There was always an unknown tug that Adriel felt when he saw Meyara's frowning face either because of confusion, pain, or sadness. The tug that made him step forward without a second thought, made him stretch out his arms willingly, wanting to give anything to erase those lines from her pretty face. The young man did not think too much about it, he believed that it was only because of the kindness of his heart. His strict father raised him to be a gentleman anyway.

It was no surprise then when he found himself embarking on journeys he had never wanted to take, traversing several paths he had just learned names for, and casting too many spells he had given up on to count, just because he insisted on accompanying Meyara. He endured all the hardships just to be by her side all the time.

But he knew too soon that he was not capable enough.

How arrogant he was, boasting nonstop when he just beat up Abikus who were nothing compared to the monster in front of him right now.

"Oh? Why isn't she struggling cutely like before?" The ugly giant shook Meyara's body while poking the girl's face with the other hand. "Is she dead? What a weak creature!"

The sound of Adriel's boiling blood could almost be heard if one paid enough attention. Wasting no time, he executed his simple plan, lunging forward to retrieve Meyara's bag and took out a small, slightly cracked mirror and brought it to the mouth of the cave. Hoping the sunset this afternoon still had some light he could use.

"I can feel Warren's energy from this thing," he muttered in awe. Knowing that the Chairman actually helped Meyara as he had asked made his chest fill with pride. But he returned his focus to the task at hand.

Fortunately, the position of the cave is ideal for capturing rays of light, each mirror shards reflected the light easily. The reflected light that resembled several laser beams entered the cave at the speed of light, forming many large slightly yellow lines which Adriel aimed at the monster.

The monster who realized the situation quickly enough dodged by running deeper and deeper into the cave, carrying the unconscious Meyara. Adriel cursed while trying harder to bring out a stronger light. He even used his magic spell to summon the spirit of light, but nothing happened. It seemed the cave was built to defeat every attempt at magic by anyone.

Adriel's persistence allowed him to continue expanding his light, forcing the monster to continue fleeing. The monster threatened him by saying that he could destroy Meyara anytime. Adriel bit his lower lip to hold himself back. He could not back down now. If Meyara was not lying unconscious, she would have snapped at him to hurry up and ignore the ugly thing's words.

The temperature around him was getting colder, his feet began to be difficult to lift because there was an unknown sticky liquid stuck to the bottom of his feet. Adriel clenched his jaw and strengthened his fist as he considered his decision.

Deep inside, he was fighting another side of him who still held his conscience tightly. He knew what would happen to the being in front of him if he managed to direct the light, the rows of stones outside gave clear clues, and it was this knowledge that made him hesitate.

Did he really have the right to annihilate the creature's chance of survival? Of course the monster had attacked him and had obviously injured Meyara, but then he remembered how Meyara had avoided the possibility of hurting Abiku by using means other than magic.

As he was still considering his options, he saw how the monster almost crushed Meyara's body to pieces by holding the poor girl too tightly. His boiling blood was now nothing compared to his burning eyes. Every good intention that had ever filled his mind was vaporized due to his high body temperature.

He was burning with anger in the freezing cold cave.

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He caught the monster's leg in the reflected sunlight with a flick of his wrist. Turning the soles of the monster into thin rocks.

The screams that echoed in the aftermath nearly shattered the dank and fragile cave. If only the monster hadn't fallen to its knees, screaming apologetically, Adriel might have crushed them all under the rubble.

Then the next scene came unexpectedly. The young man blinked in confusion as streams of water shot out from the terrifyingly large eyeballs of the monster.

“Save my soul! I never meant to hurt you two!” The monster wailed while laying Meyara's body on the ground. "Ouch! My feet already weigh me down even if you don't turn them to stone! Please! I promised my family that I will live!”

What a funny situation. One second the big hand lightly caught Meyara's body and injured her, and the next second the owner of the hand was begging for mercy.

Adriel scowled, he couldn't even laugh at the ridiculous situation. “Did you hear yourself? If you’re a coward, then why are you messing with us?”

“I'm too excited to see strangers again after so long!” The monster began to lower its body. Aggressively brush its soles to remove the hardened skin. Not even caring about the dark green blood flowing from within. "I think I can waste time before she comes!"

"She? So you were waiting for your friend?"

"What are you doing this time, Juma?"

Adriel was stunned in place. The sweet, euphonious voice caressed his ears and relaxed him instantly. His mind was well aware that he shouldn't let his guard down just like that, but he couldn't help it as his body reacted automatically. The eyelids that previously refused to close were now pressed down as if the sound was a lullaby signaling it was time to rest and snuggle into the warm blanket.

She only said one sentence, nothing more, but Adriel was caught up in her extraordinary charm.

"Oh, we have guests?" The figure that Adriel confidently suspected of being a beautiful woman based on her voice, crouched near Meyara who was still lying unconscious. The reflection of the light from the mirror Adriel had shifted made it hard to see what was really going on, but he suspected that the woman had no malicious intent at all.

Even the hideous monster that sent chills down his spine, was now whining like a stray puppy next to that unknown woman. The woman simply patted the monster before walking slowly towards Adriel.

Now that she had walked to the slightly clearer side, Adriel's breath caught at his throat.

Meyara was an incredibly beautiful woman, he was very sure of that. But this woman was on another level. Adriel felt that it was wrong to compare them, but again, his brain couldn't work properly after witnessing so many strange creatures in a relatively short amount of time.

"Juma really doesn't understand how his actions traumatized and hurt you so much." The beautiful woman spoke so softly, Adriel wondered what she had eaten to get such a heavenly voice. “I never taught him enough about the world. I am at fault here and take full responsibility. Please accept my sincere apology.”

"I-it's okay."

It was not okay at all. Meyara lost consciousness, with bruises and scars covering her body. Surely, she would be tormented by a lot of pain after she woke up later. Even Adriel who hadn't faced the monster head-on felt extremely exhausted from all the stress and fear the monster had given him.

However, Adriel was just a young man who came from a small village mostly inhabited by old people. It was also very rare for him to meet people outside the village. His youth made it easy for him to be charmed by this beautiful being who kept muttering sincere apologies in his presence.

Her fair skin looked so smooth as if anything that landed on her would slip and fall without a fight, her long wavy blue hair swayed at the slightest movement, and her tall and slender body gave off an impression of beauty as well as strength to anyone who saw her.

What a stunningly beautiful creature. It took Adriel a moment to realize that the woman had eyes that were different from most humans. The ends of the eyes were slightly elongated almost to the temples. But that only added to her beauty.

"With all due respect." The woman's attitude immediately changed. She no longer looked like a weak woman filled with guilt. With an upright posture, she stared straight at Adriel. "Now it's my turn to take the answers I need from you. May I know what brought you two here? I hope it wasn't something I had to forcefully throw you out of."

"We just want to go to Frostfell." Answers came quickly and easily from Adriel's mouth even though he was sure he had regained his focus. "Please, let me take my friend and we will leave peacefully without leaving a single trace."

"Frostfell?" The woman tilted her head, a faint smile on her lips. "So I guess Juma didn't just give you bad luck after all."

***