A month had passed since the two arrived in Kairos’s hotown, and during this ti, the bond between them had undoubtedly grown stronger.
They spent almost every waking mont together.
To make ends et, since they had little to no money, the two worked alongside one of Kairos’s old alliances. Together, they took on jobs as delivery boys—transporting food from the store they were employed at to custors scattered across the city.
Kairos had explained to Darnell the importance of choosing different routes. He’d learned, through experience, that taking the sa road twice often ended in disaster. The city they lived in was no paradise—it was a battleground of desperation.
Darnell quickly understood why.
Delivering food in this place wasn’t a simple task—it was a fight. Youths, children, and even grown adults would band together and block their paths, trying to steal the als they carried. They were desperate, hungry, and wild-eyed with survival instincts.
Thankfully, most of those who tried to rob them had no summons. Even the few that did barely had the strength to pose a threat. The creatures they summoned were weak, sluggish... nothing Kairos and Darnell couldn’t handle.
And so this beca their daily routine.
Running. Fighting. Delivering. Surviving. All just to have bread on the table.
But today was different.
Kairos had refused to work. He had walked away from the store—and had dragged Darnell along with him.
"I received a ssage from the academy," he said suddenly. "We’ve been given until tomorrow to fully prepare... the academy year resus."
That was his reason for quitting. But Darnell wasn’t satisfied.
"Then why are we out here?" he asked. "We’ve got nothing to do today. Shouldn’t we just enjoy the ti we have?"
Kairos gave no reply.
Instead, he simply walked, leading Darnell through the twisted corners of their bleak city. They passed alleys filled with shadows, broken windows, cracked streets, and buildings painted in a thousand shades of decay.
But then sothing changed.
The environnt shifted.
Just ahead, beyond a long stretch of cracked pavent and broken fences, a new city erged. Darnell blinked, almost thinking it was an illusion.
It wasn’t.
The contrast was staggering. The place before them looked more modern—far better in structure, lighting, and infrastructure than the slum they had co from. It was like two worlds had been stitched side by side—one bleeding, the other untouched.
"What’s this place?" Darnell asked, astonished.
Kairos sighed deeply. "This... was what my world used to look like. But that doesn’t matter. I’m here to see soone."
Darnell said nothing. He had learned to do that.
Being around Kairos for a month had taught him how little the boy talked—and when he did, it always carried weight. So Darnell had learned to stay quiet unless it was necessary. Sotis, he spoke too much when he shouldn’t, and this wasn’t one of those tis.
They walked further through the clean streets of the well-kept city until they arrived at a house with a large iron fence, tall and intimidating.
Without a word, Kairos neared the wall and leapt over it in one go. His integration gave him the strength.
Darnell’s mouth dropped open. "That’s trespassing, man! That’s breaking into soone’s property! Why—"
He cut himself short.
He knew Kairos wouldn’t answer. And maybe... he didn’t want to know the answer just yet.
Still, curiosity got the better of him. Darnell bent his knees and, channeling a bit of his own integration, leapt over the wall.
Landing on the other side, his breath caught in his throat.
The place was beautiful.
The grass was soft and green beneath his feet, perfectly trimd. The scent of flowers lingered in the air, and the house before him looked like it belonged to soone powerful—soone influential or a high-grade summoner. This wasn’t just a ho. It was a sanctuary.
Darnell felt panic crawl up his spine.
’Is Kairos... planning to rob this place?’ he thought, darting his eyes around frantically in search of him.
Then he found him.
Kairos was perched on the thick trunk of an old tree, eyes locked on the second-floor window of the house.
His expression said it all.
He wasn’t looking at treasure.
He was looking at sothing far more valuable.
Darnell crept closer without thinking and leapt up to join him on the tree trunk. Luckily, it was large enough to hold them both. The tree shook slightly under his weight but didn’t break.
"Kairos—" Darnell began, his voice low, unsure.
Then he saw it.
Through the second-floor window, a girl lay on a bed, scrolling lazily through her device. She was smiling to herself, oblivious to the outside world.
Darnell didn’t need a hint to know who she was.
"She’s my sister," Kairos said quietly, his teeth clenched. His voice was barely above a whisper, but Darnell heard every word.
The look on Kairos’s face... it wasn’t one of longing. It was pain. Unforgiving, silent pain.
"You never ntioned you had one," Darnell muttered, shocked.
Kairos sighed and smiled bitterly, burying his hands into his pockets. "She’s fine. That’s all that matters. Let’s get going."
Darnell’s heart twisted.
There was too much unsaid. Too many emotions bleeding from the silence.
"No," he said firmly, refusing to move. "Tell what’s going on. How is she your sister? Why is she living here and not with you?"
Kairos’s eyes darkened.
"Because I threw her out, you idiot!"
The words hit Darnell like a punch to the gut.
"What?" he breathed. "Why... why would you do that?"
Kairos looked away, jaw tight. His voice trembled with sothing between guilt and sorrow.
"Imagine a girl like that growing up with soone like . A dipshit who scams, steals... lives like a damn rat. I’m self-destructive. I ruin everything I touch. I knew if she stayed with , she’d beco like too. So I left her... I made sure she got adopted into a normal life. I’m not the kind of brother she needs."
He paused.
"I’m the greatest piece of shit there is—"
But before he could finish, Darnell lunged forward and wrapped his arms tightly around him.
Kairos stiffened at first.
Then... sothing broke.
He realized.
He’d been crying the whole ti.
Tears had rolled down his cheeks, silent and unnoticed, soaking into his shirt and the bark beneath them.
"Don’t insult yourself," Darnell whispered. "I know you’re doing your best. But just because life handed you a disappointnt doesn’t an you should beco one."
Kairos didn’t know what stirred within him. Maybe it was the need to let it all out, or maybe it was the first flicker of genuine friendship in his life.
Whatever it was... he hated it.
And yet, he clung to it.
He returned the embrace, tightly, silently.
’I’m sorry, sis... hang on a little more... I’ll co back to get you when I beco a better person.’
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