"That brat got taken by the Dragon King?"
In Chinatown in New York City, inside the restaurant, Marcus leaned his hand on the table and asked Amber and Ibaraki, who had just arrived.
"Yes." Amber nodded firmly without changing her guilty expression. "And I allowed it because I think it is best for him to train in a safe environment. And I also believe the Dragon King can help him better than I could."
"That's obvious, you dumbass!" Marcus bellowed at the Phoenix girl. He wasn't afraid of her at all, not in this situation. "Shit! If he went there with his memories unlocked, then surely he would realize what really happened in the past." He grumbled, leaning his back on the chair's backrest with a huff.
"Is it related to… his missing memories?" Amber narrowed his eyes. "There are inconsistencies in what he knew and what actually happened, aren't there? He said I was the first Mythical Beast he met, but that couldn't explain how the Dragon King knew about him."
Marcus raised his head and looked at Amber while narrowing his eyes. He then turned to look at the Oni girl, who had a curious and worried expression.
Both of them looked genuinely worried about his grandson. At first, Marcus thought that the Phoenix and the Oni chicks only made contracts with Kai because of their desires.
But it seemed like he was a bit wrong. Were his eyes cloudy after his age caught up to him? Or had his judgment dulled, making him unable to judge people any longer?
"Tsk!" Clicking his tongue, he crossed his arms.
His promise had ended now that Kai had regained his memories. It was already void, and he could tell them about the past.
However, before he could do that, he received a telepathic message from his familiar.
[Marcus. Something had happened.]
"Hmm?" Marcus suddenly froze. He looked at the ceiling with nothing on it, confusing the other two.
"What happened?" Ibaraki asked curiously.
Marcus raised his hand and pointed at his ear, gesturing that he had a telepathic message right now, and asked them to shut up a little bit for a while.
[The Vampire Lord is rampaging. It seemed like the traitor had taken his daughter and fled somewhere.]
"… Retreat. Go to the pacific ocean, and wait for Kai there. If possible, enter the Dragon King Castle and meet my grandson. Politely."
[Got it, Marcus.]
The telepathic message ended after that. The two Mythical beings in front of him looked at him curiously and waited for his explanation.
"Haa…" Sighing, he ruffled his hair. "Let me explain it to you then."
***
The sorting of memories had finished. It felt like a year had already passed for him.
In the attic of Dragon King Castle's library, the Spirit Power that covered Kai's body like a bubble slowly dissipated. When it was fully gone, Kai's eyelids opened slowly.
"Ughh…" He grunted as he slowly raised his head.
It felt strange. There was no headache that he had expected from sleeping for too long, nor was his body heavy from long inactivity. His body felt fine. His mind worked fine without any obstruction, giving him an unexpected clarity.
His condition was even better than before as if a shackle that he put in himself was unlocked. While it might not be related, he felt much better after meeting with Abe no Seimei in his dream.
It was as if the legendary Onmyouji had given him something great. Although in fact, they only exchanged a few words.
"Hmm…"
Humming, he looked around. There was nothing changed in the room; it was just like before. Was it just his imagination? He really felt like a year had passed. The only thing that changed in the room was Qianlong's absence.
"Has a year really passed? It felt that way from what I experienced, but…"
Nothing had changed. Even his clothes didn't get old at all.
"There is no point thinking about it." He muttered and stood up, stretching his arms and legs. While his body felt great, he didn't move at all when he was relieving his memories. He was in a state of half-awake, half-unconscious.
So he tried to remember how to move again.
'Alright.' After stretching for a few seconds, he was ready to go. He had regained everything. First, he wanted to meet someone. "Where is Ao right now?"
Closing his eyes, he expanded his senses. His senses were sharper than before. He could hear the faintest of sounds and smell the faintest of scents. Even his vision was clearer than before. It was as if his body had undergone a transformation during his sleep.
Kai focused his senses and closed his eyes, trying to locate Ao. He could feel her presence, along with Qianlong's, near the throne room. They were apparently in the same room.
Opening his eyes, he smiled. "Alright. So they are at that place."
Kai decided to visit them. He exited the attic, went down, and walked to the room where Ao was.
The sky was dark. Many luminous lights were flying in the garden like fireflies, giving off a mystical vibe. They lit the Castle with warm light.
As he made his way to the room, he couldn't help but marvel at his newfound abilities. He could sense the presence of other people in the Castle and could even sense the emotions of those around him. It was as if his innate ability had been combined with Ibaraki's senses.
Everything became one, and he also knew what kind of power he got from his contract with Ao. The knowledge was already inside his brain.
He met some dragons as he walked. They greeted him politely, to which he responded back as such. Knowing they accepted him felt rather great.
Anyway, he stopped in front of Ao and Qianlong's room. He was able to hear them talking about him. Qianlong reported to Ao that he would wake up soon. The timing was pretty immaculate, and he couldn't help but smile slightly.
They suddenly stopped talking, and Ao's voice rang inside his head.
[You can enter, dear husband. I know that you're standing out there.]
Well, she knew. He entered the room, and Qianlong and Ao turned to look at him. This room looked like an office room, with a long desk filled with documents and some bookshelves filled with important files.
As usual, Qianlong's expression turned to surprise while Ao greeted him.
"Welcome back, dear husband. It has been 6 hours since you have slept." the Dragon King said, smiling softly with pride.
"Well, that's surely shorter than a year that I experienced." He replied with a dry laugh. Then his expression hardened and became serious. "Shall we continue my training? I have something to do after I finish my training. It is a bit… urgent."
"Sure." Ao nodded and rose from her seat. She turned to Qianlong with her pair of sharp eyes. "Qianlong, please leave this room. I will assist with my husband's training now."
Qianlong bowed respectfully as she answered, "Certainly, my King."
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