Rui opened his eyes.
Barely.
He woke up, but the pleasure that enveloped his body was deep.
He wanted to close them again.
"Hmm..." He heard a sleepy moan.
He glanced down.n(.0vElbIn
Senior Xanarn was asleep next to him, resting her head on his bare chest.
For a moment something felt off.
Something was deeply off.
Yet before he could even consider it, a wave of deep serenity and satisfaction washed over him, soothing his mind.
He glanced around the room.
('This... This is my room in the Quarrier Orphanage,')
Suddenly, another pang of uncertainty struck his heart.
Something was wrong.
Yet his mind relaxed before he felt the need to investigate further.
"Mmm... You woke up?" Senior Xanarn murmured sleepily.
"Did I wake you up...?"
"The change in your heartbeat did," She murmured sleepily.
She opened her eyes, staring straight at him. "Did you have a nightmare?"
Rui tried recalling what he dreamed.
"Just now... I was in the first round of the Virodha Martial Contest," Rui murmured. "You know, the one that I won and became the champion of to secure your treatment all those years ago?"
"No? I don't remember that," She said with a hint of mischief. "Are you talking about the one that you told me about more than a hundred times until I became deaf in addition to being blind? That one?"
"Funny,"
She giggled as she hugged him sleepily. "Did you have a dream about that?"
"...Dream?" Rui murmured.
A deep flash of fear struck his heart.
Something was off.
"Hey," She glanced at him with concern as she detected the change in his heartbeat, embracing him closer. "Are you ok?"
The warm soft skin of her body pressed against his as she wrapped her body against him, soothing him.
"Yeah, something like that," Rui nodded.
"Rui! Why don't the two of you come for breakfast?" A voice called out to him.
He became aware of his surroundings again, recalling where he was.
This was Mayra's voice. She was in charge of the kitchen and meals, and she often scolded the members of the orphanage for being late to a meal.
"You should go," Senior Xanarn murmured sleepily as she untangled herself from him.
Rui nodded as he got up, putting on some clothes before heading out.
The familiar corridor of the Quarrier Orphanage leading to the main staircase was one that was burned in his mind. It was exactly how it always was.
"Good morning everybody," Rui wished them, receiving an equally enthusiastic wish from the children and the adults.
"Is Xanarn not coming yet?" Lashara asked, pulling Rui into a deep hug.
"No, she's still a little tired and sleepy," Rui replied.
"Hehe, you two must have gone at it all night," Max laughed.
"I can hear you two at night, you know," Mana murmured, blushing.
BANG!
Rui dropped a fist on both their heads.
"Ow!"
"What was that for?!"
"Learn tact," Rui firmly instructed.
"You didn't have to hit us that hard!"
"Stop complaining," Rui tutted. "You've broken through to the Squire Realm and recently gotten Martial Bodies, you should be able to handle this much."
He froze.
Another wave of uneasiness washed over his heart.
Something was off.
"Bullying children is not nice, Rui," Julian drew away his attention with an amused smile.
"They're Martial Artists before they are children," Rui snorted.
Lashara directed a pointed gaze at him.
"...Of course, they're your children before they're Martial Artists," Rui sighed, conceding.
"Hehe, mama to the rescue!"
Rui chuckled, admitting defeat as he took a seat at the table.
His eyes narrowed as he sensed Martial Artist presence in the vicinity. "...So many Martial Seniors..."
"They've been around for years," Alice remarked. "You were the one that hired them to protect us from Chairman Deacon all those years ago, remember? Honestly, you should get rid of them since you've already killed that man."
Rui froze.
Another profound surge of uneasiness washed over him.
"What's the matter, dear?" Lashara asked with a concerned expression.
She had managed to sense his emotions even without the super hearing of Senior Xanarn.
It was a testament to how much she loved him.
His uneasiness washed away.
"I was just thinking about that..."
"Are you still feeling guilty for what happened back then?" Lashara sighed, asking with a concerned expression. "We've all told you, haven't we? We've long forgiven you for that. You left us in order to protect us. How could we ever not forgive you?"
His heart beat heavier as the profound sense of uneasiness returned.
He glanced around the table.
Everybody was happy and merry.
It should have been everything he ever wanted for his family.
Yet despite that, he couldn't shake this deeply unsettling sensation in his heart.
Something was wrong.
"I think I'm gonna take a walk outside..." Rui replied. "Need some fresh air."
"What about breakfast?"
"It's fine, I'm not that hungry anyways," Rui replied as he took to the air, sky walking away at top speed until he reached the town of Hajin.
"Hey, Rui!" He heard Kane calling out to him out of nowhere.
"What are you doing here?" Rui asked with a surprised expression.
"We were all waiting for you," Kane told him.
"We?" Rui's eyes widened as he suddenly spotted Fae, Nel, Hever, Milliana, and Dalen.
"You were going to train us, remember?" Kane asked. "On the VOID algorithm."
"What?" Rui asked with a shocked expression.
"Did you forget?" Kane tilted his head. "You perfected the VOID algorithm, you successfully finished Project Water, and you created the ultimate Martial Art that embodies the very essence of Bruce Lee's philosophy to the core."
It was no longer just a wave of uneasiness.
Something was wrong.
Not with him, however.
Something was wrong about the very fabric of this world.
"I completed... Project Water?" Rui asked.
The uneasiness turned into a terror as he made a realization.
"No... I did not," Rui's eyes narrowed. "I know I did not complete Project Water."
"You're wrong Rui," Kane stared into his eyes.
"No, you're wrong," Rui grew more certain by the second.
He turned around looking at the world around him. "This world is wrong!"
CRACK CRACK CRACK!
The very fabric of reality began cracking like glass, before completely shattering.
