lighthearted, carried a note of melancholy buried beneath this nonchalant demeanor. Reina hesitated, unsure whether to press further. She simply nodded in understanding, her brows knitted together in worry.
As the night wore on, the small apartment grew quieter. Ryna, still asleep from the exhaustion, had skipped on meals. She actually was sleep-talking the entire time about different foods, “One more burger please!”, and “…so this is a parfait?” drooling all along. Her mother tried to wake her earlier to accompany at the dinner table, but unfortunately failed. Eventually, with a faint smile, she gave up, allowing the daughter to skip it this time—a one-time offense she’d overlook.
