Still feeling uneasy about my encounter with the Prince of Exalos, I stand at the doorstep of the hut, unsure if I could bring myself to enter.

Something just feels wrong. I could not rationalise it. There has to be some connection between him and the Draydons. There had to be. Otherwise, he would not have had the same badge as the lieutenant. I had completely forgotten that he used to own one. I might not have even recalled if the lieutenant had not shown up. After all, now that I think about it, that was the last time I had ever seen him with the badge. I did not notice it then.

Something had to have happened for him to stop wearing it.

A part of me was begging relentlessly for me to retreat, to leave this mess behind and just return to hiding as I had been for the past 2 years. Fear is starting to consume me once again. I cannot help but dread what is to come.

Nonetheless, I muster the courage as I reenter the hut I had left from.

To my surprise, Casimir did not leave the hut. He is still here.

"I told you I was fine. Look at me, I'm still in one piece," Casimir states triumphantly as he gets up from the chair he is sitting on.

Clearly, he is very proud to prove me wrong.

"Better safe than sorry," I respond dully.

To that, he frowns.

"Is everything alright? You seem a little odd." Casimir points out, concerned.

"Yeah... everything's alright, don't worry. Just feeling a little tired," I lie but I cannot hide the uneasiness in my voice.

He furrows his eyebrows in suspicion but he does not ask further questions.

I did not know how to tell him what happened. He would not understand. There is just this gut-wrenching feeling, twisting and turning knots in my stomach as if foreshadowing that something ominous is about to unfold.

Just as I proceed to take a seat by the edge of the bed, the door to the hut slams wide open, resulting in a loud thud that startles both of us.

"My goodness, I finally found you two!" The blonde male stands at the doorstep, panting heavily.

Not far behind him, you could hear the faint panicked voices of a couple of others.

"He found them?"

"I think he did."

Weirdly, I found his unanticipated appearance reassuring. After these past days of travelling into the unknown, something about familiarity felt comforting.

Eventually, the others show up right beside him.

"Dom? I don't understand. How are all of you here so quickly? Did the message already send?" Casimir asks, clearly puzzled.

"You idiots. You guys had us worried sick!" Reece exclaims and her voice cracks. You could see tears brimming at the corners of her eyes.

Noticing this, Silas immediately embraces Reece and pats her back gently, trying to soothe her.

"Dom got your message like half an hour ago on our way here. We didn't know if we should've headed back to get doctors or if we should've just continued. You left us in a dilemma, Caz." Ezra explains frantically as he looks at Casimir from head to toe to check if he is alright.

"I'm sorry but hold up, why were you guys already on your way here? How'd you find out where we're at?" Casimir questions as if realisation had just dawned on him.

"It's me, Caz. Friends since the age of two, remember? I know how you think and I realised the second I heard about Rosalia's abduction and your blatant lie to your parents that you were 'staying' at my place." Dominic says matter-of-factly.

He then adds in, "Don't worry, I didn't tell your parents. Don't think they've figured it out yet either."

Hearing that, Casimir lets out a sigh of relief.

"Care to explain what the message meant? What do you mean by people are going to die?" Reece asks quietly between her sobs as she tries to calm herself down.

It pains my heart to see her cry but for some reason, it is heartening to know that she is concerned for us. Or at least, she is concerned for Casimir.

A part of me cannot help but yearn for the warmness and care that they had for each other. They are so fortunate to have one another.

I used to be lucky too.

"Everything's under control. Alv's here to save the day. Yet again," Casimir replies irritably.

"Alv is here?" Ezra exclaims in shock.

Casimir nods his head reluctantly.

"How about you duckling? You alright? I recognised you from the back. That's how I found you two but you were standing at the door for quite a while before entering." Dominic shifts his attention to me.

Casimir instantly turns to look at me. His expression is unreadable. He looks worried or perhaps disappointed.

"Y-Yeah I'm alright, just tired like I told Casimir." I stutter and avoid eye contact, trying to dodge any probing.

It is obvious that none of them believes me but out of respect, they do not pry.

Dominic approaches me without another word and pats me softly on the head.

"Everything will be okay, Rissa. We're all here now," he mumbles quietly.

Oddly enough, I did not hate it so I did not pull away. It almost feels nostalgic ―how safe his words made me feel.

My brother, Corey, used to say that too.

"Everything will be okay."

The others seem to not have heard what he said as they do not react. However, I suppose Casimir, having been right beside me, could not just block it out. His frown is almost unnoticeable. Or perhaps, I am just imagining things. It would not make sense for him to be upset over this.

Just as I start to feel comfortable again, the silence gets interrupted by a hoarse voice shouting across from right outside the hut.

"Sir, I think the girl is inside!"

Soon, a horde of guards barges into the hut and they start to segregate everyone.

"What on earth are you guys doing?" Dominic yells, clearly annoyed as he gets pulled away from me.

Then, a familiar face appears.

The Prince of Exalos? What is he doing here?

"Caz?"

The prince's focus instantly lands on Casimir and eventually, he notices everyone else too.

"You guys shouldn't be here. This isn't anywhere near your territory." He warns sternly, almost in a threatening manner.

It frightens me a little to witness the switch in his tone. It is the opposite of how he spoke when we first met. He was so well-composed and amicable earlier on. Yet, seeing Casimir seems to have thrown him off.

"Neither should you," Casimir retorts bitterly.

Alvaro seems agitated but chooses to ignore what Casimir had said. Instead, he looks in my direction.

This time, however, his eyes are filled with what I can only comprehend as disgust and resentment.

I could not understand why.

"You're going to have to come with us," the lieutenant announces.

My eyes widen in confusion.

"Me?"

"Yes, you. The girl from earlier on," he confirms.

Casimir instantly extends his arm in front of me, as if shielding me from them.

"She's not going anywhere with you," Casimir states intimidatingly.

Just before the lieutenant is able to speak up, Alvaro steps forward and glares unforgivingly at Casimir.

Glares tend to be a cold emptiness. They feel merciless and sometimes they serve as a warning. However, something about Alvaro's glare feels different. Don't get me wrong, it was cold and distant. However, it felt more like a plea for help than a warning.

"Either news gets released that you're out here looking for my fiancée or she comes with me right now. You'll have her back after we're done," Alvaro threatens menacingly.

Casimir is about to refute but I stop him.

"I'll be back soon. Meanwhile, please stay out of trouble. It won't take long, I promise." I assure Casimir.

He has a look of doubt but nonetheless, nods hesitantly. He steps aside and I come face-to-face with Alvaro.

Now up close, I realise that I might have been wrong.

There is a tinge of hope in his eyes behind all his bitterness.

Without wasting any time, Alvaro exits the hut silently and his guards tail behind him, ready to pounce on anyone who poses a threat.

Uncertain of what is to come, I trail behind his guards quietly.

Could he have known?