Ignatius-Valdis: Book 0# [Heaven's Curse]

Chapter 6

The group strode through the jungle, unaware of Anton and Maximus trailing them, and continued until they arrived at their small camp their group made. "Leon! You're back!" a woman cheered, swiftly climbing to her feet. She ran to the man who carried Gothalia over his shoulder. "That was exceptionally fast," she remarked, paying very little interest to Gothalia.

"It was exceptionally easy," a man behind Leon Nero-Ignatius declared, striding passed him. "Have you been keeping the fire going Aramina?"

"Of course, I have Drayus." Aramina Grimory-Rienheart declared, with a bright smile, until her eyes tapered on Lucius Brutus-Marius. His disinterested gaze drifted over her before he strode towards the other two men who sat casually around the campfire within the cave.

"Back so soon?" Titus Frustus-Ignatius declared, with a playful smile. His blue eyes drifted over Gothalia's conscious form with mild intrigue. "Surely, taking out the demoness wasn't that easy?"

"Surprisingly, it was." Leon muttered, joining them around the fire. His eyes drifted to the dark red-haired man, sitting far from the group and against the stone wall of the cave. The man's gaze lingered over everything aside from the people surrounding the fire. "You should eat something." The man didn't respond. Leon glanced at the food Aramina pushed toward him. He frowned, not certain why she was handing it to him, climbed to his feet and strode to the man, ignoring the warnings of his other teammates while Aramina encouraged him. Leon kneeled before the man presenting a large leaf with cooked meat and berries. "I know it's nothing fancy, but it'll fill you up."

Just as Leon arrived, he returned to the group. The red-haired man didn't acknowledge the food before him. Instead, his golden eyes drifted to the unconscious woman beside Leon. Her hands and feet bound, then glanced away.

Leon's blue eyes observed Leviathan Ignatius-Dragor with mild curiosity. "Is everything okay Levi?" Aramina asked, gently. Noticing his sudden silence.

Titus growled, "Aramina, don't be so familiar with him!"

"What are you implying? I'm just asking a question." Aramina remarked, glaring at Titus.

Leviathan climbed to his feet, strode passed the group without a single glance back, and to the mouth of the cave. He paused. His intrigued gaze lingered over the shrubbery opposite the cave. "Is everything okay?" he heard Lucius ask from behind him. Absently, Leviathan glanced over his shoulder, and evenly regarded the dark-haired man.

"I'm fine. Go back inside." He declared, before vacating the cave. Without question, Lucius bowed with a hand over his heart before retreating further within.

Leviathan strode passed the green vegetation and paused. He watched the two men crouched behind the shrubs, amused. "You must be her bodyguards. She's unharmed and inside. You better hurry." Without another word, Leviathan moved from the men before disappearing further into the jungle, as if he had never seen them. Anton and Maximus regarded Leviathan's retreating form with an air of suspicion and regarded each other equally perplexed.

"Um, was that . . .?" Maximus declared, surprised.

"That doesn't matter right now." Anton regarded Maximus and remarked. "We need to make sure Gothalia is okay."

"He just said she's fine." Maximus declared, gesturing at where they'd last seen Leviathan. "Considering he doesn't seem to care about her implies he has nothing to gain from her presence. If anything, he sounded bored."

"Yeah well, I still don't trust him. It is Prince Leviathan, we're talking about."

"You know . . . I never understood why the King or even the Queen named him that. Doesn't that mean sea-God or monster or something? And, considering he's from the Fire Reserve it doesn't really make that much s—"