Chapter 27: Ch 27: Search for something New- Part 3
The moment Nova stepped into the clearing, the ground seemed to still.
The firelight behind them faded into the background, swallowed by the intensity of the two presences standing across from each other.
Princess Stelle adjusted her stance, her obsidian spear held in one hand like it weighed nothing.
Her crimson robes fluttered in the gentle night breeze, but her eyes were sharp and locked onto her opponent.
Nova said nothing as he rolled his shoulder, the faint shimmer of aether pulsing beneath his skin. He didn’t summon his full strength.
Not because he couldn’t—but because he wouldn’t. Not here. Not on a newborn planet that had barely taken its first breath of life. And not against Stelle.
She felt it too. The restraint. But this time, she didn’t see it as arrogance.
"I figured. You’re holding back."
She said, her voice calm.
Nova didn’t deny it.
A small smile touched the princess’s lips.