Road 8: The Image

The air on the surface was changing as the battle underground intensified. Nash Scify sat atop the body of bandits escaping from below. The bandits, seeing Kai trying to rescue Aira, attempted to flee, fearing for their lives. The shifting air signaled that something was happening underground, making Nash anxious about what was going on below. "What has that useless kid done!?"

The situation underground had changed; Kai had freed himself from being frozen and suddenly attacked Nagi, startling everyone present. Nagi, who fell from Kai's punch, wiped the blood from his mouth, his face contorting. "Damn it!!! Bloody hell! I hate blood! You're gonna pay for this!" Astaroth, noticing Nagi's reaction, began to act erratically, trying to quickly rouse Nagi. "Hey!!! Nagi! We need to continue our mission, don't forget your duty to save Garnille!" Nagi, hearing Astaroth's shout, started to think, "Hey kid… watch your back!"

"Where do you want to go?!" Kai didn't want to let them all escape, as he heard that the three individuals in front of him were officers from the Shadow group pursuing Aira. Kai couldn't let them get away. "You want to fight us in your current injured state?" Kai, weakened, had to finish this now. Nagi, seeing Kai's desire for revenge, looked at Aira not far away. "Just stay there, princess. We'll come get you later. For now, our mission is to save this foolish person." Kai began to calm down, realizing Aira was still close by, and his severely injured body would make it difficult to protect Aira while fighting. Two of the Shadow group members were engulfed in Astaroth's dark power and disappeared from the scene.

'Kai...' Aira ran towards Kai. Kai, who was injured, fell but was caught by Aira. Kai looked at Aira, slightly wounded, and said, 'Looks like I messed up big time in this one, ahahaha.' Aira looked at Kai, severely injured for saving her, feeling a bit sad. 'Yes, you really did mess up,' she said. Kai, hearing Aira's words, smiled and passed out. Tears fell down Kai's cheeks. Tears of joy from Aira, grateful that she was safe.

Sniege watches Aira bring Kai out. 'Who saved whom now?' Nash approached Aira, startling her. 'You... what are you doing here?!' Aira was surprised to see the man she met during the festival in front of her. 'Don't worry, young lady. I'm here just because I was bored. I'm not interested in fighting that useless guy, but I'll accompany you to Hugo's shop.' Aira, upon hearing the name Hugo, was reassured that the man in front of her wasn't evil.

Aisha, waiting for Kai and Aira to return, still looked sad as she sat on the roof of Hugo's shop. Old man Hugo, inside the shop, attended to his customers while worrying about Aisha. Shortly after, Aisha noticed someone approaching the shop. 'Kai! Aira!' Aisha quickly descended from the shop's roof and headed towards the shop's door to see Aisha and Kai. Old man Hugo was surprised to see Aisha suddenly running down. 'Hey, where are you going??' Old man Hugo followed Aisha and saw Nash bringing Kai and Aira beside him. 'Aira..!' Aisha ran and hugged Aira. Nash, who was there, felt hurt. 'Why didn't you call my name too!!' Sniege knelt down, feeling sad for being neglected and accidentally dropped Kai. Kai, who fell, woke up and saw Nash. He immediately hit Nash and started fighting with him. 'Looks like you got beaten unconscious, hahaha, how weak,' Kai heard Nash's words and got angry. 'I just fell asleep, bastard!'

Two days later, Kai lay on the bed upstairs at old man Hugo's shop, finally waking up from his slumber. His injuries were healing. Kai observed his surroundings and laid back, placing his hand on his forehead and exhaling in relief that Aira was saved. He realized that if he couldn't save Aira, he would regret it for the rest of his life. The door to Kai's room opened, and he saw Aira holding a tray of water. 'Kai, you're awake.' Before Aira could finish her sentence, Aisha barged in, rushing towards Kai and hugging him, nearly causing Aira to drop the tray of water she was holding. Kai patted Aisha's head, who was worried about him, and noticed the bruise on Aira's cheek. He wanted to apologize to Aira for not being able to protect her, but he thought it would be better to show it through actions rather than just apologizing. 'From now on, I'll protect you, I promise.'

Kai went downstairs to meet old man Hugo and saw Nash talking to him. Nash looked at Kai as he descended the stairs, and their expressions turned mocking. 'Hey, you two spoiled kids,' Kai greeted the old man while ignoring Nash. The atmosphere became quiet for a moment, and suddenly Kai spoke up, 'Aisha told me, you saved her... thank you.' Nash was shocked to hear those words coming from Kai's mouth. He took a cigarette from his pocket, lit it, and exhaled the smoke while slowly forming his words, 'Yes, you do owe me one.' The atmosphere became quiet again, and old man Hugo suddenly hit Nash's head. 'No smoking inside the shop!' Aira and Aisha's voices were heard as they came downstairs. Kai stood up from his chair. 'Now, we face a problem at the beginning of our journey. If we're not careful, we could all die. So, from now on, we have to be cautious, and be vigilant of our surroundings!' Kai took out a map and spread it on the table. 'I'll explain the plan now.'

"Our next destination is Esprit Village, which is quite far from here, and we have two routes, through the forest or through the urban area. Honestly, I think the urban route is easier," Kai looked at Aira and Aisha. Old man Hugo suddenly interjected, "While you were busy saving Aira, I was investigating the Shadow group. I heard from an old friend that the Shadow group is very active in the urban area, so you'd better take the forest route." Aira felt that the forest route was more dangerous because of the presence of wild animals and the potential for ambushes. Old man Hugo, seeing Aira's anxiety, smiled and said, "Miss, you don't know who's looking out for you. Kai is skilled in the forest; most of his missions involve the forest, to the extent that some people call him the Wild Tiger." Nash, upon hearing Kai's nickname, rolled his eyes and muttered, "What a cheesy name." Aira, hearing Old man Hugo's words, felt relieved because her trust in Kai's abilities had grown stronger after that day.

"Okay, we'll take the forest route. Aisha! Aira! Are you ready?!" Aisha and Aira nodded enthusiastically. "We'll leave tomorrow, so prepare what you need." Aira planned to explore Arima town to buy clothes and food. While touring the urban area, Aira spotted a shop selling antique items and immediately headed towards it with a happy expression. Kai, who accompanied Aira, thought that Aira seemed like an old soul, enjoying antique items, even though Kai himself was a fan of antiques.

'Wow, this store has so many beautiful items~~~' The antique shop owner was lost in boredom, and upon seeing Kai's face, he exclaimed, 'Kai! You're here again. What kind of item are you looking for this time?' Kai looked embarrassed as Aira and Aisha stared at him in surprise. 'I didn't know you were interested in things like this; you seem like someone who doesn't care about such stuff.' Kai tried to distance himself from Aira and Aisha and noticed a cloth with plant and animal patterns. 'Hey master, what kind of fabric is this?' The antique shop owner looked at the fabric Kai was holding. 'I suspected you would notice. That day, someone came to this shop and sold this fabric at a cheap price. When I saw it, I found it strange and fascinating.' Kai heard the shop owner's words, examining the fabric and noticing a bloodstain. Kai found it peculiar why there was blood on the fabric and simply placed it back. His mind was filled with questions, sensing there was something about the fabric.

'Kai!! What are you daydreaming about? Come here!! Look at this beautiful bracelet.' Kai saw Aira behaving like a child, showing a white bracelet with a rose emblem on its surface. 'Oh, that bracelet is from a blacksmith from the country Kin. I heard this bracelet is the last piece he made, but experts say it has no value.' Aira looked at the bracelet and smiled, thinking it was beautiful, but wondered why no one noticed. 'Haha, you really know about items! Did you know that the person who made it was Kai's favourite blacksmith?' Hearing the shop owner's words, Aira immediately wanted to buy the bracelet. 'Master, I want to buy this bracelet...!'

'Aisha saw Aira wearing the bracelet and felt that it suited her. 'Wow, it's beautiful.. I want one too!' Kai continued to look around the store and spotted a ring with a blue gem. 'This ring is known as the World Ring; many people seek it because there's a legend that says it holds the power of a princess. But I don't think this is the real one because the true ring has a red gem, not blue. Do you want it?' Aisha blushed and smiled brightly, 'Yesss, I want it!!!' It was already noon when they exited the store; time had passed so quickly. 'Now, we need to go there.' After a 40-minute walk, they arrived at the thick forest. The atmosphere in the forest felt mysterious, and Aira had a sense that something was present in this forest, though she thought it might just be her feeling. 'Ahaha, maybe it's just my imagination.'

Aira glanced at Kai and Aisha, unable to finish her sentence as she saw Kai's serious expression. 'Kai?' Aira felt puzzled and her heart raced, seeing Kai's serious face change. Kai just smiled. 'Let's go.' Kai's voice made Aira stop looking at him. Aira whispered to herself, hoping nothing would happen. Kai was in front, advising Aira and Aisha to be careful. The forest had its own paths, but after a long time without anyone passing through, the trails became overgrown. They continued their journey through the forest and saw many fascinating animals and insects. Aisha saw a group of butterflies flying past the wildflowers in the forest. Aira, watching Aisha playing around and enjoying the view of the forest, suddenly felt a headache. An image appeared in her mind, an image of Kai lying on the ground with blood on his head, and Aisha not far from Kai, holding the bracelet she bought. Aira saw Aisha reaching out her hand, holding the bracelet. Aira wanted to grab Aisha's hand but saw it covered in blood, making her faint. Before falling to the ground, Aira saw a man holding a large scythe like the god of death and a sword mark on his wrist.

'Aira! Aira! Aira!!!' a voice called out, snapping Aira from her reverie, and before her was Kai. Kai saw Aira fainted and immediately lifted her, leaning her against a tree and trying to wake her up. Aira, just regaining consciousness, remembered what had appeared in her mind earlier. 'Kai.. Aisha,' Aira wanted to tell them what she saw, but she felt like it was just something nonsensical. Kai looked at Aira, who still seems unwell. 'Aira, are you okay?' Aira kept her thoughts to herself, not wanting to worry Aisha and Kai. 'Nothing, just a bit dizzy…'