Chapter 133: His pain behind the smile

They gathered around the table for breakfast. It was eight in the morning, and neither of their guests had eaten anything yet.

Fortunately, the dining table could comfortably accommodate six people, so there was no need to squeeze everyone together.

Mia sat beside Jean, whose lap was occupied by the little princess, while Kai and Mark took the seats across from them.

Breakfast was simple but hearty. Chicken and egg sandwiches, sausages, and a fresh salad were laid out on the table, accompanied by a generous selection of drinks.

"Man, eating healthy feels so good!" Mark exclaimed with a satisfied smile as he finished his second sandwich.

Kai nodded in agreement. "Isn’t it? I won’t deny that surviving on noodles and packaged food wasn’t exactly a pleasant experience, but this is a completely different story."

He took another bite of his sandwich, savouring the combination of creamy eggs and juicy chicken. The filling wasn’t too heavy, and the satisfying crunch of the toasted bread brought everything together perfectly.

"This house is bigger than the previous one, but somehow, I feel like your old place was more... homely."

Kai nodded. "Yeah. Jean liked that one better, too. Unfortunately, we weren’t destined to stay in that beautiful place for long."

Their time in Blue Mountain had felt almost like a dream. Waking up to the beautiful scenery, the quiet neighbourhood, and the absence of crowds and noise had been everything Kai and Jean could have asked for. It was the sort of place that suited them perfectly.

"When I heard the news..." Mark suddenly spoke, his expression growing grim. "I just went blank. The remote slipped from my hand, and I stood in front of the screen without moving. It wasn’t until Mia shook me out of it that I finally came back to my senses."

Kai offered him a faint smile. It was rare to hear Mark speak so openly about his concern for him. Not that Mark didn’t care. He simply wasn’t the sort of man who readily expressed such emotions.

Kai reached over and rested a hand on his shoulder.

"Don’t worry. Everything is fine now."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the table, Mia was doing her best to win over the little girl.

Unfortunately, Elara was being Elara. As far as she was concerned, her mother was the only person in the world worth paying attention to right now.

"Here comes the food plane! Who wants to eat it? Come on, come on!"

Mia moved the spoon in an elaborate arc, doing her best to capture the little girl’s attention.

But Elara merely raised her hands toward Jean.

"Ma!"

There was absolutely nothing in her hands. She simply wanted her mother’s attention.

Jean couldn’t help smiling sheepishly at the sight of Mia’s drooping shoulders.

"It takes time for her to get used to strangers. Don’t worry, though. I’ll give you something later that will definitely catch her attention."

Mia immediately perked up.

"Really? What is it?"

Jean’s lips curved into a faint smile.

"It’s the first toy Kai ever gave her. A sugar dispenser. She loves playing with it."

"Hey, now!"

Kai’s sudden protest drew everyone’s attention.

"That’s unfair. You can’t just hand it over to anyone so they can use it to blackmail my daughter!"

Mia immediately turned toward him, looking thoroughly offended.

"How mean! Am I just anyone? Wasn’t I your only friend back then?"

That caught Jean’s attention.

"You two met at university, right?"

Mia nodded. "Yep. Though he only stayed for one semester, we somehow became good friends. We had both earned scholarships, after all, so I suppose we had that in common."

Jean nodded in understanding before turning to Kai with an amused smile.

"Thankfully, he was a little different at university. Back in school, he wouldn’t talk to anyone unless it was absolutely necessary."

Mark snickered.

"He didn’t change much, if you ask me."

Jean immediately turned toward him, eager to hear more stories about Kai’s past, much to the man’s dismay.

"Oh, I have a good one," Mark began, shaking his head as though he still couldn’t believe it. "Back then, they used to arrange huge raiding teams, so they hired two porters. One was me, and the other was our very own cold and silent Mister Kai."

He paused to take a sip of his drink before continuing.

"You know the only time he ever approached me on his own initiative? When we were both inches away from being swallowed by a monster. And even then, all he said was, ’Hey, run or die.’"

Jean couldn’t help chuckling, while Mia grinned from ear to ear.

Kai clicked his tongue in protest.

"I was just shy around people."

"No, you weren’t," Mia retorted. "You just thought other people weren’t worth your attention."

Jean found herself agreeing with that assessment.

Mark, however, seemed to have a different perspective.

"Honestly, when I first met Kai, I didn’t think he was arrogant or full of himself. I got the feeling that he was still trying to process everything that had happened in his life. It seemed like he’d become cautious about how he behaved around others, as though he didn’t know who he could trust anymore."

Jean hummed thoughtfully before turning toward Kai.

The man shrugged, his expression growing somewhat distant.

"I mean... I’d gone through a series of failures before eventually ending up working as a porter. I’d been given hope that I could become a successful hunter, and I’d even discontinued my studies because of it. Having everything fall apart after that was a pretty big blow."

The table fell silent.

For a moment, Jean simply looked at him, absorbing his words.

She had never really considered how much Kai might have struggled before they met. She had known that he had a past, of course, but hearing him speak about it so casually made her realize just how much he had endured.

Everyone had their own battles to fight. Just as she had gone through different phases of her life when she felt alone and helpless, Kai must have experienced moments when he had nowhere to turn and no one to rely on.

And yet, not once had she seen his usual smile falter enough to reveal even a glimpse of the pain he had left behind.

He had always been there for her, offering comfort without hesitation and standing beside her whenever she needed him.

But how much of his own pain had he kept hidden behind that smile?

A quiet resolve began to take shape in Jean’s heart.

It can’t be only me showing you my scars.