The Royal Magister 【Harith/Harley】

one.

［ 1. ］
THE INJURED
SOLDIER

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He was running.

The sound of dogs barking emitted from behind him, chasing him, and it forced him to move faster. He was actually on the verge of collapsing, but, with enough willpower, he somewhat managed to keep himself running. If anyone was seeing him right now, they would realise how pitiful his fate had been, and it doesn't look like things were getting any better.

His body was badly bruised, battered, and it would make anyone wonder how he could keep his pace up until now. Perhaps it was due to his determination to live that caused him to run like this. It was odd, really. He was nothing but an empty shell. A shell that held no emotions. A shell that follows orders and gets punished for doing it wrongly. It was a never ending routine for his daily life, and he was sure that it had one day broken him. Yet, here he was, running for his dear life. Because he realised that he couldn't take it anymore. He no longer wanted these punishments, and he no longer wanted to be subdued.

He just wanted to be free.

"Don't let him escape!"

His eyes widened at the female voice that resonated around the forest. Judging by the volume of it, she wasn't far from behind him. It was a sign that he was getting slower, and, the more he doesn't catch up, the more he was going to fall behind.

However, that was the exact time his legs decided to give up on him. He could feel his knees scraping against the dried leaves with a thud, and it was at that very moment his wounds decided to make itself prominent. He let out a soft gasp when his injuries stung from every inch of his body, and his eyes widened when he spotted his white gloves stained in red.

It was no use. He couldn't run anymore.

The footsteps that had been trailing him were getting louder, and he knew that he would be caught soon if he doesn't do anything. Forcing himself to focus on his magic, he used the last remaining of his Mana to generate a space portal. It had been a while since he had created one—since they would brutally punish him if he uses his magic without permission—but that still didn't mean he had forgotten how to create it.

"You can't run away from me!"

A vortex appeared, and he used every last once of his energy to stand up and walk towards it.

"Don't you dare leave this place!"

He looked over his shoulder, and he could see the dogs and that barbaric woman in the distance, running after him.

"Don't do it! I'm warning you, Har–!"

And he stepped into the portal, disappearing before the dogs or her outstretched hand could reach him.

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"Harley."

"Mmm."

"Harley."

"Five more minutes... please..."

Harith let out a sigh before facing the clock on the bedside table. The time showed half past eight, and Harley had training at nine. Usually, the mage would wake up an hour early before he trains. He looked at the Mage Genius again, and his face expressed pity when the mage was all wrapped up under the blankets, his breathing slow and steady. He knew that he had to wake him up, but he just didn't have the heart to do it.