?Chapter 413:


    “He’s the real one,” Elliana answered, her voice unwavering. No matter how Jason disguised himself, she could recognize him.


    Matthew’s jaw dropped in disbelief before he let out a quietugh. “Honestly, Jason’s not as legendary as everyone says, huh?”


    A small grin yed on Elliana’s lips. “We definitely gave him too much credit.”


    Matthew leaned in, his tone conspiratorial. “So, are you saying we could waltz right into Moonveil, issue a challenge, and drag their name through the mud? Make them eat their own arrogance?”


    Elliana absently brushed her fingers along her cheek, uncertainty flickering in her eyes. “Technically, it’s the perfect moment to honor my mentor’sst wish. But things are messier now—Jason’s part of my family. If I humiliate him any further, what if my husband starts taking it personally?”


    Matthew’s lips quirked, and he was utterly speechless. Who would have thought that Lexi, so famously fearless, would end up with such an obvious weakness? Love, as it turned out, couldplicate everything—especially with Cole in the picture. Lexi had no hope of pulling off her grand scheme to take over Moonveil.


    As if reading Matthew’s thoughts, Elliana shot him a sharp, sidelong look and demanded, “You’re not secretly mocking me, are you? Thinking it’s hrious that I’m letting my emotions trip me up?”


    The moment Elliana’s sharp gaze locked onto him, Matthew instinctively stumbled back two steps, his face twisting with unease as he hastily shook his head. “No, not at all! Your decision makes perfect sense. Even the mightiest heroes stumble when charm is involved. Who could me you?”


    His tone wasced with forced cheer, but the ridicule behind his words clung to every syble.


    Elliana’s eyes narrowed in disapproval before she let out a weary sigh. In truth, she couldn’t fully defend her choices either. She loathed the part of herself that had allowed emotion to cloud reason—had let Cole, with his dangerous allure, slip past her defenses.


    Just then, Jason—bruised and barely upright, propped up by his subordinates—rose to his feet with effort.


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    The defiance he had once worn so proudly had dissolved into something brittle and broken. His mind reyed his own arrogant deration—to give Elliana the first three moves—and shame hit him like a crashing wave. He hadn’t ruled out defeat, but he never imagined it woulde so swiftly, so devastatingly. The gap between him and Lexi was now undeniable. If he had recklessly challenged the Star Society before, Moonveil might have been nothing more than a memory by now.


    Dragged into today’s battle, he had lost not just the match—but the dignity of Moonveil itself, now teetering at the edge of ruin. The thought that his poor leadership might bring about Moonveil’s copse gnawed at him, and his unease grew heavier with every breath.


    Jason thought of Seth, his mentor, the formidable fighter who had seen potential in him years ago. Seth had imparted all her knowledge and entrusted him with the task of overtaking the Star Society. And now, standing broken before Lexi, Jason felt he had betrayed it all. He closed his eyes, sadness tightening his chest.


    “My apologies for wounding you, Sombra,” Elliana said tly, her voice carefully distorted to avoid recognition.


    Because of her connection to Cole, Elliana couldn’t bring herself to kill Jason today—nor could she march to Moonveil and raze it to the ground. She needed a reason, any reason, to gracefully end this charade.


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