Serene’s POV

Five months had passed since that fateful day when Arlo left my realm. I never saw him again. We returned to The Institute three months ago under tight schedules and strict rules.

Several magical barriers had been constructed around our institute, infused with the magic of powerful Faes, Witches and Warlocks. They were constantly monitored, with Slayers, Hexum and Fae forces patrolling the border with Dark Realm.

Not all of us returned to continue our training, none of our vampire friends came back, they had totally cut off every tie with other realms. Arlo, Sahala, Dria, and others were never seen or heard from.

Some of the werewolves didn’t come back either but we were glad Tanzil and Mikasim did.

Shumal Sensei’s family had relocated to Hexum Realm beforehand to be close to her, she didn’t leave and stayed in the institute or she would have been stuck there as well.

Folkshel Realm was attacked twice and suffered heavy losses but combined forces from all the realms were able to push the enemy back. She didn’t try to attack Hexum or Lycanus Realm so far but every realm was on high alert.

The intensity of attacks from monsters had reduced and people were coming to terms with surviving along with them. Taking precautions, training, learning about different monsters and their habits, and leaving out food for them. Miscellaneous measures were being taken all over our world to deal with them.

A plan to attack and take back Wampir Realm was also on the paper, the only problem was the estimated number of lives that would be lost. Very rarely we would get any inside information and it was not promising for people were suffering under her rule and constantly being mind controlled, leaving them vulnerable.

Ayrden had also gained consciousness right after Arlo did and it was concluded that her mind control didn’t leave permanent brain damage and people could recover from it, eventually.

Our training had become rigorous and all of this had enhanced our powers and skills. Zeph was almost like a full fledge Slayer, his sword skills had become exceptional.

My powers had enhanced too, my shield could stretch for miles and I could shoot up to 50 arrows without getting drained of my energy. I was merging up to three arrows as well and was pretty sure I could use the Arrow of Healing without depleting my energy but Kilamin had made me promise I won’t use it until the last resort.

The enemy had stopped trying her mind control over me as well. Maybe she had tried but I never felt her as Kilamin had trained me so vigorously and my shield had gotten vehemently strong. Distance between us was another factor that prevented her from putting me under.

Everything else was back to normal except I missed Arlo. Occasionally his face flashed in front of my eyes, and I wondered in what condition he must be living. Why had he to suffer all his life? His words rang in my ears when he asked me to be his in the next life. I shuddered at the thought that he might never find love. I missed his wisdom as well, he was the wisest among us and his words always brought me comfort.

The day was breaking and I was making a lap around the training ground with Suri, who had constantly been with me and had become my support system. Suri was extremely intelligent, it always sensed my mood and during the times when I felt utterly depressed or heartbroken, it would calm me down and brighten up my mood.

Suri was running ahead of me when Zeph joined me as well for the morning run. He planted a kiss on my temple and began to jog with me.

"Morning beautiful," he whispered.

"Morning handsome," I smiled at him, he had grown his hair in the past few months and it fell on his shoulders now. Like silky black snakes. The energy he had been putting into working out, showed as his shoulders were broader and his body toned.

"Sprint?" He questioned me with mischief.

"Why not?" I shrug my shoulders at him.

"On the count of three then, the loser has to steal from Mariela Sensei whatever the winner decides. Agreed?" Zeph laid out the plan.

"You are on," We took the position and Zeph counted down to three, and off we went. I had always enjoyed running through the woods so I had immense stamina but Zeph was a beast when it came to physical strength.

Energy surged through me as I sprinted forward on my strong legs but Zeph was a bit ahead of him. His arm muscles glistened and his tattoo shone in the sunlight, his sturdy legs moved swiftly along the path. He almost made it look effortless.

I sped up my pace, trying to catch up with his immense speed. He glances back at me with a smirk playing on his handsome face as if mocking me. We approached a bend and he elegantly turns to the left, increasing the distance between us.

My heart thuds faster in my chest, pumping blood faster to my body so I could overtake him. The chilly morning air rushes past my pinkish cheeks. My legs ache as I push them forward, trying to catch up to him but failing miserably. I could see the finish spot coming right up, so time to play dirty, I didn’t want to lose.

I whistle and Suri gallops toward me on all four. "Suri, get him," I command and its ears perk up, without wasting a second it throttles at full speed toward Zeph.

"Nooo," Zeph shouts at it but Suri launches itself on him and pins him to the ground. Zeph stumbles and falls and Suri climbs and sits over his abdomen. Meanwhile, I keep running and finish our sprint and bend down to catch my breath, placing my hand on my chest.

"Serene you are so dead," Zeph shouts at me from underneath Suri who triumphantly sits above him and wags his tail. I glance in his direction and pass him a bright smile, he doesn’t seem impressed and keeps showing me angered looks. That makes me laugh.

Approaching him I offer him my hand and declare: "I win."

"You cheated," he takes my hand and pulls me down instead of getting up and I land in his arms with an "Ahhhh."

Suri licks my face while Zeph tickles making me laugh. "That was not fair," he whispers in my ear.

"I know, but it was fun." I turn to face him and gaze into his coal-like orbs he stares back at me.

"Oyee, love birds," Ralph calls and saunters over to us. We stop staring into each other’s eyes and scamper to our feet.

"What’s going on this early morning?" Ralph teases as he gets closer. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

"We were sprinting," I explain my cheeks going red.

"I can see," Ralph raises his eyebrows at me making me feel embarrassed.

"Serene cheated and let Suri lose on me." Zeph accuses me while pushing Suri from above him and getting up he dusts away his clothes. Ralph chuckles at the revelation and does a high five with me. Zeph shakes his head at us, clearly disappointed.

"Let’s go grab some breakfast," Ralph says as we began to head back inside.

"Let me freshen up and I will meet you guys in the Dining Hall," I tell them, they nod while I head up to my room to take a bath. I moved back with Ayrden after our return.

Opening the door I found her to be still soundly sleeping. It was our day off so I didn’t wake her up and quietly grabbed some fresh clothes from the cupboard and headed to the bathroom to shower and change.

After the bath, I pat dried my hair and combed them, leaving them open I head down to the Dining Hall.

I find the boys waiting for me at our usual table. Slipping into a seat beside Zeph I place my head on his muscular shoulder and he offers me a piece of chicken sandwich he has been eating.

Alvene joined us soon, she was clad in her Slayer Unifrom. A few of our seniors had already joined Slayers including Zilver and Alvene, due to the prevailing circumstances they joined the ranks while still at the Institute.

"Any news from Wampir Realm?" I asked her hopefully. She pursed her lips and shook her head at me, I feel disappointed my heart aches. Zeph planted a small kiss on my head, understanding my frustration.

"You guys are being sent on a mission though." She informed us in a hushed voice which makes the three of us shoot her an astonished look.

"What kind of mission?" We asked her in unison.

"A mission to the Dark Realm I heard. They want the terror and horrors that surround the Dark Realm to diminish a bit in the hearts of people, so starting from novices under the supervision of Senseis and Slayers. You will be sent there in teams to hunt down a few monsters. I have heard your team is first." She informed us in a grim voice.