The barbarians began to rise, led by the young woman still crying, and retreated in silence.

  The war raged in the distance, echoing from the walls.

  But there, in that alley of blood, only Lukas remained — and the sound of his own heartbeat.

  He breathed deeply.

  His eyes still flickered between gold and black — light and shadow fighting within the same body.

  Then, a sweet and venomous voice whispered inside his mind.

  > “Chocolatinho… wouldn’t it be fun to keep that barbarian?”

  Morgana’s voice dripped like warm honey.

  “Did you see the way she trembled, crying…? I would make her a delight in your nights, wrapped in silk sheets. Ahh… fear looks so beautiful on young faces.”

  Lukas clenched his fists.

  This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

  > “Shut up.”

  But Caesar roared right after:

  > “You depraved vixen!”

  The thunder of his fury echoed inside the boy’s chest.

  “He’s not that kind of man! You think you can drag him into the abyss just because you live in the dark?”

  > “Ahhh, the moral shield…”

  Morgana laughed, each chuckle cracking like a whip.

  “How sweet. The old dead soldier pretending to be a father. But be honest, Caesar… do you really think you can save him? He feels. He bleeds. He desires.”

  Her tone dropped to a whisper.

  “Humans always fall.”

  > “He won’t!”

  Caesar’s voice rang out like clashing steel.

  “As long as I’m here, he won’t lose himself!”

  > “And when you’re not, little shield?”

  Morgana’s voice was soft, almost tender.

  “When desire speaks louder, when he’s alone… do you really think discipline will hold a human heart?

  I can give him pleasure, power… even a little affection.

  You offer only pain and duty.

  Tell me, which of us do you think he’ll choose?”

  The echo of both voices clashed like hammers inside Lukas’s head.

  He pressed his hands to his temples, feeling the Black Impact pulse through the blood-stained shield.

  > “Enough…” — he muttered, low and strained. — “Both of you. Enough.”

  But they didn’t stop.

  > “You’re nothing but a lonely shadow, Morgana,” Caesar spat.

  “And you’re just a dead general,” she laughed. “Trapped inside a piece of iron, pretending you can still command anyone.”

  “In the end, he’ll come to me, little shield. I can wait.”

  The storm inside him raged louder than the war outside.

  Lukas straightened, every nerve burning, and spoke firmly — not to the world, but to himself:

  > “Neither of you… will break me.”

  The wind carried the scent of smoke and iron.

  The war still raged beyond the walls.

  But within him, the true battle had only just begun.

  End of Chapter 43