The town square was alive with quiet urgency.

People gathered in tight clusters, packs slung over shoulders, carts creaking under the weight of essentials hastily chosen.

Children clutched blankets. Elders leaned on staffs. No one truly understood where they were going—only that Kael had said they were leaving, and that was enough.

They were preparing with the intention of never returning here, as that was what they had been told would happen.

Some felt sad leaving this place they had come to call their home, but they didn't protest because the one who made this place their home was the one who was asking them to move.

So, instead of thinking about what would be left behind, they all started to plan how to make their next location more comfortable for staying.

The weapon makers and craftsmen were already ready to start construction the moment they were teleported because that was what they could do.

But they weren't the only ones who were motivated to do their best, as even the fighters and the hunters of the village felt the urge to grow stronger.

After all, no one wanted to feel as helpless as they felt today ever again.

Meanwhile, below the surface, where people were moving about—

In the prison carved deep into the stone beneath the town, Kael stood in silence.

Torchlight flickered across iron bars and root-made walls. The smell of blood lingered faintly in the air.

Before him lay three figures.

One was bound to a reinforced chair—an S-ranked assassin, unconscious, chest rising and falling slowly. Even asleep, his body was tense, like a coiled blade.

The other two lay side by side on the cold stone floor.

The SS-ranked human twins.

They were lifeless, their faces mangled beyond repair because of Kael's death blow to them.

Evethra stood close to Kael's right, crimson eyes never leaving him.

Lyra lingered just behind him, hands clasped tightly, her gaze shifting uneasily between the corpses and Kael's shadow stretching across the floor.

Kael said nothing.

He merely stared.

Seconds passed.

Evethra finally broke the silence. "…Are you testing it?"

Kael's eyes didn't move. He nodded once.

"If Rue and Rina were right," he said calmly, "and I really am a devourer-type… then consuming strong beings should increase my power."

Lyra stiffened. "…You mean—"

"Yes."

Both women stepped back, giving him space.

Then, thinking about something, Lyra swallowed. "Are you… actually going to eat them?"

Her voice wasn't accusing—just unsettled.

"In your dragon form, it's… different," she added quietly. "But like this…"

Kael glanced at her, one brow lifting faintly.

"Eat them?" He repeated.

Then he turned back to the corpses and lifted his hand—not toward his mouth, but toward the floor.

His shadow moved.

It stretched unnaturally, flowing like spilled ink, rising up the twins' bodies in a slow, soundless tide.

Lyra gasped softly.

The shadow swallowed them whole.

No blood. No tearing. No sound.

In a blink—

They were gone.

Kael lowered his hand.

"That's how," he said.

The prison felt colder.

Evethra stared at the empty stone where the bodies had been. "…So now, even your shadow is part of you."

"Yes."

"How does that even—"

Before Lyra could even complete her words, Kael frowned.

The question died unspoken.

Something was wrong.

He closed his eyes briefly, senses turning inward.

Nothing.

No surge.

No resonance.

No expansion of power.

His brow furrowed deeper.

"…I didn't grow," he said slowly.

Evethra snapped her gaze to him. "What?"

"Not even a fraction," Kael continued, opening his eyes. "Two SS-rankers. And nothing."

Lyra's heart sank. "…But that doesn't make sense."

"It doesn't," Kael agreed. "If the theory was correct, I should've felt something."

Before either of them could speak again—

The assassin, who had been unconscious, gasped.

His eyes flew open.

They locked onto Kael.

Color drained from his face.

"T-The dragon—!" he screamed, terror shredding his composure. "You—!"

Panic took him.

He tore at the restraints, skin ripping as he forced himself free, then bolted toward the wall, screaming incoherently.

Kael sighed.

Annoyed.

He snapped his fingers.

There was a soft, wet crack.

The assassin's neck twisted at an impossible angle, and he collapsed mid-step, lifeless before his body hit the floor.

Silence returned.

Then—

Kael froze.

His eyes widened.

"…Huh."

Evethra felt it instantly.

So did Lyra.

He was surprised, but by what, they didn't know.

So—

"…What's wrong?" Evethra asked slowly.

Kael frowned, turning his hand over as if inspecting it. "It was only by a small margin," he murmured. "But I feel like I grew stronger…"

Lyra's eyes widened as she stared at the assassin's corpse. "…But you didn't eat him."

"I only killed him," Kael said.

The realization settled like a blade between them.

Evethra's eyes narrowed. "…So it's not consumption."

Lyra's breath hitched. "…It's death."

Kael didn't answer immediately.

He was thinking.

"Then that would mean…" Lyra whispered, trailing off.

"That I probably grew during the fight," Kael finished grimly. "And didn't notice."

His gaze sharpened.

Evethra hesitated, then said, "But what about the dire sovereign beast? You ate it after it was already dead… didn't you?"

Kael went still.

Memories surfaced.

The battlefield.

The broken body.

It was dead for sure, or at least that's what it looked like to him.

Maybe that beast had some ability that helped him live for a little longer.

"…It probably wasn't dead," he said quietly.

They both looked at him.

"Maybe when Lyratheia killed it, it had somehow survived," Kael continued. "Barely hanging on. When I consumed it… that was what killed it."

His jaw tightened.

"But there's still a contradiction," he added. "I felt a minuscule increase even when I consumed its outer shell."

Evethra frowned. "Residual vitality?"

Lyra shook her head slowly. "…Or something deeper. Maybe it's not just killing."

Before they could go further—

Footsteps echoed.

Fast. Panicked.

A messenger skidded to a halt at the prison entrance, chest heaving.

"L-Lord Kael!" she gasped. "Everyone's ready! The square is full—we're just waiting for you!"

Kael exhaled slowly, pushing the thoughts aside.

"Good," he said, turning toward the exit.

The mysteries could wait.

The people couldn't.

Even if they could wait, Kael didn't think he had enough time to wait anymore.

Both Seraphina and Ragnar's sides might already be moving, so after teleporting everyone away, Kael also had to return here.

Because if he weren't here, then they would start searching for him, and Kael didn't think that people as powerful as Seraphina, or maybe stronger than her, would take long to search every nook and cranny of this vast forest.

For now, he nodded toward the messenger, and with a wave of his hand, he, Evethra, Lyra, and the messenger were at the town's square.

That place was packed shoulder to shoulder.

More than three thousand souls stood waiting—families, hunters, craftsmen, elders, children—eyes drawn toward the moment Kael appeared, Lyra and Evethra at his sides, the breathless messenger stumbling to a halt behind them.

The murmurs faded.

Not because Kael demanded silence.

But because his presence pulled it from them.

"Bring Selene out so that I can teleport her as well," he muttered to Lyra, who moved without a second's delay.

Then, his eyes turned over to the crowd, golden eyes steady and unreadable as he rose into the air.

For a moment, he said nothing.

Then he spoke—not loudly, yet every word carried.

"I know you're confused," he said calmly. "I know you have questions."

A ripple moved through the people—tight grips on bags, exchanged glances, held breaths.

"I won't pretend otherwise. I won't dress this up as bravery or destiny." His gaze hardened slightly. "We are leaving because staying here will get you killed."

No sugar. No comfort.

Only truth.

"This place became your home because you made it so," Kael continued. "And I'm the one asking you to abandon it. Not because it failed—but because it succeeded too well."

Some faces tightened. Others lowered their eyes.

"I'm doing this for your safety," he said. "Not because danger might come. But because it already has."

He raised one hand.

"Trust me. One more time."

Silence stretched—then a single nod.

Then another.

Then hundreds.

Kael exhaled.

Then, from the corner of his eyes, he saw Lyra with Selene in her arms, and although his eyes softened as he looked at the white-haired girl in Lyra's arms, he took a deep breath.

Then, he raised his hands, the air around them trembling violently.

Because even for Kael, it wasn't easy to teleport this many people.

But he had to do it, so he did.

The air collapsed.

Space bent inward, folding like a page turned by an unseen hand. Light twisted. Sound vanished.

People screamed—

And then—

They stood beneath an open sky.

A vast clearing stretched outward, grass bending in the wind.

Before them lay a lake so massive it stole breath—waters shimmering, spanning nearly three kilometers across, its surface smooth as glass. Forest ringed the clearing on all sides, ancient and untouched.

Gasps broke out. Children stared. Elders leaned forward, stunned.

Kael lowered his hand.

"This is where we'll build," he said. "Around the lake. Fresh water. Natural defenses. Enough space to expand."

He turned slowly, scanning the horizon.

"For now."

Murmurs rose—awed, uncertain, and hopeful.

But Kael was already stepping back.

"I have to leave," he said. "Soon."

The weight in his voice cut through the wonder.

Before questions could erupt, he spoke again.

"Evethra. Druvarn. Alenia."

All three stiffened instantly.

Lyra glanced at Kael once, wanting to know if she was needed, but he shook his head, as if telling her to stay with Selene.

The other three, on the other hand, moved toward him without hesitation.

Kael gestured subtly toward the lake.

"Before people settle," he said, tone even, "I want the water… cleared."

No further explanation.

None was needed.

Evethra's crimson eyes narrowed, her gaze flicking to the lake's unnaturally still surface.

Druvarn tried to crack his neck once, expression grim, but it didn't match the vibe, as he was still in his plush bear form.

Alenia nodded, calm—but alert.

They all understood.

Something lived down there.

And Kael wanted it gone.

Kael met their eyes one by one. "Be thorough."

Then he stepped back, shadows already curling around his feet.

"I'll return," he said. "But until then—this place is yours to protect."

The world folded again.

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