Dear mate, did you miss me?

Dara stared at Zagan surprised. She had an unfathomable feeling bubbling in her heart. She had searched for Zagan for ages but unlike Titan, he wasn't easy to track. It was as if he had just disappeared into thin air, never to be seen again. Seeing him now was coincidental and though she had not prepared herself to face him after all the gods did to both him and Titan, she couldn't deny that a part of her was happy to have finally found him.

Zagan stared at the place where Titan was kept. Anger was evident in his eyes. Although he wasn't aware of it, his entire body was burning with anger and his bright emerald green eyes were intense no one could dare look at them.

Noticing this, Razel immediately picked Tiana up and disappeared. If he stayed there for just a minute more, he wouldn't know what his fate would be. Besides, It was a good thing he didn't entirely lose. At least, he made the last move before Dara saved Titan. 'Now let's just wait and see. I'm sure they'll be the ones coming to me for help in the future.'

Zagan's gaze was fixed on Titan that he didn't even see when Razel disappeared. Dara was similarly worried about Titan so she didn't take note as well.

Zagan made a hand seal to reduce the effect of the force field. It took him some time but in the end, he was able to lift the shield.

Titan wobbly walked out but as soon all she took two steps, she fell to the ground. She had been through so much and her entire body was used up. What she needed now was a safe environment and hopefully, she doesn't remember all that happened today.

The light in Zagan's eyes dimmed before he fell to the ground. Yes, he was experienced and well trained but this, this was the highest level he had ever attained in all his years of training.

Dara heavied a sigh of relief. Finally! When she turned to look for Razel, she realized he was already gone. But she didn't bother herself with him. After all, he wasn't the center of attention now and she could deal with him whenever she pleased. All she focused on now, was to get these two back to the academy before others began to search for them.

Just as she was about to lift Titan, she spotted something by the side of her neck. Why did that ... Why did that look like a mark she was familiar with. When did she get marked? And why does it look like the mark is a new one?

Dara was in deep thought when she saw Titan's brow furrow. As though knowing what would happen next, Dara distanced herself from Titan and created a mute shield at the last second before Titan screamed at the top of her lungs and even though there was a mute shield, the walls of the cave still shook tremendously. It was obvious she was in pain but what pain could be as excruciating as this?

Dara widened her eyes as if she finally understood something. She instinctively turned to look at the rumple where Tiana was buried but she realized that the body was gone. Tiana wasn't there anymore. Razel must have taken her with him. But what connection could they share? Whatever bond it was, it was strong.

Titan fainted again and minutes later, Aurora woke up. She walked hurriedly to master D but before she could say anything, Dara spoke.

"We have to take them back to the academy. If anyone asks you what happened, tell them that It was a task from above to test their skill but Titan got injured in the process."

Aurora nodded and immediately, Dara created a portal that took them straight to Titan's chambers in the academy. She got to the academy through the portal and it was already dark so no one noticed that she was back except old master Wen Xu who waited all day for their return. As soon as he sensed Zagan's return, he got to the location of his scent.

There was a knock on Titan's door and sensing that it was the old man, Aurora opened the door.

The sight that first came to the old master's eyes was the picture of Titan who laid sick on her bed. One look at her could cause someone to cry. Both her legs were bandaged with a white cotton cloth, her torso was also bandaged but concealed and then there was her head as well. It was bandaged several times as if someone was trying to place the pieces of her skull together. Although her eyes were closed, the pain was evident on her face and her dark eye bag made her appearance even worse. How did all this happen?

Unlike Titan, Zagan had already woken up and was wrapped with a thick blanket. He looked pale but it wasn't as grave as the look on Titan's face. It was a good thing that his sanity was still intact after such a traumatic encounter. He remembered everything, and even when his eyes were closed in the cave, he could still hear vaguely what Razel was saying. Although he had no idea why Titan was this hurt, he knew that it wasn't from their fight earlier in the forest, and thinking deeper, he knew that Razel didn't lay a finger on her. So how did her condition get so bad?

He stared at Titan with a serious expression. She wasn't responding to him no matter how much he tried to reach out to her. It was like she had gone blank.

He had a grave expression. Did he fail? Did he get too comfortable and let Razel win? Did he fail his future self? Was this the future Zagan told him about? But this was all of a sudden. He sighed inwardly. 'It seems this is just the beginning.'

Aurora spoke to the grandmaster for a while and after they finished discussing, she politely asked the both of them to leave. Aside from it being inappropriate for them to be there because Titan is a girl, she also wanted Titan to rest well because the encounter she had might leave her traumatized.

"We understand. Please take care of this dude and thank you for saving my student." with that, Master When Xu ushered himself out. Zagan was hesitant at first but at last, he also left.

Aurora adjusted Titan's blanket and sat by the window and stared at the night sky. She didn't take notice of the mark on Titan's neck because the sky was already dark and the only light that shone was the candle in the room. Even the moon wasn't up today.

Titan opened her eyes and saw herself with a beautiful man lying next to her on her tiny bed. Who was he? She had no idea. How did he get in? And what was he doing in her bed? Even with these thoughts, she couldn't fight him off. Her hands and legs were bound. The man leaned in and whispered into her ear which causes her to shiver uncontrollably.

"Dear mate, did you miss me?"