Chapter 157

Lucian leaned closer, one fist pulled back.

"You'll never be on my level. Not now. Not ever."

Kael flinched as the punch came flying-

Only to stop inches from his face.

The wind from it blasted Kael's hair back and cracked the stone beneath his feet.

Lucian held it there.

"I should end you for wasting my time."

Kael sobbed. "Please..."

Lucian lowered his hand slowly, then turned his back.

"That was just a warning. Remember that."

He walked off without looking back.

The announcer, stunned again, lifted the mic with shaky hands.

"Winner... Lucian Thornfell!"

The arena exploded in noise. But Lucian didn't care.

He already knew where this was going.

All roads pointed to one place.

Him.

Jaden.

Final round.

The arena lights flickered violently as the final round was announced. Thunderous cheers exploded across Ravensmoor's Grand Arena. Everyone had been waiting for this. Betting pools overflowed, crystal drones hovered from every angle, and nobles leaned forward in their private balconies with bated breath.

"Ladies and gentlemen... it is time! The Final Round — the fight the entire city has been waiting for - JADEN RIFT vs LUCIAN THORNFELL!"

The crowd went feral.

Names were screamed.

Fists pounded the air.

It was chaos - beautiful, roaring chaos.

Lucian Thornfell stepped out from the prep room first, tall and composed, that signature smirk tugging at his lips like he already knew the outcome. He didn't glance at the crowd. He didn't need to. His mere presence demanded the spotlight.

He stepped into the arena, raised his hand, and absorbed the storm of adoration and fear.

Then the second gate opened.

Jaden walked out, slow, steady, gaze fixed straight ahead like he wasn't just walking he was returning.

The cheers shifted, becoming a war cry.

Half the crowd chanted his name,

the

Shalf waited to see if he'd

But Jaden didn't smile

didnt wave He just locked eyes with Lucian

And kept walking.

They met in the center.

Silence hit the arena like a thunderclap.

Face to face.

No barriers.

No distance.

Just history, fury, and two men whose very names threatened to shake the city apart.

Lucian's eyes narrowed slightly.

"Well, well..." he muttered, voice low and sharp. "Come here, little boy."

Jaden raised an eyebrow. "Still running that mouth, I see."

Lucian chuckled darkly. "You think this is banter? No, Jaden. This

prophecy. You were always net

WX

end up here.... beneath my feet

Jaden's eyes didn't waver. "You've been searching for me. I know."

Lucian's smile faded. "You killed my sons."

"I did."

"You destroyed one of my family Hotel building."

"I did that too."

Lucian's voice dropped to a growl. "And you think you'll walk out of here alive?”

Jaden leaned in. "I'm not here to walk out. I'm here to bury you."

A hush fell again.

Lucian's jaw twitched, but he didn't speak yet. Jaden continued, voice razor sharp.

"Ten years ago, your family raided

our home destroyed it to the ground Your wife forced my mother to jump off a building and end her fe, and you were part of her death Do you remember?"

Lucian's expression hardened.

"You people deserved it. She deserved it for rejecting me when I wanted to marry

her."

Jaden's tone dropped to ice. “You're going to regret saying that.”

Lucian took a step forward, almost chest-to-chest now. "And you're going to regret living this long."