Chapter 252: A Brother’s Secret.

Lyra didn’t think too deeply about it. Whatever Kael wanted to tell her, she would naturally find out once they were eating breakfast anyway.

"Give me a minute. I’m coming."

"Okay. Take your time."

Kael turned away from the door and walked back toward the kitchen. He sat down at the table and slowly began eating while he waited. His expression remained calm, but beneath that calmness, he had already made his decision.

Today, he was going to tell Lyra everything.

There was no longer any reason to keep those things hidden from her. After everything that had happened, especially what had happened with Ezra, Kael felt that continuing to hide such an important part of himself from his own sister served little purpose.

A few minutes later, the sound of a door opening came from behind him.

Kael looked up.

Lyra walked out of her room, her hair slightly damp as though she had taken a quick shower after waking up. She looked much better than she had the previous night, at least on the surface. Kael couldn’t tell how she was actually feeling, though. Lyra had gotten very good at hiding when she was hurting, especially from the people closest to her.

She walked over to the table and pulled out the chair opposite him before sitting down.

"It smells nice."

Without saying anything else, she picked up her cutlery and began eating her portion.

Kael watched her for a moment before returning to his own meal.

The two of them ate quietly.

Eventually, however, Kael finished eating.

He carefully placed his cutlery down and looked across the table.

"Lyra."

She raised her eyes toward him.

"I have something to tell you."

The casual atmosphere immediately changed.

Kael paused for a brief moment before speaking.

"This isn’t my first life."

Lyra froze.

Her cutlery stopped halfway toward her plate as she slowly looked up at him.

Kael continued before she could say anything.

"This is actually my second life. In my past life, I..."

A soft chuckle suddenly escaped Lyra’s lips.

Kael stopped.

"...What?"

"So it’s this one."

Kael frowned.

"What?"

Lyra smiled as she placed her cutlery down.

"Well, you’ve changed a lot over the past month."

She leaned back slightly, her expression becoming somewhat amused.

"Actually, you’ve changed so much that I started wondering why. A person doesn’t suddenly change that drastically for no reason, so I came up with quite a few theories."

Kael stared at her.

Lyra’s smile widened.

"I’ll admit, some of them were pretty interesting."

She gave a small laugh.

"But who would have thought the most ridiculous one would actually be the truth?"

"Second life," she added, laughing again.

Kael simply stared at her.

For perhaps the first time in a long while, his mind genuinely struggled to process what was happening.

What the hell?

This wasn’t even remotely how he had imagined this conversation going.

He had spent so much time preparing himself to explain the truth, expecting questions, disbelief, confusion, perhaps even fear. Yet Lyra had somehow skipped almost all of that and accepted the revelation as though he had merely confirmed one of her ridiculous theories.

Kael couldn’t help wondering what exactly had been going through his sister’s head all this time.

Lyra’s laughter eventually faded, and her expression softened.

"It was back then, right?"

Kael’s expression changed slightly.

"The day you hugged me and cried."

Kael slowly nodded.

Lyra already knew.

She didn’t need him to explain what she had seen that day. She had remembered it clearly, especially because Kael had never been someone who cried easily, and certainly not while holding onto her as though he had been afraid she would disappear.

"Well, that’s cool."

And just like that, Lyra picked up her cutlery and continued eating as though nothing unusual had happened.

Kael stared at her.

"Aren’t you going to ask me anything?"

Lyra glanced at him.

"Like what?"

"My past life. What happened to me. How I died. How I came back. Anything."

Lyra stopped eating.

She slowly looked at him.

"Was that life any better than this one?"

Kael froze.

The question was simple.

Yet for some reason, it struck far deeper than any of the questions he had expected.

His mind immediately went back to that life, the loneliness, the guilt, Lyra’s death, and their mother’s. From that alone, there was only one clear answer to the question.

That life had been terrible.

It was a life Kael never wanted to experience again. A life he had spent every day regretting, a life that had ultimately driven him to become the person he was now.

That was why he had worked so hard to make this life different, not only for himself, but for everyone he ever cared about.

Lyra, on the other hand, studied his expression for several seconds. She didn’t need him to answer, from his expression alone, she already understood.

"Then there’s no need to tell me about it."

Kael looked at her.

"I already have enough bad news, so no thank you."

She paused before adding with a small smile, "Now would be the best time to tell me some good news. I might need to dilute the bad ones."

The joke was light, but Kael could see the pain underneath it. Lyra was still shaken by what had happened to Ezra, she simply wasn’t letting it show.

Kael understood that, and he didn’t hesitate as a faint chuckle escaped him.

"Well, there are plenty of those."

Lyra looked at him with renewed interest.

"Really?"

"Then I’m all ears."

She had said it jokingly, but she meant it more than she wanted to admit. After everything she had learned about Ezra, hearing something good was exactly what she needed.

Kael leaned back slightly.

"Where should I begin?"

He thought for a moment before his expression changed.

"Oh. I know."

His eyes settled on Lyra.

"Let’s start with me."

And so Kael began.

He told her about his Multiplier talent, explaining how it worked and how it had allowed him to obtain rewards far beyond what should have been possible. He told her about his growth, the power he had accumulated, and the wealth he now possessed.

Then came the Mothlight Guild.

Lyra’s eyes gradually widened as Kael continued.

He explained Varek and the fact that he had become one of Kael’s subordinates. He explained the instance under his control and the various things he had obtained through the Tower. He told her about the power he now possessed, the resources available to him, and the sheer extent of what had changed since the beginning of his second life.

The more Lyra listened, the wider her eyes became.

She had known Kael was strong.

She had even witnessed enough of his abilities to understand that he was far from ordinary.

But knowing that and actually hearing the full extent of everything he had accomplished were two completely different things.

At the same time, after hearing about his Multiplier talent, Lyra finally understood where all his power and growth had come from.

She couldn’t help but pout slightly.

"My dear brother is so awesome now. I seem to pale in comparison."

Kael looked at her.

A faint smirk slowly appeared on his face.

"Well, about that."

Lyra raised an eyebrow.

"I don’t think so."