The floor beneath Lucius shifted with a chanical grind.
It revealed raised terrain segnts and shifting plates.
From the control deck above, Loreia watched everything.
Liline stood beside her.
"Initiating gravity compression level two."
Lucius's body instantly felt twenty percent heavier.
He took a breath and cracked his neck.
"Alright, let's get this over with."
Loreia's voice ca through the overhead speaker.
"Aw, is the genius system hacker tired already?"
Lucius rolled his eyes.
"I'm here, aren't I?"
"Barely," Loreia replied.
"You've been depending on hacks for too long."
She hit another button.
A platform behind Lucius shot upward.
It released a Sovereign-class resistance drone.
"Round one: dodge and survive."
"You get hit? That's on you."
Lucius frowned.
"You programd a Sovereign drone to beat up your little brother?"
"No," Loreia said sweetly.
"I programd it to remind you you're still human."
The drone lunged.
Lucius spun out of the way just in ti.
He slid across the platform with his bare hands.
The gravity field made every movent sluggish.
"Tch—this would be easier if I had my system!"
"No hacks. No shortcuts," Loreia replied instantly.
"Your body should be able to move like your mind."
"Otherwise, you're just a fragile brain on a throne."
Lucius ducked under a swipe, then kicked off a wall.
He narrowly avoided the drone's follow-up pounce.
He landed and rolled with a grunt.
"I'm starting to miss Fiona's screaming," he muttered.
Loreia laughed.
"She's braver than you right now."
"At least she volunteered to face real beasts."
Lucius launched forward.
He finally managed to kick the drone's side and stagger it.
"Yeah? She's not getting beat up by a training robot!"
Loreia smirked behind the glass.
"Of course not, she was not as great as you."
"You're just being gently corrected."
"You call this gentle?"
Lucius shouted, sidestepping another lunge.
Loreia clicked her tongue.
"Liline, raise the gravity to 30%."
"Understood."
The pressure doubled.
Lucius dropped to a knee for half a second.
Before forcing himself back up.
"Are you trying to kill ?"
"Nope," Loreia replied cheerfully.
"Just trying to make sure you can dodge a punch."
Lucius exhaled hard.
"When this is over, I'm removing your dessert privileges for a week."
"I don't eat dessert."
"Exactly," he grunted, leaping backward from a blast.
After five more minutes of training, the drone disengaged.
Lucius collapsed onto his back, panting.
Loreia's voice finally softened.
"That's enough for now."
She tapped the comms.
"Not bad. You didn't die."
Lucius groaned.
"Give five minutes."
"Then I'll co up there and overwrite your whole combat training library."
Loreia smirked, arms crossed.
"Sure. If you can still walk by then."
From beside her, Liline offered a quiet suggestion.
"Shall I prepare a recovery protocol?"
She turned toward Liline with a faint smile still lingering.
"So, why are you here anyway?"
Liline gave a small bow.
"I ca to inform Lord Lucius that..."
"Miss Fiona will be joining Lady Liora on her hunt tomorrow morning."
"She requested an early-access version of her custom Vornis."
"Sothing simple but reliable for field protection."
Loreia folded her arms and nodded slowly.
"I see… our little strear's already diving in."
She looked back toward the comm.
"Fortunately, she needs our dear brother for the beast prep."
"Which ans—"
She tilted her head slightly.
"You can use your system now, Lucius. Heal up."
Lucius, still lying on the ground, gave a lazy smirk.
"Finally."
He lifted a single hand and spoke with a tired grin.
"System—full body restoration."
In seconds, the bruises vanished, his breath steadied.
And he stood up like nothing happened.
"Better."
Loreia gave a short scoff.
"Cheater."
Lucius smirked, brushing off his shirt.
Loreia pointed toward the door.
"Now go."
"Fiona needs a beast, and she's already brave enough to follow Liora."
"Don't make her go in unard."
Lucius sighed with mock reluctance.
"Sure, sure."
He turned to Liline.
"Prepare a tuning chamber for ."
Liline bowed with graceful precision.
"Yes, Master Lucius. A room will be ready in three minutes."
Lucius stretched once, then walked out without another word.
---
Lucius was currently thinking of sothing.
Then he turned to Liline.
"Liline."
"Contact your sister Lilia at the Luxoria Mansion."
"I want her to send one of the Luperions."
Behind him, Loreia raised an eyebrow.
"Wait. Did you say… Luperion?"
Lucius gave a slight nod.
"Yes. For Fiona."
Loreia's eyes narrowed slightly.
"You're giving a Luperion to our strear?"
Lucius smirked, finally turning to face her.
"She's not just a strear."
"She's our first public partner. Our face to the world."
"And if she's going to represent Luxoria Castle…"
He paused, then smiled faintly.
"…she should have sothing better than a base-model Vornis."
Loreia frowned.
"Luperion is an advanced model."
"It's designed for our private armies."
"That's not sothing just anyone can handle."
Lucius nodded.
"Exactly. That's why it won't move unless I authorize it."
"She can fight with it, stream with it, and look great beside it.
"But if she ever tries to leave us?"
He tapped the side of his head.
"Luperion won't budge."
Loreia leaned against the console, arms crossed.
"So it's not just a gift. It's a leash."
Lucius gave a small laugh.
"A very elegant one."
Liline, still expressionless, nodded once.
"Understood, Master Lucius."
"I will request a Luperion delivery from Miss Lilia imdiately."
"Estimated arrival: fifteen minutes."
Loreia looked at her brother again, quieter this ti.
"You're really playing the long ga with her, huh?"
Lucius grinned.
"Always."
"Now let's make her sothing unforgettable."
---
anwhile, back in the Luxoria Castle restaurant, Fiona was still eating.
Plates were stacked around her like a fortress of empty dishes.
Despite her slim, energetic fra, she was a professional-grade mukbang machine.
She finished the last bite of Grizzhog roast.
She wiped her lips, then pointed at the next dish.
"Alright chat, we're going double rare now."
"This one's from a Mist Beast."
She took a bite, her eyes lighting up.
"Holy crap, this is fog-spiced. Who even makes food like this?"
---
[Beastagram LIVE CHAT – @FionaFlares]
@MistOnMyPlate: Girl's got an iron stomach
@FogFlavors: Mist Beast cuisine hits different fr
@VornisNext: Forget the food—WHERE'S THE VORNIS
@SheEatingEating: Soone stop her she's not breathing
@FullSendFiona: I'm both proud and terrified
---
Fiona sipped from a glowing drink made from Bovarex blood extract.
"Alright, chat… No lie, this food's next level."
She leaned back and grinned.
"But I do wonder what kind of Vornis Lord L is cooking up for ."
She glanced toward the cara with mischievous eyes.
"Whatever it is… I better be able to ride it into the sunset or at least look cool beside it."
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