?Kyle's face was expressionless as he floated away from the old man. He caressed Bia's feathers and let out a faint chuckle.
"In the end, he didn't tell me how to remove this thing from my body? And he subtly implied that I might die."
Haylee flew beside him with a deep expression.
"He asked you to get stronger... maybe you can remove it once you become stronger?"
Kyle eyed the clear sky. He raised his hand, and wisps of blue flames traveled on his palm.
"No, he asked me to get strong so I can help Alec when he's fighting the foreign individual harming the planet's core. He didn't give me a clear answer if I would survive or not."
Haylee decreased his size into a fur ball and landed on his shoulder.
"Why are you speaking as if you've lost hope? There are so many people in this world who may be facing something worse. Instead of being down, how about looking at the positive side? You still have time to find a way to save yourself."
The boar's eyes flashed with countless emotions as he gazed at the kid. He wished he could do something for him, but he knew he couldn't. Not to mention the fact that he was trying to lift the kid's spirit with just empty words when he could also sense from the guardian's words that Kyle's survival would be hard.
Bia, who had been quietly sitting on Kyle's other shoulder, raised her head. For some reason, she wasn't sensing any strong emotion from him. She thought he might feel worse, but he was actually quite calm.
-'Hey, with your intense luck, I don't think the artifact can do anything to you. So, don't worry, okay? I'll let you ride me if you want!'
Kyle's lips curled into a smile. However, amidst all this, he noticed something strange about himself.
'This feeling... it's very similar to the one I felt a few years ago. Strangely enough, something inside me is screaming that there's no need to do anything. Just lay low and live your life... But why?'
"Bia, do you know why I wanted to become stronger? The reason isn't a big one. Just like any other person, I wanted to protect my family and friends. However, I got everything too easily. Maybe that's why I don't have a long life."
-'Kyle!!'
Bia screamed in his head. Clearly angry at his words.
"But you know what? I hate the fact that I'm not dying because of myself, but because of someone else. So..."
He cracked his knuckles.
"I don't think I will find peace until I kill that bastard who placed this artifact in my body."
Haylee closed his eyes and let out a sigh.
"I told you not to lose hope."
Kyle shook his head.
"No, I'm not losing hope. I never will. I know I did in the past. But now that I think about it, I don't even know the reason. Was it because of Sen? Or because my talent was low?"
Haylee couldn't make sense of a lot of things, but just like Bia, he listened to Kyle quietly.
"At first, after finding out about my bloodline, I wanted to unlock it because I was excited. Then, I aimed to reach a rank higher than (SSS+)-Rank because my knowledge increased."
"Now I am adding another goal to my list. I am going to get strong. So strong that the artifact can't harm me. And the person who put it in my body will regret ever doing it."
-'Sigh, you gave me a panic for a second, but if you are getting strong, I am also gonna put in extra effort! Let's become strong together!'
Bia unfurled her wings and circled him with resolute eyes.
Suddenly, the air around Kyle stirred violently. The boar hurriedly left his shoulder, and Bia retracted in another direction.
Haylee's eyebrow twitched as he watched the cold aura surging around Kyle.
"He just said he is gonna get stronger and he's already breaking through to the next rank?"
The duo watched for a minute until the cold aura around Kyle dispersed in different directions. With a faint smile, Kyle pointed his finger towards a nearby floating island.
"Let's go, we don't have time!"
Haylee sighed but still followed behind him. Bia and Kyle managed to clear two treasure islands in just three days, all with the goal of getting stronger.
Bia felt proud because Kyle didn't take any breaks. He even trained his body reaction speed and sword art.
-'Is this how a parent feels when their laziest child starts walking the right path?'
However, both Bia and Haylee were rendered speechless on the fourth day.
While running toward the next treasure island, Kyle spotted a familiar scent. He paused and immediately changed direction.
Bia and Haylee followed behind him, thinking maybe he found a strong treasure nearby. However, when they caught up to Kyle, they saw he was talking to a familiar girl.
Kyle stood above a boulder and gazed down at the pair of amber eyes staring at him. He couldn't help but be surprised because Yue had gotten strong once again.
His eyes traveled behind her, where a fire was lit.
"Ah... I don't want to disturb you, but when I saw you, I remembered you wanted to say something last time?"
Yue blinked and let out a faint smile.
"You found the cure. I just wanted to say, be safe."
"Oh, okay."
She pointed back at the fire.
"I just stopped here after coming out from a treasure island. Do you... want to sit together for a while?"
Bia left Haylee's side and hurriedly shook her tiny head in front of Yue.
-'No way! He has a goal to achieve!'
Yet, a dumbfounded expression appeared on her face when Kyle jumped down from the boulder. He didn't say anything and just gave Yue a quick nod.
Bia stared at his back, but then suddenly Kyle gazed back and blinked innocently.
'It's good to work hard, but we need proper rest as well. Also, don't you feel hungry?'
Bia's eyes widened as the meaning behind his words dawned on her, and she immediately agreed.
The trio sat down beside the fire, forgetting that a certain boar had been watching them with a speechless expression.
In the end, when the delicious aroma wafted in the air, Haylee also joined them. Well, no one would reject a good meal.
