The X Guide

The news reached them through Khal’s subordinates. Ayen rarely cared about the reports about the war. When they were in the submarine, he sometimes saw Khal reading or listening to these reports.

Now, someone was reporting in person.

Khal and Devion had just returned from the forbidden zone.

It was news about the green zone falling into the hands of the clan, one with strategic value. Ayen was merely listening until the point when the person bowed his head as though guilty.

"The target has been captured by a direct descendant of the Nevaris Clan. We extremely apologize for this failure." His tone was slow and remorseful.

Khal frowned slightly. Devion turned to Ayen when he heard the mention of the Nevaris Clan. Ayen’s expression did not show anything yet, but quickly hardened when he realized who they were talking about in the end.

Ayen stared at Khal. "They captured who? " His expression was calm, but there was a flicker of deep emotion in his eyes.

Khal touched his forehead and gave a heavy sigh.

"I’m sorry, this is my fault. I should have told my men to pull her out of the city immediately."

"I asked... Who did they capture?" Ayen’s tone was firm and suppressed.

Devion shifted his gaze back and forth, sensing a tension shrouding the air.

"The woman you were with last time."

Khal did not even remember her name. This was to be expected; even Devion only realized who they were talking about from Khal’s words. For them, Keeran was a passing character and was only given importance according to Ayen’s decision.

Ayen fell silent.

At this moment, Khal and Devion had yet to notice the boiling emotion spiraling inside Ayen. They were used to Ayen’s indifference, and he did not even show any kind of fondness to Keeran when they were together.

He easily let her go as though that would be their last meeting.

Their last saving grace for her was assigning her to a good zone where her safety was almost guaranteed. However, who would have expected that the zone would be the first to fall when it should be one of the important zones for the government?

Khal’s men inside the green zones were not many, and so the news of the clan’s arrival also surprised them. After all, the clan had their cheat, which was the space fissures, able to transport large forces silently.

Suspiciously enough, the city also fell so easily.

"I’ll try to look after her whereabouts," although he could not promise that.

After all, he could not enter the fray just as he planned.

Khal still did not think the situation was that bad. Devion had no opinions, as most of Khal’s men were not his subordinates and had nothing to do with him at all.

Similarly, the chaos held great negative mana from despair, something the curse inside him would love to absorb.

The city might become a warzone. The government would not let one of its strategic zones be snatched like that under its nose.

It would be harder for Khal’s subordinates to rescue Keeran when Khal’s mission was for them to lie low and not enter the war this early.

Khal touched Ayen’s shoulder in an assuring manner. Devion did the same; he was about to say something when Ayen suddenly spoke.

"She’s easily frightened," Ayen started, tone indifferent, but something dark was hidden within. Both Khal and Devion paused, finally sensing Ayen’s strange behavior.

"And afraid of pain." Ayen looked up at them. "Do you think that one who captured her will treat her right? I doubt it. That someone must have recognized Keeran and her connection to me."

This was confirmed without a doubt. Otherwise, why would a direct descendant of a Nevaris clan specifically capture her? They might even be torturing her...

Ayen’s hands shook at the thoughts; the shade of his pupils darkened significantly.

"Ayen..." Devion could not finish when Ayen glanced at him with his pitch-black pupils.

There was no change in his expression at all, yet they could now notice the heavy emotions in those eyes.

"She’s my friend." Ayen looked at Devion straight in the eye when he said that. His bottled emotions surged at that declaration.

Devion and Khal’s eyes widened slightly. One could notice that the one reporting to them had excused himself silently at one point when Ayen spoke earlier, mindful of their privacy.

They knew very well how Ayen would not easily say this unless his feelings were heavy and deep. Khal’s expression turned solemn.

It seemed things suddenly became complicated.

Ayen could not explain the emotion within him. He was not used to it, the way he felt like he was on the verge of losing control of himself.

He could not easily express it, which made him more frustrated, as though he wanted to vent all these emotions in one go but had no way to do so.

Nevaris Clan was a sensitive topic for him; they were the reason for his wounds and years of misery. They were also something that was too big for him to contend with. So for years he could only huddle in one corner of the world, hoping that he could survive their constant assault, letting a bigger but withering tree shade him.

Keeran, on the other hand, was someone who never stopped bothering him. She slowly let her existence be part of him, which also surprised him.

He could not remember when he stopped being irritated at her presence and letting her talk all day to him, and Ayen listened to them quite attentively.

She was a companion that Ayen did not ask for. Unknowingly, Ayen let her into his world, becoming comfortable with her presence. Keeran could drag him everywhere, and Ayen would not bat an eye. She could talk all day, and Ayen would still listen.

For the first time in years, Ayen’s world was not as silent and dark as it used to be. At least Keeran’s voice distracted him and maybe entertained him sometimes.

So, when the yellow zone was in a crisis, Ayen found himself saving Keeran, who was undoubtedly a burden at that time. He realized then that she had become her soft spot, his only friend.

"You expect me to wait?" Ayen’s heart was raging; he could not even describe it. It was like something was about to explode.

The Nevaris clan being his sensitive spot, capturing his soft spot, was like the last thread, and his sanity snapped. He had lost control of his emotions.

"They’ll kill her..." Ayen’s hand was shaking as he held Khal’s hand. His pitch-black gaze stared at them. "If she dies because of me... I’ll go crazy."

That soft spot, the sunshine within the darkness would explode... Even Ayen was afraid of that madness.