Lexa calmly walked back toward Dante, a faint smile resting on her lips. She hadn't expected the battle to end so quickly.
In truth, she had only fought with roughly sixty-five percent of the strength Dante had permitted — most of the fight had simply been testing her newly obtained abilities rather than attempting to overwhelm Elric outright.
The two Blood Knights had exceeded every expectation. The moment she issued a command, they understood it almost instinctively — no hesitation, no delay, no wasted movement.
They fought almost like extensions of her own swordsmanship while still possessing enough independence to react on their own.
It was as though two veteran swordsmen were permanently fighting at her side. Destroying them would require destroying the swords themselves. A thought that made her quietly excited.
As she approached, Dante simply raised a hand.
"Good job."
Lexa smiled before returning the high five without hesitation.
"Thank you, Master."
One thing she genuinely appreciated about Dante was that praise always came exactly when it was deserved. He was selfish, lazy, shameless — perhaps the strangest man she had ever met.
Yet whenever someone performed well, he never pretended otherwise.
He rewarded loyalty.
He acknowledged effort.
He never acted as though the achievements of his subordinates somehow belonged solely to him. That was something she respected.
Dante nodded once.
"Good display. I don't really have any complaints."
Vexian, who had been quietly sitting on him, finally stood. She had barely taken a step before Dante gently wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her back long enough to kiss the side of her neck. She couldn't stop herself from giggling.
"Your reward," Dante said. "You've been helping train Lexa. I could tell. The way she managed information during the fight wasn't entirely my teaching."
Vexian's ears twitched happily.
"I only repeated what Master taught me."
Dante smiled.
"Still counts."
He then looked back toward Lexa.
"You never even reached seventy percent."
Lexa nodded.
"I expected him to push me further. I underestimated the difference."
Dante didn't answer immediately. Instead, his gaze shifted toward the unconscious Elric, whose body was disintegrating away from a frantic Amber.
'Weak? No. Far from it.'
Objectively speaking, Elric was terrifying.
His movement between shadows bordered on impossible to predict.
His attacks carried almost no sound. Every mountain, every rock, every patch of darkness could become a killing blow. Against nearly anyone their age, Elric would have been a nightmare.
The unfortunate part was that today he had fought Lexa.
Dante had been waiting for this battle since recruiting her.
Not because he doubted Lexa.
Because he wanted a comparison. I
nside the Sandrian Empire, monsters surrounded him every day — his father, his mother, his instructors, the imperial guards. After growing up among them, strength had become distorted. Normal no longer looked normal. He wanted to know whether the outside world truly measured up.
Now he had his answer.
Elric — someone worthy of being recruited by several Mythical Beings — had still been decisively overwhelmed. Not because Elric was disappointing, but because the standards of the Sandrian Empire were absurd.
His family hadn't exaggerated. Neither had the history books. For the first time since leaving the empire, Dante finally had a reliable measuring stick.
He smiled to himself.
'The empire really is ridiculous. No— 'he corrected himself. 'My family is ridiculous.'
That realization pleased him far more than Lexa's victory itself.
Amber quietly watched Elric's body dissolve into particles of light.
She wasn't heartbroken...more of shook.
The academy's Revival Tower would reconstruct his body soon enough — he had merely lost one of his revival charges.
What unsettled her wasn't his death. It was how completely he had been defeated. This was the first time in her life she had ever seen Elric lose.
Not struggle.
Not retreat.
Lose.
His head had been severed before he could mount any meaningful resistance during the final exchange.
She let out a slow breath. There were many things she could have focused on — the difference between Lexa and Elric, the frightening strength of Dante's subordinates, her own inability to properly follow the battle.
Even now, she knew she had missed most of what had actually happened. While Dante and Vexian had calmly analyzed every exchange, she had barely managed to follow their movements.
The realization stung.
But dwelling on it accomplished nothing. Amber had always dealt with overwhelming situations the same way: calm down, observe, understand, only then decide.
She looked once more toward the three standing together. They didn't resemble a master and his subordinates. I
f anything, they looked closer to close friends. Or perhaps a strange couple with one older sister.
Yet there was respect — absolute respect — but there was no fear, no forced obedience. Lexa had smiled after receiving nothing more than a simple compliment.
Vexian looked genuinely happy simply because Dante had acknowledged her contribution. Those weren't the reactions of people serving out of obligation. That respect had been earned.
Her eyes narrowed thoughtfully. Then she thought back to Elric. She already knew what he would decide after reviving. He would want to follow Dante.
Not because he enjoyed serving others — quite the opposite.
Elric valued his independence more than almost anyone she knew. But precisely because of that, he would never ignore someone capable of standing at the peak.
People their age. Perhaps only a few years older than them. Yet they already possessed strength that completely surpassed common sense.
And the frightening part wasn't Lexa, nor Vexian.
It was Dante.
Everything traced back to him — Lexa's growth, Vexian's judgment, the skills they possessed, the discipline they displayed. Even if they were exceptional talents, someone had refined those talents into monsters.
That someone was Dante.
Amber finally understood why Lexa had spoken of him with such unwavering confidence. Without another moment of hesitation, she walked toward the three of them.
Dante smiled the moment he saw her approaching. He already knew the answer. His Loyal Subordinate Bestowal had quietly notified him moments earlier.
New Subordinates Acquired
Elric
Amber
Their names had already appeared beneath the skill, alongside their loyalty. Sixty percent. Dante frowned slightly — a little lower than he preferred. Still, for a first meeting, sixty percent was acceptable.
Trust would come later.
As Amber stopped before him, she bowed slightly.
"My Lord."
Dante nodded.
"I'm more surprised you aren't asking why I let Lexa kill Elric."
Amber chuckled softly.
"I don't think surrender would have changed your decision. You wanted us to understand the difference. If the battle had ended halfway, the lesson would have been incomplete."
Dante smiled.
"You understand quicker than I expected."
She met his eyes calmly.
"You weren't showing us strength. You were showing us the gap. There's a difference."
Dante nodded once.
'Exactly'.
Fear alone created temporary obedience. Understanding created lasting loyalty.
There was no point recruiting talented people if they never truly understood where they stood. The stick had been shown.
Tomorrow he would show the carrot — Amber's misunderstanding regarding her own skill.
That would be the true beginning.
After a brief discussion, they agreed to meet again the following day. With a snap of his fingers, space folded. Amber disappeared, reappearing near the academy's Revival Tower. Only Dante, Lexa, and Vexian remained.
Vexian tilted her head.
"Master... why aren't we leaving?"
Lexa also looked toward him curiously. Dante's eyes drifted toward a distant mountain peak. Far beyond what either of them could sense, someone was watching. A faint smile appeared on his face.
"I'll explain later."
Space rippled. One step. He vanished, leaving both women staring at the empty space where he had stood.
Nearly thirty kilometers away, on the edge of a lonely cliff, Dante appeared silently. Waiting there was a woman — elegant, graceful, nine silver-white fox tails swaying lazily behind her, her kimono fluttering gently in the mountain breeze.
Dante smiled.
"So... you've been watching for quite a while now."