The blade pressed harder. Not enough to break skin yet, but close enough that Cel could feel exactly where the edge would part flesh if she decided to finish this. Hestia’s weight settled more firmly across his chest, crimson eyes fixed on his with an intensity that suggested patience was not among her current virtues.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡapdM69UqVF
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“Talk.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsrCCenudwn
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The word came flat. Final. A command rather than a request.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxzrEE0xEvM
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3LqJ9quAtT
Cel’s mind raced through options with the cold efficiency of someone who’d calculated survival odds more times than he cared to count. His body was strong - divinely forged, enhanced beyond normal human limits. Lunar Vigor coursed through him even now, the moon’s light filtering through his window providing constant reinforcement.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDXoMjHQZK0
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwzLdAwuxDo
He could throw her off. Probably.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ17YD6o2ioh
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ88HhXfRg1h
His strength exceeded hers by far. One explosive movement - bucking upward while simultaneously grabbing her wrist - and he could break her positioning. Pin her instead. Turn this confrontation around before she processed what had happened.
The problem was her sword.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYUBSv3wIsH
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI9WeXiWVVy
That crimson blade rested against his skin, cold and patient. If he moved wrong - if his timing was off by even a second - that blade would open his throat before he completed the motion.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQwd8i0m16Y
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX6uplWDblX
Could his enhanced body withstand it?66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFx1M4WBJCp
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡExMuUxAZuY
The question gnawed at him. His flesh was more resilient than normal humans'. He'd taken a punch from a Hallowed that sent him skidding across the wasteland and gotten back up. He'd stood inside Esrin's World Creation while the pressure of it shredded rift-creatures around him into nothing, and walked away coughing blood rather than coming apart at the seams. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDTKQeQ9ek7
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUVqTwwm8Te
But this was different.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡu54ovhYPcH
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ515gL1RSBS
If her artifact was low-ranked - Blessed Grace like Cinderward - then maybe. Maybe his skin would resist the cut long enough for him to break free.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZedlieqKmh
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXNruC4AjzR
But he was certain - absolutely certain - that her weapon was not of Blessed Grace.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYdAtXmROGk
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3634LJM4ls
The advantages nobles possessed extended far beyond their cultivation and training. Yes, they inherited larger Divine Essence pools from bloodlines carefully maintained over generations. And they received their Calling with near-certainty that the same deity who marked their parents would mark them.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg23G2yt7jj
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But the real advantage lay in artifacts.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqL0wKiBPBl
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGwh4f8kAQE
Most Chosen received a single artifact at their first blessing - a weapon or armor tied to their patron deity, manifested at a grade that reflected the god’s favor for them. For most, Blessed Grace was standard. Functional but unremarkable. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEdA2yu0DFs
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5Vl1xbdPRd
Cel’s Silent Moon was special. A Heavenly-ranked artifact - third tier, exceptionally rare for a first blessing. That kind of weapon was a gift that came only with divine favor. Only with Selina’s direct involvement.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDOa3bGy8AO
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGRdOVundFP
But nobles didn’t need their deities' favor to access higher-tier artifacts.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpVzc0mG1z7
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They could simply pass them on. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK7kOzjAuuF
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4BhugF44T7
If someone shared the same blood with each other and bore marks from the same deity, they could pass artifacts between them. A father’s old blade could become his daughter’s inheritance. A mother’s treasure could arm her son. Generations of accumulated power flowing through bloodlines like inherited wealth.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8sYCEgKRL8
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwXjEr2UNvp
Most noble children entered the Academy wielding artifacts their families had used for decades. Sometimes centuries.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUFFYKVZ3Cz
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5bWlqPmP0d
Hestia was a Mortveil. The leading house of the Death Clan. A family whose hereditary gift came directly from their patron god.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUvWXId32Ci
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzVYkX1RdaZ
That crimson longsword at his throat was almost certainly Heavenly-ranked at minimum. Possibly higher. The kind of weapon that would cut through his enhanced flesh like it was paper, divinely forged or not.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxBgQg7Crhm
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf5p0sLamJZ
His survival instinct had done the calculation before his conscious mind caught up.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcPgcNJLY6v
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguWP4ZaKHE
He had no safe option.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzpvOymdRrh
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMEgOTXQVd1
“Talk about what?” The words came out rougher than intended. The blade’s pressure made speaking difficult.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡspBHVhgQqh
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2rECfSa772
“Explain what I saw.” Hestia’s voice carried no inflection. Just cold certainty. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDSRl3A0hiF
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVFxUdVFwmO
A pause. Her weight shifted slightly, and the blade pressed down another fraction.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2T4MPDft4E
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm4O8vzRji7
“And don’t even think about lying. I’ll know.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcEgIEtT68i
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWMEnX4oFl0
The threat in those words wasn’t loud or dramatic. It didn’t need to be. Her position, her weapon, her absolute composure - all of it conveyed the message clearly enough.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8lSjxHb5ht
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If he lied, she would end this in an instant.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡntraGrJFwM
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡsjgeF3g9a0
Cel’s thoughts scrambled for purchase. A convincing explanation. Something that would satisfy her without revealing too much.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLQQWNNwP0H
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVzWKhmTQsW
The vision she’d witnessed when he touched her wrist - him lying broken in ash, pierced by the Ashclaw Ravager, dying alone in the Hollow Realms. She’d seen his death. Seen him as he’d been in those final moments before resurrection.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡItJ9pxt3mY
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiLhTdNIgQA
He could claim it was someone else. A brother, maybe. The lie formed and dissolved in the same breath. Her trait would have felt the connection, knowing without a doubt that he wasn’t selling a story.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN9FSDkwfx1
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqKDEj98PqR
He could refuse to explain. Stay silent. Force her to either kill him or back down without getting answers.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡljFB6m9gnH
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡD43lzDlyJB
But that had its own problems. If she killed him, well. Dead. If she backed down, she’d stay suspicious. Watchful. Waiting for another opportunity to extract the truth.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT4eW7B58Fi
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And beneath all of it lay the real danger. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0C935QfaUy
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdcrXcGF7oo
She’d seen him dying. That alone wasn’t the crisis.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP9IF8LMMbz
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9y09pwg2aa
The problem was that she’d somehow identified his noble birth, thus holding the power to ruin his entire revenge.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaHkU8giJ4s
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNuckuxEEc3
Cel’s jaw tightened. His eyes fixed on hers - crimson meeting glacial blue in the dim light filtering through his window.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0AN4qgR8na
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGiDxODw1dI
No convincing lie came.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6HmKHp17RY
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡz9cHYIRI4j
So he told the truth. Part of it, at least.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLrxCezTkLX
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0ZnjkksIgS
“The boy you saw dying...” His voice came quiet. Steady despite the blade at his throat.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZqc5luWxpM
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMWGgOsmUd0
“That was me.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHVKEOXd6CR
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Hestia’s expression didn’t shift. No surprise. No satisfaction. Just that same clinical assessment.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQ05yV8iVKx
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQB7m9tKGKL
“How are you alive then?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQomjAo5ol6
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWrKNapGLt0
The question was reasonable. Logical. Anyone who’d seen what she’d seen would ask the same thing.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ47dv0VRUf4
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoJa6V0j6ng
“A trait.” He kept his breathing even, controlled. “It resurrected me. Changed my appearance in the process.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkbJJvtaoZX
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Silence stretched between them.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdyXI6Ufdr7
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Then Hestia’s lips curved slightly. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT57eaCEvFk
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNXsT6gVpjZ
“You expect me to believe that?” Her tone carried disbelief wrapped in something sharper. “A resurrection trait that transforms your entire body? That’s extraordinarily convenient.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSPCm1bbBHy
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFUJOOgWMCi
“It’s the truth.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlWAS9tRQKG
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡieO9a8Mun8
“Is it?”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYQ7X3zBg88
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaI98ScPNER
Cel held her gaze without flinching. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm9Qx6MUrTv
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡysROJlwf59
"Esrin vouched for me, didn't she? Last night. When you called me a demon. Doesn't that count for something?" 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ100E58gDzY
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgFgDVaKw2C
The blade’s pressure eased slightly. Not removed - just a fractionally less immediate threat of death.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm17qOv4WIX
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwcbPwidakH
“What’s your relationship with her?” Hestia’s eyes narrowed. “The Hallowed doesn’t vouch for random students without reason.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4w6CHQzChF
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF3qjKV5PQF
Cel’s mind worked through the answer. Truth and lie mixed carefully.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJPZY82ebyt
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiHkhve4OkA
“After I came back. After resurrection.” He paused, letting the words settle. “Esrin found me and took me in.” 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeUumd4WivJ
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCRYkgyNIpX
Another pause. This one more deliberate. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8LGSX0M8lC
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“As her apprentice.” 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlPwUOocUIy
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTsj4STmoZa
The addition came after a beat too quick. Unconvincing. A piece of information offered to fill the gap in his story. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGPsRmtq1zA
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8gScZTbvEC
He was part of the Reckoning. She’d brought him into that organization. Vouched for him there too, in her own cold way. The apprentice framing wasn’t entirely inaccurate - he trained, he learned, he followed her orders.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡE1Ai6w4i7b
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But it wasn’t the complete picture either.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpXnxv7PHOQ
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Hestia’s crimson eyes studied him with renewed intensity. Searching for cracks in the story. Testing its weight against what she knew.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJ5FfWgOVQK
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0eke0XF7HF
“You can ask her if you want,” Cel said. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNev8eSIt5z
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMGAV2sJgVK
He was betting everything on Esrin covering for him like she had before. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEGWV3GyaPZ
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3CsOTyGImh
Seconds stretched.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGdT0z9lT0m
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The blade remained at his throat. Her weight still pinned him to the mattress. Crimson eyes boring into his without wavering.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡebjwsqkldU
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYAGft7H0Do
Then she pulled the sword back.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlNvW9EcC5q
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The movement was controlled - deliberate rather than sudden. The blade lifted away from his throat, and the cold pressure disappeared.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjZ8yo8Vwtr
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcB1GEmwInF
“I’ll verify that.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdvOu9Ho1lT
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡK02NJD5U5Q
The words came flat. A statement of intent rather than a threat.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ40Ey4OAEYl
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhM6sTDJgv9
Hestia stood, her weight lifting off his chest. The release of pressure made breathing easier, though Cel hadn’t realized how much the constriction had affected him until it was gone.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH3RTiR3RaL
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbX28pioMca
He sat up slowly, one hand moving to his throat. His fingers came away red. She'd broken skin without him noticing. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3Ctm88vOm9
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDNlSdf8WgJ
His eyes tracked Hestia as she dismissed her artifact and adjusted her clothing. The crimson longsword dissolved into darkness, fading like smoke. 66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEtiWkhlqkW
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUJ4UuGZnyW
“Well.” Cel’s voice came dry. “This wasn’t how I imagined my first night with a woman.”66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlCZREGA50i
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwGUSyhipnw
Hestia’s eyes cut toward him.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLuJYU95PXX
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQeRURThIPF
Sharp. Assessing. A look that could have drawn blood if looks possessed edges.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡekuQlz6voK
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdnmhH7et0u
She held his gaze for one weighted moment. Then turned and left his room.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡlFApjmyVul
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXJxhU0JosW
Cel sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the closed door.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡT2JtLb4ZUl
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvtaHVKAz1v
His heart hammered against his ribs. Adrenaline still coursed through his veins, making his hands shake slightly despite his best efforts to control them.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpzMWr6cNDJ
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtK7oq5LxHG
She was going to ask Esrin.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMoVKoBkQ6E
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ93HWILUbR
Going to verify his story about being her apprentice. About resurrection and transformation. About all of it.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY8T9o9D9Y2
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSfitFFb0QG
Would Esrin cover for him?66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡP45LQpeV1q
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFQo3Ik9dxY
She had to.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwnODPuNcpn
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The alternative was exposure. The Reckoning’s connection to him revealed. His noble identity potentially uncovered. Everything he’d built since arriving at the Academy collapsing.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhGZLpzKofp
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8NSwvULsgP
His jaw clenched.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡauH3dWZEbA
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0xlPqIjxek
He could do nothing about it now.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQZ5J7BoKsb
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaH5CfzoWlN
Cel lay back down on the mattress, staring at the ceiling.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJS4C5gpLZJ
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡct4S30NppG
Sleep wouldn’t come again tonight. Even exhaustion couldn’t override the tension thrumming through his body.66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC63k4ksVM0
66Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8rySIY49Cg
So he just lay there in the dark, listening to his own breathing, and wondered if he’d just made everything infinitely worse.
and then Add to home screen.