Supreme Hunter of Beautiful Souls-Chapter 152: Reunion

As soon as they left Director Altharion's office, the silence between Kael, Erika, and Eva returned—not uncomfortable, but heavy with unspoken thoughts. The corridor ahead split like a river of possibilities.

Erika glanced to the side, hesitating for a brief moment. Then she took a deep breath and gently placed a hand on Kael's arm.

"I'll go see Stella first," she said, her voice low and resolute. "She needs… me right now. Us. But maybe it's better if I start alone." Her gaze faltered slightly, then steadied again. "She still listens to me, even when she doesn't want to."

Kael nodded slowly. "You're good at that."

Erika offered a small, brave smile—the kind she wore when the world felt too heavy.

"I'll head out. You should see Sylphie first." With a quick nod to Eva, she disappeared down one of the side corridors, her steps light but full of purpose.

Kael stood still for a moment, breathing deeply. The presence of the academy pulsed around him, but there was one place calling to him more strongly than any other.

The training room. The hidden sanctuary was completely sealed by natural energy—even from nearly across the academy, he could feel the presence of the World Tree's magic. Of course, it was obvious. That was where Sylphie had isolated herself.

He began walking, his steps slow, deliberate. As he drew closer, the air began to change. The scent of wet earth, wildflowers, and ancient leaves grew stronger. Branches hung across the corridors as if the forest had invaded the arcane space. Until finally, he stopped before the entrance.

Or what used to be an entrance.

Now, everything was swallowed by thick, interwoven roots. Living trunks stretched like natural walls, completely sealing the doorway and part of the surrounding wall. Delicate flowers bloomed between the knots of the vines, but even their beauty couldn't soften the imposing blockade. It was like staring into the heart of the forest—closed, wounded, and guarded by something far older than words.

Kael let out a heavy sigh, the sound like thunder wrapped in a breeze. For a moment, he simply stared—trying to understand what exactly Sylphie was trying to keep in. Or keep out.

Then, with a voice firm but calm, he said, "Ygg… cancel this magic."

The response was almost immediate. A soft green glow began to form between the roots. A murmur passed through the walls—not a physical sound, but a sensation, as if the Tree itself were answering a child it recognized.

The roots trembled. The flowers slowly closed, like eyes dimming. Vines withdrew, sliding back into the living stone with a smooth sound of wood and intertwined magic. In seconds, the entrance was revealed—an open path shrouded in darkness where natural light dared not enter.

Kael stepped forward.

The scent of dew and raw magic flooded his senses. Inside, the old room seemed to pulse with its own life—not a serene one, but something else entirely. It was as if the space had absorbed Sylphie's sorrow and was now exhaling it in silent waves.

Kael crossed the threshold slowly, with almost reverent steps. The darkness inside wasn't absolute, but it wasn't welcoming either. Small motes of light floated in the air like enchanted pollen—remnants of condensed natural magic, traces Sylphie had let slip without realizing. Each one seemed to carry a fragment of emotion: pain, regret, love, guilt.

Even the sound of his own footsteps was swallowed by the space. It felt like walking through a living memory.

The room—once a haven of shy laughter, awkward training, and Sylphie's soft humming—was now unrecognizable. Branches grew wildly along the walls, twisting as if trying to contain the druid's sorrow itself. The air was humid, but not fresh—it was heavy, dense, like tears that had never been shed.

At the center, almost imperceptible, there was a figure sitting. Huddled. The small body, knees pulled to the chest, and long white hair cascading like a living curtain around herself. She didn't react to Kael's presence.

He remained still for a moment. Watching. Feeling.

Her sadness hurt. Not in a metaphorical sense—not for someone like him. The connection she had with the World Tree made every emotion manifest in reality, in essence. Her pain had weight, smell, form. She had created a cocoon not to hide, but because the world was too big for someone with a broken heart.

Kael let out a sigh. One of those sighs that carried more than just exhaustion—a sigh that said "I missed you too" without needing to speak aloud.

He took another step, and the roots beneath his feet retreated slightly, as if recognizing that he was welcome there. Not because of the divine contract. Not because of power. But because she still wanted him to enter… even if she didn't have the strength to admit it.

"…Sylphie," he called softly. Almost a whisper. As if afraid of breaking something too fragile.

No response. But the branches around her trembled subtly.

He knelt a few meters away, respecting the space, but close enough to be felt.

"I'm back." The words were simple, but the weight behind them was immense. "I couldn't come back sooner. But I'm here for you. For all of you."

Silence reigned for a few more seconds, until a weak voice, almost inaudible, came from the cocoon of hair and leaves.

"Get out of my head..." She murmured, disbelieving. "I can't take hearing his voice anymore…" she murmured again.

"You really came back…" she whispered, still not lifting her head. "I thought… you'd disappear like everyone else. Like him."

Kael gently squeezed her fingers, but Sylphie hesitated—as if she didn't dare to believe. As if hope hurt more than absence.

"You're not real…" she murmured, almost angrily at herself for wanting to believe. "The Tree shows me memories… illusions… I've seen you here before. But you never stay. Never speak. You just vanish. You're just another lie my heart wants to believe."

The room seemed to shudder with that confession. The roots in the walls pulsed, as if sharing her lament.

Kael furrowed his brow, feeling her pain turn into thorns—not aimed at him, but at herself. He breathed deeply. Then, without warning—with a sudden, impulsive, and necessary movement—he yanked her hand with force.

Sylphie gasped, surprised, her body being dragged from the cocoon where she hid. The reaction was instinctive—she tried to resist, tried to pull back—but there was no way. Kael's arms enveloped her in an instant, pulling her against his chest with raw firmness. It wasn't a delicate embrace. It was a shock of reality. A silent scream saying "Wake up, I'm here."

Her body froze. Her eyes widened. Her breath caught.

She felt it. The warmth of his body. The beat of his heart. The tension in his muscles. The familiar scent of earth and battle. This wasn't an illusion. It wasn't ethereal. It wasn't a whisper from the Tree.

It was Kael.

"I'm not a memory, Sylphie," he said softly, against her hair. "I'm not an illusion. I'm not a shadow created by Ygg or your pain. I'm real. I'm here. With you."

She stayed still for a few seconds. Her body trembling, unsure whether to surrender or flee. But then... as if something inside her broke for good, she began to cry.

Not with discreet tears.

With muffled, trembling sobs, from someone who had held everything in for far too long. The sound of pain she buried so deep that even the roots couldn't reach it.

She clung to him tightly, her fingers digging into his clothes as if fearing he would disappear again. As if, if she let go, he would turn to dust.

"You really came back..." she repeated, this time with a broken voice, but filled with truth.

Kael closed his eyes, holding her firmly in his arms.

"I came back," he replied. "And this time... I'll stay."

The moment between Kael and Sylphie was interrupted by a sound that made the world tremble.

KRRRSHHHH!

A deafening crash echoed through the room, followed by a wave of cold wind and pure destructive force. The door—or what remained of it—was literally torn apart by two simultaneous attacks: a strike as fast as lightning and a blast of physical ice so dense that it cracked the floor around it. Chunks of stone, wood, and natural magic flew in all directions, and for a moment, the room's aura seemed to shudder, as if the very sadness had been pierced.

Kael stood up instinctively, shielding Sylphie with his body, his eyes wide with the sudden explosion.

Two figures emerged at the entrance, wrapped in raw fury and uncontrolled emotion.

Amelia. Her white hair whipped around like a stormy cloak, her eyes glowing with a cold energy that made the air around her freeze. Drops of water ran down her face... tears... but when they touched the ground, they froze, cracking the floor.

She raised her hand, dispelling the cold energy around her body, but her expression was one of pure despair and rage.

"IDIOT!!" she screamed, her voice trembling, more from pain than from anger.

Beside her, Irelia appeared like a living blade. The cutting aura around her was so intense that the air seemed to warp around her. She was trembling, trying to contain her emotions, her hand going to her face as tears ran freely.

"I'll cut you... you bastard..." she growled, the words coming out like a promise of steel. But her voice faltered. Because the pain was greater than any threat.

And then, as if the anger had been nothing more than a wall to hold back everything they felt, they both rushed forward.

Kael barely had time to react. When he realized it, Amelia had already lunged first, her arms wrapping around him with force, her face buried in his chest. The frozen tears burned his skin like small shards of pain and longing.

"I thought... I thought...!" she murmured through her sobs, holding him tightly. "I searched for you... I searched for you until I lost my breath!"

Irelia came right after, the impact of her embrace more brutal, almost like a collision. But her arms wrapped around him too, and the cutting aura dissipated completely, leaving only a girl—a friend—broken, relieved, alive.

"You... bastard... you could at least have said goodbye," she said, her voice wavering, her chin trembling. "You owe me a fight, idiot."

Kael stood there, with Sylphie still in his arms, now enveloped by Amelia and Irelia in a nearly suffocating embrace. Three broken hearts, three presences he had left behind.

And for the first time in a long time...

He couldn't say anything.

His throat was tight.

His eyes were burning.

But he hugged the three of them. Tight.

Because at that moment, more than any promise freēwēbηovel.c૦m

He knew he was home.