Outside the cave, the people applauded Lobraw. But he didn't smile. The old warrior pretended to wipe the sweat from his brow, but in truth, he was trying to hide a tear that discreetly ran down his face.
His heart was beating fast—as if he were still in combat—but it wasn't from physical exertion. It was longing. It was grief.
He left... without even saying goodbye.
So many lies weighed on his shoulders. A life of facades, of hiding places, of avoiding confrontations with truths that hurt more than blades. And in the midst of it all, that young man appeared. So impulsive, so sincere. So... promising.
It is not yet time to tell everything.
But when Zangh Kao returned—and he knew he would return—he promised himself that he would at least try to teach him how to survive in a world where the seemingly fragile could be the most dangerous.
Lobraw slowly wiped the counter. His eyes were lost. That was when he noticed.
She was there. The little rabbit behind the counter. She said nothing, only watched him with those attentive, bright eyes. She knew. She had always known.
And perhaps... she was the only one to understand the pain he hid so well.
And in silence, as if caressing a memory, she approached him, took his hand, and offered him a dry towel.
Nothing was said.
But the next tear... she saw it.
And she did not judge.
...
They crossed the portal in the middle of the night. Zangh Kao had barely managed to see the light they left behind before feeling the air change—more humid, heavier. The sky was different. The city slept, but the young man knew that not everything would return to how it was before.
He looked at his watch. Only a few hours had passed since their departure—time enough to cause trouble, and too short to justify what they had lived through. The hero felt doubt hammering in his chest.
"Was I really... useful?" he asked, walking alongside Ruby through the shadows of the alley.
"You were what you could be," she replied, without sentimentality. "And you still will be. I would not choose a useless person. But that... will depend on you."
Zangh Kao looked at her, trying to find humanity in that face. But there was only the mask, motionless. When it wasn't the mask, it was that face, too beautiful, too smooth, unreal.
"You never showed me your face," he commented, frowning. "I don't know who you really are."
She walked ahead. For a moment, he thought she would answer. But no. Only silence. A silence full of unspoken truths. A silence too old.
"Perhaps... you are too old for me. Too important. Just a distant dream," Zangh Kao murmured to himself, tasting the bitterness of lucidity.
Ruby stopped at the street corner and opened the leather pouch.
"We are near your house. They cannot know you left. They won't understand. Not now. This plant..." she showed him the bluish leaf with golden veins, "...gently confuses the mind. It makes one forget what should be forgotten."
"Are you... going to use this on them?" he asked, hesitantly.
"With your permission." And for the first time, her voice seemed more... gentle.
The young man nodded.
Through the window, silently, Ruby spun the plant between her fingers and blew it like a light, enchanted powder. Senhora Tarta and little Nia, still sleeping, breathed deeply and moved slightly on their mattresses. They noticed nothing. They would remember nothing. When the sun rose, they would believe that everything had been just a common night.
Back at the house, Ruby seemed weaker. Her steps lost their firmness. She sat on the living room floor, leaning against the wall.
"You're going to school, aren't you?" she asked with a tired smile.
"Yeah... it looks like it," Zangh Kao replied, scratching his head. "Are you going to stay here?"
"I have no choice," she said. "I need to regain strength. But... don't forget: I will be nearby."
With his backpack on, the hero walked out the door. The sky was brighter. The city was beginning to wake up. Zangh Kao walked slowly, feeling his steps firmer, his balance sharper, as if something new was pulsing inside him. Stronger. More prepared.
As he arrived at school, still unsure if all of it had been real or just a fantasy, he heard:
"Hey, Zangh Kao!" a boy in the class yelled. "Are you going to run away again today, or are you going to face it for real?"
He stopped.
He smiled.
"Not today. Today... we're going to settle this."
And with that, the next fight was about to begin.
Combats and Confessions
Zangh Kao still felt strange that day. It was as if he had returned stronger, more centered. When the young man arrived at school, he noticed that something in him had changed. His steps were firmer, his balance more natural. It was as if the time in the White Forest had planted something deep inside him.
Right at the entrance, a boy taller than Zangh Kao came up to him. Before, this boy used to be stronger, more imposing. Now, the hero looked at him naturally. He noticed the boy's slightly more muscular arms and asked:
"Have you been working out?"
But before he could receive an answer, the boy tried to hit him with a punch. Zangh Kao dodged easily, grabbed his opponent's arm with agility, and threw him to the floor in a clean, fluid movement.
"Wow…" murmured a girl watching from afar.
The boy's friends didn't like it. Three of them advanced, forming a semicircle. Zangh Kao remained calm. His eyes saw every movement, every stumble, every hesitation. The blows were predictable, like wind before the rain.
He decided to react. A single, well-placed punch on the most sensitive point of one of their bodies—and that was it. There the bullies were, on the ground, writhing, crying like children. Some colleagues turned their faces away in second-hand embarrassment. Others, surprised, murmured:
"He doesn't even look like the same person…"
But Zangh Kao didn't care. He just wanted to go home. He was restless, anxious. He wanted to know if Ruby was okay, if she had already recovered. The time travel always left her weak, but he... he was feeling even better.
During class, he couldn't concentrate. The teacher called his attention several times. During breaks, more provocations. In one of them, he was caught by surprise—he didn't even care. He turned his back and walked away. But when he saw a girl being called a coward by those bullies, the hero couldn't resist. The beating he gave them almost got him expelled.
Meanwhile, back at the house, Ruby was being looked after by Nia. Dona Tarta had gone out early to work, and little Nia, enchanted, insisted on seeing the rabbit's true face. Ruby, tired of the mask, allowed herself to take it off.
"Wow…" murmured Nia, delighted. "You're beautiful."
"Oh, stop it, little one."
"You are a princess, aren't you?"
Ruby frowned, caught off guard. "Maybe yes, maybe no. How did you come to that conclusion?"
"The way you walk, the way you talk... your presence. Only a princess can be like that."
Ruby laughed, but was caught by another question from the girl:
"They are bigger... are you exercising?"
Ruby looked at herself. Yes, her body was changing. Strengthening. Perhaps because of the temporal exposure... or something more. Nia completed:
"If you were beautiful before, you are even more so now. I want to be like you when I grow up. Do you think I can?"
Ruby hesitated, then smiled:
"You will be as great as me. And certainly, even more beautiful."
"And how do I become a rabbit?"
The rabbit choked on the question and tried to change the subject, but Nia's curiosity was unbeatable. In the end, Ruby said:
"It doesn't matter if you have ears or not. What makes a rabbit... or a princess... is courage."
Nia smiled and came closer.
"Even so... do you think I'm beautiful?"
"Of course, I do," replied Ruby, lightly touching the girl's chin.
"If my brother saw you, he would certainly fall in love with you."
Ruby widened her eyes. "What?! No way! He's just a kid. He's not good enough for me."
"It's true," replied Nia, looking down. "I forgot. You must be a princess. You need someone more important, more imposing than my brother. I won't talk about it anymore. But... will you still be my friend?"
Ruby looked at her with tenderness.
"Nia... we will never stop being friends. Whether you're a princess, a rabbit, a warrior... true friendship doesn't change because of details. That's just appearance."
Nia smiled, moved. Ruby hugged her. And for a moment, she forgot all the pain of the journey, all the conflicts, all the secrets.
In that instant... they were just friends.
And somewhere in the school, Zangh Kao, still restless, looked out the window, wondering if she was thinking of him too.