Northern stared down at Kaelan, his casual white shoe hovering ominously above the fallen warrior's head. His eyes gleamed like ice—cold, unforgiving.
Kaelan lay silent for several heartbeats, sprawled on the ground as every fiber of his muscles twisted in excruciating agony. Only now, as defeat crept into his consciousness, did he truly comprehend the devastating impact of Northern's strikes.
...Only now did he witness the chasm between them.
The last move—Kaelan had been certain he possessed superior speed. Despite Northern's quickness, speed and strength had always been his clan's birthright, their unquestionable advantage.
Yet Northern had demonstrated a velocity beyond comprehension. A blur too swift for the eye to track. Kaelan couldn't even identify what Northern had struck him with that had sent such violent discord rippling through his entire body.
But Northern's words cut deeper than his blows. With monumental effort, Kaelan stirred beneath the raised foot, struggling but ultimately succeeding in propping himself up to a seated position.
He fixed Northern with a stern grimace, his bloodied face demanding a respect that Northern almost felt compelled to give.
Almost—but Northern stood far above such sentiments. His cold, impassive glare never wavered.
Kaelan took measured breaths as he sat, deliberately inhaling and exhaling to steady himself.
Rian's foot now rested on the ground. His frigid eyes bore down like an oppressive weight, but Kaelan had reached a stubborn defiance beyond caring.
After the weighted silence, his dry, breaking voice finally sliced through the air.
"What nonsense are you spouting? 'Blossomed in pools of nurturing care?' Rian, you don't know jack about me to claim all that. And you see... that's the thing about all of you from the Dark Continent."
He winced but continued.
"You think existing in this Continent wasn't a crucible of its own? You think we didn't fight tooth and nail every day for survival?"
Northern interrupted, his voice razor-sharp.
"Fight for what exactly, Kaelan? From your swordsmanship teacher who might punish you if you skip class? Or from your prestigious father whose expectations press upon you like the weight of the world?"
Northern shook his head, frustration radiating from him in palpable waves.
"You people just don't grasp the reality! No matter how we try to communicate it, you just DON'T GET IT! And you never will. You can't fathom what it means to live in a city besieged by monsters, to battle alongside creatures of horro, to form bonds with abominations only to face them in mortal combat later. To be mentored by the very entities you're destined to destroy."
His voice lowered to a dangerous whisper, his eyelids drooping halfway.
"And no matter how I try to explain this to you, your sheltered mind simply cannot comprehend."
He paused, the silence deafening.
"And that's fine, Kaelan."
In the next instant, a vibrant, dangerous light ignited in Northern's blue eyes—like twin flames in a frozen sea.
He shrugged slightly, lips curling into a predatory smile.
"It's simple, really. If you believe the difference isn't so great—if you think your effort can bridge the gap—then stand up and defeat me."
Kaelan gritted his teeth until his jaw ached. Ebony stars, how he wanted to stand. He craved nothing more than to rise to his feet and continue the fight. But only now did he realize how severely he had depleted himself with those bursts of speed.
Their battle had barely lasted three minutes, yet his legs had already betrayed him. Worse still, waves of agony rippled through his body—standing was impossible, no matter how fiercely his pride demanded it.
His hands, though no longer clutching his swords, remained locked in a death grip, trembling as if he'd been holding the blades for ten years without rest. The sheer force behind each of his attacks had strained his muscles to the point where he couldn't even extend his fingers.
Kaelan glanced up at the student towering above him. A tempest brewed in his eyes—a volatile mixture of anger, envy, grudging respect, and raw hatred.
Fighting Northern had been more than challenging—it had been utterly exhausting. Beyond the guy's counters and blocks, simply mustering the strength and speed necessary to elicit any worthwhile reaction from someone of his caliber demanded more than students like themselves could possibly sustain.
And that was the true measure of the gap between them.
The realization struck him like a physical blow.
Northern stared down at him, expression unreadable.
"So... what's it going to be... friend?"
The last word dripped with thinly veiled contempt.
Kaelan felt shame wash over him. Having boasted so boldly only to end up in this pathetic state—he had maneuvered himself into an unexpected quagmire of his own creation.
Now, he faced the humiliation of forfeiting the fight.
His thoughts raced to his clan. Who among them might be here, disguised, watching both him and his younger sister to report back to their father?
What would their father's verdict be when they eventually concluded this juvenile adventure and returned home to assume their rightful positions within the Clan?
"...A Kejar never surrenders..."
The words escaped his lips like a sacred mantra.
Northern's brow furrowed slightly as Kaelan muttered the declaration.
"...knock me out. Finish what you started."
Northern's frown deepened, shadows gathering across his features.
"Really? Are you that stupid? Blinded by pride?"
Kaelan smiled, but Northern recognized it instantly—the hollow curve of lips that couldn't mask the anguish beneath. A smile worn like poorly fitting armor.
"As you said, Rian, some of us bear the crushing weight of expectations from an overbearing father. Maybe I'll never truly grasp your perspective or the brutal world that forged you—but we too were robbed of our childhood by these relentless expectations. We've had no life to call our own, no decisions were ever truly ours to make. We have never truly lived; all we've done since birth was chase the overwhelming shadow of what the past Era used to be. This was a different hell in and of itself… one people like you have no idea of."
He tilted his head slightly, a gesture both defiant and resigned.
"So... yes, Rian. I am that stupid and blinded by pride."
His eyes ignited with a defiant light, his expression hardening like cooling steel.
"Now, finish what you started."