Relief surged through Valeria as she took in the scene before her. Lucavion, though battered and bloodied, was alive. The sight of his smirk—irritating as it was—brought an unexpected sense of comfort. She let out a breath she hadn’t realized she was holding, her chest loosening as the worst of her fears dissolved.
“Haaah…” A soft, almost involuntary sound escaped her lips as she stepped further into the room. Her shoulders slumped slightly, the tension she had carried since seeing Elder Xue melting away.
Lucavion’s gaze shifted to her, his dark eyes gleaming with that infuriating mixture of amusement and awareness. His smirk deepened, as if her presence was exactly what he’d been waiting for.
“You’re here,” he said casually, his tone light despite the blood staining his clothes. “A bit late, though.”
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Valeria’s eyes narrowed, her moment of relief giving way to exasperation. “Late?” she echoed, her voice sharpening. “You’re standing there looking like you just crawled out of a warzone, and the first thing you say is that I’m late?”
He shrugged—or tried to. The motion sent a faint wince across his face, though he quickly masked it with another smirk. “Timing is everything, Valeria. But don’t worry. I managed to keep myself alive until you arrived.”
She let out an incredulous huff, crossing her arms. “Barely,” she muttered, her eyes flicking to his injured arm. “What happened here? Did Xue do this?”
Lucavion’s smirk softened slightly, his expression momentarily shadowed. “She tried,” he admitted, his tone quieter. “But I don’t go down that easily.”
Valeria’s heart twisted at his words, the gravity of what could have happened pressing against her. She took another step closer, her gaze darting over his injuries. “And what if she had succeeded?” she asked, her voice firm but laced with a hint of something more—something raw. “What then, Lucavion? Do you think this tournament, your games, would’ve been worth it?”
His smirk faded entirely, replaced by a fleeting seriousness that caught her off guard. “It would’ve been,” he said simply, his eyes meeting hers. “If it meant exposing the truth.”
Her breath caught at his words, the weight of his conviction striking her. She wanted to argue, to tell him how reckless he was being, but something about the quiet resolve in his voice stopped her.
Instead, she sighed, shaking her head. “You’re impossible,” she muttered, stepping closer still. “Sit down. Let me look at that arm before you decide to go and provoke someone else.”
Lucavion chuckled softly, the sound low and warm. “If I didn’t know better, I’d say you’re worried about me, Valeria.”
She rolled her eyes, her fingers already reaching for his arm. “Stop talking and sit,” she ordered, her tone brooking no argument.
Valeria knelt beside Lucavion, her movements brisk and precise as she inspected the angle of his dislocated arm. The faint, unnatural swelling around his shoulder made her wince inwardly, though she refused to let it show. Her hands moved instinctively, brushing aside the torn edges of his sleeve to get a clearer view.
“This is going to hurt,” she said flatly, glancing up at him.
Lucavion’s smirk returned, faint but defiant. “You don’t need to warn me. I’ve been through worse.”
Her lips thinned, irritation flickering in her eyes. “That doesn’t make it any less foolish. Hold still.”
Without waiting for a response, Valeria placed her hands firmly around his shoulder and forearm, steadying him as she prepared to reset the joint. Her grip was strong yet careful, her touch surprisingly gentle for someone so exasperated.
Lucavion didn’t flinch, though she caught the brief tightening of his jaw as she applied pressure. A sharp pop echoed through the room as his shoulder slipped back into place, followed by his faint hiss of pain. She didn’t comment, letting the silence stretch as she wrapped his arm in a makeshift sling using a strip of cloth she retrieved from her satchel.
“Doesn’t suit you, you know,” he said after a moment, his voice softer but still teasing.
“What doesn’t suit me?” she asked, her hands deftly securing the knot.
“Worrying.” His smirk lingered, but there was a warmth behind it now, a subtle shift that softened his usual mockery. “You’re much better at being angry with me.”
Valeria paused, her gaze flicking up to meet his. “Someone has to be worried about you,” she said simply. “Since you clearly don’t care about yourself.”
He chuckled, the sound rough but genuine. “Careful, Valeria. Keep that up, and I might start thinking you like me.”
Her expression darkened, but the faintest hint of color rose to her cheeks. “Don’t mistake pity for fondness, Lucavion,” she shot back, tying off the sling with a firm tug that made him wince again.
“Ouch,” he said with mock indignation, though his grin didn’t waver. “You really know how to hurt a guy.”
Valeria straightened, brushing her hands off as she stepped back. “You make it too easy,” she muttered. “Now, are you going to tell me why Xue came after you, or am I supposed to guess?”
Lucavion leaned back against the bench, his expression sobering as his eyes flickered with something more serious. “She didn’t appreciate the truths I shared in the arena,” he said. “Or the ones I hinted at.”
“You mean the ones that have half the crowd questioning the Cloud Heavens Sect’s morality?” Valeria’s voice carried a mix of disbelief and irritation. “You’re provoking an entire sect, Lucavion. Do you even realize the danger you’re in?”
He tilted his head, his gaze locking onto hers. “I know exactly what I’m doing, Valeria. And it’s worth it.”
His conviction, steady and unyielding, left her momentarily speechless. She studied him, searching for any trace of hesitation or doubt, but found none. It was maddening. Infuriating. And yet…
“I don’t know what to do with you,” she admitted quietly, more to herself.
Lucavion shook his head slowly, the faint remnants of his smirk softening into something more reflective. “I can deal with this on my own,” he said, his voice carrying a quiet confidence. “No matter what happens, Valeria, I’ll never regret crossing blades with people like them.”
His words hung in the air, heavy with conviction. For a moment, Valeria couldn’t respond, her thoughts spiraling as she tried to make sense of him. There was no hesitation in his tone, no flicker of doubt. It wasn’t arrogance, not entirely—it was something deeper.
“You say that like it’s a choice you’re proud of,” she said finally, her voice low. “But why? Why push yourself this far? The Cloud Heavens Sect… sure, they’re corrupt. I see that now. But is that really enough? Is hating them the reason you’re willing to risk everything?”
Lucavion’s gaze met hers, and for a brief moment, she saw something raw in his expression—something vulnerable beneath the layers of confidence and mockery. But it was gone just as quickly, replaced by the calm determination that seemed to define him.
Lucavion leaned back slightly, his uninjured arm resting on the bench behind him as his eyes held Valeria’s. The faintest smile ghosted his lips, not quite a smirk, but not entirely soft either. “Do you really need a reason to do something good?” he asked, his voice low and measured, a question that seemed to hang in the space between them. “Does every good deed have to come with an explanation?”
Valeria blinked, caught off guard by the simplicity of his argument. For a moment, she hesitated, her thoughts tangling as she searched for the right words. “No,” she said finally, her tone firm. “No, it doesn’t. Not if the person doing it is… good-natured.”
She paused, her gaze narrowing slightly. “But you, Lucavion? You’re not like that.”
His lips twitched, a flicker of amusement crossing his face. “Not like what?”
“You know exactly what I mean,” she retorted, crossing her arms. “You’re not some selfless hero running around trying to save the world. You’re calculating, infuriating, and reckless. So don’t stand there and pretend you’re doing this out of some inherent sense of righteousness.”
Lucavion chuckled softly, shaking his head as he looked away. “I don’t know what kind of person you think I am, Valeria,” he said, his tone casual but evasive. “But you’re right—I’m not that.”
Her eyes narrowed further, her jaw tightening as frustration bubbled just beneath the surface. “Then what kind of person are you?” she pressed. “Because nothing you’ve said—nothing you’ve done—makes any sense.”
He didn’t answer right away. Instead, he tilted his head, as if contemplating her words, though the faint smirk on his lips suggested he wasn’t going to give her what she wanted. “Does it really matter?” he said finally, his voice light. “What I am? What I’m not? In the end, the Cloud Heavens Sect needed to be challenged, and I’m the one who decided to do it. That’s all there is to it.”
Valeria’s fingers curled tightly around her arms, the calm resolve in his tone only fueling her irritation. She wanted to argue, to push him further, but something in his expression—a subtle shift, a quiet warning—told her it would be futile.
“Infuriating,” she muttered under her breath, turning away slightly as she tried to steady her thoughts. She knew him well enough by now to recognize when he was shutting her out. Whatever his reasons were, whatever drove him to put himself on the line like this, he wasn’t going to share them. Not now.
Lucavion’s gaze lingered on her for a moment, unreadable. “Maybe I am,” he said softly, almost as if to himself.
Valeria glanced back at him, her frustration giving way to a quiet resolve. She didn’t understand him—not fully—but for now, she had to accept that she wouldn’t get the answers she wanted.
“Fine,” she said after a long pause, her tone edged with reluctant resignation. “But don’t think this conversation is over.”