Micheal could feel the anger in Charles’ voice as he spoke.
Inasmuch as he knew Kailen probably had his reasons for not contacting any of them after he left the planet, at least he should contact Arrie to let her know how he’s doing .
He sighed " Inasmuch as she acts bubbly and cheerful all the time, there’s no way she can hide that gloominess around her from us. She misses him"
" It’s understandable though. With all the commotion he’s causing in the Astral Empire , perhaps contacting us is the most unsafe thing for him to do at the moment" Micheal said "We are all aware that the Harkers and the Darkhavens, two of the most prestigious clans in the Astral Empire have placed bounties on his head right? He is probably laying low somewhere so till he figures out how to deal with them"
Charles sighed, giving in " Well, you have a point . But still.. never mind. I’m sure he knows what he’s doing. I just don’t like to see Arrie . Apart from playing with the kids and having a few rounds of conversations with us, she spends all her time training . She doesn’t even listen to music anymore. It’s like she’s isolating herself from everyone"
Micheal shook his head helplessly as he stared at Charles like he was the most dumb person on the planet.
" What?" Noticing Micheal’s expression, Charles was puzzled.
" You really are clueless " Micheal said " She feels useless. If there’s someone who wants to stand by Kailen’s side and help him weather his pain and suffering, it’s Arrie. However she is too weak to do that now" Noticing the expression of realization on Charles’ face ,he added "Naturally she feels very useless and incompetent as his woman. She’s not isolating herself from anyone idiot. She’s just focusing more on her training, just like we all are as his friends. It’s just that as his woman , she feels more pressured to become stronger than any of us"
" I see" Charles nodded " I guess instead of whining about that bastard not reaching out and making us all worry unnecessarily about his safety, we should focus on increasing our strengths. You only one step away from breaking into the A rank right ?"
Micheal coughed awkwardly " Actually I’m a step away from breaking into the S rank. And,also,you never heard this from me , Arrie is at the S rank now"
Charles sucked in a breath of cold air " You guys have caught up to me. How can your speed be so fast?"
" It’s not that our speed is so fast. With the resources Kailen has been sending us and the endless and gruesome training we’ve been putting ourselves through, it’s only natural that this happens . Also, Kailen’s issues have given us all a sense of urgency to increase our strength quickly. We can only sit back and do nothing when he is shouldering the burden of earth. Even those old foggies who are not in his inner circle are more stronger than the three of us. Sure, those guys are old monsters and all but we can’t remain weak either"
Charles could not argue with Micheal’s words.
" Very soon we will be able to attempt breaking though to the ascendant level and explore the universe to sharpen ourselves and broaden our horizons" Charles said "Only then can we be able to protect the people we love and shoulder the burden of this planet with Kailen. Also, I love to witness some commotion"
Micheal sighed , this guy was really a weird one.
Always thinking about commotion .
Arrie approached them with a smile on her face.
" How you holding up Arrie "
Arrie sighed deeply, but her expression turned bubbly the next second " I miss him big bro. But I understand . There’s a bounty on his head after all so he has to lay low for a while. I’m sure he will reach out soon.
Inasmuch as I’m worried about his safety, I know he’s fine. My Kai is not that easy to kill. As for those Harkers and Darkhavens , targeting him was probably the worst mistakes of their lives"
The duo nodded at her words.
They knew how terrifying Kailen was to those who crossed him. It never ended well for them.
The trio talked about mundane things and led the children towards the entrance of the Darkhaven orphanage that looked like someone’s estate.
In the bar, Kailen observed everything Arrie ,Charles and Micheal had been discussing through the lens of his shadow creatures protecting them from behind the scenes.
He really missed them, especially Arrie.
"I guess they are right. I’ve really been an ass to Arrie. I should visit her , after all, with this new identity, there’s no way anyone will notice it’s me . Also my loved ones are being protected by extremely strong people from the Alchemy Association ,so no one can cause trouble for them"
Kailen utilized umbral replacement and dissapeared from the bar as though he had never been there in the first place.
In a dimly lit room ,the chuckles of a young lady with white hair donned in some bunny looking pajamas could be heard as she kept looking at a hologram.
" Still a pink colored freak huh, dainty devil?"
Suddenly, she felt shock had spread through her whole body, as though she were hallucinating.
She turned ,only to see a stranger appear in her room. Brown hair , ordinary looks , casual shirt ,trouser and sneakers.
She did not recognize the face, but the words, the mannerisms ,were the same, the voice was even the same voice.
" Like my new look ?"
Arrie leaped into Kailen’s arms without even replying him or playing along with his shameless jokes.
" You... I missed you " Her voice was soft , cute and tender.
Kailen melted in the warmth of her hug. He had never felt more at home in his life.
" Did I tell you that time literally stops for me anytime we touch?"
Kailen lifted Arrie’s chin to make her face, face his own.
Arrie blushed at his words, her cheeks were literally red.
" She looks so cute " Kailen mused to himself.
" This new look is not bad. At least we are the same height "
Kailen chuckled " I wouldn’t be too happy if I were you, it is temporal ,only till I get into the Astral Empire Academy "
Arrie rolled her eyes , to which Kailen pulled her in ,and gave her a passionate kiss.