CHAPTER 85: THAT’S ALL?

The crowd in the coliseum shouted Kael’s name, some cheering him on and others cursing him, although the latter were in the majority due to the previous day’s fight.

"Oh~ it seems you were quite popular with the crowd. How envious," commented Ethan, with short black hair and sky-blue eyes, as he looked at Kael with a fake smile.

But he was completely ignored by Kael, which only made Ethan angrier. He hadn’t expected such indifference.

Damn you, just because you had a few good fights, you got cocky. I’ll destroy that mask you’re wearing. Thought Ethan, his eyes flashing intensely.

"Begin," announced the referee.

Ethan channeled his mana essence into his magic diagram. He was also a wizard, though not at the level of Jenna or Kael. But that didn’t mean he was weak.

Unfortunately, today he had encountered the wrong opponent.

Before he could complete the spell, Kael moved.

A flash of movement. His figure vanished and reappeared in front of Ethan, as if he had cut through the air itself.

Ethan jumped, breaking the spell and adopting a fighting stance: arms raised, feet planted firmly on the ground.

Kael didn’t hesitate.

He launched a direct kick at Ethan’s forward knee, forcing him to shift his weight. At the same moment, he spun with the momentum and connected with an elbow to the solar plexus. Ethan doubled over with a grunt.

Kael struck with a rising palm to the chin, destabilizing his guard, followed by a sharp sweep with his heel to the ankles.

Ethan fell backwards.

When he tried to get up, Kael’s sword was already inches from his throat.

Silence.

[What do we have here! Kael Medici has completely defeated Ethan with just a few moves, without giving him a chance! And once again, victory smiles on Kael Medici!]

Ethan looked at Kael with a complicated expression. He hadn’t expected to be defeated in so few moves. How could he, a member of one of the great families, lose so pathetically?

However, he also realized that Kael’s strength was far above his own, so he had to swallow his frustration.

Kael, meanwhile, turned and left the combat platform without looking back. Because it was time to start moving again.

Because now was the perfect moment, since his father had left Kiran Mountain after being summoned by the king.

...

In one of the many silent rooms of the Medici mansion, Evelyn waited.

She was alone. Sitting stiffly, her fingers intertwined so tightly that her knuckles had turned white. Her eyes were fixed on the closed door, not blinking. It went without saying: she was nervous. But not out of fear. It was anticipation.

Kael had sent for her.

And although she hadn’t been told why, she sensed it. She felt it. She wanted it.

"Is this it...?" she whispered, holding her breath. "Is this my chance... to crush that bastard Jasper?"

Her lips curled. Slowly. Unnaturally. A crooked smile, damp with anxiety, spread across her face, distorting it.

In her mind, the image of Jasper appeared clear: that hypocritically perfect face, that look, that voice she once believed to be sincere.

She imagined him broken, begging. She imagined his eyes widening in horror when he realized the inevitable. She imagined his blood.

Her chest vibrated with a strange tremor. It wasn’t joy. It was something deeper. More poisonous.

"Soul mate..."

She spat out those words mentally as if they were stale poison.

"Disgusting."

Her smile widened, now crooked like a poorly closed crack. For a moment, she seemed possessed by something that lay dormant within her, something she could no longer contain.

Suddenly, the door creaked open slightly.

Kael entered unhurriedly, dressed in simple but impeccably tailored attire. He wore no accessories, and yet his mere presence was enough to dominate the room.

He didn’t even glance at Evelyn. He simply took a seat across from her, with the calmness of someone who sees not an equal, but just another variable.

His eyes finally rose, empty of emotion. He looked at her with the same indifference with which one contemplates a stone on the path.

"Why did you call me?" Evelyn asked. Her voice was uncertain, but her eyes sparkled with an emotion she couldn’t hide.

Kael looked at her indifferently, as if weighing her usefulness, not her emotions. Then his lips curved slightly, more out of strategy than warmth.

"Why else do you think I called you here?" he replied slowly. "It’s time for you to get your revenge... against my dear older brother."

Evelyn opened her eyes, and a smile spread across her face like a crack releasing pent-up pressure. The waiting. The humiliation. Everything, at last, made sense. It had all been worth it.

"And what do I have to do?"

"It’s simple. You just have to take Jasper to a specific place when I tell you to. That’s all. Until then, stay put."

A shadow of doubt crossed Evelyn’s face.

"That’s all?"

Kael nodded without bothering to explain further. The wheels were already in motion. She was just another piece on the board.

"You can go now," he said coldly. "Remember: don’t question my words. Don’t improvise. Just execute."

"I understand," Evelyn replied, bowing slightly before leaving.

Her footsteps receded down the hallway, growing faster and faster. She was excited. At last, her chance for revenge had arrived. Soon, she would erase the shame she had carried for so many months. Soon, she would make the one who had brought her down bleed.

And all thanks to Kael.

...

After Evelyn left, Kael remained alone in the room. He didn’t move. Not a word, not a sigh. Only the slight blinking of his black eyes, motionless in front of the open window.

His thoughts flowed like slow poison.

With my father gone, the infiltrators will have free rein. The internal routes will be less guarded, and the vault... no longer has the same security. The cracks in the structure are beginning to open up on their own.

Thanks to my performance in the coliseum, all eyes are on the spring tournament. Perfect. Attention is a bright fire... that blinds fools.

Everything was moving.

Slowly, but inevitably. All Kael had to do was wait for the pressure to destroy everything.

A dark smile crossed his face.

On the other side of the window, several three-eyed crows crossed the cloud-covered sky that had hidden the sun’s rays, cawing like harbingers of the inevitable.

Everything was already set in motion.

And what was to come... would be blood.