Chapter 87: The City of Love, Kieve

Morning came much faster than Rin had expected.

The warm sunlight slipped through the curtains and gently fell across his face. Rin frowned slightly in his sleep before slowly opening his eyes.

The first thing he saw was a pair of red eyes. Ruby-red. They were staring directly at him. Intensely.

Rin blinked several times, still half-asleep.

"Are you planning to stare at me all morning?" he asked sleepily.

Kaelith didn’t even look embarrassed.

"All your life," he replied tenderly.

Rin stared at him for a few seconds before his brain finally processed the situation.

"Get off me already. We have to leave!"

Kaelith was still holding him in his arms as if he had no intention of letting go anytime soon. Before Rin could complain again, however, another voice came from somewhere nearby.

"Kaelith, enough with the romance. Let’s go already."

Sol’s voice was filled with obvious sarcasm. Kaelith clicked his tongue.

"Tch. Annoying."

Rin sighed.

"Okay, okay. Let’s go eat something quickly and leave."

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After Rin and Kaelith finished breakfast, they gathered everything they needed for the trip.

Kaelith had already explained to Selena that he would be away for a while, leaving her in charge of the castle during his absence.

Once everything was ready, the three stood near the entrance of the Demon Kingdom. Kaelith looked toward the road ahead.

"Let’s go." said Kaelith

"I don’t take orders from you."Sol immediately reply.

Kaelith’s expression darkened. Rin, on the other hand, had already decided that he wasn’t going to listen to either of the two troublemakers.

He simply adjusted the small travel bag on his back. Then he took his first step. Out of the Demon Kingdom.

For the first time. Rin couldn’t help but look back for a moment.

This was the place where everything had started. The place where he had awakened.

The place where Kaelith had found him. The place where he had learned that the world from his favorite book was real.

And now... He was finally leaving it. Rin turned back toward the road.

"Let’s go."

The journey began. At first, everything went surprisingly smoothly.

The road was quiet, and Rin found himself enjoying the scenery. After spending so much time inside Kaelith’s castle, simply being outside felt refreshing.

But that peaceful feeling didn’t last very long. Eventually, the three entered the Sleeping Forest.

The moment they crossed into the forest, everything changed. The trees were enormous, their branches blocking much of the sunlight above them. Strange sounds echoed from somewhere deeper inside the forest. Rin looked around cautiously.

"What is this place...?"

He barely finished speaking when something suddenly jumped out from between the trees.

A massive creature charged toward them. Rin froze.

"What the—?!"

Kaelith moved instantly. With a single attack, the creature was sent flying.

Rin stared. Sol didn’t even seem surprised.

Another beast appeared. Then another. And another. Creatures of all shapes and sizes continued attacking them.

Rin’s mouth slowly fell open.

"Aren’t these beasts from fantasy stories?"

He stared at one of the creatures from a safe distance.

"How do they even exist here?"

Then he saw something much larger moving between the trees. Rin’s eyes widened.

"Wait..."

He pointed.

"Is that a Yeti?!"

His voice echoed through the forest.

"IN A FOREST?!"

Rin couldn’t understand anything anymore. These were supposed to be fantastic creatures from stories!

How were they casually walking around in this world?! Even worse, Kaelith and Sol were dealing with them as easily as if they were cracking sunflower seeds.

One attack. Another. Done.

Rin stood there. Completely useless. He looked at his hands.

Shouldn’t I have some kind of magical power too? Maybe I can shoot lasers from my eyes. Or make things levitate! Anything! Just give me something!

At that moment, a familiar voice finally appeared inside his mind.

(Host, you are human. Humans do not possess supernatural powers.)

Rin’s expression immediately darkened.

System! Why are you destroying my fantasy?!

(Host, I am simply being realistic.)

"Where have you been until now?!"

Rin mentally shouted.

"So many things have happened, and you did absolutely nothing!"

There was a brief silence. Then the system answered calmly.

(The system was in sleep mode.)

Rin’s expression became completely blank.

You were sleeping?!

At this point, Rin wasn’t sure whether he wanted to laugh or scream. Unfortunately, his reaction caught Kaelith’s attention.

"Who are you talking to again, wife?"

Rin froze. Again?! Does this man have some kind of radar that activates every time I talk to the system?! Rin slowly turned toward him.

"No one."

Kaelith narrowed his eyes. Rin immediately corrected himself.

"I mean... I was thinking about these beasts."

He gestured toward the creatures scattered throughout the forest.

"They’re fantastic creatures in my world."

Kaelith remained silent. Sol, however, laughed.

"Classic Rin."

Rin frowned.

"What’s that supposed to mean?"

Sol simply smiled.

"Nothing."

The three continued through the Sleeping Forest. One day passed. Then another. And another. For four entire days, they traveled through the forest.

They slept in the wilderness. They walked beneath enormous trees. And they fought countless creatures. Although, technically, the ones who actually did the fighting were Kaelith and Sol.

Rin mostly watched. The first night had been particularly difficult. The howling of wolves had echoed through the darkness, making Rin sit awake for a long time. Every unfamiliar sound made him turn his head.

"What was that?"

"An animal." said Kaelith.

"And that?"

"Another animal." said Sol.

"And that one?"

Kaelith sighed.

"Also an animal."

Rin stared into the darkness.

"Why are there so many animals?!"

Sol had laughed at him. But after several nights, Rin slowly became accustomed to the sounds of the forest.

Eventually, the four days passed. And finally... They reached the edge of the forest. The three climbed a hill.

Rin stopped. His eyes widened. Below them was a massive city.

A tall stone wall surrounded it, nearly two meters high. Beyond the walls, countless buildings could be seen, along with towers and streets filled with movement.

Rin’s eyes immediately lit up.

"We finally made it!"

His voice was filled with excitement. Kaelith and Sol remained silent.

Rin, however, couldn’t stop smiling. After everything that had happened...

He was finally going to see a human city. The three descended the hill and approached the gates.

Two guards were standing at the entrance. As soon as the three approached, one of them stepped forward politely.

"Entry identification, please."

Rin immediately froze. Entry identification? He didn’t have anything like that. Slowly, almost unwillingly, Rin turned toward Kaelith.

Kaelith simply smiled. It was an incredibly confident smile.

Then he reached into his belongings and pulled out two wooden cards. He handed them to the guard. The guard examined them carefully.

Rin leaned closer. What exactly did he give them? The guard suddenly smiled.

"Ah! You’re newly married!"

Rin froze. His entire face went blank. Slowly, he turned toward Kaelith.

"What... did you give him?"

Kaelith looked completely innocent.

"Hm? Our marriage certificate, of course."

He sounded proud.

Rin’s face instantly turned red.

"You..."

He didn’t even know what to say. Kaelith had apparently prepared everything.

Even this. The guards, completely unaware of Rin’s embarrassment, opened the city gates.

"Welcome to the City of Love, Kieve!"

The first guard smiled warmly.

"We hope you have a wonderful stay. And as a recommendation, you should try the Golden Lily Inn."

Rin blinked.

"The Golden Lily?"

"Yes. They have everything newlyweds could possibly need."

Rin’s face became even redder.

"Ah... yes... thank you."

The words came out through clenched teeth. Behind him, Sol was completely silent.

For a few seconds. Then his shoulders started shaking. Because he couldn’t be seen, Rin couldn’t actually see his expression.

But he could hear him laughing. Sol was laughing so hard that he was practically crying.

Rin’s eye twitched.

"You think this is funny?"

No answer. Only more laughter. Kaelith, meanwhile, looked incredibly satisfied.

The guards stepped aside, allowing them to enter. And the moment Rin crossed through the gates, the atmosphere changed completely.

The sound of the city hit him immediately. People talking. Merchants calling out.

Footsteps. Laughter. The noise of carts moving through the streets. The smell of food coming from nearby stalls.

Everything was alive. Rin’s eyes widened as he looked around. This was completely different from the Demon Kingdom.

There were humans everywhere. For the first time since arriving in this world, Rin felt as if he had truly stepped into another part of it.

A world beyond the demons. A world he had only read about. He looked from one street to another, unable to hide his excitement.

"This is..."

His voice became quieter.

"So this is the human world."

Kaelith watched him silently. The excitement in Rin’s eyes was impossible to miss. Sol, meanwhile, seemed equally amused by everything that had happened so far.

Rin took another step forward. He had no idea what awaited them in Kieve.

He didn’t know what mysteries were hidden here. He didn’t know what secrets this world still held. And he certainly didn’t know what kind of trouble the three of them would find. But for the first time, Rin didn’t care.

He was finally outside the Demon Kingdom. He was finally going to see the world. And this was only the beginning.

A cheerful voice suddenly rang through the streets.

"Welcome, visitors, to the City of Love, KIEVE!"

Rin looked around in surprise. His eyes sparkled. Kieve.

The first destination of their journey.

And perhaps... The first step toward discovering the truth about this world