Kyle got to know Melanie as the three of them started talking. During their conversation, Melanie could see the Kyle that Sebastian had told her about. Sure enough, after his annoyance had vanished, Kyle seemed much more carefree and casual.
Yet, according to what she saw, she felt like Kyle's attributes came from a different source than what Sebastian believed.
"Kyle, I've got a personal question," Melanie said.
"Ask away," Kyle replied.
"Do you feel lonely?" she asked.
Sebastian frowned when he heard the question.
Kyle didn't immediately answer as he considered his feelings.
"You don't have to answer," Melanie added after she noticed that Kyle seemed worried.
"No, it's fine," Kyle answered. "I'm just thinking about my answer. My first instinct is to say no, but I don't know if that reflects the truth. I'm trying to evaluate myself from an objective perspective."
"Oh, okay," Melanie asked.
Several seconds of silence passed in which Sebastian and Melanie looked at Kyle with some worry.
"It's not that easy to answer," Kyle replied with furrowed brows after a while. "I've basically lived my entire life like this. I've had some close friends and a couple of loose friends. I don't think I would be unhappy if things continued like this, but I also feel like I could improve my happiness by finding a more intimate connection."
"It's just... I don't really know how to do that. I've been married before, but that was definitely not a healthy relationship. I believed I loved her, but I'm not sure if I actually loved her. I also don't think she ever loved me. I tried again with Lara, but... well... you know."
"I want to try, but I don't know how. I live in relative isolation, and I don't get into contact with strangers a lot aside from fighting them."
"That might change," Melanie added. "You will be an Immortal soon, which means you will have Avatars. You can't really speed up your growth by sending several Avatars to comprehend Laws. Someone with your power will probably condense at least three Avatars. You can use one to focus on Laws. You can use another to search for resources, and your last one can see the world. Like this, you will meet plenty of people."
Kyle scratched the side of his head. "I can see the logic in that, but it doesn't feel like anything's going to change."
"Then, it's your fault," Melanie said with a shrug. "You have everything you need to succeed. If you still fail, it's because you didn't really try. You have no one to blame but yourself."
Sebastian furrowed his brows a bit. Melanie could be quite direct with her statements.
However, she also wasn't wrong.
"Yeah, I guess that's true," Kyle answered. "I think you're right."
As Kyle thought about Melanie's words, he remembered the time he had almost died at the hands of the investigator from the Contrast Empire. Back then, he had regretted not spending more time with his friends.
Then, he thought about his future in the Immortal Dimension. Since he couldn't join any Higher Supreme Organization due to his powerful aura, he had to join a Lower Supreme Organization or make his own.
'I should have plenty of opportunities to interact with others in the future. If I still fail to find others, it will really be my fault.'
Kyle thought about Lara and her death. 'I still miss you. We've never truly entered into a relationship, but I still feel like I've lost someone I've loved. Maybe you felt similarly when you died.'
'You would probably want me to move on and find someone, right? I mean, that's what I would have wished for you if our roles were reversed.'
'Sure, I'll try my best. Not sure if I will succeed, though.'
"Yep, you're right," Kyle said with more conviction than before. "Thank you."
After Kyle left, Sebastian and Melanie looked at each other without saying any words for a while.
Every second they had together was valuable.
Sebastian needed to focus on creating his Refined Law, but spending time with someone else didn't even consume 1% of his focus. He could have a full conversation with Melanie while also focusing on his Refined Law.
So, even though Sebastian was focusing on his power, he also spent time with the love of his life.
They had about 50,000 years left, and they wanted to make full use of it without cannibalizing Sebastian's future.
Meanwhile, Kyle went deep underground to an isolated space.
'I don't have any way to improve my power in the short term. The only thing I can do is to create more Avatars.'
'I can sense that my Energy has recovered to 200% of what it should be, which means I didn't lose my advantage when Red died. Since I'm still in the Fusion Realm, I can create new Avatars without worries. The death of Avatars only becomes permanent in the Universe Realm.'
'Last time, I didn't have time to condense more Avatars since Fox was right in front of me, but now, I can create as many as I want.'
'Now, the question is, how many Avatars do I want?'
'What's a good number, and what am I going to do with all of these Avatars?'
The author's patreon. If he gets more than 1000 per month, he will increase the number of words in the chapter.
/user?u=27791050

Comments
The readers' comments on the novel: Strongest Hammer God