Prince of Gluttony: Born from Betrayal

'She's a good girl. You should take care of her'

Gaius hummed as Cain followed behind Jayden. The latter had grabbed a training sword and was most likely looking to spar. After how she treated Abel, he was more than willing to be that guy, even if it meant she was going to get his ass handed to him.

'You said that about Mira and now Jayden. Why were you quiet about Anna, hmm?'

Cain remarked with a hint of playful mockery in his voice. As soon as Anna's name was spoken, He could feel Gaius' immediate aggravation.

'You little bastard! Don't you dare touch my daughter with your grubby little paws! I will END you!'

Cain snorted, clearly entertained by the outburst.

Wow. Look who suddenly remembers he's a father,'

He mused with a small smile on the corner of his lips.

'Before today you didn't even know she existed. Now you're ready to murder me over her?'

Gaius hissed, his tone low and dangerous.

'Doesn't matter how long I've known. Blood is blood. And you are exactly the kind of trouble I want nowhere near her.'

Cain tilted his head, feigning thoughtfulness.

'I'M the trouble? Says the guy who was talking about a girl your daughters age about how her hips were good. What a great father you are~!

Gaius roared in his head, voice spiked with fury.

'That was before I knew! You think I'd say that if I knew she was my daughter? What kind of sick freak do you think I am?'

Cain didn't miss a beat.

'Do you really want me to answer that? Because let's not pretend you didn't earn the title Perverted Sage.'

Gaius immediately fell silent, utterly annoyed that he had been bested in a battle of words. His many accomplishments had come back to bite him in the ass.

Cain smirked, savoring the rare victory.

"Yeah, that's what I thought."

But before he could twist the knife any further, a voice cut through the air.

"That guy was the one you plan to duel?"

Cain looked up to see Jayden standing in the training ring, one brow raised, her wooden sword resting against her shoulder.

She looked unimpressed.

Cain blinked, then nodded his head with a stern face.

"That's right."

"I will not be okay if you are so weak that you lose to something like that."

Jayden's words were harsh as she swung the training sword in a flourish. She then beckoned with Cain to join her in the ring. From a distance, the instructor was watching this with crossed arms as he stroked his chin with his fingers. Clearly he was interested in this too.

Cain immediately lost any hint of enthusiasm as he stared at Jayden.

His smirk faded. The smugness drained from his face as he walked over to the rack and retrieved two training swords, one for each hand.

"...Why am I doing this again?" he muttered.

He could still feel the bruises from earlier. The instructor had handed him his ass without breaking a sweat. And now he was expected to go through that all over again? With her?

"This is stupid," Cain grumbled as he stepped into the ring, rotating one of the wooden blades loosely in his grip. "I already got humiliated once today. Why the hell do I have to fight you on top of that?"

Jayden didn't answer at first. She was busy adjusting her stance, eyes locked on him with a strange mix of sharpness and something else.

When she finally spoke, her voice was calm but carried an edge of something softer beneath.

"If you manage to win... or even just land a hit..."

She glanced away for a second.

"...I'll give you a present."

Cain raised an eyebrow.

"A present."

Jayden gave a small nod, her gaze returning to his, a faint blush blooming on her cheeks despite her best efforts to stay composed.

"That's what I said."

Cain stared at her for a moment, unsure if she was being serious.

"...What kind of present are we talking about?"

Jayden's grip on her sword tightened slightly.

"You'll have to earn it."

Cain sighed as he rolled his eyes slightly and turned his blades over in his hands.

"Of course I do."

If it was something that could help him slaughter Abel, he was more than willing to try and win whatever Jayden was offering.

Jayden was pleasantly surprised about how serious Cain was looking after she mentioned a prize. If her tail was present, it would be wagging pretty hard since she was so pleased with herself.

Gaius on the other hand was left speechless. He had figured out what Jayden meant but his disciple had no clue. The two of them were about to spar based on a misunderstanding.

'Oh this should be fun~!'  he mused with a chuckle. He could have explained what Jayden had meant to the foolish disciple but even after hundreds of years, he was not mature enough to be the bigger man and let things slide. He would let Cain suffer the consequences of his words and actions.

After all, It was more amusing that way.

Cain took a slow breath, letting the weight of the practice swords settle in his hands. As the bell rang, he stepped forward cautiously. No wild swings. No fancy footwork. Just observation.

Jayden didn't move right away. She simply watched him. Loose shoulders. Steady breathing. Eyes sharp and unreadable.

It was different from before.

Unlike last night when he had caught her off guard,

She had been flustered that someone figured out her secret. That was the only reason he had been able to dodge her strikes.

Now?

She was calm.

And fast.

Cain barely reacted in time as she came in low. He twisted his torso, catching her blade with the flat of his own wooden sword. The clash rang out, but before he could even follow up, she vanished again. Her footwork was clean. Her presence minimal.

She wasn't overpowering him like Natorio had. She didn't need to.

Jayden was outpacing him. Every step, every breath, every shift in weight was calculated. She didn't waste a single movement.

Cain adjusted his stance and kept his guard tight. His muscles were already sore, his instincts dulled from the previous fight.

Still, he couldn't help the small grin tugging at the corner of his mouth.

So this was how she really fought.

No hesitation. No distractions.

It was kind of exhilarating.

He pivoted sharply, trying to cut her off, but she slipped just out of range and tapped his shoulder with the edge of her wooden blade.

"Point," she said softly.

Cain grunted.

"That one definitely counted."

The corners of her lips curled up slightly

"You're not giving up, are you?"

He rolled his neck and shifted his grip.

"Not a chance."

Because now that he'd seen her for real, he wanted to see just how far she could push him.