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As I left the room, I glanced back through the closing door, catching one last glimpse of Yelena's trembling figure.

Her body was still sprawled on the floor, drenched in her own juices, with traces of my essence dripping from the corners of her mouth.

The sight was a vivid reminder of the control I exerted over her, her body and spirit broken, yet craving more.

I returned to my quarters and slipped out of my robe, entering the washroom.

The warm water of the bathtub enveloped me as I sank into it, allowing the thoughts from earlier to resurface.

Lucian was having difficulties with his brother, a strained relationship that had only worsened recently.

The cause of this tension? A girl. This could be my opportunity.

If I could find out exactly what Lucian's brother had denied him, I might be able to manipulate the situation to my advantage.

But first, I needed more information about what Lucian had requested and why it had been refused.

After a while of letting these thoughts simmer, I left the bath, dried off, and lay down on the bed, letting my eyes drift shut as the day faded away.

I awoke to the sunlight filtering into the room, warming my face. I quickly rose, washed up, and dressed in my training gear before heading down the hallway to the training hall. As I entered, I saw Lucian already waiting in the center of the room.

"How are you feeling today, my prince?" he asked, his voice steady, but there was an undercurrent of tension.

"I'm well, Lucian," I replied, approaching him. "But I can't help but notice something's weighing on you. As I've said before, you can always share what troubles you. I might be able to help."

He smiled faintly, but his eyes betrayed hesitation. "I appreciate the offer, but I don't wish to burden you with my personal matters."

"How will you know it's a burden unless you tell me?" I asked, holding his gaze.

He looked down, clearly deep in thought.

"How about this," I proposed. "If I can manage to tie in today's match, you have to tell me everything."

Lucian chuckled softly. "Agreed. But why the sudden interest? You've mentioned before that you don't care for my brother. Why are you so eager to help?"

It was a calculated risk when I'd mentioned my disdain for his brother in a past conversation, testing his reaction. Now, knowing the strained relationship between them, it seemed like the perfect card to play.

"You are not your brother, Lucian. You're my instructor, but more than that, you're my friend," I said with an air of sincerity. "Whatever I think of him doesn't change how I feel about you. I judge people on who they are, not the family they come from."

Lucian's expression softened. "Thank you, my prince. I'll hold you to your word—if you can tie."

Without warning, my instincts screamed at me.

In a split second, I vanished from where I stood, just as an ice spear, half my size, erupted from the ground where I had been.

I reappeared in a different spot, only to find a rain of white ice spears hurtling toward me.

A silver shield materialized around me, absorbing the impact as the spears crashed into its surface.

Any that pierced the outer layer were met by an inner shield.

Ignoring the onslaught, I conjured a massive silver whip, its length slicing through the air with a sharp crack, breaking through the ice spears and hurtling toward Lucian.

As the whip neared him, an ice shield formed, absorbing the strike but cracking under the pressure.

The moment my whip lashed out again, Lucian disappeared, leaving the ice shield to shatter as it met the force of my attack.

My figure also disappeared as the silver shield protecting me shattered, the ice spears collided with each other, vanishing into thin air.

In the next moment, two blurry figures leaving behind streak of silver and white clashed midair with a thunderous explosion, shards of ice and silver essence flying in all directions before dissipating.

The sword in my hand shifted into a crossbow, an arrow of pure silver tearing through the space between us, aiming for Lucian's figure.

He countered with a white ice shield, his figure closed in on me.

As his ice sword swung toward me, I met it with a newly formed silver shield, deflecting the blow.

In a fluid motion, my crossbow shifted back into a sword, and we clashed—silver and white streaks dancing in the air, moving too quickly for the naked eye to follow.

For a moment, the battle was a blur of steel and ice, until Lucian's ice sword cracked and my blade slashed through him.

But his whole figure cracked.As I. felt coldness penetrating my heart from behind, his ice blade piercing my heart, only to be stopped by the silver essence that coated it.

my figure streamed through the air as I looked behind and saw Lucian standing there with a bleeding shoulder and a ice word which had pierced my heart in his hand.

Both the wound on my back and the slash on Lucian's shoulder healed almost instantly, though it took me longer—his ice had frozen my skin and flesh from the inside.

A massive ice spear entered my field of vision, closing in on me with terrifying speed. I transformed my sword into a silver spear and launched it toward the incoming attack. The two spears collided midair with a deafening sound before disintegrating into nothing.

Not wasting a moment, I summoned a crossbow, firing streaks of silver light that tore through the air toward Lucian. But as they met his cold white shield, my instincts blared again. A sea of white ice formed behind him, surging forward like an avalanche, destroying everything in its path.

My silver arrows and spears froze, then shattered as they were consumed by the icy wave.

I teleported away, forming layers of silver shields to meet the oncoming storm.

One by one, they cracked and crumbled, unable to hold back the sheer force of the avalanche much like the onslaught of nature itself.

Finally, the sea swallowed me. For a second, there was silence—then a streak of silver erupted from the frozen wasteland, heading straight for Lucian.

His figure was visibly drained, the overuse of his essence leaving him weakened.

The silver spear I had sent was small, but the sheer density of it was clear from the way it ripped through the air, leaving a glittering in its wake.

Lucian barely noticed it in time, raising his hand as a coating of almost-silver ice enveloped it. He caught the spear just before it could pierce his heart, the strain evident on his face as he stopped its lethal trajectory.

The battle had reached a stalemate, but I had come closer than ever.