Everything had happened in a single day.
Darius and Sarina had been pulled into the void.
Goobly Guy dropped a bombshell about them being Unbound, followed by a long, half-hearted explanation about their abilities.
Then came the chaos of the Scarlet Forest, the escape, and finally their arrival in Emerald City—and now, the Ranger Institute.
Sleeping peacefully on the soft bed of their quarters, Darius found himself holding something soft against his chest… or rather, someone.
As he opened his eyes, he saw Sarina sleeping on top of him. His arms were wrapped around her tightly—but gently.
Last night, she'd been sleeping beside him. Now she was on him.
It wasn't her fault.
It was Darius's fault.
His coddling habit was the real culprit.
"I wonder if my body is comfortable as a bed," Darius thought, looking at Sarina's face covered by her violet-black hair… and then at her clothes.
She wore a simple white nightdress—but for Darius, it was too much to handle.
But even that was nothing compared to when she wore that black gown.
"Shut up! No dirty thoughts, Darius!" he shouted in his mind.
"But she's my girlfriend! Even my wife—officially on Thius, and unofficially on Earth!" he reasoned back.
"Anyway… I should tie my hands, or I might choke her with my embrace. She's not a teddy bear—even if she's softer than one. I'm not a child. At least, my body isn't. As for my brain? It's not braining. Because of lust!"
He thought like a narrator in a dramatic fantasy novel.
"Darius… no… Darry."
Darius smiled.
"I should get up before my lust takes over. This is not the time for us to lose our virginity. We've held out for four years. A few more months are easy," he thought as he gently placed Sarina beside him on the bed.
Suddenly, he heard something.
"Knock knock!" Darius said, poking Sarina's nose.
---
Sarina's POV
The night after she erased the memories of her shadows, Sarina had fallen asleep beside Darry.
"Good night, Darry," she had whispered to the already-sleeping Darius.
As soon as she drifted off, her nightmare took over.
In a dark alleyway on Earth, a seven-year-old girl with violet-black hair and dull lavender eyes stood trembling as an old man poured garbage over her.
"Now get lost, you street rat!" the old man shouted.
The girl shivered and ran into another street, only to find a group of men tearing the clothes off a beautiful woman.
They turned toward her.
"Get outta here, you street rat!" one of the men snarled, as the woman sobbed in fear.
The little girl ran again.
Endless dark streets. Endless rejection.
Everywhere she turned, she was kicked out, pushed away.
"Did you find anything?" a beggar asked her.
The girl shook her head.
The beggar slapped her, and she fell to the ground, her mouth bloodied.
As the little girl was beaten, the real Sarina—sleeping—shifted in bed, twisting anxiously.
Then suddenly, she was wrapped in the tight embrace of Darry's arms.
Her chest pressed tightly against his as she was gently pulled on top of him.
In her nightmare, the little girl lay broken on the ground… until she heard a voice.
"What the hell did you do to the child?"
It was a voice that changed her life.
In the next moment, she found herself in a soft, warm bed.
It wasn't actually luxurious—but for someone who had never known comfort, it felt like heaven.
She was in a hospital bed.
A handsome man with jade-black hair and warm gray eyes stood beside her, something unreadable in his gaze.
It was almost pity—but not quite.
"Are you okay?" he asked gently.
The little girl nodded.
"What's your name?" he asked.
"I… I… I d-don't know…" she replied.
"Can I give you one?" he asked.
The girl didn't answer.
"I'll assume that's a yes then," he smiled.
"Umm… would you like to be my daughter?"
She nodded again.
"Then from now on, you're my daughter! But we still need to get you a name."
He paused, thinking.
"I have one. How about Sarina… Sarina White?"
Suddenly, the hospital morphed into a large mansion filled with faceless family members and uniformed servants.
"Why did you adopt a street rat?" one faceless figure shouted at Ryan, pointing at Sarina.
One by one, they began shouting and screaming, all pointing at her.
"Shut the f— Shut up!" a strong female voice thundered across the hall.
Nia White descended the stairs, furious.
She walked up to Sarina and bent down to her level.
"So, what's your name?" Nia asked sweetly.
The faceless onlookers fell silent, stunned.
"Sarina…" the girl whispered so softly it was barely audible.
"That's a beautiful name for a beautiful girl," Nia said warmly. "My name's Nia. I've got some small things to take care of, but we'll talk later. For now, why don't you go play with Ryan, okay?"
As Sarina walked beside Ryan, holding his finger tightly, she heard slaps echo behind her, followed by frantic voices:
"We're sorry! We'll never do that again!"
Then everything shifted.
Nine-year-old Sarina stood on a training floor, wearing a comfortable combat suit and holding a double-edged longsword.
It was almost too long for her tiny frame.
She faced Nia, who also wore combat gear.
After several clashes, Sarina lay panting on the wooden floor while Nia stood over her, calmly lecturing her on what she did wrong.
"What the hell are you doing? Why are you torturing my little princess like that? You sadist woman!" Ryan yelled from the side.
"Huh? I'm not torturing her! You're the one who lost her in your own company! Darius and Grey had to help her or she—"
Nia stopped herself and looked down.
"I don't want my daughter to be a helpless princess," she said quietly. "I want her to be a strong queen."
Their banter continued in the background.
But one word echoed again and again in Sarina's mind:
"Darius… no… Darry."
"Knock knock!" came a familiar voice.
Sarina opened her eyes slowly and saw Darry looking at her.
"Good morning, Darry," she said softly, with a small smile.
"Good morning, Sarina," he replied, standing up from the bed.
"Let's get ready for our first day of training!" he said as he walked toward the bathroom.
"I love you," Sarina whispered and closed her eyes again.
She wanted to sleep more.
Sleep—not nightmares.
But she didn't have the time.