Kellan stalked through the cobbled streets of Ebonspire, his heavy boots striking the ground viciously. His hand throbbed with pain, a pulsing reminder of his recent humiliation. His jaw clenched so tightly he thought his teeth might shatter. A woman had done this to him. His lips curled into a sneer at the thought.
A woman.
He glanced down at the blood-stained bandage wrapped tightly around his palm, still seeping where Aira's blade had pierced through his flesh. She hadn't just bested him—she had humiliated him, stripped him of his dignity in front of others. It was a wound far deeper than the physical one.
He could still see the woman's face in his mind—those sharp, defiant eyes, daring him to make another move, and the subtle curve of her lips, mocking him. She had stood there as if he were no threat.
How dare she.
