[What does Host mean?] The system asked as Ryuk sat up wearily, his eyes narrowed.
"The Half-Fallen one had only helped me before because of a good reason. And that was the Authority Card. But the deal was for me to win the match and then go to the Ascension Academy."
"Even if there’s the sense of a week before the Ascension Academy doors open, the Half-Fallen one could have let me stay in the Arisen Hall for a week and let the instructors there take care of me. From there, I’d go to the Ascension Academy."
"I was never to meet the Half-Fallen one or be associated with her in any way after the deal the last time."
"But she actually brought me to her house, used high-grade serums—just like you said before—to make me heal, and even entrusted my care to her daughter."
"And now, seemingly having decided to house me till the Ascension Academy starts."
"I’m thinking, don’t you think the Half-Fallen one is being a little too... kind?" Ryuk stated with a suspicious tone.
The system went silent before replying.
[Host’s points are valid. The system would love to say it’s just Host being paranoid, but in this world, the system has come to learn not many things are free—actually, nothing is.]
[Even Host receiving the card from Old Jack wasn’t free. The only reason why Host obtained the card was because Old Jack owed Uncle Bob one, and he felt it right to help you now that he is gone.]
[Meaning, Host obtaining that card wasn’t luck or Old Jack’s kindness. It was Old Jack fulfilling his debts as promised.]
[The Half-Fallen one helping Host out seems to make sense after Host shows the Authority Card. But, as Host said, that ought to be the end of the relationship between the Host and the Half-Fallen one.]
[Yet here is Host, in the Half-Fallen one’s castle, being taken care of as if he is her lost son.]
[That is truly suspicious in and of itself.]
[The system guesses there’s a hidden agenda somewhere that Host is not aware of. But there’s also the possibility of the Half-Fallen one simply being kind and wanting to follow completely through on her deal, making sure Host achieves his goal of entering the Academy just like promised with no problems—and hence the healing and care.]
[For now, the system can’t really tell much but will advise Host to simply play along and tag along, finding out if the Half-Fallen one’s motives are true, or if they hold a deeper contingency plan.]
The system’s reasoning made Ryuk calm his steely nerves a little.
Just like the system said, for now, he would play along and see where it all ends.
Is the Half-Fallen one just being kind and following through on the deal, or does she still have something in mind for Ryuk that he wasn’t aware of?
That he would be finding out soon.
"I can feel my body is still somehow weak. I should go to rest now."
"Hey, Isha?" Ryuk called as he heard the sound of pilfering in the wardrobe. Isha stuck her head out.
"Don’t go out the door. There are a lot of chefs down there, and they might mistake you for a runaway livestock. You get?" Ryuk said, and, shocking to him, Isha actually looked at the closed door before she stuck out her tongue playfully and disappeared back into the cupboard.
[Wait, system, does Isha actually understand me?!] Ryuk asked.
[Host must understand that Isha barely understood Host after its birth and could only feel emotions through its connected soul.]
[But now, Isha has undergone what can be referred to as a mini-evolution and can fully understand Host’s words, even though it is currently deprived of speech.] The system explained, and Ryuk’s eyes sparked.
"Wait, did you just say ’currently deprived of speech’? Do you mean—"
[Yes! According to the system’s scanning of Isha’s bloodline.]
[The system has learned that Isha’s bloodline is pure enough for it to also be comparable to the bloodline of a higher serpentine race.]
[According to the system’s calculation, after Isha’s true evolution, it should be capable of speech, and its intelligence might even rival that of Host’s, if not surpass it!] The system said, and Ryuk looked dumbfounded in front of him.
The scenario couldn’t help but appear in his head—the image of Isha calling him by his own name.
’Hey Ryuk you goof!’
"I think it’s time to sleep. I’ve had enough shock for the past few days..." Ryuk said as he threw the thoughts out of his mind and snuggled into the bedsheet.
But even then, before his consciousness could disappear completely, an image appeared in his head—the image of a golden-haired boy with a beaming smile.
"Ahh, Quinn. I almost forgot about him. So, you said this won’t be our last meeting, huh? Then I, too, will be expecting the day we finally meet once more. Hopefully, you will be bigger and better than we both parted..." Ryuk thought as his consciousness finally faded away, and he drifted into a deep slumber.
---
"How long will you keep running, little shadow?"
The voice slithered through the icy stillness, weaving itself into the wind that howled between towering pines.
The trees stood like skeletal branches clawing at the leaden sky, their shadows dancing coherently on the snow-covered ground, warping under the falling light of a pale, dying moon above.
Through the forest, a lone figure dashed, his steps frantic and erratic.
He was cloaked in white, almost blending seamlessly with the wintry atmosphere.
"Ahhh"
"Ahhh"
"Ahhh"
His breaths came in ragged bursts, each exhalation clouding the air, frost clinging to his lashes, lips, and hair, and sinking into his lungs with every desperate inhale.
He didn’t know why he was running—only that he must.
"We’re so close now, little shadow," the voice continued, soft yet cutting to the heart.
"Closer than your fragile mind dares to believe."