Pelion folded his arms and looked at Darius with a knowing expression.
"Now I understand why you are so fixated on them," he said calmly.
Darius did not respond, but his eyes hardened slightly.
Pelion continued, pacing slowly across the hall.
His boots echoed lightly against the stone floor while the black-flamed bird behind him shifted its wings.
"God Gym is rising quickly. That alone draws attention. Many factions are already observing them."
He stopped walking and looked directly at Darius.
"And when they learn that one of their top disciples is Dahlia Draconia…"
He let the sentence hang for a second.
"Your clan, which already suffered damage to its reputation, will face more ridicule."
Darius's jaw tightened.
Pelion gave a small shrug. "People love stories like that. A genius daughter leaves her clan, grows stronger elsewhere, and surpasses her origins."
He tilted his head slightly. "You know how the upper circles gossip."
