Chapter 972

Judson wasn’t the least bit angry or embarrassed when Jane subtly avoided his touch. His eyes shifted to the training ground, where the man who had just challenged her was now being wheeled away on a stretcher. “Is he dead?” he asked. Jane gave the retreating figure a glance, her expression blank. “I didn’t check.” She hadn’t struck to kill—but whether her opponent survived wasn’t something she concerned herself with. Judson understood that look all too well. The instructors had said the same thing repeatedly: Jane was flawless in every way… except one. Her heart was too soft. In every sparring match, she had the chance to kill—but she never took it. She always held back at the last second. “You shouldn’t show mercy, Hazel,” Judson said. “No one here will thank you for it. If any of them become stronger than you, they won’t hesitate to take your life.” He’d told her this before. More than once. Jane responded with her usual calm, unwavering tone. “They won’t surpass me. And they won’t