She stood frozen like prey caught in a snare.
Kain circled her slowly, his presence thick, suffocating.
"You want him to look at you differently, right?"
"Then you have to learn how to draw him in… how to tempt"
His hand skimmed lightly across her lower back as he passed behind her, a barely-there touch that made her breath hitch.
"Stand up straighter," Kain murmured.
"Chin up. Eyes half-lidded. Like you're bored with everyone else"
'A resting bitch face is the hottest after all'
Lyla obeyed before she even realized it, her posture shifting.
Kain chuckled softly, approving.
"Good girl," he praised, voice low and sinful.
Lyla's face flared hotter than ever, her heart hammering against her ribs.
Without warning, Kain's hand tilted her chin up, forcing her to meet his gaze.
His eyes gleamed like molten gold.
"Now," he whispered, his thumb stroking slowly along her jawline, "for the most important part…"
Lyla's lips parted slightly, unbidden.
She didn't even realize she was leaning in, not until Kain's mouth brushed hers.
A feather-light graze.
Barely a kiss.
But it sent a jolt all the way down her spine.
She gasped quietly, the sound slipping out before she could stop it.
Kain pulled back, smirking lazily, like he hadn't just stolen her breath away.
"You felt that?" he murmured.
Lyla nodded stiffly, too stunned to speak.
"Good," he said, voice darker now, rougher.
"Now... do it again"
He tilted his head slightly, inviting.
Testing.
Challenging.
Lyla's hands trembled at her sides, but she pushed up onto her toes, hesitantly brushing her mouth against his again.
This time, Kain didn't pull away.
He deepened it just a little, enough to catch her bottom lip between his teeth, a slow, wicked nip that made her whimper.
The sound cracked the air like a whip.
Kain swallowed it greedily, his hands sliding to her hips, steadying her.
He could feel her shivering.
He loved it.
Lyla, gasping softly, clutched at his shirt like she was drowning.
Another faint, helpless moan slipped from her when Kain's hands drifted lower, squeezing her hips lightly, possessively.
It was too much.
It wasn't enough.
Kain broke the kiss first, leaving her blinking up at him, dazed and trembling.
"Lesson one," he said, voice rough and smug.
"Seduction isn't about begging. It's about taking"
Lyla barely managed to nod, her lips red and swollen from his.
She wanted more.
She hated that she wanted more.
And Kain knew it.
He leaned down again, close enough that his breath ghosted against her ear.
"Come back tomorrow night," he whispered, teeth grazing the edge of her ear.
"I'll teach you the next lesson"
Then he stepped back, slow and easy, like he hadn't just completely unraveled her.
Lyla stumbled slightly, clutching her arms around herself, desperately trying to pull herself together.
And Kain, smiling like the devil he was, lazily opened the door for her.
"Don't keep me waiting," he said smoothly.
Lyla fled without a word, her heart pounding so loud it drowned out everything else.
Kain watched her go, the grin never leaving his face.
"Totally worth it," he muttered under his breath, chuckling darkly.
Then, with a flick of his fingers, he pulled open his Affection Board, checking Lyla's numbers.
[ Affection towards Kain 1%→3% ]
Kain whistled low under his breath, thoroughly amused.
"Slow and steady wins the race," he said, shutting the board with a snap.
Morning
The sun streamed through the training hall's windows, golden and almost mockingly bright.
Lyla sat stiffly at the far end of the bench, hands clamped in her lap, face burning hotter than a forge.
Every time Kain glanced her way, hell, every time he moved, she flinched like she'd been shot.
It was almost adorable.
Almost.
Kain, lounging against the wall like he hadn't corrupted someone's entire worldview last night, hid his smirk behind a fake yawn.
'Still thinking about it,' he mused, amused beyond words.
His Affection Board flickered faintly in the corner of his vision.
[ Lyla Vi Frost. Affection towards Kain: 3% → 4% ]
He chuckled under his breath.
Patience was a virtue, after all.
Finn, meanwhile, was absolutely beaming today, practically vibrating with nervous excitement as he fumbled through sword drills, stealing awkward glances at Lyla every two minutes.
Kain's Board updated again:
[ Lyla Vi Frost. Affection towards Finn: 30% → 41% ]
[ Finn Hartwell. Affection towards Lyla: 88% → 91% ]
'Look at that. The puppy's learning new tricks,' Kain thought lazily, amused.
He supposed that was part of the plan, too.
Make Lyla think she was "ready" to flirt back at Finn.
A false sense of confidence built entirely on his touch, his kisses.
'Cute,' Kain thought, utterly unconcerned.
Because no matter how hard she tried to look at Finn...
She still couldn't look Kain in the eyes.
The moment their gazes accidentally locked, fleeting, electric, Lyla immediately jerked her head away, ears burning, body stiff as a board.
She looked like she was about to die on the spot.
Kain, for his part, just gave her a slow, lazy smile.
And that was when Ruby sidled up beside him.
"Yo, morning, Heartbreaker," Ruby whispered in his ear, her voice low and teasing.
Kain arched a brow at her.
Ruby's grin was all teeth and mischief.
She very deliberately brushed her arm against his as she passed him a stack of practice blades, her fingers trailing lightly across his wrist.
Kain caught the motion, and her meaning immediately.
Ruby didn't give a damn about Finn or Lyla's little awkward dance.
She was playing her own game.
One that involved him.
Kain's Board dinged softly again:
[ Ruby Elena. Status: Very Horny ]
'Me too, Ruby… but can't seal the deal yet'
Ruby winked at him, totally shameless.
He chuckled quietly, shaking his head.
'Hold it in Kain… not yet!'
He casually tossed a blade toward Finn, who broke his last one.
He nearly fumbled it in his eagerness and then drifted over to the practice dummy, giving Lyla plenty of space to panic about.
And of course, Lyla spent the entire morning looking like she was either about to cry or combust.
Which was, honestly, better than Kain could've dreamed.
Because tonight...
Tonight was Lesson Two.
And he already had some very special ideas in mind.
The rest of the morning dragged on in a haze of drills and half-hearted sparring.
Finn kept sneaking glances at Lyla.
Lyla kept sneaking glances at Kain.
And Kain, well, Kain barely lifted a finger, content to watch the slow unraveling with the patience of a wolf circling a trapped rabbit.
When the bell finally rang to dismiss training, Finn bolted toward Lyla like a man on a mission, a wooden sword tucked awkwardly under one arm.
Kain tilted his head lazily, watching the impending trainwreck.
"Uh—hey, Lyla!" Finn blurted, his voice cracking halfway through.
He flushed.
"You...uh, you did really well today! Your form was, uh, super steady! Really cool!"
Lyla blinked at him, flustered and lost.
She opened her mouth.
Closed it.
Looked past him.
Her gaze snagged on Kain, lounging against the wall, arms folded, one brow raised in silent amusement.
And just like that, whatever courage she'd been scraping together collapsed.
Her face flared red as she ducked her head, mumbling something unintelligible.
Finn, bless him, lit up anyway, mistaking her panic for shyness.
"D-Do you maybe wanna grab lunch? Together?" he asked, voice hopeful.
Kain could practically taste the anxiety rolling off Lyla.
Her hands twisted in the hem of her tunic.
The temptation to intervene was almost overwhelming.
Almost.
Instead, he offered her a lazy, almost imperceptible nod, 'go on then, little rabbit.'
'Let's see what you do'
After a long, agonizing pause, Lyla squeaked out a nod.
Finn looked like he'd just been knighted by the king himself.
He beamed so hard Kain thought his damn face might crack.
The two of them scurried off toward the mess hall, Finn babbling about lunch specials, Lyla trailing behind him like a prisoner on the way to execution.
Kain waited until they disappeared through the far doors before finally moving.
Ruby appeared at his side again, a lollipop between her lips, smirking.
"You're evil," she said around the candy.
Kain shrugged.
"Takes one to know one"
Ruby laughed, bumping his hip with hers in passing.
"Don't make her cry too hard tonight," she teased, sauntering off without waiting for a reply.
Kain watched her go, amused.
Cry?
He wasn't planning on making Lyla cry.
At least...
Not for the reasons Ruby was thinking.
Tonight wasn't about breaking her.
No.
Tonight was about bending.
Softly.
Sweetly.
Until even she wouldn't realize how far she was already slipping.
Kain smiled, slow and wicked, as he turned toward the opposite hall.
He had a few preparations to make before dinner.
A few... tools to gather.
And then—
Then the real lessons could begin.
Evening
The dorm hallways were quiet by the time Lyla crept toward Kain's door.
Her heart hammered so hard she was half-convinced the entire floor could hear it.
She stared at the door for a full thirty seconds, willing herself to move.
'You can do this,' she told herself.
'It's just Kain'
Just Kain, said the girl whose entire body still remembered the way his hands felt on her skin.
Before she could lose her nerve, she knocked softly, quickly.
The door swung open almost immediately.
And there he was.
Kain leaned lazily against the doorframe, barefoot, wearing nothing but a pair of low-slung black briefs and a thin, white T-shirt that clung to his chest in a way that felt almost criminal.
The hall's soft lighting caught on the faint sheen of his skin, the easy ripple of muscle under cloth, the careless tilt of his hips.
Lyla forgot how to breathe.
She stared.
She stared, mortified, helpless.
Kain smirked, slowly, knowing.
"Lesson Two," he drawled, voice a lazy purr.
"You made it"
Lyla nodded, a jerky, frantic motion, as her face went supernova red.
She couldn't even look at him properly.
Her eyes darted everywhere, his bare feet, the floor, the ceiling, anywhere but the dangerous, half-dressed man in front of her.
"Come in," he said, stepping aside.
She obeyed automatically.
The door clicked shut behind her with a soft click.
The room was dim, lit only by the golden haze of the setting sun spilling through the curtains.
It smelled faintly of cedarwood and something sharper, something Kain.
He watched her, silent, arms loosely crossed.
Lyla twisted her fingers together, standing stiffly near the center of the room.
Every nerve ending was on fire.
"First lesson," Kain said, voice low, almost lazy.
"You learned what it feels like to be touched"
He pushed off the wall, slow and unhurried, padding toward her barefoot across the carpet.
Lyla's breath hitched.
Kain circled her once, inspecting her like a particularly interesting piece of prey.
She tried, gods, she tried to stay still.
But when he stopped behind her, so close she could feel the heat of him through her clothes, she nearly jumped out of her skin.
"Tonight," he murmured, voice brushing her ear, "you're going to learn how to ask for it"
"Be the one in control"
Lyla's knees wobbled.
She made a tiny, strangled noise in the back of her throat.
Kain chuckled, soft, wicked.
He brushed her hair aside with two fingers, exposing the nape of her neck.
"It's simple," he said.
"You want something..."
His lips barely grazed her skin, featherlight, unbearably teasing.
"You have to ask"
Lyla bit her lip so hard she thought she might draw blood.
Kain pulled back just enough to let her breathe.
Just enough to make her chase the warmth he took away.
He waited.
Patient.
Her hands trembled at her sides.
Her throat worked.
"...Please," she whispered, so softly she wasn't sure she even said it out loud.
Kain's smile was slow and devastating.
"Good girl"
And then, without hesitation, he slid his hand up the curve of her spine, gentle, warm, firm enough to make her arch helplessly into his touch.
Lyla shivered, every inch of her burning, drowning, wanting.
Kain leaned down again, his voice a low purr against her ear:
"Lesson Two has just begun"
She stood frozen, trembling under the weight of his gaze.
The room felt too small, too hot, too filled with him.
Every lazy step he took felt like a countdown.
Every breath she took felt stolen.
"You did say please," Kain murmured, voice low and rough.
"But you didn't say what you wanted"
He stopped in front of her, close enough that she could see the faint rise and fall of his chest, the way the fabric clung to his skin, dampening slightly with heat.
Lyla opened her mouth, but nothing came out.
She tried again.
"...Touch me," she whispered, so small, so humiliated and desperate she thought she might die from it.
Kain's mouth curved in a slow, lethal smile.
"Where?"
The word hit her like a slap.
She squeezed her eyes shut, fists trembling.
Kain waited.
Patient.
Relentless.
When she didn't answer, he reached out, very slowly, and hooked a single finger under the hem of her shirt, lifting it just enough to graze the bare skin of her stomach.
She gasped, flinching but not away.
He smiled wider.
"Here?" he teased, drawing lazy circles against her skin, featherlight.
She nodded frantically, face burning.
But he tsked, soft and cruel.
"Use your words, Frostbite"
Her whole body trembled.
"...T-touch me there," she stammered, voice cracking.
Kain rewarded her with a slow, languid stroke of his palm up her side, fingertips grazing her ribs, thumb brushing the sensitive dip beneath her breast without actually touching it.
Lyla choked on a gasp, her body arching involuntarily toward him.
He chuckled, pleased.
"Good girl," he praised again, his voice a slow, honey-thick drag over her nerves.
He shifted, impossibly closer, until there was barely a breath of space between them.
She could feel the heat of him now, radiating through the fabric, through the thin barrier of her clothes.
Everywhere he wasn't touching burned worse than where he was.
And then he tilted his head slightly, studying her.
"You want more?"
Lyla nodded desperately, wide-eyed.
Kain brushed his knuckles up the line of her jaw, tilting her face toward him.
"Say it"
"...Please," she breathed.
He smiled.
And then, very deliberately, he cupped her face in both hands, fingers sliding back into her hair, and kissed her, softly at first.
Not the brutal, consuming kiss she expected.
No.
He kissed her sweetly.
Patiently.
As if he had all the time in the world to ruin her.
Lyla whimpered helplessly, gripping his shirt in shaking fists as he deepened it just a fraction, enough to make her knees buckle.
Kain caught her easily, one hand sliding down her back, pressing her flush against him.
Against all of him.
There was no hiding how hard he was now.
No pretending he wasn't affected.
It was obscene, the heat, the hardness of him straining against those thin briefs.
Lyla made a tiny, desperate sound.
Kain broke the kiss with a low chuckle, dragging his mouth along her jaw, down the fragile line of her throat, teeth grazing her pulse.
"You feel that?" he murmured against her skin.
She nodded frantically, mindless.
"That's what you do to me," he whispered.
"That's how much I want you"
Lyla thought she might actually melt into the floor.
Kain's hands roamed lower, finding the curve of her hips, gripping them with a bruising kind of tenderness.
He squeezed once, making her gasp, making her feel it.
Then he pulled back just enough to look her in the eyes, half-lidded, hungry, but still controlled.
"Lesson Two," he said again, voice low and dangerous, "is about control"
He leaned in, teeth grazing the shell of her ear.
"But tonight…"
A kiss, hot and open-mouthed, pressed to her throat.
"...you're going to lose it"
And with that promise hanging heavy in the air, Kain walked her backward toward the bed, slow, relentless, until the back of her knees hit the mattress and she toppled onto it with a breathless little cry.
He followed her down, a shadow, a storm, a hunger barely leashed.
The bed dipped under Kain's weight as he crawled up over her, slow and deliberate.
Lyla scrambled back instinctively, breath hitching, until her shoulders hit the headboard, nowhere left to run.
Kain just smiled, lazy and dangerous, as he straddled her hips, his thighs bracketing her body.
His shirt rode up slightly, flashing more of his stomach, sharp lines of muscle disappearing into the low waistband of his briefs.
It was unfair how he looked at her, how he owned the air in the room without even touching her.
"You can still stop me," he murmured, brushing a knuckle down her cheek.
The touch was maddeningly light.
"But if you don't say it now..."
His hand trailed lower, tracing the line of her throat, her collarbone, down to the trembling rise and fall of her chest.
"...I'm not stopping until you forget your own name"
Lyla opened her mouth to protest, to beg, to do something, but nothing came out.
Just a desperate, shuddering breath.
Kain's smile deepened.
"Good girl"
Then he was on her.
Mouth at her throat, kissing, biting, never hard enough to hurt, but enough to brand her.
His hands moved with ruthless precision, sliding under her shirt, palms hot against bare skin.
Up.
Higher.
Until his thumbs brushed the underswell of her breasts.
Lyla arched into him with a whimper, hands clutching at his shoulders.
"Take it off"
She hesitated, fumbling, half-blind with panic and need, Lyla yanked her shirt over her head and threw it somewhere across the room.
She flushed furiously, arms moving to cover herself, but Kain caught her wrists easily, pinning them above her head with one hand.
"No hiding," he said, soft but unrelenting.
"Okay…"
"Good," he whispered, almost reverently.
And then he bent his head.
Mouth hot and open against her skin, tongue tracing maddening paths over every inch he could reach.
He kissed the curve of her breast, nipped gently at the soft swell just above her bra, teasing mercilessly, never quite giving her what she craved.
Lyla writhed beneath him, helpless, desperate.
"Kain—"
He tightened his grip on her wrists.
"You don't say my name like that"
He kissed a path up to her ear, voice dropping to a growl.
"Not when we're doing this"
Lyla squeezed her eyes shut, fighting herself, pride and shame, and wild, desperate hunger tangling in her chest.
But Kain waited.
Patient.
Unrelenting.
And when she finally broke, gasping, trembling, her voice was barely a whisper.
"Please, Kain..."
His low chuckle against her skin was pure, sinful satisfaction.
"Good girl"
He finally let go of her wrists, his hands trailing down her body, worshipful and rough all at once.
He hooked his fingers in the waistband of her pants, eyes locking with hers, giving her one last chance to stop him.
She didn't.
Couldn't.
Kain grinned, sharp, hungry, and in one smooth motion, he dragged them down, baring her to him.
Lyla whimpered, hands flying up instinctively to cover herself, but he caught them again, pinning them to the bed.
"None of that," he murmured, nipping at her jaw.
"You're mine to look at while you're here"
Mine.
The word echoed in her skull, her soul.
And then he was kissing lower again, down her chest, her stomach, tracing the trembling line of her body with wicked, lazy kisses that made her whole body arch and tremble and burn.
Every time she gasped, every time she whimpered, he rewarded her with more.
More touch, more heat, more him.
Until she wasn't thinking anymore.
Until she wasn't anything but desperate, gasping, needing.
Her fingers clawed at the sheets.
Her body writhed helplessly under his mouth, his hands.
And through it all, Kain stayed perfectly in control.
Dragging her deeper and deeper into madness.
"You wanted Lesson Two," he murmured, voice thick with hunger.
He kissed her hip bone.
"This is it"
He slid his hands up her thighs, thumbs pressing teasingly close to the place she needed him most but not quite touching.
A kiss, molten, against the inside of her thigh.
"You don't fight it"
Another kiss, higher.
"You just feel"
And finally, he leaned in, a wicked, dangerous smile on his lips.
"Well, we can go even further if you want"
Lyla.
She barely had time to catch her breath, her body still trembling, boneless under Kain's relentless touch, when the knock came.
Sharp.
Insistent.
Kain froze above her, his body radiating pure murderous frustration.
Another knock.
"...Kain?" Finn's voice, muffled through the door.
"Can I, can I talk to you? It's important"
Kain closed his eyes, exhaled slowly through his nose.
'Breathe, Rei… Breathe!'
The rage, the need, the pure filth he had been about to drown Lyla in, all of it had to be packed away.
Buried.
For now.
With a low growl of frustration, he rolled off her, yanking his t-shirt down and adjusting his briefs with minimal shame.
"You," he said, flicking Lyla's forehead gently, "stay very quiet"
She nodded, still dazed, clutching the sheets to her chest.
Kain sauntered over to the door, muscles flexing, hair a beautiful disheveled mess.
He cracked it open just enough to lean against the frame, looking down at Finn with mild, faux-annoyed amusement.
"...You better be dying," Kain drawled.
Finn, cheeks flushed, scratched the back of his neck.
"N-No, I—I just… Can we talk? Privately?"
Kain sighed dramatically, shooting a look over his shoulder to where Lyla was half-hiding in the bed.
Perfect.
Deliciously trapped.
He stepped out into the hallway, pulling the door closed behind him with a quiet click.
Or so he thought as the door opened slowly… softly to no one's notice.
"What's your crisis?" Kain asked, deadpan.
Finn shifted awkwardly.
"It's about Lyla. And Ruby"
Kain arched an eyebrow.
"Go on"
"I… I think I like Lyla," Finn blurted, miserable.
"But I'm with Ruby and I… it feels wrong, you know? Like I'm betraying her"
Kain bit down hard on the vicious laugh bubbling up.
Instead, he made his face serious, thoughtful, and the perfect concerned mentor.
"That's natural, man," Kain said smoothly.
"You're growing. Expanding. It's… honestly? Selfish to limit yourself"
Finn blinked, confused.
Kain clapped him on the shoulder.
"You're too good to only give your love to one girl. Ruby would want you to be happy"
Finn hesitated, uncertain.
"And, hey," Kain continued, voice dropping conspiratorially, "You ever thought about... I dunno. Building something bigger?"
He smiled.
Slow.
Wicked.
"Like... a harem?"
Finn's eyes widened like saucers.
"A… a harem?"
"Yeah," Kain said casually.
"Lots of guys do it. Protecting, loving multiple girls at once. It's honorable. And Ruby? She's loyal. She'd support you"
Finn fidgeted, biting his lip.
"You... you really think Ruby would be okay with that?"
Kain shrugged, casual.
"I know she would"
Finn stared at him, visibly turning it over in his mind.
Inside the bedroom, Lyla listened, heart hammering, her entire soul sinking with every word.
He never loved me.
He was just following Kain's poison-tipped encouragement like a good little soldier.
She couldn't breathe.
Couldn't think.
Quietly, silently, she slipped out the window, tears burning her eyes, leaving behind the shirt she'd been clutching to her chest.
She didn't see the way Kain's mouth curved into a slow, knowing smirk.
Didn't see the way he patted Finn's shoulder warmly.
But she left Finn the gift of closing Kain's door with magic.
"Trust me, bro," Kain said.
"It'll be good for everyone"
Finn beamed, relieved, almost giddy, and left after a few more awkward words of thanks.
The moment Finn disappeared down the hall, Kain pulled out his phone.
Texted Ruby.
Kain:
Change of plans.
Finn's gonna build a harem.
Are you cool with it?
Ruby's reply was almost instantaneous.
Ruby:
Anything for you.
Kain grinned, all teeth.
"Good girl," he mumbled, pleased beyond words.
He tucked the phone away, whistling as he strolled back into his room.
The bed was empty, of course.
The sheets were still warm where Lyla had been.
Kain's Affection Board flickered at the edge of his vision:
[ Lyla Vi Frost. Affection towards Kain: 4% → 12% (Burning Shame and Desire) ]
[ Lyla Vi Frost. Affection towards Finn: 41% → 27% (Broken Trust) ]
[ Finn Hartwell. Affection towards Lyla: 91% → 95% (Obsession Growing) ]
Kain chuckled under his breath.
"Perfect"
He opened his Stat page and dumped a fresh haul of points into his Looks and Strength stats.
Polishing himself into an even more devastating weapon.
Because if Lyla was going to run?
Good.
He'd just have to put up the old charm.
And when she finally breaks, she won't fall into Finn's arms.
She'd fall into his.
Exactly where she belonged.