"Your strategic instincts have grown considerably sharper since the day I first met you," Rex said, his voice carrying a rare note of genuine appreciation. "Back when you were less concerned with grand design and more focused on trying to put a fist through my mask."
Cassandra didn't flinch. Instead, her lips curved into a dry, dangerous smile, the kind that had once made lesser demons flee in terror.
"Don't sound so surprised, Xerollion... I was the finest general Mordecai ever commanded."
"I learned how to read a battlefield long before you came along to dismantle his empire and claim everything he held dear."
Her tone carried its familiar sardonic edge, but as she looked up at him, the fire in her eyes softened into something more complex, something almost vulnerable. "Still... some days, it feels surreal."
"The Demon Queen, who once drew blood simply by speaking her name, is now standing here in the dark, waiting for a mortal man's signal like any other soldier."
