Chapter 10: The Unseen Escape
The mansion was quieter than usual that morning. The usual bustle of servants preparing breakfast and the soft footsteps of his three companions following his every move were absent. Kai had made sure of that. In the early hours of the day, he had slipped out of his bed, dressed in simple clothes, and left without a single word to anyone. There was no note. No message. No clue.
He didn't care.
Kai just needed to be alone. The suffocating weight of his companions' obsessions, their possessiveness—it was all too much. So, with a quiet resolve, he left the mansion and stepped out into the cool morning air, relishing the feeling of freedom for the first time in what felt like forever.
He walked aimlessly through the nearby forest, letting the trees swallow him up, their thick trunks and overgrown branches creating a barrier between him and the world he had left behind. The crunch of the forest floor beneath his boots was the only sound that accompanied him as he ventured deeper into the woods, the cool breeze carrying the scent of pine and damp earth.
It was peaceful.
But back at the mansion, chaos had already begun to unfold.
Edward, the ever-watchful butler, had been the first to notice Kai's absence. It wasn't like him to just vanish without a word. The young lord was lazy, yes, and sometimes distant, but never cruel enough to leave his companions without at least a hint of where he had gone. The sense of unease that settled in Edward's chest grew with each passing moment.
"Noah," Edward called, his voice tight with worry as he hurried through the halls. "Have you seen the Lord?"
Noah, who had been idly cleaning the windows, looked up from his task, his face momentarily blank before it twisted with panic. He immediately dropped the rag in his hand, his body moving instinctively toward Edward.
"No... I haven't," Noah said, his voice low, his brows furrowing in concern. His tentacles, usually so calm, now writhed nervously behind him, as if echoing his growing distress.
"Where is he?" Edward's voice cracked slightly, revealing just how rattled he was. Kai was always unpredictable, but this... this was different. He had vanished without a trace, and there was no sign of where he had gone.
Charles, who had been lounging in the garden, appeared just then, his ears twitching as he overheard the conversation. His usual quiet demeanor had been replaced with a look of deep concern. His tails, which had once been tucked neatly behind him, were now visibly trembling.
"I... I couldn't find him either," Charles said, his voice barely a whisper. His eyes searched the empty hallways as if expecting Kai to just appear, as if it were all some terrible mistake. But deep down, he knew it wasn't.
The three of them stood in the middle of the mansion, frozen for a moment, all three of them feeling the same gnawing sense of panic that was slowly creeping up on them. They had never been separated from Kai like this—not without him leaving a message, a hint, anything. It was as though he had simply vanished into thin air.
Edward was the first to move, his eyes wild with worry. "We need to find him. Now."
Noah nodded, his tentacles trembling, their tips glowing faintly in the dim light of the mansion. "But where would he have gone? He didn't say anything."
"Perhaps..." Charles's voice trembled with a mix of hope and fear, "Perhaps he's just... gone for a walk. He sometimes goes into the garden, or into the forest."
Edward's sharp eyes snapped toward Charles, his heart skipping a beat. "The forest?"
Charles nodded. "Yes. He likes the quiet there."
Without another word, the three of them rushed out of the mansion, their footsteps pounding on the cobblestone path as they made their way toward the dense woods nearby. The trees loomed like dark sentinels ahead, their thick branches twisting in unnatural shapes as if to hide their precious Kai away from prying eyes.
Kai, blissfully unaware of the storm he had created, continued his walk through the forest. The farther he went, the more he found solace in the quiet. The absence of eyes watching him, the absence of the three men who had become an inescapable part of his life—it was all so... peaceful.
But in the back of his mind, a small nagging feeling persisted. He knew he had left them behind, but he couldn't bring himself to care. Not right now. Not when he felt like he was drowning in their attention. He needed space, even if it meant hurting them.
But that wasn't the same for them.
The three of them pushed through the underbrush, their pace quickening as they neared the edge of the forest. Charles's keen ears perked up at every sound, his fox-like senses picking up the faintest rustle of leaves or the soft whisper of the wind.
Noah, his tentacles stretching out to clear branches and debris, moved with unnatural speed, his thoughts consumed by the need to find Kai. Every step felt like a painful eternity. His heart raced with an urgency he didn't fully understand.
Edward, always the calmest, was now a ball of tension. His sharp gaze swept over the forest, his thoughts clouded with worry. What if something had happened to Kai? What if he had wandered too far? What if—?
His thoughts were interrupted by a distant sound—something soft, but unmistakable. The faintest rustle of leaves. And then, as if responding to their collective tension, a voice.
"Kai..." Charles's voice was trembling, but it was enough to stop the group. They all froze, and Kai's name seemed to hang in the air like an unanswered prayer.
They followed the sound, weaving between the trees, until they found him.
There he was—Kai—sitting on a large rock by a quiet stream, his legs stretched out before him, as if nothing had happened. He looked up lazily, his golden eyes flicking toward them with a small, almost bored smile.
"You found me," Kai said, his tone flat, as if it was the most mundane thing in the world.
Edward, Noah, and Charles all stood there for a moment, just staring at him in disbelief. Relief flooded their bodies, followed quickly by the sharp sting of frustration. He was fine. He had simply wanted to be left alone.
But none of them could speak, not for a few moments. Instead, they just stood there, watching him, as if to ensure he was real, that he was truly fine. The worry that had gnawed at them was replaced with something else—a mix of protectiveness, anger, and desperation.
"Don't ever do that again," Edward said, his voice a low growl, though the words were filled with relief.
Kai blinked lazily at him, unfazed. "I just needed a walk," he said, his voice casual as he stretched his arms above his head. "You three were getting too clingy."
Noah's tentacles twitched in agitation, and Charles's tails flicked in irritation. They couldn't understand why he would do something so reckless, so unnecessary, but they couldn't deny the feeling of calm that had settled in their hearts now that they had found him.
Edward was the first to approach him, his eyes sharp with concern, though his touch was gentle as he reached out to help Kai to his feet. "Don't ever leave without telling us again," he murmured, his tone softening just enough to betray his worry.
Kai simply smiled, a small, lazy grin that sent a wave of warmth through each of them. They didn't know it, but they were already wrapped around his finger, each one of them hanging on his every word, his every move.
"I'll try to remember," Kai said, his voice light, but there was something in his gaze—a hint of something deeper, something they hadn't seen before.
As they walked back to the mansion, the three of them stayed close to Kai, more protective than ever. But Kai, blissfully unaware of the storm he had caused, simply walked ahead, his mind still wrapped in the solitude he had craved.
They had found him.
But their obsession? It had only deepened...