"Please, sir, open that site... again!"
"What happened?"
"That bastard... I mean, that so-called murderer 'X' is hacking several computers and making it impossible to track him."
"Murderer X?"
"Yeah, yeah. Exactly that. It's his codename. X... what kind of person would choose a codename like that?"
"Only someone disturbed."
"Must be. Anyway, Mr. Slady, thank you very much for giving your time to this investigation."
"You're welcome, have a good day."
When the door shuts, Slady, still holding a faint smile, stands up and heads to the second floor, to a bathroom. Opening the faucet, he leans over and, in an uncontrollable outburst, vomits.
After wiping his mouth, Slady remains seated on the toilet. Why was he feeling so nauseous? Could it have been after the previous night, the one that...
Faller walks in drunk and immediately showers his wife with kisses. Slady ends up drinking too much. Victoria drinks too much. Elisa and Shaphira sleep too much.
Well, maybe he had overdone it with the drinks, but it was good wine. And he missed sweet wines. Finally, he remembered where the girls were:
He had left them with a couple for training. He felt slightly incapable, the couple, with their experience and prior understanding of who Elisa and Shaphira were, were perfect for such a task.
He had to go there, as soon as possible.
In a luxurious district, Faller was chopping vegetables while Victoria placed them into the pot. They whispered to each other about the girls' behavior. And the girls themselves were in a room. Shaphira stared at the floor, clutching the skirt of her kimono. Elisa crossed her arms, rubbing her eyes.
"You don't need to be upset. You didn't hurt me. Slady stopped you before anything happened."
"But... what if he hadn't been there? Would I have ended up killing you? I don't want that."
She lowers her gaze as well. She walks toward Shaphira and sits beside her, her hand touching the other's, their fingers intertwining. Elisa looks into her eyes and, without waiting a second, hugs her.
"... Don't think about it anymore. You're okay. I'm okay. That's what matters."
Shaphira's eyes widen slightly at the gesture, her hands trembling before returning the embrace. Her face hides against the other's chest, breathing more deeply.
"You're right, there's no reason to be afraid..."
However, another whisper echoed:
"... But I can't let that happen again."
Amid the sizzling of the food, the subject also changes. Faller, pulling his wife by the waist, recalls the scene he witnessed.
The heavy presence Slady carried the previous night, muffled by alcohol. Why was that? Victoria showed surprise that her husband had noticed.
Despite the distortion of reality caused by the effects of the drink, he had still been aware of everything. Letting out a laugh while caressing the man's arms, Victoria explains the situation. And Faller, sighing, believes that when he sees Slady again, he will have a clarifying conversation with him:
He doesn't need to carry everything alone.
When the door knocks, Victoria glances at him. He could do it right now.
Upon opening it, Slady stood there, his hands in front of his waist. Faller asks if this was a visit. If he wouldn't be bothering them.
With a hug that lifted his feet off the ground, Slady understood the answer.
***
At lunch, seated around a table, silence filled the place. Shaphira, beside Slady, eats slowly. Elisa too. Victoria and Faller, from time to time, pick up spoons and feed each other, which causes a reaction from Shaphira.
"How disgusting..."
"Behave yourself, Shaphira."
Elisa agreed. It was rude to act like that toward people who had given them food.
But the couple laughs. Faller apologizes, saying such intimacy was inappropriate. And Victoria accepts the girl's reaction as constructive criticism, thanking her for keeping the adults in line.
In short, after lunch, the couple offers to take care of the dishes. Slady remains seated on a couch. Shaphira asks curious questions about how much Faller and Victoria earned because of the beauty of the condominium, receiving an equally natural answer: it was difficult work, but rewarding.
Questions about training arise. Elisa was honest: every session, led by Slady, was strict, but careful. Watching him in a daze, she whispers that he is always very careful to make sure they do not get hurt, in general.
When Faller calls them lucky, Victoria sees her husband's expression grow darker. Slady, raising his gaze, asks if they wished to speak privately.
They wanted to speak only with Slady.
Swallowing hard, Slady asks Elisa and Shaphira to leave. They agree, with the Renkai Creature running toward the room while the younger one takes longer to look away from her uncle's figure.
Faller and Victoria exchange glances and pull chairs over, sitting in front of Slady. The conversation does not take long to begin. They had noticed how good Slady was with Elisa and Shaphira, even recalling childhood memories.
Slady claims he is not someone who understands childhood well, but wants to be, at the very least, a good listener.
"I am very grateful to you, Slady. Therefore, it is only fair that you become aware of our past. I already told you that I am Victoria's childhood friend. But I never told you how we grew up..."
Then, Victoria takes the lead.
The two of them grew up in a village dominated by the Noughter family, being neighbors.
Faller was born with his Mana Liberator already awakened. Slady even leaned forward more upon hearing the idea.
Because of that, he was taken into training very early.
After every session, Faller would leave covered in open wounds and purple bruises all over his body. And every time he failed, he would receive another blow.
Victoria ended up growing close to him this way. Applying medicine to his body, hugging him when his emotions overflowed, and even when punishments were given, she would end up receiving them alongside him.
Then, one day, everything they believed in turned to ashes.
The Second Renkai Awakening.
The families had died. Men who once swore pride were reduced to mixing with the ashes of the weak. Women who had been used only to bear descendants received no glory. And children were unable to see the future.
And they were there, amidst fire, ice, earth, wood, blood...
The wind cut through them as they fought for their lives.
Until they found something worse than death: the Flame Destroyer. Its flames burned not only the body itself, but everything nearby and everything it touched.
But there, while watching her beloved unable to release electricity, being burned alive...
Victoria awakened.
And the waters extinguished the flames like tsunamis.
...
After everything, nothing remained of that village. Only the two of them, the only ones with the opportunity to start over. And they did not waste it.
So, if at that moment Slady felt the weight of something dragging him down, the couple wanted him to know that, in one year, he had become worthy of trust, and therefore, of their complete support.
And with a hug, Slady froze. The weight he felt on his shoulders, if before it had seemed moderate, now he realized its true size. The couple would only think that the future of his family terrified him. It was more than that.
But, for now, that embrace was warm enough to make him surrender.
And embrace them back as well.