Returning home, the first thing Kyle wanted wasn’t food. He was hungry, that was true, but more than anything, he wanted a bath.
After the battle, he was covered in sweat, and nothing eased away fatigue better than a warm shower.
Honestly, staying at the hospital had drained him far more than the battle itself.
Taking off his clothes one by one, he tossed them in the basket before entering the bathroom.
"Haa..." Standing beneath the shower, he let out a sigh of contentment.
Warm water streamed over his body, washing away the dirt and exhaustion.
It felt nice to have warm water always prepared rather than waiting for it like at his old place.
Resting a hand against the wall, he lowered his head.
The day had been chaotic, but what lingered in his mind the most were the choices he had made during the battle and the greed that had driven him to act the way he did.
Under the shower he usually reflect on his actions. And right now, he was going through everything he experienced inside the arena.
From the target training to the sudden emergence of the rift...
That reminded him.
"How did that viewer enter the chat when I wasn’t even streaming?" he asked.
[The system is currently identifying the loophole that was exploited. The host may rest assured. Such an occurrence will not happen again.]
Kyle let out a quiet sigh. "It’s not like... it was harmful, to be honest."
That viewer had given him the motivation to stand against the Ghoul. Yes, he had made the wrong decision by activating Overlord right from the start. He could have weakened the monster first, then finished it with a few powerful attacks while hoping for the best.
But things hadn’t gone that way.
Even so, Kyle couldn’t bring himself to blame that... God of Mischief.
"System... can they watch me like that again and assign me quests?"
[Host?]
Kyle sighed again. "I sometimes forget to start the livestream during moments that would actually entertain my viewers. So don’t block that person from exploiting the loophole."
[However, the host could simply enable the Auto Livestream feature.]
Kyle raised an eyebrow. "What’s that?"
[The system will automatically begin the livestream whenever it judges the situation to be suitable. The chat will remain hidden so the host is not distracted. The system panel will only appear if a quest is generated.]
Kyle nodded. "That sounds exactly like what I need. But System, only stream when I’m in battle, okay?"
[The host may leave that judgment to the system.]
Kyle hummed to himself before turning off the shower and stepping out.
Feeling quite hungry, he quickly changed into a pair of shorts and a loose, plain white T-shirt.
Making his way to the kitchen, he decided to prepare something light since he had already eaten a carb-heavy lunch.
After checking the refrigerator, he took out some vegetables, meat, and the leftover cooked rice he had stored earlier.
He gave the rice a quick sniff. It still smelled edible.
Without wasting any time, he tossed everything into a pan and made a quick fried rice with soy sauce and his favorite spicy sauce.
He had always loved spicy food, and a simple meal of rice and chicken was filling without being too heavy, making it perfect for dinner.
Once it was ready, he transferred the fried rice into a bowl, grabbed a spoon and a glass of water, then headed to his room.
He powered on his PC and sat down in his chair. While it booted up, he scooped up a spoonful of fried rice and took a bite.
"Just perfect," he said, complimenting his own cooking with a nod.
He then picked up his phone and noticed a message from Amanda.
{Just got off. I’ll call you in an hour. Need to report.}
Smiling, he replied,
{Take your time. I’m back home.}
He set the phone aside and took another bite.
After finishing a few more mouthfuls, he placed the bowl on the table, opened a browser, and grabbed a pencil and a sheet of paper.
His mind drifted back to the flag he had seen inside the temple.
He sketched a rough copy of it, snapped a picture with his phone, uploaded it to his computer, and ran an image search.
He was certain he had seen the symbol somewhere before, but he couldn’t remember where. Hopefully, the internet could fill in the missing piece.
"Found it."
The results didn’t disappoint.
The image search led him to a blog written by someone named Charles Kenton. The post discussed the prominent families of Beldwiq City, located in eastern Guhang.
Kyle frowned as he scrolled down.
According to the article, the flag belonged to the Melcarth Clan, a prestigious family that carried the bloodline of Guhang’s former royal family before the kingdom became a republic two centuries ago.
"Wait... right. I’ve seen this before."
It wasn’t from the internet.
He had come across it in the family directory while studying Astortian history.
That was where he had first read about them.
The Melcarth Clan was one of the few noble families that had managed to preserve its influence even after the monarchy fell and the entire political system was transformed.
They were almost like royalty living among commoners.
Kyle didn’t know how Astortia compared to the Melcarth Clan, but he remembered his father always speaking of them with great respect.
As he continued reading, he learned that the Melcarth Clan had long been known for producing exceptional warriors through their ancient and traditional methods of training, much like the knights of old.
There was even a photograph of their cadets clad in bronze armor, the kind that was usually found only in museums.
"That explains Hashu’s way of speaking... and the armor," Kyle muttered.
He scrolled further.
Then his eyes froze on a familiar face.
The last generation of the Melcarth Clan.
The final surviving descendant, hailed as a prodigy who had won numerous competitions in archery, fencing, and swordsmanship.
He had even served in the military for three years before returning home.
Then, one day...
He vanished.
Kyle’s expression darkened.
If the information in this blog was accurate, then he knew exactly where that disappearance had led.
The temple.
Hashu had been an Awakened, which explained why he had already excelled in multiple competitive sports by the age of twelve.
According to the article, he continued serving his family until he turned twenty before eventually enlisting in the military.
"But a Nightwalker serving in the military..." Kyle frowned.
That was when a voice suddenly came from behind him.
"He more or less broke the law."
Kyle’s heart skipped a beat.
He shot to his feet and summoned his bow in a single motion before spinning toward the source of the voice.
There, perched casually on the windowsill with one long leg crossed over the other, sat a familiar girl.
The very same one who had fought beside him that afternoon.
"Maya?"
What was she doing here?
°°°°°°°
A/N:- Thanks for reading. I would really appreciate a review or maybe a comment to motivate me. Things have been down lately ( •﹏•)