When Livia pushed the door open, the ceiling light illuminated Emma sitting by the window, polishing a dagger. The moment her keen eyes lifted and saw the familiar figure at the door, a crack of emotion split her usually calm and composed expression.
"You… finally came back." She stood up, trying to keep her tone casual, but her voice trembled slightly.
Livia said nothing, simply walked over and stopped in front of her. The two locked eyes for a brief moment before Emma pulled her into a firm hug. It wasn't forceful, but it was resolute—anchoring Livia to reality, as if refusing to let her vanish again.
"Thank goodness you're safe," Emma murmured, her tone uncharacteristically laced with anxiety. "I thought…"
"I'm fine." Livia gently patted her back, her voice soft yet steady. "I made it back."
Only after a long moment did Emma let her go and sit back down by the window. The composed expression befitting a general quickly returned to her face, as if the emotion just now had been nothing but a fleeting illusion.
Livia sat beside her and lowered her voice. "This time… I really owe you. But Elias has figured out who you are."
Emma froze, though she didn't seem panicked. Instead, she raised an eyebrow slightly. "Not surprising. Things were chaotic then. I didn't have time to cover my tracks. It was only a matter of time before he recognized me." She paused, then curled her lips in a wry smile. "Besides, I never expected to hide forever."
"He won't betray me—or you," Livia said with quiet firmness. "He knows who you are, and he knows you saved me. He's not someone who would stab others in the back."
Emma was silent for a moment, then gave a small nod. "I trust you."
"But," she added suddenly, her gaze growing deep, "I never put my hopes in anyone. Except for you, I trust no one—and never will. If I've survived this long, it's not because someone protected me. It's because I protected myself." She paused, her eyes calm but resolute. "So if the time comes when I need to leave, don't try to stop me."
Livia looked at her, heart aching, but she nodded with understanding. "I won't stop you. Just… don't leave too soon."
"As long as you still need me, I won't." Emma gave a faint smile.
"Then… do you want to know where the fragment is hidden?" Livia asked tentatively.
Emma shook her head at once. "No. The fewer who know, the safer it is. I trust you to guard it."
Silence briefly settled between them—not a sign of distance, but of a long-lost tacit understanding.
Livia lowered her gaze, thinking for a moment. "Do you think we were being watched from the very beginning? Eryx might have anticipated this entire plan."
Emma nodded. "Most likely. The moment we left the vicinity of Eryx's forces, we were probably already under surveillance."
Livia hesitated before speaking again. "There's one more thing… I haven't told you yet."
Emma's eyes instantly sharpened.
"I met someone in the final cave," Livia said slowly, her tone deliberately flat, as if gauging Emma's reaction. "He could alter the shape of his body and slip into narrow crevices we couldn't possibly enter. His aura was sinister… and he seemed to know the symbols we used in the past."
Emma's pupils constricted at once. A torrent of emotions—shock, fear, anger, and even a deeply buried suspicion—flickered across her face.
She stood up abruptly, her voice tight. "What did you say? He knew my markers? And he could shift his bones?"
Livia nodded, her chest tightening—knowing she had triggered a buried memory.
Emma began pacing, clearly struggling to contain her emotions. At last, she stopped and muttered, "If he knows my symbols, and can reshape his body… then there's only one possibility."
She turned toward Livia, eyes wide with a restrained dread. "It's… the one who taught me everything. My master."
The word "master" came out like a curse, squeezed from her throat with clenched teeth.
Livia looked at her calmly and gently reached for her hand. "Are you sure?"
Emma took a deep breath. "I always thought he was dead—or at least long gone from this world. But if it's really him, then everything makes sense. He was never an ordinary man. And he would never serve only Eryx. He's… far too dangerous."
She raised her eyes, gaze firm. "No matter how many times you encounter him in the future, don't approach him alone. Do you hear me?"
Livia nodded—but deep in her heart, another unresolved knot twisted tighter.
She couldn't bring herself to tell Emma—she, too, had once been that "master's" disciple.
And even more so, she couldn't say that the man's influence on her ran far deeper than Emma could ever imagine.