The carriage ride dragged on in heavy, freezing silence until the sky outside the frosted glass finally bruised into deep purples and dark oranges.
By the ti the towering, imposing stone spires of the Royal Academy ca into view, the sun had fully set, replaced by the soft, humming glow of lamps lining the streets.
The carriage rolled to a smooth stop inside the grand courtyard of the campus.
I pushed the door open and stepped down onto the immaculate cobblestone, the crisp evening air a welco relief after hours trapped in Cassandra’s chilling aura.
She descended gracefully right after , her pristine uniform completely unwrinkled.
Before turning to leave, she paused. The ethereal light of the campus lamps caught her silver hair as she leveled one last, piercing look at .
Her eyes dropped pointedly to the ring on my left hand.
"Rember what I told you," Cassandra said, her voice a cool, authoritative whisper.
"Don’t bring sha to our na by getting controlled over so ambitious village girl. And you are not going sowhere remote after this term ends. You’ll be coming ho."
With that absolute, non-negotiable command, she turned on her heel.
I watched her elegant, purposeful strides carry her toward the elite upper-year dormitories until she completely disappeared into the evening crowd of returning students.
I stood there in the courtyard for a long mont, letting out a heavy, exhausted sigh.
To her, I was currently brainwashed and wrapped around the finger of so scheming, manipulative peasant girl.
Well... a sudden, warm image of Tessa’s smiling face flashing through my thoughts. But she definitely isn’t controlling .
And as for her final order about coming ho?
I let out a dry, humorless chuckle, dropping my hand to my side. I had just shattered my younger brother’s ribs, knocked the wind out of our father, and explicitly told them I was cutting ties.
Returning to the Raith estate was at the absolute bottom of my priority list. I was going to build my own life, on my own terms.
Then I turned my back on the carriage drop-off and faced the sprawling, magically illuminated campus of the Royal Academy.
Students in their dark blue and silver uniforms were milling about, carrying stacks of thick grimoires, laughing with their noble cliques, or rushing to settle into their dorms before curfew.
"Alright," I muttered to myself, adjusting the heavy strap of Oathstorm’s black scabbard over my shoulder. "Ti to figure out how to survive high school all over again."
I joined the stream of students flowing through the central pathways, shoving my hands deep into my coat pockets and walked into the glowing heart of the Academy.
Navigating the familiar, polished stone corridors of the first-year dormitory, the ambient chatter of returning students echoing off the high ceilings.
I finally reached my assigned door, pulled the brass key from my pocket, and pushed it open, expecting a dark, empty room and a quiet bed.
But...
"Surprise!"
A loud, booming voice practically rattled the doorfra.
Before I could even step completely over the threshold, a blur of dark blue fabric lunged at . Two arms wrapped securely around my shoulders, nearly knocking the wind out of in a crushing, overly enthusiastic hug.
"Jin! You’re back!" Kyle cheered, his mop of dark hair brushing against my chin as his bright green eyes practically sparkled with uncontained energy.
He finally stepped back, clapping his hands together. "Man, it feels like it’s been ages! So, how were your days back at ho?"
I blinked, recovering my balance and letting out a slow, dry sigh.
"It was... eventful. Mostly just stayed out of the way. Lots of reading."
"Boring," Kyle groaned, completely buying the mundane deflection. "I told you, you should have co back to the countryside with ! My mom made so many at pies we had to give them to the neighbors."
I finally looked past Kyle’s shoulder and into the room.
Sitting rigidly at my study desk was Tobias. The tall, painfully thin noble was adjusting his wire-rimd glasses with one long finger, looking profoundly irritated by the sheer volu of noise in the small space.
Lounging comfortably on the edge of my freshly made bed was Sira. The short, stocky noble with ssy black hair didn’t bother getting up, simply raising a hand in a lazy, half-hearted wave.
I leaned against the doorfra, crossing my arms. "It’s good to see you guys too, but... why exactly are you all in my room?"
Tobias let out a long, long-suffering sigh, glaring daggers at the back of Kyle’s head.
"Do not look at . I have an advanced magical theory essay to draft. This was entirely his idiotic idea."
"Hey! It’s called being a good friend, Tobias!" Kyle shot back, completely unfazed by the glare. He turned back to with a massive grin.
"I saw your carriage pull up from the courtyard window, so I dragged them both in here so we could properly welco you back."
"Dragged is a strong word," Sira chid in, tossing a small, wrapped candy into the air and catching it.
"He said he had snacks from his hotown. I’m strictly here for the food. Which, by the way, he hasn’t handed over yet."
"You’ll get them when I unpack my trunk!" Kyle promised, waving his hands frantically before turning his attention back to .
"Anyway, the mid-term holidays are officially over. You ready for the combat practicals this term? I heard Professor Vane is going to have us running live-fire obstacle courses."
"I am thoroughly dreading it," Tobias muttered, rubbing his temples. "We are scholars, not foot soldiers. Running through mud while dodging fireballs is a barbaric waste of academic potential."
"Oh, co on, it’ll be fun!" Kyle laughed, throwing an arm around Tobias’s thin shoulders, which only made the bespectacled mage look even more homicidal.
I walked into the room, setting my small travel bag down on the floor. And watched Kyle eagerly ramble about the upcoming syllabus, Tobias bitterly critique the curriculum, and Sira thodically dig through Kyle’s pockets looking for the promised snacks.
Then looked around the small dorm room, the chaotic noise of the group washing over . But as I did a quick ntal headcount, my brow furrowed slightly.
"...Emma didn’t co yet?"
Kyle’s massive grin imdiately faltered. The boundless, high-pitched energy instantly drained from his shoulders, and he dropped his arm from around Tobias.
He shoved his hands into his pockets, suddenly looking incredibly awkward.
"No, she’s here," he sighed, his tone dropping into a confused, sowhat hurt register.
"She actually ca back to the Academy pretty early. I saw her unpacking her things two days ago, but..." He rubbed the back of his neck, his dark eyebrows knitting together. "I don’t know why, she’s been completely avoiding ."
Tobias elegantly pushed his wire-rimd glasses up the bridge of his nose, seizing the opportunity to be ruthlessly pragmatic.
"Probably because your incessant volu finally gave her a permanent migraine. I can hardly bla her."
"It’s not just the volu," Sira chid in from the bed, tossing another piece of candy into her mouth and chewing thoughtfully.
"I saw her near the grand library yesterday. Kyle waved at her from across the courtyard, and the mont she saw him, she practically sprinted in the opposite direction. It was incredibly deliberate."
Kyle groaned, leaning back against the wooden doorfra and staring at the ceiling.
"But I didn’t even do anything! Before the holidays started, we were totally fine. I even promised to bring her those sweet buns from my hotown. Did I say sothing wrong right before we left?"
I leaned against my desk, crossing my arms as I watched Kyle spiral.
Emma was usually the quiet, grounded anchor of our chaotic little group. For her to actively, visibly avoid Kyle, who was practically incapable of holding a grudge or insulting anyone?
Kyle let out a pathetic, wounded noise, dragging his hands down his face.
I let out a soft exhale, tapping my fingers against my arm.
"Don’t stress about it too much right now, Kyle, the term starts tomorrow. We share half our classes with her. She can’t avoid us forever. Once things settle down, we’ll just corner her and ask what’s wrong."
"I suppose," Kyle muttered, though he still looked thoroughly entirely defeated by the mystery.
Tobias clapped his hands together once, the sharp sound instantly cutting through the lancholy.
"Excellent. Now that the interpersonal drama has been sorted off, I am leaving. The noise in this room has officially exceeded my academic tolerance."
Then he stood up, smoothing the front of his uniform jacket, and gave a curt nod.
"Welco back, Jin."
"See you tomorrow, Tobias," I replied.
As he walked out, Sira imdiately hopped off the bed and cornered a still-sulking Kyle, aggressively demanding the snacks he had promised.
I just stood by my desk, watching them bicker, though a quiet part of my mind tucked Emma’s strange behavior away for later.
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