"But the town is being overrun with Kou soldiers! You can't possibly-" Jafar protested as I followed Judar out of the palace.

"She'll be just fine," Judar said, his own voice edging with anxiety.

My whole body trembled at the thought of heading into battle.

(Oh! It's been so long since I've fought like this. I can't tell if I'm nervous or excited.)

My hands repeatedly clenched into fists and then opened up again. I glanced at Jafar and Judar, both of them stared back at me with worried expressions.

I couldn't help but smile at them. "They're only people," I said confidently. "Only worry about me if we run into one of those Dark Djinn," I said, keeping my tone light.

Judar stepped forward, stopping at my side, "Regardless, I'm coming with you." I glanced at him curiously. "Rules haven't changed, ya know. I was tasked with making sure nothing bad happened to you. I've made good on that since day one and that's not changing now," he said, crossing his arms over his chest.

My whole body tensed up and my pulse began to race. I felt disgustingly warm right down to my core.

(Judar... He's always looking after me.)

---

"I thought Jafar said the town was being invaded by soldiers of Kou. I haven't seen a single soul since we've come down here," I said, inspecting each structure and alleyway as we passed by.

Judar remained silent, his expression serious. With a start, he turned towards me and caught my wrist, pulling me into his chest.

"J-Judar?!" I stuttered out, landing lightly against him.

Shortly after, I heard footsteps approaching from every direction. I scanned the area around, taking count of the soldiers that encircled us. Last to join the group was a familiar man in black robes.

The man stroke his beard in amusement as his eyes landed on us. "Well, well. High Priest Judar and his pet princess. What bad fortune, us meeting here like this," he said.

(I'm sure I've seen this man before. In fact... he was there in the room with Judar when I first woke up in Kou. He was the first member of Al Tharmen to learn that I wasn't Natalia.)

"Tell me, Judar. Did you honestly think you could turn against us so easily?" the man asked, not bothering to hide his amusement as his troops inched closer with their weapons ready. Judar remained silent still, his gaze not wavering from the man. "Nothing to say, oh great Magi? Well, whatever. Get rid of them," he ordered with a wave of his hand before turning to leave.

The troops began to close in and I leaned further into Judar's chest.

(Why isn't he doing anything?)

I'd just about believed that Judar wasn't going to attack, until one soldier stepped too close. The soldier was blown backwards with incredible force as soon as he'd gotten within a few feet of us. All of the remaining soldiers stopped, gawking in terror at Judar. Without warning, a yellow sphere formed around us, expanding rapidly and sending the rest of the troops every which way.

(Amazing! Judar just cleared the entire group without lifting a single finger!)

"Mei," Judar spoke quietly. I glanced up at him, my body still nestled close to his. He avoided my gaze as he continued, "I won't be of much help to you during all of this. To tell you the truth, in order to keep your soul attached to that body, a constant supply of magoi is needed to act as a bonding element. On average, I use more than half of my own energy to keep you alive."

I could only stare up at him as my mind regurgitated the information given to me.

(So this whole time... The reason he's always around me... He's sacrificing so much on a daily basis just to keep me here.)

I lowered my gaze, burying my face in the nook of his neck. I didn't want him to see me teary eyed so I kept my face hidden as the words tumbled out of me, "Thank you, Judar. I had... no idea."

I could feel his body tense up at my words as if he were surprised to hear them. Only a moment later, his arm wrapped around my shoulders, pulling me further into his warm embrace.

(Oh, Judar.)

I pulled away from him, wiping the tears from my eyes. "Let me fight then. Don't worry about anything else," I told him, determination flooding through me. I didn't want him to have to expend any more energy, especially not for my sake.

He only smirked. "As long as you can handle it, Princess," he teased, gently ruffling my hair as he walked past me.

"Of course I can," I muttered, pouting as I tagged along behind him.