Chapter 69: The Power of Someone Who Was Ignored
Still didn't move right away.
They stood there—
Looking at nothing.
Like everything around them—
Didn't matter.
"…So," Lira said.
"…what exactly can you do?"
Still didn't answer.
Didn't even look at her.
"…That's not reassuring," she muttered.
Kael stepped forward slightly.
"…Show me."
Still glanced at him.
"…Why?"
"…Because if you're coming with us—"
A pause.
"…I need to know what you are."
Silence.
Still tilted their head slightly.
"…You're asking the wrong question."
Kael's eyes narrowed.
"…Then what's the right one?"
A faint pause.
"…What can't I do?"
Lira blinked.
"…That's worse."
Kael smirked faintly.
"…Yeah."
Because that answer—
Didn't limit anything.
And something without limits—
Was dangerous.
Very dangerous.
"…Fine," Kael said.
"…Then let's test that."
He gestured around them.
At the paused world.
At the frozen buildings.
At the silent sky.
"…Fix this."
Still looked around.
Unimpressed.
"…Why?"
"…Because it's broken."
"…No."
A pause.
"…It's stopped."
Kael nodded slightly.
"…Same difference."
"…Not really."
Still stepped forward.
One step.
And the world—
Didn't react.
Didn't shift.
Didn't acknowledge them.
"…See?" Still said.
"…It's not broken."
A pause.
"…It just doesn't care anymore."
Silence.
That—
Was different.
Because everything else—
Fought to exist.
Fought to resolve.
Fought to continue.
But this world—
Had stopped trying.
"…Then make it care," Kael said.
Still looked at him.
For a moment—
Actually thinking.
Then—
"…No."
Lira threw her hands up slightly.
"…Great."
"…Why not?" Kael asked.
Still shrugged.
"…Because it doesn't want to."
Silence.
That answer—
Was simple.
Too simple.
But it made sense.
"…You can't force it," Still continued.
"…Not without breaking it."
Kael's expression shifted slightly.
"…You're not wrong."
Echo's voice whispered—
"…Kael… they understand it…"
"…Yeah."
Better than most.
"…Then what can you do?" Kael asked.
Still paused.
Then—
They looked at him.
Directly.
"…I can ignore things."
Silence.
That didn't sound impressive.
But Kael—
Didn't underestimate it.
"…Show me."
Still nodded slightly.
Then—
They stepped forward again.
Toward a building.
A wall—
Frozen mid-collapse.
Cracked.
Unstable.
Paused.
Still reached out—
And touched it.
Nothing happened.
For a second.
Then—
The wall moved.
Not resumed.
Not collapsed.
Moved.
On its own.
Ignoring everything else.
The rest of the world—
Stayed frozen.
But that wall—
Shifted.
Adjusted.
Stabilized.
"…What…" Lira whispered.
Kael's eyes narrowed.
"…You didn't fix it."
"…No."
Still stepped back.
"…I ignored the rules that were stopping it."
Silence.
Echo's presence flickered.
"…Kael… that's…"
"…Yeah."
Because that—
Was huge.
The system enforced structure.
The entity adapted it.
The hunters erased it.
But this—
Ignored it.
Completely.
"…You can bypass everything," Kael said.
"…Not everything."
A pause.
"…Just the parts I don't like."
Lira stared.
"…That's not how anything works."
"…It is for me."
Kael smirked faintly.
"…Of course it is."
Because that—
Made them exactly what he needed.
And exactly what made them dangerous.
"…You're coming with us," Kael said.
Still shrugged.
"…I already said I would."
"…Good."
A pause.
"…Because things are about to get worse."
Still tilted their head.
"…They always do."
Kael glanced at Lira.
"…We're leaving."
She nodded.
"…Before this place decides to start again."
"…Or ends."
Either way—
Not their problem.
Kael reached out.
This time—
Toward a fragment.
But something felt different.
The connection—
Weaker.
Less stable.
"…Kael…" Echo whispered.
"…something's off…"
"…I know."
Because something—
Was interfering.
Not blocking.
Not stopping.
Watching.
Again.
"…You're being tracked," Still said casually.
Kael froze slightly.
"…By what?"
Still looked up.
At nothing.
At everything.
"…All of them."
Silence.
That—
Was bad.
Very bad.
Because that meant—
No matter where they went—
They weren't hidden anymore.
And this time—
They wouldn't be given time to prepare.