When he woke up, his first impulse was to check his clothes, and he heaved a sigh of relief when he saw that it was still intact. He stood up sluggishly and looked at his surroundings. All he could see were unusually tall trees and silence. Because the leaves were too thick, the sunlight was divided into bunches. Underneath the soft grasses were flowers he really wanted to study, if not for the terrifying figure in front of him.
Okay, Etim, don't panic. You are used to being kidnapped. This time, it is just a psychotic witch that can turn your existence into dust by blinking. No pressure.
Tabibah stood before him in all her curvy glory, still wearing that provocative black ensemble that should be banned from existence… And yes, she did tower over him with those boots of hers.
Her eyes were narrowed and filled with emotions he couldn't identify, but the way she looked at him… Was undoubtedly how a predator stared at its prey. It made him breathless.
He shivered as she came towards him and took a step backward, she also took one forward, and they continued like this until his back met a tree…and then he panicked.
The desire to claim one's mate when bonded was an irresistible force and no matter how strong she was, she was helpless before her destiny. Especially when the said mate was fragile and enticing, begging to be dominated, exactly to her bizarre taste that she kept a secret.
She turned his head around and breathed him in. No matter how hard she tried, all she could smell was the putrid smell of his weakness mixed with a faint hint of rose.
How did he successfully bond with me?
His long ears trembled fervently like a cornered bunny. She couldn't resist and touched it. It was soft and squishy, and she wouldn't have stopped if he didn't freeze like he was hit with a stone spell.
"Please don't kill me!! " He whimpered weakly. Tabibah could think of various ways to make that sound louder. It made her core water. It had been too long. Far too long.
Ha! He can't feel the bond yet, this is good, she thought. But his word made her unhappy. Why does he make it sound like she went around killing children?
She raised his head, but he shut his eyes tightly like that could save him, and little whimpers left his pouty red lips. He was either a fool or deliberately seducing her. All he did was make her horny.
"I know my ancestors offended you, but I was really not to blame. "
Tabibah scoffed in her heart. She wondered how his ancestors would feel if they saw him presently scattering all their hard work.
"I am really useful! " He said, suddenly opening his eyes. His eyes were like glass. The finest emerald glass she could even think of. She knew it was the bond affecting her. It had grown from dust particles into fine threads. There was only one way to break a bond.
She once saw it in Cerci's spellbook, but didn't focus on it. Luckily, he didn't know yet. An obstacle to her revenge for her tribe's massacre was not what she wanted. She just needed time to break the bond.
She was in a weaker state, the damage caused by the sword have not healed yet, which was why she was staying low in the middle of nowhere.
Really? How?
Her voice in his mind surprised him as he jumped slightly before patting his chest to calm his mind.
"I am the last elf in the world! " Etim said proudly, but looking at her blank look, his face fell and his heart stopped. She clearly didn't care whether he was the last of his race or not. How will he survive if he was of no use to her?
"I can learn to heal…" he shook his head rapidly. "No… No… No witches already heal."
Tabibah watched indifferently as he tried to sell himself to save his life.
"I can shoot arrows, I can grow plants… These days, plants are hard to grow, but the Canine kingdom never lacks food because of me."
He looked at her carefully. She didn't reply, and large droplets of tears fell from his eyes like broken pearls." I can cook, I can cook really well, I can make a meal out of anything."
He gripped his thick robe tighter to his body and glared pitifully at her. "You can kill me, but please ensure it doesn't hurt… And you can't…" He sniffed and he continued. "You can't take my chastity…"
Tabibah stepped back and glared at him.
Your chastity? Do you really think of yourself as attractive?
Lies, her heart whispered. She was fighting hard to control her urges presently, which was something that she never had to do with Sao.
Etim's eyes widen, and he looked at her in disbelief, his large ears dropping. He felt all his self-confidence slipping away and just wanted to curl in one place and sob.
But he couldn't. So, he could only curl his lips and retort with fake confidence. "Sleeping with elves strengthens your powers, everybody knows that."
Tabibah looked at him like he was stupid, and that was how he felt.
Stupid. Why did I say that out loud? He thought. How foolish was he to expose his weakness like that?
No matter how foolish he felt, he still didn't want to die, so he continued his bid to save his life. "You are not going to kill me, right? "
Tabibah gazed at him and her mellow voice trickled into his mind.
You are just a burden.
Perhaps she thought Sao was the closest to her, that was why I was mistakenly picked…or she just wanted a person to sustain her blood craving.
Etim's thoughts were cut short when she raised her hands with glowing eyes. He didn't think twice before rushing to hold her hands. She must want to cast a spell to tear me to shreds.
"Please don't kill me, I'm just fifty, I will give you all the information I know…" Her skin was deadly cold and made his fingers curve. "You have been asleep for Nine hundred and fifty years and don't know what has changed… I do…"
The sudden warmth on her skin made her power flickered wildly.
Claim him! Claim him! Claim him! They chanted in her mind, and it took her everything not to pull him down to where he belonged.
The idiotic cause of this smiled innocently when she put her hands down and nodded at his thoughts, that Tabibah was sure were way off point.
"The dragon race became obliterated as Lord Chennai did not succeed in hatching an egg. The elves' tree of life got infected with a strange illness two years after you were put to sleep, and they slowly died out…
And the witches? How did Sao kill them off?
She asked , voice thick with murderous intent as her mind flash with ways she can kill the canines.
"Nononononono. " Etim interrupted, letting go of her hands which almost made her drag him back.
"The witches committed suicide! "
Su-suicide?
"Yes, Queen Mia still whines on and on about that fact. " Etim replied without much thought. "Something about Mass grave, slitted wrists and strange symbols… I'm not certain. "
Tabibah felt her body tremble as all the hate in it seem to vanish. She felt lighter, and her eyes watered slightly.
Thank you.
Etim tilted his head, confused."You won't kill me right?"
No reply.
"Senior Tabibah, I still get to live, right?"
She didn't care about him. Etim knew then he was fucked up.