Eva glanced at the shadow of trees ahead, excitent rushing through her; she couldn’t wait to reach the boundary.
"We’re almost there. Finally, a change of scenery." Eva patted Foxy’s head in excitent as she called out to the others.
They smiled in relief, not as excited as Eva. They wouldn’t have to inhale dust or have sand flying into their eyes.
"Careful, we don’t know what dangers are there!" Ethan shouted to Eva, who was drifting farther and farther away.
He nudged Wolfy with his foot, signaling for it to catch up with Eva’s beast.
Julian just teleported onto Foxy’s back; his beast will catch up with him later.
Eva suddenly felt an arm wrapped around her waist and flinched slightly. She quickly turned to et Julian’s gaze.
"Don’t rush; we need to be careful when entering new territory. Haven’t the snakes and scorpions taught you anything?" Julian warned her seriously.
Eva felt wronged; she wasn’t acting recklessly. She only planned to wait for them at the boundary.
"Of course I know, I’m not dumb. I only planned to wait at the forest entrance," Eva snapped back. Her earlier excitent nearly soured because of Julian’s misunderstanding.
She pulled his arms off her and moved out of reach—she didn’t want to ruin her mood by staying in Julian’s presence any longer.
"Dear, I’m sorry, bla my loose mouth. I heard what you have been through during my coma, and I panicked, thinking you were rushing into danger. I’m sorry." Julian apologized as he reached for her, hugging her closer as she struggled slightly.
"Hmm, my Eva, please forgive ," he pleaded as he showered her nape with gentle kisses.
"Hmph, next ti you ask first before jumping to conclusions. Do you think I’d be so reckless as to rush ahead without thinking?" Eva pouted, pinching his waist in anger that he even thought that way.
She valued her life above all else; fortunate to have this one, she would not rush headlong into danger without thought.
"Okay, okay... I wouldn’t do that again," Julian promised with a grimace, feeling a sting in his waist from her pinch.
Eva’s mood eased, and she leaned comfortably against his chest. "Please don’t use your ti power again. We can all run away if we can’t fight," she murmured, still affected by his coma; she never wanted him to go through that again.
Julian buried his face in her hair and stayed quiet; he couldn’t promise her this, not knowing when he would need to go back in ti to save them.
"I’ll beco stronger." He could only promise her that. Julian planned to be so strong that he wouldn’t have to use that power again.
"If the stronghold is built, do you plan to settle down or explore the vast world?" Julian shifted the subject, asking the question that suddenly ca to mind.
Eva looked ahead, lost in thought. She had never considered this before and couldn’t respond right away.
She stayed silent for a mont before replying.
"I want both. But for that to happen, light and transportation need to be up and running. I can’t imagine exploring everywhere on my beast back without the comfort of a train or a plane."
Eva felt excited as she continued talking, already imagining herself relaxing on a plane as it took her to her destination.
"What’s a plane? Is it like trains?" Julian asked curiously.
Eva froze, realizing she had made a mistake; how could people who live underground travel by plane? At most, they used cars and trains.
"Umm... a thought just occurred to . Since cars and trains are possible, why can’t we also travel by air or by sea? We can’t explore this vast world using only land-based vehicles." Eva’s tone grew more confident as she finished, feeling that her reason was solid.
She knew she couldn’t keep hiding her past from them; she lacked the courage and the right mont to co clean.
’What if they thought I was a monster, or found disgusting, or decided to leave ?’ She panicked as thoughts of what-ifs filled her mind.
Suddenly, she felt a warmth pressed against her ears. Julian sensed her emotions were off and kissed the back of her ears to distract her.
"Ethan and I are always here for you... no matter what." Julian’s tone carried warmth that seed to envelop her heart and eased her turbulent emotions.
"What if I keep sothing from you?" Eva asked softly, her voice revealing vulnerability.
"Silly, everyone keeps secrets. Even I have things Ethan and you don’t know. You can either tell or not, that doesn’t change the way I feel about you," Julian muttered sincerely, then turned her to face him.
Her legs wrapped around his waist as he cradled her face in his hands, ensuring he held her gaze.
Eva glimpsed the seriousness and sincerity in his gaze, and the burden she didn’t realize she was carrying lifted from her shoulders.
"Mm." Eva humd in a nasal tone as she pecked his chin, then she gently bit his lower lip.
"You’re mine. You can’t escape my grasp until you die," Eva said boldly, her eyes shining with possessiveness and growing love.
In the past, she had no one and lived her life filled with loneliness and novelty; now they intrude on her life, and she won’t allow them to leave... ever.
Julian’s eyes darkened with desire, and he claid her lips, pulling her closer to deepen the kiss when Ethan’s voice interrupted them.
"We’re here!" Ethan shouted as a strong sll of wine drifted through the air.
Julian let her go, resting his forehead against hers as he took a deep breath to steady his emotions.
Eva pecked him on the cheeks and quickly dismounted from her beast, staring into the forest of trees with fruit shaped like a large groundnut pod in wonder.
Breeze rattled the trees, causing so fruits to clang against others, while the air carried a strong sll of wine.
Eva moved forward cautiously, taking in her surroundings. As she got closer, the sll of wine grew stronger, making her feel lightheaded and woozy.
She shook her head, trying to clear her mind, but nothing helped. Instead, her vision doubled, causing her to wobble as she walked.
Ethan reacted quickly and caught her before her face hit the ground. His face was also flushed, but he was still fairly clear-headed—much more so than her.
"Don’t tell those fruits are filled with wine... It’s unbelievable and mind-blowing,’’ Aaron muttered, staring wide-eyed at the clanging pods on the tall trees.
He shook his head to stay clear-headed and quickly covered his nose with a strip of cloth. Then he called out to Ethan and tossed a clean strip to him, motioning for him to cover Eva’s nose.
Covering their nose didn’t help; the air they inhaled still reeked of liquor.
Ethan caught the rustling sounds and shrieks carried by the wind, and his expression changed. "We have company! We need to leave." He called out, warning the others as he mounted his beast with Eva in his arms.
Everyone’s expression shifted to one of caution as they edged past the trees while mounting their respective beasts. Eva was a bit clearer-headed, but she couldn’t summon any strength; the world around her kept spinning wildly, so she could only shut her eyes helplessly.
They dashed through the forest, thankful the trees were tall enough and didn’t block their way, or it would have been a harrowing ordeal to run through the woods with beasts as big as theirs.
Halfway through, loud shrieks ca from behind the cover of trees, with leaves rustling all around, before small monkeys with red fur were revealed to them.
n and beasts stared at each other in an odd standoff until the monkey made the first move.
Everyone tensed, each readying their powers to strike, only to see the monkey pluck the pod and hurl it toward them with wild laughter and shrieks—its aim was way off.
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