Elva stepped into the classroom with her usual grace, the kind that seed to quiet any room she entered. Several students straightened up in their seats, eyes automatically drawn to her.
But this ti, she wasn't alone.
Trailing behind her was a girl Ash had never seen before. She looked around their age, maybe a little older, with soft black hair that frad her pale face, and striking blue eyes that—much to his surprise—matched his own.
There was a lightness to her steps, a subtle energy in the way she moved, like she was holding back a laugh or dancing to a rhythm only she could hear.
Her gaze flicked around the room, bright and curious, pausing here and there like she was scanning for sothing—or soone.
Who is she?
Ash narrowed his eyes slightly. He tried to dig through his mory, but nothing ca up.
No... my thinking is flawed. There's no way the novel covered every single day in detail. I shouldn't rely too much on it.
She was wearing the Starlight Academy uniform like everyone else—black with golden trim—but it sohow looked different on her. Maybe it was the way she carried herself. Confident, but not arrogant. Relaxed, but focused.
She walked up beside Elva and turned to face the class. Her voice, cheerful and clear, filled the room effortlessly.
"Hello! My na is Alia Veynar. I'll be joining your class from today. I hope we can all be good friends."
Ash stayed silent in his seat, watching her. He didn't like how his instincts were reacting. There was sothing about her that made him uneasy.
***
After that brief introduction, Ash had done his best to avoid her. But her presence lingered in his mind.
It wasn't just the strange timing of her arrival—one month after the start of the term—or the fact that she had been placed in Class 1S, sothing usually reserved for students with either incredible talent or equally incredible backgrounds. That alone made her suspicious.
No regular student gets into Class 1S this late. Her background must be strong—strong enough to bend the academy's rules.
He thought back to the Saints, the seven individuals whose influence shaped much of the continent. Could she be related to one of them?
Or maybe soone even higher?
But no matter how much he tried to piece it together, he couldn't recall anyone with such a background.
More than that, it was the impression she had left on him. He didn't know why, but she reminded him of soone.
She feels like a younger version of Vice Principal Elva...
A chill passed through him.
Don't tell … is she her daughter?
Just as that thought settled, a voice slipped through his thoughts—light, almost playful—but unnervingly precise.
"Whatever you're thinking, you should discard it right away."
Ash nearly jumped back.
He hadn't even noticed her approach.
She was standing right in front of him, eyes playful, as if she knew exactly what he had been thinking.
What the hell… is she following ?
Maintaining his composer, he answered flatly. "I wasn't thinking anything. And you should stop following . All classes are over now."
"But you didn't answer ," she replied, tilting her head. "So what else could I do?"
Ash clenched his jaw. If he could show emotions on his face, he'd be grinding his teeth right now.
She had asked him sothing earlier. Sothing that had completely caught him off guard. He hadn't been able to shake it off since.
"I already said I'm not."
---
A Few Hours Earlier
After Elva's class had ended, Alia had sprung to life—chatting with nearly every student in the room like an unstoppable chatterbox.
One by one, she made her rounds. Then she finally stopped in front of Ash's desk, leaned in just a bit too close, and asked—
"Are you my lost brother?"
The question hit the class like an explosion. Silence, then—
"Pffft—!"
Grace spit out a mouthful of water straight onto Ethan's face, soaking him completely. He looked like he'd been hit by a wave.
The entire classroom erupted.
lissia stared, slack-jawed. Lyra and Irvin burst into choked laughter. Half the class was in chaos—so dying from secondhand embarrassnt, others too stunned to react.
The classroom buzzed with suppressed giggles. So were laughing at Ethan's misfortune, but most were simply stunned by Alia's absurd question.
Ash stared back at her with a blank face, but inside, he was speechless.
"No," he said, louder than necessary.
Alia didn't look fazed. Instead, she nodded as if she had expected it.
"I see…" she replied, a little disappointed. "It's just, our eyes are the sa color, so I thought maybe..."
Ash had ntally filed her under the Avoid At All Costs list on the spot.
He pointed at Ray. "He has black hair. That doesn't an he's your brother either."
Ray blinked in confusion.
Why am I getting pulled into this?
Ever since that mont, Alia hadn't left him alone.
"What's your na?"
"Where are you from?"
"Do you like sweets?"
"There's still a chance we're siblings. I'm older than you, after all. I should know."
No matter how many tis he tried to shake her off, she ca back, full of questions, full of curiosity, like a bee circling a flower.
---
And now, here she was again.
Ash could feel the headache growing.
"Why are you following ?" he asked, forcing the words out slowly. His patience was wearing thin. He felt like his calm, quiet solitude was falling apart, and she was the one tearing it down.
"Why? That's easy," she said, smiling brightly. "It's because I like you."
Her voice wasn't quiet. In fact, it echoed loud enough for the entire corridor to hear.
Ash froze.
The surrounding students froze too.
Conversations stopped. Footsteps halted. Every pair of eyes turned toward them.
Ash's heart sank.
Alia's entry to the academy had already sparked enough curiosity—no one knew how she got in, and if asked, she'd just smile and say, "My grandpa let enroll."
Never once did she explain who this grandpa was., though it was obvious he had enough authority to place her directly into the most elite class.
Combine that mystery with her beauty, charm, and confidence, and she had quickly beco one of the most talked-about people in the academy.
And now, on her very first day, she had just announced that she liked soone.
Not just anyone—but Ash. The lowest-ranked student in the Academy.
He felt like the ground under his feet was falling apart.
"What do you an by that?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady. He had to at least clear the misunderstanding.
"It's simple," Alia said. "I think you're interesting, Ash Burn. That's all."
Ash looked at her for a second, then let out a slow breath.
"You really should watch your words," he said after a pause. "People will take them seriously. And I don't want trouble. So please, stay away from ."
He didn't wait for her reply. He walked past her and quickened his pace, heading toward the library.
Behind him, the murmurs started.
"Did she just say she likes him?"
"Wait, did he just reject her?"
"No way. The goddess Alia just got rejected by the last ranker?"
"Is he a eunuch or sothing? I've never seen soone like him..."
The words reached his ears—he could hear them clearly thanks to his enhanced senses.
His fists clenched at his sides.
Eunuch?! You bastard—I'm just a virgin, that doesn't make a eunuch!
Fuming internally, he stord away, muttering curses under his breath, heading straight for the library.
***
[Alia Veynar Pov]
She watched Ash as he stord down the corridor, his steps brisk and deliberate—like he was trying to outrun sothing invisible clinging to his shadow.
Her lips parted into a small smile.
How strange…
Even now, after all that, she couldn't see a single flicker of emotion around him. Nothing. Not a hint. No red haze of irritation, no blue fog of sadness, no golden thread of joy.
Since childhood, the old man had told her—You are different, Alia. The threads of fate bend a little closer to you. She bore an affinity for fate, an unnatural one.
Sothing that would awaken in her later, when her body and spirit were strong enough to hold it.
But that wasn't the only gift she carried.
Her eyes were unique. Unlike anything he had seen.
She could see emotions—raw, honest, bleeding around people like colored lights. Bright joy, dull sorrow, prickling envy… Every emotion had a color, a weight, a shape.
It was like watching souls dance in slow motion. A blessing, he called it. A curse, she sotis felt. Because she had always known who to trust… and who to avoid.
It kept her safe. Let her survive, long before she had a na or a ho.
But then she entered the academy.
And found him.
Ash Burn.
A boy who stood in a crowd yet felt like a ghost.
He gave off nothing. No color. No pulse. Just... silence. His emotions didn't just hide—they didn't exist. Not to her sight, anyway. She'd stared and stared, but there was only a blank void where his feelings should've been.
And that was the most exciting thing she'd ever seen.
So she poked him. Teased him. Called him her brother in front of the class just to see if he'd break—just to see if sothing would flicker.
But still… nothing.
And yet, instead of deterring her, it made her smile.
Ash Burn… you're the first puzzle I can't see through.
Her lips curled as she turned away, heart beating a little faster.
The academy really is a fun place.
***
[Elysia Moonglow POV]
How frustrating… how utterly, helplessly frustrating…
Elysia walked toward the library, her steps quiet but her thoughts anything but calm.
Three weeks ago, she had made a choice—a quiet one, sothing only she knew about. She wanted to confirm if Ash Burn was really the sa Ash she rembered from her past life.
She hadn't expected much. Just a conversation. A mont. Anything that might stir the past. But fate, as always, had a habit of spitting in her face.
The very next day, he vanished.
He stopped coming to class, disappeared like a ghost, and when he finally returned, sothing about him had changed.
His body had sharpened. His once frail fra had grown steadier. Shoulders squared, posture more grounded, movents more precise.
Muscles now sat where there had only been skin and bones before. It caught the attention of the class, of course, but no one said anything out loud.
After all, this was a world where potions could shape flesh like clay, and elixirs could rewrite the body.
Still, no one knew how he got his hands on sothing like that.
And ever since then, he's beco... attractive.
Her face burned slightly as the thought settled in her chest. She shook her head.
No. No, what the hell am I thinking? I shouldn't be thinking like that. Why does my heart feel like this?
There was no answer. Just silence that grew louder the longer she walked.
And then, without warning, the silence shattered.
"That fucking bastard…"
The words tasted bitter in her mouth. She almost never cursed, not even in her mind. It wasn't her nature to let anger take root in her heart.
It genuinely wasn't. Her nature had always leaned toward calm. Gentle words, asured thoughts.
And maybe it wasn't just anger.
Even now, she rembered the look in his eyes—cold, distant, and yet so hollow it made her heart ache. He didn't hate her. That would've been easier to deal with.
No… it felt like he was trying to erase her existence from his life entirely.
And that… that made her furious.
Because she had done nothing wrong. But lately, he had been testing every inch of her patience.
Every ti she got near, he would literally run away. Not with urgency, not with panic, but with this cold, infuriating distance that made her blood boil. Whenever she tried to speak to him, he'd vanish from the hall like a streak of lightning.
That fucking coward…
And the worst part? She didn't even know why he was avoiding her. They weren't close. They didn't share any aningful past in this life—at least not that he should know. So why was he running?
It makes no sense. And it only makes more suspicious.
Even in the library, when he thought he had shaken her off, when he slipped between bookshelves and vanished like fog, she hadn't followed.
Not because she gave up—but because she didn't want to cause a scene. She didn't want to get banned for raising her voice or demanding answers in a place ant for silence.
But enough was enough.
Did he really think he could keep running forever? That I'd just give up?
This ti, she wasn't going to let him go.
You can't avoid forever, Ash Burn.
I don't know who you are anymore… but I will find out.
And with a quiet breath, she walked toward the library, no longer hesitating.
***
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