Life didn't get easier, even in another world.

Chapter 381 Explanation

In a neatly arranged office inside the headquarters of the strongest military organization in the continent, a group of people was sitting on sofas around the table, staring at each other in silence.

"...."

"...."

"...."

"...."

On one side was the commander of SMF, and the team leader of unit 5 of SMF's special units.

On the other side sat Kairen with his brother. Alan was sitting in between the two groups, watching them without saying anything.

"Ahem!"

Kairen coughed awkwardly and lowered his head.

At first, he didn't want to go to SMF's headquarters, not on the first day that he was back. He wanted to go back home and rest, then come to explain the situation to the others. He even considered if it was necessary to go back to that organization. It would bring him danger and unknown risks, after all. He couldn't guess how would they react to the fact that Kairen was still alive. But it out out of the question. Of course, he had to go back to SMF. First of all, Kain was still in SMF's hospital. Kairen had to check on his condition and make sure he was alright. Also, to help him wake up from his coma, Kairen needed SMF's help. In addition to that, there was something that he needed to do. Reynold had assigned him a mission before he left The Void, a mission to activate a mechanism with his power. Kairen was sure that he couldn't do that without SMF's notice, and even if he did, they'd come to find him soon enough. The situation would get even more complicated if things developed in that way.

On top of all of that, he wanted to go back to work. He didn't like this job at first as it was dangerous and scary, but now he didn't think the same. Kairen couldn't imagine himself in another job, and he couldn't stay unemployed either.

Of course, whether SMF allowed him to go back to work or not wasn't known yet.

He also had to see his friends and talk to them. Kairen missed Reyan and Serria, his only friends, and also his coworkers.

"So... Um... Hi."

Kairen scratched his cheek and chuckled nervously.

To make things progress faster, he asked Alan to bring both Team Leader Dains and the commander to the meeting room, so that he could explain everything in one go. It would also help the others believe him. If the commander used his power on Kairen and forbid any lies, then everyone could believe him easier.

Kairen didn't know how Alan managed to drag the commander of the organization here on such short notice. The commander sure was super busy, so Alan must've pulled something big in order to make him come all the way here in a short time. Kairen thought Alan was seriously amazing.

"...What exactly is going on here?"

"I'll explain everything, team leader. First of all, I'm still alive!"

Kairen responded to team leader Dains in an excited voice. The man shut his mouth again and continued to stare at him in silence.

'Ah man, this is so hard...'

Kairen turned to the commander who was silent the whole time.

"Um... Can you use your power on me, please? Arrange it in a way that I won't be able to lie..."

"...Alright. You are only allowed to tell the truth."

The man was hesitant yet he did as Kairen asked. A faint light spread out from his eyes before the restrictions were placed on Kairen. Taking a deep breath, he began explaining the situation.

. . . . .

After about half an hour, Kairen was finally done talking to the commander and the rest of the people present. As he didn't want to leave any doubts, Kairen also revealed a few secrets that Reynold has told him. He had agreed with Reynold prior to coming to this world that it would be alright if these people knew about those secrets. They were the same facts that Reynold exposed to Daniel.

A deep silence descended in the room once Kairen finished his explanations. Kairen thought of it as natural as they needed some time to digest the information and arrange their minds. However, he was a little bit worried about Alan, who was the most shaken person among the rest.

He just learned about the reason behind his curse and the fate of his friends, and his companions. It sure wasn't easy to learn about all of them in such a short time. Kairen wanted to give him some time so he tried not to bother him.

'What do I do now...'

Everyone needed some time to organize their thoughts, so Kairen wondered what could he do in the meantime. Of course, the only thing he wished for was to go back home.

-That's right, it's just like that.

Right then, a voice echoed in Kairen's ears.

-I taught you anything I knew. The rest is on you.

-But I'm sure you still have a lot to teach me, master.

-I told you not to call me your master.

-Who cares about your idea, huh?

One voice turned into a conversation between a few young men and went on. Among them, there was a specific voice Kairen often heard.

'Ignore them. I'm ignoring themmmm~'

Kairen did his best to ignore the conversation as he was told.

But then, he felt something amiss. Things just didn't feel right... Wasn't he in SMF's office? But now, he was sitting in a small and old room. The commander and the rest were also gone and now a bunch of youths were sitting on some wooden chairs, around a large table that looked damaged.

'What...'

Before he could look around, Kairen realized something unusual about himself. Looking down, he could see a large, thin, and light piece of clothing wrapped around his body instead of his shirt. And pants. It resembled the clothes he had seen in hysterical movies.

'What...is... Going on...'

He began talking.

"I explained everything I could!"

The voice was distant yet familiar.

"...en.." A faraway voice entered his ears. "R...n..." It kept getting closer. "Ren!"

A sturdy hand shook his shoulder.

"Whah-"

Kairen jolted up and sat straight. He was in the office room with the commander and the others.

"Hey?"

He turned to Aaron who had a hand on Kairen's shoulder.

"Hmm?" Aaron tilted his head with a frown, but before he could say anything, Kairen stated something.

"Can we continue our conversation tomorrow? I'd like to rest a little bit."

Cold sweat was dripping down his cheek.

'Did I fall asleep? Was I hallucinating??'

Kairen wiped the sweat off his face.

'Or was it a memory just now?'