As he approached and began to pull himself into the transparent world, a cold voice pierced him from behind.
"Who are you? And what are you doing here?"
Unexpectedly, Kyle made the search for himself easier. Meanwhile, the two of them stared at each other sharply, wary of one another.
Whether by coincidence or luck, the four of them were just about to return to headquarters when, halfway there, Ren and Finn felt a piercing sensation around the building covered in grass.
They rested here and investigated the entire building and an antique house squeezed between them.
The person he had seen earlier was Finn, pacing in and out of the antique house because he was uncomfortable with the atmosphere around him.
The atmosphere became silent for a moment, accompanied by a cold night breeze that pierced their skin.
They remained silent, holding their breath. From the direction of the door, a shadow slowly appeared, growing larger and clearer.
Finn came out of the house. His gaze swept across the yard, and his eyes widened instantly. There stood Syne... with someone he didn't recognise at all.
Feeling someone's presence behind him, Kyle turned around, startled, his mouth agape as if he had just seen a ghost.
"Why is he here?" he muttered softly.
Finn felt familiar when he saw Kyle's posture, shocked, unable to believe he had found him so easily.
"Syne, he's the one I'm talking about!" His index finger pointed at Kyle.
"Huh?" Kyle replied in surprise.
Syne walked closer, confirming that Kyle was the person Finn had described. Just by observing him, he immediately understood that if he chose to attack Kyle, Syne would certainly lose badly.
Because he was always cautious and cunning, especially when fighting his enemies.
"Have you found the man in the cloak? It seems like you have a grudge against him?"
Syne knew, just by observing Kyle's actions.
Silence. He chose not to answer. Kyle was impressed by Syne's thinking.
He glanced at their faces, wearing a shirt over a black suit, the length reaching their knees.
Seeing that, he was certain that they were not ordinary people and felt that their other companions were still hiding nearby.
"So, what do you want?" he asked coldly, confirming their purpose.
Without hesitation, Syne answered. "After hearing about your unique abilities, I am interested in working with you. And I didn't expect to find you this easily." Syne chuckled softly after that.
"Is that all?" Kyle paused for a moment. "Where are your other companions? You think I don't know about them."
"I'm sorry, they're not around here," he replied calmly.
Syne walked behind him afterwards and nodded towards Finn. He turned around and said, "Let me show you how terrifying this world is!" He gave a small signal, telling Kyle to follow him immediately.
Of course, Kyle didn't trust the two of them. Instinctively, he knew that if he followed them, he would find things that would surprise him.
Kyle walked cautiously, following behind them. They all stood in front of the door of an antique house, about to enter.
Before entering, Syne warned Kyle to be careful. Kyle nodded, following the instructions given.
They entered the house, which looked like an ordinary house but seemed to be hiding something.
A terrifying aura was detected after they entered the centre of the house, and without Kyle expecting it, three grey stones suddenly appeared floating in front of him.
Just by seeing the grey stones appear, he concluded that Kyle, Flove, and Aurora had performed a blood ritual in this central room.
From the front, Syne and Finn narrowed their eyes as they saw a small blue light moving towards them. Finn knew that the blue light came from the lantern carried by Havio.
"Don't just stand there. Hurry up and get out of this house!" The shout echoed after the small blue light appeared.
Without thinking twice, they both ran out, and Kyle simply followed their lead even though he didn't know what was really going on.
Outside, standing away from the house, two people wearing shirts over black coats came out of the house, one of them carrying a blue lantern in his right hand.
They moved away from the house, approaching the three of them who were staring at them from a distance. Only six steps after leaving the door, the house suddenly emitted a pungent odour, stinging the noses of anyone within reach.
Havio and Ren covered their noses as they ran, even though they were still panting from running earlier when they saw the unexpected sight.
From a distance, Syne saw the two of them covering their noses, and she shouted after them. "Did you find something in there?"
Instead of answering, Ren and Havio nodded simultaneously, still running while covering their noses with their right hands.
Shortly after that, they all gathered not far from the house and the mossy building. Ren and Havio were able to breathe calmly.
"What's wrong, Ren? What did you find inside that house?" Syne asked suspiciously.
Ren's breathing was unstable, and his skin suddenly turned blue. Earlier, he had accidentally inhaled the gas while still running inside the house.
His body fell backwards after that, and Kyle and the other three who witnessed it were shocked. Even Havio, who was with him, was shocked and unaware of the presence of a stranger, Kyle.
"Hey, wake up," said Syne in a panic. He reached into his coat pocket and took out a bottle with a pointed cap.
He opened it quickly, throwing the cap away. Syne lifted Ren's head, opened his mouth with the tip of the bottle and gave him the potion to drink.
His blue skin slowly began to return to normal, and the three of them who witnessed it were finally able to breathe a sigh of relief.
On the other hand, Havio had become aware of the presence of an unknown man. He approached Finn.
"Is he the person we're looking for?" whispered Havio.
"Yes," he replied briefly, although a little hesitantly.
Shortly after that, Ren woke up with his right hand reflexively holding his nose. He was confused, his body felt possessed by something.
"Damn it," he muttered irritably.
"Actually, what did you two find?" Syne asked suspiciously, staring at the house, feeling that something was hidden inside.
Choosing to rest here was a bad idea, the thought crossed his mind. But, on the other hand, he could find Kyle, the person he had been looking for.
Syne glanced back, seeing Kyle's calm face even though he had just witnessed the strange incident that had befallen his friend, and Syne also saw something that continued to surround his body even though it was transparent.
His gaze shifted, looking at Ren who was trying to stand up.
With trembling lips, Ren said, "Is he the person we're looking for?" Syne just nodded.
None of them were aware, especially Syne and Kyle. From the open door of the house, a shadow appeared, emerging through the cracks in the floor.
It rose upwards and formed the body of a human, although its entire body was covered by a black cloak. Suddenly, it darted forward, intending to kill the unsuspecting Ren.
But the assassination attempt failed. The grey stone managed to stop it, scattering into dust and halting the cloaked figure's movement.
The four of them, including Kyle, were startled, standing alert, ready to attack and defend.