The next day was her day off, but Sera still woke up early, unable to shake the questions swirling in her mind. Her thoughts kept drifting back to the strange force that had come to her aid, though the details remained hazy. She was still processing everything that had happened.
Sera was a shy, introverted girl, and aside from work, her days were spent reading books, writing poetry, and singing. But even with singing—her most private solace—she was too shy to let anyone hear her voice.
She had never been able to make friends easily, struggling to express herself or speak her mind. Growing up in the orphanage, she had learned to keep to herself, never wanting to be a burden. She always tried to figure things out on her own, not knowing how—or when—to ask for help. This often led to misunderstandings, with people assuming she was mute or mentally slow when, in truth, she was both intelligent and perceptive. Yet her fear of speaking up had kept her isolated.
That morning, Sera opened the kitchen window to let in the fresh air as she began preparing breakfast. The scent of fried bacon and eggs filled the air as she worked, humming softly to herself, unaware of the lone listener just outside her window.
Ryou had taken his usual place beneath the window the moment it opened. It was a habit of his, staying close by to listen to her singing. Her voice, delicate yet powerful, had a way of drawing him in. To him, it was the kind of sound that could captivate the world if she ever found the courage to share it.
He stayed there until he heard the soft click of a door closing. Rising to his feet, he followed her movements, ensuring he closed the window she had forgotten. The day had grown brighter, making it harder for him to stay hidden, but he didn't mind.
Typically, Ryou used these hours to handle the responsibilities of his organization. The city was safer for Sera during the day, and his ability to sense her energy allowed him to monitor her from a distance, detecting even the faintest shift in her well-being.
Ryou carried more than just the memories of his past life; he wielded supernatural powers that were both extraordinary and dangerous. Few knew the full extent of his abilities. As the leader of a fearsome organization, StarDust, that operated in the shadows, his name—Ryoumaru—was enough to strike fear into anyone who heard it. His identity remained a mystery, his face unseen, even by those closest to him.
Though misunderstood, StarDust was not a malicious organization. They wielded powers the public couldn't comprehend, using them to combat the monsters that emerged from the dimensional rift. Their primary goal was to seal the rifts and prevent more from appearing. Yet, their work was invisible to the public. They didn't seek recognition, existing as silent, cold guardians. And among them, Ryoumaru was the most feared of all. Rumors even suggested that his own people were wary of him.
Later that morning, Sera stepped out to visit the convenience store. When she returned, something caught her attention: the window she had left open was now closed. She didn't remember shutting it and couldn't ignore the oddity. Still, whatever had happened didn't feel threatening. In fact, it seemed protective, as though someone—or something—was watching out for her.
Could it have been a guardian angel? The thought made her chuckle, and she shook her head, amused by her own imagination. She reopened the window, finding nothing else out of place.
By then, Ryou had already slipped away to attend to his affairs. His presence, fleeting yet purposeful, had left her with an odd sense of reassurance. Though invisible to her, someone had been watching over her from the shadows.
---
This wasn't something that had started two years ago. It took Ryou a long time to find her. His memories of his past life hadn't returned all at once. Instead, they came in fragments—scattered pieces that only fell into place as he grew older. It wasn't until he became an adult that everything came rushing back, complete and overwhelming. The moment his full memory returned, he knew he had to find her.
The search, however, was far from easy. It's not that he could sense her energy out of nowhere; he needed to identify it first by meeting her in this lifetime. After all, he had been a mere wolf in their past life. He couldn't even be sure if she had been reincarnated at all. He didn't know if she would have reincarnated with a different face, gender, or if she had aged far beyond him—or worse, if she had already passed away.
But somehow, despite the uncertainty, the universe seemed to pull them together in the most improbable of ways. It was as though fate itself had been waiting for this moment. Sera was 21, the same age she had been when she died in their past life, and Ryou, now 25, had waited a lifetime for this moment.
It happened so unexpectedly. He had only meant to check out a small Chinese restaurant just two blocks from one of his residences. When he opened the door, there she was—standing right in front of him. The woman he had longed to see for so long, the one whose face he could never forget, was standing before him. Even before his memories returned fully, there was a familiarity to her, a pull that he had felt deep in his soul.
She was behind the cashier, counting change, oblivious to his presence. He froze, his body stiff, as if the world around him had slowed to a standstill. His mind was a whirlwind of emotions—joy, fear, longing, and confusion. A waiter approached, and Ryou, his mind too overwhelmed to think clearly, managed only to mumble, "Sorry, I need to go," before backing out of the restaurant.
He sat in his car in front of the restaurant for a long fifteen minutes, trying to ground himself, trying to collect the fragmented pieces of his thoughts. Then, with a shaking resolve, he opened the door, stepped out, and stood in front of the restaurant. His eyes locked on her through the glass wall, marking her energy so that he could sense her from anywhere, at any time.
From then on, Ryou became her unseen guardian. He understood the weight of his position, the danger that lurked in his world, which made it impossible to draw near. He had to remain a shadow, watching over her from afar. He never once allowed himself to get too close, knowing that doing so could put her in harm's way. He observed her quiet life, the simplicity of it, which felt like a stark contrast to his own existence.
He followed her from the shadows, learning where she lived, where she worked, and even the supermarket she frequented to buy her groceries. Yet he never crossed the line. He never pried into what she was doing, never intruded. He respected her privacy, especially when she was inside her apartment. He only allowed himself one small indulgence—listening to her sing when the window was left open.
But now, something had changed. Sera had felt his presence. She hadn't been able to see him, but she knew he was there. And though she didn't understand what—or who—he was, she was grateful for the protection he offered. She felt safe in a way she couldn't explain, and even though she didn't know his true purpose, she couldn't shake the hope that one day, she would be able to thank this mysterious guardian.
And so, they continued—two souls quietly intertwined across time and space, bound by an unspoken connection that neither could fully comprehend, yet both felt deep in their hearts.