The group's tour went on for three more days, deepening friendship among the seven of them. They traveled all over the district of Česká Lípa, exploring towns like Kamenický Šenov and Zákupy, as well as charming little villages such as Jestřebí, Hamr na Jezeře and the other nearby villages. Those few days were filled with non-stop laughter and fun. They even ended up playing a game of Truth or Dare in one of their visits, which hilariously forced Kenzii to dance. He was incredibly embarrassed that day since he honestly didn't know how to dance at all.
By their eighth day in the Czech Republic, the three decided to have a massive feast for the locals of Blatce as a way of thanking them for being so welcoming. The villagers treated them just like family, and the cousins truly felt the same way about them.
As darkness fell, the older folks gradually headed home to sleep before their work shifts the next day, leaving the younger crowd behind to keep the drinking session going strong.
"Man, I really can't believe you guys are leaving tomorrow! You're honestly so much fun to hang out with," Loui groaned, waving his arms around.
"Yeah, seriously! Can't you just stay for one more week?" Aton added, making the cousins laugh.
"Bro, I wish we could," Alas sighed, taking a big gulp of his beer.
If only we could. I wish we could stay longer, Kenzii thought to himself. During their week-long stay in this peaceful little village, he had felt true happiness. It was as if all his worries had completely disappeared. This was easily the happiest week he had ever experienced in his life. He never imagined he could find the comfort of a real family among a group of people who were strangers just days ago.
"Don't worry, we're definitely going to visit this place again," Alas smiled warmly, already feeling a bit tipsy after they had finished off several cases of beer.
"How about, let's sing a song?" Sota suggested. With a wide grin, he gestured for Cariz to hand him the acoustic guitar sitting near her, and she quickly passed it over. "Come on, give us a good rhythm," Sota added, handing the guitar to Kenzii. Kenzii raised a brow but took it anyway, smiling as he thought of a song to play.
"Oh yeah, let's go!" Alas and Loui cheered as Kenzii propped the guitar against his chest.
"Wait, give me that small Bluetooth speaker over there," Kenzii said, pointing to the device next to Alas. Alas handed it to him right away, and Kenzii quickly connected his phone to it. "It's much better with an actual backing track," Kenzii smirked, hitting the play button.
"Doh... Doh-doh-doh,
doh-doh-doh, doh-doh..."
The moment those sounds left Kenzii's mouth while he swayed to the beat, huge smiles broke out on everyone's faces, and they all immediately joined in.
"Doh-doh-doh, doh-doh-doh, doh-doh...
Doh-doh-doh, doh-doh-doh, doh-doh...
Doh-doh-doh, doh-doh-doh, doh-doh..."
The whole group jumped up to dance, led by the chaotic pair of Alas and Loui.
"This hit, that ice cold
Michelle Pfeiffer, that white gold
This one for them hood girls
Them good girls, straight masterpieces
Stylin', willin', livin' it up in the city
Got chucks on with Saint Laurent
Gotta kiss myself, I'm so pretty"
Alas, Loui, and Aton held hands, hilariously grooving and dancing together. The funny sight made everyone else burst out laughing while they sang along with Kenzii, who kept strumming the guitar with a bright, genuine smile on his face.
.
The next morning, the cousins were eating breakfast together in Uncle Jacob's garden. Their private flight wasn't scheduled to leave from Prague's Václav Havel Airport until later that afternoon.
"I'm really going to miss this place and everyone here," Alas sighed, leaning his head back to stare up at the calm, clear sky.
"Me too. It felt incredibly nice to just relax and have a great time," Sota smiled, taking a sip of his coffee.
"See? I told you so! That's why whenever I invite you guys to go out, you should just say yes," Alas complained, earning a sharp glare from Sota.
"Please, you only ever go to loud bars. You're the only one who actually likes those places!" Sota fired back.
"Blah, blah, blah. Still way better than being glued to a phone or a laptop all day long," Alas teased, sticking his tongue out at Sota. Just like that, their conversation turned into their usual petty argument.
Meanwhile, Kenzii sat in silence, quietly looking around the garden. He knew deep down that he was going to miss this village very much.
"Ahem." Their bickering stopped instantly when someone cleared their throat nearby, making all the three of them turn around to look.
"Uncle Adam? What brings you here? Are you looking for Uncle Jacob? Wait, let me go call him—" Alas offered, but Adam quickly shook his head to stop him.
"Ah... no, I didn't come here to see Jacob or Ann." Adam scratched his head nervously, his hands shaking slightly from anxiety.
"Oh, so did you come to see us then?" Alas asked, pointing toward them in confusion.
Even though he looked deeply embarrassed, Adam nodded quickly. "Y-yes. There's just something I really w-wanted to tell you guys," he said, taking a deep breath before looking them in the eye.
"What is it, Uncle?" Kenzii asked directly.
"I–I have a big favor to ask..." Adam bit his lower lip, clearly feeling a lot of shame about what he was about to say. "I know you barely know me and… and that I'm just a regular person living in this tiny village, but I honestly have no one else to ask for help." He let out a heavy sigh.
"Don't worry about it, Uncle Adam. We already consider you part of our family," Kenzii said with a warm, reassuring smile. His cousins quickly spun around, staring at him in complete shock.
Their Kenzii—the incredibly guarded, quiet boy who found it almost impossible to trust or open up to people—was telling a man he had known for only a single week that he was considered family? How many times will they be shocked while staying in this place?
"Please, go ahead and tell us your request," Kenzii encouraged gently.
"Well, it's just... I want a much better life for my daughter," Adam explained, his voice trembling. "I don't want her to grow old and spend her whole life stuck in this quiet village. My daughter is incredibly smart, kind, and hard-working. She won't cause you any trouble at all. I want her to see the world and enjoy her life without being held back by her parents... So, I was hoping—" Adam stopped talking, rubbing his forehead as he suddenly felt too ashamed to finish his sentence.
"You want us to take her with us, don't you?" Kenzii finished smoothly, making his cousins' eyes go wide with surprise.
Kenzii had figured out Adam's goal the exact moment the older man walked up to them looking hesitant and embarrassed. He clearly remembered the night Adam had gotten completely drunk, right when he helped Cariz bring her father back home. Kenzii hadn't paid much attention to the man's drunken rambling back then, but hearing him now, he realized those words were coming from a desperate reality. The father truly wanted to save his daughter from what he believed was a cursed, dead-end place.
Of course, after failing to find anything magical or supernatural inside Houska Castle—and because Kenzii's dark powers hadn't detected anything strange in the area—he didn't actually believe the village was literally cursed. After all, he had just spent the happiest days of his life here. In reality, Adam was probably just terrified that Cariz would grow old without ever chasing her dreams.
"You want us to help her get away from here, right?" Kenzii asked again.
Adam looked up fast, his mouth wide open. Unable to find his words, he simply nodded to say yes.
"Are you completely sure about this? You barely even know us," Sota stepped in practically, looking at Adam.
"I know, I k-know," Adam stammered nervously. "But based on everything my daughter tells me... every single time she comes home after spending the day with all of you, I just know in my heart that you are good people. She never stops smiling whenever she talks about you guys, especially about you, Kenzii. That's why I really want you to take her with you. I–I have never seen my daughter look that genuinely happy before. This past week was the first time."
Tears began to well up in Adam's eyes. He loved his daughter so much; she was his only child, and it would break his heart to watch the happiness in her eyes die out once the cousins left. "I just want Cariz to finally choose her own path for once."
As Kenzii listened to the father's emotional words, a sharp pain shot through his chest. What did it feel like to be loved so fiercely by a parent? How did it feel to be worthy of that kind of unconditional protection and care? desperately wanted to know that feeling, but how could he? His own father was gone.
Kenzii's hands balled into tight fists, his grip tightening against the armrests of his chair as memories of his father flooded his mind. Would he have felt that kind of father's love if he hadn't emotionally isolated himself? If he had just let his father into his heart instead of blaming him for the horrific reality of their family curse?
Sota noticed Kenzii going completely stiff, his head dropping slightly from the emotional weight. Sitting up straight in his chair, Sota tried to step in. "Uncle Adam, I completely understand where you're coming from, but—"
"You can count on us," Kenzii interrupted, cutting Sota off completely. Sota turned his head around, staring at his cousin in absolute shock.
Kenzii, what on earth are you doing?
"If you've talked to your daughter and she agrees to this plan, I will take her with us," Kenzii continued firmly. "I will also make sure she gets a stable job so she can send money back to support you and build a bright future for herself." Kenzii smiled gently, standing up to place a comforting hand on Adam's shoulder.
Adam's eyes went wide with pure shock. Without warning, he threw his arms around Kenzii, pulling him into a tight, desperate hug. Startled by the sudden physical contact, Kenzii froze for a quick second before relaxing, gently patting the older man's back.
"Thank you so much!" Adam choked out, breathing a massive sigh of relief. "You have no idea how much this means to me!" He stepped back a bit to look at Kenzii's face, only to pull him into another tight embrace. "I will owe you forever for this."
Once the emotional talk was over, Adam quickly excused himself to share the incredible news with his family, knowing he still had to convince his wife and a completely clueless Cariz of his sudden decision. Kenzii had advised him to tell Cariz to pack her bags immediately, since they were scheduled to fly out that very afternoon.
"Hey, why did you agree to that?" Sota demanded the exact second Adam walked out of the garden.
Kenzii turned back to his cousin, a soft, rare smile staying on his lips.
"I just can't bring myself to say no to the request of a loving father."