"Never let a starving wolf enter your house."

Azar wanted to benefit from the peaceful energy inside; however, his perception didn't notice him that the girl was wearing a loose night dress. This definitely didn't help his condition.

"I've heard that you returned a few days ago, but I didn't expect to be one of the people from your visit list," Reeya joked as she served a herbal tea. Her too close approach, resulted in Azar swallowing empty.

"I didn't plan to come at this hour, but I was passing by when I felt the calm energy coming from here and I though that it might help with my condition," Azar explained. His eyes big and round like two onions, totally opposite to his small, usual ones.

Reeya observed his funny expression, but didn't want to offend the man by laughing at him, so she controlled her impulse.

"Are you not feeling good?" she asked instead.

Azar looked at her again. He couldn't say that he felt in a far greater condition then normal, and that his good condition was exactly his problem.

"Something like that," he replied.

"Then, can I help you with something?" Reeya asked honestly. "Do I have something here that can help you?"

"Only the energy of this place, can you allow me to meditate here for ten minutes?" Azar asked gently.

"Of course, if you can feel something that helps . . ." Reeya smiled showing her teeth. She almost broke into laughter because she thought that Azar was trying to find an excuse to see her.

"You're not aware of how the energy of this place, differs?" Azar asked before taking a sip from his tea. He was still able to discern the girl thoughts and wanted to clarify that he was innocent. As innocent as he could be.

It was not uncommon for someone with a lower level of cultivation to not have a high perception of the energies around.

"No, I'm not," Reeya answered arrogantly. It was the first time she heard someone speak about her house energy with such importance. It was a lame excuse, but she didn't want to put pressure and question Azar. She was happy that he didn't forget about her, and a little amused by his words and facial expression.

"Give me your hand and focus your attention only on what you feel," Azar instructed, extending his hand.

Reeya placed her small hand in his palm and closed her eyes as being told. Not long after that, Azar directed his awareness and perception to the girl, giving her the opportunity to experience the surrounding world through his senses.

Reeya was a little tense at first, but slowly relaxed as she started to feel and interact with the energy field of her own house. It was a peaceful feeling that calmed her heart, she could even feel the needs of her flowers and the refreshing energy they emitted.

Azar didn't lie to her. He really came just for the atmosphere. After a few minutes, he closed the connection and recalled his awareness as the girl started to lose her focus.

These few minutes gave Azar the time to adjust his state of mind. His eyes returned to normal and his demeanor changed as well.

"How did it felt?" he asked in a deep, but pleasant voice.

Reeya slowly regained her own senses and exchanged gazes with Azar for short second. "I've only felt like that when I was little, but even then, not at this scale," she said becoming emotional as she recalled her childhood.

"I thought you lied and came for other reasons," she voiced out reflexively, but regretted immediately after realizing her words.

Azar placed his cup on the table and moved closer to the red faced girl, teasing her with his next question. "What did you thought my reason was?" he lowered his stance and grabbed her hands in his palms, looking straight into her eyes.

"You wish," she rebuked. Her feminine defense system being trigger as she pushed away her gentle side and brought up a somewhat angered face.

"Your intuition might not be wrong," Azar said tenderly. "Come, join me for a dance." he softly pulled her. If she showed signs of resistance, he won't advance any further. If either she had someone, or simply didn't want to go down the road with him, he respected her choice.

But Reeya didn't oppose, she was tensed, yes, but she didn't refuse, letting Azar take control and pull her into his embrace. At 23 years old, she was older then Azar, but she didn't have a problem with that when the guy was more mature and grounded then most people she knew.

Azar had a hard life. At only fourteen, he was forced to flee for his life, leaving his mother and little brother behind, and rarely seeing them ever since. Their meetings were short and hidden as Azar was afraid that the people who harmed him will go after his family if they found out that he was still alive.

And he was right to be afraid as Kaden was a man with enough influence and power to destroy the whole kingdom, not just a small family.

Azar embraced the girl tight enough for her to feel his heartbeat. Feeling her tender body and smelling the fragrance of her skin, Azar remembered the old times. Without having a problem with her past, Azar was interested only in her present and future, as always.

The past could never be changed, so what was there to cry about. It was much better to focus and change the future and live in the present.

No one should love a person for who she was, or who she might be, but for what she is in the present.

Increasing the distance, enough to look her in the eyes, Azar asked in a pleasant tone. "Are you in for a dance?"

Reeya's lips didn't move, but her eyes sent a gleam of light that made Azar wait no longer. He moved in dancing steps, humming a melody, and not taking his eyes off the girl's face. And he had what to see as she had fascinating features and a pair of lovely lips curved in an arc.

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The pair continued their slow peace for a few minutes, enjoying the quiet time spent with eachother. Reeya seemed happy and pleased by Azar's company, things that could be observed from her aura and expression.

Azar took their dance to a natural end when his patience reached its limit. He moved his head closer and asked right above the girl ear. "Are you single?" his voice sending a shiver down her back.

She didn't expect him to be so straight forward and ask her that. That was her soft spot, and Azar triggered it without knowing, exactly like when they were together.

Reeya took her time to respond and placed her head on Azar's shoulder, enabling him to feel a slight tremble of fear coming from her.

"Did I had anyone after you?" she asked trying to control her emotions. "You have the habit of entering someone's life and push all the buttons, weak spots and wounds that you can find. I don't think you are aware of what you're doing, but you uncover wounds so deep and painful that even the person in cause is not aware of them."

Azar remained silent, at a loss of words. 'Have I done something to her?' he asked himself.

He heard Zianne talk about that to, but he was a scorpio. It was in his nature to trigger the people's weak spots, and he didn't have control or bad intentions for doing that.

Reeya continued after a few moments of silence where she expected Azar to defend himself. "I'm not criticise you, I'm just complaining, okay? You have the ability to heal the wounds and weak spots that you uncover, and then, you discover more, and repeat the process until the person reaches a state good enough to match yours. I've observed you doing it to a lot of people; your brothers, girls from the rehab center, me. But what I want to ask you is this," Reeya said lifting her head and looking in Azar's eyes. Her watery gaze looked so sensible and gentle that he had the impulse of hugging her with all his might.

"Tell me, after you barge into someone's life, show her how weak she is, peek into her secrets and sorrows, create a bond, then leave and continue your life with another person. What happens to the girl who fell for you? Where does she direct that gratefulness and love? Who fills the emptiness left by your absence?" At this point, tears fell from Reeya's brown eyes. Down her cheeks, to her chin, and then on the floor.

"I've tried to find someone for me, but you've raised my standards too high. It's not your fault, I don't even know if I'm mad at you or not. I just felt like crying and telling the things bothering me, that's all. Don't be upset, alright?" she laid her head back on Azar's shoulder.

He remained a little dumbfounded. Was it his fault, wasn't his fault? Was she alright, wasn't she alright? Holding the girl tightly, Azar reached the conclusion that he did nothing wrong, and that he didn't have a reason to feel bad.

"We weren't together, and I just followed my heart that fell in love with someone else," he muttered softly.

"I know, I don't blame you. But I still suffered after you and I was hopeless about that . . . and that's your fault." Reeya dug her fingers into the material of his coat.

'No, it's not,' Azar said in his mind.

The two became close since the time Azar came to the rehab center to help healing the girls. Back then, the qualified personnel wasn't enough, and his presence and methods were more then welcomed.

They spent a lot of time with each other in that period, and even slept together one time, but Reeya didn't really realized at that moment how her relation with Azar would impact her life.

When Azar entered in a relation with Zianne, Reeya remained friendly and consciously accepted the fact that he found someone else. They weren't tied by something and lived completely different lives. Her heart couldn't accept the situation however.

Azar looked at the girl in his arms. He had no idea what fate had planned for him, but at this moment he was certain that he wanted to be with her. His heart felt missing a piece as well, so maybe they could help eachother. Placing his warm fingers on Reeya's face, he pressed his thumb on her lower lip, and gently opening her mouth. As she didn't resist, Azar kissed her.

She responded, following his lead as their lips entangled in a dance of affection. Azar then grabbed her up like a feather and placed her on the near table. He raised his chin in a seductive arrogance and slowly descended to claim her mouth once more. Enjoying the warmth of a woman after a good beating was a heavenly blessing.

. . .

[ Lefeer Kingdom's Capital City - Oriol ]

The sun was up in the sky for some time already when Azar and Eno found themselves seated on the sofa inside the dean's office. None of them smiled, none of them moved, they just waited for the dean to finish his words.

"As such, I've decided to accept your offer. Mr. Azar, I am honored to have you as one of the students of my prestigious academy." Sholev got up from his seat, smiling from ear to ear. "The admission paperwork will be handled by us, but we hope that this matter will remain our little secret."

"But of course, Dean Sholev, I am a man of my word and I don't want to tain my reputation by revealing such a small matter. It's not in my character." Azar gave his total approval. None of them benefitted if the world found about their cheating.

They were breaking the law with this scheme. When dealing with the mafia and lords of the underworld, the law enforcing institutions acted humbly. But when dealing with small matters like this one, they exerted all their power to uphold justice.

Not all of them acted like this though as Azar himself worked for the Underground Activities Division of the Law Enforcing Tower and could vouch for their competence, but still.

"Excellent! If anyone asks, you are a student who trained in seclusion since you entered the academy four years ago. All the paperwork will be there to testify your words and you can come participate in the group trainings the day after tomorrow." Sholev gave Azar a green insignia with a scepter on it. This was his ticket and symbol as part of Jonikc Academy.

"Thank you very much, Dean Sholev, it is a pleasure to work with you," Azar said storing the badge inside his storage ring.

"The pleasure is all mine," responded the dean out of courtesy. After a meticulous investigation, Sholev found that Azar was one of the people who owned the Five Leaves chain of restaurants. His cultivation level of a [Master Channeler] and [rank A] combat power at just 20 years old, marked the dean and weighted decisively in the decision making process.

"If everything is settled, we won't disturb your work any longer, have a nice day!" Azar saluted politely and exited the room. Eno followed him in silence.

The meeting concluded in Azar's favor as he now had a way to get his hands on the high grade artifact. Adjusting his collar, Azar let out a deep sigh, his demeanor visibly more relaxed.

'Well, that went as we hoped for,' he remarked telepathically, a faint smile touching his lips.

Eno nodded, tucking a loose strand of hair behind his ear. 'Absolutely. I think we managed to get a great deal,' he said, a hint of satisfaction in his voice.

The hallway they walked on was abuzz with the usual academic activities, but to them, it felt like a separate world—quiet and serene. When you smile, life smiles back at you.

They strolled together, the clack of their boots against the polished floor echoing through the corridor. They liked the sound because it gave them a sense of importance, like some big figures. Because the nature of their jobs, the two walked soundesly, but this time they overdid it.

Their telepathic conversations drifted from work matters to lighter topics, laughter punctuating the exchange as the main doors of the academy appeared before them.

'Are you free?' Eno asked suddenly as a brilliant idea hit him.

'. . . for the moment, why?'

'I want to go and enjoy a beer, will you join me?' Eno asked, struggling to hold his laughter. He never drank beer, he just didn't like the taste. However, Azar quickly understood the meaning of his words.

'Yeah, why not?" he responded and vanished with his next step. Eno narrowly managed to transform into a black smoke and attach himself to his master before the latter vanished. The duo disappeared right in front of a student who came from another corridor. She stopped her walk and gazed around, afraid to make any sudden moves for a while.

[ Jonikc Academy

Dean: Sholev Rudubus- Cultivation level- [Aikyam]

Head teacher: Horthis Mundolis- Cultivation level- [Aikyam]

Academy Rank: 2

Graduation level: Most of the students graduate at 20-23 years old with the cultivation of a [Master Channeler] or [Adept Practitioner]. Their combat/ support rank is either [C] or [B]. In rare cases there were geniuses who graduated with a combat/support rank of [A]. ]