"Someone is running across the rooftops at high speed," Kai remarked.

  Lyla paused, thinking for a few seconds. "We should go see who or what it is," she said, stepping away from Kai and the window.

  "Let’s go." Kai followed Lyla and put his shoes back on. The two of them left the inn and moved quickly toward a nearby alley under the moonlit city.

  "Get close to me," Lyla ordered in a serious tone Kai had never heard from her before. Kai quickly approached her, and she grabbed him by the waist. With the palm of her free hand facing the ground and without reciting any incantation, a great gust of wind lifted them into the air, allowing them to reach the roof of one of the houses.

  "Wow, you have incredible control over the air," Kai said, looking ahead, trying to spot what he had seen moments earlier from the inn window.

  "Thank you, sweetheart, that’s what comes with being a goddess," she replied, patting his cheek.

  At that moment, the figure dashed past them.

  "There! Over there!" Kai exclaimed, starting to run in the same direction, jumping from rooftop to rooftop. Lyla followed close behind.

  As they drew nearer, they could distinguish that the figure was a person. The mysterious individual turned their head and noticed two figures following, instead of continuing the route,stopped and dropped down into another alley. Kai and Lyla followed, descending with skill as they searched for the mysterious person.

  "Nobody here" Kai said, continuing the search.

  Suddenly, the person emerged from the shadows and, with astonishing speed, struck Kai in the stomach. Even though he tried to dodge, the stranger's movements were too fast. Kai gasped as the punch knocked the wind out of him.

  Lyla launched a perfectly formed small fireball at the mysterious person with one hand. The stranger tilted the head slightly, surprised by the perfection of the spell but dodged it with ease. Kai took advantage of the distraction to try and land a hit, but the stranger parried Kai’s punch with the left hand and moved to the side, delivering a kick to his back that sent him flying against the wall.

  With her right hand, Lyla created a large gust of wind to prevent Kai from hitting the wall too hard. Kai managed to recover and rejoined the fight.

  Realizing Lyla was the real threat, the mysterious person didn't hesitate and raised both hands. "Flame Arrow!".

  An arrow made entirely of fire appeared and was fired. Lyla was surprised, but with the skill befitting a goddess, she raised her hand and summoned a barrier of water that blocked the entire alley. The fire arrow vanished the instant it touched the water.

  "Good magic, but that arrow wasn't powerful enough to evaporate the water," Lyla commented with a smile.

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  "You use water magic too?" the mysterious person asked from the other side of the barrier, her voice clearly feminine.

  With a slight flick of her wrist, Lyla pushed the water barrier toward the figure. The woman tried to retreat, but the water struck her body with force, causing her to lose her balance. Seizing the moment, Kai lunged at her, pinning her to the ground. Kai pointed his palm directly at the person’s face.

  "Move and I’ll incinerate you," Kai stated firmly.

  Lyla laughed and walked over. "Easy now, you did well, sweetheart. And you too, Allice".

  Confused, Kai looked up at Lyla. "What?".

  Allice, equally confused, created a small flame in her hand to illuminate the area. Now that Lyla was closer, she recognized her.

  "M... Master Lyla...?" she asked in confusion.

  "Master? You... know each other?" Kai stepped away from Allice, allowing her to stand up.

  Lyla, still giggling, replied, "This is Allice, one of my subordinates. Every night she patrols the city by running across the rooftops. When you spotted her, I acted like it was something unusual to give you a bit of training".

  "So that’s why you could use water magic too..." Allice murmured. "But, who is he?".

  "Oh, this is Kai".

  "Kai? As in, the Hero?".

  "Well, he is the Hero. I managed to bring him back".

  Allice's eyes sparkled. "You've... returned".

  "Did she know me?" Kai asked, still bewildered.

  "He lost all his memories, Allice".

  "That’s why he didn’t recognize me... but, why is he so weak? Before, Kai used to beat me almost without trying".

  Lyla smiled as she stepped closer to them. "Because he doesn't have the strength he used to, obviously. I’ve created something special for him that will allow him to get stronger and stronger until he reaches his former level and even surpass it". "But not a word of this, it’s something no one else must know".

  "I had to... sacrifice most of my power. I’m still at a good level, as you saw, but I no longer depend on the faith of the people". "Now I depend on him. The stronger he gets, the stronger I become as well".

  Allice was stunned. "So... you’re no longer one of the Ten Goddesses?".

  "Yes and no. I still have my immortality and my knowledge, but as I told you, I sacrificed 90% of my power to create the system".

  "I understand... then, Kai," Allice turned toward him. "Welcome back. It’s a pleasure to have you back. Even if you don’t remember me, we were great friends. I’m sorry I couldn’t help you when all the gods...".

  "It's alright," Kai responded calmly. "I suppose things were complicated back then. I might not remember anything, but if Lyla trusts you enough to tell you everything and let me be near you... I suppose I’ll trust you too".

  Allice smiled happily. "Thank you so much. I hope I can help you with whatever you need".

  Kai and Lyla looked at each other for a few seconds.

  "Actually, we're fine for now, though I think we should rest after all this," Lyla said, gently taking Kai’s arm. "If you need anything, we’re at the Pers Inn, room 11".

  "Perfect. I’ll continue patrolling the city to make sure everything is quiet. It was good to see you again, Kai. Master Lyla must be very happy you're back," she commented with a small laugh. "Good luck with everything".

  With great speed, Allice vanished from the alley.

  "So you were just acting to train me?" Kai asked as they walked back to the inn.

  "Of course. She wasn't a threat. Why do you think the system didn't warn you of an enemy like it did hours ago with the wolves?". "Besides, after that fight where you almost... died again, it’s best to train you as soon and as well as possible". "And I knew Allice wouldn't hurt you, if you had lost, I would have stopped her by revealing myself sooner".

  "The system thing makes sense," Kai sighed. "The truth is, I do need training. Tomorrow, I’d like you to help me improve".

  Lyla’s eyes widened with joy. "Of course!" she affirmed, clinging tighter to Kai’s arm. "But right now, I need to sleep. Since I was already weakened from creating the system, the wolf fight, healing you, healing Isabelle, and now fighting Allice... I’m exhausted".

  Kai let out a light laugh. "That’s understandable. Let’s get some rest," Kai said as the two of them entered the inn.