The princes changed their movements without a single word, their coordination as seamless as a single mind.
Dante feinted right to draw her attention. Lucien didn't waste a second, coming in low with aggressive and explosive speed, while Adrian struck from above with a graceful and controlled precision.
Lilian tried to track all three but couldn't. The moment she hesitated to decide which way to turn, it was over.
She hit the mat hard with Dante's hands pinned her wrists above her head, Lucien controlled her legs with a heavy grip before she could even think of kicking, and Adrian's hand came to rest at her neck. He didn't press down, but the placement alone made it clear she was completely trapped.
"Dead," Dante announced. "Three seconds from start to total incapacitation."
Lilian tried to struggle out of instinct, but she was completely immobilized. Every limb was locked down, and every angle of escape was closed off. Facing the three of them together was overwhelming, at least for someone of her skill level.
"Let her up," Dante ordered after a moment. "We'll go again."
They released her and stepped back, letting her regain her feet. Lilian rolled onto her side and pushed herself up, forcing her body to move. She was already breathing hard, sweat beginning to soak through her training clothes.
"Again," Dante said.
They reset the positions without any ceremony.
At the ten seconds mark, she managed to break Adrian's hold with a desperate twist before Dante and Lucien overwhelmed her together. She barely had time to feel proud before she was pinned back to the mat.
They drilled this pattern of attack-pin-reset, over and over for more than an hour. The movements began to burn her muscles, and each failure taught her something.
She started to recognize their timing, the subtle shifts in their weight, and how one of them always moved to cover the blind spot left by the others. Each time, Lilian lasted just a little bit longer. She was reading their teamwork better now, finding small gaps or moments of hesitation she could try to exploit.
But she never actually escaped.
"You're improving," Dante said after she had managed to last fifteen seconds and nearly broke free before they caught her. "But you're still thinking too much. Your instincts are good, so trust them more."
"Easy for you to say," Lilian gasped, sprawled on the mat as she fought to get her breath back. "You've had centuries to develop those instincts."
"Which is why we're training you," Adrian said, stepping forward to offer her a hand up. "So you don't have to wait centuries."
Lilian took his hand, but instead of pulling herself up, she yanked him sharply, throwing her weight to the side. It wasn't enough to actually knock a prince over as he was too heavy and far too experienced for that.
Still, it caught him off guard, and she felt a surge of satisfaction as his balance shifted for a second.
"Hahaha," he laughed, easily finding his footing again. "Using deception. That's smart."
"Devious," Lucien chuckled from the side. "I like it."
"Let's try something different," Dante said, cutting through the playfulness. "Lilian, you pick one of us and attack. Use everything you've got. We'll defend, but we won't counter-attack. I want to see what you can do the offensive."
Lilian thought for a moment to think. Adrian was the biggest and the hardest to move. Dante would see right through her before she even moved. That left Lucien.
He was fast and aggressive, but he was just distractible enough to give her an opening.
She didn't give him any warning.
She lunged at Lucien, using her vampire speed to close the gap and strike at his center mass. He blocked easily, as she had expected, but she shifted her weight immediately, dropping her attack toward his knee, knowing that lower strikes were harder to see coming.
Lucien dodged the kick, but the move forced him to step back. That alone felt like a win.
She pressed the advantage, striking from different angles and mixing up high and low attacks to keep him reacting instead of planning.
"Yes, that's good," Dante called out. "Keep the pressure on him. Don't give him time to think."
Lilian managed to land a glancing blow to Lucien's ribs. It wasn't hard, but it was clean. In real fight, that would have mattered.
She saw a flicker of surprise in his eyes before his expression turned into a delighted grin.
"Nice hit," Lucien said, his eyes lighting up. "Do it again."
She tried, but this time he adjusted, closing the openings she had used before. Still, she managed to make him work for it, forced him to take her seriously as a threat even if she couldn't actually beat him.
"Stop," Dante called it off after several minutes. "That's enough for today."
Lilian stepped back, her body aching but her spirit soaring. She had held her own, or short of, against three ancient vampires.
That had to count for something.
"You did well," Adrian said warmly. "Much better than most newborns at this stage."
"I think it's because of her divine blood," Dante said while his eyebrows furrowed in thoughts. "Her reflexes are faster than they should be, and her strength is greater."
He paused, his expression tightening slightly. "But technique still matters, which is why we'll keep drilling these scenarios."
"Speaking of divine blood," Lucien said, his suddenly serious. "We need to talk about something. When we catch those rogues tonight, we'll find out who sent them. But we also need to consider that someone might actually know what Lilian is."
"The divine hybrid nature?" Adrian asked sharply.
"It's the only thing that makes sense," Lucien said. "Random rogues don't coordinate attacks on prince estates. Someone with knowledge and resources should have sent them. Someone who knows Lilian is valuable."
Dante's expression darkened. "If someone knows she's a divine hybrid, that changes everything. They're myths to most vampires. But to those who know the history, who understand what they represent..."
"They would want to control her," Adrian finished grimly. "Use her power for their own purposes."
"Or kill her to prevent anyone else from having that power," Lucien added.
The words felt heavy in Lilian's chest. The exertion of training faded, replaced by a creeping chill. "... So, these rogues might not just be after me because I'm a newborn. They might specifically want me because of what I am?"
"It's possible," Dante said. "Which is why finding out the truth tonight is so important. We need to know what we're up against."
"We will have a bigger problem if that's true," Adrian said grimly. "Records of divine hybrids are not easily to be accessed. We might have a spy in this house working for someone powerful, or many an ancient vampire with enough historical knowledge to know the signs."
"What about the possibility of another Council member?" Lucien suggested.
"Possibly," Dante replied. "Or an ancient vampire operating outside Council's laws. Either way, it's not good."
The weight of the situation pressed down on Lilian harder than any training pin they had practiced. She had known her blood made her different and powerful, but she hadn't fully realized it also made her a target to be possessed.
"Whatever happens," Adrian said, stepping closer and placing his hands gently on her shoulders when he saw her expression, "we will protect you."
"True. All of us," Lucien agreed.
Surrounded by these three handsome and ancient vampire princes who had pledged themselves to protect her, Lilian felt what she never had before settle in her chest. Whatever enemy that she had never asked for, she wouldn't face it alone.
She had her mates, her husbands. Almost, technically.
"Thank you," she said while looking down at her shoes, feeling both guilty for troubling them and quietly relieved she didn't have to carry this alone.
"Thank us after we've dealt with the rogues," Dante said, his voice back to its usual indifferent tone.