The night was deep. The crickets silent in preparation for winter. The chill in the air grew with every passing hour. In a city nestled within a valley in the Dragonspine mountains stood a sturdy fort. In a candlelit corridor of that fort, a boy strode towards his destination. His steps were silent and his presence ethereal. As he passed by a candle, the flickering light glinted off the emerald dagger in his hand.

Rheas walked towards the infirmary, determined to solve the greatest shackle in his heart. When he was born, Peacock City had rejoiced. Two years later, it had rejoiced again for Cyn. The toddler had watched with resentful eyes as the servants and maids, that had transferred around his desires for the entirety of his short life, do so for the newest addition of the family.

Growing up, he had tried repeatedly to side-line his brother and recapture the attention of his parents. Cyn made it difficult. He learnt to walk the same day Rheas wrote his first letter, learnt to speak the same time he wrote his first prose. So, he had added spice to the child’s milk. That night his father had raised his hand against him for the first time. His buttocks never felt the same.

Learning that he was the designated heir apparent and being evaluated as a prodigy in the martial path had desalinated a lot of the jealousy. Watching Cyn bury himself in the esoteric scientific literature he so disdained and leave his body uncultivated had cemented his notion of superiority. As such, their relations had improved.

That was until, at the tender age of fifteen, the boy had made significant contribution to the emerging field of steam technology and had been granted an invite to the Imperial Academy.

To put it into perspective, Barons constituted the lowest tier of nobility, each of them given a city to govern. For example, Baron Pavone, who ruled Peacock city, was one in a conglomerate of eight Barons under a Viscount. Several such districts constituted a State. Twenty-eight States made up the kingdom of Regiis, ruled by his majesty, King Regiis III.

The Imperial Academy was the most prestigious institute in the entire kingdom. A hotbed of innovation and politics, it had churned out Dukes and Sages throughout its existence. Each student was a prodigy in his own field, the crème of the crop gathered from the entire kingdom. Compared to the talents in the Academy’s martial department, Rheas’ talent could only be called pitiful.

Once again, Rheas had been tormented by deep envy. Learning of Cyn’s talent in martial arts today had been the last straw. His sweaty palm tightened on the dagger yet again.

Fortunately, the infirmary was unlocked and guarded by a single mortal guard. Sneaking past the drowsy man with ease, he avoided the rooms with the sleeping nurses and reached Cyn’s room.

According to the information he had, Ira had been discharged as she had suffered from only minor wounds with the exception of a case of mild amnesia, which was out of the scope of the Healer’s abilities. Cyn had stayed on with a massive headache from somehow overdrawing his brain’s potential.

He knelt by the door, propped it ajar and lit the soporific incense he had brought along for the task. The ability of Invidia was to steal the skill of whoever was injured with it. It had taken him two gruelling years of image training to finally manifest the dagger and just like all the other times in his life, Cyn had stolen the spotlight before it even had a chance to shine on him.

He had created it with two Precepts or limitations in mind, thereby strengthening its ability. Firstly, manifesting the dagger would automatically send him into Reserva, leaving him defenceless. Considering that he had planned to use it to execute prisoners and strengthen himself, he had felt that it was not that much of a disadvantage. He had to basically restrain his victims beforehand. Secondly, he had to know what skill his victim had to steal it and the longer the dagger was in contact with the victim, the more complete was the stolen skill. He had never even dreamed that the first use of his dagger would be on his brother. Well… he had, but never thought of executing it in reality.

He waited for the fumes to fill the room before extinguishing the incense and taking it back into his pocket. Swallowing the antidote, he sidled into the room through the gap in the door and closed it behind him. The room was flooded by moonlight, outlining the wispy smoke that roiled around in the air. Moving silently to side of the bed, he saw his brother’s pale face sinking deeper and deeper into a peaceful slumber as he inhaled more of the smoke.

The pillow below him had been drenched in sweat and his knotted brows were slowly relaxing. Apparently, he had been suffering from nightmares. ‘Brother, it looks like you owe me again. That incense took nearly a year of my allowance. Now, pay me back with your skill.’ He thought as he grinned manically.

To prevent Cyn from waking up from the pain, he pricked him lightly in his shoulder, the least sensitive part of the human body. Elated, he waited for information and muscle memory to flow into him through the dagger… and froze when he felt cold steel against his neck.

The shadows around him seemed to darken as a slim hand that shone palely under the moonlight emerged from them and lightly grabbed his wrist and moved it away from Cyn along with his dagger.

An illusory voice emanated from all around him. “I thank you for alleviating the pain of the Young Master, considering that you did not aim at his life, this matter ends here. Please show yourself the door.”

The shadows returned to normal, the hand disappeared along with the blade on his neck, leaving him shivering from the near-death experience.

With shaky steps, Rheas walked out of the ward and sneaked back to his room. Once there, he finally let out the breath he didn’t know he had been holding and sank back against his door to the ground. He breathed in gulps as his hyperactive heart finally slowed down.

With a frustrated yell, he threw Invidia at a dart board where it stuck and dissolved into motes of light. Unsatisfied, he pummelled the sandbag in his room with his unprotected fists, revelling in the pain, using it to push down the unwilling sentiment bubbling within him. Frustration mounted with each fist as he noticed how his movements were slightly more coordinated than before. It had been what… a few seconds of contact and it improved his talent perceptibly. If only… if only he could have it all.

“Damn!”

His aura flared as he put the entirety of his strength behind the fist, penetrating the sandbag. The susurration of leaking sand mingled with the sound of his heavy breathing as he stood there, his hand through the sandbag, sweat streaming down him and soaking his garments.

After a long time, he straightened up, his face gaining an indifferent cast as he walked to the baths after ringing a bell.

Before long a maid came in with a towel, soap and a change of clothes. Depositing it, she made to leave but was arrested by a vice like grip on her arm. Soon, the sounds of flesh slapping against flesh resounded outside the bathroom, mingled with the muffled screams of a woman and the grunts of a man.

Refreshed, Rheas leaned back in the warm, soapy water as the sniffling maid tremblingly gathered her clothes and hastily ran out of the room, not bothering to hide the blue traces where he had gripped too hard.

He waited for what he knew would soon come.

The situation was critical and he would have to take action. For that, he would need assistance from the female incarnation of Pride who mockingly called herself his servant while acting like his owner.

He needed to give her a demonstration of authority, help her learn her place, so that she could put down her baseless pride and help him wholeheartedly.

So, he waited. As did the world, for the clash of two Children of Destiny.