Chapter 47 - Zenith Kastor
"Kyaaa!"
The scream pierced the air like a blade, high-pitched and indignant.
Cale’s head snapped toward the source, and for the first time, he actually registered who the second girl was. Her face was flushed crimson, her body instinctively curling in on itself as she scrambled to cover herself with whatever fabric was within arm’s reach.
’Fuck! Fuck fuck! Is this my ancestors cursing me or something?!’
Zenith Kastor. Daughter of Valeryen Kastor—the man universally acknowledged as the strongest swordmaster in the entire kingdom. A prodigy in her own right, with a cultivation talent that rivaled even Emma’s.
And he’d just seen her completely naked.
Emma, meanwhile, wasn’t screaming. She was glaring at him with an intensity that suggested she was definitely considering whether she could kill him and get away with it.
Though under normal circumstances, Cale would have cheerfully submitted to whatever punishment she devised. Right now, though? Right now he wasn’t sure if that glare promised pleasure or actual murder.
His weak survival instinct kicked in.
Cale swiftly—desperately—turned and retreated, backing out of the doorway as quickly as his legs could carry him without actually running like a coward. He made sure to close the door firmly behind him, unwilling to leave two "jade beauties" exposed to potential onlookers.
Out in the hallway, he leaned against the wall and sighed heavily, his racing heartbeat gradually returning to something resembling normal.
’Heh, this was not something I expected,’ he thought, running a hand through his hair. ’In my past life, I didn’t even know if Zenith was ever in this place or not. But now... who better to spar with than the daughter of the strongest swordmaster?’
Then the implications crashed over him, he didn’t even consider if she was willing to fight him. Well, fight is a small word now.
’Wait. She’s going to come after my head now, isn’t she?’
He sighed again, deeper this time, shaking his head at his own misfortune.
"Is this my popular phase?" he muttered to the empty hallway, a wry smile tugging at his lips despite everything. "Of all the timing..."
The irony wasn’t lost on him. Here he was, supposedly the weakest member of his family, and somehow he kept attracting the attention of the most powerful women in the kingdom.
’Maybe I should just accept that my life is going to be complicated.’
He pushed off the wall and started walking, already mentally preparing himself for the inevitable confrontation that would come when Zenith decided to hunt him down.
Which, knowing his luck, would be sooner rather than later. And sooner it was.
***
After changing into her training outfit—form-fitting white and grey martial clothes that hugged her frame perfectly—Zenith burst from Emma’s room in a roar, her presence radiating barely contained fury.
Emma simply walked out behind her, positioning herself near the doorway with an expression that clearly communicated: you brought this upon yourself.
Zenith’s eyes fixed on Cale with laser-sharp intensity.
"You," she said, "Who are you? Why are you here?"
She turned to Emma, her gaze seeking confirmation. "Emily, do you know him?"
Emma looked at Cale first, and a smirk spread across her delicate features. The kind of smirk that promised she was about to make his next few minutes problematic. Oh, she was enjoying this alright.
Cale’s face went pale.
’Fuck, s-she isn’t... no dear, this isn’t the time to play... please please please...’
His expression was practically begging, silently pleading with Emma not to make this worse.
Emma narrowed her eyes, letting her gaze flick between them both—clearly enjoying every second of his discomfort. The silence stretched, becoming almost unbearable.
Cale tried harder, pulling out his ultimate weapon: a puppy face paired with an innocent smile, this face even worked on hot shop owner ladies.
An arrow struck Emma’s heart. Her heartbeat accelerated, a flush spreading across her pale cheeks. She took a moment to collect herself, then sighed.
"Yes, I do know him. We’re... acquaintances."
Zenith turned back to Cale, her eyes narrowing. "But why are you here at this time?"
She knew better than anyone that only a fool would sneak around Emma’s quarters at night without explicit permission.
Cale decided honesty was his best bet, else she would chew him out if even one of his lies were caught. "I... I wanted to... spar."
"A spar?" Zenith’s voice rose in pitch, disbelief coloring every syllable.
He nodded vigorously, his expression earnest despite the absurdity of the situation.
Her face suddenly burned crimson. Energy surged through her body, qi flowing faster and more intensely. In one fluid motion, a sword materialized in her hand—elegant steel that sang as it cut through the air.
Cale understood the implication instantly. Either she was ready to accept his sparring challenge, or this was her way of finishing him for his life for his act.
’...Well, either way, this is more than what I could ask for.’
His shadow suddenly rippled beneath his feet, darkness pooling like liquid before coalescing into solid form. The wrapped hilt of Noxis emerged slowly from that void, violet-black energy spiraling around the pommel as the obsidian blade rose like a dark star piercing through night itself.
The Primordial sword settled perfectly into his grip, hungry and ready.
And thus the fight began.
Zenith moved first—a blur of white and grey, her blade cutting toward him with ferocity. Cale met her strike with Noxis, the collision sending sparks of violet chaos scattering across the courtyard like falling stars.
CLANG.
The impact sent a shockwave tearing through the courtyard, rippling outward in concentric waves that flattened grass and scattered loose stones like insects fleeing an approaching storm.
Every collision painted the shadows with vibrant, kinetic streaks of light—emerald green clashing against obsidian black, each strike a percussion note in a symphony of violence.
Cale stood like an immovable pillar, his blonde hair whipping violently in the displaced air.
In his grip, the massive black odachi—hummed with an almost alive quality, radiating a dense, suffocating aura that seemed to actively devour the moonlight around it.
The violet-black energy coating the blade writhed like captured chaos, hungry and restless.
Pressing the assault was Zenith Kastor, and she moved like liquid lightning.
She was pure, fluid motion—a tempest incarnate.
Her double-sided sword twirled in a blinding flurry of emerald and ivory, each rotation controlled despite the blistering speed.
Her green and white Qi flared brilliantly, forming a protective corona around her body that marked her as a warrior of considerable skill.
They engaged in a blistering exchange that seemed to defy the laws of normal combat.
The rhythm was frantic, almost musical in its relentless, high-octane tempo.
Emma watched from the doorway, her ’new’ eyes tracking movements that most cultivators couldn’t even perceive. Her expression was unreadable, though a slight tension in her jaw suggested she was reassessing everything she thought she knew about the blonde idiot she’d been intimate with.
Cale pivoted, planting his boots firmly against the scorched earth. He gripped the long hilt of his odachi with both hands, fingers tightening as he channeled a massive surge of ink-black aura directly into the steel.
The blade began to glow with an intensity that turned night into twilight. The violet-black energy coalesced, forming a visible coating of chaos around the weapon that made the air itself warp and shimmer.
He brought the heavy blade down in a devastating overhead cleave.
Zenith reacted with the instinctive speed. She snapped the central shaft of her double-sided sword horizontally, raising the weapon to intercept. Her green and white Qi flared brilliantly, forming a defensive barrier that crackled with barely contained power.
The impact was deafening.
The sheer kinetic force of Cale’s strike sent Zenith skidding violently backward, her body sliding across the earth like a stone skipping across water.
Her boots carved deep, ragged trenches into the ground—evidence of the crushing, overwhelming weight being pressed down upon her.
Somehow, very small grooves were being formed on her sword. Since it wasn’t an artifact, it was obviously weaker. But it was as if it was being chipped away.
For a moment, just a fraction of a second, Cale saw something flicker across her face. Recognition that she was facing someone on her level, and she leveled up her strength likewise.
Her green and white aura sputtered, visibly struggling against the crushing weight of his own.
But Zenith’s flow didn’t break at all. As her slide slowed to a halt, she weaponized the backward momentum with the cunning of a seasoned fighter. Her feet dug into the earth, finding purchase even as the force of his attack tried to carry her further back.
She pivoted on her heel and launched herself into the air, becoming a literal buzzsaw of emerald and white energy. Her double-sided blade spun in a lethal, sweeping vortex that tore through the night air with a sound like tearing silk.
It was a technique born from desperate situations, a maneuver that sacrificed defense for overwhelming offense.
’Trying to reset the fight,’ Cale realized instantly. ’Well aren’t you smart. She knows she can’t match my power, so she’s going for speed and unpredictability.’
He didn’t retreat a single inch.
Meeting her mid-air fury, he swung his odachi in a brutal, horizontal sweep. The massive black blade smashed into Zenith’s spinning guard like a hammer striking an anvil.
The concussive force shattered her momentum entirely, the impact sending her spinning uncontrollably through the air before gravity reasserted itself.