In the living room.
After Sona finished her piece, it wasn't long before Lux, Fiora, and Quinn came in one after another—clearly drawn by the music.
Luke lifted his gaze at just the right moment and met Fiora's eyes as she walked in, so he gave her a smile.
But the duelist didn't react at all. Her cool eyes swept over him once, then slid away.
She sat down on the sofa, her refined face looking even colder and more striking than before.
A question mark practically popped over Luke's head. He couldn't help feeling puzzled.
Ever since he got back, this duelist's attitude had been… oddly chilly.
Lux sat beside Luke and asked, "I heard Edessa got hit by a beast-swarm. What happened?"
The instant she asked, Sona looked over, and even Fiora seemed to listen more closely.
With the Royal City Bulletin spreading the story, the beast-swarm in Edessa was already common talk in the capital.
But people only knew the broad strokes—beasts attacked the city, supposedly thousands of them. The finer details weren't widely known.
So the moment Lux, Fiora, Sona, and Kahina saw the news, they immediately thought of Luke—who had gone to Edessa for the hunt.
Worried? Of course they were.
By the time they heard, the beast-swarm had already been resolved—apparently because the Dauntless Vanguard arrived in time.
Lux had immediately asked Tianna and confirmed that this idiot was fine, but she also learned it wasn't nearly as simple as the papers made it sound.
And yet after all these days, Luke still hadn't written them a single letter.
They'd been thinking about him nonstop here while he'd been out enjoying himself.
It was infuriating.
Luke said casually, "If I had to sum it up: some cult got greedy for my good looks, tried to drag me off as a sacrifice, and I counter-killed them."
The three women all froze.
Why did that "sum it up" somehow contain an absurd amount of information?
Lux's eyes lit up. "Expand on that."
Luke picked up the teacup from the table, took a sip to wet his throat, then slapped his palm down hard.
Bang.
Everyone in the living room jumped, and a bunch of annoyed eyes snapped toward him.
"Ahem." Luke cleared his throat, acting like he didn't notice, then began slowly, "It all started the day I left the capital—"
Lux cut in immediately. "Skip that part."
"…In the blink of an eye, five days passed, and I arrived in Edessa."
Luke had already recounted all of this earlier that morning.
But the audience was different now, and that alone made it worth telling again.
He told it in a slow, novel-like style, naturally adding plenty of "details" along the way.
Lux, Fiora, and Sona listened more and more intently as the story unfolded.
Even Quinn, Vayne, and Frey—who had lived through it—found themselves listening seriously, their emotions rising and falling with Luke's pacing.
But without exception…
When the story neared the end, and Luke brought up the pig blood, they all snapped right out of it.
"That old bastard wanted to pull one over on me, but I'd already seen through him down to his underwear. So I deliberately left an opening, and sure enough, the fossil took the bait."
Several pairs of eyes stared at Luke as he enthusiastically described his "godlike move," and the room collectively went silent in the most eloquent way possible.
Luke finished and looked around. "What's with those expressions? Wasn't my read insane?"
Lux sighed with deep feeling. "It really is you."
Fiora's eyes flickered with the faintest hint of a smile.
Sona nodded, smiling sweetly, as if to say impressive.
If you thought about it… Luke doing something like that made perfect sense.
Once something weird got attached to Luke, it stopped feeling weird at all.
"I wasted all that breath," Luke sighed. He drained his tea in one gulp, then stood. "I'm not talking to you anymore. I'm cooking."
And with that, he walked straight into the kitchen.
Lux, Fiora, and Sona watched his back. Now that they knew the full story, they understood what kind of danger Luke had actually been in.
When he told it, he looked relaxed and casual.
But facing that kind of situation in person couldn't have been easy.
While Luke cooked, the women chatted in the living room.
Until the smell of food drifted out from the kitchen.
The aroma instantly woke up the hunger in Lux, Fiora, and Sona, and their attention completely fell apart.
With the whole house smelling amazing, Lux stopped chatting entirely and slipped toward the kitchen like a thief—quiet footsteps and all.
She peeked her head around the kitchen door.
Immediately, she saw dish after dish on the counter, still steaming, each one releasing a rich scent.
Her eyes went bright. And the second she looked, her stomach started growling.
So she glanced at Luke's back and crept into the kitchen, tiptoeing like she was defusing a bomb, barely daring to breathe.
In reality, Luke had noticed her the moment she reached the door.
While stir-frying, he flicked her a look and coughed loudly.
Lux's sneaky little body froze in place. She turned, smiled without the slightest embarrassment, and said, "I'm just looking…"
Luke gave her a fake, friendly smile. "And you think I'm buying that?"
Not being allowed to eat what she could clearly see was torture for Lux.
Even caught in the act, her eyes still clung to the food like it was her life's purpose.
Then she heard a sharp crackle from the oil and smelled an even stronger wave of fragrance.
Her focus snapped over.
Luke was expertly tossing small balls into a pot of shimmering golden oil. The flour-dusted balls rolled twice, quickly turning crisp and golden on the outside.
Then the smell of meat rose up.
"What's that?" Lux sniffed eagerly, eyes wide.
Luke answered casually, "Meatballs."
Lux didn't even worry about oil splatter anymore. She scooted close, watching him drop in meatball after meatball.
That desperate, puppy-like stare made her look hilariously dumb.
Luke glanced at her, grabbed a cooked meatball with tongs, and held it to her mouth.
Lux's eyes lit up instantly. She carefully blew on it, then opened her mouth and bit in.
The meatball was hot enough to make her huff through her teeth a few times.
Then she bit down again—crispy shell shattering immediately, followed by a pure, explosive burst of fried meat flavor.
Lux kept huffing at the heat, eyes squeezed shut, wearing a blissed-out, satisfied expression.
Exactly.
It tasted exactly like the flavor she'd dreamed about.
Luke looked at her. "All right, get out. You're in my way."
"Hehe." Lux grinned, perfectly content, and scampered out of the kitchen.
Not long after, another figure entered.
Luke turned and saw it was Kahina. She wore a bright, sweet smile, looking fresh and radiant.
Kahina didn't even look at the food first—she looked at Luke, eyes shining, and said happily, "Your Highness, it's been so long!"
Luke smiled back. "It has."
Seeing he was busy cooking, Kahina didn't speak again and didn't interrupt.
She just stood nearby, staring at his handsome profile without blinking, smiling so hard it almost wouldn't stop.
The Royal Academy was on break today, but her academy still had classes.
However, the moment she heard Luke was back, she immediately asked for leave and rushed over without hesitation.
After more than twenty days… she missed him too much.
Luke noticed her stare and assumed she wanted a meatball too, so he picked one up and offered it to her.
Seeing him feed her, Kahina's heart jumped. She opened her mouth immediately and ate it.
Then, very thoughtfully, she stepped back out of the kitchen.
About ten minutes later, a rich lunch was finally ready.
The women in the living room had already been waiting impatiently. As dish after dish came out, they took their seats at the table and waited obediently.
Soon, the table was filled with all kinds of dishes—meat and vegetables, each one looking and smelling incredible.
And the fried meatballs had been piled into a little "mountain," drizzled with Luke's special sauce.
It looked dangerously tempting.
Once Sona picked up her chopsticks first, lunch officially began.
Lux immediately grabbed another meatball and shoved it into her mouth.
Maybe because it had been so long, but after all these days, Luke's cooking felt even better than before.
Fiora, Kahina, and Sona all felt the same.
They could clearly tell—Luke's food had leveled up.
Half an hour later, lunch ended.
Everyone leaned back in their chairs, satisfied, too full to move.
Even though Luke had made a lot, the plates were cleaned out impressively.
The massive bowl of meatballs was gone too—every last one.
Lux held her stomach, which looked like it had expanded a full size, so moved she almost wanted to wipe away tears.
So this is what being full feels like…
She hadn't experienced it in so long.
She'd finally survived those twenty-plus days.
Luke's summary of the meal was simple: Miss Crownguard's appetite was still terrifying.
If he'd prepared even slightly less, someone might've ended up not getting enough to eat.
That said, if he looked at Lux now, he could see she'd changed a little.
She was noticeably taller. And while her figure still hadn't reached the "curves for days" stage, she didn't look nearly as flat as she used to.
Sona, on the other hand, had changed in exactly zero ways—still overwhelmingly impressive as always.
Kahina looked a bit taller too, with a sharper, more spirited aura that made Luke think of Cithria.
Fiora remained cold and elegant, like a rose with thorns—no obvious changes.
Noticing Luke's gaze, Fiora's cool eyes landed on him.
Luke offered her a friendly smile.
But somehow, she took it the wrong way.
The next second, Fiora's face grew even colder. Without a word, she stood and started clearing the tableware.
Luke couldn't help finding it funny.
He suddenly remembered that before he left, Fiora still owed him a whole bunch of days from their bet.
Seeing this, Frey stood too and helped, saying, "Let me, Fiora."
When Fiora looked at someone else, the chill in her expression eased. She smiled lightly. "It's fine. I'll do it. It's part of my bet with him."
Frey frowned in confusion and looked at Luke.
Luke simply nodded.
Since it was a bet, Frey sat back down.
And when Luke looked at Fiora again, she'd already turned away and headed into the kitchen.
Luke watched her back, thinking it over.
The kitchen soon filled with the sound of dishes being washed.
Everyone else went back to doing their own thing.
Luke lay down on a rocking chair in the front courtyard. It was already afternoon—the sun was warmer now, cozy on his skin. Add in a full stomach, and he felt even less like moving.
Lux and the others stayed in the living room chatting.
Before long, Vayne and Frey came out.
Frey said to Luke, "Your Highness, we're going out for a bit."
Luke opened his eyes and looked at them. "For what?"
Vayne answered simply, "To buy a few things. And to find a place to live."
"Find a place to live?" Luke blinked. "Do you even have money?"
Vayne looked at him. "My parents left property in Kosade City. Money shouldn't be an issue—though it'll take a bit of time to transfer everything."
Luke almost forgot.
Vayne was actually rich.
Her parents had traveled Runeterra, made a fortune, then decided Demacia was safe and settled down.
Over the years, they built major businesses in Demacia as well.
After they were killed, everything was left to Vayne—a massive inheritance.
Two years ago, quite a few nobles had tried to marry her purely for that fortune.
Vayne rejected every single one. At the time, she only had revenge in her heart.
Now she just needed to shift those assets to the capital.
When that was done, she could easily buy a manor even larger than Luke's.
With that in mind, Luke said, "Tell people you're with me. It'll probably go more smoothly."
If you thought about it, he counted as a solid "backer."
With his name, the mentor and student would have fewer headaches during the transfer.
Vayne and Frey didn't refuse.
On the road, Luke had offered that his place was big enough and they could just move in.
But after thinking it through, they decided to find a nearby home instead.
Luke's small manor wasn't like the separate-villa style they'd had in Edessa.
The rooms here were connected. Leaving aside whether they'd feel comfortable living in the same place as Luke…
Even if they did, they'd inevitably disturb him.
They trained early every morning. Sooner or later, they'd make noise and wake him.
To avoid that, it was easier to find their own place nearby.
As for Quinn, she could move in with Sona.
Sona had bought a manor very close to Luke's. A place that big usually only had her living in it.
Quinn moving in would give Sona company.
So soon, Vayne and Frey saddled up and rode out.
Luke closed his eyes again, sinking into the rocking chair.
Lying around at home really did feel different from lying around outside.
It was simply more comfortable.
Cool fall wind. Warm sunlight.
Before long, sleepiness washed over him. He adjusted into a better position and let his mind go blank.
After a half-hour nap, Luke woke naturally.
When he opened his eyes, he saw a clear blue sky overhead, thick white clouds hanging quietly in the distance. The front courtyard was so still it felt like he was the only person left in the world.
When it came to sleep, Luke was simple—when he wanted to sleep, he could fall asleep instantly.
When he didn't, no amount of forcing would help.
Now he felt like he'd slept enough. His body was still lazy, but the drowsiness was gone.
He turned his head.
Not far away, Sona was sitting there, slender fingers slowly tuning her instrument.
Her whole presence felt elegant and otherworldly, light and refined, relaxed in posture. Her blue eyes were clear and bright—strikingly beautiful.
Her blue hair fell like water, and her figure was flawless. Even her blue dress couldn't hide her shape, the line of her waist, the long stretch of her legs.
Waking up to a scene like that, Luke felt his mind clear pleasantly.
Sona noticed his gaze and looked up, smiling sweetly, then continued tuning.
Luke also faintly heard the sound of sword practice coming from the back courtyard.
That could only be the duelist.
Thinking of something, Luke sat up and looked at Sona. "Can I ask you something?"
Sona looked up again, then nodded, pulling Etwahl a little closer to him.
Luke put his hand on it and asked the question that had been bothering him. "Why does it feel like Fiora hasn't wanted to deal with me at all today?"
Hearing that, and seeing Luke's confusion, Sona's lips curled.
Her voice came an instant later.
"You were gone for twenty-one days. During that whole time, did it ever occur to you to write us a letter?"
Luke paused, then looked at her, embarrassed. "I… don't think it did."
He simply wasn't used to writing letters. In his mind, the era of letter-writing had passed ages ago.
So once he was out, it never even crossed his mind.
"Hmph."
Sona's smile vanished, and she let out a cute little huff. "But you wrote Lux."
Luke immediately remembered that and said, "That was just to annoy her. I only wrote it as a side thing."
Sona's tone turned a little aggrieved. "But you still wrote one. And we got nothing. We worried for days. I didn't even want to talk to you."
Luke was instantly speechless.
He'd only written Lux a taunting letter—yes, as a side thing, but it was still a letter.
Hearing Sona, Luke glanced toward the back courtyard.
He hadn't expected Fiora to care about that sort of thing.
Looking at Sona's slightly hurt little eyes, Luke promised, "I get it. If there's a next time, I'll definitely remember to write you."
The aggrieved look vanished immediately. Sona smiled again and made a demand, a little playful. "Then the first letter has to be for me."
Luke laughed. "Deal."
Sona looked delighted.
Honestly, compared to a letter, she'd rather just see Luke.
But having him agree to her little selfish request was enough to make her happy.
After chatting with Sona a bit, Luke went to the back courtyard.
The moment he arrived, he saw Fiora slashing at a training dummy.
Even her back carried that cold, aloof aura. Her hair seemed a little shorter, and her sword movements were like a dance—elegant and composed.
Hearing footsteps behind her, she clearly knew Luke had arrived.
But Fiora didn't stop.
Her long legs stepped, her slim arms moved, and her rapier struck a newer training dummy—one sturdier and harder to break than the last.
Her exquisite face held a faint chill, making her already sharp, high-class vibe even more striking.
Luke could see it clearly now.
She was deliberately ignoring him.
Thinking for a moment, he went to the weapon rack, picked up a training longsword, then said bluntly, "Hey, duelist—let's spar. I want to see if you've improved."
The effect was instant.
Fiora's brows lifted. Coldness rolled off her at once, and she stopped.
She turned, eyes cutting over. Seeing Luke's cocky expression, her face shifted into obvious irritation.
"Fine. Let's go."
The moment the words fell, a flash of steel stabbed toward him—fast.
It was a vicious thrust, like she'd been holding it in and waiting for this for a long time.
Luke retreated immediately, raising his sword to block. The impact sent a strong shock up his arm.
Luke was a little surprised. This wasn't the same Fiora as before.
In these twenty days, she hadn't been standing still.
She was clearly stronger.
The next second, her blade came even faster, so quick that it left faint afterimages.
Luke kept parrying, and even he felt pressure building. He took a deep breath, the lazy look in his eyes sharpening into focus.
Then his aura changed abruptly.
Wind gathered around him, and he slashed back.
A low hummm rang out from the blade itself.
Fiora's eyes tightened. She slipped back, dodging the cut.
Looking at Luke now, she could clearly feel it—his swordplay had improved too.
The corner of her mouth lifted into a faint smile.
Luke looked at her with a taunting grin. "Come on. I'm only getting a little serious."
"Is that so?"
Fiora drew a deep breath. Her presence sharpened, her eyes flashing with cold edge.
"Then be ready."
The next instant, an even faster thrust shot in—stronger, screaming through the air.
There was sword intent wrapped inside it, making the strike feel almost impossible to evade.
Peerless Sword Intent?
Luke didn't turtle up—he countered.
His blade rose, wind sword intent coating it, and he slashed.
A gust burst forward and collided with Fiora's thrust. The blades touched, then snapped apart immediately—
and then they were striking again, blindingly fast, trading cuts in a storm.
Whether it was Fiora's sword style or Luke's wind-based sword style, both were aggressive.
When two styles like that met, someone had to yield eventually.
The first one to back off would fall into the other's tempo.
Fiora's swordsmanship had clearly broken through too. Judging by the sharpness pouring out of her, she had reached at least around LV7.
The sound of their clash drew attention from inside.
Soon, Lux, Quinn, and Kahina ran out and grabbed prime spectator spots, watching with open interest.
For now, neither fighter had gained a clear advantage.
Fiora parried Luke's strike, then stabbed back instantly—this time pouring more sword intent into it.
If her earlier sword intent had been only entry-level, then now it was solidly advanced.
Luke felt her pressure spike. In his eyes, this thrust became brutally sharp.
He didn't hesitate—raising his wind sword intent to the same advanced level. The wind around him tightened, denser and more controlled.
Then, as he slashed, a wind blade screamed out first.
But Fiora's presence surged again—unstoppable. She cut through the wind blade and drove straight in.
The sword intent on her rapier hit harder, heavier.
"Fully realized sword intent?"
Luke's eyes flashed. He hadn't expected Fiora to be hiding a move like that.
Even her sword intent had advanced.
In response, he immediately released Wuju Sword Intent, merging it together with his wind sword intent and layering both onto his blade.
Before their swords even met, their sword intents collided.
Multiple currents of intent smashed together, and the air around them felt like it suddenly dropped in weight.
Even Lux, Quinn, and Kahina—just watching—felt their breathing grow heavier.
Then the rapier and the longsword struck.
They locked for a heartbeat, then sprang apart, and the two of them slashed again at insane speed.
"Man, my eyes can't even focus," Lux muttered, rubbing at them.
Both fighters used fast-blade styles. The strikes came so quickly you could barely see the swords, only blurred trails.
Crack.
A sharp sound rang out.
Luke's training sword snapped in half mid-blade.
The sudden break made his expression flicker with surprise.
Fiora's eyes lit with a hint of amusement, even a bit of smug satisfaction—as if she'd edged him out.
But in the very next second—
Crack.
Her sword broke too.
Fiora's smile vanished. She froze in place.
The two of them looked up, met eyes, then both glanced at the broken blades.
Luke spoke first. "Call it a draw."
"Fine."
Fiora nodded, then stared at him. "Next time, I win."
"That's next time."
Luke rolled his shoulders, wearing the face of a man who'd been worked into the ground. "I'm dead. I'm going back to lying down."
He turned and headed back to the front courtyard.
Fiora watched his back, a small smile returning.
Since he'd given her a long-overdue, satisfying fight, she'd forgive him for not writing letters.
But even in that fight—despite holding back herself—she could clearly tell Luke had held back more.
And he was obviously stronger than he'd been twenty days ago.
Fiora sighed silently, her smile turning a touch helpless.
In the end… she'd been caught up to.
And surpassed.
With that, she headed to the front courtyard too.
Lux, Quinn, and Kahina just stared, completely baffled.
They'd been watching right as it got good—and then it ended.
It felt like hitting a cliffhanger right at the best part.
Lux couldn't stand it. "Your swords broke? So what—duct tape them and keep going!"
They were finally getting into it!
But since both fighters were already leaving, the three girls looked at each other and could only follow them to the front.
In the front courtyard, Luke had just lain back down.
He already felt like his daily "exercise quota" had been exceeded. From this moment on, he intended to enter full energy-saving mode and not move.
He'd barely rested a moment when Fiora walked over.
Luke turned his head and saw her long, tight legs first, then looked up—
Fiora stood over him, looking down, and said, "Gomoku."
Luke refused instantly and rolled over. "No. I'm tired."
"Oh? Are you really?" Fiora let out a cold little laugh. "Then I'll massage you."
Her hands landed on Luke's shoulders and immediately started applying pressure.
"All right, all right—Gomoku!" Luke surrendered under threat.
Once the board was set, Luke looked at Fiora sitting across from him—her face full of confidence—and sighed.
Clearly, since their sword duel hadn't produced a winner…
this Gomoku match absolutely had to.
Twenty-plus days ago, Luke and Fiora were basically fifty-fifty at Gomoku.
After twenty days, who knew how far her skill had grown?
At this point, she might've developed "board intent" for all he knew.
And with the way she was looking at him now, she clearly intended to devour him.
Honestly, Luke didn't even have much confidence he could win anymore.
If this kept going, it wasn't good.
He glanced around.
Lux, Kahina, Quinn, and Sona all gathered close with obvious "this is going to be fun" expressions.
If he lost now, where would his pride go?
No—he needed a plan.
After one second of thought, Luke looked at Fiora and said, "You seem pretty confident."
Fiora answered with a cold smile.
Confident didn't even begin to cover it.
Right now, in Gomoku, she felt unbeatable.
For twenty full days, aside from sword training, she had studied the board relentlessly.
Today, she had finally glimpsed the mystery hidden in this small grid.
Now she could play Sona, Lux, and Kahina at the same time and keep winning.
For days, she'd been waiting for this revenge match.
This time, she would take back everything she'd lost before.
Luke spoke again. "Then how about we play bigger?"
Fiora stared at him, trying to read what he was plotting.
Luke smiled. "Don't tell me you're scared."
Fiora's brow lifted. "Scared? Say the rules."
"One match decides everything."
Luke looked at her and continued, "One match. The stake becomes one hundred days. And for those one hundred days, no rematches. No challenges."
With the bet suddenly skyrocketing, the spectators got even more excited.
Only Quinn still didn't fully grasp what this game meant, since she'd only learned a little.
"Trying to suffer on purpose," Fiora said coolly.
To her, Luke was just raising the stakes like an idiot.
She nodded with absolute certainty. "Fine. One match decides everything."
"Then it's settled."
Luke picked up a black stone and placed it in the center of the board.
Seeing him casually take first move, Fiora's eyes narrowed slightly. She snorted, unimpressed, and placed her white stone right after.
Fiora was proud by nature. To her, who moved first didn't matter—only skill did.
Unfortunately, after only two months of studying Gomoku, Fiora didn't know one thing:
In Gomoku, there exists a method called the first-move forced win.
Luke had never used it before.
He'd kept it hidden specifically for a day like today—his trump card.
Under Gomoku rules without the double-three restriction, once Luke had first move…
he was essentially unbeatable.
By the time they reached the ninth move, Fiora could already feel something was wrong.
She frowned, her cool eyes fixed on the board.
Why?
Why did she already feel like she was going to lose on move nine?
And that feeling was getting stronger.
After Luke made two more moves, Fiora's hand holding the white stone froze midair. The confidence on her face turned into open disbelief.
Technically, Luke still needed at least two more moves to finish it.
But with all her study, Fiora could already calculate what was coming.
Within the next two moves, no matter what she played, she couldn't stop Luke from creating threats in both directions—an unavoidable chain.
"Why aren't you moving?" Lux asked, confused, seeing Fiora freeze.
Sona also seemed to realize something. From the current position, Fiora's disadvantage was enormous.
Clack.
The white stone dropped onto the board.
Fiora looked drained, eyes locked on Luke, face cold and visibly frustrated. "I lost."
Lux was still confused—she didn't fully understand why Fiora surrendered so suddenly.
Luke's mouth curled into a smug, self-satisfied grin. He crossed one leg over the other and started showing off. "Trying to fight me? You've got a long way to go."
Fiora's face filled with obvious defiance. She was about to speak—
Luke raised a hand and stopped her. "From now on, for one hundred days, no challenges. And with what you already owe me from before… take your time paying it back."
That sentence jammed the words right back down Fiora's throat.
And made her even more annoyed.
She lowered her head silently, staring at the board, replaying Luke's first move in her mind.
She ran it back a few times…
And finally she understood.
The moment she understood, a fire rose in her chest.
She snapped her gaze up at Luke and spat out, "Cheap."
"In a fight, there's no such thing as cheap," Luke replied with a dismissive chuckle.
Fiora ground her teeth, fists clenched, looking like she wanted to punch him on principle alone.
Now she understood why Luke had "muddied the waters" and stolen first move.
With that pattern, no matter how she blocked, he'd always force her into an unavoidable chain of threats.
Watching Fiora's expression like she wanted to swallow him alive, Luke laughed happily and leaned back into the rocking chair.
Perfect.
Absolutely perfect.
He hadn't expected her to figure it out so quickly.
But even if she did… so what?
For the next hundred days, she couldn't challenge him again.
"Cheap?"
That was a word losers used.
To the winner, every way of winning was noble.
Fiora took several deep breaths, her chest rising and falling, then stood abruptly and marched toward the back courtyard.
Clearly, she planned to vent her rage on the training dummy.
Not long after, loud impacts started coming from the back.
The women couldn't help feeling sympathy for the poor dummy.
The last one had already fallen apart. Judging by the sound, this brand-new one wouldn't survive long either.
Lux still looked totally lost, staring at the board as if Luke had committed some kind of crime she couldn't quite name.
But if it made Fiora that furious…
it had to be a major one.
She turned and looked at Quinn, noticing the same confusion in her eyes.
Lux, now officially the weakest Gomoku player in the room, suddenly found a fresh target.
She flashed Quinn a bright smile. "Quinn, you don't know how to play Gomoku yet, right? I'll teach you."
Quinn was interested and nodded. "Sure."
Kahina smiled from the side, watching.
Sona continued tuning her instrument.
And Luke lay in the rocking chair, leisurely as could be.
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810