Khanna POV
The air in the town was noticeably warmer than the cold, damp forest we had just left, and the scent was a relief. Not the harsh, metallic smell of the portal or the damp earth, but something sweet and comforting—like baking bread and woodsmoke. It felt... normal. After the chaos of the last few hours, normal was exactly what I needed.
Hajime tightened his hold on my hand, pulling me slightly to the side as a family of three, laughing loudly, walked past us. We must have looked like a mess—dirty clothes, wild eyes, and the lingering tension in our posture that screamed, ‘We just ran for our lives.’
"We need to blend," Hajime whispered, his eyes scanning the windows of the small shops. "And you need to stop staring at the asphalt like it personally offended you."
I hadn't rea
