The portal realm had become their sanctuary — a place outside time, where mist, energy, and the ancient tree cradled them in quiet protection. Yet something had shifted between Renkai and Liralis. The playful banter, the shared tasks, the training together — all of it had woven an unspoken intimacy, a rhythm between them that neither could ignore.
They trained side by side as usual, hands tracing patterns in the air, streams of fire, water, wind, and earth intertwining. Renkai, careful yet instinctive, mirrored her movements, blending his fox-spirit energy into the multielemental flows.
But today, there was something more in the air — not a threat, not tension, but awareness, a gentle attentiveness that made each movement heavier with meaning.
Liralis glanced at him mid-motion, and for a heartbeat, the mist seemed to hold its breath. Renkai caught her gaze and froze — amber eyes locking with hers, the world narrowing until nothing existed but the space between them.
