A/N: Hey guys...sorry again for the late update *bows*

-Chen’s POV-

“Jinhae,” I called.

I gazed at her sleeping face, looking serene as she always does even in her waking hours. I lightly patted her on the shoulder, calling her name once more as much as it made me feel guilty to rouse her at such an unholy hour in the morning. It was still dark outside and she had been really restless as of late. If I had a choice, I wouldn’t want to disturb her from one of the rare times she’d be able to get to sleep soundly. I knew just what was causing it, or rather who.

I rolled my eyes at the thought of it. Lu Han just decided to leave without even considering how she would feel after he had discovered her real circumstances and instead of trying to understand and spending as much time with her as he could, he chose to leave and sulk. Quite moronic if I would be asked. I knew how painful it was for her, but what choice did we have? What choice did she have? Instead of nursing a wounded pride, he should’ve just stayed to at least offer her comfort. Knowing that each day could be the last didn’t even stop him from leaving her side.

It was bad enough watching her not being herself, looking out the window every single day, waiting for something that would never be. Lay had been offering her all the comfort he could, but it was to no avail. That was when we realized how much she valued Lu Han. She might have been distraught when Lay left for Hailesia when we were still in the capital, but nothing could compare to how she was becoming since Lu Han disappeared. She’s smile, but not as bright as before. Instead, they were hollow, never reaching her usually bright eyes. She’d try to break away from the sadness, but with much difficulty.

After witnessing that, we’ve all decided to summon the Telepathy Noble through the crystal and when we did, he refused to talk and just told us how much he wanted to come back. That same incident, Jinhae entered the room and saw him. They locked eyes, but she suddenly chuckled and said, “Oops, didn’t know you were having a conference.” After that, she left and at dinner, she looked even sallower.

I lashed out at Lu Han once more for allowing her to reach that state. I didn’t know what he didn’t understand, but it was sure as hell evident that Jinhae wants him to come back. When we ask her about it, she’d just shrug and tell us not to worry about her since she was doing fine. I would scoff inwardly whenever she tries to convince us. They were futile attempts and I’d prefer it if she’d just bawl and act childish, too, but being the good-hearted person she was, she chose not to do it, most probably thinking that we’d all feel burdened, but she was the center of our existence. How could she expect us not to notice?

I shook her once more, but she didn’t stir. She was usually a sound sleeper. It would be good if she had gotten over her grief over Lu Han’s decision. She’d be better off without that unthinking fool. He was my friend, but sometimes, it embarrasses me to claim him, especially now that he wasn’t doing his duty to Elyxo. Heaven knows what he was doing at the moment.

While all of us are preparing for our departure to Electrius, he was somewhere else. We didn’t know for sure as he claimed that he wasn’t in Elatus and we didn’t have the same certainty as to when he would decide to join us. He’d better make it fast or I will strike him with lightning wherever he was. I don’t know. Maybe I should thank him for causing the delay. If I had a choice, I wouldn’t go back to that damned place. I didn’t want to see Electrius especially the castle. Since I was practically exiled to the capital, I would rather choose to be there, but since what I needed was actually there, I had to. Besides, it’s for Jinhae. If it weren’t for her, I wouldn’t be coming at all.

“Jinhae, it’s time to wake up. We’re leaving, remember?” I said as gently as I could.

Her eyes flew open and she flashed me a sleepy smile. That was beautiful and I found myself smiling back. “Good morning, Chen-Chen~,” she greeted.

“Good morning, princess. Still sleepy?”

She nodded, but nevertheless sat up, blinking slowly as she stretched out. She looked to the direction of the window. “It’s still dark,” she commented.

“It’s the sixth hour of the morning, but as you know, it’s still the middle of spring. The sun would rise soon.”

She smiled, lazily, kicking the sheets off of her before standing and tidying up. She folded it neatly then smoothed the bed and fluffed the pillows. “Did you have breakfast already?” she asked.

I nodded. “Are you hungry?”

She stretched her arms upwards and groaned. “Famished!” She was smiling a lot today and they looked sunnier than the past days.

“Get dressed and I’ll have breakfast prepared for you,” I told her.

“Thanks,” she said then went into the bath, taking some items with her before doing so. I went out of her room and was met by Lay who looked pensive as he leaned on the wall adjacent to the door.

“How is she?” he asked me frantically.

“She seems…”

“What?”

“Better.”

He arched a brow at me. “Better?” he repeated with inflection.

I nodded. “It’s as if nothing’s going on.”

He frowned. “Are you certain?”

I heaved in a deep breath, placing a hand on his shoulder. “I know how much you care about her, but please do not ruin her effort to forget about things by asking her about it. We should have acted normally around her instead of making it seem like Lu Han’s departure was the end of the world. We have to move and we can only do that if she’s well.”

He was older than me and I never spoke to him in such a demanding manner. Obviously, he looked taken aback by my sudden sternness. Nevertheless, he nodded.

I flashed him an apologetic look. “I’m sorry, but after seeing her smile genuinely, I don’t think I’d be able to allow her to regress to her behavior since he left.”

“I know and I’m sorry if I’ve been stressing about it,” he answered.

I eyed him pleadingly. “I love Jinhae like family. I know you look at her differently and I beg of you – help her forget even if it’s only for the time being.”

“I’ll do my best.”

I nodded. With that, I left him, making good with my promise to prepare breakfast for her.

-Suho’s POV-

Breaking at the seams – there wasn’t another way to describe how Shinhye had looked like the moment I was about to leave Aigua Castle. I knew I made her promise, but I wasn’t expecting her to actually keep it. I witnessed the pain in her emerald eyes even as she smiled at me, wishing me well in my journey. I wouldn’t be able to forget that haunting and searching look she gave me just as I was about to turn around right after I told her to keep her promise to me. It was selfish, I knew that. To ask her not to feel sad as I departed must’ve taken herculean effort for her. She wasn’t expressive, but when Baekhyun left, I saw how she slowly began regressing to how she used to be back when she first came to Elyxo from the human world – cold and distant. I didn’t want that to happen again. If anything, she should be happy. She deserved to be.

No one could blame her about the way she was. Who wouldn’t be like her, considering how she had treaded through her entire existence, friendless and only living with a father who didn’t just lie to her, but kept her whole identity a secret until the say he died. He had taken her one time and he may have explained matters to her, but it was too late. I could tell that she found out about her deathless condition just before we left Lumina. Sehun, who was with her last before that happened, wouldn’t say a word about how she found out, but I had a hunch that he’d brought her to another half blood in existence in the Light Nobles’ home – Lady Miyu.

I knew it. There was something about the way she spoke that revealed of the past. It was as of she came from a different time and place. She speaks of the land on the east bank of the great river as if she had been there firsthand. Besides that, she looked exactly the same as she did since the time I have met her and considering that I was barely five years old then made things a bit odd for the esteemed lady. According to what I have been hearing, she was a native of Aeola, Sehun’s country. Her striking blue eyes were known all over Korinthia and she knew of the living power vessels of Kiyo and Maru, knew exactly how each and every noble behaved. Those pieces of information regarding the vessels as well as the first nobles were obsolete to our generation, but she knew all of them by heart, but the sorrow she held for the history of Elyxo was unmistakable.

If Shinhye was to exist as long as she did, she should rather be in a safer place as the human world instead of Elyxo where there were no threats to her, where she would be able to fend for herself…where she wouldn’t need protectors…us. As much as I hated to admit it, I didn’t want to see her go. It would be too much to bear after having been with her for almost half a year now. It wasn’t that long, but it had been rather exciting since she came around. Though she didn’t feel like it to cooperate and behave accordingly at first, she had learned to accept what she was, thus her decision to leave at the end of the year. It would be saddening after the camaraderie we’ve established with her, not to mention the affection and the deeper feelings some o