Two and a half weeks had passed since Ethan and Lily had joined the Kendall Tribe on their journey.
Ethan could see an island’s outline in the distance, signifying that they were drawing near their destination.
According to Grandma Ria, the name of the island he could vaguely see was Turtle Cove Island. It was named as such due to the fact that many Sea Turtles would flock to the island to lay their eggs during mating season.
Once they reached the shore, they would build wagons and travel on land until they reached the Lands of Alastor.
After spending a good amount of time with the Kendall Tribe, Ethan and Lily learned that this grand gathering would be held by over a dozen tribes, which were the vassals of the Great Overlord who had recently passed away.
The one who would succeed him would be chosen from one of these Vassal Tribes.
Simply put, they would not be there to only pay respects to their deceased leader but to also compete with each other to become the next Great Overlord.
“So, if we follow this logic, we need to ensure that the one who becomes the Overlord will be from the Kendall Tribe, right?” Ethan asked Lily who was lying on the bed beside him.
Since the two of them were husband and wife in the eyes of the Kendall Tribe, they needed to at least play their roles in order to avoid suspicion from the Great Chieftain’s family.
“Yes,” Lily replied. “I believe that this is what we need to accomplish in order to return home. If this is a quest, we are certain that getting the succession rights to become the Great Overlord will not be easy. I’m very certain that a fight between the Kendall Tribe and the other Vassal Tribes is inevitable.”
Ethan sighed because this was what he was afraid of.
“What’s wrong?” Lily asked in a teasing tone. “The Strongest First Year of Brynhildr Academy is getting cold feet? Should I give you a hug to warm you up?”
“Very funny,” Ethan replied. “Let’s sleep, Lily. Tomorrow is going to be a busy day.”
“Okay.” Lily nodded before closing her eyes to sleep.
Although they were sharing the same bed, Ethan made sure to distance himself from the young lady to give her some space.
Unlike Chloe and Luna, whom he didn’t mind hugging in his sleep, Lily was someone whom he barely knew.
They weren’t even friends, only acquaintances. 𝑜𝓥𝑙xt.𝒸𝑶𝓂
His interaction with her in the academy could be counted on one hand, with the exception of their duel in the Clash of Manors.
Although Ethan had shared his secret with her, he had only done so because the situation called for it.
Without a way to gain any magical powers, he was forced to compromise in order to increase their chances of getting back home.
An hour before midnight, Lily’s eyes fluttered open.
Although it was dark, her eyes glowed faintly allowing her to see in the darkness.
She looked at the sleeping boy beside her for a few seconds before narrowing her eyes.
‘Don’t hog the blanket for yourself,’ Lily thought as she tried to pull the blanket from Ethan’s body.
The handsome young man had subconsciously taken the majority of the blanket in his sleep, leaving Lily with nothing to cover her body with.
Just as she was about to pull the blanket, Ethan stirred in his sleep before opening his eyes. He looked at Lily in a daze before smiling.
“Did you have another nightmare, Luna?” Ethan asked. “Come and sleep beside me.”
Ethan then took his blanket to cover Lily’s body before moving closer to her.
He then wrapped his arms around her body and hugged her.
“Don’t worry, I’m here,” Ethan said softly. “I’ll keep you safe.”
A moment later, he fell asleep, keeping Lily in his embrace.
At first, the young lady wanted to push the handsome teenager away. However, his body heat made her feel comfortable, and she felt very reluctant to separate from him.
‘He thought I was Luna?’ Lily mused. ‘Does she always have nightmares and visit him in his room at night? She’s bolder than I thought.’
After pondering for a brief moment, Lily decided that she would let this incident slide just this once.
‘He’s really warm,’ Lily thought as she buried her head in Ethan’s chest, feeling his heartbeat.
Soon, she, too, fell asleep and, for the first time since they had entered the Nexus, Lily was able to continuously sleep until morning, feeling well rested.
When Ethan opened his eyes, the first thing he saw was a patch of blonde hair in his vision.
A few seconds later, he heard the steady sleeper breaths of the young lady, who was in his arms.
Ethan’s body stiffened after finding himself in such a situation, and the last vestige of sleep left his system.
‘H-How did we end up like this?’ Ethan thought.
Now that he was conscious of the young lady in his arms, he immediately felt how soft Lily was, which made his face redden.
Slowly, but surely, Ethan extricated himself from the bed, making sure that Lily wouldn’t wake up.
A few minutes later, he stood up from the bed and glanced at the sleeping beauty, who made his body heat up so early in the morning.
Ethan was a healthy young man, so it was impossible for him to stay calm when someone as beautiful as Lily was in his arms. In order to cool himself off, he left the room in order to wash his face.
‘I’ll also get our breakfast while I’m at it,’ Ethan mused as he left the room.
A minute later, Lily opened her eyes and looked at the door. A tinge of red could be seen creeping up the side of her face.
Truth be told, she had woken up before Ethan did. However, she felt so comfortable in his embrace, that she was reluctant to leave it.
That was the first time she was held by a man, and for some reason, she didn’t feel bad being held by the handsome young man who had defeated her in a duel.
Lily was a member of a Tribe in Southshire, so she was raised to seek out strong men.
Since she was a Witch, her family decided that it would be best if she looked for a strong Wizard in Brynhildr Academy to be their son-in-law.
Lily was opposed to the idea at first, but since her mother was a Witch, the latter made sure to educate her on how important magical bloodlines were.
She wasn’t in a hurry to find a life-long partner, but since she didn’t want to argue with her family. She went to Brynhildr Academy to study magic, as well as keep an eye on any powerful Wizards who could become part of their family.
Even after seeing Langston and Kurt, who were the Pillars of the Schwartz and Terra Manor, Lily didn’t pay too much attention to them.
They were powerful, that much she admitted, but they were weaker than her, so she wasn’t interested in them.
However, when she met Ethan when the latter was taking a stroll at night, Lily caught his scent. She had bestial bloodline running through her veins, so she was very sensitive when it came to powerful bloodlines.
However, she could only use that ability when she was in her demi-wolf form.
She even went as far as licking Ethan’s cheek back in the academy because his scent attracted her.
There was just something about him that made her want to take a bite of his flesh and drink his blood. Fortunately, her human side was stronger, so she was able to control these urges easily.
‘Perhaps this is a good opportunity to know why I am attracted to him,’ Lily thought. ‘I’ll see if I can taste some of his blood tonight.’
A sweet smile appeared on Lily’s face as she came up with a plan to taste Ethan’s blood while he was sleeping.