Chapter 55: This is bad. Let’s go!!

In the middle of the night, Kai was sleeping peacefully in his bed, while Salem curled up in a corner. Ever since Salem had figured out how to shrink, he loved sneaking in, and Kai had stopped caring as much. Suddenly, the blue-eyed boy felt a strong call from Sage, which made him open his eyes and sit up in one swift motion, fully alert.

"What happened, Sage? An attack?"

Alarmed, Kai quickly asked as a beautiful black Jian sword with intricate Aura Script engravings on the blade appeared in his hands. At the same time, he focused his Observation Haki to sense his surroundings, only to feel confused when he didn't detect anything unusual.

"No, Master, we're not under attack, but I detected an aggressive change in the physiological data of the Pussycats, especially Shino's. Her readings show signs of tachycardia, tachypnea, peripheral vasoconstriction, and other common symptoms of someone in panic or shock."

"Connect to Sentinel. Show me what happened," Kai quickly ordered in a serious tone as the sword vanished from his hands.

"Right away."

With an equally serious tone, Sage responded instantly, her wings changing color rapidly before projecting several holographic screens. Some showed different angles of a battle against a particularly strong villain with raw, oversized muscles. But the one that caught Kai's attention the most was a video showing heroes in such terrible condition that it was hard to believe they were still alive.

"Damn, this is bad. Let's go!!"

Upon seeing the images, Kai exclaimed with a grim expression, then jumped out the window without even bothering to put on clothes, wearing nothing but a pair of black shorts. At the same time, a card very similar to Accompany appeared in his right hand, though somehow the central drawing seemed to represent a magnetic field or something of the sort.

"[Magnetic Force] on, [Shino]!"

Still in the air, Kai shouted as he extended the hand holding the card, causing it to transform into a beam of light that enveloped him before shooting off at supersonic speeds. Moments later, he became completely invisible, disappearing from sight.

Magnetic Force was actually a twin ability to Accompany, sharing the same 30 destination slots. But unlike Accompany, which allowed him to bring anyone within a 20-meter range, Magnetic Force could only be used on himself. This made its aura cost lower, and it even had more weekly uses, allowing up to 60.

Shortly afterward, above Shino, a beam of light materialized out of nowhere, landing near her moments later and revealing Kai dressed only in shorts. He quickly approached Shino at blinding speed.

"Shino?"

In a concerned tone, Kai asked as he crouched down and placed his hand on Shino's shoulder. She was kneeling on the ground in complete shock, staring ahead at what was left of a woman's upper body on the ground.

"… Kai?"

Feeling his touch, Shino turned around, her face incredibly pale, and asked in a voice filled with disbelief and shock. This prompted the blue-eyed young man to pull her into a tight embrace as he spoke firmly.

"Don't worry, I'm here. You can leave everything to me."

"Kai…" Shino could only let out a trembling voice as she clung tightly to the man in front of her, as if seeking refuge, while adding through tears streaming down her face.

"Kai… my cousin, Kaede, is dead… and her little baby is only three years old…"

Realizing that the dead were Shino's family members, Kai quickly turned to look at Sage, who immediately understood his intentions and approached the "bodies", touching them as her wings glowed faintly.

[Master, they're alive!!!]

Sage quickly informed Kai through the mental connection they rarely used, as they usually preferred speaking normally. When they didn't, a simple glance was enough to understand each other's intentions. The news caused Kai to open his eyes in surprise, and he immediately tightened his embrace around Shino while asking quickly.

[How much will the woman's toll cost?]

[11 hours, 23 minutes, and 12 seconds, Master.]

Sage responded after his wings briefly changed color, which made Kai's expression turn complex. He then swiftly added.

[Damn, that's nearly the limit. She's only barely hanging on, but keep her stable—don't let her die!!]

"Shino, calm down. Everything's fine. Just give me a few moments, and I'll fix everything."

With the new information, Kai quickly commented in a firm tone, while at the same time pulling away from Shino. Who, still in her confused state, could only look at him with tear-filled eyes as he shot off at extreme speeds toward the villain, all while asking in a soft, tragic voice.

"Kai?"

(It's probably not a good idea to use a sword since no one here uses them, and it would raise questions. Besides, this trash isn't even worth summoning a sword for.)

In just a few moments, Kai reached the "muscle-bound" trash, while one of his arms became coated with advanced Conqueror's Haki, advanced Armament Haki, Intensification, and a powerful electric current. This caused it to glow with a potent electric light of an ominous dark purple color.

Without giving the trash's brain time to process what was happening, Kai unleashed a powerful blow to his muscle-covered chest, sending the Class A villain flying upward at blinding speed, destroying him internally while knocking him unconscious.

After finishing off the trash, Kai moved at similar speed to the man with twisted limbs, picked him up, and brought him over to the upper half of the woman that Sage was trying to keep alive.

For their part, Ryuko, Tomoko, and Chatora watched, their eyes nearly popping out of their sockets, as the villain was sent flying into the air at absurd speeds. Right after, a powerful electric current shot out from the guy and spread through the air like powerful lightning, frying him completely before he plummeted to the ground, all without understanding what had happened, as they hadn't seen anything.

Upon reaching the woman, Kai immediately summoned a card in his right hand, with intricate golden Aura Script patterns and the image of a spherical barrier amidst thick fog. At the same time, he issued a command to Sage, surprising Shino greatly, who still doubted whether Kai was really there.

"Sage, capture that trash. He should still be alive. I'll take over."

"Understood, Master."

Following her master's orders, Sage responded swiftly as her light-made dress gleamed brightly for a moment, transforming into what appeared to be a female prison guard's uniform—something that greatly surprised Kai, as it had never happened before.

But knowing he was racing against time, Kai chose to ignore the curious phenomenon. Instead, he quickly activated the card in his hand after Sage shot off at blinding speeds toward the muscle-bound villain, raising it into the air as he exclaimed loudly.

"[Isolation Veil] on, [10 meters], [15 minutes]!"

With Kai's words, the card in his hand transformed into a beam of light, forming a translucent spherical barrier exactly 10 meters around him, enclosing the two "bodies" and Shino within it. Shino watched everything in stunned silence, now convinced that Kai was truly with her and not a hallucination brought on by her mental state.

The [Isolation Veil] card was a powerful ability that allowed him to do something somewhat similar to what a certain chameleon could, though at a much lower level. While it let him evade everyone's senses, it only worked if no one touched the barrier. It could only be used 10 times a month, and he had to announce the radius and duration out loud, which could range from 1 to 20 meters and last from 1 to 30 minutes.

"Shino, the ability I'm about to use is powerful but problematic, so try to keep it a secret from strangers."

Once he confirmed the card had activated correctly, Kai quickly looked at Shino and spoke in a firm voice. Shino could only nod her head, as her mind was in chaos with so many things happening in such a short time.

With Shino's nod, Kai quickly summoned a new card. In addition to the usual intricate Aura Script patterns, it featured the image of a point of light with angelic wings, surrounded by a celestial crown, seemingly emitting a beam of light from the heavens.

"[Angel's Breath] on!"

Without wasting a second, Kai shouted to activate one of the most powerful cards in his possession. However, it came with problematic pacts and could only be used three times a month. Moreover, it only worked on living people—if the person had died, it would be completely useless.

The moment Kai called out, the card transformed into a beam of light that soon formed a figure similar to the old Sage, but much larger—around 1.5 meters tall. It appeared as a glowing point of light with wings, though instead of Sage's fairy-like wings, this being bore white, angelic wings.

"Heal her."

Kai quickly pointed to the upper half of the woman lying on the ground and gave the command. The 'angel' immediately flew over the woman and hovered above her, then shot a soft blue beam of light that enveloped her completely. At the same time, Kai felt his Aura draining at an alarming rate.

Moments later, the 'angel' disappeared into nothingness, revealing a fully healed woman with her lower half exposed. Her beautiful, now fully restored face, bore a resemblance to Shino's. Shino, witnessing the miraculous scene, stood in shock, tears streaming from her eyes as she covered her mouth with her hands.

After confirming that the woman had fully recovered, Kai turned toward the man, who was still in a terrible state. He felt utterly exhausted—not only from the immense amount of Aura he had lost, but also due to the "toll" he had to pay for activating the card.

The toll for using [Angel's Breath] was quite simple: with a maximum duration of 12 hours, every time the angel healed someone, Kai was limited to only 50% of his Aura for the next few hours. The duration of this limitation depended on the severity of the injuries healed. Additionally, during the toll period, Kai was unable to summon the angel again.