Alex watched as Gloria slowly sat down on the couch opposite him, clutching her chest tightly. He didn't rush her, simply waiting for her to calm down and be ready to talk. Gloria took a deep breath, trying to pull herself together, and focused her gaze on Alex, suddenly noticing one detail that distracted her.
"Why are you still shirtless?" she asked, looking at him in surprise.
Alex glanced down at himself and realized that he hadn't put on a shirt, even while talking to his family. Embarrassed, he looked at Gloria, unsure how to explain.
"Sorry, I somehow completely forgot," he said awkwardly, his tone apologetic.
Alex retrieved a black T-shirt from his subspace and quickly put it on. Adjusting his clothes, he nodded to himself, satisfied with the result.
Gloria watched in astonishment as he reached into thin air and pulled out a T-shirt. It all seemed incredibly new and interesting to her.
"How does that even work?" she blurted out, unable to take her eyes off Alex.
Alex pondered, stroking his chin, trying to find a simple way to explain.
"Imagine it's like a huge pocket in a coat where you can store anything," he replied, trying to put it in simple terms.
Gloria tilted her head, trying to make sense of his explanation. Alex, noticing her confusion, wasn't sure how to explain this to someone who had never encountered magic before.
"You're talking about a pocket, but why does your hand disappear into thin air?" she asked, not taking her eyes off him as he reached into the subspace again.
Alex paused, pulling out a pack of candy, and decided to have a snack.
"It used to be like a pocket, but I've improved it, and now I can pull things out from anywhere," he said, and began demonstrating how he retrieved items from different parts of his inventory.
Gloria watched his actions with fascination, amazed by what she saw.
"Can you show me something else from your magic?" she asked with clear interest.
Alex smiled awkwardly, unsure how to explain that his magical abilities were currently limited.
"Um, sorry, but I can't right now. It's not that I don't want to; it's just that the current circumstances don't allow me to use magic," he explained, a bit awkwardly.
Gloria looked at him closely, briefly doubting whether he was really a wizard. But remembering how he pulled things out of thin air, her doubts faded, although a new question arose.
"Is it related to the condition I found you in?" she asked, gazing intently at him.
"Yes, it is. Because of what happened, my abilities are severely limited right now. As you said, I can only 'pull a rabbit out of my hat,'" Alex said with a weary smile, beginning to rub his forehead.
Gloria noticed his fatigue and realized that while he seemed physically healthy, he probably had other, deeper problems. Although she worked in a hospital, she didn't exactly know how to treat wizards.
"I didn't notice any physical issues when I was cleaning the blood off you, so what happened to you? Why did you end up here?" she finally asked the obvious question.
Alex pondered how to answer in a way that wouldn't scare her.
"I encountered an enemy and lost consciousness. When I came to, I met you," he replied, omitting many details.
"So, your enemy could come back?" Gloria asked cautiously, looking at him with concern.
"No, he definitely won't be able to," Alex replied with a soft smile.
Gloria sighed in relief, realizing that there was no longer any danger. Alex noticed her sigh and understood her anxiety. If he were in her place, he would have been worried too.
"Don't worry, Gloria. If anything happens, I'll be able to protect you. Even though we just met today, you've helped me a lot, and I don't know how I can thank you," Alex said, trying to reassure her.
Gloria looked at the young man in front of her, and her thoughts involuntarily drifted to her son, who used to say the same words to her—that he would protect her and was grateful for everything she did for him.
Seeing tears welling up in Gloria's eyes, Alex realized that his words had struck a chord, but he didn't know how to ask about the reason for her distress. However, he knew one way to comfort the woman before him.
Stepping closer, Alex gently embraced Gloria, pulling her close to his chest so she could feel safe and release the bitterness in her heart. It didn't matter to him that they had met only a few hours ago—he couldn't allow this kind woman to cry. Feeling his embrace, Gloria clutched his clothes, and the tears flowed even more.
Alex softly stroked her back, helping her to calm down. He didn't ask questions; he just wanted to give her the chance to free herself from at least a part of the heavy burden weighing on her soul.
After some time, Gloria stopped crying but still didn't let go of Alex, finding comfort and protection in his arms. She began to trust him, knowing that he had shared his secrets with her, even if he hadn't told her everything. This act of trust showed her that he wasn't afraid to open up to her.
Alex noticed that Gloria was no longer crying, but he continued to stroke her back, humming a quiet melody to help her feel calmer.
"Do you feel better now?" he gently asked, interrupting the humming.
Gloria heard his voice and realized the situation she was in, but still didn't want to let go. She desperately needed this feeling of safety.
"Mm, thank you for doing this for me," she whispered shyly, not lifting her head.
"It's okay. You've helped me much more, and this is the least I can do for you," Alex replied, continuing to gently stroke her back.
After a little more time, Gloria pulled away and looked at Alex with surprise, not understanding why he thought she had helped him so much. Seeing her confusion, Alex decided to explain:
"You think you did something insignificant, but that's not true. You found a stranger covered in blood lying in an alley. Instead of leaving him there, you brought him to your home. You didn't even consider that I could have been some sort of serial killer or something worse," he said, explaining his gratitude.
Gloria pondered his words. After all, in this city, it's rare for anyone to help others without expecting something in return, especially if they don't have money. Most people would probably have just walked by or tried to rob him while he was unconscious.
"But still, I just helped you; it was just a coincidence," she said quietly, looking directly into Alex's eyes and noticing their strange color for the first time.
Alex realized that Gloria still didn't understand the significance of her actions.
"Think about it, Gloria, what kind of person would help a stranger, especially one covered in blood?" Alex asked, noticing that she was studying his face.
He touched his face, wondering if there was something on his skin, and began to wipe off what he thought might have been dirt.
Gloria noticed how Alex was rubbing his face and realized he probably thought something was wrong with him. She couldn't hold back her laughter, seeing how seriously he was doing it.
"You don't have anything on your face, I was just surprised by the color of your eyes," Gloria said, trying not to laugh. Her mood had significantly improved after she was able to cry, as she had been holding everything inside for the past few days and couldn't let her emotions out.
Alex awkwardly let go of Gloria and lowered his hands, wanting to ask what had happened in her life that had caused such strong emotions. However, he didn't want to seem insensitive or bring up painful memories by starting a conversation about what was causing her such deep sorrow.
"If you want, you can tell me what happened. Maybe I can help somehow," Alex quietly suggested, meeting Gloria's gaze, which froze for a moment.
Gloria hesitated, unsure if she should share her story with Alex. But something about him made her trust him, and she decided to tell him her story.
"I had a son," Gloria began with a heavy sigh.
"You look so young... you had a son?" Alex asked in surprise, not hiding his astonishment.
"Yes, I did..." Gloria said with sadness in her voice. Hearing her words in the past tense, Alex began to understand the reason for her pain.
"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..." he apologized awkwardly.
Gloria noticed his sad expression and couldn't blame him for what he said. After all, he didn't know what she had been through, but he still came to comfort her.
"It's okay, it's not your fault," she replied with a slight smile, trying to reassure him.
Gathering her thoughts, Gloria continued, "I had a son, David. His father died when David was still young," she said, glancing at a photograph on the wall.
Alex also noticed the photograph, which showed a young boy in a school uniform.
"What happened to your husband?" Alex asked cautiously, turning his head to Gloria.
"He was a police officer and died in a shootout between gangs when he responded to a call," she answered sadly, recalling the day when her husband's colleagues came to her with the tragic news.
"He was lucky to have you," Alex tried to comfort her.
Gloria smiled, understanding that he wanted to ease her pain.
"Yes, he was a good husband and a wonderful person," she said, smiling through her memories.
When Alex fell silent, Gloria decided to continue telling her story about her son, "After my husband's death, it was just me and David," she began, gathering her thoughts. "I didn't want him to go down a bad path like many kids here, so I worked tirelessly."
"I sent him to a private school, hoping he would get a good education and find a decent job, away from all the horrors that happen in our city every day," she added with sadness in her voice.
Alex noticed that Gloria was starting to feel sad again and gently patted her shoulder to comfort her. Gloria felt his touch and tried to smile in this difficult situation.
"Recently, I was called to the school because David had hacked into their servers. I was really angry with him at the time, but I still couldn't stay mad for long. I just wanted a better life for him," she said, and her eyes filled with tears again.
"It's okay, you're a wonderful mother. David surely knew that you were doing everything for his good and would never want to upset you," Alex said, trying to comfort her.
"Thank you. Those words mean a lot to me," Gloria replied gratefully, trying to hold back her tears and smiling at Alex.
"When we were on our way home, we accidentally got caught in a gang shootout. I lost control, and we veered into the oncoming lane, where we collided with another car. We flipped over..." Gloria began to cry, recalling that terrible day.
"I saw my son lying in a pool of his own blood on the road, and no one wanted to help him. When the rescuers arrived, they refused to save him because we didn't have insurance..."
"It's okay, you can cry. I'm here for you," Alex said softly, hugging her again.
Gloria could no longer hold back her tears and cried even harder, feeling Alex's support.
Alex felt deep sadness, understanding how hard it was for a mother to lose her child and see him die in her arms. He also realized that his own family had probably mourned greatly after his death, and he tried not to dwell on it, so as not to add more weight to his shoulders.
He could only hope that the old man he met in another world had taken care of his loved ones.
"Everywhere you look, money is needed..." Alex muttered quietly, realizing that without money and power, a person could easily become just another name on a tombstone.
Alex held Gloria tighter, trying to comfort her, and at that moment, he felt a strong desire to find those responsible for her suffering and punish them. But he understood that in such a big city, where gangs could easily stage shootouts on the highway, it would be extremely difficult to find the culprits. This city was much worse than he had imagined. If in Orario such things were at least somewhat controlled, here it seemed like corruption reigned supreme.
"Are you okay?" Alex asked cautiously, noticing that Gloria had stopped crying and had fallen silent.
Gloria pulled away from him and looked into his eyes. A question was spinning in her mind: why was this young man trying so hard to comfort her when he didn't have to? But seeing the concern on his face, she realized that he simply wanted to show care, just as she had cared for him earlier. Gloria felt warmth in her chest from this realization.
"I don't know... But thank you for trying so hard for me," she said with a slight smile.
"It's okay. If you're uncomfortable continuing, I won't insist," Alex said, looking at her with concern.
"No, I need to talk about it, just as you said," Gloria replied with a sad smile.
Alex didn't pressure her and simply waited for her to continue.
"When they brought us to the hospital, at first they didn't want to admit us," Gloria spoke with visible anger, recalling that time. "But when they finally did and examined my son, they said everything was fine. EVERYTHING WAS FINE, THEY SAID!" Gloria clenched her fists so tightly that it seemed her skin might tear from the tension.
Alex gently took her hand, trying to prevent any injury. Feeling his warmth, Gloria calmed down a bit.
"My son was covered in blood, and they said he was fine and would recover in time," Gloria continued, her voice filled with anger.
"I stayed with him in the hospital, thinking he really was better after the doctors' help, but it turned out to be the opposite. At night, he took a turn for the worse, and they couldn't save him. Internal bleeding..." Tears slowly began to roll down her cheeks.
"When I saw my child's lifeless body, I felt like a part of me died with him," Gloria stared into the void, recalling all the moments she spent with her son: their laughter, even their arguments when David got into trouble. She desperately wished it was all just a bad dream, but she couldn't change what had happened.
Alex gently stroked her back as she fell silent.
"Gloria, listen to me," he said softly, and she instinctively turned her head toward him. "David wouldn't want his most cherished person to be unhappy. I'm not asking you to forget him. David will always live on."
Alex pointed to Gloria's head and heart.
"He will live here and here. He would want you to keep living."
He carefully wiped the tears from her eyes. Feeling his care, Gloria recalled her son's last words and smile, which were vividly etched in her memory. She pressed against Alex's hands, which were drying her tears, and tried to calm down, understanding that David wouldn't want her to mourn.
"Thank you for trying to comfort me," Gloria said, feeling Alex's support. His words gave her hope to continue living.
"It's okay. I've met many people who have gone through similar trials and tried to help them as much as I could," Alex said with a smile, noting that Gloria was starting to calm down a bit.
Gloria looked at him in surprise, trying to comprehend how this young man had already helped so many people in situations like hers.
"And how did you help them?" she asked, staring at Alex, who seemed thoughtful.
"It's hard to explain," he replied with a crooked smile.
"Is it somehow related to your magic?" Gloria asked cautiously, suspecting that it might involve some form of magic.
"No," Alex shook his head in denial.
Gloria looked at Alex, who was denying any involvement of magic, and became curious about how he helped those who went through similar experiences.
"Then how did you help them?" she asked with interest, observing Alex closely.
"I helped them release all the accumulated pain in their hearts and become better than they were before," Alex replied with a light smile, recalling how Lily had furiously destroyed everything around her in Soma's family.
"And how did you help them get rid of that pain?" Gloria continued, thinking it might also help her.
"Revenge," Alex said quietly.
"You're not serious, are you?" Gloria asked in surprise, not understanding how that could help.
Alex decided to tell her stories about Lily and Haruhime. He described how Lily, as a child, had to work hard from an early age to earn money and buy her freedom. But her hard-earned money was stolen by so-called family members, and she was left to die in a dungeon, forgotten.
"Poor child," Gloria said with sadness, realizing that children in other places also faced such horrors.
"Now she can stand up for herself. Now I'm more concerned about anyone who dares to hurt her," Alex said with a slight smile.
"Is she really that good at fighting now?" Gloria asked in surprise.
"Good is an understatement. Although she's small in stature, her fists are heavier than you might think," Alex replied with a smile, remembering how Lily would turn monsters into minced meat with a single punch.
"And what about the other girl?" Gloria asked, realizing that Alex had only talked about one.
Alex returned to reality and continued. He described how Haruhime had survived the betrayal of her own father, who sold her for his own son to befriend influential children. Alex didn't mention the gods, just said it was a noble family that exploited her.
"Poor girl, she endured so much pain," Gloria said sympathetically. "You did well to help her."
Gloria thought about how her city was also full of parents who sold their children for minor gains.
"And how did you help her?" she asked.
"I broke all the limbs of her father and brother, and then helped her become stronger. Now she is doing what she loves," Alex replied, remembering how Haruhime had happily sewn her first kimono for him.
Gloria, hearing his response, looked at Alex with suspicion, not expecting such cruelty from someone who seemed kind and caring. But she could understand his feelings. Seeing that Alex remained silent, she also decided not to continue the conversation. They sat in silence, only hearing the noise of cars from outside the window.
Gloria observed Alex's profile, wondering where he came from, as his world was clearly far from the technology of this city. She remembered that he had mentioned he couldn't tell everything yet and decided to wait for the right moment to ask him more.
"So, what are you planning to do now?" Gloria asked, turning to Alex.
Alex, hearing her question, only sighed tiredly, reached into his pocket, but at the last moment changed his mind and instead took out a candy, putting it in his mouth. Noticing Gloria's curious gaze at the candy, he offered her a piece as well. She accepted, eager to find out what this treat was.
"What is this sweet and delicious thing?" Gloria asked in surprise, feeling the sweetness spread over her tongue.
"These are candies from my world," Alex replied with a smile.
Gloria enjoyed the taste of the candy, realizing that she hadn't tried anything like it in this city. The candy was sweet and fresh, as if she were eating fruit.
"If you want more, here," Alex said, handing her a whole pack with different flavors.
He mentally apologized to the little girl for whom these candies were intended.
Somewhere deep in Chaos, a small girl frowned, feeling something had been taken from her but quickly forgot about it, continuing to eat her candies.
Receiving the entire pack of candies, Gloria looked at Alex in surprise, thinking that maybe in his world such candies were abundant. She didn't know that Alex created them using magic, relying on memories from his first world.
They sat in silence, enjoying the taste of the candies. The sweetness slightly lifted Gloria's mood, who had been feeling terrible lately and didn't know what to do next. The guy sitting next to her helped ease her emotional pain. Even if just a little, his efforts were worth it. Gloria popped another candy in her mouth and glanced at Alex, who seemed to be lost in thought, sitting silently since he offered her the candies.
"What are you thinking about?" Gloria asked quietly, looking closely at Alex.
"Just thinking about how, in this new place for me, I have neither money nor a place to stay," Alex answered wearily, rubbing his temples. "I don't even have any documents proving my identity. Which means I can't find a job."
"If you have nowhere to go, you can stay with me for a while," Gloria offered after a moment of thought.
Alex turned to her, looked into her eyes, but hesitated. He was afraid he might cause her trouble and didn't want to impose on her kindness since they had just met. Gloria sensed his hesitation and added with a smile:
"Don't think too much. Just stay with me."
"Thank you, Gloria. You've already done so much for me, and now you're offering to take me in," Alex said gratefully.
"It's nothing. You've helped me too," she replied with a smile.
They exchanged smiles and laughed together at the situation that had brought them together so unexpectedly. Gloria couldn't have imagined that she would save an injured magician who would then help her cope with her inner struggles.
"Now all that's left is to find a job," Alex said thoughtfully, stroking his chin.
"What did you do at your previous place?" Gloria asked with curiosity.
Alex pondered how to explain that he was something like a mercenary who fought monsters. After some consideration, he decided to describe it as a bodyguard profession.
"Something like a mercenary involved in delivery and protection," he said, choosing his words carefully.
"A magician doing such things?" Gloria asked in surprise, unable to imagine how that could be. Even though she wasn't sure what exactly magicians were capable of, she considered them part of the elite society.
"What's so unusual about it? Delivery and protection are fairly calm jobs," Alex replied with a smile, raising an eyebrow.
"Well, if you say so, Mr. Magician," Gloria smirked.
Alex was about to respond when he noticed her eyes suddenly glowing with a yellow light, indicating that she was using her cyberimplant. He chose not to distract her and waited for her to return to reality.
"Did something happen?" Alex asked, noticing that her face had slightly furrowed.
"Everything's fine, I just remembered something I needed to hand over," Gloria replied, standing up from the sofa and approaching a cabinet. She retrieved a gray box resembling a weapon case.
Alex watched her actions closely and guessed that the box contained the cyberimplant she had mentioned.
"What's in the box?" he asked as Gloria looked at it with sadness.
"It's a cyberimplant that I was planning to sell to pay for David's schooling," she explained.
"And what are you going to do with it?" Alex continued to inquire.
"I'll sell it, as I planned. After all, as you said, David would want me to keep living," Gloria replied with a light smile, as if ready to start a new chapter. "And maybe I can help you find a job."
Alex looked at her in surprise, not understanding how she could help him find work. He thought that perhaps Gloria was connected to someone who could offer him a job, possibly illegal, with immediate payment.
After some thought, he decided not to refuse. Why not? Living this way was a new experience, and he was curious about what lay ahead.
To be continued...