Reinhard stepped out of his dorm into early morning sunlight and imdiately stopped.
Yor stood just outside the entrance, practically vibrating with energy. Her dark blue hair caught the light as she bounced on her toes, and her hands were clasped together.
"Reinhard!" She rushed forward the mont she saw him.
He barely had ti to brace before she wrapped him in a tight hug.
"Yor?" Reinhard returned the embrace, surprised by her intensity. "You’re up early, I thought you would have stayed in to rest."
"I know, but there is sothing I wanted to tell you that I couldn’t before." She pulled back with her faint smile. "Everything worked out... Everything. I need to tell you what happened. Can we go sowhere private?"
Reinhard studied her face more carefully.
Yor was practically glowing with happiness. But underneath that joy, he caught glimpses of sothing else, a sense of relief bordering on exhaustion. Like she’d been holding her breath for days and could finally breathe again.
What exactly had happened during the healing trip to transform her like this? He doubted it was the attack, no, it had to be sothing more that she didn’t ntion.
"Of course," Reinhard said gently while taking her hand. "Let’s go to the garden behind the History Departnt. No one will bother us there."
They walked quickly through campus with Yor’s hand gripping his tightly. She kept glancing at him like she wanted to start talking imdiately, but was forcing herself to wait for privacy. The walk felt longer than usual, with tension building between them with each step.
The garden was empty when they arrived, with just stone benches and beautiful blue flowers in the cool morning air. Yor pulled him to a bench and sat down so quickly she almost missed it entirely.
"Okay," Reinhard said while settling beside her. "Tell everything."
Yor blushed as she played with her fingers. "The truth is... It didn’t take three days to heal the three students’ siblings. It only took the first day."
"The first day?" Reinhard blinked in surprise. "But you were gone for three days. What did you do the rest of the ti?"
The blush deepened. "We went to Luminous City... I wanted to try to heal my parents."
Reinhard’s eyes widened in surprise. He’d known that was the eventual plan, but he’d thought she’d need more ti and preparation before taking that step. "You went straight there?"
"Victoria said I was ready." Yor’s hands twisted together in her lap. "Professor Chen agreed. And I... I couldn’t wait any longer. Not when I finally had the power to help them."
"But you were nervous?"
Yor gripped her skirt before nodding. "I only had success with those who’ve been affected for a couple of days... And even the three siblings were under half a year."
"But your parents had been emotionless for years."
Yor stared at her hands. "I was terrified that even with control, even though I can take away the void energy... That the damage might be permanent, and I’d arrive too late to save them."
Reinhard gently rubbed her back, making her flash him a smile.
"When we arrived at the estate, they greeted the sa way they always did... Distant and like nothing mattered." Yor clasped her hand tightly as she grit her teeth. "My father said, ’Welco ho, Yor,’ like I was a guest instead of his daughter. My mother asked if I needed anything with the sa empty tone she’d used for years."
Reinhard moved her closer.
"I created the void orb right there in the entrance hall," Yor continued. "Professor Chen and Victoria stepped back to give us space. I walked toward my parents and extended the void energy toward them."
Reinhard squeezed her arm gently as her expression began changing.
"They didn’t react at first..." Yor whispered while tears finally started to fall. "The void energy touched them, and they just stood there. For five seconds... It was the longest five seconds of my entire life, where nothing happened. I thought it had failed and that I was too late after all."
"Then my father gasped." Yor’s voice broke completely. "He actually gasped as soone had punched him. His knees gave out, and he fell. I caught him, and he looked up at with actual tears in his eyes... It was sothing he had never done before, no matter how bad the city got or when I ca ho. And he said my na. Really said it with emotions and feelings... ’Yor. My daughter. My Yor.’"
Reinhard pulled her closer as she cried.
"Reinhard! My father, who’d been empty for seven years, was finally speaking to like I was his daughter instead of a stranger. And then my mother collapsed too. But she was laughing and crying at the sa ti. She grabbed both of us and held on so tight I could barely breathe."
Yor wiped her eyes, but more tears kept coming. "They told they never stopped loving . Even when they couldn’t show it, and even when the void made them empty. Sowhere deep inside, they were still there. Still aware, and still loving , but unable to express it."
"They said they were proud of ," Yor continued through tears. "For surviving. For making friends. For never giving up on finding a way to help them. My mother kept saying ’I’m sorry’ over and over. She felt guilty for not being there when I needed her most."
Reinhard held her until the tears slowed. He trembled as he felt a mix of emotion for Yor—joy for Yor’s happiness mixed with pain for what she’d endured.
After a few minutes, Yor pulled back and wiped her face. "I was crying the whole ti as they were laughing and hugging . I could feel myself going out of control, but I didn’t care... No, we didn’t care and simply unleashed everything."
Reinhard smiled faintly as he helped her wipe off the remaining tears on her cheek.
"You helped get back my family... I can never repay that."
"You don’t need to repay anything," Reinhard said softly. "I’m just happy you have them back."
Yor smiled brightly. "They asked about the club."
"They did?"
"Yeah, I told them everything." Yor’s expression grew warr. "About the academy and the trial I had to go through. But most importantly, about all my friends... And you, the man who saved their daughter when no one else could."
Reinhard chuckled and said. "And what did they say?"
"They said you must be special," Yor continued quietly. "That anyone who could accomplish the impossible for their daughter deserves their gratitude."
She t his eyes directly. "They want to et you, Reinhard. They want to thank the person who gave them back their daughter."
eting the Duke and Duchess of Luminous City would be an interesting experience. But more than that, it would be nice to explore the city with Yor and the others.
"Sure, it would be nice to visit Lumanios." Reinhard said honestly. "Especially after how much you praised it."
Yor’s smile brightened even more, but then her expression shifted. The joy remained, but confusion and worry crept in around the edges.
"There’s sothing else," she said slowly. "My parents told sothing strange. Sothing I didn’t know before."
What is it?" Reinhard asked while already suspecting where this was going based on what the system had told him last night.
Yor’s hands twisted together again. "It’s about my Sigil. My void power." She looked up at him with those silver eyes now filled with confusion. "Reinhard, my parents said my Sigil wasn’t always void. They said when I was born, I had a different power."
She took a shaky breath. "They said my Sigil... changed. One day I had one power, and the next day it was completely different. Transford into the Void Sigil, and they never understood how or why it happened."
"And you don’t understand what that ans?" He asked as he rubbed her back.
Yor voice dropped to barely a whisper. "Yes... Can Sigils even change like that?"
Reinhard inwardly sighed and knew it seed like now was the ti to explain to Yor about Silent Peak.
And the Void Sovereign.
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