Aelira's blue eyes narrowed down on Nia which was like slits of cold ice.

"Nia," she hissed, her voice trembling with a rage that was anything but regal. "Get the hell off my servants and out of my way."

Nia, still perched comfortably on the groaning pile of elves, only grinned wider. Her smile was wild and bright, completely out of place amidst the suffocating tension.

The hall was so quiet that even the faint hum of the crystals above seemed loud.

"Now, now, Princess," Nia said cheerfully, resting her chin on her hand. "Is that any way to talk to a member of the Student Discipline Committee? I'm just doing my duty, you know."

"Your duty?" Aelira snapped, her voice climbing higher. "Your duty is to enforce the rules, not to humiliate noble students like this! You're making a spectacle of yourself!"

"Oh, I'm not assaulting anyone," Nia said, patting the head of the boy pinned beneath her. He groaned weakly. "I'm just… detaining them. Temporarily. You see, three of your little pets were about to gang up on one weak-looking human. That's bullying. And bullying is, well, kind of my least favorite thing."

Her amber eyes flicked toward Azrael, who stood by the wall, half hidden, pretending he didn't exist. His handkerchief was pressed to his face, expression unreadable.

"But he's a mere human!" Aelira snapped, her voice full of disbelief. "He stepped on me! He deserves punishment for his insolence! You half-beast brute, you have no right to interfere in elf affairs!"

The air shifted; the crowd murmured. A few students took slow steps backward. Even the elves at the back of the room looked uneasy.

Nia's playful grin faded slightly. Her tone dropped.

"He stepped on your shoe," she said, voice calm and patient, like she was explaining basic math to a child. "And he apologized. But you wanted to erase him from existence. That's called an overreaction, Princess. Big word, I know."

Laughter rippled faintly through the crowd, low and nervous. Aelira's glare sharpened, her aura spiking with cold energy. The air shimmered faintly around her.

"Mock me again," she said, "and I'll show you what happens to those who insult the royal blood of Crestia."

"Oh no," Nia said flatly. "Not the royal blood card again. You nobles really need a new line."

From a distance, Quill watched everything unfold from behind a marble pillar, eyes wide and gleaming.

He had just received the report that the "center of the disturbance" was none other than the elf princess herself. He sighed long, heavy, but not angry.

'So much for my speech,' he thought, rubbing his temple. 'Didn't even last ten minutes before chaos.'

He started walking, already preparing to scold someone into the floor, but then he saw it his niece, Nia, leaping off the first-floor balcony like a feral beast, crashing straight onto the elf lackeys.

He froze mid-step, mouth half-open.

'God, are you giving me signals?' he thought, his lips twitching into a smile. 'Before I could even start my plan, you went ahead. Thank you, God. Just keep helping me like this, and my dream might actually come true.'

He leaned against the wall, amused, while the elf assistant beside him nearly panicked.

"Vice Headmaster!" she whispered harshly. "Why are you not stopping this? This is a royal elf! It's going to start another political mess!"

Quill didn't move. His grin widened lazily. "Because I don't have to," he said. "They're students. Let them handle it. They're old enough to deal with the consequences."

She blinked at him. "You were ready to wage war against elves during your speech, and now you just… don't care?"

Quill smirked, half to himself. "I care plenty. I'm just enjoying the view."

The assistant backed away slowly, muttering, "No way, He's acting too differently nowadays. He's possessed. That's it. He's definitely possessed, demons? I'm telling the Headmistress when she gets back."

Back in the hall, the tension hit its peak.

Aelira's aura of icy pride clashed against Nia's fiery energy. Neither backed down. The whole hall seemed to hold its breath.

"You're out of line!" Aelira shouted, her long hair shimmering with faint magic. "You dare to embarrass the royal blood of Crestia in front of—"

"Embarrass?" Nia interrupted, leaning forward with a smirk. "No, no, Princess. You're doing that all on your own."

A murmur spread through the crowd nervous laughter mixed with dread.

Aelira's hand lifted slightly, energy pulsing at her fingertips. "Enough."

"Oh, please," Nia sighed. "Go ahead. Swing first. I could use the workout."

The two auras flared blue frost meeting red flame and before either could move, a blur crossed the floor.

A strong arm wrapped around Nia from behind, locking her arms tight. The sudden pressure made her grunt and twist. The movement was too fast to resist. The crowd gasped.

"What's the meaning of this, Professor Lysandra?!" Nia struggled, trying to shake free.

She kicked, twisted, and even tried to throw her weight back, but the hold didn't budge.

The wolfkin professor's grip was unyielding. "Nia," she said, voice calm but firm. "Why is it impossible for you to not create chaos wherever you go?"

Nia froze mid-struggle. "Professor, I'm not the one at fault! This so-called princess was causing trouble! I was doing my job."

"You volunteered for the Discipline Committee, not the war front," Lysandra replied, sighing. Her golden eyes gleamed like sunlight through amber glass. "I knew this would happen the moment you signed up."

Azrael's eyes widened slightly as he watched her from the crowd. He had heard the name before.

'Professor Lysandra Astraea,' he thought. 'The number one benefactor of Kaelen. So that's what she looks like.'

Lysandra was tall and sharp-featured, her strength quiet and coiled. Her dark hair was cropped short, her pointed canine ears barely visible under it. Her movements were clean the kind of control that made it obvious she didn't need to prove anything.

"Professor, please!" Nia said, pointing toward where Azrael had been standing. "He was about to be attacked by those idiots! I was protecting him—"

Her voice cut off when she realized the spot was empty.

Azrael had already vanished from view.

Azrael was crouched behind a row of beastkin students, keeping his face half-covered with his handkerchief. Selyne was beside him, red-faced and whispering in panic.

"Mother said to make good friends on the first day," she muttered rapidly. "If I keep standing next to you, I'll make enemies from every race before lunch!"

Azrael didn't look away from the scene. "Then leave," he said calmly. "Go make those good friends you're talking about."

Selyne glared but didn't move. "You're impossible."

He smirked under the handkerchief. "I know."

His eyes shifted to Kaelen and Seraphina standing together across the crowd. They were watching the whole thing like disapproving teachers. "Why not start with them?" Azrael said teasingly. "They look bored."

Selyne puffed out her cheeks. "I can't just go up and talk to them! And Mother said no boyfriends!"

He gave a quiet laugh. "If I weren't in this story, he would've been your boyfriend."

"Stop saying weird things," she muttered, hiding her flustered face.

Azrael's gaze wandered again. Near the front, two students stood apart from everyone else a boy and a girl. The air around them was still, heavy, as if even the wind hesitated to pass by.

"Look there," Azrael said softly, nodding toward them. "Try greeting them instead. Seems simple."

Selyne turned, eyes widening. "Aria! That's Aria! We used to play together when we were little. Let's go say hi!"

She tugged on his arm before he could stop her, pulling him through the crowd with surprising strength.

Azrael blinked. "Wait Aria? As in Aria sen Selros?"

The girl in question stood like a vision long silver hair with faint violet shine, skin smooth and pale as moonlight, and slightly pointed ears that peeked through her hair.

Her eyes, bright amethyst with a thin red ring around the iris, held the calm danger of someone who didn't need to shout to be feared. Dozens of students watched her in silence, their expressions caught between admiration, beauty and fear.

Beside her was her brother, Silas sen Selros. His hair was the same shimmering silver, cut shorter, and his eyes were a cold steel-blue. His presence was quiet but commanding every movement deliberate.

They didn't just look like nobles. They looked like people the world didn't dare to offend. Their family bloodline was infamous a union between one of the strongest vampire family and a powerful elven clan lord. Power and grace carved into two perfect bodies.

"Aria and Silas Sen Selros," Azrael thought grimly. "The walking definition of 'do not get involved.'"

Selyne's grip tightened on his sleeve. "Come on!" she said brightly. "She'll be so happy to see me!"

Azrael swallowed hard. His smile didn't reach his eyes.

'God, please keep me far from another problem,' he thought.

And yet, with every step Selyne pulled him closer toward the powerful siblings and the crowd's eyes began turning toward them.

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