Karl yawned loudly.
He stretched his hands and rolled around on the soft bedding.
The expression on his face couldn’t be brighter.
Opening his eyes, he looked around.
“Oh, this isn’t my room.”
He still remembered leaving his room at midnight.
“You’re awake.”
A pleasantly cool voice sounded in the room.
Karl saw Varek fixing his robe with his eyes slightly lowered.
A silver robe.
His long silver hair was the same color as his robe, making him look like an angel.
Karl felt like the man might disappear from his presence at any moment.
No wonder he was able to sleep properly without any nightmares.
Varek must have beaten up that man and the other bullies in the charity base who always showed up in his dreams.
Karl’s lips curled.
He stood up from the bed and approached the man.
“Going out?”
“Hm.
I’m going to the academy.”
“Academy?” Karl was taken aback.
There was an academy in this place, too?
Would he be able to go to school then?
“Can I go with you?”
Varek’s fingers paused on the belt of his robe.
He lowered his eyes to the young man who barely reached his chest.
“You want to come with me?” His voice didn’t hide his surprise.
Karl nodded enthusiastically.
“I promise I won’t disturb you.”
He knew the original host was no longer a student.
A realization that surprised him because he was only 18.
Wasn’t he supposed to still be in school at that age?
But then again, he was already married.
It was obvious that 18-year-old children were no longer kids in Salibion.
“Please…” Karl begged.
He really wanted to see what a school looked like.
Varek’s eyes lingered on his face for a while.
“Okay.
Dress up and eat first.”
“The bath has been prepared for you.”
“Yay!”
Karl jumped up.
He rushed into the washroom where he had a quick bath.
Though he would have loved to stay longer.
He returned to the room.
The breakfast had been served, and just like the day before, Varek was only staring at the table without making a move to eat.
Judging from the dishes on the table, Karl realized the servants hadn’t served Varek’s breakfast.
‘Did he eat before I woke up?’
Karl believed that must be the case.
There was no way anyone would miss out on such delicious meals.
He sat down and wolfed down his breakfast.
By the time he was done, his belly bulged slightly under his purple robe.
He smiled stupidly and blinked at Varek.
“Let’s go.”
Varek nodded.
He reached out his hand.
Staring at the smooth, slender hand, Karl’s cheeks burned slightly.
He smiled bashfully and grabbed the hand.
The next moment, he let out a scream as his body suddenly lightened.
When he opened his eyes again, his view changed.
Varek held his hand tightly, eyes lowered, staring at him with a hint of concern in his deep blue eyes.
“Are you alright?”
Karl breathed slowly.
“I am.”
He looked around, and his eyes finally settled on Varek’s face.
“What was…” He paused and gasped.
He moved closer to Varek, almost hiding behind the taller man.
Some people were flying toward them.
Yes, flying.
Three men and two women.
One of the three men held another smaller man in his embrace.
Karl’s lips widened, forming an ‘O’ when the flying figures came closer and stopped in front of them.
Since Karl was young, only on Auntie’s phone had he seen flying people, and even then, the teachers would let them know that it was the work of technology.
However, not only did Varek suddenly disappear with him in the room and appear somewhere else, but some people were also flying in the air without the use of anything!
Karl’s heart raced.
The thrill was crazy.
“My Lord.”
“My Lord.”
The three men and two women bowed as they greeted Varek.
“Young Master, Karl.”
They also greeted Karl, whose face was still red from excitement.
Seeing the people greeting him, Karl could barely suppress his glee.
He tightened his hold on Varek and nodded forcefully.
“Karl.”
Someone called his name.
Karl followed the direction of the call, seeing a young man staring at him beside one of the three men.
It was the young man who was being carried earlier.
He was slim, slightly tall, and beautiful.
His delicate face made him look really pitiful.
The young man stepped forward.
He bowed shyly at Varek before grabbing Karl’s hand, pulling him close.
“You came!”
Karl smiled in return.
This was Lloyd, Karl Dawnspire’s best friend.
A fellow married young man.
Looking at the three men again, Karl recognized the tall and bulky man in the middle as Lloyd’s husband.
“Hm, I came,” Karl replied to him.
Karl looked at Varek, who nodded at him.
Though a bit reluctant, he still smiled at Lloyd.
“Let’s go.”
Lloyd dragged him away.
The street was bustling.
Men and women flew in the air.
Their robes fluttered, making them look extremely cool.
Young and old, it was as if everyone in the street could fly.
However, some walked on legs like Karl and Lloyd.
Karl looked at these people, realizing they mostly looked delicate like Lloyd.
The view was fascinating, to say the least.
People bowed to Karl along the way; the ones in the air, the ones on the ground, even the shop owners.
Their faces would morph into a big smile the moment they recognized Karl, and they would greet him warmly.
Karl’s lips pursed.
Being greeted so politely by many extremely powerful people made him a little uncomfortable.
Any one of them could easily squash him…
What they respected was Varek Dawnspire behind him…
“Where are we going?” He really wanted to return to Varek as soon as possible.
Lyold nudged him.
“What do you think?
You complained about your skin care last week.
I’ll recommend new ones for you today.”
“Skin care?” Karl raised a brow.
He’d never heard of that all his life.
Lyold took his hand and ran forward.
“Let’s go.
The shop won’t be open for long.”
Karl nodded.
He was also interested in this skincare.
The two ran across the shops.
By the time they stopped, they were both sweating and panting hard.
Karl pressed a hand to his chest, trying to steady his breathing.
‘It seems this body is weaker than I thought.’ Why else would he feel so exhausted from running for a few minutes?
“Let’s go in.” Lyold’s excited voice rang in his ears.
Karl looked at the building in front of him.
The same size as the shops he’d been seeing, a little grander, though.
The shop’s entrance had a metal door, one that seemed thicker than the doors at the charity base.
Different even.
Karl brushed his fingers on the door as they walked through.
Smooth.
Strong.
It really was different from the charity base doors.
“Hello, Young Master Karl.
Hello, Mr Lyold.”
A woman dressed in red robes walked over, greeting them.
She bowed deeply, and a small smile graced her face as she looked at the two young men before her.
“In need of new cosmetics?”
Lyold nodded.
“Yes.
Madam Leara, do you have new stock?”
Madam Leara covered her mouth and giggled.
“Come with me.”
Holding Karl’s hand, Lyold followed the woman.
They walked through the long corridor.
The smell of powders and perfumes wafted into Karl’s nose, giving him a brief sense of where this place was.
Soon, they were led into a room.
Karl was taken aback when he saw the room.
Different small bottles were placed on the counters.
Though he had no idea what was inside the bottles, the visual alone was appealing to them.
Pink.
Purple.
Black.
The bottles were in all colors.
Lyold beamed excitedly as he dragged him forward toward the counters.
“Madam Leara, we won’t disturb you anymore.”
Madam Leara laughed.
She bowed, turned around, and left.
“Karl, look at these.
They smell so good!”
“This should be good for you.
Test it.”
“You’ve used this one, right?”
For a moment, all Karl could hear was Lyold’s voice as he introduced many skincare products to him.
Karl listened attentively, his eyes brightening with each new product applied to his face or skin.
Everything looked new to him, and honestly, he liked them a bit.
“Lyold?” He called as they both walked toward the mirror to apply lotions to their faces.
Lyold, hugging a few bottles to his chest, looked at Karl.
“What’s up?”
Karl’s lips parted.
“Why are we so weak?
I mean, the gers?”
Yes, gers.
The word had suddenly appeared in his head the moment he saw the delicate-looking Lyold picking several bottles in the cosmetics shop.
He also knew that most of those people who were strolling on the street earlier were gers.
None of them could fly.
At least, none of the ones in his memory could.
Lyold turned to look at Karl.
He looked slightly confused.
“Weak?
Weren’t we born this way?”
Karl frowned.
Lyold laughed.
“Come.
That’s the mirror over there.”
He pointed to a corner.
Karl followed him there.
He stared at his reflection in the mirror.
Karl’s expression changed slightly.
The person in the mirror was really different from his real self in his past life.
Softly defined face.
Carved eyebrows, long eyelashes that kept fanning his face whenever he blinked.
Watery silver eyes…
the same color as Varek’s hair.
Karl reached out, involuntarily touching his new face.
“Really beautiful.”
However, everything about the face screamed ‘delicate’…
It was a bit uncomfortable for Karl.
His old face had been rougher.
His skin was darker from years under the sun.
His body had been thin, scarred, and bruised.
This body was beautiful.
But Karl didn’t want beautiful.
He wanted strong.
“Weren’t we born this way?”
The words repeated in Karl’s ears.
His lips pursed.
‘I don’t want to be weak, though.’
‘I can’t afford to be weak…’