"Hey trash."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡavuGKNeAAO
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Cel's hands stilled on his fork.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSuamoXK7Od
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Kyros Solgrand stood at the end of their table, flanked by two other Sun Clan nobles. His fire-red hair caught the lamplight, amber eyes bright with something cruel.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZFdk2hB9wF
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"I couldn't help but notice." He gestured at their uniforms, at the crescent moon embroidered over the heart. "You're Moon Chosen."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPHH4XJMXm2
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Lior went rigid beside Cel. His fork clattered against his plate, the sound sharp in the sudden quiet that had fallen over nearby tables. His shoulders hunched inward as if trying to make himself smaller.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU6bAhNHXxl
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"Yes." Cel kept his voice neutral. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpOq8A5b5Hv
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Kyros's smile widened. "How... unfortunate."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0BoBf6BYs4
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He moved closer, circling their table like a predator assessing prey. His companions remained at the end, blocking ways.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSknoi9lahT
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"The Moon Goddess." Kyros spoke loud enough that nearby conversations died, students turning to watch. "The weakest deity. The forgotten one. The goddess who can't even maintain a single Great Clan."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwTM2w76UY1
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His hand landed on Cel's shoulder - fingers digging in.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSjregi6Vjm
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"Must be hard, knowing you'll never amount to anything. That your blessing is worthless."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdrVA63KC4Q
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Lior's hands had curled into fists beneath the table. His breathing quickened.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf4T70a9cTQ
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Cel forced his muscles to relax. Forced his jaw to unclench.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnlhN92IOAJ
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"We serve who chose us," he said quietly.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgu4jbTbxEv
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"Do you?" Kyros leaned closer, breath hot against Cel's ear. "Or do you just accept your pathetic fate because you're too weak to demand better?"93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHrE4klvpUy
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The rage that had been simmering since Kyros appeared flared brighter. Cel's vision tunneled. His hands trembled with the effort of keeping them still.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBOI0xh80ba
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He could break Kyros's nose. Right now. One strike, perfectly placed, and the smug bastard would be choking on his own blood.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡJx4ht1lf89
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But if a commoner struck a noble - even in self-defense - the punishment was severe. Imprisonment. Public humiliation. In some cases even execution. The Empire's laws protected nobility with brutal efficiency, and the Academy wouldn't shield him from those consequences.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuSbV6dBjAs
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The unspoken truth was obvious - nobles operated under different standards. Not just in sparring. In everything. They could strike commoners with minimal repercussions. But the reverse? That was a crime against the social order itself.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv87NPQXrbI
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So Cel just sat there. Took it. Let Kyros's words wash over him like rain.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpp2WYO5DBR
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"Nothing to say?" Kyros squeezed harder, nails digging through fabric. "That's what I thought. Moon Chosen are always like that. Weak. Pathetic."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmusxJRRrAD
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He released his grip and straightened, turning to address the watching students.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqz3g9T7sJS
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"Remember this, everyone. What do you call Chosen of the weakest goddess?" He paused, smile widening. "Trash. Nothing but blessed trash."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡykc8jJN3je
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Laughter rippled through some of the tables. Not all - several looked uncomfortable. But enough that Kyros's smile grew.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX3Cit4e7TZ
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He walked away, his companions following. Their laughter echoed across the dining hall.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ600jUPSuHu
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Cel's hands were shaking. He pressed them flat against the table, fingers splayed wide.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxquEBl2MEY
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Lior simply stared down at his plate, paralyzed by what just happened.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGGayPIA1UO
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Eventually, he excused himself. Exhaustion lined his features, shoulders slumped with the weight of the day.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdEupZHMobm
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Cel remained. He finished his meal in silence. The dining hall's energy had shifted - conversations more subdued now, glances occasionally drifting toward his isolated corner.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYRZMZA6UUp
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He ate mechanically, tasting nothing. His mind replayed the confrontation over and over. Each word. Each laugh. The feeling of Kyros's fingers digging into his shoulder like he had every right to do so.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3trTCDxRvx
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When his plate was empty, Cel stood and left.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1PEfK3asqx
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Hours later, the training grounds lay silent beneath moonlight.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡafWr2JndUF
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Cel crossed the threshold, boots crunching against packed earth. Empty weapon racks. Archery targets standing like sentinels. The space felt vast without other students filling it.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaTHTwnxBfR
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He shrugged off his upper uniform like always, letting it fall to the ground beside him. The night air was cold against his skin, but Lunar Vigor flooded through him under the moon's light.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrRPWqPhHqT
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He moved to the center and stopped. Breathed. Let the day's accumulated tension settle in his muscles like coiled springs.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbEpCoznls6
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Silent Moon materialized in his grip.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1RVe0mf9ha
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Then he moved.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡj9VBnS7ojk
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The blade sang through air, cutting patterns driven by pure fury. He moved through the Chosen Legion forms he'd been practicing - each one executed with divine strength behind it, each one brutal in application.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5hx05pH8wF
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Hours blurred together.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIPRR3EYlBv
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Cel kept going.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLB7tKJWhZS
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Until finally… the rage began to drain away. Not gone. Never truly gone. But manageable again. Locked back in whatever dark corner of his mind it usually inhabited.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRaO0DmguFW
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The blade completed its arc. Cel's muscles burned, sweat cooling on his bare chest despite the chill—93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXDO36IVzHf
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Footsteps.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ22X9NxOp3m
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His body went rigid mid-stance. Silent Moon hung suspended in the air as he turned.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd6XV2rTfy7
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Lady Hestia Mortveil stood at the edge of the training grounds.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvbi9tOjLAh
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The moonlight caught her jet-black hair, making it gleam like polished obsidian. Her crimson eyes studied him with an intensity that made his breath catch.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq4kdlkYdFO
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For a heartbeat, neither moved.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjSewEVkiiv
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Then her gaze dropped. Lower. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8RvHcrmwEO
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Suddenly, Cel became very aware of the cold against his skin. Heat flooded his face. He dismissed Silent Moon with a thought and lunged for his discarded uniform, fumbling with the fabric as he yanked it over his head.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡEhiaYq91rJ
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"Lady Hestia." His voice came out rougher than intended. He straightened, adjusting his collar. "I apologize. I didn't realize the grounds were occupied."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAHBsIoQXtB
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A beat of silence.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxu4WonV3df
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"They weren't." Her tone was neutral, almost clinical. She walked past him toward the far side without another glance.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡW23m6V52EU
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Cel just stood there, uncertain. Should he leave? Continue?93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ73t7fwT4Eu
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Hestia sank to the ground in a meditative pose. Her hands rested on her knees, palms upward. The night seemed to gather around her like a cloak, shadows deepening in her presence.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8jMGXwk6ny
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She was replenishing her Divine Essence. It made sense - the Death God's domain aligned with darkness, with the stillness of night. Divine Essence recovered fastest when immersed in the right environment. Ocean Chosen would seek water. Moon Chosen would need moonlight. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRGGf029hLL
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Not that it mattered to him. There was no need to replenish one's Divine Essence when you had none.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhwNyICdGJ5
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Cel re-summoned Silent Moon and returned to his forms.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0h9ulaO6Cj
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The silence stretched between them, broken only by the whisper of his blade through air and the distant sound of wind through empty weapon racks.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ06jGSFQkPv
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Like that, the days blurred into routine.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4aYVxVVV2u
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Sparring matches carved the class into a predictable hierarchy. Nobles on top. Commoners below.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdDNQY8dpha
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"Blessed trash."93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhsjFbEAxh5
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Kyros's voice cut across the courtyard. His hand shoved Lior's shoulder, sending him stumbling. Laughter from the other Sun Clan nobles.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡU3Ck4XSXyK
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Lior kept his eyes down. Cel's jaw clenched, but he said nothing. Took it. Like always.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRUhBTYUo6v
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The confrontations came and went like weather - predictable, unavoidable. But something puzzled Cel about the nobles' behavior. In the tavern, the barkeeper had spoken of political factions regarding the throne’s succession. Yet here, they seemed unified. Cordial, even.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMst6h7Yyof
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The reason for that was simple: Theron. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡI31Zijb8HW
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He moved through them all like sunlight through water - effortless, warm. The nobles gravitated toward him naturally. Perhaps they'd all received the same instructions to cultivate the All-Blessed's favor. To leverage that connection later when the succession fight began in earnest.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡvraoz3Ca7i
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Sylvaine ensured the Life Clan maintained the closest position. Always at Theron's side, always visible, always reinforcing their clan's support.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgvvOoTwsQE
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Only Hestia remained apart.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1aL7qO9mSt
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She sat alone during meals, moved through training exercises in isolation. The other students kept their distance. Whether from the Death Clan's tainted reputation or simple wariness of Raven's sister, Cel couldn't say. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0UhEanzoUw
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Night fell.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡd4gI5ojNDO
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Cel arrived at the training grounds first, as usual. He'd barely summoned Silent Moon when footsteps announced Hestia's arrival.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4ZIQxoTua5
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She crossed to her meditation spot without acknowledgment. Settled into stillness.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDjH1oGp0qW
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Cel moved through his forms. The blade traced familiar patterns, his body flowing from one position to the next with increasing fluidity.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVkk4YhveeM
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An hour passed. Then another.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKW95apUkUc
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When Cel paused to catch his breath, he glanced toward Hestia's meditation spot. Over the past weeks, she'd been inching nearer. Subtle. Gradual. Never speaking. Never explaining.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZgIaUzF4l6
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But close enough now that he could hear the faint rhythm of her breathing when the wind stilled. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjFTUnEcf6S
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Why? 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyOgAOelkFx
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The only connection between them was Raven. But she couldn't possibly know about his encounter with her brother. Couldn't know about his noble blood, his true identity. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxpuD4gkhUt
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All she could see was what everyone else saw - a commoner Moon Chosen with unusually developed muscles and no Divine Essence. He had explanations for both. Nothing remarkable. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVjj0bVuXKi
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Yet she'd shown interest from the very beginning. From that first day, her crimson eyes had tracked him with an intensity that suggested she saw something others missed.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡk7OGzzXYPw
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‘It couldn't possibly be my looks, right?’93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuB1rH2dKTh
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Cel's next strike faltered slightly. His eyes cut toward her meditating form - jet-black hair spilling over pale shoulders, crimson eyes closed in concentration, the faint outline of her slender frame perfectly still despite the cold.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS1ABge4ihP
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He shook his head and returned to the forms, pushing the ridiculous thought away. 93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡihy6jmT4J0
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Silent Moon whispered through the air, cutting patterns that had become as natural as breathing.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPr7rDXzlkd
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The week wore on. Classes during the day, silent training at night. Hestia's presence became as constant as the moonlight itself - always there, always watching when she thought he wouldn't notice, always inching closer with each passing evening.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeoIBs6gBNZ
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Whatever she wanted, she kept it to herself.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8eKZncp3ao
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Morning light filtered through the dining hall's tall windows, painting the long tables in shades of gold and amber.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0OWtWTpuSb
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Students clustered near the entrance, voices rising in excited chatter. Cel pushed through the crowd until he could see what held their attention.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC3IM423qyi
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A board had been mounted on the wall during their off-day.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHW4wtKgntO
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Names filled it in descending order, each accompanied by a number. The rankings.93Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcNbNk38hYS
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