It was already noon; after waking up from his dream, Haise got up, wore his eyeglasses to went outside for fresh air. He looked at the slumbering cat first then put it in a bari-sphere with just gesture of his hand, swiping in the air.
As he calmed his emotions down from his sorrows, the red glow in his eyes slowly faded. It may seem easy to the others, but it was way harder to do it without peace in his mind.
The heart conveys the pain and guilt, while the brain remembers its sensation and percept it.
Haise knew well his emotional state; thus, he must discipline himself to not lost his composure. And if he ever reached his very limit, then there's only one way for him to stop his erosion-- and that is death.
As an otherworldly and a former Dark Sovereign, there's no doubt that he could still use a small portion of his powers and some of his innate abilities that does not affect his life force.
He just needed to gather enough mana to use his abilities, similar to the requirement of using magic. After all, mana is a form of energy that dwells within the soul with special state, such as mages' soul.
It is said that the quirks of the soul will manifest to the spirit, and what kind of soul ones would have will manifest to their flesh. And that's how bloodlines with special quirks and power born.
In Haise's case, he is different. He was just a normal mortal before he became an otherworldly. Unlike his soul that was utterly rewritten in the process of his transmigration to another world, his human body was utterly normal by human standards itself.
Now, it's different. The body he had now became his threshold. It utterly limits him from his true potential, and it cannot even contain his soul because it was too much for his body. Without his exsanctuar, his body would probably turn into ash.
Haise looked at his ruined home while feeling the wind that carries nostalgia. As usual, his eyes were still covered by his jet-black hair, and he was still wearing the same clothes. He looked at the people around the neighborhood that strangely didn't notice his presence for a moment, then went his gaze back on his ruined home.
Haise was not surprised from the reaction or behavior of the people around him; in fact, that was the doing of his eyeglasses imbued with concealing spells that bended and makes his presence weak.
"Haise?"
While he was reminiscing about his past as he was looking at his ruined home, he suddenly heard a familiar voice of a woman that made him turned around. It was as gentle and melodious voice as ever.
Haise saw an extremely beautiful woman with long wavy orange hair that reaches her waist. She has an elegant look, a slender yet voluptuous body, big and round eyes with yellow irises complemented by her long eyelashes.
The woman just wore her casual clothes: blue jeans, doll shoes, and brown sleeves. Her beauty really stood above regardless of what clothes she wore, but strangely, the people around her didn't seem turn their heads on her. It was as if something is covering her real presence, and Haise could feel it.
While on the other hand, Haise looks utterly different in the woman's eyes. The grubby young man before her who was been friends with her daughters since their childhood, specifically Yuana, had changed in both appearance and vibes: he looks fragile, gloomy, fairly pale, has a jet-black hair instead of brown, his features became even sharper and bonny that made him looked like a tomboy. The only adjective about him that didn't change was his average height, in fact he was even shorter than that.
"Is that you?" The woman asked, confused and uncertained.
"Ms. Neaj?"
I didn't expect your visiting. What brings you here?" Haise was quite surprised by the sudden visit of the woman. 'How come I didn't notice her? Unless she's just that strong.'
Now that Haise looked at her, closely, Neaj is indeed a beauty among beauty. Her presence shone like hope descending from the heavens that anyone would die for, just to reach her; her gesture was as graceful and elegant as written in the fairytale. How come the people around her didn't notice this beautiful woman? Haise's assumption from the past finally come to light as he remembered the quirk of his eyeglasses. Furthermore, he doesn't need to bother himself with those kind of curiosity as he was already an 'otherworldly'. Furthermore, he's no longer an ordinary human-being but a quasi-vampire.
Still in the center of confusion, Neaj, with her eyes narrowed, said in her serious tone: "I should be the one asking you."
"What are you doing here? You were supposed to be currently hospitalize, but you appear..." She looked at Haise from head to toe then added: "to be fine."
The wind blows for a moment as the two looked at each other. Then, Haise with calm voice, answered: "As you can see, I am fine. Stronger than the average... and still mysteriously alive."
"Mysteriously alive? What do you mean by that?"
Haise could feel the faint pressure becoming instinctively heavier from Neaj. Her expression was serious and asking for answers with such concern about him. However, he was not affected by it and was just standing like nothing odd was occurring in their atmosphere.
Neaj noticed his calm composure: he was just standing before her without feeling any pressure from the latent pressure she was releasing. To her ignorance, this just prove the strength of Haise's will and mind despite his current state.
"No worries, it's not what you think. Right now, there are questions that just cannot be answered with mere words alone..." He said then added: "And I need your help."
Neaj with her eyebrows frowning together in doubt and silence, looked at him with thought running fast in her mind. It's been just four days since when she suddenly received a call from a certain girl, notifying her that Haise got hit by a raging car and was in critical state. Furthermore, the girl's voice was panicking on the phone and her tone was filled with concern--It was as if she knew Haise for a long time, more than what her foolish elder daughter does.
Just what will be the reaction of her daughters if they learn about Haise's involvement in a car accident. She was really worried, specially to her foolish and indecisive elder daughter.
Noticing her silence, Haise opened his mouth and said with concern, yet in his unintentional apathetic tone: "It's really me. I know it's hard to believe, but it's me."
With her heart still full of doubt, she said in her neutral tone: "Follow me."