CHAPTER 223: HUNTING GAME 1

~Three hours later.

The morning sun poured into the grand foyer of the Leclair estate like liquid gold, illuminating dust motes dancing in the still air. The mansion was a portrait of aristocratic calm, but for those who knew how to look, the air thrummed with a silent, potent energy. It was a tension that centered on the arrival of two specific individuals.

Nero and Khione stepped into the courtyard together, the quiet understanding between them a tangible force. Nero moved with a new, unburdened ease, his white shirt open at the collar, his posture relaxed. But it was Khione who was truly transformed. Clad in a simple azure dress under her traveling coat, she was the picture of her usual composure, yet something fundamental had shifted. The perpetual winter in her eyes had thawed, replaced by a soft, reflective light. Her features, once sharp with guarded pride, seemed softer, as if she had been remade from within, radiating a quiet, profound charm that was far more disarming than any overt display of emotion.

Elreth, standing with the others near the convoy of sleek vehicles, saw it instantly. Her eyes, the color of a raging forge, narrowed. She didn’t need a detailed report; the story was written in the subtle language of their shared space. It was in the way their steps fell into a synchronized rhythm, in the comfortable silence that wrapped around them like a private cloak, and most damningly, in the ghost of a smile that touched Khione’s lips—a sight as rare and significant as a solar eclipse. A hot, sharp twist of something ugly and familiar coiled in Elreth’s stomach. Her hand clenched at her side, her manicured nails pressing half-moons into her palm.

Nero, infuriatingly, seemed utterly oblivious to her glare. He stretched with the languid grace of a big cat, his gaze sweeping over Adam and Lux.

"Morning," he said, his voice a study in casual lightness, a tone that felt deliberately, teasingly at odds with the storm he had just walked into.

Adam’s eyebrows shot up, a grin playing on his lips.

"Morning?" he echoed, his voice laced with theatrical disbelief. "You look like you just woke up from a decade-long nap. A little too relaxed, don’t you think?"

Lux like a michevuous little devil, leaned against a car door with a knowing smirk.

"Hmm, I’d wager it’s less about sleep and more about a certain... nocturnal activity. A date that over-delivered on its promises, perhaps?"

Nero merely responded with a low, non-committal chuckle, a sound that confirmed everything without admitting to anything. Beside him, Khione maintained her glacial composure, but the faint, tell-tale flush that crept up to the very tips of her ears was a confession in itself.

It was the final straw for Elreth. Her jaw tightened so hard it ached.

"Tch... whatever," she muttered, the words a sharp, dismissive exhale. She turned on her heel, her crimson hair whipping like a banner of defiance. "Let’s just get this over with."

She strode toward the lead car, her every step a punctuation mark of her irritation.

Seeking to defuse the situation she had no interest in, Khione announced in her trademark, cool tone, "I will remain at the estate today. I am not... particularly invested in the sport of hunting."

"Fair enough," Nero replied, his voice softening as his gaze found hers. There was a universe of understanding in that single look. "Take a rest. Yesterday was... eventful."

The comment earned him a glare from Khione, but it was a new kind of glare—one that held no real ice, only a flustered, private warning that seemed to bind them closer together.

With the group divided, the two convoys set off. Elreth and Azalea departed first in the first car—the "girls’ team," as Lux had jokingly dubbed it, a label that felt bitterly ironic to Elreth at that moment. Adam, Nero, and Lux followed shortly after, their car heading for the hunting grounds. From the shaded veranda, Blake offered a lazy wave, calling out, "You lunatics enjoy your sweaty, violent pastimes. I’ll be here, mastering the art of conscious napping."

The journey to the small, private island preserve managed by the Leclair family was brief. The air itself changed as they crossed the long bridge, the city’s smog giving way to the crisp, clean scents of saltwater and sun-baked pine. The preserve was a meticulously curated wilderness, a sprawling landscape of dense forests, rolling hills, and open plains, all teeming with low-tier spirit beasts designed to provide a challenge without true danger.

Elreth was the first out of the car, a vision of contained fury in her form-fitting crimson combat gear, woven with subtle magic-conducting threads. Her hair was a flame against the lush green backdrop, but her beautiful face was a mask of stormy discontent. Azalea, in contrast, emerged from the vehicle like a woodland spirit taking possession of her domain. Her light forest-green armor was practical and elegant, her elven bow a natural extension of her being. She took a deep, appreciative breath, savoring the aroma of wildflowers and damp earth.

"It’s a beautiful morning, isn’t it?" she said, her voice cheerful and bright. "Perfect for a friendly hunt!"

Elreth shot her a sidelong glance, her orange eyes smoldering. "Friendly, huh? Try not to cry when you lose, little Lea."

Azalea’s smile was serene, but her eyes held a sharp, competitive glint. "Oh? I should be saying that to you, El. Unless, of course, you’re too distracted thinking about a certain someone to focus on your spearwork."

The barb struck its target with unerring accuracy. Elreth’s composure fractured for a single, revealing second, a flash of raw emotion crossing her features before she schooled them back into a scowl. "Tch. You talk too much."

They moved into the forest together, their rivalry igniting the very air between them.

The first half-hour was a tense, quiet affair. Sunlight dappled the forest floor through a canopy of whispering leaves. Elreth’s spear was a sliver of deadly light in her grip; Azalea’s fingers rested lightly on her bowstring, her entire body poised with an archer’s latent energy.