"Do you think Mother has also returned?" Leo asked, his fingers intertwined with Ayla's. They both had left the room after hearing the carriage sound without any delay.
Ayla's grip on Leo's hand became more firm upon hearing the innocent question; she licked her lips and paused before smiling at her little brother.
"...Don't worry, Leo, she will come back soon."
Leo's eyes shook as if he had heard these words countless times before, yet his mother never returned. He sulked and started to look down before muttering.
"...It's already been a year since she left."
Ayla's mouth opened and closed several times; she was unable to decide on what to say anymore. She let out a sigh, then nodded with a cheerful smile.
"Leo, let's hurry, or we will be unable to greet Father at the entrance."
She pulled him ahead, her hand giving warmth to the boy with blackish-blonde hair.
He turned to look back and shouted as he got dragged by his elder sister.
"Butler, please carry Mr.Nits!"
The butler continued to walk behind them with slow steps; seeing the grey ball of fur jump from Leo's side, he quickly caught him.
'First the father was not at home for months, now even the mother. What's wrong with this family? They have left their children alone all this time. It's a blessing they are so well-mannered and kind even after all that negligence.'
My mind has been observing their every action till now; their honest behavior, love, and care for each other were genuine. Ayla seems to have been taking care of Leo from an early age as well.
But there was a limit to what could be done by a sole child; she would never be able to fill the gap of a parent Leo has been feeling.
Sigh…
Ayla's steps bounced on the floor. She started to walk faster and looked at Leo with a small smile.
"It will be alright…" She whispered sweetly.
'Well, let's see what kind of person this Lord Owen is.'
Giving full control to the body, I let it move as he wished it to. He would walk straight, then take a right turn and come downstairs following the children's footsteps, and then came the view I was oddly familiar with.
A hall with a chandelier above illuminating the surroundings, the place furnished with items that could definitely be called expensive. But there was something else that left a bitter taste in my mouth.
'It's the same place me and Franz had come to...'
There was no denying it now; this place was the past. To be exact, it should have been around fifty years ago.
'But is the head of the family a transcendent or his son?'
Based on the answer to this question, I could at the very least predict the day when all of them will die. It was not the best thing to think about right now, but I better be prepared now. My luck was never good to begin with; if this time I have a chance to change something, I might as well do it.
But as always, fate was not on my side…
Like cold water, a realization washed over me, waking me up from those childish dreams of being a hero for no reason.
As the doors opened, the carriage first came into view, from which two people came down one by one. But my focus was not on them, I swiftly took control over the bodies' eyes, making them forcefully squint to get a clear picture of what was beyond them and very far away to see.
There I saw it, the borders of the mansion; the walls surrounding us were not made of bricks or wood. They were made of a grey fog. The grey fog was high, covering the whole mansion in its grasp; it was tall enough to reach the sky. But it was not an ordinary fog that made it hard to look past it.
It was a fog that was comparable to a barrier beyond which nothing existed.
Feeling resistance trying to push away my commands, I let go of my control and came to a halt.
I couldn't think of anything anymore…
But why was I so disappointed? Was it because no matter what I do here, nothing will change in the future? No, it was because a small hope has ignited in me. Maybe I can change the past from here… Maybe I will be able to save my village.
I had let these thoughts cloud my judgment…
The past cannot be changed; it is an undeniable fact.
I soon calmed down, my eyes again following the butler's actions.
Leo and Ayla ran toward the man that had just come down from the carriage. His hair looked the same as Leo's, a shade of blackish-blonde, but his eyes were different; they held a chilling coldness in them.
"Father!" Leo jumped at him, his hands wrapping him in his embrace.
But Owen didn't even flinch; he looked at Leo with a tired gaze and gently pushed him away, leaving him in shock.
"Huh?"
Ayla, who was about to do the same as Leo, stopped, her hands almost ready to hold her father.
"You both need to learn how to behave." He said coldly, his gaze not lingering on them for long.
Ayla, left stunned, looked at the woman behind him. She was a woman in her late twenties, an enchantress. Her dress revealed her shoulders, a purple gown that wrapped her completely, leaving an impression of a seductress. But she was not what it seemed; her eyes held an undeniable warmth. She moved with grace, her hand touched Owen's shoulders, and gently tapped them.
"You should not get angry with these children; they must have missed you terribly."
Her words felt like the melody of a flute, and without knowing it herself, Ayla found herself nodding. But Leo was not aware of what was wrong or right. He looked left and right, searching for someone else, and then asked loudly.
"Where is Mother?"
The maids waiting behind started to whisper only to get silent after hearing a loud grunting sound.
"She will soon come… and you will see her, don't worry." Stopping Owen once again, the woman said with a smile.
Ayla, seeing tension rise in the air, smiled at her father, took a step forward, raised one side of her hem, and did a courtesy greeting.
"Welcome back, Father. I hope your journey was bountiful."
Owen didn't say anything in return; he ignored her and took a step forward.
"Maid, go and prepare a room for our guest. Butler, go bring the suitcase inside the carriage to my office."
Leaving those words behind, the man and the woman left. Ayla looked down and bit her lips tightly; a small drop of blood left a trail on her lips as she stood there motionless.
"Huh, Leo, wait!" Coming out of her daze, she saw Leo run inside the mansion, tears streaming down from his face.
But sadly neither the butler nor the maids followed them as they moved to perform their assigned duties.
'A stranger was more warm to them than their own father...'
For some moments I was unsure what to do; this event was not something I could even hope to intervene as the restrictions had gotten stronger the moment I had squinted my eyes.
Mr.Nits, the grey fur cat, left the butler's grasp without any effort and ran to the garden; no one cared enough to follow him.
Seeing both children run away, my heart felt heavy; I wanted to do something, anything. But I stopped myself. Currently even my own survival is at stake; if I try to do something, the small control I have left may get stripped away, and I will be left trapped in this unknown place forever.
The butler gave a fleeting glance toward the entrance, then moved to get the suitcase left in the carriage. It was a brown bag, quite large for its size, and held a weird weight upon holding it.
'My first priority is survival, then finding a way to escape this place.'
The butler moved through the hall, his eyes focused on the stairs. He sighed, his gaze heavy and tired. Then he started to walk toward the office in a robotic manner, his legs moving symmetrically and the maids near him repeating the same action.
'Wait, what's with this behavior?'
The people here moved like dolls, their movements stiff and controlled.
But previously it was nothing like that; when in front of the entrance, they had behaved regularly, and nothing felt wrong.
But now they all looked like puppets; my heart felt like a war drum as fear gripped it.
'Okay, let's avoid control for now.'
I need to be cautious now; this has been a lesson learned not just from Castor but from my own experience now. Every time a danger comes, I attack first, hoping to get the upper hand in the confrontation. But that approach was rash and barbaric. According to Castor's teaching, the enemies I have faced till now were simply inexperienced or plain and simple fools.
A real Awakened with great fighting skills and refined techniques should be Liber and Seth. They were the best example of impressive warriors; unlike the awakened from here, they both fought with grace and fully controlled power wielded by them. Their fight with the serpent and other beasts was a testament to this.
And for examples of great awakeners, it would be Gian, Sam, Sophia, and many more. They had learned how to hone their skills on the battlefield, unlike me, who fought on instinct and, well, luck, to be honest. They were much better than me in everything.
This was the reason I had been developing my own fighting skills, something that can be used solely by me.
Click—!
'Oh, have we already reached the office?'
The office held an unfamiliar warmth. As I entered, I saw Owen sitting in his chair signing some documents; the mysterious woman was nowhere to be seen.
The butler put the suitcase near the chair, he bowed his head once and left the room immediately, and there was no interaction between the master and his servant.
'I had hoped to get some information if they had talked.' I thought to myself, feeling perplexed on what to do.
"Eh?"
My mouth moved, but this time I was the one to release the sound. I hastily covered my mouth, hoping no one heard it.
The control of this body came back!
However, the control this time was not partial but rather whole; I could move the body as I wished and move my eyes in any direction I wanted to. But I still felt like a stranger in this body. Then all of a sudden creepiness crawled over me as I found myself being stared at by the maids.
'Let's think about what happened later.'
With that thought in mind, I moved like before, mirroring the butlers' and the maids' actions.
While walking down the stairs like a puppet, I tried to activate kairosflow. Now that I was in control of this body, I hoped that my abilities would come back as well, but sadly my thoughts didn't accelerate.
'Dammit!'
Silently cursing inside, I increased my walking speed and exited the hall, immediately seeing no one present there.
I left the mansion and found myself over the garden. The morning light hit my face, but there was no sun outside, only a grey wall made up of fog.
I licked my lips and cautiously walked toward it; the borders of mansions now looked bigger than ever.
Reaching them, I slowly raised my hand. My chest felt on fire and my breathing heavy, but I was not tired.
Just as I was about to touch the grey wall made up of fog, I stopped.
"Meow…"
A voice called from behind. Startled, I turned to see a cat on the ground. It was Mr.Nits, the pet of Ayla and Leo.
'It scarred me.' I sighed in relief but didn't let my guard down. I still have control over this body, so I was not completely powerless.
'What is he doing?'
I stared at the strange cat as it started to scratch on the ground with its nails. I leaned toward him, trying to see what it was doing.
The scratches on the ground soon started to form letters as my eyes widened in shock.
"Franz…"
His name was being written by the cat!