The moon hovered above the temple like a silent witness.
The marble trembled.
It was not a natural tremor.
The stairway vibrated beneath Éon's feet as muffled echoes crossed the sanctuary.
"AAAAAAH!"
"N-NO...!"
The screams passed through the temple's closed doors.
The distant sound of stone breaking.
Something heavy being dragged.
Éon remained motionless.
One of his hands rested near the Totsuka no Tsurugi.
No emotion crossed his face.
No haste.
No doubt.
A figure appeared at the base of the staircase.
Éon watched him approach without moving a single muscle.
White garments.
Golden details.
Long black hair falling over his shoulders.
Golden veins ran across pale skin like lines of liquid metal beneath the moonlight.
A sword of restrained design accompanied his steps, hanging at his waist like a natural extension of his own body.
As the distance shortened.
The man's golden eyes lifted to meet him.
For an instant, he remained silent.
Observing.
Measuring.
"So it's true."
His gaze traveled across Éon's face beneath the hood.
"They really are identical."
A brief pause.
"Except for the color of the eyes."
"When His Majesty asked me to observe you, I imagined many possibilities."
The temple continued to tremble.
Stones slid from the tops of the columns.
"Some were bad."
"Others, disastrous."
"AAAAGHHH...!"
A new crash echoed from within the temple.
For a moment, the golden eyes shifted toward the sanctuary doors.
Soon they returned to Éon.
"But I admit I did not consider this."
The moon partially illuminated his features.
"A single night."
"That was all it took."
He looked toward the temple doors once more.
"To create a problem that will reach the entirety of the Northern Kingdom."
"Do you understand what you have just set in motion?"
His voice came out calm.
Controlled.
"Or did you simply decide that the consequences belong to someone else?"
Éon's silence was the only answer.
The figure held his gaze for a few seconds.
He gave a slight nod.
"I understand."
A brief pause.
"Unlike the other one... you're not someone of many words."
His hand lowered to the sword at his waist.
"My name is Cassian."
"As commander of the Order of the White Dragons..."
Metal slowly slid from the scabbard.
The blade reflected the moonlight like newly formed ice.
As it emerged, it revealed the shape of a white dragon's folded wings poised to take flight.
Delicate silver runes ran along the steel near the ricasso, while the pommel bore the seal of the Northern Kingdom: a white dragon coiled around ancient roots.
It was a sword of restrained lines, made for a man who never wasted movement.
"It is my duty to prevent this kingdom from bleeding."
"HELP—"
The scream died abruptly.
The Arming Sword fully left the scabbard.
"If you intend to remain before this entrance..."
Cassian observed the stance.
The breathing.
The way Éon's hand remained near the katana.
There was no tension.
No obvious hostility.
It was like watching someone who was simply waiting.
"I will have no choice but to use force."
BOOM—
Cassian surged forward.
The Arming Sword descended diagonally.
Not toward the head.
The blade sought the dominant shoulder.
Éon turned on his own axis.
The katana partially left the scabbard in the same motion.
Clang!
The blades met.
The Arming Sword was deflected out of line.
The two passed one another.
Without insisting.
Without remaining locked.
Cassian pivoted his leading foot on the step above.
His guard recovered before his body even finished the movement.
The sword returned immediately.
A horizontal cut appeared at rib height.
Éon stepped back half a step.
The tip of the Arming Sword passed before his cloak.
The Totsuka answered from below.
Not toward the chest.
But toward the hand holding the sword.
The Arming Sword dropped to intercept.
Clang!
The blades collided.
Sparks briefly illuminated the steps.
The staircase trembled violently.
Neither looked away.
Cassian advanced again.
Two short steps.
The Arming Sword thrust straight forward.
Its tip sought the inside of the shoulder.
Éon shifted his foot to the side.
His body escaped by mere centimeters.
The katana appeared.
Once again toward the wrist.
Cassian withdrew his hand.
The blade passed by mere centimeters.
Without pursuing the missed strike, Cassian merely rotated his shoulders.
The Arming Sword immediately descended in response.
Éon planted his foot on a lower step.
His body leaned backward.
The steel passed before his face.
In the same motion, the katana's tip darted forward.
Straight toward the throat.
Cassian intercepted.
Clang!
The two weapons remained in contact for an instant.
Neither attempted to overpower the other through strength.
The blades separated.
Fragments of stone slid from the temple façade.
Another distant scream died behind the closed doors.
Both moved again.
Cassian descended one step.
Changed the angle.
The Arming Sword cut toward Éon's legs.
Not to bring him down.
But to limit his footing on the staircase.
Éon leapt backward.
His foot barely found the lower step.
And the Totsuka was already returning.
No pause.
No rebuilding the guard.
Cassian raised the Arming Sword above his head.
Clang!
The blades collided.
The shock traveled through both men's arms.
Soon they pulled apart.
Distance reappeared between them.
The moon remained high above the temple.
Neither advanced immediately.
Cassian's golden eyes remained on the katana.
Then returned to Éon.
"Everything in your style seeks the same thing."
A pause.
"To end the fight before it truly begins."
The wind crossed the staircase.
The Arming Sword remained motionless before Cassian.
"It seems the reports about the Blackthorne orphans were not exaggerated."
Cassian's fingers adjusted their grip.
The Arming Sword lowered a few centimeters.
His stance changed.
Lower.
More solid.
The golden eyes shone with growing intensity.
The pupils became slit like those of a serpent.
"Allow me to show you..."
A brief pause.
"The difference between an assassin..."
"And a swordsman."
BOOM—
Cassian exploded down the first step.
Shattering the distance with the weight of his body projected forward.
The Arming Sword came down with the fall.
Extending its reach through the slope of the staircase.
Clang!
Éon raised the Totsuka by instinct.
The impact came from above.
With weight.
His arms absorbed the pressure, and his body yielded half a step onto the lower stair.
Before he could even recover his stance.
Cassian had already adjusted his footing above and repositioned the axis of his body.
The blade swept through the space between head and ribs.
Éon twisted his torso and allowed the strike to pass along his front line.
Using the step itself as a rotational base.
The response came short.
Instinctive.
The tip of the Totsuka sought the line of the throat in a direct counter.
Cassian tilted his head out of line.
At the same time, he rotated his wrists.
The Arming Sword returned in a short arc.
Descending from above.
Closing the space before the katana could fully recover.
Clang!
The blades met in the middle of the staircase.
But the impact favored Cassian.
Éon felt the weight travel through his shoulders.
He absorbed it by descending half a step with the force.
Cassian rotated his wrists without withdrawing the arm.
Maintaining constant pressure.
The blade slid along the side of the Totsuka.
And reappeared outside Éon's guard.
Straight toward his face.
Éon pulled his head back at the limit of his balance on the step.
The blade opened a thin line across his cheek.
They separated only enough to reposition their footing.
Cassian maintained the advantage of elevation.
BOOM—
The Arming Sword descended diagonally.
Cutting through the air at the angle of the staircase.
Éon yielded an entire step.
To break the descending angle.
The Totsuka intercepted the line and diverted the strike away from the path of his body.
Cassian's blade slid and returned from the opposite side, exploiting the difference in height.
Éon rotated his hips and let the steel pass close to his chest.
Using the movement to reposition his center of gravity on the lower step.
The response came short.
The tip of the Totsuka rose along the inside of the arm.
Seeking the shoulder joint before the sword completed its return.
Cassian withdrew the arm.
Clang!
The Totsuka met the guard of the Arming Sword.
The impact still vibrated between the two blades.
But Cassian used the resistance of the clash itself.
Rotating his wrists without taking the sword off line.
The Arming Sword returned immediately.
Shorter.
Closer.
Éon raised the Totsuka to intercept.
But the distance had already vanished.
The tip of the Arming Sword scraped across his forearm as it passed.
Blood ran down his sleeve.
Éon's foot slid another step lower.
Cassian remained above.
The pressure remained constant.
Éon released his breath in a controlled manner.
"Moon Dance..."
Cassian did not wait for him to finish.
The Arming Sword was already descending diagonally.
Taking advantage of the higher axis.
Éon rotated the blade and redirected the weight away from the central line of the staircase.
Breaking the descending trajectory.
"Waning Moon."
Cassian advanced with his own blade.
Descending another step so as not to lose contact.
The sword sought the shoulder with a short controlling cut.
Éon twisted his torso out of line.
But instead of retreating again, he advanced.
His leading foot rose to the next step.
For an instant, the two bodies passed one another.
When their lines crossed—
Their positions reversed upon the staircase.
Cassian had to turn on his own axis to recover the attack line.
While Éon stabilized his footing one step above.
The Totsuka's response appeared immediately as it descended.
Short.
Directly toward the line between neck and clavicle.
Cassian raised the Arming Sword.
Clang!
The impact forced his feet to yield half a step.
But he transformed the defense into rotation.
The blade slid along the Totsuka while his body turned with it.
Without recovering distance.
Without retreating.
The Arming Sword reappeared from the side.
Rising toward Éon's ribs.
Éon lowered the Totsuka.
Clang!
The shock traveled through his forearm.
Even so, the sword's tip scraped the fabric of his cloak as it passed.
Cassian lowered his center of gravity and advanced again.
The Arming Sword rose diagonally from the lower step.
Éon diverted the line with the Totsuka.
The instant Cassian's sword began its return, the katana appeared in a short motion.
Rising between them.
The tip climbed beneath the guard.
Seeking the biceps of the armed arm.
Cassian tucked his elbow against his body.
Clang!
The Totsuka met the guard of the Arming Sword before reaching flesh.
The impact traveled through both men's arms.
Cassian did not retreat.
He adjusted his footing on the lower step.
The Arming Sword described a short arc.
Aiming for the ribs.
Éon twisted his torso.
The strike passed close to his cloak.
The Totsuka answered with a thrust.
Straight toward the right eye.
Cassian tilted his head.
The katana passed through empty air.
And Cassian had already returned.
The Arming Sword appeared once more.
Horizontal.
Short.
Fast.
Éon pulled back his shoulder to save his neck.
But the movement was not enough.
The tip of the Arming Sword slid across the base of his clavicle.
Opening a thin line of blood.
The pressure continued.
Cassian advanced with the return.
The Arming Sword thrust.
Clang!
Éon diverted the line.
But the shock still traveled through his arms when the sword reappeared.
Straight toward his throat.
Too fast.
For the first time since the beginning of the fight—
Éon realized he would not reach it in time.
And then—
The sword stopped.
A few centimeters from Éon's throat.
Purple filaments already coiled around the Arming Sword.
Like living roots crawling across steel.
Cassian's eyes narrowed.
Then he slowly lifted his gaze.
At the top of the staircase—
Éreon watched in silence.
Purple filaments slithered around his hand.
The sword remained suspended a few centimeters from Éon's throat.
No one moved.
Éreon's voice broke the silence.
"Don't you think you're going too far for someone who was supposed to observe?"
Cassian held his gaze.
Without answering immediately.
The filaments remained wrapped around the steel.
Motionless.
Controlled.
"For the past few months, I ignored your hostility."
Éreon's voice remained calm.
"After all, I imagined you were merely a loyal servant fulfilling his duty."
"But it seems you've begun to confuse loyalty with authority."
Cassian's golden eyes did not waver.
"And it seems you continue to ignore the scale of the problem you created tonight."
The wind crossed the staircase.
"Everything that happened here will have consequences."
"For this kingdom."
"For Your Majesty."
Éreon remained silent for a moment.
Observing him.
"Cassian."
"Whether you like it or not..."
The purple filaments tightened around the Arming Sword.
"We are heirs of the North."
"The next time you decide to act above the authority you swore to serve..."
His voice remained dangerously calm.
"Make sure the king is standing beside you."
Éreon slightly raised his fingers.
BOOM—
An invisible wave crossed the staircase.
The marble cracked beneath Cassian's boots.
Forcing him to take a single step back.
But it was enough.
The filaments vanished.
The pressure on the sword disappeared.
Yet he did not advance again.
"Éon."
Éon did not answer.
He merely sheathed the Totsuka no Tsurugi.
The sound of steel returning to the scabbard echoed through the staircase.
"Let's go."
Éreon remained at the top.
His violet eyes held Cassian's for one final instant.
Soon he turned away.
The two walked toward the temple doors.
Behind them, Cassian remained motionless.
Golden eyes followed the two figures.
Cassian's voice emerged once more.
"I hope you enjoy your stay in the North, heirs."
Éon's pace did not slow.
Cassian continued:
"Because when His Majesty decides to act..."
A brief pause.
"Nothing will stop me from fulfilling my order."
Silence hovered over the staircase.
A small smile appeared on Éreon's face.
Almost imperceptible.
Cassian watched for a moment.
Then he returned the Arming Sword to the scabbard at his waist.
Click.
The sound of steel briefly echoed through the staircase.
Without adding another word, he turned away.
And began descending the temple steps.