"Hurry you stupid witch!" Corvan said, "We were supposed to leave minutes ago!"

Valeriana quickened her pace and jogged up to the young lord, all the while muttering unladylike things under her breath.

They were going to Denovegasia to investigate a town, wherein a demon has been spotted roaming around during the day and night.

And she was dreading the mere fact that the headmaster had paired her with the first ranker.

"What was the headmaster thinking, making you my partner?" she heard Corvan say.

"I should be asking you that, idiot devil!" she yelled once she stood in front of him.

Instead of making a retort, the Arlandian lord gave her a glare, before slinging on the bag that contained the things he needed for this trip. His sword was strapped to his waist, the same as the fifth ranker.

He then huffed out an air of pure annoyance and turned to the portal. He placed a hand on the knob and spoke aloud.

"Klein, Denovegasia Continent," he said.

There was a click and there he spotted their destination. A small cozy-looking town was being bathed by the setting sun's golden rays.

It was a lovely sight, he had to admit.

He was taken a bit by surprise when Valeriana passed him like air and went ahead.

Not wasting another second, he followed after her and his boots made contact with the soft and tall grass. The scent of different flowers wafted to his nose, and it made him feel relaxed.

Valeriana on the other hand, was looking around as her eyes lit up in wonder of the new surroundings. Denovegasia was more verdant than the others continents she had seen so far. This was proven so with all the trees that towered over her and the thick undergrowth that surrounded the path that led to the town.

"We should get going and find a place to say. We can start tomorrow," Corvan said as he began walking down the path.

Valeriana figured it would be best to shut up, and decided to follow him.

They walked past a couple of trees, until Valeriana paused, making Corvan raise a brow at her.

He followed her gaze, and saw that her eyes were fixed on something moving in the bushes.

She then began walking towards it slowly as she squint her eyes. A lump of something black suddenly popped out of the bushes and disappeared.

Valeriana was so startled she jumped. But once her feet landed back down on the ground, she slipped and slid towards the bushes.

She didn't expect that there was a steep slope behind the underbrush, and she ended up sliding down, as branches and leaves slap her face.

Corvan bolted after her.

There was a loud splash, as Val finally reached the bottom of the slope. A pond, another thing she didn't expect.

"Darn it!" she yelled loudly, as she tried to stand. She was in the shallow part of the pond―shallow mucky part to be specific.

Corvan came next, and wasted no time in helping her up. She was completely soaked, no doubt about it. Her things were also drenched and black smelly mud covered some parts of her clothes, including her hair.

He crinkled his nose in disgust.

"Not a word, you jerk," the fifth ranker said as she gave him a withering glare.

―――

"I swear if the next inn can't accommodate us I'll...." Val didn't get to finish when she sneezed. You could tell that she was freezing because she was hugging her arms tightly.

They have been walking around for more than an hour now, looking for a place to stay without any luck. The sun had already set, and a couple of lamps lit up the streets illuminating the pair and a couple of the locals walking around.

Corvan sighed tiredly as they entered another inn.

"Two rooms," he immediately said, not allowing the lady at the front to finish her greeting.

"I'm sorry but―," she didn't get to finish, when a woman suddenly came up and slammed her hand on the front desk.

"We're checking out, give me the form and here's the key," she said.

She was immediately given the form and she signed her name. Just as she finished, a man came looking alarmed and a bit desperate.

"Darling, please let's talk," he said as he approached the woman.

The fifth and the first rankers' brows rose to their hairline at the sight.

"Talk?! Talk to that witch that you were sucking on earlier!" the woman yelled at him.

A lot of eyes in the lobby turned to watch the scene, before the woman walked out, with her husband running after her.

Val and Corvan didn't know how to react to that, so they just remained quiet and turned back to the receptionist, who was giving them sorry smile.

"I'm sorry about that, just now. Everyone please continue what you were doing," she said politely and the guests resumed what they were doing.

"Well, now we have a vacant room, but sadly it's the only one available as of this moment," she said as she turned back to the pair, "Are you willing to take it?"

The idea of sharing a room didn't sit too well with Corvan. But when his eyes landed on her shivering form, he knew they had no choice to do so, or else she'll get sick. Truth be told, he was worried about her.

"We'll take it," he said to the receptionist. Val wanted to protest, but with another a sneeze and look at the black muck on her, she stopped herself.

―――

Val heaved a sigh, when she still had dry clothes in her bag. But most of it was her undergarments and some shorts. Her shirts were all either completely or partly wet.

They were now in their room getting ready sleep, having already eaten before they left.

It had large bed that could be occupied by three people, a small living room, and a bathroom behind a door in one corner. Her feet liked the soft feel of the carpeting in the room.

All of a sudden, a blue cloth was thrown over her head. She took it off and realized that it was one of Corvan's shirts.

She turned around and spotted him, peeling off his top, leaving his muscular torso bare for her eyes to feast on.

She flushed a deep shade of red, before gathering a few of her clothes and dashed towards the bathroom.

Corvan permitted a small amused smirk to appear on his face, before proceeding to change.

When he finished, he made his way over to the couch, deciding to sleep there, and let Val take the bed. He reclined on his back, and drifted to sleep.

He was woken up, when he heard the thud of a closing door. Ever so subtly, he opened one of his eyes, and his pupils dilated.

Val's blonde hair was let down in wonderful waves, and it swayed behind her as she made her way around the room. She was wearing his shirt, which was obviously bigger than her, the hem reaching her mid-thigh. Underneath, she wore shorts not comfortable with wearing only underwear.

She had just finished washing some of her clothes, and just hoped that they would be dry when morning comes.

She didn't notice that Corvan's gaze followed her every move, all the while holding his breath at the sight of the beautiful lady in front of him. Who would think of her as some obstinate slow-minded witch when somebody would see her now?

Figuring that he had been checking her out for too long already, he forced himself to go back to sleep, as a blush covered his face.

―――

For the second time that night, Corvan woke up. The only difference was he was woken up by Valeriana's screams. He ended falling from his already uncomfortable position. He grumbled a string of profanities under his breath but he stopped when he saw Valeriana's writhing form.

Out of worry, he rushed to her side, and all his irritation flew out of the window.

He lifted himself on the bed, and gently took hold of her shoulders. He then began shaking her awake.

"Valeriana, Valeriana" he said, but she didn't wake up.

He tried again. "Val!" he yelled.

At the sound of his tone, the fifth ranker's eyes flew open and turned to him.

To his surprise, she sat up and wrapped her arms around his waist and began crying.

He was alerted, not knowing how to handle a crying girl.

He took hold of her shoulders again, causing her to look up at him.

"What happened?" he asked her in a kind tone.

Val was too distressed to even point that out.

"I saw my Dad. He...He was being chased by...demons. And then...." She didn't get to finish as sobs escaped her lips.

Corvan embraced her tightly as he rubbed soothing circles on her back, enjoying the feel of her warmth for some reason.

"Shhh...it was a nightmare, okay?" he said to her.

She continued to snivel until her sobs dwindled and you could only hear her sniffing.

She broke away almost reluctantly, while Corvan tried to stop himself from feeling disappointed and missing her warmth.

She looked up at him, their faces mere inches away. Corvan looked down at her, and he found himself being pulled in by her beautiful cerulean orbs and plump red lips.

"Thank...you," she said, shyly as she bit her lower lip.

Corvan lost it. He suddenly bent his head down and claimed her lips with his.

Val was so surprised, her eyes widened and she tried to pull away.

But Corvan didn't want her doing that so he wrapped a steel arm around her waist. He placed his other hand on her nape, and used it to pull her closer and deepened the kiss.

Valeriana placed her hands on his chest and tried to push him away, but he was a wall that couldn't be budged.

Eventually, she gave up and found herself melting into the kiss. Following his lead, she kissed him back, causing Corvan to smile against her lips.

He lifted her up a bit and moved around so she was lying down on the bed, with him on top.

He nipped her lower lip, enticing a moan from her. He took the opportunity to deepen the kiss and slipped his tongue inside her mouth.

Another moan escaped her as their tongues fought for dominance, with Corvan winning in the end.

With a groan, Corvan pulled his lips away from hers and took in some much needed air. Valeriana did the same, as she looked red from embarrassment and lack of air.

The first ranker wanted so badly to kiss her again until they were both struggling for air, but he held himself back.

He bent down and gave her a tender kiss on the forehead, before rolling off of her.

A second later, Valeriana was pulled plush against his hard chest, with an arm wrapped around her waist.

"Sleep," he said, "We got a long day ahead of us tomorrow. We need all the energy we can get to hunt down that demon."

Valeriana didn't say anything as her face was still bright red, not believing that what just happened...happened.

Eventually, she fell asleep after wondering how they were going to treat each other after tonight.

#####

I tried not to take it too far, guys (You have no idea hard it was). I enjoyed writing this chapter.

Two request (actually three. If you read FIRMAMENT, you'll know what I mean), granted.

I hope I satisfied all the shippers who are reading my fanfics!

----Nen