Pushing past the group of men and reaching for the door, Kaelis grabbed the handle and shoved it open with little care.
"Yo! What you talking about?"
His voice broke through the tense air like a hammer to glass.
Inside, two figures stiffened mid-conversation and turned to face the intruder. Recognition flickered in their eyes.
Kaelis grinned. "Kid. You survived, huh? I knew you had it in you."
He strode up without hesitation, slinging an arm around the startled boy's shoulders and poking his cheek as if greeting an old drinking buddy.
"So, Ikumi, how've you been since I last saw you? You look like crap, man."
The boy blinked, half-offended, half-baffled. His clothes were torn, his face smudged with soot, and exhaustion clung to his frame like a second skin.
"Uh, Mr. Kaelis… it's Ikoma, not Ikumi. And I've been—uh—holding up, I guess. Just… a few troubles."
"Tomato, tomãto. Close enough." Kaelis waved off the correction.
Ikoma's mouth twitched. He wasn't sure if the man was mocking him or genuinely that carefree.
"Sir Kaelis, you know Ikoma?" Ayame's voice came from the doorway as she stepped in, still trying to process his sudden appearance.
"Yeah," Kaelis answered casually, glancing over his shoulder. "Met him back when we were stuck in the prison area at the station. He was in a cage, I was bored, so we hit it off."
He turned back to Ikoma—then froze when his eyes landed on the girl beside him.
"Oh? And who's this?" He raised a brow.
He saw her back at the station fighting off Kabane and clearing a path for Ayame and a few others.
His grin widening into mischief. "Your girl? You two holed up in here all cozy-like? Wait—how old are you again? Sixteen? Seventeen? What's going on here, huh?"
"W-wait, that's not—!" Ikoma started, face reddening.
Kaelis ignored him entirely, crouching down a little to meet the girl's gaze. "Hey, little lady. Mind introducing yourself?"
The girl hadn't looked away from him since he entered. Her reddish-brown eyes gleamed with a strange mix of curiosity and caution.
She'd seen him before—back when the flying swords had rained from the sky—and the memory had burned itself into her mind.
His sudden appearance at the time was undeniably suspicious, but with the pressing threat of the Kabane hordes and the urgent need to reach the Iron Fortress, she had been forced to set her curiosity aside.
That mysterious power, that eerie composure. Now, here he was again.
"My name is Mumei," she said evenly. "Nice to meet you."
"What a lovely little lady," Kaelis replied with a playful bow. "Kaelis Valeblade, at your service."
Then, turning his attention to both of them, his grin returned—but his tone carried genuine curiosity this time.
"So… tell me. Where's this thing I keep hearing about—this intelligent kabane everyone's so worked up about? The… Kabaneri, was it?"
He tilted his head, eyes narrowing slightly with intrigue. "Because if that's true… I'd really like to meet one."
Ikoma stiffened up momentarily at the mention of "kabaneri," and Kaelis—whose arm was still slung casually around his shoulder—immediately felt the subtle shift in tension.
His grin faded into a curious smirk.
"Oi, Ikoma… you know something, don't you?"
Ikoma hesitated, glancing toward Mumei as if silently asking for permission. All he got in return was a nonchalant shrug.
With a quiet sigh, he admitted,
"Kabaneri… you mean us."
Kaelis blinked. "Wait—you guys are the kabaneri?"
He stepped back slightly, looking them over again as if seeing them for the first time.
"How the hell does that even happen? You weren't born like that, right? So… you got turned halfway?"
Kaelis got confused. Do they have immunity like walking the girl in the 'last of us'.
It can't be that it gave the virus up, can it?
"We're… something between human and kabane," Ikoma admitted at last.
Kaelis tilted his head, one brow rising in intrigue.
"Between? You mean like—half zombie, half human?"
He leaned in closer, eyes gleaming with curiosity and amusement.
"Sounds cool."
"It's not that simple," Mumei interjected, her tone calm yet cutting through his casualness.
"We were infected… but we managed to stop the virus before it reached our brains. Our hearts are encased in a membrane, strong enough to keep the infection from spreading further. We keep the power of the kabane—their strength, speed, endurance—but stay human enough to think, speak, and fight."
Kaelis's grin stretched wider.
"So basically—you're walking, talking discount Captain Americas with glowing hearts."
Ikoma blinked, trying to process that. "Discount… Captain Americas…?" he muttered under his breath, utterly baffled.
Kaelis gave a playful shrug. "You know—superhuman power, cool origin story, and a tragic misunderstanding by the masses. All you're missing is the shield and the tight spandex."
Mumei just stared at him blankly. "…What's a Captain America?"
He smirked. "Never mind, cultural reference. Point is—you've got a good deal going on. Stronger than humans, smarter than kabane, and probably hated by both. Classic recipe for drama."
Ikoma sighed. "And people still want us dead because of what we are."
Kaelis whistled low, shaking his head. "Figures. Give someone a gift, they call it a curse. Typical human logic—if it's stronger than me, burn it."
He crossed his arms, expression sharpening.
"Well, lucky for you, I'm not human enough to care about their paranoia."
"Um, Mr. Kaelis—"
"Call me Kaelis. The 'Mr.' is getting annoying," he interrupted, waving a hand lazily.
"That goes for you two as well." He turned to Mumei and Ayame. Both nodded quickly, not daring to argue.
"Okay, M—no, Kaelis." Ikoma stumbled, correcting himself. "Kaelis… what did you mean by 'not human enough'? Are you not human? Or… maybe you're something like us?"
That question caught everyone's attention. Mumei tilted her head slightly, Ayame's brows furrowed in curiosity.
Seeing their eyes fixated on him, Kaelis replied plainly, almost too casually.
"From a normal person's perspective," he said, "I'm somewhat of a god."
The three of them collectively sucked in a sharp breath.
"A… god," Ikoma echoed in disbelief.
Ayame's eyes widened, her mouth slightly agape.
But Mumei—sharp and inquisitive as ever—spoke up first. "Before, at the station… those flying swords. Was that your doing?"
"!" Ayame gasped, recalling the incident. At the time, they all thought it was an act of divine intervention. Kaelis's presence now didn't make that sound so far-fetched.
Kaelis didn't answer immediately. Instead—
Vroom
A glowing golden sword materialized beside him, humming with quiet power.
All three of them gasped.
He smirked, dismissing the weapon with a flick of his wrist.
"Does that answer your question?"
The room fell silent, the weight of revelation settling over them.
Ayame was the first to recover, though her voice trembled slightly.
"S-Sir Kaelis—"
"Kaelis," he corrected gently. "Just Kaelis."
"Um… Kaelis. Earlier, you said you were still at the station before coming here. So… you really weren't on the train at all?"
He grinned, eyes half-lidded with amusement.
"I did tell you. But you didn't believe me. Well—congrats, now you're a believer~."
Ayame blinked, still dazed. "I… I guess I am."
"Well then." Kaelis stretched his arms overhead with a relaxed sigh.
"Since we're done with the Q&A session—let's go outside and enjoy ourselves, shall we?"
Chapter 8 end