A/N: Yup, you didn't see this wrongly - it's another update after 2 days! I got pretty excited with the story so I rushed this out for you guys. I'm so glad I didn't give up on this story. :')

As I'm writing this fanfic for free, I do hope you guys can drop reviews/favourites because those are the only rewards I can get!

~ Chapter 17 Trust ~

"Nike, stop dragging me! What sort of king runs away from his enemies?" Whoever knew Nike could run this quick? She was as fast as a bull charging for the red cape.

Panting heavily, Nike shot him her most serious glare. "Livi, I swear if you stop running, we are officially OVER!" she threatened. He started to laugh at her ridiculous words, but covered it up with a cough when she looked as though she wanted to murder him.

Under his breath, he muttered "you know that won't happen."

They streaked through the trees, with Nike almost tripping a couple of times but each time Livi would catch and support her. The psychopath siblings were right behind them on their tails - Nike has to make sure that they would lose them while going downhill.

And how on earth was she going to do that?

She let out a small yelp of surprise when a flying dagger shot past her face, narrowly missing her cheek by an inch. From behind, Leo shouted out to them, "I won't miss the next shot."

Letting out a low growl, an extremely pissed-off Livi stopped himself abruptly and forced Nike to halt too. She skidded to a stop and fall backwards on her butt rather painfully. A million sirens just went off in her head. Crap, they are finished.

"Nike, run and get to safety."

"What? I can't leave you-" she protested.

"Just go," he reiterated harshly. He spun around and drew his sword swiftly to face his enemies.

"Come at me," he said to the siblings. How could he say those words so easily with his head held high and a noble demeanor?

Leo and Cathy were clearly thrilled that the couple gave up on running and were ready for some action. They flashed sinister smirks and, without any warning, began attacking Livi simultaneously.

Shell-shocked, Nike gaped at them in horror as they fought. Was there anything she could do to help? He was up against the siblings who were incredibly skilled at fighting and he fended off their attacks pretty well, as expected of the Sun King. But it was only a matter of time before Livi grew tired and get seriously injured. She wished that she had a weapon with her.

Her heart almost stopped when she noticed that Cathy found an opening through Livi's defenses while he was busy parrying Leo and she swoop in for the kill like a hawk. In a fraction of a second, Nike muttered the first enchantment that came to her mind with desperate hope that she would succeed. She manipulated the winds around her and commanded them to blew soil particles from the ground into the girl's eyes, blurring her vision.

Cathy's hands flew up to rub her eyes, meanwhile muttering a string of unintelligent curses. She lost her chance to kill Livi and shrieked in frustration. Once she got the sand out, she spun to face Niki and pointed her sword at her. "I know it's you," she spat murderously. "You and your dirty tricks."

She lunged straight at her angrily, but Livi jumped right in front of Nike and deflected her attack. A ferocious battle took place in front of her - the siblings attacked relentlessly, but Livi defended them both well. He struck back hard with his sword, even managing to land a quick blow to Leo's stomach with a strong kick. The sound of the swords coming into contact was like a clap of thunder. Powerful and vicious.

All the while, Nike tried her very best to help Livi. With the help of the wind, she used whatever objects (rocks, branches, etc) she could find to throw at the villians to distract them.

After the fight lasted a while, she noticed that they were being drove backwards to the sharp edge of a cliff. Cathy and Leo have stopped as well and were eyeing them closely, just like predators that have cornered their prey.

There was no place for them to run.

Seeing that they have no other escape routes, Leo eyed them triumphantly. "I guess this is the end," he declared. "Any final words, Your Majesty?"

Livi burst out laughing, clearly finding his words a joke. "What makes you think this is the end?"

He turned his head to Nike, who was looking terrified that they were about to be killed. Grabbing her hand, he asked a weird question despite their current situation.

"Nike, do you trust me?"

Her face scrunched up in bewilderment. What was Livi trying to do? What message was he trying to get across to her? His eyes stared deep into hers with utmost determination and sincerity.

"What — of course I do!" she replied honestly. It was true, she love him deeply and would entrust him with her life.

He smiled handsomely. "Good, I trust you with my own life too."

Gripping her hand tightly, he wrapped his other arm around her, before he threw themselves off the cliff.

~ oOo ~

Nike woke up with a jolt. The brisk, cold air nipped at her skin and the moon was shrouded by the clouds, bathing her in a pale, faint light.

Where was she at anyways? Did she pass out?

There was an arm draped over her body and she rolled over to her side to have a better view of the person's face. She gasped in horror when she saw that it was actually Livi. He was sprawled out next to her, not moving and unconscious.

Memories came flooding back then and she recalled that they both jumped off a cliff earlier.

Oh no, was he...dead?

Did she kill him?

Nonono...

Panicking, she got closer to him. "Livi, wake up!" She shook him harder and placed two fingers at the side of his neck, trying to feel a pulse. Finally, she felt it and exhaled loudly in relief, thanking all the gods in the world for keeping him alive. She examined his arms and legs for injuries, but there weren't any that she could find.

And then her relief changed to anger. "Wake up, Livi!" She started shaking and beating him awake.

He slowly regained his consciousness and groaned loudly. "Ow, ow, ow… That hurts, you know?" With an eye open, he gave her a disoriented look.

"You-" She whacked him once more.

"-are-" Thwack.

"-CRAZY!" Thwack.

Breathing heavily, she glared at him. "What if I didn't manage to catch us both before we fall and die?"

When he threw them off the cliff, she remembered having a near heart attack during the fall, before she felt the adrenaline rushed in and she summoned the wind around them to cushion the fall. Even though they landed safely, she took up too much energy to channel her powers that she passed out for a moment.

"But you did catch us, I knew you could do it." Livi smiled at her proudly.

God, that dazzling smile... But wait - this was not the time for her to sidetrack.

She whacked him again. "What if I didn't?! I could have killed us both."

He shrugged nonchalantly. "Then I guess we would still be together even in the after life," he said. "You know, you should believe and trust more in yourself. You always do miracles, especially with those powers of yours."

Sheesh, this guy… Why were his words so infuriating but sweet to her ears?

She was grateful that it was dark, for her cheeks were tinted slightly red. "Next time, give me a clearer sign if you're going to pull a trick like that again," she huffed.

Seeing her angry, Livi couldn't help thinking that she was cute. He leaned forward to drop a quick kiss on her lips. "Now, where would the fun be in that?" he whispered.

"What-" she spluttered. Her cheeks flushed red instantly, trying to let what had just happened sink in her brain. She noticed that there was still a thirst in his eyes as they never left her lips.

Before he could do anything else that might be considered a danger to her heart, she hurriedly stood up. Brushing the dirt off her clothes to hide her embarrassment, she looked down at him and offered her hand. "Come on, let's go before they find us again."

He grabbed her hand and pulled himself up. "I wouldn't be worried much if we are at the bottom of the hill," he said with a lazy smile.

She frowned at him. "Why?"

"What? Did you really think I would come alone? Especially when I don't know how many enemies we're up against? They're never going to escape out of here when my army is already surrounding this place," he smirked. "I would see to it that their next home is in the prison cells."

Right, she almost forgot how incredibly quick-witted and prepared he was. Nobody could really beat the Sun King, can they?

"About that, Livi… Maybe it would be wiser to reconsider your punishment for the siblings. Would you hear me out, please?" she desperately pleaded. She really wanted to resolve the misunderstanding between them without any bloodshed.

Livi gave her an intense stare, one that was trying to understand her. He couldn't comprehend her persistence and compassionate in helping those that always wished to harm them.

But of course he would listen to her. He always did, and would continue to.