For the first time in forever, Soma tasted something… good.

  Warm. Real.

  And maybe for the first time ever—she felt like a normal little girl.

  She smiled as she ate, her cheeks rising with unfamiliar joy. She didn’t know why she was smiling. It was such a strange, distant feeling… one she hadn’t felt in years—maybe ever.

  And then, quietly, tears rolled down her face.

  But she wasn’t sad. Not even close.

  She was grateful. So deeply, warmly grateful, it overwhelmed her. This moment—the warmth, the food, the silence—was something she never thought she’d feel again.

  The old man watched her carefully. He saw her trembling lips, the tears, the confusion in her eyes. And it made something ache in his chest.

  So he opened his arms and gently pulled her into a hug.

  Maybe to calm her. Maybe to give her safety.

  Or maybe… maybe he needed that hug too.

  Soma blinked, stunned. She didn’t know what to feel.

  She looked up at the man, confused but thankful.

  She didn’t know who he was. Didn’t know why he was helping her and her brother. Especially in a world where kindness was a luxury, and the weak were stepped over without thought.

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  She couldn’t hold back her curiosity anymore.

  Without warning, she asked:

  > “Why are you helping us?”

  The old man’s eyes dimmed, filled with a sorrow she couldn’t quite understand. But he gave her a soft smile and replied:

  > “Ah… little one. I’m sorry—I never introduced myself. My name is Spearhead. I used to be a warrior. But don’t worry—I have no intention of hurting you or your brother. I saved you out of pity… and some personal reasons.”

  The vague answer made Soma uneasy. Her eyes narrowed a little. Spearhead noticed.

  He sighed. Then, slowly, he continued:

  > “Alright, I’ll tell you the full story.”

  “Like I said, I was once a fighter. A long time ago, I fell in love—with a beautiful woman. She was from the Excalibar people. I didn’t care. I married her anyway. And we had a daughter.”

  > “She was… everything. She had her mother’s power. Her mother’s beauty. My whole world revolved around her. And when she grew up and married the man she loved, I thought… maybe, just maybe, I’d done something right.”

  > “They had two children—a girl and a boy. Just like you two.”

  He paused.

  His voice cracked.

  > “But nothing lasts forever. One night, their home burned to the ground. I lost all of them. My daughter. Her husband. My two grandchildren. I couldn’t save them.”

  “And not long after… my wife died too. Her grief ate her alive.”

  He gave a bitter, crooked smile.

  > “Sometimes I wish it had been me instead. Sometimes I wish I hadn’t been so damn weak…”

  His eyes stared into the distance, heavy with years of pain.

  Soma sat in stunned silence.

  She regretted asking. She knew that pain. The kind of loss that never lets you breathe right again. The kind that makes you blame yourself for things you couldn’t control.

  She knew it all too well.

  But Soma wasn’t the kind of girl who drowned in sadness.

  She took a breath.

  Lifted her chin.

  And looked him straight in the eye.

  > “Spearhead,” she said firmly, “If you don’t mind… will you teach me how to fight?”

  > “You’re a warrior, right? Then teach me. I want to protect myself. And I want to protect my little brother.”

  His eyes widened.

  Something shifted in his expression—like a flicker of light breaking through clouds.

  Like… hope.

  A second chance.

  Maybe not to rewrite the past—but to build something new.

  A family. A future. A reason to keep going.