Alec entered a serene and quiet room, where gentle curtains gracefully adorned the windows. The air inside was icy, with a delicate layer of frost casting an ethereal glow.
His gaze wandered, until it settled upon the majestic bed, positioned at the room's center. Alec walked up to the bed and stood in front of it, his gaze fixed on the peaceful figure lying there, half-covered by a flowing fabric.
Overwhelmed with emotion, he dropped to his knees, unable to contain the words that escaped his lips.
"If only you were awake... would everything have been better?"
Alec couldn't help but let out a chuckle as he wiped the tears that had welled up in his eyes.
Kyle's eyes were tightly shut, as if he was lost in a dream world. His skin appeared even paler, and a delicate layer of frost covered his body, softly shimmering in the dim light of the room.
"You were always carefree... but whenever you were around, you never let anything happen to those close to you."
"I remember when we were in the secret realm, you once said that it wasn't your duty to step forward and help if the world was in danger. But how strange, you always ended up helping others."
Alec stood up in front of the bed, brushing off his clothes even though there was nothing on them.
"Don't worry, Bia is fine. It took a lot, but Yue and Mia managed to calm her down. Right now, she's helping the others, and let me tell you, she's gotten a lot stronger..."
"So please, wake up... or else she'll be angry. You know... I lied to save your body, so you owe me now."
He rubbed his hands together because the air around him was so cold that he could see his breath.
"Bastard... always so lazy. How long are you going to sleep for?"
Alec shook his head and began to leave the room. But just as he turned away, the person lying on the bed made a slight movement. It was so subtle that no one noticed it. The moment, Alec stepped out, he noticed another figure squinting in front of the door.
The man with red hair had messy clothes and his face was hidden in his knees. Alec shook the man's shoulder with a serious expression.
"Jian... why are you here?"
Jian let out a long sigh, his usually sparkling eyes devoid of any emotions.
"It's been two months and he's still sleeping?"
He waved Alec's hand away.
"Just like you, I came here to cry. After the King's death, Kelvin could have taken the throne... but given the circumstances, he gave up. He said we should follow the Central Continent's orders. That way, we would be able to save a lot of people."
Alec stared at Jian, realizing they had all been through so much in such a short time. Many people from the older generation sacrificed themselves to save the younger generation. His eyes paused when he noticed a strange white bracelet on Jian's wrist.
"What's that...?"
Jian raised his wrist and frowned at the bracelet.
"I don't know, found it among the treasures in the bag that old dwarf left with me. The bracelet was trapped in a bottle, but when I opened the bottle, it jumped out and wrapped itself around my wrist, and now..."
He waved his hand roughly.
"It's stuck like a leech."
Alec narrowed his eyes at the bracelet. He tried using the system appraisal skill but didn't find anything suspicious.
"You sure it's not harmful...?"
Jian grabbed his knees and stood up.
"I think it's just a normal bracelet, except it won't let go of my wrist-!"
His sentence was interrupted when the bracelet on his wrist suddenly glowed and leaped in the opposite direction.
"Huh...?"
Jian's eyes widened as he quickly jumped and grabbed it in his fist. But then white smoke sizzled out from his fingers. Alec stared at Jian's hand as he opened his fist, but the bracelet had vanished into thin air.
"What the hell just happened?"
The duo was interrupted when Alec's communication crystal buzzed. He sighed and pulled out the crystal, then looked at Jian.
"We need to leave... the ones who retreated are attacking again."
Jian furrowed his brows. The west Continent had fallen completely, and the east Continent would have fallen too if it wasn't for Alec forcing Diora to retreat somehow.
Now, all the remaining Kingdoms have decided to unite and create a single Continent, with four Kingdoms representing each race. The elves, the dwarves, the humans, and the demi-
humans. As for the Sea Continent, it hasn't shown up even when they called for help.
Jian gazed at Alec and massaged his temples.
"Are you sure it's okay to let Istalian be the King of the human race? You know I don't like him. Why didn't King Cedric say anything? He is the last surviving King of the East Continent."
Alec floated mid-air as he replied with a tired voice.
"We don't have a choice. I don't know how he did it, but he created a massive shield around his Kingdom that can gather mana from the air to attack enemies. Right now, the safest place to build the new Continent is right in the center of the Central Continent."
Jian turned around and glanced at the door behind him.
"What about Kyle? Should we move his body to a safe place?"
Alec chuckled and shook his head.
"I thought you would have noticed."
He paused for a moment, scanning the corridor they were standing in.
"Despite the entire continent being attacked from different directions... this massive castle hasn't been touched by anyone. It's hard to believe they overlooked such a huge place as if it doesn't exist at all."
Jian's eyes widened slightly as he understood the meaning behind Alec's words. It couldn't be a coincidence. He gazed at the faint icy layer slowly spreading from Kyle's room. A faint smile appeared at the corner of his lips.
"Once he wakes up, I want to know the rank of his luck stat."
The duo left together, but after they left, the bracelet that had vanished into smoke crawled out from behind a shadow. It traveled toward Kyle's room before slowly seeping into the cracks.
Soon, the bracelet crawled up to the bed and paused above the man sleeping peacefully on the bed. A hoarse voice echoed in the room.
"Ah... finally."
