The dark figure sprinted through the hallways now that he had established that the Soul-kin following him was not normal. His training replaced the uncertainty and fear, never doubting, always moving, but even though he was calm looking from the outside, his thoughts raced, trying to make sense of the situation.

"Why can he still use magic? I'm sure I hit the mage-points, sealing it! Maybe I missed one? No, but why… and why didn't he use one of their spells but strengthen his body? No Soul-kin does that! Concentrate! The mission first, escaping with my prey, is paramount! I'm Shadow-kin, the perfect amalgamation of magic and physical power."

He turned a corner, noticing the incoming dead end, but there was no time to search for another way. The Soul-kin was hard on his heels, but luckily, a big window was before him. Without hesitation, he threw a glob of gel at the window, and with a flick of his magic, it exploded, shattering the glass outward.

The Shadow-kin vaulted through the now open window, forcing Mor to stop and stare down.

Mor looked down, noticing the dark figure floating down like a feather in the wind instead of plummeting down like a stone.

°What now?!° Mor asked.

°After him!° The human ordered.

°Going around would take too long! He's gone!° Mor said, cursing.

°The fuck he is. Get your magic back going and jump!° The human said, but Mor hesitated.

°I can't. I'm scared.° He confessed.

The figure had crossed the halfway point downwards when Tiara came back to consciousness, flinching and struggling at her restraints until she noticed where she was. Panic gripped her, and she let out a scared scream.

°You fucking whimp!° The human cursed, slapping Mor with his own hand.

°Listen! Tiara is also scared, and you promised Dino you would watch over his sister. Now keep your promise and get down there now!° The human growled.

Mor listened, hearing Tiara's terrified voice, and took a deep breath. The human was right, he had promised. Mor tried to channel his power, but it was still blocked.

°There’s something blocking me.° He grunted.

°Then break through it. Pull and overwhelm the blocking!° The human ordered, hoping it would be the solution.

Mor dreaded trying that again, then slowly exhaled and gathered all his courage as he inhaled. He could feel the magic pressing against the blockade, and he pulled with all he had. Like a leaking dam, there first was a trickle, then it broke under the torrent of power, and Mor stopped pulling at this instant. Nauseousness flooded him, and he could taste rising bile, but his reservoir was accessible again. It was still nowhere near full, but he could use magic again.

°I'm proud of you.° The human said. °Now go forth, be a hero, and rescue the princess!°

Mor nodded, took a few steps back, and jumped, thundering down like a meteor.

The Shadow-kin reached the ground and took a quick look back. The strange Soul-kin was gone from the window. He had finally shaken his pursuer and succeeded in his mission. Now, he just needed to silence the struggling girl, and then it would be easygoing.

He threw the girl to the ground, making her gasp in pain. Tiara looked furious at that handling at first, but then she noticed her magic not working and again looked at the dark figure in fear. The Shadow-kin raised his hand to knock the girl out a second time when a hard thump behind him pulled his attention.

Mor crashed into the ground, tiny cracks forming around his feet. He stood straight up and fixed the dark figure with a furious glance.

°Owww! That hurt.° Mor complained.

°Yeah, that landing was harder than expected. Good thing you are practiced in reinforcing your body, or that might have shattered your bones.° The human stated, matter of factly.

°You knew that! And you still did make me jump!° Mor hissed.

°Yeah, but it worked. You got your magic back, and we're close to our opponent.° The human said smugly.

°Remind me to kill you after we save Tiara.° Mor grumbled.

°Aww, I knew you love me!° The human teased.

"Mor?" Tiara asked, unsure.

"What are you?!" The dark figure hissed.

"Just a commoner." Mor answered, drawing the two "borrowed" Sai and making the human chuckle at the cheesy one-liner.

The Shadow-kin hissed again, then quickly drew a knife and held it to Tiara's throat while she tried to struggle free of the restraining sack, making her stop her attempts.

This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

"Drop your weapons. Slowly." It demanded. "Or I will kill her."

°Of course, as soon as they lose, they begin playing dirty…° The human grumbled.

°And now?° Mor asked.

°Do, as he says, he probably won't kill Tiara, but we can't be sure.° The human sighed.

Mor slowly put the weapons down on the ground, his fingers touching something hard in the process. He let the weapons go and clenched his fists, seemingly in frustration.

"Now, stay there. If you follow me, the girl will die. Don't try any magic tricks. I can feel it when you Soul-kin want to use a spell." The Shadow kin ordered.

Mor glared, gathering the last trickle of his power in his right fist. He watched for the Shadow-kin's reaction but felt relieved when there was none. Having little power was sometimes very helpful. The Shadow-kin slowly walked backward, Tiara as a shield between himself and Mor.

°That's risky.° The human mumbled.

°I know.° Mor replied.

°You can't miss.° The human added.

°I know.° Mor again answered.

"Tiara!" Mor shouted. "Everything will be fine."

Despite the knife at her throat, Tiara struggled again, crying out to Mor with tears in her eyes. This distracted the Shadow-kin for a split second and was all Mor had needed. The pebble he swiped while putting down the Sai rocketed forward. This time, there was no magic barrier or hard stone armor in the way.

The head of the Shadow-kin rocked back with a sickening crunch, followed by a plock-sound as the stone hit a wooden wall behind its target, splattering brain matter and blood across the ground. The body of the intruder slumped to the ground, freeing Tiara from its grasp, and Mor rushed to her, embracing her while he looked at the devastation he wrought over her shoulder.

°I killed someone.° Mor said, unbelieving.

°Seems like it.° The human said carefully.

°I killed a person.° Mor repeated.

°No, you killed a monster. A person will not kidnap a young girl and threaten to kill her. This is the same as with Ranbor.° The human said coldly, and this strangely calmed Mor. He could see the reasoning.

°You're right.° He answered but couldn't suppress a shiver as he held Tiara's petite frame close to him while she cried and wailed in fear and relief.

Mor slowly stroked her hair, and somehow, his own fears and problems seemed less important. Right now, his friend needed all his stoic support. He had the human, annoying as it might be, but his friends had only him and each other. He was never alone when the dread of the dark night crept through the windows. They were.

"Tiara." He said softly. "Let's get you free and return you to your room."

The girl shook her head on his chest, sniffling and shaking, but Mor loosened the top binding of the sack, freeing her from the bindings.

°Whelp, that was an error, ° the human said, and before Mor could ask why, Tiara's arms tightened around him, holding him in place.

That was also when Mor realized something was wrong because what was pressing against his body was not fabric against fabric.

"Tiara?" He tried to ask calmly. "Why are you naked?"

Tiara slowly looked up at him while he forced himself to look anywhere else, blushing in the pale light of the moon, then down at herself, and with a quick motion, she pulled the sack back up to hide her nakedness.

"Well, I don't have anybody to dress me for the night, and… you know… it's a hassle to do… and nobody sees me while I'm in bed." She stammered.

"I see," Mor answered in an unsure voice, making Tiara giggle.

A few moments later, another figure floated down from the tower.

"Are you alright?" The Soul-kin teacher asked, looking at the felled Shadow-kin.

"A Shadow-kin?" She asked, "What's that doing here? No matter, are you hurt?"

"No, just a bit shaken," Mor answered honestly.

"I can understand that. Are you able to return to your rooms? We teachers need to sort out that mess, but get some sleep now, if you can. We will ask you what happened tomorrow." The teacher continued.

"Yes, I will get Miss Diamond back to her room," Mor said, picking up Tiara and causing her to yell a little in surprise.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"I'm Carrying you. You can't walk in that sack," Mor answered, and Tiara had to concede that point.

The teacher looked confused for a second, wondering why the girl couldn't walk on her own if somebody freed her from the restraining piece of fabric, but then decided to keep her peace and concentrate on the mess before her.

When Mor returned to the sleeping quarters of the high nobles, still carrying Tiara, a bunch of students were awake from the noise, and an excited murmuring started.

"Guess the rumors about our "relationship" will go overboard now…" Mor sighed.

"Yes, they will." Tiara agreed.

On their way to Tiara's room, they ran into the rest of their friends. Clare instantly changed into concerned big sister mode and asked them about everything while Saphine glared at Tiara.

"Could I sleep at your place?" Tiara interrupted Clare's concerned barrage of questions.

"Of course," Clare answered, and Mor handed the princess over to the two girls. The girls quickly noticed the predicament, dragged Tiara away to get dressed, and relocated to Clare's room.

Orth clamped a hand on Mor's shoulder. "How is it possible that you are always in the right spot at the right time?" he asked.

"Bad luck?" Mor offered, making his friend laugh.

"It's good you're joking again. I was concerned about you after your disaster," he said, letting out a big yawn. I'm still tired. Good night, I'm going back to sleep."

"Good night, Orth," Mor answered, returning to his own room.

After he had placed the Sai on a little table inside his room and locked the door, Mor lay down on his bed, expecting to stay awake after all that excitement. Instead, exhaustion claimed him, dragging him into a deep and dreamless sleep.

When he awoke the following day, he felt awful and, to his shock, noticed two things. First, his magic didn't continue to regenerate, and a quick test to "force" it failed. However, he didn't use the pulling technique, deeming it still too dangerous except for emergencies. The second thing was the missing Sai. A piece of paper had replaced the weapons, and after checking his locks and finding them all untouched, Mor read the letters on the paper with a cold shiver running down his back. It read,

"We are one… We are Shadow-kin."