The Last Goddess

Chapter One Hundred Twenty-Seven: Brave Front

Aryan

I felt her discomfort. And when I glanced over at Samara, her brow was furrowed, her jaw clenched, and a small bead of sweat was coming down her face. Well, the sweat could have been from this scorching heat. Despite having taken a little dip in the water under an hour ago, we were already almost dry.

Still, Samara seemed like she was in pain. I slowed to walk beside her, but she didn't seem to notice. She didn't even give me a smile. Instead, she reached her hand out, gripping my arm tightly.

"Sorry..." she said between clenched teeth as her other hand grabbed at her throbbing temple.

I clutched her elbow, swiftly supporting her as she buckled. "Is it a vision?" I asked, suspecting as much. I expected her to pass out, but Samara simply gripped my arm tighter, her fingernails digging into my skin.

"Y-yeah." she said, breathily. "I... see a pub. Zephyr."

"Pub?" I said, surprised. "Please tell me our next detour involves us drinking."

She tried to give me a dry laugh but choked on it. Her jade eyes swayed side-to-side—watching something other than the path in front of us. "There's a... girl." She gritted her teeth, like conversing was becoming increasingly difficult with each breath. "Red hair... fire... upset..." Her brows knitted together before they eased. "Ailia..."

"Ailia?" I wondered, finding that name familiar. "Oh," I recalled. "The fairy girl from Ash Valley?"

"Mhm." Samara shut her eyes tightly before standing properly to look at me. "It seems she's in Zephyr."

"Any sign of goat boy?" I asked, slightly annoyed as I remembered being captured by that Janus brother of his.

"No, but she seemed worried. She was looking for someone but didn't say who." Samara paused, thinking. "Something is definitely not right. Oh!" She pulled her hand away, just letting them hover above the crescent shape imprints she left on my arm, before putting it behind her back. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you."

I glanced down at the wound before gazing at Samara's crumbling expression. "This is nothing." I shrugged, smirking. "I've gotten in worse scraps than this."

She pouted a bit. "That doesn't make me feel better about..." Samara trailed off as her head snapped behind her. Her jade orbs were fixed on something, and she had a worried look on her face.

Immediately, I got in front of her, gaging our surroundings for an enemy. "What is it?" I asked with leveled rage. "What do you see?"

From what I could tell, no one was around, but that didn't mean anything. And it certainly didn't explain Samara's sudden reaction. Her feelings were all over the place. There was a strong spike of fear mixed with concern that radiated off her. Her heartbeat quickened and her breath caught. Clearly, something was affecting her.

"Nothing." She replied, peeking around my body to look at the Forest of Reflection. She squinted, searching hard.

"Bullshit." I spat, still on high alert. "Then what's with your reaction, huh?"

"I don't know either. I just... suddenly felt like someone was staring at me." Samara shook her head as if that could shake the feeling away too. "It was so intense... Palpable, even."

I gazed around the forest once more before turning to face my goddess. The trees were densely packed together but somewhat sparse, and with all the pools around, it would be difficult to go without notice, but not impossible. Still, I didn't spy anything out of the ordinary except for Samara. She looked even more petite than usual, and her tiredness was apparent. She was shaken but trying to put on a brave front. Almost like she had to convince herself. It was the first time I've ever seen her so unkempt—that is, without awakening a goddess or triggering the curse.

I sighed, and before I could help myself, I held her for the second time today. I placed one hand on the back of her head and the other by the small of her back, drawing her nearer. She visibly eased in my arms and I felt my heart soften a bit. "It's alright. No one can harm you with me around, got it? Can't let my reputation get sullied after all."

"Pfft!" Samara shook as she laughed, leaning against me as her arms embraced me tightly. "Right," she said between breaths. "I do have the fiercest familiar in town."

"Damn straight." Hearing her relax made the corners of my mouth turn upwards. A rare smile that only she's ever brought out in me so frequently. Does she even know what she— I hid it quickly before releasing her. Samara still appeared exhausted but at least she didn't seem afraid anymore. "Come on, we still got a ways to go, and I think I know exactly where we're going to rest tonight."