Corin eased open Jared’s shredded tunic. Light poured across a gash so deep the ivory of bone glimmered beneath torn muscle. His breath caught, and a chill washed over the courtyard. “That b*stard Jayson!”

Jared answered with a calm, almost teasing smile, “I’ve lived through worse. This won’t be the one that finishes me.”

Lyra shot a reproachful glare while dabbing the wound with spirit spring water, hands trembling despite care. “Lived through worse? Do you have any idea how close you came to dying? If Lester had truly struck, none of us could’ve stopped him!”

Flaxseed hovered at Jared’s side, eyes blazing with admiration. “Jared, you were a beast out there! That Dragon Soarer, absolutely epic! When you split that punk in half, I nearly leaped over the railing!”

As Corin pressed fresh medicine into the open flesh, his voice dropped to a warning hush. “Sacred Sword Manor will not swallow this humiliation. Lester never forgets a slight. Get out of Swordmaster City. Vanish before their shadow falls again.”

Jared offered a single, measured nod. “The moment we claim the Champion’s prize, we disappear.”

Truth be told, even without Corin’s caution, Jared and Flaxseed had already planned to slip away and find the branch of Malevolent Path Hall.