[ACC Stadium - Outdoor Balcony - Night]
Damian led Elizabeth through corridors and out onto a secluded balcony overlooking the Capitol skyline, the city lights spreading like stars across the horizon.
Elizabeth was muttering continuously, her voice breaking with anger and frustration.
"This is completely unfair! Outrageous! We should raise this issue formally! Lodge complaints with every committee! They can’t just change rules at the last mont! They can’t just–"
Tears were visible in her eyes, her composure completely shattered. She felt wronged.
Damian just looked at her calmly, a small smile on his face.
Elizabeth noticed and her voice rose.
"Damian, why are you smiling?! Aren’t you angry at that old fool?! I can complain to my family! If others are using Imperial influence, I can use mine too! We can fight this politically!"
"Elizabeth."
Damian’s voice was calm, cutting through her rant.
"Calm down."
She took deep breaths, forcing her emotions under control, her hands still trembling slightly.
Then Damian spoke in an amused tone that made her frown.
"Your family’s innate seer skill must be very low level. You didn’t get visions warning about the Council betrayal. And now you didn’t get any warning about your removal from the tournant either."
Elizabeth, now calr, started to defend herself.
"...That’s not right. My innate skill is SSS rank. Although I don’t have complete control over it yet, it always warns about important–"
She stopped mid-sentence, realization dawning across her face.
’It always warns ...But it didn’t warn about either of these things. Both of which are critically important.’
Damian’s smile beca more pronounced, his eyes gleaming with cold intelligence.
"Let guess. So of your seniors in the Murdock family have a similar seer skill. And they have complete control over theirs. Since this ability runs in your bloodline, there must be so connection between users."
He tilted his head slightly.
"And I heard from Adrian that not everyone in your family can awaken this skill. It’s rare even among Murdocks."
Elizabeth’s face went pale, her hands clenching.
"You don’t an..."
Damian’s eyes beca cold, his smile predatory.
"Exactly. Whoever this person is, they deliberately made sure you didn’t get visions about any of this. It’s like a seer battle – invisible, happening in the background. I don’t know much about these special bloodline skills. This is just my theory. But can this type of manipulation actually happen?"
Elizabeth’s voice ca out barely above a whisper.
"...Yes. Stronger seers can... can interfere with weaker ones. Especially if they share a bloodline... They can create blind spots and block specific visions. It’s rare and requires significant control, but it’s possible."
Damian nodded, his theory confird.
"Then it seems your family is also involved in this. They’ve given their tacit approval to the other Imperial families responsible for sabotaging us. And knowing your nature – knowing you’d warn – they just interfered with your visions so you couldn’t."
"..."
Silence spread between the two of them.
Elizabeth’s face wore a helpless smile as she looked at the moon hanging over the Capitol, its light making her tears glisten.
After so ti, she spoke again.
"...I want to refuse your theory and say my family wouldn’t do this. But I don’t have any other explanation for an SSS rank skill failing to function properly on matters this important."
Damian just looked at her calmly, saying nothing, letting her process.
Elizabeth looked back at him with tears flowing freely now.
After several monts of silence, Damian spoke again, his voice gentle despite the harsh topic.
"I heard from Adrian that your family is involved in intense internal conflicts. Many branches want you dead because they support other heirs. Even when you entered my Domain during our spar, your deepest fear was being killed by your own family mbers."
He paused.
"We never talked about it."
"..."
Elizabeth said nothing, her pale face confirming everything, tears continuing to fall.
Damian stepped closer, his expression softening, and patted her head gently – a gesture more brotherly than anything else.
"From the start of the academic year, you’ve treated like a little brother. So I’ll also treat you as my elder sister."
His voice beca absolutely serious, bloodlust leaking through despite the gentle gesture.
"I give you my promise, Elizabeth. If you ever need help regarding your family matters, I will kill all the other heirs of the Murdock family. Every single one who threatens you."
"!!!"
The words were filled with killing intent, with absolute sincerity. Not much was said, but it was worth more than a thousand words.
And... for the first ti in Elizabeth’s life, she felt like she could depend on soone.
Damian provided her with a sense of security she’d never felt inside her own family.
She’d survived assassination attempts since her talent was discovered. Had lived years watching her back, trusting no one, constantly aware that family mbers wanted her dead.
She was strong. She had to be... She had built walls around herself to survive.
But when your own loved ones were secretly trying to kill you... it hurt. It hurt so much that she’d developed genuine trauma around the concept of family.
And here was Damian – soone she’d barely helped, soone who owed her nothing – promising her safety while asking nothing in return.
This was completely unlike how Noble families operated, where everything involved political calculation.
Elizabeth said nothing as tears started flowing harder, streaming down her face. She tried to stop them, tried to wipe them away and maintain so dignity.
But they kept coming, and she found herself openly crying like a child for the first ti in years.
"..."
Damian stood there speechless, completely unprepared for this level of emotional breakdown.
’Did I say sothing wrong?’
He tried anyway, his voice awkward.
"Alright, alright. I’ll slaughter those branches as well if you want. All of them. Why are you crying so much? Please calm down."
"Pft–"
Elizabeth almost burst into laughter through her tears at how ridiculous that sounded – offering to commit mass murder as comfort – and started laughing and crying simultaneously.
"You’re so funny, Damian. And so terrible at this."
Damian stood there feeling completely lost, shaking his head, not understanding her mood swings.
’Won. I will never understand them.’
As she finally cald down, wiping her face with her sleeve, her voice ca out soft and genuine.
"...Thank you. Really. You don’t know how much that ans to ."
Before Damian could respond, she shifted topics, her voice becoming worried again.
"But what do we do about the tournant? Now it’s just you and the other first-years against fourth-years from every Academy. And they will be prepared for you."
Damian just shrugged, his confidence absolute.
"It’s alright... I’m still here."
The simple statent, delivered with such casual certainty, made Elizabeth look at him with complex emotions.
’Where does he get his confidence from?’
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