WINTER'S SWEET EMBRACE

"H-Heh. Hahaha... Well, well, look what the cat dragged back," sneered the girl leading the clique.

She crossed her arms and curled her lips into a disdainful smirk as the other young noblewoman and a tall, lanky boy’s surprise faded into a chuckle.

"I heard a hilarious rumor that you ran off into the woods to end your miserable life after Prince Quinton dumped you," the lanky guy laughed, taking a deliberate step toward Maelle.

"Imagine our disappointment when you actually showed up back here."

The second noble girl covered her mouth in fake surprise as her eyes darted over to Vincent.

"Oh, look! It’s the poor unfortunate person she summoned during the ritual! Careful, everyone. If you talk too loudly, she might try to sell you into slavery~"

The trio burst into boisterous laughter. Students walking along the plaza began to slow down, drawing closer as the commotion grew.

"An Ebonspire princess without a worthy familiar holds zero sway here," the female leader spat with venom.

"Lucianne’s family practically owns half the Academy’s board of directors. You’re nothing now, Maelle. Honestly, I almost feel pity for this mongrel bound to you. Almost."

Vincent rolled his eyes while letting out an exaggerated sigh. He looked the lead girl up and down with nothing but boredom. "Man, you guys really practiced those lines in the mirror, didn’t you? Let’s break this down."

He pointed a finger at the lanky one. "First off, bro, that haircut makes you look like a poorly groomed alpaca. Even for someone of your size, you’re talking way too big for someone whose face screams ’I cry when my tunic gets wrinkled.’"

"Wha–?! Why you insolent–!"

Vincent moved his finger to the second girl. "Second, miss ’slaves’, your foundation doesn’t match your neck. Holy fruit cake of a face, that’s horrendous. And your cackle sounds like a dying crow choking on a worm."

"Oh–!? How dare you–!"

Finally, Vincent turned his finger to the clique leader.

"And as for you, princess-bootlicker... You talk big about sway and status, but at the end of the day, you’re just a glorified hype-woman waiting for her to speak. Seriously, Lucianne isn’t even here yet here you are sucking her dick while talking about, "Oh look at me~ I’m friends with the bitch whose family owns half the board of directors~" Honestly, I almost feel pity for you. Almost."

Maelle’s lips twitched upward into a faint smile.

The trio, however, did not like that at all. Their smug arrogance vanished, replaced by ugly, contorted rage.

"You insolent, worthless pet!" The lead female trembled with fury. "A mongrel needs to be taught how to speak to his betters–!"

"I will ask you again," Maelle cut in coldly. "Where is Lucianne? Answer or else."

"Or what, disgraced trash? You think you can threaten us–"

SWISH!

Gwen stepped between them as she got closer.

"Remember your place when standing in the presence of Royalty. Her Highness, Princess Maelle Ebony asked you a question. You’d best answer or else."

"That is IT!" The lanky guy shouted and held out his hand. "Summon!"

Along with him, the other two nobles backed away in unison, and held out their hands to summon their Familiars as well.

By now, a huge crowd of Academy students had gathered in a wide ring around the plaza, whispering excitedly among themselves.

"Is that Ebonspire’s fourth princess?"

"Who’s the guy with her?"

"You don’t know? That’s the poor schmuck that got summoned as her Familiar!"

"Ten silver pieces says he gets flattened in under ten seconds!"

"I’ll take that bet!"

Light flared in the center of the circle.

The clique leader summoned a thick, purple-scaled serpent – roughly twenty feet long with glowing yellow eyes – that hissed viciously, its tongue darting out.

Beside it, the lanky’s magic manifested an iron-armored boar with razor-sharp tusks, while the third girl summoned a sharp-eyed, blue-feathered hunting hawk that soared into the sky, screeching loudly.

Maelle lightly gripped the sleeve of Vincent’s jacket. She leaned in close and whispered, "Beat them. But do not transform."

Vincent turned his head slightly and smiled. "What, saving the big reveal for a dramatic moment, hmm?"

"Something like that."

"Alright. No transformations. Don’t worry. I got this."

Taking a step forward, a sliver of his divine power shined through his eyes.

The purple serpent lunged first, opening its fangs wide to snap Vincent in half.

As the snake reached him, he fluidly ducked beneath its jaw, using its own forward momentum to catch the serpent by its lower jaw with his left hand and slammed it violently into the ground.

crack—CRASH!

The ground spider-webbed beneath the impact. Before the serpent could recover, the armored boar charged at full speed, aiming its iron tusks directly at Vincent’s side.

Without looking, Vincent leaped high up into the air, clearing the boar by ten feet – A feat that amazed all who were watching.

However, from up above, the blue hawk dived down like a bullet with its razor-sharp talons outstretched to shred his face.

Vincent easily caught the hawk by its talons, spun it around viciously multiple times, and hurled the bird down into the boar.

BOOM!

The hawk and boar collided in a chaotic heap of feathers and broken armor, skidding across the stone plaza.

Vincent landed lightly on his feet, watching as all three beasts scrambled to their feet, glaring at him with renewed fury.

"What are you doing!? Get him all at once!"

The hawk dived, the boar charged, and the purple serpent struck from the flank in a synchronized three-way assault.

As the boar reached him first, he jumped into it and planted his boot firmly onto its armored snout, using it as a springboard to vault toward the incoming serpent.

At the speed he was going, the serpent barely knew what happened. He delivered a devastating enhanced strike directly to the snake’s snout with his fist, blasting a shockwave through its skull.

Down below, the hawk swooped in with its beak, but Vincent caught its neck mid-flight and whipped it around to strike the boar. Its beak pierced straight through the armor, knocking both familiars in a heap.

Pointing a finger gun at the two, Vincent concentrated a small ball of divine power and shot it at them. The impact was the finisher.

BOOOM!!!

All that was left of them was a dissolving light of mana.

The purple snake, dazed and bleeding, slithered wildly in a final attempt to crush him. Vincent landed cleanly on the serpent’s thick neck, drove his heel sideways with an enhanced kick, and sent the massive beast crashing sideways to the plaza’s marble fountain where the clique’s leader was standing.

"KYAA–!"

SPLASH!

The huge body of the falling serpent struck her directly, sweeping her off her feet and plunging her violently into the water.

The entire audience went dead quiet.

Students stood frozen with their mouths agape, and the side-bettors froze mid-transaction, dropping their silver coins onto the ground while staring at the lone human standing in the middle of the circle.

Vincent casually dusted off his jacket as the serpent dissolved in mana particles, his sapphire eyes fading back to their normal brown hue. He hadn’t sustained a single scratch.

In the crowd, a quiet girl with large, expressive eyes stared at Vincent in mesmerized awe with her hands clasped tightly over her chest.

Maelle walked forward and stopped at the edge of the fountain. Vincent walked up beside her, cracking his knuckles with a mean, menacing glare down at the water.

The clique leader scrambled up through the splash, soaking wet, bruised, and gasping for air. Her modified uniform was ruined, and her sophisticated hair dripped with water as she cowered against the fountain lip.

"Final warning. I will ask one last time," Maelle dropped her voice into a deadly whisper. "Where is Lucianne?"

Vincent leaned over the water, giving her a predatory grin. "Better talk fast, big mouth."

"S-SHE’S AT VELOUR & VELVET!" the girl shrieked in absolute terror, tears mixing with the fountain water on her cheeks.

"She’s at Velour & Velvet getting fitted for a custom ball gown for the upcoming Imperial Gala! I swear that’s where she is! Please don’t hurt me!"

Maelle stared down at her for a second before turning without another word to her. "We are leaving."

They walked back toward the gated stables in relative silence. Once out of earshot of the stunned crowd, Maelle instructed Gwen and Vincent.

"Small change of plans. I cannot go with you. You two will handle the snatch-and-grab then take Lucianne to discreet. I will remain here at the Academy to maintain my standing as a student. Once you have secured a location, Gwen will stay to guard her while Vincent returns here to inform me. We’ll leave together once classes have concluded."

Gwen bowed her head. "Understood, Your Highness."

Vincent nodded. "Got it."

"Hm. Good luck, you two."

Just then, the resonant chime of the Academy’s giant bell tower rang out across the campus, signaling the student to hurry to class and start the day.

With that, Maelle gracefully walked back toward the building as students began scrambling for class.

Retrieving their horse from the stable master, Vincent hauled himself up behind Gwen on her mount, wrapping his arms firmly around her waist once more.

Gwen twitched again, and she looked over her shoulder with an embarrassed glare. "If you try anything like what you did last night, I swear–"

"I won’t! Cross my heart and hope to die."

She let out an embarrassed huff, looking ahead and gripping the reins tight. "Hah!"

They galloped out of the Academy gates, speeding down the cobblestone highway back toward the city. As the wind whipped through his hair, Vincent subtly looked over his shoulder and spotted the same dark horse tracking them from a distance through the trees.

’Yep, he’s definitely following us.’

"Gwen. That guy from the inn – the one who was asking about the Black Market – he’s right on our tail. Been following us since we left the place."

"Is that so? Then it looks like Lucianne will be having a guest."