Steam rolled down the tiled walls, wrapping the entire duelist's waiting room in a dense fog. The water hissed as it poured over Thales' back, tracing over the scars, old burns, and remnants of battles that had long healed, at least on the surface.
He stood there in silence, his palms braced against the wall. The sound of dripping water was the only rhythm in the room, but even it couldn't drown out the whisper in his chest.
He killed Richard and he didn't regret it. Not one bit.
The blood had already been washed from his hands but he kept staring at them anyway. The veins pulsed faintly with light-blue energy. The power felt heavier than before, like it had soaked into his bones.
"I'm a murderer…"
His reflection in the fogged mirror was just a blur with broad shoulders, wet platinum hair plastered over his azure eyes and a coldness in his expression that hadn't been there before.
His Human mother was soft-spoken and kind. She was a servant in the House of Erdict. She never smiled much after Thales was born and when she did, it was never in front of anyone else. She had been forced into her affair with the ruler of the House because it was simply reality. Power took what it wanted.
And for that, she was executed.
His stepmother had ordered it herself, right in the family courtyard. He could still hear her sweet and venomous voice.
"Even beasts must learn their place."
He had been eight. He remembered his brothers laughing while the sword fell.
He remembered the warmth of her blood as he held her headless body. That memory never faded. It burned brighter every time someone dared to call him a half-breed, an abomination or a mistake that should never have existed, because it was true.
And now one of those laughing brothers was dead by his own hand.
He looked down at his arms again, flexing them slightly. He could feel the new energy burning inside. When a Combat Fluxer killed another, the killer inherited the Flux they killed. He inherited The Rule of Six.
Richard's Combat Flux gave him the ability to summon six blades, cycling in formations of perfect synchronization if multiplied. It was a technique that no one had ever been able to replicate, not even Thales. His own Flux, Sword Summon, allowed him to conjure six, twelve, or even sixty blades per second when going all out. But with The Rule of Six now fused into his core, he could go beyond.
"Two Combat Fluxes in one body… seems I finally got something worth smiling about."
He shut the water off, the hiss fading into silence.
Droplets clung to his skin as he reached for a towel, drying himself off. When he was done, he slipped into a loose black shirt, rolling the sleeves up to his forearms, then fastened a silver pendant around his neck, which was a memento of his mother. He sat on the bench, exhaling, and without turning, said quietly.
"How long are you going to stand there?"
The air behind him shifted.
"Long enough to see that little brother of mine has finally gone insane."
Thales turned slightly, his eyes narrowing.
Ceryon Erdict, his eldest stepbrother, was standing in front of him.
He was tall and perfectly poised. His hair was pale platinum. His eyes had an unsettling shade of bright platinum. His attire wasn't ceremonial, but even his casual wear looked regal.
"Ceryon. Didn't expect you to visit."
Ceryon's expression didn't change. "You killed our brother."
Thales scoffed. "Our brother? Since when were we family?"
"You still talk like that bastard's son you've always been."
Thales exhaled through his nose, brushing his hair back.
"Call me whatever you want. I've heard it all. Beast. Half-breed. Defect. You think I care anymore? Seriously, you should come up with new insults. You know, for a long time, I kept telling myself that karma would handle people like you. That I'd just have to wait. That maybe, someday, the Goddesses would make things right."
He looked up at his brother with a cold smile.
"But I guess that was wishful thinking. So I'm done waiting. I'll handle it myself."
"You're declaring war on the House of Erdict?"
"No. I'm taking it."
Ceryon chuckled at first before full laughter that echoed in the mist-filled chamber. He stepped closer, stopping just a few paces away.
"You? Rule Erdict? You barely scraped by killing Richard. Do you even understand what it means to rule? You think spilling blood makes you worthy?"
"Worthy? No. It makes me honest."
Ceryon's grin faded, replaced with a thin, cruel smile.
"You've grown arrogant, little brother. Power makes you stupid, and stupidity makes you dead."
He lifted his hand.
Xana surged out of him. The sheer pressure slammed into Thales like a wall, forcing him down to one knee. The floor cracked under the weight of his Xana. Thales gritted his teeth, his veins lighting up with azure light as he tried to push back, but Ceryon's Xana was overwhelming.
"You'd do well as my general. But a ruler? You're thinking too far ahead. You're a soldier who mistakes hatred for purpose. You'd crumble the first time someone bowed to you."
Thales spat blood, his voice breaking through the pressure.
"And you're… a coward who mistakes privilege for power."
Ceryon stopped mid-step. Slowly, he turned back, amusement flickering in his eyes.
"Careful, Thales. I might just decide to finish what Mother started."
"Then you better make sure you can actually kill me this time."
For a long, tense moment, neither moved. Then Ceryon's smirk returned.
"Enjoy your little victory, Thales. Because the next time we meet, you won't walk away with your head still on. And when will you keep watching, heir of Argemenes? Are you not going to help your friend?"