Supreme Hunter of Beautiful Souls-Chapter 421: Return of acquaintances

Kael ran a hand slowly across his face, like someone trying to wake from a particularly unpleasant dream.

"Haaah…" he sighed again, now more deeply. "Always like this. A quiet day lasts exactly five minutes."

Hela watched the gesture with genuine interest, the polite smile never leaving her lips.

"I'm glad to see your sense of humor survived the coma," she commented. "Some lose it. Others lose their minds. You seem to have kept both… for now."

"I'm still assessing," Kael replied, raising his eyes to her. "Especially the mind part."

Amelia stirred immediately.

She straightened up, releasing Kael's arm just enough to look her aunt directly in the eye. The temperature in the room dropped a little more, subtly, controlled.

"Aunt," she said, her voice firm. "You're not going to kill him."

Hela finally shifted her gaze from Kael to Amelia.

"Ah?" "And where does that come from?" she murmured, curious.

"Familia's gaze didn't waver.

"Both."

Irelia was already standing now, her posture too relaxed for someone about to enter into conflict, but with her aura dangerously aligned. She said nothing—she didn't need to.

Hela assessed the scene with clinical attention: Amelia on the right, Irelia on the left, Kael in the center, Adalric observing everything as if it were a private theater.

"Fascinating," she commented finally. "Truly fascinating."

She took a step back, crossing her arms.

"Which leads me to believe that, if I really tried to take him by force…" she tilted her head thoughtfully, "...we'd have a small diplomatic disaster. And a structural one."

Adalric chuckled softly.

"Small nothing," he corrected. "This would become a new hole in the map." Hela sighed theatrically.

"What a waste of paperwork."

Kael finally rose from the armchair, carefully. Not defiantly—but as someone who knew that remaining seated would only worsen the situation.

"Hela," he said, now more serious. "I'm not here to cause trouble."

"Of course not," she replied immediately. "You never are. They just happen… around you."

"I'm trying to stay out of politics," he continued. "For everyone's sake."

She stared at him for a few long seconds.

"Kael Scarlet," she said then, using his full name. "Prince of the Witch Empire. Just the son of the Chaos Witch Elion. Connected directly or indirectly to half the catastrophic events of the last decade."

She smiled.

"You're political, whether you like it or not."

Kael closed his eyes for a moment.

"Damn it…"

Amelia touched his hand.

The gesture was small. But it was impactful.

Hela noticed this too.

"That being said," the advisor continued, "I'm not here to drag you handcuffed to the palace."

Kael opened his eyes. "No?"

"Not today," she replied. "The Emperor wants to see you. Not interrogate you. Not judge you. Just… confirm with his own eyes."

"Confirm what?" Irelia asked.

Hela turned her gaze to her, assessing.

"Ah, don't worry, it's nothing serious. Just whether he can live here, or if it's better to kill him once and for all."

Kael let out a dry laugh.

"I hope to disappoint. And stop scaring them, he won't do anything. He's terrified of my mother and grandmother."

"Well, is there anyone in this world who isn't afraid of them?" Hela replied. "Anyway, you can come visit whenever you want."

She approached again, but this time stopped at a respectable distance.

"You don't need to go today. Or tomorrow." She tilted her head slightly. "But ignoring the Emperor indefinitely isn't a smart option."

"It's never been my strong suit," Kael retorted.

Adalric chuckled.

"Boy, you really chose the wrong family to be born into."

Hela turned, walking towards the door.

"Think of it as a courtesy," she said, without looking back. "An invitation. Not an order."

She stopped with her hand on the doorknob.

"Ah… and Kael?"

"Yes?"

She smiled slightly.

"If you flee the Empire… I'll go after you myself. And then, yes, I'll take the body. Alive or not."

The door closed behind her with a soft click.

The hall fell silent.

Kael remained standing for a few seconds.

Then he sank back into the armchair.

"...I really hate important people."

Amelia leaned back on him again, now without trying to hide it.

"You are too."

"Unfortunately."

Irelia exhaled slowly.

"At least she warned us."

Adalric raised his glass, completely satisfied.

"Welcome to the next phase of the game, boy."

Kael stared at the flames in the fireplace.

The fire crackled peacefully.

Kael let out a long sigh, one of those that seemed to come straight from the depths of his chest, carrying weariness, irony, and a slight existential despair.

"Go fuck yourself," he thought, lacking any mental elegance, picturing the Emperor's face in his mind just so he could cross it out with the most fitting word possible. And he'll take the whole political arena with him.

He ran a hand slowly through his hair, feeling the constant warmth of the fireplace contrast with the growing weight of the situation. All he wanted was silence. Time. Stability. But the world had an irritating talent for reminding him whenever he tried to breathe.

"You're thinking aloud," Adalric commented, his tone too casual.

Kael looked up, ready to retort sharply… and then stopped.

Something was different.

Adalric was no longer just relaxed in his chair. His body was leaning slightly forward, his lazy smile replaced by focused attention. In his left hand, he held an object that definitely hadn't been there before.

A sphere.

Small, translucent, with veins of light blue mana running across its surface like living ribs. A high-level communication artifact—ancient, expensive, and extremely specific.

Kael frowned.

"...Who are you talking to?" he asked suspiciously.

Adalric didn't answer immediately. He only tilted the sphere a little more, as if adjusting an angle.

"Ah, I'm finished," he said. "But I think you'll want to see this."

Kael's heart skipped a beat.

"See what?"

Adalric turned the sphere.

The surface rippled for a moment, the mana reorganizing itself... and then an image formed.

Short white hair, slightly disheveled, as if the person had run their hand through it several times without realizing it. Cold, attentive, light blue eyes, with that specific glint of someone who always analyzed everything around them like a battlefield.

A crooked, dangerous smile.

Eva.

The world stopped.

Kael froze completely, as if someone had severed all connections between his mind and body.

"...No," he murmured, almost inaudibly. "No. Not her."

Amelia felt his body stiffen instantly.

"Kael?" she called, worried.

Irelia looked from the sphere at him, recognizing the face immediately. Her eyes narrowed.

"That's...?"

"Eva Sparda," Adalric replied with excessive nonchalance. "One of the four. Queen of Swords. Professional mercenary. The Empire's recurring headache."

In the sphere, Eva tilted her head slightly, as if observing something out of frame.

"So that's where you were hiding him," she said, her clear voice cutting through the hall like a thin blade. "I should have guessed."

Kael swallowed hard.

"...Turn that off," he asked, without looking at Adalric.

"Too late," the man replied, amused. "She already knows."

Eva arched an eyebrow, bringing her face closer to the sphere.

"Wow," she commented. "You look better than I expected. Less dead."

"Eva," Kael finally managed to speak. "This isn't a good time."

"I disagree," she replied immediately. "It's an excellent time. You disappear from the world, go into a coma, wake up causing magical instabilities, and now reappear comfortably seated in the mansion of a Sword King."

She smiled a little more.

"I was bored."

Irelia crossed her arms.

"That explains a lot."

Amelia moved even closer to Kael, clearly assessing the threat.

"Is she dangerous?" she asked in a low voice.

Kael closed his eyes for a second.

"Very."

"I heard that," Eva commented, amused. "And I'm flattered."

Adalric twirled the sphere in his hand.

"I only casually mentioned that he was here," he said. "Nothing more."

"'Casually,'" Kael repeated, incredulous. "You informed a Sword Queen that I was in your house."

"Yes," Adalric replied. "And?"

Kael brought a hand to his face.

"I hate you all."

Eva laughed. A light, almost genuine laugh.

"Still the same," she said. "Always dramatic when he realizes he can't just disappear."

She then tilted her gaze, analyzing the background of the image.

"Interesting decoration," she commented. "And… hm."

Her eyes focused on Amelia. Then Irelia.

Her smile shifted.

"Ah," she murmured. "So that's how it is now."

The silence grew heavy.

"It's not 'like that'," Kael replied quickly. "Whatever you're thinking."

"Of course it is," Eva said. "It's always 'like that' with you. People orbiting. Unlikely bonds. Problems piling up."

She sighed.

"You're a magnet for chaos. It must be hereditary."

"Can I hang up now?" Kael insisted.

"Not yet," Eva replied. "I'm on my way."

The words landed like a dry blow.

"...What?" Kael's eyes widened.

"I'm already in the capital," she explained casually. "And now that I know where you are, it would be rude not to show up."

"Eva," his voice turned serious, "don't do that."

"Do what?" she tilted her head. "Visit an old acquaintance?"

"You never 'visit'," he retorted. "You trespass, test limits, and break things."

"True," she admitted. "But I promise to try not to destroy the entire mansion."

Adalric chuckled.

"No empty promises," he said. "I still like this place."

Eva glanced at him.

"Relax, old man. If I break something, I'll rebuild it later."

"That's not reassuring," Irelia commented.

Eva finally turned her full focus back to Kael.

"So," she said, more serious now. "You're going to stay in the Empire."

It wasn't a question.

"For now," Kael replied.

"Great," she smiled. "We have a lot to talk about."

The chaos within him stirred, restless.

"Eva…" he began.

"Later," she interrupted. "Rest. Enjoy the false sense of security. I'll be there soon."

The image began to dissipate.

"Wait," Kael said quickly. "No—"

The sphere darkened.

Silence.

Kael stared at the object for a few seconds, as if he could still force the image to return.

Then he sank back into the armchair.

"...No. Not her," he murmured, defeated.