Now, every ti soone ssed with her, she no longer cared. Ivy went up to the roof. The plants enveloped her in their green silence. Pushing away harmful thoughts, Ivvy felt her mother comforting her. She learned to distinguish their voices: the ivy was protective, the basil cheerful, the rosemary lancholic.
And although she knew in her mind that perhaps it wasn’t her mother, her heart preferred to believe the opposite.
In that small garden, Ivvy was finally learning what happiness was.
Free from being the bastard. Free from the plowing imposed by the baron.
Here, among leaves and roots, she was loved.
And that, for now, was enough.
**
The next morning, Ivvy woke up to the soft pecking of birds at her window. The sun rose beautifully over the high windows of the girls’ bedrooms. Most of the students were still sleeping or preparing for their first elentary alchemy class, but Ivvy was already walking with her soft, deliberate steps, her gaze forward, steadier than ever.
It was a subtle change, almost imperceptible, but those who knew where to look could notice it. Her shoulders were no longer hunched. Her eyes didn’t avoid others as before. And although she still wore the simple uniform, she now displayed a bit of dignity.
Amanda noticed her imdiately.
She found her alone, walking down the stairs that connected the bedrooms to the n’s hallways. She stopped at the end of the flight, leaning against the black iron railing, her platinum blonde hair perfectly combed, her uniform fitted without a single wrinkle. She was beautiful, but she was used to pick on those weaker than her.
"And this face?" she asked with feigned sweetness, blocking her path. But she received no response; Ivvy simply walked around her, not looking at her, not saying a single word. But her silence wasn’t submission. It was indifference. And that... that unhinged her.
Amanda’s eyes narrowed, and her lips curled into a sneer. Inside her, a thick, hot anger began to bubble like a cursed potion, but she held it together. The school could expel her if she got into an unconsensual fight.
Who does she think she is? That bastard... that pig. She dares to ignore ? Look down on like I’m worth sothing?
She said nothing. She just turned on her heel with a wry smile, letting Ivvy walk away. But her heart was beating faster, driven by a poisoned hatred she couldn’t explain. It wasn’t just contempt. It was sothing deeper than just fear. She felt like sothing deep inside that pig was changing. Fear of losing control, perhaps, but she would never allow it.
And Amanda couldn’t stand being ignored. From a very young age, as the only daughter of Count Darvane—one of the richest n in the empire and the main benefactor of Nova Academy—she had been raised amid luxury, recognition, and forced obedience. Her world was one where an order went unquestioned, where a glance was enough to make everyone do whatever she wanted. Accustod to being the center of every conversation, the best dressed, the most admired, Amanda had grown up believing that a person’s worth was asured by the power they held over others.
Therefore, seeing Ivvy—a scholarship recipient with no important last na, no fortune, no outstanding talents—simply walked without bowing her head, without showing fear, without even admiring her... was a humiliation. A wound to her ego that she didn’t understand, but that burned like acid beneath her skin.
***
Hours later, as the subtle ringing of the bell signaled the closing of classes, Amanda decided to follow Ivvy. No one noticed her: she was silent, as dangerous as a shadow, one of her abilities, her stride cold. She stepped like a cat, elegant and deadly. When she saw Ivvy take the path to the rooftop, she knew sothing was hiding there. Perhaps the confidence she had gained ca from that place.
She followed her silently, making sure to keep a certain distance so as not to be discovered, her curiosity growing alongside her anger. She climbed the stairs one by one that led to the highest floor of Nova, where students rarely went. And then she saw her enter. The door to the rooftop closed with a soft click, leaving only a crack.
Amanda approached and rested her eye on the crack.
What she saw... was not what she expected.
There, surrounded by a symphony of dancing leaves, flowers that glowed with light, roots that moved as if breathing... in the middle of it all was Ivvy. In the center of the garden that had blossod on stone and tal, she stood with her arms open, surrounded by life like a priestess, like a wild queen. Her hair floated softly in the air, as if the wind itself obeyed her. Vines slithered gently over her legs. The petals of a giant flower opened beside her.
Ivvy... smiled.
Amanda felt sothing inside her twist. Disgust, jealousy, disgust, and although she didn’t want to admit it, fascination with the beautiful view, she felt disgusted with herself for her feelings.
How can soone like her...?
A dark thought slithered through her mind like a snake: That bitch is hiding sothing. And I’m going to destroy it.
Her smile slowly twisted into sothing inhuman, a perfectly toothy grin laden with malice. The gleam in her eyes turned dull, poisonous.
If that fat woman thinks she can ignore , if she thinks she can hide things without my permission... then she deserves nothing.
Amanda’s nails dug into the wooden lock on the door fra, barely splintering it. It wasn’t just mockery or humiliation anymore. Sothing more sinister was growing inside her. A need to crush. Of soiling that purity, that magical bond that I didn’t understand... but that was filled with indescribable pleasure.
That feeling was taking over every part of her body, she wanted to see his expression when everything he worked for was destroyed, just imagining it was filling her with an indescribable sensation.
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