A luxurious carriage rolled smoothly out of Athor''s Sanctuary, leaving behind the bustling town and the lone statue of the goddess. The rhythmic clatter of hooves filled the air, but inside the lavish carriage, the atmosphere was far from peaceful.


    Lilith sat across from Damon, her gaze fixed on him.


    His expression was unreadable—impassive as ever.


    But after what he had put Iris through...


    It was no surprise.


    Teaching her the Magic Bullet spell had been brutal.


    The first shot hadn''t blown off her fingers—thanks to Damon''s precise guidance—but her skin had turned an angry red, trembling from the recoil. Yet before she could even catch her breath, Damon had ordered her to fire another.


    And she had.


    Everything had been going well—until her focus slipped.


    One mistake.


    A single moment of distraction—


    And her fingers were gone.


    Lilith could still remember the miserable shriek that tore from the girl''s throat.


    Damon had stood over her, his face cold, unyielding, as Iris clutched her burning stump—tears of agony welling in her eyes. His voice had been merciless.


    "Get up."


    Lilith had rushed to her side, uncorking a high-level healing potion in seconds. It had taken five of them—five expensive, powerful potions—before Iris''s fingers slowly regenerated.


    And still—


    Damon hadn''t let her stop.


    Iris had seemed on the verge of giving up.


    But she hadn''t.


    They had kept going.


    Despite Damon''s cold demeanor, Lilith had noticed—


    The subtle way his fist clenched.


    The minute tremble in his fingers.


    He was worried.


    He did care.


    Their training had continued, and through sheer suffering, Iris had learned.


    She stopped losing her fingers.


    She adjusted the distance between her fingertips and the magic bullet, mastering the technique.


    But she hadn''t accounted for the recoil.


    Her shoulder had snapped out of place.


    Another time, she had broken her elbow—completely shattering the ball-and-socket joint.


    It had been gruesome.@@@@


    And yet—


    Despite her inhuman teacher.


    Despite the agonizing training.


    The girl had never faltered.


    Lilith sighed.


    "Alright then. If that day comes—let me kill her."


    Damon''s head snapped up instantly, his gaze sharp, a chill settling in the air. His eyes darkened, laced with an unmistakable killing intent.


    "If you kill her—I will kill you."


    Lilith met his glare without flinching, then exhaled in resignation.


    "Very well," she murmured. "This is your choice. All I can do is accept it."


    But in her heart, she knew—


    Damon''s affection and guilt toward Iris Vale ran deep.


    If anyone harmed that girl—Damon would go to the ends of the world to destroy them.


    Yet, at the same time—


    He himself was one of the enemies Iris sought to kill.


    The day she discovered the truth—


    Would she even consider that he was the one who trained her? Who helped her?


    Or would she see him as nothing more than a monster—the murderer of her kind father?


    Lilith leaned back, her lips pressing into a thin line.


    "You might want to see the mental health quartermaster," she muttered dryly.


    Damon let out a sharp breath, leaning his head against the window.


    "I don''t believe in therapy. I don''t see the point in telling some stranger my problems, hoping to get cured."


    Lilith smirked slightly. "The first step—"


    He cut her off with a sigh.


    "I know what you''re about to say. ''A burden is half-solved when shared.'' But I''d rather keep my burdens to myself. No one''s going to help me carry them anyway."


    Lilith''s smirk faded.


    "I will."


    Damon glanced at her.


    "As long as you help me carry mine."


    For the first time in a long while, a small chuckle escaped him.


    "What''s the scheme this time?"


    Lilith pulled out her pager.


    "No scheme."


    Damon raised an eyebrow, waiting.


    She continued, her fingers typing swiftly.


    "I''ll send the twelve million from earlier to your war bank account. Since it''s coming from my account, it''s clean money—no need to worry about money laundering or raising suspicion."


    His pager buzzed.


    Damon checked the notification. His lips curled slightly.


    "Isn''t receiving twelve million from a noble lady a bit suspicious?"


    Lilith smiled mischievously.


    "You could always tell them you''re my paramour."