Whosh!!

Nathaniel’s sword sliced through the empty air. His body jerked forward from the sudden force, muscles straining against nothing.

"What the—?" His eyes widened in shock. Miasma had vanished right in front of him. He couldn’t even call it a blink.

His sword moved many times faster than that, so fast no one should have been able to dodge it. Yet she was simply gone.

"Perception of fire!" he said quickly.

A soft layer of flames flowed out from his body and spread across the whole area like glowing mist. The fire searched every corner, every shadow, every fold of broken space.

But no matter how far it reached, it found nothing. No trace of her. His brows pulled together in a deep frown.

His sword had been just an inch from her neck. The swing had been too quick for anyone to escape. How had she disappeared like that?

Anger still burned hot inside his chest. He looked around slowly, scanning the ruined floors. The frustration only grew stronger now that the woman had slipped away.

But he kept control. He drew in slow, steady breaths. The deep red color faded from his skin. The fiery red tips of his black hair cooled back to normal.

"Was it some kind of time path spell?" he thought.

He let go of his blood-red sword. It vanished instantly into thin air.

He had been sure she was cornered with no way out. When she said "however," he knew she had something ready, so he had swung without hesitation. Still, her trump card had worked.

"Damn it!" he cursed under his breath. Frustration crept deeper into him. He had thought he had neutralized her completely.

He had even planned to hand her over to Elizabeth so she could make the woman pay for what she had done to their son.

"Haa..."

A heavy sigh escaped him. That’s why time path and space path spell casters were such freaks. He turned around slowly and started walking back toward the eleventh floor.

The thin layer of folded space between the floors had been completely torn apart by the power of his attacks. Dust still hung in the air, and broken stone crunched under his boots with every step.

"I’m sorry, son," he thought out loud, another sigh full of guilt rising in his chest. "It seems I wasn’t able to avenge you this time."

His eyes blazed with quiet fire as he kept walking. "But don’t worry. Wherever she hides, I will find her one day and kill her."

The promise settled heavy and certain in his heart as he moved through the wreckage.

******

Meanwhile on the other side, Elizabeth had finally finished reattaching her son’s leg and wrapping his back.

It had been tough work for someone like her, who didn’t walk the plant or light paths. She had to rely on the strong medicines from her own clan.

But now he looked much better. A small, warm smile tugged at her lips as she gently stroked his hair. He lay fast asleep on her lap, completely worn out from all the tension.

"Sleep well, my dearest son," she whispered softly, her fingers still brushing through his hair in slow, soothing strokes.

The loud sounds of battle around her had finally died down. She glanced toward the wreckage.

The explosions had stopped, and even the strange blue birds she had spotted through the broken gaps were gone. A cold glint flashed in her eyes.

"Yeah... once I get my hands on that woman, I’m going to pay her back a hundred... no, a thousand times over," she muttered.

Then she paused, tilting her head as a thoughtful look crossed her face. "One little scratch on my baby boy equals a lifetime of pain, right? So how much suffering does she need to clear the full debt?"

She started counting on her fingers, lost in her own dark little math. A hundred lifetimes? A thousand? Maybe chain them together with some extra torture just to be safe...

Her crazy calculations froze the moment Nathaniel’s figure stepped out from the wreckage.

He walked over slowly, casually dusting off his clothes like he had just finished a normal workout.

Elizabeth’s dreamy daze broke instantly. " 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝙚𝔀𝒆𝒃𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝒐𝒎

’Hmm? Why is he alone?’ she thought.

He was still a bit far, so she couldn’t see the details, but he was definitely by himself. No prisoner, no body, nothing.

And from what she could tell, he didn’t even look hurt. She stared hard as he came closer, her eyes slowly narrowing with growing suspicion.

Elizabeth’s eyes stayed fixed on him as he drew closer. "Why are you alone?" she asked, her voice sharp. "Where is that bitch..."

Her words cut off mid-sentence. Something had caught her eye.

He was only a few meters away now, close enough for her to see his face clearly. Her whole body froze.

There, plain as day, were several bright red kiss marks. One on his forehead. One on his nose. More on both cheeks.

Even the corner of his lips carried a faint smear. And on his neck... her eyes widened. That slightly swollen spot was definitely a love bite.

A cold numbness spread through her. She stared at him in pure disbelief.

Nathaniel walked up with slumped shoulders, his face heavy with real guilt. He had no idea what was on his skin.

All he felt was the weight of failure as his gaze dropped to his sleeping son. "I’m sorry, dear. She escaped..." The last word came out like a hesitant question. His eyes lifted to Elizabeth.

Her stare burned straight through him, eyes shooting pure fire.

"What happened, honey?" he asked, his voice a little shaky. He had seen that look on her face before. It never ended well for him.

"Is something on my face?" he added, growing more nervous by the second. Her eyes had that dangerous mix of anger and obsession again.

"Where is she?!" Elizabeth demanded. Her voice dropped low and icy, like cold snow pressed against warm skin.

Nathaniel looked even guiltier. "She escaped," he said quietly, the words pressing down on him like a heavy stone.

"She escaped..." Elizabeth repeated slowly. Then her tone sharpened. "Or did you let her escape?"

"Hmm?" Nathaniel’s brows drew together in confusion. "What do you mean? Why would I let her escape?"

Elizabeth’s anger finally snapped. Her eyes flared as she snarled, "I meant exactly what I said, you shit! What the fuck is on your face?!"