The clear blue sky and endless green fields vanished, replaced by a dim, oppressive sky that pressed down like a suffocating weight.
Jagged black peaks thrust upward in every direction, like blades piercing the heavens, grim and silent.
Between them yawned massive, bottomless rifts.
The pitch-black depths resembled the gaping jaws of so ancient beast, cold winds howling up from below, carrying with them the low, eerie growls of unseen aberrant creatures.
The ground was littered with twisted, grotesque alien vegetation.
A pale gray mist hung thick in the air, cloaking the entire mountain range in a suffocating haze, making the already hostile environnt feel even more sinister.
Rory drew in a sharp breath.
No wonder this place was the Central District’s forbidden zone. Even standing at its edge sent a chill crawling down her spine.
How had Aren ended up in a place like this?
Her frown deepened. She turned imdiately to Nix.
"Nix, quickly, refine Aren’s exact location."
"Got it, Rory."
Nix wasted no ti. He pulled a precision instrunt from his spatial device, his long fingers flying across a virtual keyboard as streams of blue data cascaded across the screen.
Monts later, the device emitted a soft chi. A clear red dot appeared on the three-dinsional map.
"Found him."
Nix pointed at the display, his tone firm. "About three hundred kiloters to the southeast, sowhere in the mountains. The signal is stable."
"That far?" Yuel’s brows knit together.
The deeper they went into the range, the thicker the mist beca. It was dangerously easy to lose one’s bearings.
Entering was simple.
Leaving was another matter entirely.
But to save a life, no distance was too great, no danger too steep.
Yuel turned to Rory, his voice steady despite the tension.
"Rory, we’ll leave markers along the way for Vincent. If the signal drops, he’ll still be able to find us."
The signal was stable now, but there was no guarantee it would remain that way.
"Okay." Rory nodded. "Got it."
To be safe, she also had Nix send Vincent their real-ti coordinates.
Once everything was set, Yuel and Paros took the lead, moving swiftly into the depths of the mountain range.
A low growl rumbled from Xarion’s chest. With a powerful push of his limbs, he surged forward like a bolt of white lightning, chasing after the direction where Yuel and Paros had disappeared.
His speed was astonishing, yet his movents remained incredibly steady. Riding on his back, Rory felt the world blur past her on both sides, the wind roaring in her ears.
Wen and Nix followed closely behind, the group weaving rapidly through the eerie terrain.
Nearly an hour later, they ca to a stop before a cliff face concealed by massive, tangled vines.
Yuel stepped forward, his hand brushing against the thick leaves. After a brief pause, he withdrew his hand, then moved to one side and tore away a dense curtain of vines.
A pitch-black cave entrance was revealed.
"Rory, we’ve found him."
Rory imdiately slid down from Xarion’s back and hurried toward the cave.
A faint scent of blood lingered in the air.
Her heart leapt into her throat.
She and Yuel took the lead, stepping into the cave together.
Inside, the air was damp and heavy, the light dim and suffocating.
Yuel retrieved a glowing crystal, and in an instant, soft light filled the cavern.
Rory’s gaze locked onto a figure lying in the corner.
It was Aren.
His body was covered in wounds, his face pale as paper. His eyes were shut tight, and only the faintest rise and fall of his chest suggested he was still breathing. He had clearly fallen into a deep coma.
"Aren!"
Rory rushed forward, reaching out to check on him, but Yuel caught her wrist before she could touch him.
"Rory, let ."
He stepped past her and crouched beside Aren, carefully examining his condition.
Aren was indeed injured. The energy within his body was in chaos, and there were multiple external wounds.
But...
Though his injuries looked severe, they were not fatal.
Yuel’s brows slowly drew together.
If Aren’s injuries were not truly life-threatening, then why had he looked so close to death in the video he sent Rory?
As if he might die at any mont?
Suspicion stirred quietly in Yuel’s mind, though none of it showed on his face. Calmly, he reached into his spatial ring and took out a vial of healing serum.
He tilted Aren’s head back, pried open his mouth, and poured the dicine in.
Nix, who had followed closely behind, watched this with a flicker of confusion. Yuel’s leaves and blossoms were far more potent. Why hadn’t he used them?
Though the question lingered in his mind, Nix said nothing.
The serum slid down Aren’s throat.
Monts later, his lashes trembled.
Then, slowly, his eyes opened.
At first, his gaze was unfocused, dazed. But the instant he saw Rory, sothing ignited within them—an explosive surge of joy and feverish intensity.
"Female Master..."
His voice was weak, trembling. "Female Master, you ca... You really ca..."
He tried to push himself up, but his body was too frail. Even the slightest movent seed to drain him of strength.
One hand lifted shakily, reaching toward Rory.
"Female Master... I thought I’d never see you again. I was so afraid... afraid I’d die here and never see you again..."
His eyes reddened, his voice thick with grievance and lingering fear.
Seeing him like this, Rory felt the tight knot in her chest loosen slightly.
At least... he didn’t seem to be in imdiate danger anymore.
She was about to step forward, to comfort him when sothing in his gaze made her pause.
Her brows slowly drew together.
Sothing was wrong.
Aren was a succubus. Even in human form, every movent he made carried an effortless, natural allure. Even his vulnerability had once been intoxicating, laced with an irresistible charm.
His eyes had always been like a deep vortex, capable of pulling a soul under, yet at the center of that darkness had always been sothing pure. A fierce, unreserved love directed only at her.
But this man...
His weakness felt staged. Deliberate. Calculated.
Yes, there was obsession in his gaze—but beneath it lurked sothing far darker.
A suffocating, possessive hunger. Twisted. Selfish. Unstable.
This was not Aren.
This was the one Vincent and Yuel had killed before—Aris.
Rory’s expression changed instantly.
She grabbed Yuel’s arm and pulled him back two steps, her entire body on guard.
Her eyes locked onto the man sitting on the ground, her voice cold as frost.
"You’re not Aren."
A beat of silence.
"You’re Aris."
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