He had never pursued romance. He hadn't even ford close friendships. Most of his school days were spent as an outsider, his ti devoted to the study of magic rather than fleeting social connections. It wasn't a regretful choice—magic, to him, had always been far more important.
Alberta, sensing his hesitation, pressed on. "I'm not saying we should date right away or anything. You don't need to be so cautious. Think of it as hanging out like friends—grabbing a al, watching a movie. Who knows? Maybe it'll lead sowhere, or maybe we'll decide we can't stand each other."
Finally, Gin nodded slightly. "As friends, I suppose that wouldn't be bad."
From behind the café counter, a sharp intake of breath could be heard. Gin turned his head to see Wayn staring at him, her eyes wide with surprise and… sothing else. Beside her, Leslie wore a similarly perplexed expression, though she quickly averted her gaze.
Gin ignored their reactions and looked back at Alberta. His agreent wasn't without reason.
Alberta wasn't just anyone. She was the leader of Team Y1, a group deeply entrenched in the secrets of the Hidden World and its portals. By spending ti with her, he might uncover valuable information. Of course, Alberta wouldn't divulge such knowledge willingly, but Gin had other ways.
I'm a mage, after all.
Three days later, they t.
Alberta had wanted to see him sooner, but Gin had refused. His ti was too precious to waste—not when he had a newly developed spell to refine. After two days of relentless work, he'd finally perfected it.
When he checked his phone, he found an avalanche of missed calls and ssages from Alberta. Nevertheless, he set up a eting, and now they were walking side by side after a simple al, the park alive with the quiet rustle of leaves and the hum of distant conversations.
Alberta stole glances at Alberta's profile as they strolled. She'd t plenty of n before, but none had left her feeling like this.
It wasn't just his looks—though she had to admit he was more handso than anyone she'd ever encountered.
No, it was sothing deeper, an unnaable presence about him that made her feel simultaneously at ease and exhilarated.
It stirred a strange, reckless desire within her, a longing to throw herself into the unknown.
So this is what I've been waiting for.
It wasn't —it was the lack of a real man all this ti.
She thought back to the teasing remarks from Michael, her colleague, and how they had chipped away at her confidence.
She'd laughed them off as jokes, but they had lingered in the back of her mind. Now, those doubts felt as distant as a fading echo.
But Gin was… quiet.
The n she had known before had all tried to impress her, filling silences with jokes or small talk in their desperate bids for her attention. Gin, however, spoke only when she asked him sothing, his responses brief and to the point.
Oddly enough, she found it refreshing.
The silence wasn't awkward—it felt new, almost serene.
"Let's et again, okay?" she said suddenly. "I'm busy this weekend, but maybe before then?"
Gin turned to her, his eyes narrowing slightly. Her words carried an unspoken implication: She's heading to the Hidden World this weekend.
"Sure," he said simply.
Alberta bead, her smile as bright as the afternoon sun. She was already looking forward to their next eting.
But Gin's thoughts were elsewhere.
Soone was following them.
The presence had been trailing him since the mont he t Alberta. The weight of unseen eyes lingered in the air, heavy and unwelco.
The instant he noticed, Gin cast a subtle shroud of magical mist, obscuring the area around him. Whoever the pursuer was, they possessed mana—a faint core similar in strength to Alberta's but just slightly greater.
Mana alone, however, didn't dictate danger. The Hidden World held far deadlier tools than magic.
Gin glanced at Alberta. For now, he needed to ensure her safety—she still held answers he needed.
"Where do you live?" he asked suddenly.
Alberta blinked, startled by the abrupt question. "Excuse ?"
"I'll walk you ho," he said.
Her surprise turned into a grin. "Really?"
He nodded, his tone steady.
"I have a bad feeling. My instincts are sharper than you might think."
Though confused, Alberta trusted his words. "Alright then."
As they began to walk, she noticed the faint curve of a smile on his lips.
Is this the right mont? Should I invite him in for ran or sothing? Alberta's thoughts raced ahead of her, already leaping into possibilities she hadn't dared imagine before.
But Gin's attention remained fixed on the shadows behind them, his mind calculating every possibility.
The city's neon glow bled into the twilight as Alberta slipped into the sleek cockpit of her vehicle, the engine humming like a dormant beast. Twenty minutes—that was all it would take to reach her apartnt, the roads stretching before her like veins through the urban labyrinth, rcifully unclogged at this hour.
Her gaze drifted, again and again, to the man in the passenger seat. Gin. Ti had sharpened his features, etching an untad edge into what was once rely striking. His tailored shirt and polished deanor betrayed no wilderness, yet an aura clung to him—a feral magnetism that defied logic. *What sorcery is this?* she wondered, her pulse quickening.
*That expression…* His face, a mask of calm, seed to thrum with anticipation. Or was it her own reflection in the glass? Her thoughts spiraled, unmoored. In all her years, no man had breached the fortress of her personal space; not a brush of fingers, not a fleeting graze. Yet with Gin, the walls crumbled. Her imagination painted scenes of colliding worlds, of forbidden thresholds crossed—
But Gin's mind dwelled elsewhere. His eyes, cold and calculating, flicked to the rearview mirror. A shadow clung to their tail, a black sedan prowling inches from their bumper, its driver bold as a wolf scenting prey.
Magic thrumd in Gin's veins, his thoughts a storm of arcane sigils and half-ford spells. There was no room for distraction—not even for the woman beside him, whose presence once might have unraveled him.
*Later,* he vowed. Once she was safe behind her apartnt's gilded doors, he would turn and face this relentless hunter.
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