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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡkpXJ7rSmzZ
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“Talk.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2cj1xcijbE
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The word came flat. Final. A command rather than a request.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjYntrLt9dn
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9TsK8ybNzf
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He could throw her off. Probably.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡym3X47DsTB
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9uNej1IXvq
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmsOgO3ieiC
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Could his enhanced body withstand it?20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡf0cBGX18tY
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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. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡLpxqpLnVmu
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But this was different.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3PcFQgnoQL
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzXwgBcV48h
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But he was certain - absolutely certain - that her weapon was not of Blessed Grace.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpr1QQFFAjJ
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0H4Wy6WI81
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But the real advantage lay in artifacts.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbmEC9DivXB
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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. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZdYkKTFwNY
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmVRWk0HTI9
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But nobles didn’t need their deities' favor to access higher-tier artifacts.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTmHTcAhHW2
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They could simply pass them on. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYION5Xxm7c
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9xlrTTdK28
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Most noble children entered the Academy wielding artifacts their families had used for decades. Sometimes centuries.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAkeVNBhVfI
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Hestia was a Mortveil. The leading house of the Death Clan. A family whose hereditary gift came directly from their patron god.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2u3WxkB0Lj
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm82jg84t2a
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His survival instinct had done the calculation before his conscious mind caught up.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡib2fjMICRO
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He had no safe option.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3ZmNpazBbI
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“Talk about what?” The words came out rougher than intended. The blade’s pressure made speaking difficult.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡajP3JEQmZe
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“Explain what I saw.” Hestia’s voice carried no inflection. Just cold certainty. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtb1I0612ZQ
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A pause. Her weight shifted slightly, and the blade pressed down another fraction.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOJq8WmYer3
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“And don’t even think about lying. I’ll know.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0lV7lZ5xKc
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzgt992EuPe
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If he lied, she would end this in an instant.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ79zT1YPTvf
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Cel’s thoughts scrambled for purchase. A convincing explanation. Something that would satisfy her without revealing too much.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpntwbrQ2oe
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNfR13sQ2RS
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8Dp7IKOXya
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He could refuse to explain. Stay silent. Force her to either kill him or back down without getting answers.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ00Nk2kz1YM
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfpmVRyLmjG
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And beneath all of it lay the real danger. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjfOJAJPiQH
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She’d seen him dying. That alone wasn’t the crisis.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWwWJeHQV5u
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The problem was that she’d somehow identified his noble birth, thus holding the power to ruin his entire revenge.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVC1uXrOxLc
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Cel’s jaw tightened. His eyes fixed on hers - crimson meeting glacial blue in the dim light filtering through his window.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxop5xAghjy
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No convincing lie came.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpARG4lw2UR
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So he told the truth. Part of it, at least.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPKjYjhSMt9
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“The boy you saw dying...” His voice came quiet. Steady despite the blade at his throat.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrH9l6rW3UI
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“That was me.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTN8KhQr2xP
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Hestia’s expression didn’t shift. No surprise. No satisfaction. Just that same clinical assessment.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡytSQQEU3wE
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“How are you alive then?”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfU1IEGtUeE
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The question was reasonable. Logical. Anyone who’d seen what she’d seen would ask the same thing.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCYoF4KLPBx
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“A trait.” He kept his breathing even, controlled. “It resurrected me. Changed my appearance in the process.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOhnEmNCpWy
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Silence stretched between them.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZHHgQ3zjWG
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Then Hestia’s lips curved slightly. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡX48EXDEPyx
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“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.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKxDaWGaPiw
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“It’s the truth.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOGr8Huz09C
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“Is it?”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡwpnglTQLV6
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Cel held her gaze without flinching. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡY4Zc7N2ib3
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"Esrin vouched for me, didn't she? Last night. When you called me a demon. Doesn't that count for something?" 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡShFLgrMOeS
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The blade’s pressure eased slightly. Not removed - just a fractionally less immediate threat of death.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡrJLdjFRGX8
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“What’s your relationship with her?” Hestia’s eyes narrowed. “The Hallowed doesn’t vouch for random students without reason.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7cN2OWt1C2
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Cel’s mind worked through the answer. Truth and lie mixed carefully.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH5Xc1tNho0
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“After I came back. After resurrection.” He paused, letting the words settle. “Esrin found me and took me in.” 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKMCArZEpPv
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Another pause. This one more deliberate. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡofd0cSrzvL
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“As her apprentice.” 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGbyzjnLfY6
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The addition came after a beat too quick. Unconvincing. A piece of information offered to fill the gap in his story. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAYaOfGma0G
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAMoMZBAHNX
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But it wasn’t the complete picture either.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfl6bTgEAlg
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9R5AWLu5P1
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“You can ask her if you want,” Cel said. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhGKK3C9DKt
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He was betting everything on Esrin covering for him like she had before. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfwFSsyr6Yt
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Seconds stretched.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ65cJg9aHpu
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡtPLIviPHSk
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Then she pulled the sword back.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ0b5eSRFnIB
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The movement was controlled - deliberate rather than sudden. The blade lifted away from his throat, and the cold pressure disappeared.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjLFzi51CJD
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“I’ll verify that.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4G2ybCejl8
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The words came flat. A statement of intent rather than a threat.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡliEo68R369
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN1DuSxruQD
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He sat up slowly, one hand moving to his throat. His fingers came away red. She'd broken skin without him noticing. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2uN7jShcdm
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His eyes tracked Hestia as she dismissed her artifact and adjusted her clothing. The crimson longsword dissolved into darkness, fading like smoke. 20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5EWVjq16iV
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“Well.” Cel’s voice came dry. “This wasn’t how I imagined my first night with a woman.”20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcaxcKP9RIs
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Hestia’s eyes cut toward him.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxggoXRZ8RS
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Sharp. Assessing. A look that could have drawn blood if looks possessed edges.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡG2IPqtiZzy
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She held his gaze for one weighted moment. Then turned and left his room.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡr2ccU7nnsm
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Cel sat on the edge of his bed, staring at the closed door.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡDnU3PZbYgA
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His heart hammered against his ribs. Adrenaline still coursed through his veins, making his hands shake slightly despite his best efforts to control them.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡME4BziRk7J
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She was going to ask Esrin.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdzwj0YP3yM
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Going to verify his story about being her apprentice. About resurrection and transformation. About all of it.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡaxob9TmmOX
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Would Esrin cover for him?20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡOlbEXMK8NE
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She had to.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCFqWHh7TEh
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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.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGtx4ZNRGj0
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His jaw clenched.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBwU4AAP1y3
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He could do nothing about it now.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpuhdLRY6pe
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Cel lay back down on the mattress, staring at the ceiling.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbw93FSINUz
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Sleep wouldn’t come again tonight. Even exhaustion couldn’t override the tension thrumming through his body.20Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡybaGSFNaPl
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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.