In the Ashford Empire—one of the strongest countries on the Vespara continent—

A celebration was underway.

The Ashford Empire was counted among the only two nations said to rival the might of the Valkeria Empire, the country ruled from the shadows by the Imperius family.

Despite their power, the two empires shared a good relationship.

The reigning queen of Ashford, Eliana Cael Ashford—

And Sylvia Evan Imperius, wife of Adrian Evan Imperius, the uncrowned ruler of Valkeria—

Were best friends.

Today, Sylvia had been invited as a guest of honor.

Inside the royal palace, a grand banquet filled the main hall.

People from all over the world had gathered.

The richest among the rich.

The strongest among the strong.

Everyone who mattered was there.

The news had spread like wildfire.

The second princess, Evangeline Cael Ashford, had accomplished something only a few have achieved till now.

She had wiped out the entire lineage of the Crimson Clan vampires in the Null Realm.

And secured their territory for the Ashford Empire.

People were already comparing this feat to what Jessica Evan Imperius had done when she killed the King of the Titans and claimed their territory.

In one of the dark, spacious corridors of the palace..

Evangeline Cael Ashford, the star of today’s event, walked with clear purpose.

Her magenta hair was neatly styled, her violet eyes glittering with excitement. She wore a casual yet expensive outfit—tailored black pants and a fitted white blouse with gold trim—that somehow made her look more like a film star than a princess.

Beside her, just one step behind, walked her loyal knight Aiden.

His white hair was brushed back, revealing sharp grey eyes. Even in simple clothes—a dark shirt and trousers, a sword at his hip—he looked like he had stepped out of a poster for some fantasy drama.

Together, they stopped in front of a certain section of the corridor.

Evangeline pressed her hand lightly against a panel.

Suddenly.

Light flooded the area.

The walls slid aside, revealing a massive hall beyond.

Inside that hall—

A black-haired, red-eyed boy stood amidst a field of fallen monsters.

Arthur was standing in a virtual simulated arena. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝕨𝕖𝗯𝚗𝚘𝕧𝕖𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝕞

Evagline observed him closely.

Sharp features, a steady gaze that held weight, and an effortless confidence that didn’t need to prove itself. There was a quiet intensity in him—something that made it hard to look away once you started.

He wasn’t wearing his top.

His upper body was bare, muscles clearly defined beneath his skin. His chest and arms looked sculpted through relentless combat rather than vanity. His abs were tight, every line clean and functional, his physique built for power, not display.

There were faint scars too—subtle, but enough to break perfection and replace it with something far more real.

For a moment—Evangeline just stared.

Her eyes drifted over his shoulders, then to his chest... and lower, tracing the faint lines running down his abdomen before she even realized it.

Aiden’s hand came down lightly on the back of her head.

She jerked slightly, snapping out of it.

"I was not staring, okay," she said quickly, her voice sharper than intended.

Aiden didn’t answer.

All around Arthur, the bodies of fallen monsters lay scattered—various shapes and sizes, some still dissolving into pixels of light.

Arthur turned his head toward the sound of the door opening.

His red eyes met theirs.

Evangeline’s voice rang out.

"Looks like you’re enjoying yourself quite a bit, huh."

She snapped her fingers and clapped once.

The monsters littering the floor dissolved completely, vanishing like dust in the wind.

"This facility," Evangeline said, gesturing around, "is the most advanced virtual training room built so far. It’s the closest thing to reality we have."

The walls shimmered faintly, showing scars where previous attacks had struck and been patched over by mana.

Arthur smiled.

"So," he said lazily, "what does the fraud princess require from me now? I’ve already declined your offer at least three times."

Evangeline’s mouth twitched hard.

In the next instant—

Arthur moved.

He closed the distance between them in a blur, stopping right in front of her.

Evangeline’s heart skipped once.

’Wow,’ she thought. ’He really is the real deal.’

She tilted her chin up.

"Then why are you still staying here?" she asked. "No one’s stopping you from leaving."

"Aren’t you the one who trapped me—"

"Don’t bullshit me, mister," Evangeline cut in sharply, jabbing a finger lightly at his chest.

"If you wanted to escape from here, you already would have," she said. "Sure, this place is heavily guarded—but are you seriously trying to say the person who massacred an entire clan of vampires in cold blood can’t escape from here?"

Arthur paused.

’That’s what I like about her character,’ he thought. ’She’s sharp.’

Seeing the small smile tugging at the corner of his lips, Evangeline smirked back.

"That can only mean one thing," she said. "You want something from me too. That’s why you’re still here."

She folded her arms.

"And my previous three offers didn’t include any of those things."

Suddenly Aiden stepped forward, expression hardening.

"Listen, Mr. Whoever-You-Are," he said. "Stop wasting our time. We have more important things to do. Just tell us what you want."

Arthur smiled lazily.

"And if I don’t?" he smirked. "What then? I’m not exactly in a bad and tried state right now... you think you can just knock me out like before.?"

The air shifted, subtle at first, like the quiet stillness before a storm fully broke loose, tension creeping into every corner of the room.

A suffocating blue aura burst out from Aiden’s body, swirling around him like a storm.

At the same time, a crimson-red aura erupted from Arthur, thick and heavy, pressing against the walls of the training hall.

The ground shuddered as their auras collided, invisible pressure grinding together.

Aiden’s eyes widened for a moment.

’we’re equal...?’ he thought, stunned for a bit.

Evangeline’s lips curled upward.

"I really hit the jackpot, didn’t I," she murmured.

Aiden was a B-Ranker at just seventeen—a prodigy even among prodigies.

And yet—

Arthur, who was still only a C-Ranker, was matching him head-on in aura pressure.

A faint tremor ran through the hall, dust shifting slightly as the weight of their presence continued to press down on everything around them.

"Stop," Evangeline’s voice rang out.

Both auras slowly receded.

Arthur and Aiden broke eye contact, though neither actually relaxed.

Evangeline looked at Arthur.

"Tell me what you want," she said. "I’ll give it to you."

She tilted her head.

"And we also know you possess one of those weird tools... systems."

Arthur’s eyes narrowed.

"Oh?" he said aloud. "Looks like you know a lot."

"Of course," Evangeline replied. "Aiden here also possesses one."

A vein popped on Aiden’s forehead.

"Now why would you tell him that?" he snapped.

"Don’t get your panties in a bunch," Evangeline said calmly. "We’re all going to work together from now on, so learn to get along."

Aiden glared daggers at Arthur.

"For some reason," he muttered, "I really don’t like this guy."

Evangeline rolled her eyes.

"Ignore Aiden," she told Arthur. "He goes crazy once in a while. Now—tell me what you want."

Arthur folded his arms.

"There’s an organization known as TCO," he said.

Evangeline nodded.

"I know about them."

Aiden’s eyes widened.

"Those bastards," he said. "They’ve been pestering me to join them for a long time. I’m going to eradicate them one of these days."

Arthur smiled.

"At least we agree on something."

Aiden looked away with a faint click of his tongue.

The atmosphere remained tense, though slightly calmer now, as if both sides were silently measuring each other beyond just strength alone.

"If I’m going to help you," Arthur continued, "then you’ll also have to help me get back at those bastards. I’m going to show them they messed with the wrong person."

He lifted a hand, counting off casually.

"I’m going to need a lot of support—political and financial—and a lot of manpower. Which only you have."

He extended his hand toward Evangeline.

"So, what do you say? It’s a deal?"

Evangeline stared at his hand, thinking.

Aiden leaned closer.

"Princess, think about it," he said quietly. "I’m getting a bad feeling from this guy."

Evangeline exhaled.

"High risk, high reward, Aiden," she said. "Right now, we’re the weakest faction. I need all the power and support I can get."

She reached out.

Their hands clasped.

Both Arthur and Evangeline smiled.

A silent agreement formed in that brief moment, something deeper than words, binding their interests together despite the uncertainty that lingered beneath.

"You still haven’t told me your name," she said.

"The name’s Arthur," he said. "Arthur Celestian. Remember it."

Evangeline’s eyes glinted.

"The name’s Evangeline Cael Ashford," she replied. "Remember it. You’re going to hear it a lot from now on."

"I will," Arthur said.

Inside his mind, the system’s voice chimed in.

[ Host, a prey is right in front of us. Even if he’s an ally now, we can at least steal an ability from him, right... right? ]

Arthur’s lips curled up.

’Of course we’re going to,’ he thought. ’Our growth is our top priority. Aiden is already quite strong...’

[ I knew you weren’t completely hopeless yet. ]

Arthur’s mouth twitched harder.

’Just give me the damn extraction conditions.’