Chapter 100: Hidden Strengths

It was a pretty close fight if you looked at it from the outside.

Anya's ice and fire were impressive, and she had kept up with him better than most would have expected.

The crowd seemed to think it was a clash of equals, two rising stars testing each other.

But Rhian didn't see it that way. In his mind, he had been above her the entire time, both literally in the moment and in terms of skill and power.

He hadn't used his dual blades, which lay dormant in the small sheath strapped to his lower back.

He hadn't drawn on the claws he could grow from his fingertips, or the wings that would have let him dodge faster or block the worst of her attacks.

He hadn't even touched the illusions that could create perfect copies of himself.

Some of that was intentional. He liked keeping his cards close to his chest, holding back the best of what he could do for when he really needed it.