Chapter 17: Princess, Pawn, and the Jester.

Chapter 17: Princess, Pawn, and the Jester. Seles stared at the floor. What... just happened? Did he just slap me? How—how dare he? It took her a few moments to process before she screamed "ARGHHHHHHH!" Her voice echoed off the walls, raw and furious. No one had ever dared touch her. Not once. So how did he? I’ll kill him. I’ll fucking kill him. She was not an heir. But her entire life, she’d been raised like a princess. Her grandfather was a chief elder of the Valenthrone family and she always had everything she wanted. If anything, she was the one people feared. She was the one who did the slapping. Not the other way around. And yet Rael—that useless mutt of a noble—had raised his hand to her? Her cheek still stung. He’d changed. That dog never made her wait before. Never talked back. Never refused her anything. And today? He made her wait thirty minutes. All of that combined with the slap made her furious. Still, she forced herself to breathe. No. Calm down. It’s not worth it. He was going to Noxvalen. The death rate there was more than 50% and that was for the talented. Rael wouldn’t even last a week. She knew him. A pushover and an arrogant noble who had nothing except his family name. So why should she get her hands dirty? Let the world kill him. Let him bleed out in some no-name dungeon like the pathetic failure he was. She clenched her fists and took a deep breath. Just two days. That’s all it would take. Sneak the artifact out, get the engagement contract annulled and take it back. She didn’t think for a second that he would betray her. Not because she trusted him... but because he signed the soul contract with her. If he had the brains to match that face, maybe she’d have taken him seriously. But Rael was too easy — too soft. A man you use and throw, not keep. [A/N: Delusions?] __ [Stella’s POV] Stella walked quietly behind her young master who had just exited the meeting room. She could feel it—the change. Ever since the Nexus Awakening Trial, something in him had shifted. But he was still the same young master she’d known since childhood. Just then— "Arghhhhhhh" She heard a loud scream of Young Miss Seles from the meeting room. Still, she didn’t question it. She had been taught better than that. Taught never to speak unless spoken to. Never to meet a noble’s eyes. Never to show anything other than obedience. To always smile. Even when slapped. Even when insulted. Smile—like a doll. It wasn’t that she didn’t feel things. She just learned how to never show them. She hated Young Miss Seles. Not because of the slaps. She was used to pain. But because of how she used her young master—again and again. Because Stella had to watch him smile through it. Bow his head through it. And she couldn’t say anything. She had no right to. Because her young master... loved the Young Miss But today... something had changed. She could see it. The way the Young Master looked at Young Miss Seles—it was cold. Like he was seeing a stranger. And then... the scream just a moment ago. Stella didn’t know what had happened inside that room. But for the first time, she wasn’t afraid. For the first time... she allowed herself to smile. Not the usual fake smile... but a genuine one. _ [Rael’s POV] I stared at the ceiling. I was back in my room. It’d been two hours since my talk with Seles, and I’d spent most of it testing out my new skill. Honestly? I’d learned a lot. [Card Throw] was solid. It added something I’d been missing—ranged attack. I could fire a card from up to ten meters. Anything beyond that and my precision started to drop. Also, I could only activate the detonation effect within three seconds of the card hitting its target. Any later and the effect wouldn’t activate. Creating and firing the cards did consume mana but the cost was manageable—at least for now. I even tested [Minor Strength Increase]. Was it good? ...Let’s just say I’m trying to stay positive. It wasn’t bad. But it definitely wasn’t great either. Just... average. Still, overall, it was a fruitful day. I formed my core, awakened my affinity, gained new skills and most importantly... ...secured a shot at The Crimson’s Tear. I didn’t know about it from the novel. Nope. I knew it from the memories I inherited from the original Rael. It wasn’t just some legendary artifact. It was a body-reforging potion—one of the most prized possessions of Samuel Von Valenthrone, the chief elder of the Valenthrone family. But what made it special wasn’t just the reforging part. It could increase a person’s physical talent—a permanent boost. The kind you’re born with, not the kind you train. Samuel was an A-Rank Resonant, hoarding it for his future breakthrough to S-Rank. Greedy bastard. I mean, if you reach S-Rank, your body naturally reforges anyway. He didn’t even need it. So really, I was doing him a favor. Recycling something he was too stingy to use. He should even thank me. But alas some heroes should remain hidden. I stood up from the bed and stretched. Now wasn’t the time to laze around. I still needed skills and artifacts. If I was going to survive Noxvalen— No. If I was going to win— Then I had to be ready. Because the real game hadn’t even begun yet. __ [Author’s Note] As always, thanks for reading — drop a comment and power stones or Seles might come slap you next. ????✋