Ruki watched the scene from a distance—Kai crying in Alia's arms, the entire medical tent wrapped in silence and grief. Her eyes narrowed slightly, sensing something beneath the surface. She turned and walked over to Taural, who stood near the tent entrance, arms crossed.
"Did you sense it too?" Ruki asked quietly.
Taural didn't even glance at her. "Yeah. I felt it the moment he broke down."
Ruki nodded. "That kid… he's an awakener."
"I figured," Taural replied. "Same kind of energy I've only felt in high-level combatants."
Ruki crossed her arms, eyes still on the tent. "I felt it back in the scientist's bedroom. It was faint then. Controlled, maybe. But now? It's leaking out. Kai might be the only successful result of whatever hellish experiment they were running."
Taural turned to her with a raised brow. "When are you going to tell Alia?"
Ruki smirked. "Maybe once we're back at the office."
Taural shook his head. "Not that. I mean when are you going to tell her that you're our boss?"
She blinked, then gave him a playful grin. "Ah, let me be. It's fun watching things from the ground level. Besides, paperwork's boring. You handle it just fine, don't you?"
Taural groaned, rubbing the bridge of his nose. "Yeah, yeah. I'll repay the favor until the day I die."
Ruki's grin widened. "Good. I'll hold you to that."
With a skip in her step, she turned and walked back toward the medical area.
Taural watched her go, her silver-white hair swaying behind her like the tail of a fox. He sighed deeply and muttered under his breath:
"Why did I ever sign that damn contract...?"
Ruki walked into the medical area, her pink hair swaying gently with each step. She saw Alia still clinging tightly to Kai, who was sitting on the bed with an empty look on his face. His eyes were red from crying, but now he was silent, just staring ahead.
Alia held him like she was afraid he would disappear again.
Ruki approached slowly and knelt beside them.
"You okay now?" Ruki asked softly, her voice calm.
Alia looked up, her eyes tired but filled with a deep sadness. "He cried, Ruki… He finally cried. But he still won't talk much."
Ruki looked at Kai, who didn't react.
She placed her hand gently on his head, brushing a strand of his messy hair away. "You're safe now," she whispered. "No more experiments. No more locked rooms."
Kai blinked, slowly turning his head toward her voice, like he was still processing everything.
Ruki smiled just a little. "Alia, stay with him. He might not understand everything right away, but that's okay. He just needs time."
Alia nodded and hugged Kai tighter. Ruki stood back up, glancing one more time at the boy who might be the only successful subject—and perhaps something even more.
Then, without saying another word, she quietly left the medical tent, her expression unreadable.
Inside a separate tent not far from Taural's command post, three figures stood before a high-security computer, cables snaking across the floor. The atmosphere was tense, filled only with the soft hum of digital systems and the occasional rapid clicking of keys.
Yuri stood at the center, arms crossed, his katana still sheathed at his waist. To his left was a technician from Division 8: Global Technology Department—a thin woman with glasses named Irene, furiously typing commands into the keyboard. On the right was a stoic agent from Division 0: Lead Security Operator, his face hidden behind a black visor.
"The encryption is absurd," Irene muttered. "But I've seen worse."
"We only need one name," Yuri said calmly. "Dig into every folder. Anything with signs of deep encryption—flag it."
A few more seconds passed.
"Got something," Irene said, narrowing her eyes. "It's deep in a hidden partition, triple-locked. Whoever hid this didn't want it found."
She cracked the final layer and a single file popped up.
File Name: [KAI ALEN (12)]
All three leaned in as Irene opened the document.
---
Name: KAI ALEN (12)
Age: Unspecified
Gender: Male
Race: Unspecified
Note: Has a second personality—'Original Kai' and 'Unassuming Kai'.
The 'Original Kai' personality has been altered and will activate upon hearing a specific trigger phrase.
The current personality is emotionally void and exhibits no will to live.
Superpower: Unspecified (More than 1 detected)
---
Yuri's eyes narrowed. "Second personality…?"
The agent from Division 0 leaned closer, frowning behind his visor. "So the Kai we rescued isn't the real one?"
"No," Yuri said. "He's a shell."
Irene reached for the scroll bar. "There's more—"
But the screen turned black. A red warning appeared for a split second:
DATA BREACH DETECTED — AUTO-ERASE INITIATED
"Shit!" Irene shouted.
The computer emitted a loud beep—then exploded, sending sparks and a small shockwave through the tent. The three of them ducked. Smoke filled the air, fire suppression foam sprayed from the ceiling.
Nearby, soldiers from adjacent tents rushed over, including a startled Taural who burst through the flap with his sidearm drawn.
"What the hell happened?!"
Yuri emerged from the smoke, wiping dust off his shoulder. "They covered their tracks well. The data's gone."
Taural frowned. "Was it about the kid?"
Yuri nodded. "His name is Kai Alen. But that's not the whole truth... and I think we're just scratching the surface."