Jay was still sitting on the improvised bed, his breathing a little heavy, when he finally lifted his gaze.And there he was.
Right in front of him, standing with arms crossed and a careless look that didn't match the intensity of his red eyes, was Daru. His brother. His blood. His lost half.
For an instant, Jay felt every sound in the world fade away. The room, the wind outside, even the beating of his own heart… all stopped. Only Daru's figure, illuminated by the faint light streaming through the window, remained sharp and firm, as if the universe had chosen to highlight that moment.
Jay tried to move, but his body didn't react. It wasn't pain. It wasn't exhaustion. It was pure shock.
"It's him… it really is him…" he thought.
Finally, with an effort more emotional than physical, Jay pressed his hands against the bed and stood. His legs trembled slightly, as if torn between running to embrace him or collapsing under the weight of surprise.
Daru didn't move, but when Jay stepped forward, he raised his hand.
Jay raised his too.
And then, the two brothers clasped hands tightly, as if to confirm that both were real. It wasn't just a greeting. It was a silent message: you're alive, I'm here, we're us again.
Their eyes met, firm, filled with pride, surprise, and a sting of contained emotion.
From where Jay had risen, Nekotina watched with wide eyes, kneeling, her gray tail swaying nervously like a pendulum. She didn't speak, but her expression clearly said she had never seen anything like this.
Jay, still holding Daru's hand, frowned slightly. His lips trembled, trying to form words of logic and judgment, but the chaos in his mind was faster than his voice.
"Daru…" he said gravely, as if about to confess something deep.
Daru looked at him curiously.
And then Jay exploded, with the natural chaos of a comedy and the emotional confusion of a younger brother:
"What the hell are you doing here!? Now you've got two katanas! And you're strong and fast, what's going on!? Wait, I had a super serious wound and was bleeding out! And now you're with Nekotina too!? What the hell is happeninggg!?"
Jay blurted it all out at once, fast, like he was rapping on stage and running out of breath.
Daru blinked. Then he smiled. And with a tone full of charisma, dripping with soft mockery and natural sarcasm, he replied:
"What are you talking about, brother? I didn't expect to find you in this world either, you know? It's as much a surprise for me as it is for you." He shrugged lightly with casual indifference. "And the wolf girl… I just found her by chance when I was bringing you. Nothing strange."
Jay's eyes widened. Nekotina lowered her gaze with a faint blush, as if remembering.
But then Daru's expression shifted slightly. His red eyes gleamed with seriousness.
"But about your wound," he said, his tone lower now, "it's hard to explain. Yes, I treated you with magic… but wounds made by evil spirits are… complicated. Difficult to heal."
Jay felt a chill.
Daru continued: "But that's not all. When I was healing you, I realized your wounds… well… were a little peculiar."
The room fell silent for a few seconds. Nekotina's tail stopped moving. Jay swallowed hard.
But suddenly, Daru broke into a wide smile, as if nothing had happened.
"Well, in any case, I'm glad you're okay, brother!" he said cheerfully. "But I didn't think you'd run into a loli so quickly."
He covered his mouth with his hand as he laughed, clearly enjoying the comment.
Jay turned red instantly. "Don't laugh!" he protested, raising his shoulders. "It's not like that, and it wasn't planned!"
Daru let out a small amused snort. Then he turned away, as if bored of a simple conversation, and said arrogantly: "In any case, hurry up. Grab your things. We're leaving." "Where to?" Jay asked. "Don't ask. I'm too lazy to explain," Daru replied without looking back.
Jay watched him walk toward the door, and with a smile somewhere between mocking and fraternal, he raised his hand…
…and flipped him off.
Daru only raised his thumb without turning, as if responding in kind without breaking his cool posture.
Nekotina watched the scene, confused. Jay sighed. And the air in the room filled with that warm sensation—an impossible reunion that had finally become real.
Jay took a deep breath, the adrenaline of reuniting with his brother still echoing through his body like a stubborn resonance. Then he turned on his heels, and there was Nekotina, watching him with those gray eyes so much like a cloudy sky before the rain. Her wolf ears drooped slightly, her gray tail rested on the floor, and her expression seemed caught between worry, curiosity, and a strange sense of… vigilance.
Jay looked at her with a crooked smile, one of those smiles he wore even when he shouldn't.
"Hey, Nekotina," he leaned toward her a little, "are you coming with me? Or do you want to stay here crying over me? Hahaha…"
He said it with a light laugh, teasing, almost childish. A laugh that floated through the room like a soft taunt… too soft for Nekotina not to take it as a personal insult.
The wolf girl's ears shot up. Her cheeks puffed, tense, flushed red. She looked like a little pressure cooker about to explode.
She didn't say a word. She didn't need to.
Jay barely had time to see her lower her head, gather momentum, and—
BAM!
The charge was precise, direct, merciless. Her small head slammed into Jay's stomach with all the force of an angry wolf.
"Uagh!!" Jay fell backward to the floor, writhing as he clutched his abdomen. "Ow, ow, ow! Why the hell did you dooo that…?!"
Nekotina stepped back, lifted her head proudly, and without saying a single word…
stuck out her tongue.
A bleh as childish as it was defiant. Then she spun on her heels and ran out of the room, her gray tail wagging happily behind her.
Jay, sprawled on the floor, blinked several times. Everything was so strange it almost felt like a badly written dream… yet so vivid, so full of color, so full of little details only a fantastical world could offer.
"What the hell… was that…?" he muttered, still not fully understanding.
The room gave no answer. Only the gentle sway of the curtains, letting in the light of sunset and filling the place with a warm, melancholic air.
Jay rose slowly, rubbing his stomach, and breathed deeply.
What he had lived since arriving in this world was too surreal: from gazing at floating galaxies to fighting a malevolent spirit capable of tearing his body like fragile paper… and now a wolf girl behaving as if she had stepped straight out of an anime.
He shook his head, trying to organize his thoughts, and began to prepare.
First he put on his jacket, adjusting it over the shirt torn by the spirit's attack. Then he tightened his black military vest, though it was worn and broken. Finally, he took his cap… his old cap, the only piece of his former life still intact.
When he was ready, he took a few steps toward the door. But before crossing it… he stopped.
He looked at the room one last time.
The air smelled of old wood and simple lives. The sun streaming through the window drew a golden line that seemed to point toward an uncertain future. For a second—just one—Jay felt something like nostalgia.
"I won't miss this town at all," he whispered.
His words were cold. But his gaze was not.
Because even if he wouldn't miss the place, perhaps he would miss someone. A stubborn little wolf girl who reminded him, unintentionally, that he wasn't alone.
With that thought hidden deep in his chest, Jay stepped out. The door closed behind him with a firm sound, an echo marking the end of one chapter… and the beginning of another.
Jay descended the stairs with slow, almost dragging steps, as if each step wanted to remind him of everything that had happened in that place. The wood creaked softly beneath his feet, and the faint scent of old tea and dust lingered in the air, giving the whole atmosphere a touch of farewell.
In his mind, Jay muttered with that mix of sarcasm and resignation so typical of him:
"I won't miss this place at all… What a nightmare. If this were an anime, I would've lived too many things in episode one. The production would be going crazy with all the plot holes…"
The thought brought a tired half-smile to his face.
When he pushed open the inn's door and stepped outside, the fresh morning air struck his face. Jay raised his arms to the sky, stretching as if he wanted to shake off all the bad memories clinging to him.
And there they were.
Daru, his brother, raising his hand with that relaxed gesture of his that said, "Come on, don't fall behind." And beside him, Nekotina, standing with her arms crossed and her tail barely moving, as if trying to hide the fact that she had been waiting.
Jay looked at her and thought:
"I knew she'd come… She's just playing hard to get."
With an expression full of determination—and a bit of foolish pride—Jay walked toward them. It felt as though the wind was gently pushing his back, as if the world itself whispered:
"From now on, it's your turn to shine, Jay Baker."
Jay reached his brother and asked:
"By the way… what did you come in?"
Daru said nothing. He simply raised a hand and pointed toward the road.
Jay followed the direction of that finger… and was left speechless.
A carriage.
But not a common one. No. This one looked like it had come straight out of a royal parade:
Horses completely white, as if snow itself had lent them its color. Polished armor reflecting the sunlight. Golden details carved into every edge of the carriage with incredible precision. Even the wood gleamed elegantly, as if it had just been polished by someone of high rank.
Jay's eyes widened to the fullest.
And the first thing that came out of his mouth was:
"At last, I can be spoiled."
His expression betrayed no lie: pure, almost childlike happiness.
The three walked toward the carriage. Daru climbed in first, with that confidence that seemed to say, "This is my place." Then Nekotina entered, her gray tail flicking into the seat before settling.
Jay was last.
Just before climbing in, he stopped and looked back.
The village, with its old houses, its silent streets, and that sad air that always accompanied it, seemed to watch him leave.
Jay stared at it and said:
"Shitty town."
He said it without rancor, without anger… simply as a necessary closure.
And then he climbed into the carriage.
The door closed. The horses neighed. The carriage began to move with a soft, almost musical sound.
And as they left the place behind, the world seemed to open a new path before Jay.
Perhaps… just perhaps… fate was beginning to smile at him for the very first time.
The carriage moved with a gentle, almost hypnotic sway, as if the road itself were singing a calm melody for the three travelers. The interior smelled of fine wood and clean fabric, and the morning light streamed through the windows, forming golden lines that shifted as the wheels turned.
Jay and Nekotina sat together on one side of the carriage. Nekotina gazed outside, fascinated by the passing scenery like a living canvas: tall trees waving with their branches, green fields rippling like a terrestrial ocean, and a sky beginning to tint with soft orange. Her tail rested on Jay's lap—fluffy, warm, and surprisingly soft—as if it were a silent symbol of protection… or possession. It was an almost maternal gesture, as though she instinctively knew Jay was the kind of human who could get into trouble without even trying.
Meanwhile, Jay was busy in an epic battle… of rock, paper, scissors.
"Rock!" Jay shouted.
"Paper," Daru replied calmly.
Jay fell defeated for the umpteenth time.
Daru, seated directly across from them, arms crossed and wearing that natural mix of calm and teasing expression, enjoyed every second of the competition. Jay, clearly, did not.
Between rounds, Jay paused, a sudden doubt surfacing in his mind.
"Hey, so… who's driving the horses?" he asked with genuine concern, glancing toward the window as if expecting to see a ghostly coachman.
Daru answered without flinching, as though it were the most normal thing in the world:
"They go on their own. They're very well trained."
Jay blinked a couple of times.
"Automatic… horses? Well, okay, I won't ask anymore," he sighed.
Nekotina let out a small nasal "fuu", as if she too found it absurd that Jay kept being surprised by the basics of this world.
After two more failed attempts at winning rock-paper-scissors, Jay decided to attack with more serious questions—or at least try.
"Hey, Daru… how did you get to this world? What happened to you? How strong are you now? How did you manage to become this… pro? I mean, you even have two katanas now, what the hell did you do?"
Daru turned his gaze toward him with a slow smile, the kind only older brothers wear when they deliberately withhold information just to annoy.
With a tone dripping in sarcasm, he replied:
"I won't tell you yet how I got here, or how strong I am. I like suspense. I'll only say this: these two katanas act as seals… to keep my power from going out of control."
Jay opened his mouth, not in surprise, but in sheer frustration.
"Seals? For uncontrollable power? Ugh… better not ask more. Too much effort," he said, leaning back.
Daru let out a light laugh.
"Yeah, I know you. You wouldn't last ten minutes listening to the full explanation."
The carriage kept moving as the rays of the sun began to illuminate everything. Shadows retreated, clouds awakened, and the atmosphere seemed to announce the beginning of something new.
The brothers continued playing all sorts of games: guessing numbers, tossing coins, even ending up in a ridiculous but intense thumb war, where Jay lost almost all… except one, which he won only because Nekotina accidentally pushed him with her tail while trying to adjust herself.
She, with her serious and calculating gaze, maintained that protective attitude toward Jay, as if she knew that at any moment the dark-haired human would say or do another monumental stupidity.
And yet, inside the carriage bathed in the light of dawn, with laughter and jokes filling the air, for the first time in a long while… Jay didn't feel alone.
It was chaotic. It was strange. It was perfect.