Chapter 360: Was I a burden?

Silence stretched between them for what felt like an eternity.

Nearly fifteen minutes had passed since Kyle implanted those memories back into Blake, yet Blake had not spoken a single word.

The soft murmur of conversation around them had faded into the background, distant enough that Kyle could barely make out individual voices. Had Blake muttered even a few words, Kyle would have heard them. But he had not. He had remained unnervingly quiet the entire time.

"Umm..." Kyle began, only to stop when Blake suddenly raised a hand and reached for his phone.

Without the slightest hesitation, Blake dialed a number and pressed the phone to his ear.

The call connected moments later.

"You here?"

A brief hum came through the receiver before Blake continued. "Corella... can you do something for me without asking any questions?"

He paused, then added, "Please don’t come inside yet. I’ll come outside myself."

Kyle quietly exhaled. So Corella was already here to take him away, but Blake needed a little more time.

Kyle did not need to hear her response. Knowing Corella’s nature, she had most likely agreed despite whatever concerns she might have had.

Blake lowered the phone and, at last, looked up at him.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn’t punch you hard enough to break your nose."

Kyle instinctively leaned back, putting himself safely out of reach before answering.

"Because it would cause a commotion, and we’d both get kicked out?"

Blake narrowed his eyes. "And what if I bought this place right here and now?"

Kyle jerked back. "You wouldn’t go that far just to slap me, would you?"

Blake said nothing. He simply stared at him, his expression utterly serious.

Kyle let out an audible breath before finally speaking. "Okay, I was wrong. I shouldn’t have erased your memories."

Blake frowned. "You’re only guilty about that? Kyle, you chose to kill three people before stepping into that well of death for some unknown reason, and you still haven’t told me why. Since when did you become so grown-up that you thought you could handle something like that on your own?"

Kyle sighed. "I mean, you must have realized by now that I’m not the same person I once was."

"Are you still my younger brother? Just tell me that."

Blake leaned forward as he spoke.

Kyle had rarely seen the man this emotional, or this willing to let those emotions show. Yet the slight tremor in Blake’s fingers and the anguish reflected in his eyes spoke far more clearly than his words ever could. Kyle understood what he must have been feeling.

In a quieter voice, Kyle answered, "I am."

"Then why did you suddenly become so independent that my presence started to feel like a burden to you?"

Kyle shook his head. "I didn’t mean anything like that. Whatever I was going through, no one could have helped me. Even Veronica and Amanda were only allowed inside because they were too stubborn to leave."

Blake lowered his head. "If I couldn’t help, then at least I could have listened to your worries. Or maybe just sat beside you..." He looked at Kyle, warmth softening his eyes. "...just like the old times. We never needed words to comfort each other, remember?"

Kyle fell silent.

Blake was right.

He had been a constant source of support in Kyle’s life for as long as he could remember.

Back when Blake was still acting like a prick and playing the role of the family’s perfect child, he would often visit him. He rarely did anything. He would simply sit beside Kyle, reading something and pretending as though Kyle wasn’t even there.

And somehow, that had been enough.

It had comforted Kyle to know that someone cared about his existence enough to spend his precious free time simply sitting beside him.

Kyle lowered his head. "I was wrong. I admit it. I should have come to you sooner."

Blake did not respond immediately. He was still furious with the brat sitting before him, but his anger had been buried beneath the concern that weighed far more heavily on his heart.

"How... are you, Kyle?" Blake finally asked.

The bespectacled man knew that whatever Kyle had gone through, whatever had ultimately led to the reset of Earth, must have devastated him.

Kyle nodded. "Better now... thanks to Veronica and Amanda always being there, reminding me that they’re alive and that I have everything within my power to protect them."

Blake snickered. "Stop sounding so mature. Hopefully, you don’t get nightmares from all this."

Kyle shook his head. "I suppressed those memories enough that they wouldn’t haunt me." After a brief pause, he added, "But I kept them alive enough to remind me why I can’t afford to slack off and let them sink their roots into this world all over again."

Blake offered no comment. He simply stared at Kyle in silence.

Right now, he truly did seem different. So different that Blake could barely recognize the younger brother he had once known.

Yet Blake also understood that whatever Kyle had gained from the incident that shattered the world must have come at an immense cost.

In a softer voice, Blake asked, "You... purposely removed the memories of my accident, didn’t you?"

Long ago, Blake had been on the verge of leaving this world. That was when Kyle had saved him, and Blake had realized that his younger brother had awakened Genesis.

Even then, Blake had been surrounded by beings that looked human, yet fought and moved in ways no ordinary human ever could.

Kyle gave a faint smile. "And I regret it. Who would’ve thought they’d attempt another ambush on you?"

If Kyle hadn’t removed those memories, Blake’s first instinct would have been to run.

The memory of that incident had been traumatic enough that, even after everything he had experienced since then, merely glimpsing a fragment of it had brought back the same instinctive fear.

Kyle had perceived the ambush from far away and, realizing the danger Blake was in, had brought forward his plans to reunite with him, abandoning whatever schedule he had originally intended to follow.

Thinking about it now, Kyle took out his phone and sent a brief message to Amanda and Veronica, assuring them that everything was fine.

"Well, you were trying to help me," Blake said. "Because even now, after you’ve given me only a glimpse of that memory, I can still feel the chill in my bones."

Kyle understood exactly what he meant.

Blake’s condition had been dire back then. He had been far closer to death than Kyle had ever realized back then, and the only reason he had survived that attack was because of the miraculous potion conjured from the blood of a divine angel.

A moment later, Kyle glanced toward him and said, "You shouldn’t make her wait too long."

Blake remained silent for a moment before looking toward his phone, as though only now remembering that someone was waiting outside for him.

"Yeah," he muttered. "I suppose I shouldn’t."

They both got up at once and Blake said. "Give me your number and don’t you dare vanish again."

Kyle chuckled. "Don’t worry. I’m not going anywhere." With that, he handed Blake his new number.

The two brothers stood in silence for another moment, neither willing to be the first to walk away.

Then Blake slowly raised his hand.

Kyle assumed he was going to rest it on his shoulder, but halfway there, the gesture changed. His hand curled into a fist and—

Dhak.

It landed squarely against Kyle’s jaw.

Kyle staggered half a step, instinctively clutching his face before turning toward Blake with his brows raised.

Around them, the cafe had fallen strangely quiet. Conversations had died down one after another as people turned to watch the two men, clearly expecting the confrontation to escalate into a fight.

Instead, Blake merely looked at Kyle and said, "Save the rest for the next time I see you. We have a lot to settle."

Kyle stared at him for a moment before giving a wordless nod.

Blake adjusted his sleeve, smoothed it into place, and then walked out of the cafe without looking back.

Kyle remained standing there until a waiter cautiously approached him.

"Sir, are you all right?"

Kyle nodded, then glanced toward the counter.

"Mind bringing me another brownie?"

The waiter stared at him, evidently bewildered that a man who had just been punched in the face was more concerned about ordering something sweet than retaliating.

Still, he nodded and walked away.

Kyle drew a slow breath before returning to his seat. Gradually, the other patrons settled back into their conversations once they realized nothing further was going to happen.

Lowering his voice, Kyle muttered, "What do you think, Aleda?"

[Host, this whole situation appears far deeper and more severe than the host originally considered.]

Kyle nodded faintly.

He should never have allowed them to expand their influence so freely, especially when he already knew what such unchecked growth could eventually lead to.

His expression hardened.

"Headmaster Christopher," he murmured beneath his breath. "You have a few questions to answer."