Momo's POV:

"Come on, we need to get moving" I said as we moved closer to the cave entrance.

"Gods, I'm nervous" Chae said standing before the exit. I took the down the shield that I had made that day and smiled at them. Nayeon and Jeong ran outside. The others soon ran behind them leaving Mina and Me. I took her hand and we too crossed to the other side.

We walked in silence and stuck close together in order to not disturb the spirits. Occasionally I would hold out a hand asking them to stop so that we could observe the forest for some unnecessary sounds. We made it to the outskirts of the town before sunrise. We stopped at the edge of the forest and looked at the outline of the town. It had been a long time since I'd seen this bustling small town. I wondered what kind of problems would rise when they knew about the hidden kingdom. Their real kingdom. I hoped they wouldn't do the wrong thing by siding with our enemy during the oncoming war. I did grow up in this town, not in the kingdom so I suppose it would be a point in my favour.

"So here's the plan" I started causing all of them to break free of their daydreams and look at me.

"You all need to be careful as you go home okay? You don't want your family to be followed or something like that. So, you've all been trained and you know how to keep yourself safe. If... If something goes wrong all you have to do is shoot something into the air. Okay? I will be on the lookout and will come to you. Enjoy your day!" I told them.

"So we have to go in quietly?" Jihyo asked me. I nodded in answer.

"What about you?" Satang asked me

"I.. I will be around." I answered her

"Huh?" Jeong asked

" I have some tasks to complete. Also I need to check on some files while we're here" I told her

"Then, how will you see the signal?" Tzu asked

"Don't worry, I will be able to see it" I reassured her

"Where do we meet again?" Mina asked

"At the square?" Dahyun asked

"Cool! Also Momoring, what time do we need to be back?" Nayeon unnie asked me

"Uh by midnight?" I said scratching my head.. I wanted them to have fun for as long as they could. I smiled when I saw their faces light up and Sana hugged me before running off. They all took off yelling goodbye and went to meet their families. All except my girlfriend. I turned to her and she took my hand in hers. She smiled widely and kissed me.

"What was that for?" I asked her with a smile as we began to walk to the town

"I can't kiss my girlfriend?" she said nudging my shoulder.

"Oh, you can do whatever you want with her." I replied

"Anything?"

"Just... Don't break her heart"

"Never" she said and pecked me on the cheeks.

"Go on, your family is waiting for you.. We can finish this later at night" I told her with a dark smile

She blushed and bit her lip and ran off after kissing me one last time. I looked at her figure until she went out of my sight. I pulled my hood and walked to the academy. It took me a while to get there as it was on the other side of the town. I slipped inside and went over to the headmaster's room. I knocked thrice and waited. The door opened revealing my head of guard.

"You're early" she said as I sat down on the chair and rested my legs.

"Let's just say it was a surprise if anyone was waiting for us" I told her as I looked around the room.

She had been in charge of guarding me for as long as I could remember. She'd been appointed headmistress the same time I'd joined the academy. She'd helped me keep my powers at bay and also shielded me from those spirit spies.

"How is everyone?" she asked. I made a face and replied "Good I suppose, but you already know that don't you?"

She nodded and pointed to my wrist, "What's that?"

"I... Uh found my soulmate" I told her trying to keep my cool and to not blush like an idiot.

"Oh?" she prodded

"Yeah.."

"Who is it?" she asked me with a smile

"Mina" I said smiling

"Hmm, that's why you asked me to look into her?" she asked her face suddenly turning into a serious look

"Yeah, I love her but I feel like she is hiding something important. I respect her privacy and won't push myself in without her wanting me to, but this time its just different." I explained

"Different how?"

"She fights using moves even I've never seen before. I have been observing her for a while and I don't think she is from here. I want to know how she got here" I told her

"You think she escaped your mother's shield?" she asked and then added when I didn't reply "But, why come here?"

I had been thinking about that too. During that one week I had gone away several such thoughts came to my head. During all those months together Mina hadn't said much about her life. I loved her and I didn't want to point her out or anything, but I just felt like she was onto something. I just hoped I was wrong. I didn't want anything to happen to Mina.

"I.. Don't know" I admitted. I was about to say something else, but the breakfast bell rang and she got up. She was to greet the students and give them a morning speech. I smiled at the memories and said "I miss it.... But you can go.. I'll contact you soon. Thank you"

She bowed and said "I'll lookout for you Miss"

"Just Momo please" I corrected her

She smiled and said "Bye Momo"

I reached for her hand and squeezed it once in thanks and watched her close the door and leave. After a few minutes I left too. I decided to walk around the town to kill time. I didn't really have anything to do here. We called it the 'town' but honestly it was quite huge to be called a town. It was beautiful too. Nothing could compare to the capital, but this was beauty in a different way. While walking around I happened to overhear a story teller telling kids and adults the story of our kingdom, curiosity got the better or me and I went over to the stall.

"Long, long ago our kingdom was one. It was a happy and prosperous place full of life and colours. The dark side did not exist then. Light ruled and peace existed. But then one year, a witch killed the man who had the power of dark flowing through his veins. By killing him, she stated becoming more pow