I won't fall for the queen who burned my world-Chapter 101: Better than last time

Elysia had seen many things since arriving at this castle—strange customs, political power plays, even Malvoria's possessiveness reaching new and infuriating heights—but nothing quite compared to the sheer brutality of watching Malvoria train her soldiers.

At first, she had been merely intrigued. She had always known Malvoria was strong, had felt it in every touch, every grip, every single time the queen had thrown her dominance into a conversation.

But this? This was something else entirely.

Malvoria wasn't training her soldiers. She was breaking them.

One after another, they fell—sent flying, slammed into the ground, knocked out of breath before they could even register the movement that had defeated them.

It was as if Malvoria were playing a game where the only rule was to remind them how much stronger she was.

And gods, was she enjoying it.

Elysia had been watching in silence, arms crossed, mildly entertained despite herself, until she saw it.

A poor, unfortunate soldier, clearly regretting every decision that led him to this moment, lifted his sword to try and land a hit on Malvoria.

It was a mistake.

Malvoria's gray eyes gleamed with something dangerous.

Elysia had seen that look before—right before Malvoria destroyed someone.

With a swift, almost casual motion, Malvoria turned, dodged the attack, and—

Oh hells, she was actually about to kill this man.

Elysia acted before she could think.

"WAIT!"

The entire training ground froze.

Malvoria's blade halted an inch from the soldier's throat, her eyes narrowing sharply as she turned toward Elysia.

The poor soldier had turned completely pale, standing stiff as a statue, very aware of how close he had just been to an untimely demise.

Elysia cleared her throat, suddenly aware that she now had every single pair of demon eyes in the yard watching her.

Malvoria's expression was unreadable, but her grip on her sword didn't lower. "What," she said slowly, "are you doing?"

Elysia took a step forward, placing herself slightly between the soldier and Malvoria, though she immediately regretted it when she realized the soldier looked even more terrified.

"I—" She quickly thought of a reason. "I just think maybe murdering your own soldiers isn't a great way to maintain morale."

Malvoria arched a slow, unimpressed brow. "Murdering?"

Elysia gestured vaguely at the frozen soldier. "You almost took his head off!"

"I wasn't going to kill him."

"You almost did!"

"Almost isn't the same as actually doing it," Malvoria said, completely unbothered, as if she hadn't just nearly ended a man's existence.

Elysia turned to the soldier, who was still frozen in place, his sword half-lowered, visibly trembling. "Did she almost kill you?"

The soldier made a strange choking noise before nodding rapidly, his horns twitching. "Y-yes, Your Majesty!"

Elysia shot Malvoria a pointed look. "See?"

Malvoria sighed, rolling her shoulders. "If he truly thought I was going to kill him, he would have dropped his weapon immediately."

The soldier's grip tightened on his sword, and he looked like he wanted to cry.

Elysia pinched the bridge of her nose. "For gods' sake, can you just—*"

Before she could finish, Malvoria suddenly lifted her hand—fast.

Elysia, assuming the worst, immediately jumped in front of the soldier, arms spread out like a mother hen protecting her chick.

The training yard went dead silent.

Malvoria stared.

The soldier stared.

The entire group of gathered warriors, who had just witnessed their demon queen's wife quite literally throw herself between an unhinged warlord and her victim, stood in complete shock.

Elysia blinked.

Malvoria's lips twitched—once, twice—before, finally, she did something that was perhaps more terrifying than all her previous actions combined.

She laughed.

It wasn't a loud laugh, nor was it a cruel one—it was low, deep, and genuinely amused.

Elysia immediately regretted everything.

"You thought I was going to kill him just now?" Malvoria asked, her voice laced with clear delight.

Elysia scowled. "I wouldn't put it past you!"

Malvoria chuckled, shaking her head before tilting her gaze toward the soldier, who was still peeking from behind Elysia like a child hiding from a monster.

"You," Malvoria said, her tone suddenly commanding.

The soldier snapped to attention, clearly fighting the urge to bolt. "Y-yes, Your Majesty?"

Malvoria smirked. "You're dismissed for today. Run along before my wife adopts you as her personal guard."

The soldier bolted.

Elysia sighed in relief—until she realized Malvoria was still smirking at her.

"That was adorable," Malvoria mused.

Elysia bristled. "That was me saving a life."

"Adorable," Malvoria repeated.

Elysia groaned, turning on her heel to leave, but Malvoria's voice stopped her in her tracks.

"Perhaps you'd like to train with me instead?"

Elysia turned back just in time to see Malvoria tossing a practice sword toward her.

Instinct kicked in, and Elysia caught it.

Her fingers curled around the hilt, her grip steady despite the way her mind was already screaming at her that this was a terrible idea.

Malvoria's smirk deepened, her gray eyes gleaming.

"You're already here," she said, her tone playful yet dangerous. "Might as well see if you can last longer than my soldiers."

The gathered warriors made sounds of pure betrayal.

Elysia looked down at the practice sword in her hands.

Then at Malvoria.

Then back at the poor demon soldiers who were clearly relieved to no longer be on the receiving end of Malvoria's brutality.

"Fine," Elysia said, sighing. "But no broken bones."

Malvoria grinned, taking her stance.

"No promises."

Elysia tightened her grip around the hilt of the practice sword, her determination solidifying as she faced Malvoria.

The last time they had sparred, she had lost—badly. It hadn't even been a real fight; Malvoria had humored her, toying with her skill level before taking her down in a single swift movement, her sword against Elysia's throat before she even had time to react.

It had infuriated her.

But today, she wasn't about to let Malvoria humiliate her again.

The air around them grew thick with anticipation. The soldiers who had been spared Malvoria's brutal training session now looked on with renewed interest.

Some of them whispered to each other, likely placing bets on how long Elysia would last this time.

Elysia ignored them.

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Malvoria rolled her shoulders, stretching her arms before casually spinning her practice sword in one hand. She looked far too relaxed, as if this was nothing more than an amusing way to pass the time.

That alone fueled Elysia's resolve.

"You seem eager," Malvoria mused, her voice low and edged with amusement. "Did you learn anything from last time?"

Elysia narrowed her eyes. "Yes. That you cheat."

The watching soldiers let out a collective gasp, a few stifling laughter as Malvoria smirked.

"Cheat?" Malvoria echoed, tilting her head. "I recall using nothing but skill."

"You call kicking someone's sword out of their hands skill?"

Malvoria chuckled. "Absolutely."

Elysia huffed, adjusting her stance. "Fine. Let's see if I can cheat my way to victory, then."

Malvoria's smirk widened, and without another word, she moved.

She was fast—faster than any opponent Elysia had ever faced. But Elysia had expected this, had studied Malvoria's movements the last time they had fought.

Instead of trying to block head-on, she dodged.

Malvoria's sword cut through the air where Elysia had been only a breath ago.

A flicker of amusement crossed Malvoria's face. "Better."

Elysia didn't give her time to recover. She lunged, aiming for Malvoria's exposed side, but Malvoria's sword was already there, effortlessly redirecting the strike.

Elysia gritted her teeth, twisting her blade at the last second to avoid being completely knocked off balance.

The impact still stung, but she didn't let it show.

Instead, she pushed forward.

She attacked with a rapid series of strikes, forcing Malvoria to move instead of simply standing her ground like an immovable wall.

And for a moment, she thought—just maybe—she was making progress.

But then Malvoria smirked.

And everything went downhill.

Malvoria's smirk was the only warning Elysia got before the demon queen moved faster than she had before.

Elysia barely had time to register the shift before Malvoria's sword clashed against hers with enough force to rattle her bones. She staggered back, trying to regain her footing, but Malvoria didn't give her a second to breathe.

Another strike—faster.

Elysia blocked, her arms burning from the impact, but Malvoria was relentless. She wasn't toying with her anymore. She was testing her.

And gods, it was brutal.

Elysia grit her teeth, refusing to lose so easily. She twisted her sword, attempting to angle Malvoria's blade away, but the demon queen was already moving again, stepping forward, closing the distance—

Too close.

Elysia barely had time to react before Malvoria's free hand gripped her wrist, twisting just enough to make her lose her grip on the sword.

Her weapon clattered to the ground.

She lost.

Again.

Before she could react, Malvoria leaned in, her voice low and smug.

"Better than last time," she murmured, gray eyes gleaming with amusement. "But still not good enough."

Elysia glared.

This wasn't over.