"Doku did tell me about the hickey,

" Azni exclaimed in a playful tone.

"I remember thinking about it yesterday when he spoke about your fight.

"

A slight tremor ran through Liiza, and Khan sensed it from the hand gripping her forearm. They had diverted their gazes. Khan looked at the ground behind her shoulder, and Liiza focused on the rocky wall to his right side, but both of them felt unable to separate in that tense situation.

"I mean, I would have known if you were dating a Niqols,

" Azni continued as she jumped around the couple to try to enter in their visions.

"That's why I was certain you were with a human. I just chose not to think too much about yesterday's stuff because of the mission, but I definitely felt that something was off!

"

Khan's thoughts ran at full speed to find a way out of that situation. The entirety of his experience regarding pretenses and lies flowed into his mind and created multiple possible solutions. Still, they were nothing more than gambles, and those with the highest chance to succeed required Liiza's help.

Liiza's condition was completely off. She was pale, and pale-red blood had tainted her torn robe. She had suffered a lot during the fall, and the urge to take care of her grew stronger in Khan's mind as her ragged breath continued to resound through the cave.

Waiting hurt Khan. He could sense his girlfriend begging for his help whenever her focus wavered. She instinctively bent toward him when her confusion made her unable to think clearly, but she always managed to straighten her head before her gestures became too blatant.

For the first time in his life, Khan found himself reflecting on how far he was willing to go to keep his relationship safe, and dark thoughts inevitably filled his mind. His feelings for Liiza were intense and irrational. He wanted to stay with her even if it hurt. He desired to hold her in his arms even if he had to spill blood.

Of course, those were only general thoughts created by Khan's cracked personality. He could imagine himself killing someone to protect Liiza, but that didn't involve proper executions, and it surely didn't include the current situation.

Azni was a cheerful person who could look at Khan without minding the differences between their species. She had always treated him properly, and even her current realization didn't trigger any negative emotion inside her. She appeared pretty happy about the whole matter.

"Azni,

" Khan eventually uttered in a tone that didn't reveal the slightest emotion.

"We are friends, right?

"

"What are you even saying?

" Azni laughed.

The girl had failed to understand how serious Khan was about the matter, but he made sure to clarify his position with his next statement.

"I need you to answer honestly. Please.

"

Khan sounded as if he were begging her, and Liiza couldn't help but move her gaze back on his serious face. Their eyes didn't meet, but she remained in a daze at the sight of his expression. He was suppressing his emotions almost flawlessly, but he couldn't hide his intense resolve, not from her at least.

Liiza raised her free arm to reach for Khan's face, but she retracted her stretched fingers when she recalled where they were. Her mind felt dizzy, and her vision went dark from time to time, but the familiar warmth spreading from her forearm was keeping her awake.

It felt unfair to be unable to touch her boyfriend. Liiza only wanted to ease Khan's tense face with soft caresses. Her desire was innocent and pure, but the world added complexity to that emotion that she couldn't completely endure in her condition.

Liiza's tired eyes eventually turned toward Azni before a weak whisper came out of her mouth.

"Please.

"

Liiza didn't care about Azni's answer, or, rather, she wasn't in the condition to mind the entirety of that situation. She only wanted to understand whether she could let go of her self-restraint or not.

Azni didn't initially understand how serious the matter was, but she began to think about the entirety of the situation when the couple's stern gazes fell on her. However, she couldn't consider the intricacy of the politics behind her two companions during her reasoning.

"I don't get it,

" Azni confessed as her smile disappeared and she took a step back.

"What's the matter? You are scaring me.

"

Liiza had just tried to stab her with an ice-shard, and Khan had only emotionless eyes for her in that situation. Azni started to feel scared. Two of the strongest members of her group were in front of her, and they didn't show nice expressions.

Azni's honest reaction made Khan regret his previous coldness. That scene allowed him to understand her true nature, and that thought left a disgusting feeling inside his mouth. The Niqols was only a young girl excited to learn about juicy gossips.

'What am I even doing?' Khan cursed in his mind as Lieutenant Dyester's teachings resounded in his mind.

Azni was a friend, and she was even one of the Niqols who openly admitted that they had been too hard on Liiza. She was cheerful, open about her feelings, and a good companion in battle, but Khan's first instinct was to consider her as a potential enemy.

That wasn't a reaction caused by his intense feelings for Liiza. His thoughts came from the dark sides of his personality that his mind harbored. Khan knew that he couldn't get rid of those dark aspects of his character, and he didn't even want to due to their evident utility. Yet, Azni didn't deserve them.

Khan abandoned his paranoia and focused on what was truly important. He pulled Liiza closer and wrapped his arm around her waist while laying the forearm in his grasp on his neck.

Liiza's eyes widened at that sudden action, and she even tried to push Khan back, but he kissed her forehead and whispered sweet words that made her melt in his arms. Liiza gave up trying to control that situation and left everything to her boyfriend while she bathed in his warmth.

"I'm sorry,

" Khan announced while accompanying Liiza next to the rocky wall and helping her sit between his legs.

"Please, help me out. I'll explain everything once she is stable.

"

Azni noticed the stark change of tone of the conversation. Khan only seemed worried about Liiza now. Even his eyes appeared devoid of any hidden intent when he fixed them on his friend.

Azni didn't think twice to crouch toward Liiza and help Khan removing her clothes to check her injuries. She had a few deep bleeding wounds on her right side and lower back, and a few leeches even hid in the insides of her sports bra.

Azni almost didn't have to do anything. She limited herself to keep Liiza still whenever Khan acted. He always moved before her and without showing any hesitation.

Khan tore the lower part of his robe apart whenever he needed to cover Liiza's bleeding injuries. He didn't even show any discomfort or awkwardness in inspecting the insides of her sports bra and pants. Azni never had the chance to complain about his actions either because the deep affection revealed by his eyes made her speechless.

Azni had only suspected something before, but those scenes confirmed her ideas. Khan and Liiza were close, and their relationship had even gone quite far since he didn't feel awkward in checking her intimate parts while she was unconscious.

The scene even made Azni blush at times. She couldn't help but find the sleepy Liiza snuggling closer on Khan's chest extremely cute. The affection he showed with his soft caresses that didn't hinder his inspection also intensified the romantic vibe radiated by that couple. Azni found it so lovely that she started to envy them.

"Doku never treats me like that,

" Azni complained before covering her mouth in surprise.

Azni didn't want to say those words. They had come out of her mouth on their own after the romantic aura radiated by the couple affected her. Khan and Liiza appeared completely harmless and at peace when they were in each other's arms, and those feelings had spread to Azni.

"What else can I do?

" Khan asked while wrapping his arms around Liiza.

Liiza had fallen asleep on his chest after the inspection ended. Patches of his robe covered her injuries, and she didn't have leeches attached to her body anymore. Khan believed that she only needed to rest now, but he didn't know if Azni could reveal something that he still ignored about the Niqols.

"She only has to rest,

" Azni explained as a warm smile appeared on her face.

"We don't need to meditate like the humans. Mana flows naturally inside our bodies, and it grows together with us. She'll be fine after a few hours of sleep.

"

Khan nodded as his worried gaze fell on the beauty lying on his chest. He did his best to bend his back and adjust his sitting position to make Liiza comfortable, and Azni didn't miss all the faint careful moves he performed to avoid waking her up.

"You must really care about her,

" Azni announced without covering his mouth afterward.

The Niqols followed her line with a cute giggle, and Khan couldn't help but sigh. Shame spread through his mind when he recalled his previous thoughts. He hated himself for even considering such an innocent girl as a potential threat.

"I do,

" Khan revealed while caressing the side of Liiza's head and making her voice a cute groan.

"She saved me.

"

Azni would normally take similar words like an exaggeration caused by intense emotions, but that didn't seem to be the case with Khan. The azure scar on his chest was a constant reminder of his pain, and the loving gaze toward his girlfriend showed how serious he was about his words.

Azni felt the need to giggle again, but she made sure to suppress that reaction to focus on her priorities. She had to learn everything about that couple before being overwhelmed by their cuteness.

"So,

" Azni smirked as her playful tone returned and she sat next to Khan,

"Someone promised that he would explain everything.

"

"That someone must be the best liar on Nitis,

" Khan sighed and shook his head, but a laugh escaped his mouth when he saw Azni's frown.

"Sorry, it feels too nice to stop pretending,

" Khan laughed.

"You have no idea for how long I wished to be like this in the open.

"

Khan heaved a relaxed sigh as he abandoned every pretense. It felt intoxicating to be himself. A calm smile appeared on his face as he adjusted Liiza on his chest and thought about what he could reveal to Azni. He had to avoid most of the intimate parts, and an initial statement also felt necessary before his story began.

"Look, you seem nice,

" Khan declared without turning toward Azni,

"But Liiza comes before anyone else in my mind, and I can't risk having people knowing about us. Are we clear?

"

A tinge of his coldness seeped inside his voice at the end of the line. Khan was threatening Azni, but the girl didn't care about it when he put it into those words. His seriousness and worry about Liiza even made him more attractive in her eyes.

"Not even Doku?

" Azni asked.

"I trust Doku,

" Khan explained,

"But I can't add variables. You got lucky enough to deserve to hear our story, but no one else can know. Please, make it easy for me.

"

Azni pouted, but Khan's seriousness had the best of her again. Moreover, she was too curious to give up on that chance. The juiciest gossip in the entire academy was right in front of her, and she couldn't hold back but promise to keep everything for herself.

"Good,

" Khan exclaimed before shooting a warm smile toward the beauty sleeping in his arms.

"I guess I should start from the beginning when the Ugu attacked me due to my similarities with the Nak....

"

****

Author's notes: I need 1-2hours for the next.