Chapter 156 --156.
Ken’s lips twitched into a shy smile, the kind that flashed too quickly before he lowered his head, almost as if embarrassed by his own expression. His shoulders hunched ever so slightly as he gave a small bow and turned away, quietly following after his teammates. Kaya gave a slow nod as she watched them go, her eyes lingering longer than she intended.
There was something about it that caught her off guard—not just Ken’s reaction, but all of them. A kind of soft change she hadn’t expected.
She had seen people broken before. Even in her own world, where slavery was illegal, it didn’t mean it didn’t happen. And when they rescued those who had suffered, most didn’t recover. Some stayed stuck in their silence for the rest of their lives. Some even gave up entirely. Kaya had never let herself expect much. She didn’t believe in miraculous healing or instant change. She just wanted her house built, a place to breathe in peace.
But now... seeing this? Watching these people—who had no therapy, no doctors, no special intervention—start to smile, talk, blush? It felt strange. Almost unreal.
Were they just incredibly strong, mentally? Or was this... actually real?
Kaya didn’t have the answer. But she found herself standing there, thinking longer than she thought she would.
.
.
.
As Kaya had instructed, the flyers returned with everything she’d asked for—every single leaf she had distributed was now back in their hands. They didn’t just bring the fruits from the tree either; they went ahead and brought everything related to it. If Kaya had even vaguely mentioned she wanted the whole plant, they made sure to deliver exactly that.