"Why were you worried about the penalties?" Seraphine asked softly as she stood up from her seat along with William when the bell signaling the class break rang through the hall.
William stretched his shoulders slightly and let out a small breath, then looked at her with an awkward smile that did not quite reach his eyes.
"Oh. Actually, I am completely out of points," he admitted, rubbing the back of his head.
Her steps faltered for half a mont as she turned toward him, her eyes widening in disbelief. "What? Why?"
"I spent all of them while shopping for spells," William replied, trying to sound casual, even though the situation was anything but comfortable.
"You can buy spells?" Seraphine asked in shock, her voice rising slightly before she quickly lowered it again.
Her reaction made William pause. Only then did he rember that access to the academy shop during the first two weeks was restricted.
Only the Archon of the first year could use it freely during that period. The rule existed so that students would first receive proper theoretical knowledge and understand the basics before making decisions that could affect their long-term growth.
William did not explain any of that. He simply nodded once and continued walking beside her at a slow pace, his hands tucked into the pockets of his uniform.
Since it was the first day, the classes had mostly been introductory. Professors had gone over the academy structure, the curriculum, and the wide range of subjects that would be taught over the coming years.
The students had also been inford that they would be given one full week to decide on their vocational subjects.
"By the way," William asked after a short pause, glancing at her as they walked through the corridor, "what subject will you be choosing?"
Seraphine hesitated, then shook her head slightly. "I haven’t decided yet," she answered quietly.
"And you?" she asked in return.
"I haven’t decided either," William replied simply.
With that, the silence between them returned once again, awkward but not entirely uncomfortable.
It was the kind of silence filled with unsaid thoughts rather than emptiness.
"Seraaa!~" a familiar voice called out from behind them.
Both of them turned around at the sa ti.
Katherine was waving enthusiastically as she approached, and behind her walked a small group.
Ethan was there, looking calm as always, while Leila walked close to him, leaning toward his ear and complaining animatedly about sothing.
Galeion followed behind them with his towering fra, and Kara walked beside him.
Seraphine’s face brightened imdiately. She turned away from William and moved forward to greet Katherine.
William’s expression stiffened instantly.
"Why the hell is she friends with Katherine?" he thought to himself.
It was not the friendship itself that bothered him. What truly concerned him was the kind of influence Katherine might have on Seraphine.
[Now I won’t be surprised if the crybaby elven princess brings handcuffs on the marriage night.]
"What the hell? Shut up," William snapped internally, forcefully silencing the system, though its words lingered in his mind like an unwanted echo.
He shook his head slightly. "I’m overthinking," he told himself. "Seraphine is too innocent to be corrupted by this witch."
The group naturally rged and began walking toward the cafeteria.
As they moved, the girls quickly blended into conversation.
Katherine, Seraphine, Leila, and Kara began chatting animatedly about costics, eyeliner brands, and mascara techniques.
The topic shifted so rapidly and enthusiastically that William, Ethan, and Galeion all found themselves completely lost.
Galeion stared straight ahead with a blank expression. Ethan listened politely but clearly had no idea what was going on. William, anwhile, felt his soul slowly leaving his body just from hearing fragnts of the discussion.
However, the mont the cafeteria ca into view, the boredom vanished from William’s face. His eyes lit up as if he had just seen salvation itself.
His steps quickened instinctively, and he made a beeline toward the counter. "Ran," he said without hesitation.
The chefs imdiately got to work, moving with practiced efficiency.
Steam rose from the pot as broth was poured, noodles were added, and mushrooms were diced and sprinkled generously on top.
William stood there, breathing in deeply, completely absorbed by the aroma.
anwhile, the others ordered their als as well. Basic als were affordable for students, costing only a coin or two, but special dishes like ran and cheesecake were significantly pricier.
Once everyone had their food, they gathered around a long oval table large enough to seat eight people comfortably.
Seraphine placed her al on the table but then stood up again and walked toward where William was still waiting.
"What are you getting?" she asked, leaning slightly closer with curiosity.
"I ordered ran," William replied, watching intently as the chef added the final touches.
"Do you want a bite?" he asked once he received the bowl and paid the remaining cost. "We can share."
Seraphine nodded, then noticed William glancing toward the dessert counter. A small smile ford on her lips.
"I was thinking of getting sothing sweet," she said. "Will you share it with ?"
"Of course," William replied imdiately, his face lighting up.
They walked together toward the dessert counter. Seraphine leaned closer to the glass fridge, examining the neatly arranged cakes.
"I’m not familiar with desserts," she admitted. "Will you pick sothing for ? It’s my first ti."
William t her gaze and smiled knowingly. "You’ve had chocolate desserts before, haven’t you?"
"Thanks to a certain soone," she replied softly, holding his gaze.
For a brief mont, a subtle tension hung between them, noticeable even to the surrounding students.
William was the first to look away. He turned toward the caterer and spoke clearly. "One maple syrup cheesecake, please."
Seraphine paid, then turned and walked back toward the table. William followed behind her, carrying the trays carefully.
The cafeteria was crowded and noisy, filled with students from all years. Conversations overlapped, laughter echoed, and the clattering of trays was too common.
Many first-year students stared openly at the two of them.
The brutal human Archon, the one who had carved out the heart of the legendary space mage Vorin and called the entire Aris chicken, was now calmly carrying plates for a five-foot-short elven princess.
So students could not understand what they were seeing. Others did, and they quickly realized one thing.
Anyone foolish enough to touch the elven princess would have this devil in human skin personally paying them a visit.
William and Seraphine settled at the table. William lifted a portion of noodles with his chopsticks and turned toward her, ready to feed her.
Suddenly
Boom*!
SMASH!!!!
A golden sword intent barrier flared around Seraphine instinctively as a loud explosion echoed through the cafeteria.
She gasped in shock as sothing crashed heavily onto the table, sending food and fragnts flying.
When she looked down, she saw the figure clearly.
It was a dwarf.
"Desmond!!" Kara shouted as she rushed forward.
Realization struck her; Desmond was the dwarven prince and one of the top ten rankers in the first year.
As Kara knelt beside the injured dwarf, hurried footsteps approached from behind.
"Second-year students," she realized upon seeing the two gold stripes on their belts.
"Hahahaha!! "What filth!" a mocking voice rang out.
A group of nine or ten boys approached, led by a dragonkin. Dragons and phoenixes constituted the majority, with a few others trailing behind.
The hierarchy within the group was obvious, and their intent was even clearer.
"When I told you to kneel," the dragonkin sneered, "you should have done it quietly."
Seraphine turned toward William with a look full of concern.
William right now was kneeling in front of the smashed table, staring at the broken plate and the maple cheesecake sared across the floor.
He had already taken Seraphine’s debt for the cake.
Now it was ruined.
His expression was far worse than hers.
It was filled with pure fury.
"Oh no," Seraphine gasped.
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