The Academy's Terminally Ill Side Character Chapter 202 202: Calm Before The Storm [3]

I didn't get much sleep last night.

Maybe an hour—two at most.

It was hard to tell anymore.

By the ti I blinked and opened my eyes again, morning had already arrived. Pale light filtered through the window, soft and gray, the kind of light that made everything feel slower than it was.

But I didn't move.

Not yet.

I lay still under the covers, pretending to sleep, listening to the quiet rustling coming from the other side of the room.

Leona was already up.

I could hear her slipping into the usual morning routine—straightening her posture, binding her chest, changing into the academy's male uniform. Her daily disguise. Sothing she did out of habit now. The sound of it was oddly chanical, like she was moving on autopilot.

I kept my eyes closed until I heard the click of the bathroom door shutting behind her.

Only then did I sit up.

We didn't talk much that morning. Just a few short exchanges—"Morning," and "Did you sleep?"—the kind of words that felt more like background noise than actual conversation.

When I moved to brush my teeth and change, she was already in the kitchen, quietly going through the motions of making breakfast. Two plates, two cups, even though we barely looked at each other.

She made fried eggs and toast.

I didn't ask for anything, but she still set my plate down across from hers like always.

We ate in silence.

The sound of clinking cutlery, the faint sizzle of the cooling pan, the humming fridge—those were the only things filling the room.

I knew she wanted to ask.

She didn't need to say it out loud; I could feel it in the way she kept glancing up, just for a second or two, before quickly looking back at her food. Like she was trying to find the right mont to speak and never quite finding it.

But I didn't offer anything.

Because if she asked what was wrong…

If I told her what I was planning…

If I said the words out loud—

"I'm going to kill soone."

That would make it real. Too real.

She wouldn't let it go.

She might try to stop .

She might even get hurt.

And I couldn't risk that.

I didn't touch half of my food. I wasn't hungry.

After a while, Leona quietly stood, picked up her dishes, and began to wash them without saying anything.

I followed suit, dropping my fork onto the plate with a quiet clatter and moving to the sink beside her.

Still no words.

But I could feel the tension.

Not anger. Not even suspicion.

Just worry.

Worry she wasn't sure how to voice.

I glanced at her as she scrubbed a plate, sleeves rolled to her elbows, lips pressed into a thin line. Her hands moved automatically, but her eyes—they weren't focused on the dish. They were sowhere far away.

And I hated that.

I hated dragging her into this—into sothing she didn't ask for, didn't deserve.

But the wheels were already turning.

The mont was set.

There was no turning back now.

The next morning ca like any other.

We left for the academy together, saying little, walking side by side in that familiar, quiet way we had when too much was left unsaid. The silence wasn't tense, just... weighted.

Like both of us were carrying sothing too heavy to set down.

She went to her classroom. I went to mine.

The mont I stepped inside, I saw her.

Kiera, sitting on my bench like nothing had happened.

She looked better today—calr, less pale. Her eyes t mine, and there was that usual smirk tugging at her lips.

Guess that was a good sign.

Leo sat in his usual place, all the way in the back by the window, his head tilted just slightly, eyes fixed on sothing in the distance—clouds maybe, or thoughts no one else could reach.

If there was anyone born to be the main character in soone else's story, it was Leo.

anwhile, Ryen was leaning against the desk in front of Nora's, mid-conversation. They were smiling about sothing. Or pretending to. It was hard to tell with those two.

I slipped into my seat, and before I could even exhale, Kiera leaned over.

"You look like hell," she said.

I shrugged. "Didn't sleep."

"No kidding," she replied, but there was no bite in it. Just a quiet concern underneath.

We talked for a bit—light things. Mostly her doing the talking, which I didn't mind. Her voice filled the space I didn't want to acknowledge. And for a few minutes, it felt normal.

Then the bell rang, and she stood with a sigh.

"Well, back to prison," she muttered, adjusting her bag.

"Teke Nora with you "

"I'm not her handler."

"You're the closest thing."

She rolled her eyes and walked off, and a few seconds later, Nora followed behind her. The two of them disappeared into the hallway like smoke fading into air.

Horoom passed like it always did.

Professor Lena ca in, took attendance without looking up from her tablet, gave a half-hearted update about hero activity stats, then reminded us to submit our quarterly reflections by Friday.

Then she left just as quickly as she'd arrived.

And now it was ti for [Basic Magic Class].

I sighed and pushed myself up from the chair as the classroom started to clear out.

Ten minutes into [Basic Magic Class], and I could already feel it—a dull weight pressing behind my eyes, threatening to drag under. I blinked slowly, trying to focus on the glowing diagrams floating mid-air.

"Is Cadet Rin Evans sick today?"

I blinked again. "Huh?"

The voice belonged to Professor Alice Draken—known across the academy as both a competent mage and the unofficial mascot of the faculty. She was small, sharp, and way too cheerful for soone who could probably cast three circles' worth of fire spells in her sleep.

She had her hands on her hips, head tilted slightly, looking right at .

"I asked if you were sick. You're usually spaced out, but today it feels... different."

"Uh... no, I'm fine."

"Really? You're always like this, but today's got a little extra flavor. I was starting to wonder if you'd finally lost it."

"So... does that an I don't have to answer the question?"

"Nice try. That's a separate issue," she said with a grin. "Now, answer it. Co on, Rin—impress ."

"Number three," I said, barely looking at the board.

Professor Draken narrowed her eyes at , then chuckled. "Guessing on a subjective question? Bold. I'll let you off easy this ti—but next ti you pull that, you're on TA duty."

At least it wasn't an F this ti. Progress?