A short while before Ruby and Siro arrived—
"What did you do to my son!?"
The shout came from a heavyset middle-aged woman, her face flushed with rage.
"I didn't do anything to him," Kael replied, glancing toward Setnov.
"Where are your parents? I need to talk to them!"
Kael said nothing. He stood at the doorway of his house, still wearing his school uniform, not yet changed.
"Are you ignoring me, young man?"
"His bike's still over there. If you want it, take it. I never touched it."
Kael turned and walked inside, shutting down the conversation.
"Hey! Where are your manners? Didn't your parents teach you respect?"
Setnov's mother kept shouting from the yard, facing the open door that stayed silent.
"—Step."
A sudden flash, a sound like air snapping.
In an instant, Kael appeared before her, sword drawn, the blade's edge resting cold against her neck.
"W-what are you doing? Put that sword down!" she stammered, trembling.
"Kael! Stop—put it down!" Setnov yelled.
"Kael…" Ruby's voice came from behind, calm but shaken, his eyes wide with disbelief.
Beside him, Siro stood frozen, unable to move or speak.
"Calm yourself, Kael. Do you realize what you're doing?" Ruby asked again.
"I-if there's even a scratch on me, y-you'll regret it!" Setnov's mother stuttered, forcing a nervous smile.
Kael ignored her threat. He pressed the blade closer, its tip brushing her skin.
Siro reacted first—charging forward to grab Kael's hand.
But Kael moved faster. He twisted his wrist, spun aside, and struck Siro's temple with the sword's hilt.
Siro collapsed instantly.
"Kael, stop!" Ruby shouted.
Kael froze. Then, with a flick of his wrist, he spun the blade a few times before sliding it neatly into its sheath.
"Go home, ma'am. I told you—I didn't touch your son," he said, turning away and walking back inside.
For a long moment, no one moved. Then Setnov's mother broke the silence.
"I won't forget this, boy."
She turned, grabbed her son's bike from the corner of the yard, and stormed off.
---
Setnov and his mother disappeared down the road, leaving Ruby standing in shock, still trying to process what he'd seen.
"What… just happened?"
From his perspective, it had been a blur—a brief argument, and suddenly Kael's sword at the woman's throat.
"Kael! Help me get Siro inside!" Ruby called, struggling to lift him by the arms.
Kael stepped out again, holding his sheathed sword, and sat cross-legged on the porch.
"Are you not going to help?" Ruby asked, exasperated.
"Why are you here, by the way?" Kael asked calmly.
Ruby groaned. "Are you serious? You're the one who told me to come!"
"Did I? When?"
"You…!" Ruby gritted his teeth. "Fine! Help me first—then I'll remind you, you anomaly-brained idiot!"
Whoosh.
A swirl of wind lifted Siro's body gently off the ground—Kael raising his hand to chest height as circular runes of light spiraled around his wrist.
Ruby wanted to be surprised, but at this point, his brain was simply used to Kael's strange displays.
"What the hell happened, anyway?" Ruby asked, sitting down beside him.
"Exactly what you saw," Kael replied.
"What I saw was you almost killing a civil staff member! I'm asking why!" Ruby snapped, throwing up his hands.
"Ugh… how does your brain work!?"
Kael only smiled.
"What's so funny, you damn anomaly?" Ruby barked again.
"I don't feel like explaining. Can you sense arkanum yet?" Kael asked.
"Are you mocking me? And why are you the one asking questions now?"
"Just answer."
Ruby sighed. "Yeah… a bit. Not much."
"That's enough," Kael said—and pressed his index finger to Ruby's temple.
"Wait—what are you— AARGH!" Ruby cried, clutching his head.
"Don't fight it. Just accept it," Kael instructed.
Ruby steadied his breathing and relaxed.
Then, in an instant, images flashed behind his eyelids—Kael's memories, flowing directly into his mind.
When it ended, Ruby gasped. The memories felt like his own.
"Damn you, anomaly!" he shouted.
Kael looked at him blankly. "Why are you always cursing?"
"Because of you! You're the reason I'm like this!"
Kael blinked, unsure how that was his fault.
"There are two reasons I'm mad," Ruby continued. "First, how the hell can you already manipulate arkanum deeply enough to inject memories? And second, why the hell did you pick a fight with a government staff member over something so stupid?"
Kael tilted his head. "Is it really that serious? You've been cursing nonstop."
Ruby clenched his fists. "Listen to me, Kael Arda Tirta."
"First—fine, I'll accept that you're some reincarnated ancient general or whatever, because logic clearly doesn't apply to you.
But second—this is different. If Setnov's mother uses her connections, you'll be in real trouble."
He sighed. "Remember—you're on your own, Kael. Your parents aren't here. My family can't protect you from everything."
Kael fell silent, lost in thought, piecing together cause and consequence.
Ruby softened his tone. "Sorry for bringing up your parents. But that's just reality."
"It's fine," Kael murmured. "I think I already know how bad this could get."
Ruby frowned. "You really don't, do you? …Anyway, I'll help however I can. I'll tell my parents—and my grandpa—what happened."
Kael smiled faintly. Maybe that was why he could never get angry at Ruby, no matter how much he cursed.
"But I still don't get it," Ruby said. "Why go that far?"
"I don't care about most things," Kael replied quietly, eyes darkening. "But it's different when someone insults my father and mother."
He glanced at Siro, still unconscious. "And why is he here?"
Ruby shrugged. "No idea. Said it was a gut feeling."
"Hm. Weird kid," Kael muttered.
"Mirror much? You're the weirdest one among us, anomaly," Ruby shot back.
"Get me some water from the cooler," Kael said suddenly.
"Hey, I'm the guest here."
"Then go home."
"Aaaargh! You absolute anomaly!" Ruby grumbled, stomping into the house.
---
The sky burned red.
Kael trained in the yard, his sword cutting through the air in measured arcs, then paused to meditate.
Ruby sat nearby, munching on snacks, while Siro still lay beside him, asleep and unbothered.
"Hey, wake up. I know you're pretending," Ruby said, poking him with a toe.
Siro blinked. "Huh? What happened?"
"You really don't remember?" Ruby asked.
"I woke up halfway and felt comfortable here… so I went back to sleep," Siro muttered.
"Get up. Drink this—you'll remember soon enough." Ruby handed him a bottle.
Siro sat up, looking around. Slowly, fragments of memory returned.
"Where's Kael? Damn it… I was trying to stop him, and he knocked me out!"
"Oh, so you do remember." Ruby pointed with his chin toward the yard.
Kael was there, sitting cross-legged, sword resting on his lap.
"Leave him be," Ruby said. "Here—have some snacks."
The crimson sky faded into dusk.
Ruby and Siro stayed on the porch, chatting idly about what had happened with Setnov's mother.
After a while, Kael approached them.
"Oh, you're awake?" he asked.
"Yeah… and you're done training?" Siro said, awkwardly setting down the snack jar.
Kael caught the bottle Ruby tossed at him and took a sip.
"Where are your parents?" Siro asked suddenly. "I was going to greet them, but I didn't see anyone."
"Ow!" Siro yelped—Ruby had pinched his thigh hard.
"It's fine," Kael said evenly. "He didn't mean anything by it."
Siro's face fell. He realized his mistake—he'd forgotten Kael's parents weren't around.
"Do you always train like this?" Siro asked, trying to change the subject.
"Yes," Kael said. "Every day. I'll keep doing it until they come back. I want to surprise them—prove that I really am the genius child they should be proud of."
His gaze drifted toward the darkening sky.
The words left both Ruby and Siro silent.
Siro, especially, felt something resonate deep inside.
He understood Kael in a way he hadn't expected.
"Can I come here after school?" Siro asked quietly.
"For what?"
"I don't know… I feel like you and I are alike. And I've hit a wall lately," Siro said with a nervous laugh.
"I don't understand what you mean by 'alike' or 'a wall.' So why come every day?"
Siro hesitated, then spoke softly. "I used to train with my father. But a year ago, he disappeared—left me, my sister, and my mother.
I hate to admit it, but he's the only one who ever pushed me forward."
"Why do you hate your dad?" Ruby asked through a mouthful of snacks.
Kael didn't speak, just watched Siro, curious.
Siro sighed and began to talk—about his family, his frustration, his anger.
Ruby and Kael listened in silence.
As the last of the red sky faded into night, Kael still couldn't shake the feeling that something in Siro's story didn't add up—something that might be connected to him.
But when the thought became too heavy, he let it go.
"Aren't you two heading home?" Kael finally asked.
"Oh—yeah. Didn't realize how late it got," Ruby said, gathering his things.
Siro followed his lead. They waved goodbye, running toward their bikes at the roadside.
Kael watched them pedal away, the faint glow of streetlamps guiding their path down the long, empty road between the quiet fields.
---
To be continued…