Maya was stunned "what do you mean l stole it? It just suddenly appeared, I don't know how it happened." She said honestly.
Kai felt extremely vexed, he gritted his teeth so hard that it made his gums bleed "Give it back."
Maya nodded "Hey system, can you um...go back to Kai please"
[Negative]
"Why not?" Maya asked in surprise.
[Insufficient energy]
"Well, how long will it take for you to get enough energy so you can go back to Kai?" She asked.
[Approximately two decades, the time can be shortened depending on how strong the host becomes]
Maya looked at Kai not knowing how to tell him the news, seeing Maya's reaction Kai felt so nervous he didn't even notice that he kept on growing different kinds of furs before they retracted and grew again.
"Um..Kai, the system needs about 2 decades before making the transfer" she said softly.
"Use your life force to supply it energy" he said agitatedly.
Maya was alarmed "what? I can't do that"
"Why not? I used up 50 years worth of life force to get to your world and l used a hundred years worth of life force to get us both here. For such a small task, you only need to use about 40 years worth of life force, don't be selfish" he said as his cat ears kept on twitching anxiously.
"Unlike you beasts, we humans can only live up to a hundred years if we maintain good health, if l remove 40 years of my lifespan, l can only live for 40 more years at most if am lucky." She said as she felt very annoyed at his suggestion.
"That's okay, am a prince, I will make sure you live the best 40 years of your life here, it's worth the sacrifice" he said nodding his head as if he would be doing Maya a big favour.
"You think am selfish? Look at your own actions! First you brought me here against my will and now you are asking me to lay down my life for you? Who's the selfish one here?" Maya asked angrily.
"I am of royalty and you are just a normal human, isn't it obvious who's life is more important here?" He asked haughtily.
"You are such a jerk! I saved your life, is this how you are repaying me?" She snarled.
Kai felt a bit guilty as his ears drooped "I have a big goal to achieve and l need that system to get things done quickly. Once I achieve it, l swear on the beast god that the first thing I will do is to replenish your life force"
"I have my own life to live, l can't just remain here and wait for you, do you even plan on sending me back to my own realm after you achieve your goal?" She asked doubtfully.
"I brought you here as my female, sending you back will be a foolish choice" he said as he wiped the blood from his face.
Maya was so angry her chest heaved rapidly "if you aren't planning on sending me back then forget about your system!"
Before he could respond his ears perked up at the slight movement coming from a nearby bush, his eyes narrowed as he looked in the direction of the sound.
A moment later a pink and white fox with two tails came out as it sniffed in the air before setting it's sight on the source of blood that was Kai. Its two tails twisted and started spinning rapidly giving it a a slight boost in speed as it rushed towards Kai.
"I may be in a weakened state, but l can still deal with a mid-tier beast like you easily" he said as he bent down and transformed into a tiger, but before he could charge forward his tiger form reverted back into his demi-human form.
'my energy level is too low!' he thought as he got back to the bending posture then his body shrank rapidly and black fur grew as he transformed into his cat form.
'good thing my original form doesn't cost me any energy points to be activated' he thought as the fox arrived In front of him.
Even though he was much smaller than the fox, he was still a level higher than the fox, he easily avoided it's sharp claws and jumped on its back. The two tailed fox relied on its speed to defeat it's opponents, but against Kai who also excelled in speed it's only advantage was lost.
The moment Kai landed on its back, he unsheathed his small but extremely sharp claws and started clawing at the back of its neck. Due to his weakened state, he was unable to kill it with one swipe. As the fox felt pain, it deliberately fell on its back and started rolling around but Kai didn't let go, he kept on clawing at its neck until the mangled wound was big and kept on bleeding profusely.
The fox unable to do anything, stopped rolling around, it had weakened from the loss of blood and it was obviously going to bleed to death.
Seeing that he had won, Kai finally let go and properly sliced it's throat open before digging into its chest to look for something.
Maya had witnessed everything, from beginning to end she stood there frozen with her mouth agape. She had never seen such a brutal battle between animals before, apart from being a cat lover she also had a soft spot for cute animals. Looking at Kai who kept on digging into the animal's chest despite having already killed it, Maya felt sorry for it but she also couldn't bring herself to tell him to stop.
Having witnessed his power, she knew that it would be very easy for him to end her life if he wanted to, so she didn't dare say anything that might displease him. Thinking of her earlier words, her heart palpitated, she silently prayed that he should spare her life.
Kai finally found what he was looking for, Maya saw Kai bringing out a small red glowing translucent ball that was dripping with fresh blood before he swallowed it in one bite.
This scene along with the heavy smell of blood made Maya's stomach churn, unable to resist, she bent over and vomited whatever little food she had left in her stomach.
Once he was done, Kai transformed back into his demi-human form and walked towards Maya, she was so nervous that she didn't notice Kai was naked and bathed in blood.
"Since you refuse to give me back what is mine, I will also break my promise. Forget about returning to the human realm, I doubt if you can even survive a night here. If l can't have the system, l won't allow anyone else to have it! if you survive this, then l will forget you are a female and battle you myself if our paths ever cross again. So do us both a favour and just die!" he said menacingly as he transformed into his cat form and disappeared into the darkness.
Maya's legs buckled and she fell down on her knees and trembled in fear.
'How...how am l going to survive here alone? Have I really been left for dead?' she thought as tears slid down her cheeks.
As though answering her question, the monotonic female voice of the system rang in her head.
[Installation complete]
[Ding! You have received your first quest]
[Survive the night]