It didn't take too long for Varen to notice her absence, and as agitated as he was, the Kaxarene had to stay calm if he wished to keep Zeya's identity a secret.
'So, this is how you wish to play?' He thought to himself as he took a sip of wine, very displeased by Zeya's decision to leave.
As much as he always enjoyed witnessing Zeya's rebellious habits, Varen was starting to grow tired of dealing with her antics.
'Maybe I should've just chained her to me from the very beginning.' He thought, feeling a sense of regret for believing that Zeya would ever listen to his request. 'Perhaps I've been far too forgiving this time around.'
Varen was aware that Muir's approach was merely a means to approach Zeya after he saw through the magic that he placed over the veil.
Despite his instincts, Varen chose to trust the only person he considered his friend, hoping that he would bring her back to his side once whatever business they had with each other was resolved.
However, Varen's patience started to wear thin when the pair was still nowhere to be seen even after an hour had passed.
'They're taking their sweet time, aren't they?' His mind began to wander when his search throughout the ballroom was fruitless, his anxiety growing with every second.
Despite the myriad thoughts swirling in his mind, the emperor continued on with his fake facade before managing to slip away unnoticed.
'Calm down, Varen. They wouldn't wander off too far from here. The portals Nox had set up are strong enough to stop them from leaving the palace altogether.'
"Did you notice the woman accompanying Emperor Muir just now?" Varen's attention switched over to a group of overdressed noblewomen when one of them mentioned Muir. "They seem a bit too close to just be acquaintances like he stated."
He lingered close by to eavesdrop, eager to discover where Muir had taken Zeya without Varen's knowledge.
Fortunately, Varen remained unnoticed as the ladies were deeply engrossed in their conversation, who were quietly eager to catch wind of the latest gossip.
"Oh my, I was wondering the same thing, Lady Merrisa!" Another one chimed in and immediately, she had the entire group's attention, especially Varen's.
"Oh dear, you don't think it could be his... lover, could it?" Lady Merrisa whispered cautiously, fearing that the rumor might spread. "I've heard that his court has been trying hard to find a fitting spouse since his coronation... perhaps they've finally succeeded?"
The women nodded in agreement, apparently convinced that this was indeed the case.
"They did seem rather acquainted with each other. I'm sure I wasn't the only one that saw them holding hands as they left the ballroom."
The ladies quickly nodded in agreement at the statement.
Another one added with a playful giggle. "He was grinning ear to ear like an infatuated fool! He wouldn't even stop for a second when his guests tried to talk to him."
"There's no doubt in my mind that they went off somewhere private for some fun, I'm certain of it!"
"Oh, the emperor is such a romantic!" The ladies shrieked with excitement, as though they were the recipients of Muir's favorable attention.
Varen furrowed his eyebrows, deep in thought.
"She must be from a foreign land far from here. This is my first time seeing a veiled noblewoman attend a ball."
"I can only imagine how ethereal she looks to have captivated the emperor's affection." A lady said with an envious sigh. "Oh, how wonderful it must be to have the Emperor Muir as your significant other."
"I just hope our poor emperor has finally found the love of his life. It's about time for Toyah to finally appoint an empress to the throne, alongside the emperor."
"Who knew immortals could have such vivid imaginations?" Varen couldn't help but mutter under his breathe. "Their resemblance to humans is starting to irritate me."
With that, Varen stormed off in a hurry, having heard enough of the baseless rumors. His main priority now was to find Zeya before something happened to her.
That ominous feeling he had since he entered the ballroom had only begun to grow as time went on and now, it was starting to take a toll on him physically.
Something was eating away at him, but Varen failed to realize what it was until it was too late.
"Oh, poor, poor Kaxarene." An unearthly voice suddenly echoed in his ear, causing him to halt abruptly in his tracks. "I see that she has taken a hold of your heart yet again."
"It is angering you, isn't it? The mere thought of someone else taking your place beside her."
The entire room spun around him as he held his head in between his hands, the headache was slowly becoming unbearable.
His legs quickly succumbed to the pain as he fell to the ground, kneeling.
Gritting his teeth to withstand the pain, Varen tried his best to look around to find whoever was responsible for this.
The faces of those around him blurred along with his eyesight, making him incapable of recognizing the worried figures that circled around him with their futile hopes of being helpful.
The first that captured his attention a particular figure standing motionlessly in front of him.
Strangely, Varen could see their silhouette almost perfectly when everything else around it remained blurred and obscure.
A cold chill down Varen's when he realized that the man had no eyes, yet Varen could feel its gaze upon him, as if relishing the sight of Varen writhing in pain.
"We've met before, haven't we." The man claimed, having noticed that Varen did not recognize him. "Aren't you glad to finally see me in front of you after trying so hard to capture me?"
The man's grin grew wider as he watched the realization hit Varen like a ton of bricks.
"Don't worry, your beloved is safe... however, I won't be able to guarantee that if she keeps messing about with another man, can I?"
Varen quickly registered what Tvar was trying to say, confirming the rumors that Varen had heard about Muir and Zeya before this entire situation.
"I only chose to seek you to warn you." The man's grin was unnaturally wide, the dark abyss that were meant to be his eyes peering down at him eerily. "You've lost her once before, haven't you?" It'd be a shame if that were to happen twice."
=================
The last thing Varen remembered was his fist making contact with hard, before he felt something break under his powerful blow.
Everything after that was a complete blur to him when he finally regained his consciousness, with Amrit struggling to keep him restrained.
"Get a fucking hold of yourself, Varen!" Amrit fumed, growing tired of getting himself involved in Varen's explosive reactions. "I don't know what that man did to piss you off this much, but he's as good as dead so you can stop now!"
The sharp scent of copper in front of him brought him back to reality as he saw the man that was possessed by the shadow monster, Tvar. The man appeared normal now, with his eyes intact unlike before.
Except, the man was barely breathing as Varen seemingly beat him into a pulp, his face barely recognizable after the violence the Kaxarene had inflicted on him.
"What do you think you're looking at? Scram! All of you!" Amrit yelled at the crowd that had only grown significantly bigger following the fight.
Amrit's high-ranking status amongst the nobles was proven useful when the crowd quickly dispersed, fearing for their lives if they were to go against his orders.
"What... what in the hell happened?" Varen muttered under his breath, the loud pounding in his head preventing him from thinking clearly.
"Zeya... " Varen managed to croak out, his mouth bloody and bashed as an aftermath of the fight. "Where is she?"
"She's completely fine, you dipshit." Amrit responded harshly, letting Varen go once he could confirm that Varen had actually turned back to normal. "Nox had seen Zeya with Muir right above the kingdom. Apparently, he had brought her up to the surface to show her something."
"Hey, where the fuck do you think you're going?" Amrit yelled at Varen when he realized that the Kaxarene was already up and leaving the mess of a situation that he caused. "Arius is going to kill you if you cause any more trouble, do you hear me?"
Varen could barely hear Amrit's threats as he stumbled his way out of the ballroom and out towards the now crowded corridor.
Something in his heart began stirring a mess that he didn't know how to deal with, but he knew that his first move was to find Zeya and get her back.
Then everything will sort itself out, just like it had always had.