Thalia was quietly sitting on the sofa.
Her room was mostly dark, with the only source of dim light coming from the holographic video projection in front of her.
She appeared to be heavily injured.
Her right arm was encased in a plaster cast, and a bandage was wrapped around the top of her head.
Although her alabaster skin was marred by several black-and-blue bruises, her tantalizing beauty remained otherwise unaffected.
She had been discharged from the infirmary not too long ago after receiving treatment from the medics for nearly a full day.
When the staff found her after the team test concluded, she was buried under a pile of rubble.
She sustained multiple wounds and had fallen unconscious due to oxygen deprivation.
Luckily, she wasn’t trapped in that cave for long and was rescued just in time.
But her mood was not at all cheerful.
There was nothing to be happy about. She was humiliated — by the one person she detested the most in the world.
In fact, she’d much rather prefer death over this scenario.
What will be Father’s reaction when he hears of this news — was all she could think about.
Well, aside from — How did he beat me?
Indeed. How did her brother beat her?
She had been dueling with Samael since they were both six. And she had never lost to him. Ever.
Well, it was mostly because of Samael’s own stupidity.
He always believed too much in his own strength, never learned anything from his losses, and was too much of a brat to set aside his pride and analyze his opponent tactically.
Whenever they fought, he’d always rely on brute strength to overpower her and try to force her into submission.
Obviously, it never worked.
Her technique was too flawless. She’d break through his offense with ease by reading him like a book every single time.
He was predictable.
And that made him weak.
…But this time, he somehow managed to turn the tables on her.
And she couldn’t help but notice there was something different about Samael — something unnerving.
This time he had fought with calm precision against her. A cold, calculating edge that she had never seen in him before.
It was as if everything was under his control since the moment their battle began.
Why?
Why was he so calm?
Thalia didn’t know. And it angered her.
Although she technically didn’t lose to him, the end result was that Samael won.
Also, she hadn’t forgotten how confidently he made a declaration. His voice was still ringing in her ears, echoing inside her mind, and making her blood boil.
‘You’ll never become the Ace, Lia. You’ll lose. Anyone who tries to challenge me for my title will lose. I may not be the strongest or the smartest in our batch… but I will always have the last laugh. I will always win.’
She’ll lose.
He’ll always win.
He said those things right to her face, moments before delivering on his promise and showing how serious he had been.
When did he change so much?!
He never used to have the courage to even look her straight in the eyes. And now he had the guts to challenge her so blatantly?
Thalia’s fist clenched the moment she thought back to it, her injured fingers trembling in a mix of rage and disbelief.
But her eyes stayed fixed on the holographic screen before her where the video of the Evaluation Exam was playing.
She was watching the footage to see how exactly her brother won the title of the Ace.
What did he do?
How he bested all the other first-years?
Thalia knew Samael had changed after coming to the Academy. No, maybe even before that — since he dueled their father in a Rite of Valor.
She needed to study this new Samael. She had to figure out the current mindset of her brother. How he fought, what he thought — everything.
So, that’s what she was doing.
Analyzing.
And while she was in the middle of that, the door swung open and someone strode inside the room where she was sitting.
When the lights were turned on, she was able to see who it was.
A girl, beautiful beyond words, with long red hair, striking crimson eyes, and an alluring smile on her lips.
She was dressed casually in high-waisted shorts and a loose t-shirt.
Behind her entered a tall young man, charming like a prince from old fantasy stories, possessing an almost uncanny resemblance to the girl in front of him.
He was wearing loose-fit track pants and a shirt, looking as amused as ever like he was in on a joke no one else knew.
Although nothing about either of them screamed royal heirs, they carried a subtle regal aura that made their status clear without the need for any crowns.
They were Princess Alice and Prince Willem.
…And for some reason, they had invited themselves over to Thalia’s place.
What’s worse was that they couldn’t take a hint that they were unwelcome here!
They just wouldn’t leave!
Thalia feared they were going to crash here tonight… and perhaps a few more nights after that, guessing by the luggage they had brought with them.
Alice slouched onto the sofa beside Thalia and gave the golden-eyed girl a light nudge with her foot. “What are you watching?”
Willem, meanwhile, wandered to the fridge and opened it without so much as asking for permission. “Got any snacks? I’m starving.”
Thalia gritted her teeth, making an admirable effort to ignore them both as her eyes stayed glued to the screen.
Alice followed Thalia’s gaze and frowned slightly upon seeing the video running on the holographic projection. “I always suspected you might have a brother complex, but isn’t stalking him a bit much, Lia?”
Thalia palmed her face, resisting the overwhelming urge to punch Alice. “I’m analyzing his recent fights. He’s been acting differently. I need to understand his new approach to combat.”
Alice’s frown deepened. “Shouldn’t you have done all this research… before you lost to him?”
“I didn’t lose!” Thalia snapped, her tone sharp enough to cut steel.
Alice blinked, startled by the sudden outburst.
Before she could muster a response, Willem chimed in casually, “Technically, you did lose. If it had been a life-or-death fight, you’d be dead.”
Thalia whipped her head around to glare at him, her eyes blazing with unspoken threats.
Oh, if only looks could kill.
“Okay, okay! My bad!” Willem threw his hands up in mock surrender and backed off, retreating to the kitchen counter to make himself a sandwich.
Thalia muttered something unladylike under her breath and turned back to Alice.
The Draken princess didn’t look much better herself. She had a swollen black eye and her left shoulder seemed to be lightly injured.
Even Willem had a noticeable limp as he walked.
“And what happened to you two?” She asked.
Alice shrugged. “Willem fought that girl — what’s her name? Lady Alexia? Duke Zynx’s daughter who keeps running away from home like it’s a hobby. I heard her father’s practically pulling his hair out over it.”
Willem groaned as he adjusted his weight on his good leg. “She was a walking disaster. How could someone so little be so ferocious? She pushed me back like I was a child. I swear, I was so close to crying.”
Alice chuckled. “Meanwhile I was fighting that commoner. His name is Michael, I think? He managed to dislocate my shoulder and get in a good punch. His sword art was also formidable. But it wasn’t enough. I brought him to his knees. However, the test ended before we could continue.”
Thalia huffed and shifted her focus back to the screen.
For a few moments, complete silence blanketed the room — save for the noise of Willem munching on his poorly-made sandwich.
Then, the Theosbane heiress whispered something in a subdued tone. “It’s the same.”
Both Alice and Willem asked in unison. “What is?”
Thalia didn’t answer immediately. She rubbed her face a few times and sighed before pointing toward the playing video.
In it, her brother had just eliminated Alexia, and was moving to fight Michael next.
“Look. Samael was plotting ahead the entire time he was fighting Alexia Von Zynx and that commoner, Michael. He distracted Alexia, lured her into a false sense of security, made her believe she’d already won. And then? He literally shattered the ground beneath her feet.”
Her golden eyes burned with intensity as she pointed toward the different moment in the footage.
“And look at how he takes out Michael. He keeps his enemy’s focus entirely on himself, while his Shadow tackles the poor idiot straight into lava.”
She changed the video and put on Samael’s duel against the Golden Duke.
“See, he does the same thing in this fight too. He distracts our father, closes the gap while hiding his real intentions, and sweeps in to deliver what could’ve been a brutal blow. It didn’t work, of course, because he was hopelessly outmatched. But…”
Thalia’s fists tightened again as she leaned back, glaring at the screen like it had wronged her.
“This isn’t the same impulsive fool I grew up with. He’s precise now. Calculating.”
Alice lingered for a few seconds until she couldn’t help but ask. “So, what are you saying?”
“Misdirection,” Thalia replied with a single word.
“…Huh?” Willem asked in confusion, prompting Thalia to explain further.
Her tone was softer than usual when she spoke again. “When we were kids, our father taught us how to play chess. It wasn’t just a game to him — it was war in miniature, a tool to teach us lessons he thought were more important than simple strategy.”
Alice arched a brow, intrigued despite herself.
Willem leaned back against the counter, forgetting his sandwich for a moment.
Thalia continued, her golden eyes distant, like she was reminiscing about a time long gone. “He told us the board was just an illusion. The real game wasn’t between pieces but between minds. He didn’t want us to play chess. He wanted us to play the person sitting across from us.”
She drew in a slow, steady breath, her fingers tracing invisible patterns on the armrest of the sofa. “Samael hated it. He never knew what to do. He’d rush his moves, throw everything he had into reckless attacks. I, on the other hand, took to it naturally. I’d outmaneuver him every time, not because I was better at the game, but because I was better at reading him.”
Her lips twisted into a grimace. “Father used to say, A chessboard is a mirror. Your opponent will show you their soul if you know where to look. Their fears, their ambitions — they’re all there, hiding behind their moves.”
Alice frowned. “And Sammy never figured it out?”
Thalia shook her head. “Not back then. He didn’t have the patience, or the self-control. But now…”
Her voice trailed off as she gestured toward the screen. “Now it seems he understands. He’s playing the person, not the game.”
Alice thought about it for a moment and commented, “You sound almost impressed.”
Thalia’s face turned furious. “Impressed? I want to snap his head off! How dare he use our father’s lessons against me — lessons he didn’t even care about when we were little?! And he used nearly the same tactic to defeat me that he used to eliminate a blind girl?! The sheer audacity!”
Samael proclaimed that he’d always win, huh?
Oh, she would like to see that.
There was another stretch of shallow silence.
Finally, after a few short minutes, Willem broke the stillness when he was done eating. “Wait! Alexia Von Zynx… She’s blind?!”