Chaos and Order - A Multiverse Fanfic

C47: Selena Hao

Kai sat there like a lifeless man in the company of a child.

It troubled him.

The last temple, and what little Hao had told him about it, made Kai think that the game wasn't as simple as he had thought.

When he first came to the Primordial Tower, he had thought it would be just about killing, ascending, becoming powerful in the worlds, and repeating the process. Now, he would have to retake every step he had trodden, trying to find a cause, a reason which hadn't existed before in his mind.

The first of those steps was his Luck.

Kai shook his head, trying to shake off the uneasy feeling in his mind. There was no reason to dwell on things that he didn't understand fully yet.

Let's go to the Guild, Kai thought. Use my father and steal some Mission Credits, weapons, and materials. Go to the battle, and return to the Random World. Yes. Let's start with becoming powerful.

But just as he turned around, the boy who looked as if he had passed out called out to him.

"Wait..." little Hao said meekly. "You going to the Silver Hunters Guild?"

Kai frowned. "Yes."

"Don't go there," the boy said, opening his swollen eyes a little. "Mother said something bad had happened there 3 days ago."

"What bad?" Kai asked, casually.

"I don't know, but my mother does," Little Hao said, trying to sit up. "You can take me there and ask for it from her. She will tell you, I promise."

Is he setting me up for some ambush? Kai asked himself. But who can dare to attack me below the 4th floor and live to tell the tale?

Kai smiled. He grabbed the boy's hand and flung him over his shoulder. "Point the way."

*

*

Knock! Knock!

"Who is this?" a shrill, panicked voice demanded from inside.

The wooden door looked hanging on its hinges and there was a plate bolted on the door saying...

This House is the property of the Empire.

Kai stared at the plate as the boy put his mouth against the door. "Ma, it's me!"

The sound of hastened steps rustled out, reaching Kai's ears.

The doors flung open inwards, and Kai saw the woman, then. She was smaller than him but had long legs for her height. Common black-brown eyes and black hair couldn't hide the frailty of her face. Though she looked ill, the paleness of her skin made her look even more beautiful.

The woman gasped.

"Hao, are you alright?" she asked, her hands running all over the boy, checking for any fresh blood. "Who did this to you?"

Only then did the woman seem to notice Kai.

She glared at him murderously, biting her lower lip. "How heartless can you be to beat a child like that?" she demanded, fighting back the tears. "What did my little Hao do to you? Tell me. You want Credits, right? How much does he owe you?"

Kai smiled wryly. The boy came to clear the misunderstanding.

"No, ma," Little Hao said. "He helped me. That fat rascal had caught me in the deserted street. If it wasn't for the big brother, he would have taken my Card."