The orange light reached the tallest building in the academy, slowly invading the room.
A man leaned his back against a single-seat sofa, his face covered by a wet towel that blocked the orange light.
His white hair draped behind the sofa, while both of his legs stretched straight across the glass table in front of him.
His breathing was the only sound in the room.
"Huft…"
His chest rose and fell, showing that his heart was still functioning, but not his wounded heart.
"Damn…."
"This is all too sudden…."
The man gritted his teeth.
But the aroma of coffee stopped the grinding of his teeth.
The man swallowed, then hurriedly removed the wet towel covering his face.
His vision was slightly blurry as the towel was removed, but slowly he could see there, a woman holding a cup filled with coffee with both of her hands.
She sat on the long sofa to the man's left, her face etched with slight wrinkles as she looked at the coffee she held, the orange light illuminating her figure from behind.
The woman stared straight ahead, her long white hair not moving even slightly.
The man's eyes widened. His heart beat faster, his hands gripping the sofa.
The woman opened her mouth.
"Next time….I'll be the one to make the coffee."
The man swallowed.
He turned toward the direction of the woman's gaze. There, in front of him, sitting on the opposite sofa, was an adult man with long black hair staring at the woman.
His face twitched as he placed the coffee on the glass table.
And his hand slammed the table, making the coffee cup lift slightly.
Thud
Even the white-haired woman's body trembled slightly.
"Damn….why can't I make coffee, when it's just instant coffee?"
A wide smile formed on the woman's face.
She burst into laughter, her back leaning against the sofa, her face looking up at the ceiling.
"Hahahahaha"
The black-haired man clicked his tongue.
"Tsk tsk, you must have told me the steps wrong again!"
The white-haired woman looked at the black-haired man in front of her, wiping the slight tears that came out.
"It's just instant coffee, Adams. You only need to pour water and add a little sugar if you want."
Adams narrowed his eyes at the woman.
"You're joking again, aren't you, Teresa?"
Teresa giggled.
"That's really all there is to it! Honestly, you rich kid, how can you not know something like that?"
Teresa took another sip of her coffee and looked at Adams, who was hesitant to drink his coffee again.
"Relax….I'll make coffee for you when we meet again."
Adams looked at Teresa more deeply.
"Then make it for me every day."
Teresa nodded playfully.
"Yeah, yeah, yeah… I'll make it for you every day, young master."
Teresa giggled, but Adams only stared at her intently.
"Make it in the morning when I'm about to go to work, make it in the afternoon when I'm tired after a long day."
Teresa stopped giggling.
Adams took a deep breath, gripping both of his knees, but his gaze on Teresa did not waver.
"Then have dinner with me and sleep together with me until morning comes."
"And… we spend the weekends together, just the two of us like a normal couple."
Teresa placed her coffee cup down. Her gaze met Adams'.
"Is this a proposal?"
Adams gave a short nod.
"Yes…"
He took out a small box from his smart bracelet, opened it, and placed it facing Teresa.
A white ring with a sparkling stone on top could be seen, but its shine did not reach Teresa's eyes.
Teresa took a breath and looked at Adams.
"I'm sorry, Adams. I have to refuse."
Adams' eyes trembled.
"Why, Teresa? You like me, right? We like each other, don't we?"
Teresa let out a breath.
"You already know the reason, don't you…."
Adams gritted his teeth.
"I don't care about any of that, Teresa. I just want to be with you."
Teresa smiled faintly.
"I can't give you children, Adams."
Adams' grip on his knees tightened.
"Who cares about that, Teresa? I don't care. I just want to be with you. I'd even be happy if it's just the two of us."
Teresa massaged her forehead.
"Yes, if this world were peaceful, Adams."
Teresa looked at Adams.
"You are the strongest human right now, and your strength must be passed down to become our hope."
Adams was at a loss for words.
"I don't care about that. I just want to be with you."
Teresa let out a breath.
"But I do. Right now, the human king is still very young and vulnerable. Your descendants will be able to support him in his prime and become the protector of humanity."
Teresa chuckled.
"Even though I'm just an ordinary person, I also don't want to become just one of your partners, you know, just because I can't get pregnant."
Adams let out a breath, leaning back on the sofa.
"Then what will you do? You're not going anywhere, right?"
Teresa took another sip of her coffee.
"I will step away from the stage and never return."
Teresa exhaled.
"I'm already tired, Adams."
Adams played with his fingers.
"Do you also want to disappear from my sight?"
Teresa chuckled.
"You know I have something I want to do, right?"
Adams let out a breath.
"Build an orphanage? Take care of children?"
Teresa nodded enthusiastically.
"Yes… but there's one more thing."
One of Adams' eyebrows raised.
"What is it?"
Teresa shrugged.
"I don't want to be anywhere near you when you're flirting with other women."
Adams grabbed his own hair, his heart pounding, his ears turning red.
Teresa laughed, supporting her cheek with her left hand while flicking her white hair with her right.
"Do you love me that much?"
Teresa burst into laughter, leaning her back against the sofa again.
"I'll travel around for a while, and when I'm satisfied, I'll come back and build an orphanage."
Adams let out a breath.
"Build the orphanage in this city."
Teresa's eyes widened as she looked at Adams enthusiastically.
"Will you buy me a big house?"
Adams nodded.
Teresa smiled.
"I want a big house with a wide yard."
Adams nodded.
Teresa stood up.
"I…I want there to be swings and slides for the children."
Adams nodded and stood up.
Teresa looked at Adams enthusiastically, her eyes shining brighter than the ring on the table.
"Come on, buy it for me now! I don't want to wait!"
Adams chuckled.
"Alright, alright."
The two of them walked out of the room bathed in orange light together.
Leaving the ring on the glass table and the long white-haired man whose gaze did not waver even after they had left.
The man's breathing became heavy, he leaned his back against the sofa and stared at the ceiling.
The orange light washed over his face, the man covered it with his palm.
"Damn… I should have just kidnapped her back then."
Silence filled the room again until the sound of knocking was heard.
Knock knock knock.
A woman's voice followed.
"Sir. It's time."
The man let out a breath and slowly stood up.
"Yes… just a moment, Anna."
The man took out a white robe from his smart bracelet.
He put it on, covering his black shirt.
He took a deep breath and looked around his room.
"Maybe I should drink coffee when I get back."
The man walked out of the room.
The scorching sunlight pierced the skin, a road stretched straight ahead, various scents filled the air, the sound of bargaining became the background, rows of vendor stalls lined up, humans passed by side by side with half-beast humans, their different ears and swaying tails becoming a common sight.
A teenager with a height of two meters stood in the middle of the road, among the passing crowd.
His striking size should have attracted attention, but they simply passed by him without looking.
The teenager let out a breath, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the sun at its highest point.
The teenager brushed his brown hair and looked around, searching for a place he might recognize.
Slowly, the teenager stepped forward, cutting through the crowd that paid him no attention.
The teenager's steps stopped, he glanced to the left, there a street food stall could be seen.
The teenager took a breath.
His eyes focused on one of the seats with a table there.
There, sitting on one of the chairs, was an adult woman with long white hair.
The woman stuffed food into her mouth eagerly.
The teenager smiled.
He slowly approached and sat in front of the woman, but the woman did not notice him.
The woman's face looked messy up close.
The teenager giggled, his fingers tapping on the table.
Suddenly, the woman turned her head and looked at a human with deer ears and antlers.
The teenager just looked at the woman.
The woman raised her hand.
"Uncle! Your cooking is very delicious! I'll order one more!"
The vendor smiled and agreed.
The woman smiled widely and finished the rest of her food.
But suddenly the woman's eyes widened, she stopped what she was doing and looked to the right.
The teenager just looked at the woman.
Slowly, a shout was heard.
"Hey! Stop that thief!"
The shout made him the center of attention, a human was chasing a small child.
His brown hair covered his eyes and his ragged clothes cut through the crowd.
All eyes were on him.
The woman supported her head with her left hand, her face following the running brown-haired child.
Right when the child was about to pass the woman, the woman's right hand pointed at the ground where the child would step.
The teenager's eyes widened as he watched the woman, he quickly shifted his gaze to the running child.
There, the ground beneath the boy's footing shifted slightly, causing the boy to fall.
Thud.
The teenager who saw that immediately stood up from his seat and shifted his gaze to the woman.
The woman smiled.
The sound of a man's shouting roared.
He approached the fallen child, panting, as a crowd began to form.
The woman finally stood up from her seat.
The teenager looked at her.
The woman's steps headed toward the crowd, her tied white hair swaying.
The teenager followed her.
There, the man wanted to drag the small child.
"Come here, you bastard, you're finally caught."
The child only surrendered.
Whispers could be heard from the crowd seeing that.
The child gritted his teeth.
A voice stopped the man.
The white-haired woman stepped through the crowd.
"That's enough. I will pay for everything that child stole."
The crowd looked at the woman, the man clicked his tongue, looking at the white-haired woman from head to toe.
"Tsk, you suddenly show up, do you even have money? This bastard kid has stolen not just once! Can you pay for it?"
The woman's eyebrow twitched, her anger rising.
Harsh words were about to come out of her mouth, but were stopped by another voice.
"What's going on here?"
Everyone looked toward the voice.
There, a human and a beastman walked over.
They wore black clothes and black hats.
The vendor who wanted to drag the child smiled.
"Finally, the security officers have arrived!"
He pointed at the brown-haired child.
"This kid has stolen many times from my stall, I want him to be arrested and his hands cut off."
The crowd became noisy.
The security officers narrowed their eyes as they slowly approached the vendor.
The small child struggled.As the security officers' steps drew closer, the white-haired woman blocked their path.
"I will compensate the merchant's losses. Can we talk for a moment?"
The officers looked at her.
"Who are you?"
The woman didn't explain and immediately hooked her arms around them, dragging the two officers away from the crowd.
The teenager, who had been observing all this time, widened his eyes.
He followed the woman away from the crowd.
At the corner of the street, the two officers released the woman's hold.
"You! We could arrest you, you know?!"
The white-haired woman smiled.
The brown-haired teenager watched them from up close.
The woman took out an engraved brooch and threw it to one of the security officers.
The teenager also looked at the brooch.
The three of them stared at it closely.
There, it was written:
'TERESA'
The security officers' eyes widened as they looked at Teresa.
"Lady Teresa?"
"Teresa the Silent Mover?"
The teenager looked at Teresa.
Teresa smiled and answered proudly.
"Yes! That is me!"
The security officers' expressions turned suspicious.
He shook the brooch.
"This could be fake, right?"
Teresa clicked her tongue.
"Just try channeling your mana into it."
The officer channeled his mana.
The brooch glowed.
The eyes of the security officers and the teenager also lit up.
The brooch emitted a mechanical sound and a hologram of a younger Teresa appeared.
The brown-haired teenager brushed his hair.
The security officer quickly stopped channeling his mana, and the brooch returned to normal.
They stood straight and saluted Teresa.
"Good afternoon, ma'am!"
"Greetings to Teresa the Silent Mover!"
Teresa smiled.
The teenager giggled.
Teresa let out a breath.
"So, can I settle this matter quickly?"
The two officers nodded enthusiastically.
"You may leave right away, ma'am."
Teresa shook her head.
"No, I want to take that brown-haired child with me."
The two officers looked at each other and then at Teresa.
"But why do you want to take him?"
Teresa smiled and shrugged.
"No particular reason, maybe he's just cute."
The security officers' expressions turned confused.
Teresa let out a breath.
"Yeah… he's cute, I want to take care of him. You know I'm a famous person, right? You know I'm close to that Tony Adams, right?"
The officers' eyes widened.
Teresa giggled, looking at the crowd still behind her.
"Well, who knows, right? Maybe someday that child will become someone as strong as Tony Adams?"
The teenager's eyes widened, he covered his mouth with his hand.
Teresa looked back at the two officers.
"So, can I take him?"
The two officers nodded.
Teresa clapped once and fiddled with her smart bracelet.
She looked at one of the officers.
"Here, put your smart bracelet against mine."
The officer extended his bracelet shyly.
"What for, ma'am?"
The other officer looked at him cynically and smacked his head.
"What are you doing being so shy?"
Teresa chuckled.
The teenager smiled and let out a breath.
"I want to compensate the merchant's losses."
The officer looked at Teresa.
"That's not necessary, ma'am."
Teresa connected her smart bracelet with the officer's.
"What do you mean it's not necessary? The merchant suffered losses because of the child I'm going to take. So I will compensate for it."
The officer just nodded.
The teenager clenched his fist.
"Then can I take him?"
The officer nodded his head.
Teresa slowly walked back toward the crowd, followed by the two security officers and the brown-haired teenager.
In the crowd, the brown-haired child was about to be dragged away by the merchant.
Teresa came and gently pushed the merchant until he fell to the ground.
All eyes turned to Teresa.
The merchant became furious, but before he could say anything, the security officers dragged him away and told the crowd to disperse.
Teresa approached the brown-haired child and knelt in front of him.
The teenager stood behind Teresa, looking at the child.
The child's eyes peeked slightly from behind his long brown hair.
There, the child saw the most beautiful smile he had ever seen in the world.
Teresa's white hair was bathed in sunlight.
Teresa extended her hand.
"Are you hungry? Do you want to come with me? I'll buy you lots of food."
The child just looked at Teresa.
Teresa's face turned confused.
"Can't you speak?"
The child just tilted his head slightly.
Teresa let out a breath.
She pointed at the child's stomach and made a gesture of someone being hungry, then made a gesture of someone eating.
The teenager giggled seeing the gestures Teresa made.
The child stared at Teresa closely, then gave a small nod.
Teresa smiled and extended her hand again.
"Come with me."
The child reached for Teresa's hand.
They walked across the street without caring about the stares of others.
The teenager followed.
Teresa took the child to an inn, she entered with the child into a room on the upper floor.
The teenager followed them and entered the room as well.
Teresa knelt in front of the child, brushing aside the hair that covered the child's view.
They looked at each other.
Teresa smiled.
"Before eating, you have to bathe and change your clothes first."
The child stayed silent.
Teresa stood up and held the child's hand, leading him to the bathroom.
The teenager stopped and looked into the bathroom from the doorway.
Teresa prepared the water in the bathtub.
A floral scent filled the room.
Teresa rolled up her sleeves.
And slowly removed the child's ragged clothes.
She lifted the child and placed him into the tub filled with water and soap.
The water splashed more roughly as the child was startled when his skin touched the water.
Teresa chuckled.
"It's okay, don't be tense."
The child looked at Teresa, his body calming down.
The teenager could only stare intently at Teresa bathing the brown-haired child.
The teenager swallowed.
Teresa washed his entire body, the dirt on the child's body gradually disappearing.
She combed the child's wet hair upward, forming a tall cone shape.
Teresa laughed freely.
"Look, you're very cute."
The child just looked at Teresa.
Teresa smiled.
"Don't you have a name?"
The child stayed silent.
Teresa stroked her chin, soap foam sticking to it.
"Hmmm… how about Aril? Do you like it?"
The child tilted his head.
"A…li…l?"
Teresa's eyes widened, a bright smile forming on her face.
"Yes! Your name is Aril!"
Teresa splashed water playfully at the child.
The teenager, who watched Teresa and the child from the bathroom doorway, could only lower his head.
Suddenly, Teresa looked toward the bathroom doorway.
The teenager lifted his head, and their gazes met.
The teenager's eyes widened, his heart pounded rapidly, his body stiffened.
But the sound of knocking broke the silence.
Knock knock knock.
"Food delivery!"
A smile formed on Teresa's face, she shifted her gaze and looked at the child.
"Wait a moment, I'll go get the food first."
The child just played with the water.
Teresa stood up and walked toward the bathroom doorway.The teenager looked at her.
Teresa walked past him without obstruction, her body passing through the teenager's body.
The teenager lowered his head, holding his heart that was almost stopping.
Slowly, his legs lost their strength, his knees fell to the floor, tears streamed heavily from his eyes, the sound of sobbing escaped his lips.
Gradually, darkness enveloped everything, the warm room turned black.
A speck of light appeared in the darkness, slowly it widened and turned orange.
The smell of medicine filled the air, the sound of a ticking clock could be heard, the wind gently blew, swaying the thin curtains that tried to block the orange light.
The orange light illuminated part of the body of a brown-haired teenager, tears streaming heavily from his eyes.
The brown-haired teenager shifted his gaze to the side, there Alex and Ken could be seen looking at the brown-haired teenager lying down.
The tears of the brown-haired teenager did not stop.
Alex took a breath and exhaled.
"How was it, Aril?"
The sound of sobbing slowly came from Aril.
Tears fell, soaking the pillow.
"She was amazing….she was a great mother."
Alex nodded slowly.
He stood up slowly, Ken followed.
"We will wait for you, we won't start without you either."
Alex let out a breath.
"Don't rush, friend."
Alex and Ken left the treatment room, as they closed the door, the sound of Aril's crying could be heard all the way to the hallway.