Chapter 27
After Kafka made the promise to take Elara to meet her father, it was still uncertain whether it would actually happen. After all, this wasn't the first time Elara had brought up the subject with her mother. Of course, she had never spoken about it as openly as she had tonight, but even that promise was enough to satisfy her.
As Elara slowly closed her eyes and drifted into a deep sleep, Kafka, who had been sitting beside the bed, quietly stood up. Before leaving, she cast one last glance at Elara's sleeping face. Seeing the smile still lingering on her lips, Kafka silently left the room.
In the living room, which was normally occupied by Silver Wolf playing games, all of the Stellaron Hunters had gathered.
With her usual teasing smile and the sound of her heels clicking softly against the floor, Kafka walked into the room before gracefully sitting on the sofa, crossing her right leg over her left.
"So, Kafka, why did you call all of us here? And why do you suddenly want to meet that man now?" asked Silver Wolf, the most talkative among them. Her questions immediately drew everyone's attention.
Kafka met Silver Wolf's gaze and smiled as usual. Although the questions sounded like simple curiosity, she could tell Silver Wolf was genuinely worried about Elara.
"The reason is because of her father's identity. Contacting him before was impossible, but..."
Kafka stopped halfway through her explanation. Her expression grew more serious as she rested a finger against her chin in thought.
The young woman with long silver-blonde hair fading into turquoise at the tips and eyes that blended deep ocean blue with sunset pink tilted her head.
"But?" Firefly asked softly, confusion evident in her gentle voice.
Her question earned an amused wink from Silver Wolf. Blade remained silent with his eyes closed, but everyone knew he was paying close attention to Kafka's next words.
"He's... a special person. Elio warned me to stay away from him for five years. As for the reason... I have a few guesses."
Kafka nodded toward Firefly before continuing.
"Firefly."
Hearing her name, Firefly blinked in confusion and looked into Kafka's eyes.
"Those eyes really do look just like Elara's... Like mother, like daughter..."
"Yes?" she replied softly. "Is there something you need?"
"There is. I need your help regarding Elara."
Upon hearing Elara's name, Firefly tilted her head in confusion. After thinking for a moment, she simply nodded.
"I plan to take Elara to meet her father within the next few months, five months at the latest. I'd like you and Bladie to investigate Solaria-IV."
Kafka calmly gave her instructions, yet she still revealed nothing about Elara's father, as though she intentionally wished to keep his identity hidden.
Blade simply nodded with his arms crossed, saying nothing. Firefly also accepted with a gentle smile, her eyes curving into crescents.
However, before she could stand
Crack!
A sudden cry startled Firefly, causing her to accidentally press too hard on the coffee table, which immediately split apart under the pressure.
Everyone present, even Blade, turned toward the source of the noise.
Standing there with her eyes wide open was Silver Wolf.
The confused stares of everyone in the room quickly made her face flush bright red, prompting her to awkwardly turn her head away.
"What's wrong, Silver Wolf?" Firefly asked innocently. "Do you know that planet?"
Silver Wolf scratched the back of her head.
After several seconds of silence while everyone continued staring at her, she finally sighed.
"Well... a few months ago I was bored, and I'd heard rumors about this isolated planet. I got curious... so I decided to visit it."
She paused before continuing.
"But for some reason... every time I got closer, my mind just... emptied."
Everyone silently listened.
The more they heard, the deeper their frowns became.
Kafka herself sank into thought, and silence once again filled the room.
After all, what Silver Wolf described was beyond strange, a planet that erased your mind the closer you approached it.
"What exactly did you feel?" Kafka was the first to ask.
Silver Wolf rubbed her chin as she tried to put the sensation into words.
"It was... weird..."
"As I got closer, my mind just became blank. It felt like someone had removed my brain. I started forgetting everything... even my own name. My body was moving on its own..."
She swallowed.
"If I hadn't used my Aether Editing to escape quickly... I honestly think it would've ended very badly for me."
Silver Wolf's words sent chills through everyone present.
The phenomenon she described was simply too abnormal.
"What kind of Aeon could accomplish something like that?"
For the first time since the conversation began, Blade finally spoke.
"And Kafka... who exactly is Elara's father?"
The two young women silently echoed Blade's thoughts.
What kind of man could possibly live on a planet isolated from the rest of the universe?
Kafka crossed her arms beneath her chest and rested her cheek against her right palm as everyone looked at her.
After a brief silence, she finally answered.
"Her father's name is Adam."
"I don't know anything else about him."
Her answer surprised both Firefly and Silver Wolf.
She knew almost nothing about the father, only his name.
It was an awkward situation.
"That's why I need your help, Silver Wolf."
"Find everything you can about him."
"Everything you can find about Adam... and about that planet."
As Kafka gave her orders, the smile on her face slowly became more dangerous.
She looked like a predator preparing to hunt its prey.