(One minute, before the portal opened)

  Prince Ethan Wisper was happily humming a toon as he slowly uncoiled the whip, after the fifth shing. He was an average-looking man in his early thirties. He was 5'10" tall, had brown hair and eyes, and a slim build. His features were average and unremarkable, making him blend in with the crowd easily. But he had royal blood flowing through his veins and he used it for his own satisfaction.

  "M-My Lord! What did I do to deserve this?! Why am I getting punished?!" Mayra begged, but the Prince didn't reply as he smiled, which made her heart drop.

  'She should no better than talking to another man! That's the rule!' Ethan thought as he flicked his wrist and the leather whip cracked again across her bare back, leaving a new bloody gash on her already bruised flesh.

  "Ugggggghhhh!" Mayra groaned and held onto the wooden frame that she was tied to as the pain seared through her body. She had no idea what she did this time to warrant the punishment. All she did was talk to the chef about dinner tonight. She thought the Prince would be happy about her taking initiative. But now, he was using his favorite whip on her.

  "You know I only do this because I love you, my dear. But you keep testing me with your words. If you would just obey me, I wouldn't have to correct you," the Prince said, coiling the whip back around his wrist and elbow. He was savory every moment of the punishment as it was one of his favorite parts of the day.

  "Please, Master! Please forgive me! I promise to do better next time," Mayra pleaded, feeling the warm blood trickle down her back.

  "Not until you receive ten more—"

  *Crackle! Spark!*

  A little flicker of light seemed to be coming from behind Ethan.

  The Prince turned his head to look, but nothing out of the ordinary was there. Just the wardrobe full of his whips and tools.

  'It must be imagining things.' The Prince shrugged.

  *Crackle! Spark*

  A yellow spark seemed to be spawning out of nowhere and was starting to form something in the middle of his "discipline" chamber.

  *Crackle*

  Ethan frowned as this yellow sparks continued to pop and fizz.

  "What's happening?" Ethan asked, looking at his surroundings to see if he was missing something.

  *Crackle*

  "Whoever is doing this will be punished if this doesn't stop NOW!" Ethan demanded, feeling his anger rising. He squared off his stance and positioned himself to be ready to fight.

  *Pop*

  *CRACKLE!*

  The sparks were starting to form into a portal of some kind, and it was getting bigger.

  'What the the hells is—'

  *Pop*

  *SPARK! WHOOSH!*

  The portal was now fully formed. It was a giant circle at least fifteen feet in diameter and three feet from the ground had spawned into existence and what greeted him on the other side was a stunning figure with pointy ears.

  "WHO DARES ENTER MY CHAMBER WHEN I'M—WHAO!?"

  Ethan felt ground under his feet move and soon he was thrown through the portal. It looked like he was going to crash into this mystery woman, but she gracefully moved aside.

  *THUD!*

  Ethan hit the polished marble ground as slid across it for ten feet.

  Mayra weakly turned her head and thought she was hallucinating as she saw a portal to a ballroom full of elegantly dress women staring at her husband with anger in their eyes.

  'I've finally have gone mad from the pain—Huh?'

  The new and old wounds began to disappear on Mayra's back as Rya sent her healing magic through her body. Mayra sighed in relief, before she passed out.

  Rya looked over her work and decided it was enough for now. She turned to the man that was busy trying to get his bearings after being thrown across the floor.

  'Where the hell is this—Aric?'

  Ethan didn't know what was going on, but he realized that is was no longer in the Principality of Sokaris as he was surrounded by Fiafyrian Noblewomen inside the Duke's Manor. He hurried to his feet as he gred down at Aric who looked paler than a ghost.

  "What's the meaning of this, Aric—GAH!"

  Prince Ethan felt like time had slowed down as a fist with immense power punched him in the gut. It was so powerful that his feet actually lifted off the ground.

  "GAAHH—URK!"

  Prince Ethan gasped and choked as he felt the air leave his lungs. It felt like his insides were on fire and he struggled to breathe. Before he knew, he crashed onto the marble floor and felt his back crack.

  "You're the most vile excuse for a man I have ever seen," Rya said coldly, looking down at the Prince as she slowly approached him.

  The Prince tried to speak, but he couldn't. His vision started to go dark and he felt the darkness take him. 'G-Get up! You can't let some whore treat you this way!'

  He mustered all the strength he could and started to push himself up.

  *CRACK*

  "GAAAAHHHHH!!!!"

  The Prince screamed in agony as he felt his back break as Rya kicked him across the floor. He tried to crawl away from her, but he didn't get far.

  "Pathetic. A grown man like you, crawling away in fear from a woman? You don't deserve your position," Rya scoffed, kicking him again.

  Prince Ethan managed to protect himself with his arms, but Rya used an Maja striking technique, which fractured his forearms.

  "AAAAAGGGHHH!!! YOU'RE THE PATHETIC ONE! YOU BLINDSIDED ME LIKE A COWARD! AND YOU'LL PAY FOR THIS!!!" Prince Ethan screamed, while gritting his teeth. He still didn't realize that he was fighting a Dark Elf.

  Rya wasn't satisfied with the scream of agony, and she wanted to break his spirit. That's when she came up with an idea. A cruel idea for a cruel person.

  'I could use that Time Magic Healing. It says it makes the recipient re-experience the pain if done incorrectly... Might as well test it out.'

  Rya used her time magic and activated her healing skill.

  The Prince felt a sudden chill down his spine and a fsh of images flooded his mind. The pain from his forearms and back fred up again and it felt like the bones were cracking and reforming.

  "GAAAAAAAHHHH!!!" Prince Ethan screamed as his spine and arms snapped back into pce. Then the pain was gone. Ethan was dumbfounded at first as he swore that his arm and back were broken and he was crippled. But then he remembered the threat and quickly rolled onto his feet, grabbing his dagger from his belt, and faced the woman who dared attack him.

  "Prepare to......" Ethan paused as he finally got a look at his opponent. His confidence wavered for a moment when he realized the race of this woman. 'A dark elf... Gods be damned!'

  There stood confidently in front of everyone was Rya, in her finest ball gown. Nothing about her attire or mannerism suggested that she had just injured a man. Her eyes, however, looked like a wolf stalking prey.

  "W-What is a Dark Elf doing here!?" Prince Ethan excimed, pointing his dagger at her. He regained whatever composure he could muster, but it wasn't his usual domineering way that would strike fear in his enemies.

  The Ladies of the Court have rarely seen a man be so easily defeated by a woman, especially one so young. And for Jemma, the dread that had taken hold of her when saw her husband seemed to fade. The way Rya spoke and the way she had beaten her husband made her think of what she could do if she trained as a mage. Rya gave her a path to hope that she never dared to dream for.

  The rest of the Ladies were stunned by the dispy. Their jaws dropped as they saw Rya take out the man, and their fear turned to amazement.

  "She... She beat him so easily!" Medalia gasped.

  "That's what he gets for being a brute," said Noa, her tone cold and unforgiving.

  "But why did she heal him? Doesn't that make him more dangerous?" asked Cecelia, looking at the young dark elf curiously.

  "She wants him to know fear... I think we will see why Dark Elves are so deadly," Natalie whispered.

  On the other side of the ballroom, the Queen's knights looked around with confusion. They were under strict orders by the King and Crown Prince to protect Rianna and Rya. However, their Captain, Lady Rachel, and Lady Nelumbo didn't do anything besides stand there like they were statues.

  "Captain, Lady Rachel, what are your orders?"

  "Our orders are to defend the Queen," answered Lady Rachel, her tone calm.

  "But the Princess—"

  "About to show this fool the true meaning of pain..." Rachel interrupted. She recalled the time when she didn't trust Rya the first time she met her when they were sent to bring the Crown Prince home from Ironside. General Dougs ordered ten knights to challenge her and Rachel learned first hand how powerful, Rya was. She never wanted to aim her bde in anger at the Dark Elf ever again.

  "Are you sure?"

  "She's one of the most capable unarmed fighters I've trained. Watch an learn," said Lady Nelumbo, gncing over at Rya who was staring down.

  Prince Ethan was still in his battle stance, but he didn't know if he should counter her attacks or go on the offensive.

  "You've been a bad boy, Ethan Wisper," Rya said in a stern voice, "Do you get some sick pleasure watching women cry as you beat them?"

  "So what if I do? Women should obey their husbands. A-And you're no different than any other female in this room," Ethan said, feeling his knees starting to buckle. He had never met a woman so strong before.

  Rya's eyes narrowed, "Is that what you think? Well, let me show you how a REAL woman should act!"

  Ethan channeled his Mana into his dagger as he readied himself. He was lotted for his Maja parrying techniques that not even his older brothers dared to fight against him.

  Rya slowly walked towards him like a model walking a runway, showing off her beauty and grace.

  'Tsk! She my have got the better of me the first time! But no woman can the better of a man the second time—'

  Just as Rya was about five feet away blink in front of him followed with a open hand palm strike to his chest. It happened so quickly that Ethan couldn't react.

  "Gah!? You cunt!" Ethan coughed as his body flew back and hit the floor. The force behind the strike was so strong that it the audience could hear his bones snap.

  Ethan gritted through the pain and went on the offensive. He channeled his Mana into his muscles to give him a speed boost. With his dagger in hand, he rushed forward.

  'Lets see her dodge this!'

  Ethan second best Maja skill was called hundred bde strike. Due to it looking like a hundred arms with bdes were attacking.

  "I've got you now, bitch!" Ethan smiled and rushed in.

  He sshed his bde forward, aiming to stab Rya. But she somehow blinked a foot to the left of his bde.

  'Huh? Don't let up! She can't dodge forever!'

  Ethan's second strike was met with the same result.

  'Fucking stay still!'

  Strike after strike and all he was hitting nothing but air after 25 more attempts. He's never faced an opponent who was able to dodge the first three swings let only 28 of them.

  Ethan's face started to turn red and the vein on his forehead looked like it was going to burst.

  "GAAAHHHH!" he shouted as his muscles were screaming at him to stop, but then he would be left open to a counter attack.

  To the on lookers who saw Ethan's attack. It looked like he moved with the speed of lightning and some thought Rya was in trouble, but she was the one who was controlling the battle and it wasn't looking good for him. It was clear to everyone that Rya was not only superior, but also faster.

  Ethan was breathing heavily, he was getting tired from his st attack. And this Dark Elf was still standing without even breaking a sweat.

  He tried to continue his, but Rya looked bored as she finally stopped avoiding his attack and extended her left hand to catch his right forearm. The bde stopped a few inches away from her eye, and yet she didn't finch.

  "Huh!? How—GAUH!?"

  Rya skillfully twisted her hips and threw him over her shoulder. She didn't use any magic, only the raw strength of her body to throw him.

  Ethan nded on his back and coughed up a mouthful of blood. His ribs had cracked under the force and was barely conscious.

  "This is the best that you can do? It's no wonder why you choose to tie down your survivors. Otherwise they would have been able to destroy a pathetic worm like you. If this is what the best of the Principality of Sokaris can offer. I am not impressed."

  "Gasp gasp—RAH!"

  Ethan channeled the st of his mana into his body and bumped the heel of his right boot to have a hidden bde pop out. He tried to leg sweep Rya, but she jumped over his attack with a front flip, which made the skirt of her bck dress flutter in the air, showing off her white silk panties.

  'You fucking whore! You think you're so fucking high and mighty?! I'll show you who the man here is!'

  He pushed himself off the ground and unched a punch at Rya's face before she could nd on the ground.

  'Gotcha now!'

  "Gack?!"

  Rya simply lifted her left hand and caught his fist with a single hand before she nding. Her smirk sent dread into his soul and he knew that he had needed to end her. He kicked his leg that had the bde and aimed it at her abdomen.

  Rya saw this coming from a mile away, and she decided to end this little game once and for all. She channeled her mana to her off-hand and created a wind ball in her palm. She quickly thrust her left hand forward, creating a bst of air, which sent the Prince flying backwards at an insane speed. Ethan couldn't do anything as the G-forces from the wind spell made it difficult for him to breathe and see straight as his was spinning in the air.

  The Ladies who saw the man flying towards them began to panic as they couldn't move out of the way in time. But then Rya blinked in front of them, and with a single kick, made Ethan's body contort before a loud crunch sound could be heard. Rya's kick made his spine crack under the pressure as it bent the wrong. A few women grimaced at the noise.

  Then in one fell swoop, Rya grabbed the right ankle of the Prince, whose inertia was still forcing him into her kick, and used her superior strength to swing him overhead and smashed him into the marble flooring.

  *BOOM!*

  The impact caused cracks to form under the Prince's body and the shockwave was enough to make a few of the Ladies lose their bance.

  What was left of Prince Ethan was a mangled mess of a man. Only a few bones weren't broken as he coughed out blood. He was going to died soon if he didn't receive any medical attention soon.