I squeeze my eyes shut as I expect the pain to ripple into my insides. An impact like that would surely break my bones...

But instead of excruciating pain, I'm met with softness, familiar hands gripping me firmly.

Slowly, I open my eyes and notice the trail Ze's feet left on the ground as he got dragged by the sheer momentum of the throw when he caught me. He used his body as a shield to ensure I didn't get hurt. But what about him?

"Are you okay?" I ask in an alarmed voice.

His cheek twitches, the purple in his eyes becoming a deeper, more pronounced shade.

"I am fine. They? They are not fine," he spits out.

Placing me carefully by his side, he scans me from head to toe to ensure I am not hurt before turning his attention back to his opponents. The change in his expression is immediate—just as it is frightening. His gaze on me is soft, concerned. But as he stares down the enemies, he transforms into the epitome of a deadly warrior.

His hand is on his sword, and just as I've seen him before, he trails two fingers from the top of the sword to the tip. The touch awakens some type of magic as the sword starts glowing a strange light—one that is similar to the new shade of his eyes.

"Stay back," he orders.

I don't get to reply as he vanishes from my side. No one gets to blink, and he's suddenly in front of the three men, their heads dropping to the ground before they can even think to engage their bows and arrows. Blood splashes onto the ground, the green leaves, and Ze's tense features. It splatters across his cheeks and forehead, dripping lower down his neck and onto his clothes.

His eyes flare, the color glowing.

"W-w-what a-a-re y-y-you?" the naga asks in a booming hiss.

Ze smirks.

"What do you think?"

Then he's gone again, appearing midair in front of the naga and wielding his sword, ready for attack. My lips quiver with optimism. If he so easily dispatched the others, this naga shouldn't be a problem, right?

But my smile quickly falls apart as the naga opens its mouth, the hiss becoming a shrilling cry that makes the entire forest tremble. It sweeps the grass and everything in its path away, advancing like a hurricane. Ze's thrust backward before he disappears again, unable to withstand the marauding wind.

I grasp onto the tree trunk with my arms, holding on to it so I'm not hurled away by the sheer force of the naga's roar.

"I have you," Ze murmurs in my ear as he appears behind me. He wraps his arm around my waist, keeping me in place.

Despite the power of the wind coming from the naga's mouth, Ze stands strong, his feet firmly planted on the ground.