Seeing their prince in danger, soldiers surged forward. Killing intent flooded the air, pressing down on everyone like a storm about to break.

"What is the meaning of this?!" a Durn commander roared, eyes blazing. "Marquis, have you lost your mind?!"

Even Ling Yan and Princess Elize stood frozen, their faces hard with disbelief. Reynold was known for his calm, measured, disciplined, almost detached. To see him attack another royal without warning was unthinkable.

Reynold didn't retreat. His sword remained steady, its point gleaming near the prince's chest. His eyes, sharp and focused, never wavered.

"He ambushed me in that fog," Reynold said. "The same taint that clung to those creatures… clings to him."

"Lies!" a Durn commander barked, stepping forward. "He's delirious from the ruin's miasma, don't believe him!"

But before anyone could move, the Durn prince lifted a hand. The gesture alone silenced his men.

"Oh?" he asked, eyes narrowing, a faint smile curling his lips. "How did you figure it out?"

That one quiet question froze the entire chamber.

Ling Yan's eyes widened, the faintest flicker of alarm breaking through her composure. Beside her, the masked man moved instantly, his cloak trailing like smoke.

In a heartbeat, he positioned himself in front of her, his hand already positioned for fight.

Reynold's gaze never left the Durn prince. "You used a curse on me."

Vearos lowered his head slightly, towards Reynold's left arm, where trickles of blood dropped.

Then he glanced at his own left arm. Faint black lines were creeping beneath his skin, pulsing like veins of ink, the same markings that had marred Reynold.

He chuckled softly, the sound echoing in the tense chamber. "Interesting. But tell me, what kind of technique is this?"

"You wouldn't understand," Reynold said.

"So far, you managed to sense danger twice before it arrived." After a pause later, Reynold said. "You must have an ability that let's to sense danger or perhaps you can peek into the future."

Hearing his words, Vearos expression turned solemn.

Just then, a blinding ray of light shot toward Reynold, swift as thought.

But he had been waiting for it.

With a twist of his wrist, his blade drew a crescent arc through the air, metal meeting light.

The beam shattered, scattering into a thousand glittering fragments that rained across the hall like falling stars.

Even so, the impact drove him a few steps back, his boots grinding against the cracked stone floor.

At that same moment, the Durn commanders surged forward, their killing intent flaring.

"Protect the prince!" someone roared, and a dozen figures launched themselves toward Reynold.

"Stop- don't go near him!" Prince Vearos shouted. But it was too late.

All it took was a single motion of Reynold's sword, no flash, no sound.

Then bodies froze mid-stride.

One by one, they collapsed, lifeless, like puppets with their strings cut.

Each had been cleaved in a single, clean line, no blood, no scream, just silence and the soft thud of armor striking stone.

Reynold's blade shimmered faintly, almost invisible, as he stepped forward again.

Vearos gritted his teeth, raising his own weapon just in time to meet the next strike.

Sparks burst between them, the clash ringing through the chamber like thunder.

"You can really see the future," Reynold said, his voice low.

Before the prince could answer, another streak of light tore through the air.

Reynold turned, blade snapping up. The arrow splintered on contact, its fragments dissolving into smoke.

His gaze found its source, a youth standing not far away, a sleek artifact bow in hand, runes along its limbs glowing faintly red.

One of the prince's personal protectors.

"I thought I'd hit you this time for sure," the youth said, lips curling into a grin. "Since I can't face your brother, I'll take your body as my prize instead."

As the words fell, he pulled the string once more, drawing on the bow's core. Energy gathered, compressing into a single arrow of radiant force.

Reynold's eyes narrowed. "So it was you, the one who struck from the mist."

The youth released.

At that instant, Reynold raised a finger.

From above him, light condensed, shaping itself into an arrow of pure brilliance, similar to the one in the front.

The two projectiles met midair.

The impact was deafening.

A storm of force erupted outward, hurling soldiers and debris across the hall.

When the haze cleared, Reynold still stood.

But above him, light gathered once more.

Particles spun in the air, swirling, merging into form.

Prince Vearos's frowned.

"Move-dodge!" he shouted.

The youth reacted instantly, leaping aside.

But it was too slow.

The single arrow of light split midflight, one becoming three, then six, then twelve, each streaking in a different arc of death.

He barely had time to widen his eyes before they struck.

Light pierced through him from every direction.

His body trembled, riddled with holes, the last trace of defiance still frozen on his face as he stood, then crumpled soundlessly to the floor.

Before anyone could process, Reynold had appeared before prince Vearos.

"Tell me… can you see a future where you escape alive?"

"[Domain]"

The world trembled.

In an instant, everything changed. The stone chamber, the soldiers, the torches, all dissolved into blinding silver light.

Vearos found himself standing in an endless void filled with countless floating blades. Each sword shimmered faintly, humming with murderous intent. The air itself rang with the sharp sound of drawn steel.

There was no ground beneath his feet. No escape. No sky, only an infinite sea of blades waiting for a command to falter.

Then before he could say a word, a line of silver light sliced across his vision.

Schlick.

The wet sound of steel meeting flesh broke the illusion.

Thud.

His head struck the chamber floor, rolling once before coming to a stop. The prince's eyes remained open, glassy and still, reflecting the cold gleam of Reynold's sword.

For one heartbeat, silence reigned. No one moved.

Then the world exploded into motion.

Reynold's soldiers, already prepared, moved as one. Silver runes flared to life across their armor, burning with divine brilliance.

A surge of radiant power swept through the hall, flooding every corner with holy light.