"Elflame," he muttered, gazing at the cobblestone streets that stretched before them. "So this is the anchor point."
The city just outside the Academy was quieter than usual. Controlled by the Academy itself, Elflame typically buzzed with student activity, but the empty streets told him the semester had ended. They had appeared in a hotel room, and after leaving that cramped space, he found himself studying the nearly deserted marketplace.
"Haah... Haa... Haa..."
He glanced back to find Anna struggling with her dress, the fabric riding up despite her attempts to keep it in place. Several men had noticed, some grinning openly, others staring with obvious interest.
"Can you not draw so much attention?" he said, though what he didn't realize was that his own face had been completely altered during the recent healing process. The scarf he wore provided no disguise whatsoever.
"Tch." Anna clicked her tongue in irritation, pulling her dress down. The hemline had shortened while she'd been hastily adjusting her bra, and she worked to spare the onlookers any glimpse of what lay beneath.
"Where... are you taking me?" Her voice carried genuine apprehension.
Since his casual mention of potentially killing her, she'd understood that her life was entirely in his hands. The realization settled like a cold weight in her stomach.
"You'll see," he replied without even looking at her.
"Teleportation gate," she muttered, recognizing their route.
He offered no comment, his mind elsewhere.
She looked around the nearly empty marketplace. The merchants had all returned to their kingdoms, chasing profits elsewhere now that the Academy term had ended. The place felt hollow, abandoned.
Glancing at her palm, she noticed the tattoo's absence. She didn't understand how it worked, but it seemed to activate whenever she considered disobeying his commands. Looking up at him, she gritted her teeth in frustration.
What had she gotten herself into? She should be with Auston right now, not trapped in this nightmare. She had no idea if he'd even recovered from his injuries. Without her teleric—lost in the chaos—she couldn't even contact Nora to find out.
'Stupid, stupid, stupid,' she thought, holding her head.
She couldn't forget what had almost happened earlier. For a terrifying moment, she'd thought she might lose the one thing she'd been saving for Auston's nineteenth birthday next month. She'd been waiting, planning for that night to seal their relationship properly.
But this morning, when she'd been left vulnerable and exposed, she'd felt pure horror. The thought that someone else might take it—especially him, this person she despised, this weakling who'd hurt the love of her life—had filled her with dread.
Yet he hadn't. She should feel relieved, even grateful. Instead, she felt strangely annoyed by that look he'd given her. That completely disinterested expression, like she was nothing special. Like she was the only one who thought she was irresistible when she looked in the mirror.
Was it her pride? Perhaps he simply didn't find her appealing. The thought bothered her more than it should have. If he didn't find her attractive, would Auston? Self-doubt crept in where confidence used to live.
"We're here."
She looked around to find a long queue stretching before the teleportation gates. The familiar sight of travelers waiting with their luggage and documents brought a sense of normalcy to her chaotic day.
"Go," he said, producing her ID from his spatial ring. Then, with casual shamelessness, he manifested her own money and handed it to her. "Buy tickets for Frosten."
She frowned. "The north pole?"
Her eyes widened in disbelief. Of all the places in the world, why there?
"Yes?" His response was completely flat.
"Are... you stupid?" The words slipped out before she could stop them.
The north pole? Who randomly decided to travel to the most inhospitable place on the continent? It made no sense.
"Are you sure you want to find out?" Those indifferent eyes fixed on her, and she hated how powerless they made her feel. She could kill countless weaklings like him without breaking a sweat, yet here she was, walking toward the counter like an obedient servant.
'What do I do? I have to do something,' she thought desperately.
She still didn't understand the nature of their contract, which left her with no choice but to obey for now. But that didn't mean she wouldn't find a way out. She was already recalling everything she knew about slave contracts, searching for any loophole or weakness that might save her.
The binding had to have limitations. Every magical contract did. She just had to find them.
"Where to?" The young man at the counter asked with routine professionalism.
"...Frosten," she replied reluctantly.
The clerk looked at her with mild surprise. She seemed familiar, but he couldn't quite place where he'd seen her before. Something about her face nagged at his memory.
"Frosten?" he echoed, as if confirming he'd heard correctly.
"Yes..." She sighed.
"Can I see some ID?"
She passed it forward with resignation. The moment his eyes found her name, then her surname, his expression shifted dramatically.