Alec gazed at his hand where a familiar black petal shone for a split second. He blinked, and it vanished. But he knew it would stay with him... for a long time. At least, until he found and killed the man who placed it on him.
'But will I be able to find him?'
He gazed at Lara, who tilted her head at him as if saying, What happened? Alec shook his head and gestured for her to come sit beside him. Lara blinked but dragged her chair beside him.
She clicked her tongue when Jian turned around to stare at her and Alec with narrow eyes as if they were caught in the act. Alec chuckled and his mood became better.
'I'll find him... after all, that bastard needs to die for me to have a peaceful life.'
Yue also looked at the bracelets on her wrists and let out a sigh.
'I have time... but I need to somehow tell Kyle about this.'
At that moment, Kyle, who had finally answered his father's questions about why he went into a coma and who the hell dared to harm him, stood up and looked at Susan.
"You should take the ones who reached the pseudo divine rank and let them use the crystal. That way, they can form an image in their mind and see their strength whenever they want."
Susan let out a sigh of relief, and it was clear from his face. He clapped his hands to get everyone's attention.
"Okay now, all of you who've reached the pseudo divine rank, follow me outside because this place is too small. I am going to leave as soon as my job is done."
However, for some reason, he narrowed his eyes at Alec, who tensed under his gaze.
'Did I make a mistake or is he really giving off a faint evil energy?'
Susan rubbed his chin, but besides that slight dark energy, he didn't sense anything else. So, he put that thought aside for now and asked the pseudo rank individuals to follow him.
Yue looked at his fading figure and quickly told Mia, Sinon, and Regius about the divine essence and asked them to use it too. She took out three glass vials and placed them in front of the trio. The trio looked at each other. They were willing, but they asked for more details. In the distance, Susan's body stiffened when he heard about the divine essence.
'Darn it, the kids are talking about divine essence like it's no big deal.'
He stared at Kyle's back with narrow eyes to know where the young man found so much divine essence, but Kyle ignored him as if he didn't even exist. Susan clicked his tongue and left with Alec, Carcel, and Lara.
Meanwhile, after knowing about the divine essence, Sinon ruffled his wings behind his back and his eyes gleamed with a mischievous glint.
"Don't know why... but I can't wait to see Nine's face when he finds out I've reached the pseudo-divine rank!"
But his excitement turned to disbelief when Kyle told him that Nine had already reached the pseudo-divine rank. Sinon let out a dry laugh.
"You're kidding, right, bro?"
Kyle shook his head and Sinon's expression turned sour. He grabbed one of the vials and raised his hand with a dead serious expression.
"No way, I'm gonna fail! If Nine can do it, then I can too!"
Regius chuckled at him and the two of them left the house together. After all, they needed a big and quiet place for the break through. Mia followed them as well.
Yue looked at their fading figures and then approached Kyle.
"The flower... you can give it to Bia."
She held out her palm and a crimson flower appeared on her hand, but Kyle shook his head and grabbed the grumpy bird on his shoulder.
"No, take her with you so she can use it. I need to talk with my family. It's important."
Bia blinked at his words and quickly spoke in his head.
-'What is it? I think we should first talk about our bond. Why can't I sense you? It's like it's broken...'
She fell silent, and Kyle raised his hand to caress her head.
'It's not broken. It just went dormant due to my condition. Don't worry, it'll be fine after you stayed around me for some time. Also, you need to get stronger. So, go absorb the flower.'
The phoenix nodded, but she was still hesitant to leave his side.
Kyle surprised Yue by grabbing her wrist and pulling her towards him. Baron Ohan cleared his throat to remind him that they weren't alone. Kyle looked into Yue's amber eyes and placed Bia on her shoulder. Then, he spoke up with a soft voice.
"Keep an eye on her for me, alright? I'll join you in a while... and remember, you owe me a meal. So, let's eat together once I'm done."
Yue nodded, still a little dazed that he initiated the contact first. She glanced at his hand and quickly backed off, her ears turning red.
"Okay..."
Bia's eyebrow twitched a little as she glanced back and forth between Kyle and Yue. In the end, she fixed her gaze on Kyle.
-'I don't even remember the last time you spoke so gently and softly... Ugh. So, now that you're fine, did you decide to get yourself a wife?'
Kyle hummed in response.
'The suggestion isn't bad at all.'
Bia raised her brow as Yue started moving toward the exit. The phoenix gazed back at Kyle with crescent eyes.
-'It seems like you're going to start showing your emotions more openly now, huh? I see a lot of improvement. Let's see how it goes... but with your personality, I'm betting it's gonna take a lot of time.'
But no matter what, she was happy to see him back. Kyle's lips twitched at her words, but he ignored the phoenix and looked at Ray and Neon. The duo had been staring at him with mischievous eyes ever since he pulled that stunt on Yue.
Kyle cleared his throat and quickly changed the topic.
"You two, come here. I need to check your bodies."
