Life didn't get easier, even in another world.

She managed to do it.

She successfully kicked the butt of all those annoying agents.

Claire was secretly proud of herself but she did her best not to show that on her face and headed towards the place where his Mr. Hey had run off while cursing. She could hear sounds coming from a spot in the temple, so Claire walked towards that place, assuming that they were fighting over there.

But she soon had to stop approaching where she thought her Mr. Hey was and look at something else.

Tak 

T-Tak

Claire looked at the broken pieces of stone on the ground.

Tak 

T-tak

Tak

The stones that looked like they had once been a statue of something like and snake or something like that were shaking as if they were potatoes on hot oil.

"...."

Claire looked around. 

"This... Is not a funny joke!"

Who was doing this? Was someone attempting to scare her?

But there was no one around her. 

No. She wasn't scared of ghosts!

"...."

Why would there be ghosts in a temple in the middle of the day? Right?

Claire shook her head.

Were the stones really shaking on their own? Wasn't someone moving them?

'Should I just leave?'

She peeked at the shaking stones again. 

Tak Tak 

T-Tak Tak

The stones shooke stronger. Claire took one step back.

Onnnng

It happened for a second.

Just for a brief second, the stones moved up to the air a few centimeters as if a small air pressure pushed them up from the ground.

Tak

Then they fell down to the ground again.

"...."

Claire had already run a few meters away from them. She stood there and looked at the stones.

The stones didn't shake anymore after that.

"What was that..."

Claire shivered.

"That was creepy!"

She stepped away from the stones even though they didn't move anymore.

"It... It's all Mr. Hey's fault!"

She peeked at the stones once again before running towards the back of the temple. But then-

BAAAAANGGGG

Right before her eyes, the whole thing flew away.

"...."

The place where people were busy fighting exploded.

Pieces of broken stone were sent flying and the impact of the explosion pushed everything back.

Claire froze in her place, looking blankly at the explosion before she was also swept away by the impact.

"AACK!"

She managed to move back using her portal in the last second before being hit by a broken piece of stone.

"...."

Claire plopped down to the ground with her whole body shaking. She glanced at the stone piece that had just passed her head with a hair's breadth and gasped.

"H-holy..."

She stuttered while looking at the scene before her eyes.

A huge pile of dust was rising into the air. The floor was shattered and the pillars were smashed. The stone pieces were shot around like small missiles and the air felt suffocating and hot.

Then, there was something else. Something odd and almost scary. There was something she had never seen.

She didn't know what color it was.

Was it golden? Milky? White? Silver? 

It seemed to be a mixture of all those colors. 

Yes. 

The crack-like things that were floating in the air had such a color.

The whole place was shining under the light of those things.

Then, there was something else.

"Water?"

Claire mumbled under her lips.

There was a huge water barrier. 

So big and thick that she couldn't see what was inside it. But she could see the things outside.

There were people all around the huge barrier, sprawled here and there.

Although there was an explosion just now, those people looked all fine. 

Not healthy, but alive.

And one of those people was the one she was looking for.

"M-Mr. Hey?"

She stood up to walk towards him but stopped after seeing what he was doing.

BANG

BANG

BANG

He was banging on the water barrier with his spear. The soil was swirling around him and was also trying to dig through the barrier, but it was useless.

"Hah..."

BANG

He banged again.

"Why is this thing..."

He looked at the water that he couldn't get rid of no matter what.

"W-why..."

He quietly mumbled under his lips as he continued to bang on the barrier.

. . . . .

"Mmm..."

A groan left his lips as he tried to move his injured body, but he couldn't move away from the person who was holding him toughly.

"Huff... Huff..."

He was bleeding and his head was dizzy. His back also hurt and he felt too tired to keep his eyes open. It also seemed like he had passed out for a few seconds.

B-BANNGGG

He heard the sound of an explosion coming from his left side.

BANNGG

BANNGG

B-BANGG

The clashes and explosions kept occurring. 

Wondering what was going on, Kain turned his head to his side. 

"Ah?"

For a moment, he felt his body go cold.

BANGG

With another explosion, the body of the blonde-haired man was sent back until it hit a water wall.

"Hah... Hah... What the..."

The First seemed to be barely breathing. His whole body was wounded and blood was gushing out from every spot in his body. One wouldn't be exaggerating if they said he was barely alive. The ground was wet with his blood and there were also pieces of his broken sword scattered everywhere.

Kain looked at the scene before his eyes in shock.

What was going on? Who made that man look like this? Where were the others?

And... What was with that water wall?

Kain blinked his eyes.

He was unconscious for a few seconds, or at least wasn't in the shape to use his power, so how was this thing made?

Was there someone else with the power of water here? 

Was it a spell? 

Was it done by Philomns or something like that?

Onngg

Sensing a small vibration on his wrist, Kain lowered his head to look at his hand.

"Uh?"

He blinked again.

Was he too tired that he was seeing things? 

Why was the red bracelet on his wrist turning blue?

It was also shining blue and red at the same time!

BAAANGGG

"Argh!"

The First slammed the water wall again. 

ZZZZZ

BZZZZ

Crackle

There were also some strange crack-like things floating in the air.

Kain moved his body again. 

He wanted to know what was going on.

Where were the others what was happening?

But he couldn't move out of his little brother's grasp. 

"Kairen let me-"

Kain raised his head to look at Kairen and ask him to let go of him, but he had to stop talking and close his mouth as soon as he looked at Kairen's face.

"...Kairen?"

There were no responses. 

"H-Hey..."

Kain touched his arm.

BANGGG

But instead of an answer, he heard the sound of another explosion. 

"Kairen?"

Kain looked at Kairen's eyes. His hazel eyes looked different. They looked as if they were shining gold and silver.

He was not responding and was only staring at one spot with his glowing eyes.

Crackle

BZZZ

The cracks were floating around Kain's bracelet. Each time a crack touched the bracelet, it shone even more and the water barrier shone with it at the same time.

Fear crept into Kain's body.

"Hey! Hey! Kairen!"

SLAP SLAP

"Can you hear me?"

SLAP SLAP

Kain slapped his pale face.

"Can you hear me? Kairen?"

. . . . . 

"Hey! Hey! Ren!"

SLAP SLAP

"Can you hear me?"

SLAP SLAP

"Can you-Hic... Can you hear me? Ren?"

The familiar voice calling for him made Kairen slowly open his eyes.

Crackle

Crackle

It was hot. 

He could smell the scent of something burning.

"Ren!"

Drip

Drip

Drops of water fell to his face, which was sprawled on the ground.

"Ren! Can you see me?"

His sight was blurry but he could still distinguish the person who was looking down at him.

He could see the light brown hair and hazel eyes of his older brother who was now crying.

'What is going on?'

Kairen blinked a few times and glanced around.

'Wasn't I in the middle of fighting?'

Where was this place? What was he doing here?

He was fighting that blonde uncle a few seconds ago.

Kairen could see some blazing flames rising into the air from somewhere not too far away.

"Ah!"

He gasped.

He remembered now. It was that time.

"D-Do-Hic... you have pain? Can't you- Hic! C-can't you breathe?"

His brother asked while sobbing.

'Ah, it was when that accident happened...'

Kairen looked at his brother's younger version cry. Kairen's whole body hurt and he felt too weak that he wanted to sleep immediately. He was familiar with this feeling.

Yes, it was definitely back then.

'It happened when I was barely 13...'

13.

13...

He kept repeating that number in his mind.

13...

He looked down at his hands. 

"Hmm?"

He then tilted his head.

"What I was just thinking about?"

He thought for a moment about the thing he was thinking about, but couldn't remember.

"Ummm..."

Then, what was he doing?

He couldn't remember that either.

He raised his head and looked up.

It was dark.

He could see the stars clearly.

They were shiny. 

They were small. 

They were scattered everywhere.

They were beautiful.

He started to smile.

He could watch the stars for hours without getting tired.

But he suddenly tilted his head.

The stars... Did they always look like this?

Weren't they different before? 

"Before?"

He tilted his head again.

What before?

Swosh

His body shook from the chilly wind. It was cold.

He curled up in the spot where he was sitting and grabbed the two sides of his oversized clothes.

Why were his clothes so bit? Why was he wearing clothes the size of an adult man?

No, wait.

He tilted his head again. 

He?

Who was he?