Ivy was feeling sad while staring at her younger sister's profile. From a beautiful girl, Ella now becomes old. It saddened her deeply. If only her younger sister didn't come to this castle, she would still retain her youthful look.

Sighing, she patted her sister's head affectionately. "How are you feeling, sis?" she asked her condition.

"I'm fine," Ella answered with a smile. "Don't worry about me..."

Ivy sighed. "I wonder how Kate is doing right now? She must be feeling sad and worried about us since we are the ones trapped her inside the castle. I'm hoping that Kate won't return here. It would be tragic if we finally escape the castle, and she was on her way to enter this place again to save us," she said worriedly.

"Sister... don't worry much. I'm sure that sister Kate won't come back here. I'm feeling excited that we can finally escape this place! I wanna go home!" she said. But her excitement was short-lived upon remembering that Aunt Margie already passed away. Right at this moment, she was hesitating to tell her sister about their Aunt's sudden passing. She will tell her the truth after they come back to their house.

Ivy saw the sadness engulfing Ella's face. "Why you look so sad, sister?"

Ella sighed. "Nothing... sister. I want to get out of here and go home. I'm just glad that I finally found you here. We will go home safely together," she said.

Ivy smiled brightly. "Aunt Margie and Kate will be surprised to see us. After several months of being trapped inside this castle, I feared that I will never get out alive. I thought that I'm going to die here and never be able to see the outside world again. When I sacrifice my blood and life for Kate's safety, I thought that was already my end. Thanks to the king of the elves' magic healing potion, I was resurrected from death. This is my second life now, I want to make the best out of it," she said.

Ella looked at her sister and smiled. "Sis, what's going on between you and that blue-eyed guy Zemeth?"

Ivy raised her brows. "Huh? What kind of question is that? What about him? There's nothing between him and me," she ignored her sister's teasing.

Ella rolled her eyes. "The way he looked at you is very affectionate. He looks handsome. You and that Zemeth guy look good together," she said, giggling.

Ivy laughed, amused by her sister's teasing. "Stop making up stories, my dear sister. Zemeth might hear us talking about him. He might suspect that I'm lusting after him," she said, trying to stop herself from agreeing to her sister that Zemeth was indeed a handsome guy.

Ella surveyed her sister's face. "OMG! Sis, you are blushing!" she told her.

Ivy laughed. "I'm not blushing!" she denied.

Ella was laughing heartily. "Alright, I'm going outside to find some food. I'm feeling hungry," she said. "I just hope they have food here," she said and stood up. "I'll return right away, sis," she said, walking towards the entrance of the chamber.

When Ella was gone, Ivy attempted to leave the wooden bed. She was in that state when Zemeth entered the chamber.

"Hey, why are you so eager in getting out of bed? I told you to have plenty of rest because you need to be strong during our escape," he reprimanded her in a soft tone.

Ivy smiled a little and went back to the bed. "Yes, doctor. But I want to inform you that I'm already feeling good," she declared, feeling amused by his protectiveness.

"I'm just worried about your health condition. Just don't move a lot today. Rest your body well. Tomorrow, I will allow you to roam around this chamber. Just rest and sleep well, okay?" Zemeth told her in a tone filled with concern.

Ivy smiled. She was deeply touched by his concern for her well being. "Yes, doctor!" she responded with a silly laughed.

"Why are you laughing?" Zemeth asked her.

"Nothing..." she replied.

"Where is your sister?" he asked.

"She went out to find food. She feels hungry," she answered.

They were silent for a moment looking deeply into each other's eyes.

"Why do I have this feeling that you know me for quite a while?" she asked him point-blank.

Zemeth breathed deeply. "Now is not the time to tell you everything. But I promised you after we get out of here, I will tell you everything," he said.

"Why don't you tell me the truth now?" she challenged him.

"I'm not ready yet to tell you everything. Please, just wait for a few days." He begged for her understanding.

"I know almost everything. You are here for a mission to save someone, and that is Agran and Grandpa, am I right? You even know about our origin. So, why do you have to hide..." her voice faltered. She lowered her eyes. She can't look into his eyes for too long. His gaze was so intense - it spokes volumes. It made her blush.

"Why do I have to hide my feelings for you? Would it make you feel better if I right now I will confess to you that I have loved you all this time? That the first time I laid my eyes on you, you already got my heart beat faster? Is that what you are trying to ask from me?" Zemeth smirk.

Ivy bit her lip in shame. Dang! Why did she have to be so aggressive and forced him to confess?

Zemeth took a deep breath. He is now ready to confess his feelings for her. "Alright, I have been watching you from afar... that was several months before you entered the castle. We have been watching you, girls, for a while. We knew that one of you can bring us inside this castle undetected. Therefore you can help bring us to Grandpa and Agran. We also knew about your blood, and how powerful it is, that it can create a gap in the blazing barrier."

Ivy's eyes widened. "So... you guys have been watching us around our house?" she asked in astonishment.

"Yes, we are," Zemeth whispered.

Ivy was stunned by Zemeth's revelation. That now explained why sometimes she felt as if there's someone out there staring at her back on numerous occasions, but when she looked around her, she can't find anyone. So, he must be the source of those stares!

"You should have said hello to me," she pouted.

"I know, but we come to the human world for a mission. I never expected that...I will see the woman of my dreams," he winked at her, then his face turned serious. "I never expected that I'll get attracted to you...then later on...I'm gradually falling in love with you. I was sad when you finally enter the castle. I thought we will never see each other again. But destiny is good, it gives me another chance to see you again.

After you died, I was truly devastated. I feel like my world crumbles down. I was crying the whole time I hold you in my arms. I'm feeling hopeless because I can't do anything to bring you back to life. You have no idea that I'm so heartbroken when you are no longer breathing. Thanks to Grandpa Jegun and the king of elves, you were resurrected from death. I'm so happy when you finally open your eyes again and looked at me. I'm so glad you're alive!

Now is the perfect time to tell you how I truly feel for you. Because sometimes, life is unpredictable. It always gives us unforeseen events that might hinder us from fulfilling our wishes and living our life the way we envision it to be," he explained.

Ivy was silent the whole time. She doesn't know what to say to him or how to react after his heartfelt confession.

A moment later, a bright smile appeared on her lips, feeling thrilled by his confession that made her feel special. So, this is how it feels when you have someone caring for you? Yaay! Someone loves and adores her. It filled her heart with a warm and fuzzy feeling. Somehow she likes the feeling of having someone caring for her and thinking of her well being.

Zemeth was looking at her face the whole time. He was studying her reaction to her confession. He thought it's hard to confess his feelings, but after opening his heart to her, words just flowed out from his mouth naturally. He feels much more open and at ease beside her.

"So...what is your answer?" he asked.

"What do you mean?"

Zemeth coughed a little. "I mean... if you accept my love... after we escape from this castle. I will bring you to the Nephilim Kingdom and marry you. Let's raise a family together," he proposed.

Ivy stared at him with mouth wide open due to shock and surprise. Oh, boy, he's too fast! Offering a marriage right away with no courtship happening yet between them is kind of shocking. She cleared her throat. "Hmm...we're not a couple yet..." she protested.

Zemeth grinned. "All you need to do is to say yes, and I'll marry you after we get out of here, and I'll bring you to my home," he said.

Ivy was silent for a moment... she was confused about what to say to him.

"I love you, Ivy," Zemeth whispered, looking meaningfully into her eyes.

Ivy was caught off guard by the intensity of his words, it drilled a hole straight to her heart making her giddy and warm all over. She doesn't know how to respond. She was about to say something to him when Ella entered the chamber, holding a platter made of clay in her hands. The delectable aroma of roasted meat filled the atmosphere.

"Sister, I got some food, a delicious mouthwatering roasted chicken. Agran roasted the chicken for us!" Ella announced said cheerfully. "Oops! I'm sorry, did I intrude on something important?" she asked cheekily.

The adults' faces were flushed red.

Zemeth rose to his feet. "I'll see you later, girls," he said hastily.

"Wait...why don't you eat with us, Zemeth?" offered Ella.

Zemeth shook his head. "Nah. Enjoy your meal, girls. I'll go and find my own," he replied and left the chamber.