Chapter 8: You can feel it

Nemuri got into the hospital elevator, lost in her thoughts, trying to understand the possible causes for Kai's outburst. After all, although all information regarding Kai had been concealed for security reasons, she was very aware of everything, so things were not as simple as the doctor believed.

(Could it really be his quirk? But that can't be, Kai inherited Jiro-san's quirk, and it manifested from birth. Jiro-san and Alisa-san wanted to keep it a secret even from Kai himself, but when he was a baby, it wasn't uncommon for him to damage his bottles and toys by applying too much strength.

But on the other hand, there's still what Mandalay told me, so it can't be ruled out either... Hmm... this is complicated, but I think it's best to talk to Kai about his quirk. Maybe his immense curiosity will help him focus on that and distract him a bit from this whole situation...)

Once in Kai's room, where he was sleeping in the bed with a big smile on his face, Nemuri could relax a bit for the first time since this whole tragedy occurred, which inevitably made her feel drowsy. Feeling exhausted, Nemuri took advantage of Kai's large and comfortable hospital bed and lay down beside him, falling into a deep sleep shortly after.

A few hours later, Nemuri slowly opened her eyes, feeling a bit confused, but quickly recovered and sat up abruptly when she didn't see Kai in the bed next to her. She started looking around worriedly, only to find him showing his bare backside through the hospital gown while doing push-ups on the floor.

"Why are you doing push-ups, Kai? Is any part of your body bothering you? Are you really having trouble managing your quirk?"

"My quirk?" Kai asked, not stopping his push-ups, in a confused tone.

"We'll talk about that later. For now, tell me why you ran away?"

"I was just following Dad's advice, [There is no better cure for the mind than training until exhaustion]."

"That's something Jiro-san would say, but Kai, for now, it's better to stop and sit next to me. Let's talk a little about your quirk," Nemuri said in a caring tone while patting a spot beside her on the bed.

"Okay."

Kai got up from the floor and sat next to Nemuri, trying to make as little eye contact as possible, something Nemuri immediately noticed but decided to ignore for the moment, focusing instead on the conversation they were going to have.

"Kai, are you aware that you ran at over 40 km/h for almost an hour? A human without a strength-enhancing quirk wouldn't last even a couple of minutes at that speed."

"Not even a couple of minutes? But I thought doing something like that was quite normal..." Kai commented, quite surprised, as if doubting the words that had just come out of his mouth.

(Now that I think about it, it is strange. I'm not just fast, I'm also quite strong, but oddly enough, I didn't take it into account. I guess Kai's perception made me unconsciously overlook it and take it as something natural...)

"Well yes, Jiro-san and Alisa-san wanted you to pay no attention to it so that your childhood would be as normal as possible, but we have always suspected that you inherited your father's quirk."

"My father's quirk?"

"Yes, your father's quirk, a body-enhancing quirk called [Force Control], which allowed him to increase his physical abilities and harden his body. But the peculiarity that gave it its name was that he could apply it to specific parts of his body, greatly increasing his strength or hardness compared to when he applied it to his entire body."

"Yes... now that you mention it, when the nurses were chasing me, I think I 'strengthened' my legs a bit more, and from that moment, I could run faster and dodge them easily... so it seems I did inherit Dad's quirk," Kai commented, with his hand on his chin, thoughtfully considering his memories. Nemuri nodded and added.

"That's what we all thought at first, but Mandalay mentioned to me that... hmm... you were 'aware' of Alisa-san's situation."

Although Nemuri regretted it halfway through and tried to soften her words as much as possible, it didn't prevent Kai's face from showing an ugly expression, which he quickly tried to suppress.

"I'm sorry, Kai. I didn't mean to bring up bad memories."

"No, it's fine. I understand it's necessary," Kai shook his head a couple of times, and after a few deep breaths, he spoke again.

"But now that you mention it, it's true. At that moment, I heard their [Voices]."

“Voices?” Nemuri asked with evident confusion on her face, to which Kai nodded and explained.

“Yes, it’s a bit hard to explain, but it felt like their ‘voice’ or maybe their aura? I don’t know, it was strange…”

Seeing Kai’s expression, which seemed to scream that he didn’t quite understand what he was saying, Nemuri asked with curiosity.

“Can you feel my ‘voice’ right now?”

“Not really but let me try.”

Kai closed his eyes and tried to focus on his surroundings for a few minutes until he suddenly opened his eyes, surprised. He could actually feel it, not just Nemuri’s ‘voice,’ but many other different ‘voices’ around him, all of different ‘sizes’ or ‘intensities’, but he could easily differentiate them and know where each one was, something Nemuri quickly noticed.

“You can feel it.”

“Yes, not just your ‘voice’, but also many others in the hospital. I even know that someone is approaching the room, and it feels strangely like the heroine who found me on the mountain.”

“Mandalay?”

As Nemuri asked, puzzled and looking towards the entrance, someone gave three soft knocks on the door, taking her by surprise. She quickly gave permission for the person to enter, while watching closely to see who it was.

Shortly after, Mandalay entered the room, dressed in civilian clothes that transformed her usual heroic air into a sober elegance. She wore a black wide-neck sweater that draped relaxedly over her voluptuous and athletic figure, accompanied by a white pencil skirt that hugged her form, accentuating her hips and the length of her legs.

Seeing Mandalay, Nemuri turned towards Kai, who was also looking at the beautiful woman with undisguised surprise and commented with a small smile.

“It really was Mandalay. Your quirk is impressive, Kai. It’s perfect for reconnaissance.”

Kai nodded slightly at the compliment, while Mandalay, confused by the scene, asked.

“What are you guys doing?”

“We were testing Kai’s quirk, and he knew you were coming before you knocked on the door.”

“Mmm, so that’s what happened in ‘that’ moment,” Mandalay murmured, intrigued, while looking at the cute blue-eyed boy.

“And back to the topic, why are you here, Mandalay? Did something happen?”

At Nemuri’s question, Mandalay replied while crossing her arms under her voluptuous chest.

“Well, I heard that Kai-kun had run out of his room because he wasn’t used to the manifestation of his quirk, so I came to see if I could help with anything.”

“Oh yes, that happened, but according to Kai, it wasn’t because of his quirk. He was just following his father’s ‘wise’ advice.”

“I can imagine that musclehead teaching him that.”

Nemuri and Mandalay laughed a bit with somewhat sad expressions, while turning their gaze to find Kai, who was sitting in a lotus position with his eyes closed.

“Are you okay, Kai?” Nemuri asked in a concerned tone while Mandalay approached him.

“Yes, I’m fine. It’s just that now that I could feel your ‘voices’, it feels very strange to stop doing it. It’s like having my ears suddenly covered, so I’m trying to control it better, since I feel it’s possible to listen to the ‘voices’ without consciously trying.”

“So you really have a tracking-type quirk. But since that day, I’ve been wondering, what do you mean by ‘voices’? It’s okay if you don’t want to answer.”

Mandalay asked, full of curiosity, to which Kai replied without opening his eyes, maintaining the lotus position his yoga-enthusiast mother had taught him.

“It’s fine, I don’t mind. It’s a bit complicated to explain, but let’s say that the way I can feel people is through their ‘voices’. It’s not exactly a voice in the literal sense of the word, but the feeling it gives me is very similar to listening to someone sing. It’s quite a strange feeling, so that’s the closest word I can find to describe it.”

“Mmmm, what an interesting phenomenon. By the way, I don’t think I’ve introduced myself. My name is Sosaki Shino, also known as the professional heroine, Mandalay.”

Hearing this, Kai felt a bit embarrassed, realizing he hadn’t even bothered to learn her name, when it was Shino who technically saved his life on the mountain. If there was something both Daniel and Kai hated more than asking for a favor, it was owing one.

Knowing he had to correct his mistakes, Kai immediately opened his eyes and got up from the bed. While doing his best to control his feeling of derealization and the uncanny valley effect he felt when looking at her, he approached and bowed deeply to show respect.

“I am embarrassed by my late introduction. My name is Saito Kai, and I deeply appreciate the help you provided me on the mountain. It is a great debt that I will make sure to repay.”

“HAHAHA”

Shino laughed cheerfully at the boy's sudden action, while Nemuri watched him like a proud mother hen. Shortly after, the beautiful woman with the bob-cut brown hair continued speaking.

“You are a very well-behaved boy, but don't worry about that. The whole situation has been confusing and complicated, and I was just doing my job. So, straighten up, and let's talk more relaxedly.”

Knowing he was being underestimated because of his age, Kai spoke again, this time trying to exaggerate the formal language to show he wasn't joking.

“I am fully aware that the assistance you and your colleague provided was during your routine work, but it is an undeniable fact that you ended up helping me. And no matter how much I try, I cannot stop feeling indebted to you.

Therefore, I am obligated to repay it to be at peace with myself. Although I know I currently have no means to do so, I will at least make sure not to forget it and to help you when I can.”

(Did I overdo it? Hmm, I don’t think so. Even before having Daniel's memories, I was quite strange, so this doesn’t even make the top of the weirdest things I've done.)

With a very serious voice, Kai spoke while still bowing, surprising both Shino and Nemuri. They looked at each other for a moment before nodding, and then Mandalay proceeded to place a hand on the boy's shoulder while saying.

“Well then, I’ll be waiting for your future, boy.”

“I will make sure not to disappoint your expectations.”

After responding, Kai returned to his lotus position on the bed with his eyes closed, leaving the two heroines a bit speechless.

“Well, Kai-kun, I heard that you will now be under Midnight's care. Do you like the idea?”

“Well, to be honest, I don’t know. After all, Mom always said to never forget my invisible hero cape that repels bad influences when I’m with Onee-chan.”

“Hey! What is that supposed to mean?!!” Nemuri replied, feeling attacked, to which Kai responded in a flat tone without opening his eyes.

“I don’t know, those weren’t my words; they were Mom’s.”

“Hahaha, Alisa-san definitely knew what she was talking about. So, Kai-kun, now that you’ll be living with her, don’t forget your invisible cape even when you sleep,” Mandalay commented amusingly, to which Nemuri replied with an annoyed expression.

“Hey!!”

While Shino laughed and Nemuri glared at her, a phone suddenly rang. Holding back her laughter, Mandalay looked at the caller ID, and her smile immediately faded. She then turned to look at Nemuri with a serious expression.

“Well, Kai-kun, we’re going to talk with the doctor to find out when you can be discharged. We won’t take long.”

“That’s fine. I’ll be practicing.”