CHAPTER 194: YLTHARA, ONCE AGAIN

The golden afternoon sun draped the carriage in warm light as it rolled steadily down the dirt path, wheels crunching over dry leaves and scattered twigs. The forest around them had mellowed—no longer dense or threatening, just peaceful. Somewhere ahead, past the thinning trees and low stone walls, Ylthara waited. The road they followed curved through the hills like a ribbon unwinding slowly toward fate.

Kai sat beside Vepice on the front bench of the carriage, the reins held loosely in his gloved hands. The horses trotted at an even pace, calm and used to the routine. Vepice leaned slightly into his shoulder, her legs curled beneath her on the seat. The warmth of her presence was grounding, and for once, there was no looming threat.

No spells being flung, no monsters hiding in the trees.

Just wind and the faint sound of birds and other creatures.

It was rare.

A quiet moment.

That made her words feel heavier when they came.

"Kai," she said softly, tracing a line across the worn wood of the bench. "Do you remember your other life?"

He glanced down at her. "You mean... before I was reincarnated?"

"Yeah. I’ve always wondered... what kind of person were you? What happened to you?"

Kai exhaled slowly through his nose. "I remember. It wasn’t a great life. I mean, it wasn’t terrible. I had friends. I played games. I had a dog. But..."

"But?"

He gave her a lopsided smile. "I died in the most pathetic way imaginable."

Vepice sat up straighter, blinking. "Wait... what?"

Kai stared at the road ahead as he told her.

"My name was Luke. I was a little older than I am now. I’d just lost a lot, including my spot in the guild I was in. I was sulking, bitter, carrying a stack of dishes down the stairs because I’d been told off by my mom. Bert, our Labrador, was sleeping at the bottom of the steps. Fat, lazy thing. I tripped right over him."

Vepice’s eyes widened.

Kai chuckled. "Fell down the stairs. Tried to catch myself. A dish shattered under me. One of the pieces slit my throat open."

"No..." she whispered, her voice shaking.

"Yeah. It was fast. I couldn’t breathe. There was blood everywhere. My mom came out from the hallway and just... stood there. Watched me die. Didn’t scream. Didn’t call for help. Just looked... disappointed. She said I should have died in a more responsible way."

He stopped. The reins trembled slightly in his hands. The horses slowed.

Vepice’s hand found his, fingers lacing through his gently. "Kai..."

"It’s okay," he said, smiling without humor. "It’s funny, in a way. My last thoughts were about how embarrassed I was. Not pain. Not fear. Just like... ’Seriously? This is how I go out?’" He looked up at the sky. "Next thing I knew, I was in darkness. Then I met her. Demeris, I mean. She offered me this second life. Power. Purpose."

A breeze stirred her hair. The forest felt hushed.

"You shouldn’t laugh about something like that," Vepice said, wiping a tear from her cheek. "You died alone. That’s not something to laugh about."

He looked at her, surprised. "You’re crying?"

"Of course I am! That’s... that’s horrible, Kai! I can’t imagine being so unloved in your last moments. Or dying in such a stupid, stupid way-" She sniffed and wiped her face. "And you just act like it’s fine..."

’It doesn’t hurt any less to be told that my death was stupid by someone else.’

He turned to her fully now, setting the reins down. His voice was quiet. "I act like it’s fine because it is fine. Now."

"But-"

"No." He reached out, gently brushing her hair back behind one ear. "That life ended, but this one began. I got to meet you. To fight. To live. I get to choose what I become. I’m not bound to what I was, or how I died."

Vepice lowered her eyes, tears brimming in the corners.

Kai’s tone softened. "I don’t want you to feel sorry for me. I’m not ashamed of that death anymore. It gave me this life. And in this one, I’ll make sure things are different. I have the power to change everything. If not now, then I will eventually."

Vepice nodded slowly, her fingers tightening around his. "Then I’ll be with you. For all of it. Even if your past hurts... I want to know it. All of it."

Kai smiled.

Genuinely, this time.

"That means a lot, Vep."

"Vep?"

"You don’t like it?"

"Well... It’s not that... You’ve just always called me Vepice... N-novody has ever given me a nickname..." She blushed.

They sat in silence for a few moments, letting the last of the conversation sink between them like falling leaves. The sun dipped lower in the sky, shadows stretching long over the road ahead.

Then Vepice said, "Bert? That was the dog’s name?"

Kai laughed. "Yup. Sweet, lazy, and completely unaware he ended a life."

"I hope you get to see him again someday."

"...Yeah," Kai murmured, eyes soft. "Me too."

"Does that mean you’d go back to your old world?"

"Probably not. If I could, I’d just summon him over here. But, if time travels the same way, he would have died a long time ago."

The carriage rolled onward.

The late afternoon sun broke through a cover of thin grey clouds as the winding road crested a low hill, giving Kai and Vepice their first glimpse of Ylthara.

Not the city itself, no, that still lay hidden behind several more turns in the road and some stretches of hills and trees, but the great barrier that defined it.

A dome of soft, violet shimmer stretched into the heavens, smooth and still as glass, like someone had sealed off a part of the world with magic and told it to stay frozen in time. It was as vast as Kai remembered. As silent. As suffocating.

He tugged on the reins absently, slowing the horses without thinking.

Vepice looked at him. "You okay?"

Kai didn’t respond immediately. His eyes were locked on the glowing dome in the distance, his jaw tight.

"I’ve seen it before," he finally said. "I’ve been here before."

Vepice tilted her head. "You never mentioned it."

He let out a long breath. "I didn’t want to."

The quiet thrum of the carriage wheels faded into silence between them.

"That barrier," Kai continued after a while, "it’s what kept them trapped. My friends. The ones I lived with. The ones who never got out. The unwanted. Orphans. Runaways. They couldn’t even leave. The city wasn’t just a prison because of how people treated them. It was a prison because of that dome."

He gestured toward it, his hand trembling slightly.

"They said it was for everyone’s protection. That it kept the monsters out." He glanced at her. "And maybe they were right. Those same arcane beasts... they came from the forest near where I found you. And if they came knocking, Ylthara would burn without something like that to stop them."

"Then it is protection," Vepice said quietly.

Kai shook his head. "It’s both. A cage and a shield. And we were the ones caught in the middle."

They said nothing more as the city drew closer. Trees thinned. Roads widened. Caravans and travelers appeared along the roadsides, all slowly drifting toward the guarded checkpoint at the base of the barrier.

When they were nearly upon it, Kai reached into his coat, into a tiny slit sewn into the inside lining, and retrieved a weathered envelope. The real thing. No trickery. No illusions. A genuine letter.

He remembered the moment it was handed to him. After he fought Grond the ogre. During the trip to Ylthara with Rael. After they had slain several arcane beasts together. Ognacious Karthiem, a well-dressed merchant with a panicked laugh and shaky hands, had pressed it into his hand with tearful thanks.

’A recommendation to my trading company. Might be useful if you ever need resources or connections.’

Connections and resources weren’t the reason Kai would finally use it, of course.

The guards stepped forward as the carriage slowed. They were professional, polished, draped in violet tabards with enchanted polearms at the ready. They didn’t look hostile, but they didn’t look particularly welcoming either.

One squinted at the carriage, then up at the two riders. "Where is your driver?" he asked, mildly confused by the lack of escort.

Before Kai could respond, Vepice lifted her chin and placed a dainty hand on his shoulder. Her voice was clear and practiced.

"This is my driver," she said coolly, "and my traveling companion. We don’t hire help. We don’t need it."

Kai barely managed to keep a straight face.

’Where the hell did she learn how to do that?’ he thought, dumbfounded.

The guard turned to Kai, raising a brow. "Is this true, sir?"

"It is," Kai said with practiced ease. "We’re here to see an old acquaintance. Ognacious Karthiem."

Recognition flickered across the man’s face.

"The merchant?"

"The very same," Kai said, producing the letter with care and offering it forward. "He provided this some time ago."

The guard took the envelope delicately, opened it, and scanned the contents.

’Luckily I still kept it sealed. I don’t even know what’s inside...’

His brows rose.

"A letter of recommendation," he murmured. "From Karthiem himself."

He looked up with a new expression.

Something between admiration and disbelief.

"That’s more than enough. Apologies for the delay."

With a nod, he waved to the others. The barrier shimmered. A narrow slit peeled open at its base, just wide enough for a carriage to pass.

The guard handed back the letter.

Magic coiled like steam around the gap.

As the horses stepped forward, Vepice relaxed in her seat. "We’re really here, huh?"

Kai nodded once. "We are."

She turned to him with a bright grin. "Let’s go get me assessed!"

Her excitement lit up the carriage like a lantern. She dropped the act of the noblewoman instantly, her real voice full of energy again.

Kai smiled faintly.

The city ahead was one of ghosts and regrets for him.

But maybe, just maybe, it could be something different for her.

He’d make sure of it.

Nobody would hurt her, and if they tried... They’d die.