Flames behind the Frost

Ren Zian stood amid the scorched battlefield, his body slick with sweat and blood, his Chaos Core humming with lingering power from the last battle. Smoke curled from the broken stones, and the silhouette of the fallen "hero" – Rhael of Stormspire – still sparked with the last remnants of divine lightning. Beside him, Lyra hovered protectively, her floral aura blooming like spring over death.

But Ren's gaze had already shifted to the woman standing behind the defeated hero.

She was draped in silver-blue silks that clung to her curves with impossible grace. Her eyes were the color of frost-kissed steel, her lips a shade between dusk and bruised rose. Her name trembled through the system before she even spoke.

Miraye – Frostbearer of the Celestial North.

"Why did you fight him?" she asked, voice cold as glaciers yet trembling beneath it was something else—curiosity, pain… desire?

Ren didn't answer immediately. He stepped toward her slowly, the wind curling around him like a beast tamed. "Because he would've used you, twisted your bond for his gain. And because I need your strength—not just your power, but your will. The Chaos System responds to truth."

Miraye's eyes narrowed. "And what do you intend to do now that he's gone?"

Ren stepped closer still, until the frost in the air kissed his skin. "Now, I earn what Rhael tried to steal. Through you."

The system pulsed.

[Chaos Bidding System Activated]Target: Miraye – FrostbearerReward on Successful Intimacy: Frozen Time – Stop all actions for 5 seconds within 10 meters.Warning: Emotional Bond Must Reach Threshold. Consent Mandatory.

Ren raised a hand—not to touch, but to offer.

Miraye hesitated… then placed her fingers against his palm.

Moments later, within the remnants of a broken temple of ice, the frost around them began to shimmer not from chill—but from heat.

Miraye sat atop the broken altar, her bare skin glowing pale blue beneath the flickering shards of light. "I don't share," she warned, arching one leg over his lap as Ren approached her, shirt half open, breath uneven.

"I'm not asking you to," Ren murmured, his lips grazing the shell of her ear. "But I won't lie—I've given parts of myself to others… what I offer you now is only yours."

Her hands slid up his chest, cool fingertips tracing the scars from battle. "Then give me something the others haven't had."

Ren smirked. "You want different?"

She pulled his sash and whispered, "Show me."

Their bodies collided—ice and fire.

Ren lifted her effortlessly and pressed her against the nearest crystal pillar, her back arching as he entered her with a low, throaty groan. Miraye's gasp turned into a moan, her legs wrapping around him as he drove into her with measured, intense thrusts. Her hands tangled in his hair, dragging him down for a hungry kiss.

Her frostbitten aura tried to resist, but Ren's fire overwhelmed it.

Every stroke, every grind of their bodies melted the walls around her heart.

She cried out when he changed angles, pressing deeper—his hand gripping her thigh, the other sliding between their bodies to tease her with swirling circles. Miraye bit his shoulder, leaving her mark. "Faster," she growled.

He obeyed.

The pillar behind her cracked.

Then he spun, laying her across the frozen altar, entering from behind as she arched, gasped, and whimpered his name. The sound echoed like a sacred chant. She clenched around him—tight, pulsing, desperate.

He growled in her ear, "Say it."

"I want you," she hissed. "More than I ever wanted Rhael."

That broke her last barrier.

Her orgasm slammed into her like a winter storm.

Ren wasn't far behind—he cursed, his body seizing as pleasure exploded through the Chaos Core.

[Chaos Bond Achieved – Power Unlocked: Frozen Time]Emotion Bond Threshold Passed – Affection Level: High TrustMiraye's Loyalty: [Secured]

He collapsed beside her, chest heaving, holding her hand even as sweat cooled on their skin.

"You lied," she said, voice hoarse.

He turned to her. "About what?"

"You said you wouldn't share me. But you just made me feel like I was the only one in your world."

Ren kissed her temple. "Because in that moment… you were."

She stared at him, then chuckled softly—an odd sound from someone so cold. "You're dangerous, Emperor."

"And you like danger," he said, smirking.

She pressed a kiss to his jaw. "Just don't betray me. Or I'll freeze your heart from the inside out."

He laughed. "Noted."

But the peace didn't last long.

A dark wind howled across the horizon.

From the northern sky, a floating citadel of black crystal shimmered into view. At its helm—three figures cloaked in crimson stood, watching.

Miraye sat up, alarmed. "The Triad of Sanctum… They weren't supposed to appear until the Eclipse War!"

Ren rose, his Chaos Core already stirring. "Looks like they've moved up the timeline."

Lyra rushed in, summoning floral shields around them. "Ren… they're coming."

Miraye summoned her frost spears, already standing at Ren's side.

He looked at them both—one, his divine heart, the other, his newly earned bond—and smiled darkly.

"Let them come. I need more powers."