"That deserves a drink." Kael, who seemed unaffected by what had happened mere moments ago, snapped his fingers as everything turned illusory. Under the influence of spiritual invisibility, he conjured a strawberry beverage similar to the one I had drank when I first met him.

  I looked into the pink-colored drink, my expression numb. Instead of my stomach grumbling, it hurt, almost to an extremely painful extent. I extended my hand, pushing the drink away from me and sighing shakily.

  "You didn't help me."

  Hearing these words, Kael fell silent for a moment. He leaned back in his chair, prompting his feet onto the table, kicking the deck of cards to the ground. He smiled at me with some pride in his expression, balancing with a hint of ambiguous intention.

  "I wanted to see how you'd react, Isaac," Kael replied.

  "They burnt me with a pipe; they would have done worse if I didn't fight back like that." Countless thoughts and questions stirred through my mind, making my question countless things happening.

  I clenched my fists, slamming one on the table. "I know damn well you forced me into that situaiton... why?"

  Looking up at Kael with a pained expression, I felt moisture gather in the corners of my eyes. Kael, his gaze unreadable, sighed softly and replied in a quiet voice.

  "You want to be powerful to protect, correct?" Kael slowly wrapped his hand around my chin, pulling my head a little closer.

  "If you want to protect those close to you, act like your powers are actually powers... not something that holds you back."

  At this moment, Kael took a step back and scoffed, tucking his hands into his pockets. He looked me up and down again. "Can you recall how many times you've lost consciousness after drinking your potion?"

  I fell silent, entering a deep state of contemplation. I have passed out, quite a lot actually. It was sometimes from exhaustion, exertion, or stress on my body or mind. I'd also pass out after seeing visions, waking up either on the floor or in my bed with Shinso sitting beside me. In fact, I passed out yesterday after having that strange vision with the man and deer—a vision that still troubles my thoughts and confuses me.

  As if sensing my current contemplation, Kael took a deep breath, crossing his arms over his chest. One of his gloved fingers rapped against his bicep as he circled around me. "What you did back there wasn't evil, but survival. I knew what would happen, at Order 8 of the Apocalypse pathway—your current order—one can see into the future, even if they're small and fleeting."

  Kael abruptly stopped, pushing me my strawberry drink, signaling for me to drink it. "After you finish that, shall we pay your friends a visit, the ones who made you hire a bodyguard like me?"

  My hand wrapped around the cold drink, bringing it to my lips. In a way, it did seem to ease the tension in my body, bringing me back from my nervous high. At the same time, I still felt a pit resonate within my stomach.

  After finishing my drink, I pushed the drink away and sighed, slowly standing up and regaining my equilibrium. I suddenly felt a small buzzing on my left wrist. Looking down, I watched as the Apocalypse sigil lit up with a faint shimmer, emitting small crimson tendrils. The tendrils seeped into the burn mark on my right wrist, healing and reforming the slightly mottled skin.

  You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

  Kael watched the entire scene, arching an eyebrow as he smiled. "I didn't know Apocalypse seekers could heal themselves?"

  "A-actually... It came from a weird charm I got in a market stall."

  At this moment, Kael coughed softly, smiling as he walked to the door. The world around us gradually reverted to normal, the colors and sounds gaining full vibrancy and lucidity. Opening the doors, Kael stepped aside and let me leave in front of him.

  "We should make this quick; the last thing we want is for you to get shot."

  "W-won't you protect me?" I asked, my heart sinking to the depths of my stomach.

  The crimson-haired, elven man cleared his throat, speaking with clarity. "If it gets too messy, I'll step in. I saw what you did back in the agency; you gave those men quite the performance."

  I ran a hand through my hair, scoffing. "I had to, they attacked me and I had to fight back one way or another. If I didn't, my head would be served as an appetizer during the next game of Hadesdeck."

  "Well, I'm glad you have some agency. Some people I know would just surrender to that fate if they were in your shoes. You have... admirable courage, even if your build is that of an impoverished street child."

  A low groan left my mouth, and my cheeks heated a little. "Thats the second time someone's called me skinny."

  "Second? I thought that'd be the backhand of every interaction." Kael chuckled, tracing a finger along the contours of his pointed, elven ears.

  "Well, I'm just glad it's not."

  "But really," Kael reached out, grabbing my arm and lifting it above his head. The man's strength was surprising, as he also lifted me off the ground. "We'll need you to bulk up a little if you are to make a difference in this world."

  Kael dropped me back to my feet, walking ahead. I suddenly saw crimson energy condense in his left hand, taking the form of an intricate dagger with patterns carved into the hilt of it. My eyes widened as I ran over, reaching out to cover his hands.

  "Y-you can't just walk around here with a weapon? Why do you need to use that anyway?"

  Kael opened his large pockets, tucking the weapon inside it. "You wanted to deal with your enemies, so I simply brought assistance."

  "A-assistance? That sounds like you want to murder them all!"

  "Is that what you want to do?" Kael raised a brow.

  I shook my head furiously, my fists clenching at my sides. "Of course not. They're these supremacist jerks that need to be handled. I was hoping you'd help me and turn them in on your own."

  Kael stopped in his tracks, leaning in closer to me. "You want me to do your dirty work, turning in those ruffians to the Pollinators for you?"

  My cheeks flushed even more as I stepped back, gripping the edge of an empty market stall. "You don't know about the Requiters? Didn't the guy you connect me with know about them?"

  "Oh, those bastards." Kael huffed, stepping back and leaning against a wall.

  "I've only heard stories about them. Allegedly they captured a heretic practicing demonic rituals to an evil existence, and he was tortured to death, only for his soul to be brought into another body, and the process would repeat itself over and over until they found satisfaction."

  My face paled. I had known about their abilities and profession, but this level of cruelty and malevolence was deeply contradictory to what I knew about the Mother Nature church.

  "A-are you lying about all this?"

  Kael raised his hands defensively. "You could stab me in the neck and ask, but I'd never tell."

  "That just sounds suspicious."

  The man with blood-red hair continued walking, urging me to continue beside him. "Now, do you know the address?"

  "Y-yeah... he said something about a Tavaren place."

  Upon hearing this, Kael almost choked on his own spit. "Tavaren?"

  I turned to face him, a rush of peculiarity hinting in my expression. "Is something wrong with it?"

  Kael shook his head, his cheeks heating a small amount. "Tavaren is a branch of... adult pleasure facilities that branch throughout numerous continents. I'd only been to one in the Katshin Empire... and it's surely not a place they'd let a sack of bone and skin like you enter. Also, you're too young to even go near the building."

  After connecting a few dots, I began to have second thoughts regarding this entire ordeal. These supremacists, the ones who wanted me dead, wanted me to come to an adult building and do things to me. Everyone there would either be too high on some drug, too busy lovemaking, or drunk to realize anything happening. In fact, I'm sure I could be burnt alive in the middle of the lobby and they'd keep on getting each other pregnant.

  "Of course, I'm too young to go there. No one would notice me; I'm too small. They could take me to the bathroom and torture me or something."

  "That's why I'm your bodyguard," Kael replied, a small smirk tearing at the corners of his lips.

  "Though, if I stop to get myself a beverage, don't blame me. After all, even demi-gods need to get drunk; the burdens of the world can be far too much for the average looker to handle."

  "No, you're not getting drunk! You're supposed to be making sure I don't get murdered!"

  "Alright, fine," Kael huffed, crossing his arms.

  Just then, he looked at me again, his serpentine smile returning. "Can I at least get a shot?"

  "No alcohol. If there's water, don't drink that either. It could be laced with something."

  "Since when were you so knowledgeable about your surroundings and all the ways one could kill you?"

  "I don't know; I guess I've... always been that way."