Chapter 133: Return And Separation

The two black and white figures raced through a land of ice and snow, the intermittent gusts of fierce winds occasionally interrupting their advance.

But like stubborn bulls that knew nothing but to charge ahead, they raced towards the bleak region shrouded in a fog of smoky darkness.

Princess Qamari's first experience with snow began on the wrong foot. A person that grew up in a broiling desert and, on top of that, was raised as a princess in a palace, had to journey through an Ice Cyclone that froze even the strongest magicians to statues.

Her heart filled with distaste and dissatisfaction with the piercingly wet matter.

The cold blizzard with its unceasing snowballs had her teeth chattering as her nose, under her veil, ran with thin mucus. Her hands were frozen numb, the piercing pain from the frostbitten limbs turning into a dull distant ache.

Her feet grew heavy and dragged through the thick snow.

Her eyes ran and her throat felt sore.

If snow was like this, then she would rather stick with the heat.

At least then, she wouldn't feel like a walking block.

If it wasn't for her continuously circulating her Stage 3 elemental energy, then by now, she would be an ice sculpture. 

"Are we there yet?" She asked for the second time.

"We are close. A few more feet!"

"Still more?" Her heart plunged. The few feet felt more like few miles as the snow landed on her lashes and dripped into her eye.

She was close to her breaking point from this dripping madness.

After what felt like forever, Princess Qamari and Crown Prince Lail arrived at the region of the black shield.

Similar to the shield in the Bansi Village, the shield in the Forbidden Zone buzzed with dark elemental energy as a thick mass warped and deformed around it. Static currents flashed over the black shield and it continuously throbbed with power.

"We're here!" Princess Qamari exclaimed in relief.

At long last, they finally arrived at their destination and she could leave this place.

"Yes, we can finally return."

Crown Prince Lail smiled under his mask, Laila's enthusiastic cry putting him in a good mood. He had to admit. He too looked forward to leaving the place. The cold and wet weren't something he enjoyed. Twirling his magical spear to dust off the collected snow, they approached the shield.

Princess Qamari lifted her numb limbs and poured her magic into the black shield. A hand appeared beside her as Qaliq did the same. The pulsing mass of black flared intensely as a radiant glow burst out. 

Princess Qamari swept her gaze over the snow-covered land and sighed.

If her fate was good, then she would never return to such a place again.

In the next instant, their figures got sucked into the gaping hole.

Whose!

Right when they left, space warped as a fierce wind whistled through the air. The mound of snow covering the ground flew in different directions a figure stepped out.

This was Su Rui, who, with the help of a magical amulet, directly arrived in the region of the black shield.

"It worked! I can return back to the academy." Excited on seeing the throbbing mass, she quickened her steps and arrived before the shield. Unhesitantly and impatiently, she poured her magic into the shield, desperate to be out of the place.

But the expected did not occur. The portal didn't active.

"This..." It was only then that Su Rui remembered.

The teleportation portal could only be activated by level 3 Stage 1 elemental magic. She was only level 1 Stage 1. It was as if the heavens had crushed on her as she staggered back with a devastated expression. 

It was over.

She would never return back to the academy.

Her figure crumbled to the ground and woodenly stared into space. Even though she had a Fixed Teleportation amulet that teleported her directly to the region of the black shield, she didn't have the ability to activate the portal.

The way back was right before her eyes, but her own self was too incompetent to save her life.

Lost in self-deprecation and disgust, Su Rui failed to see the mass of black men gathered around the shield. Only when the violent tremors of the portal vibrated through the region, did she return to her senses.

"They...who are they?" Surprised by the unexpected turn of events, she felt stumped. For a split second, she didn't know what to do or how to react, staring puzzledly at the backs of the unsuspecting men.

But when she saw them enter the portal, she saw the light.

"I...if I follow them, I can leave this place."

Her mind cleared and her eyes shined with renewed hope. Clenching her fists, she bit her lips and hardened her resolve. The appearance of the black-clothed men was like a beacon of light in her greatest moment of despair.

They appeared when she had lost hope of ever returning.

Who they were didn't matter. At the moment, the most important thing was preserving her life and getting out of this nightmare.

Staggering to her feet, Su Rui dragged herself towards the back of the men in black. She kept her presence low, using the last of her magic to create a bewitching spell.

As long as the men didn't closely examine her, whenever they looked in her direction, they will see the face of their companion. 

She learned this spell from an ancient text in the academy. At that time, she was in desperate need of a spell that could attract Brother Lail's attention to her. And when she saw the bewitching spell, she felt like the heavens were on her side.

Only, she never got the chance to use the spell in his presence. When she found the chance, she felt reluctant to be loved by him with another person's identity. And so, the bewitching spell remained unused in her hands.

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Until now.

As Su Rui's figure got sucked into the hole, she gave the forbidden land one last glance. In this place, she witnessed the most horrific scenes of her life. The death and slaughter were a far cry from the little injuries she sustained on ordinary missions.

But most importantly, she came to know of how insignificant her strength was.

This time, fate was on her side, helping her survive and leave this place by a chance of coincidences.

But fate won't always be on her side.

'I need to focus on training and increasing my elemental energy. Only with sufficient strength, can I survive in these seven realms. Only with sufficient strength, will I have the qualification to stand by Brother Lail's side.'

As her figure disappeared in the depths of the black hole, a determined gleam flashed through her blue eyes.

Whoom!

Princess Qamari grunted in pain as she got to her feet. The unstable portal caused her body to ache and her head to spin, making her feel weak and nauseous. 

'At least we're back.'

Princess Qamari never thought that a day would arrive where she would feel so happy on seeing a sea of bones and skulls. But as she stood beside the pulsing portal and looked around at the familiar sea of bones and skeletons of the Bansi Village, she felt just that.

"Sigh, now that we're back, it is time we went our separate ways. Qaliq, thank you for taking care of me in the Forbidden Zone. If it wasn't for you, I wouldn't be alive right now." She gratefully looked at the masked young man, her gold eyes radiating a gentle light that even she wasn't aware of.

Crown Prince Lail looked silently at the white-robed woman, faint reluctance in his eyes as he nodded.

"I wasn't the only one that saved you. You saved me as well."

Their encounter was unexpected, their meeting unplanned. But for the brief period of time they traveled together, he felt peaceful and at ease as if their being together was just right.

But how could that be possible?

They were just two strangers that met in the middle of the road, and on finding their destination was the same, decided to travel together and keep each other company.

Maybe that's why I feel reluctant. The time we spent and the dangers we overcame together changed our bond from that of strangers to companions. 

He hesitated a little, before placing his hand in his slaves and withdrawing the bone he severed from the Magical Kilin.

"I don't know which academy you come from. But as a student of the seven academies, I know that every student's goal on this mission is to get an heirloom of the Magical Kilin. You didn't personally acquire it, but I also didn't personally fight against the beast. It was already dead when I found it. This is your share." Crown Prince Lail handed the bone over to Lail, encouraging her with a nod when she hesitated.

"But I didn't sever the bone..."

"Yes, but we overcame the struggles of the Forbidden Zone together. If you hadn't shielded me when you did, I wouldn't have come across the beast. In that way, our performance and merit are different but equal in acquiring the bone. Please take it. I want you to." Lifting her hand, he placed the Magical Kilin's bone in her palm and turned to leave.

"Laila, take care of yourself. In the future, don't enter Forbidden Zones on your own." His red eyes bore into her gold ones and the two gazed at each other in complete silence for what felt like an eternity and, at the same time, a split instant.

From the flickering emotions in those eyes, it was obvious that neither was happy about the separation. 

But as all things must come to an end, this encounter also had to come to a conclusion. 

For them to meet again with their real identities, this separation was a necessary trial.

With a final nod, Crown Prince Lail decisively turned and flashed into the distance, his figure seemingly frail and lonely in the dark region.

Watching his receding back, Princess Qamari felt an unfamiliar ache in her heart. She lifted her hand to her chest and glanced at the Magical Kilin bone with complicated eyes.

Raising her gaze, she continued watching his back in solemn silence. 

Long after his figure disappeared from her line of sight, she blinked her eyes and turned in the opposite direction. 

Right from the start, they were doomed to part on an ambiguous note. Their fate was nothing more than the flutter of butterfly wings, the radiant glow of fragile fireflies, and the clash of an unplanned encounter.

Nothing more than that of a passing moment.

Since a relationship between them wasn't possible, and they were only destined to meet but not fated to be together, then there was no point in lamenting and longing for that which could never be.

She knew herself and knew what she wanted. 

A relationship of trust, loyalty, and respect was only possible with her husband.

Shaking herself awake, Princes Qamari's eyes cleared as she leaped into the distance.

It was time to return to the Sealand Academy and find her husband, the person with whom her future lay.

Whoom!

A few heartbeats after their separation, the black shield vibrated again and a mass of black-clothed men appeared one after the other.

"If she died inside the Forbidden Zone, then that will make our task easier. But if she survived, we need to locate her as soon as possible. That's the only way we can redeem ourselves!" The man in the lead hissed with clenched fists.

"We understand that. But how do we confirm whether she is alive or not?" someone in the back asked.

"Don't worry. I got that covered." Withdrawing a bottle, the lead man waved his hands and a poster with an image appeared.

It was an image of Princess Qamari.

Opening the bottle, he splashed the potion on the image, which caused the poster to go up in flames.

"This is...?"

"A Soul Tracing Potion."

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