Sevette stared at Cornelia as if she had misheard her.
For a brief moment, the confident smile she always wore slipped, replaced by something closer to disbelief.
"You really want to fight me?" Sevette asked, her voice slower now, more deliberate, as if testing whether Cornelia would take the chance to step back.
Cornelia did not retreat. She stood with her shoulders straight, her hand still close to Cain's sleeve, not gripping it, but close enough that anyone could tell where her heart was anchored.
Sevette let out a soft laugh, then shook her head. "Do you even understand what you're saying?"
She took a step forward, her boots echoing faintly against the stone floor, her presence growing heavier with each breath. "I've crossed territories, Sister Cornelia. I've fought young talents from every vampire domain worth mentioning."
