로그인The darkness of the library basement was absolute. Without Lisa’s glowing stone, I couldn't even see my own hands. But I could hear perfectly. The terrifying clicking sound echoed off the stone walls, getting faster and louder.Tap. Tap. Tap."Don't move," Adrian’s voice hissed through the dark.Suddenly, a brilliant flash of blue light exploded to my left. Adrian had ignited his hands with solid frost, casting an eerie, bright blue glow across the dusty basement. The light revealed the horror waiting for us. Three shadow-leaches were clinging to the stone ceiling right above our heads, their smoky bodies twisting like angry storms, their gray wooden claws scraping against the plaster."They didn't bypass the library wards," Lisa gasped, her hands lighting up with her purple defensive magic. "They were already down here! The Council is keeping them here!"One of the monsters let out a horrific, high-pitched screech and dropped from the ceiling, lunging straight for Lisa. With a fierce
The next twelve hours passed like a slow-motion nightmare. Everywhere I went on campus, the whispers followed me. The three-day grace period protected me from having to cast magic in class, but it didn't stop the staring. By the time midnight rolled around, the entire academy was dead silent, locked down under a heavy curfew.I slipped out of my dorm room bed, careful not to make a sound. Lisa was already waiting by the door, dressed in a dark black hoodie and jeans. Her usual bright purple aura was completely hidden, her face serious."The guards just finished their rounds on the east wing," Lisa whispered, checking her glowing phone screen. "We have exactly twenty minutes before they loop back to the library entrance.""Let's go," I muttered. The burning heat in my chest was pacing with my heartbeat, a steady, nervous throb that kept me completely awake.We crept through the dark, shadowed stone hallways of the girls' residence hall and slipped out a side window into the freezing ni
The heavy mahogany door of the Headmaster’s office looked exactly the same as it had two nights ago. There were no scratch marks from the smoke monsters, and the air no longer smelled like ozone. The school had cleaned up the mess perfectly, hiding the truth from the rest of the student body.The Council guard pushed the door open, his hand still resting on his sword. "Zara Linwood has arrived, Headmaster," he announced loudly."Thank you. Leave us," Alistair’s booming voice replied from inside.I stepped over the threshold, my boots sinking into the thick velvet rug. The door clicked shut behind me, isolating me from the hallway. The temperature in the room was warm, but it felt suffocating.Headmaster Alistair was sitting behind his massive oak desk. Standing in the shadows near the large windows were two older men wearing the long, golden robes of the High Council. They didn't look like teachers; they looked like executioners. Their sharp eyes locked onto me the second I walked in,
The next morning, the entire mood of the academy had changed.When I walked into the grand dining hall for breakfast, the loud chatter of hundreds of students stopped instantly. Spoons clinked against porcelain bowls as heads snapped in my direction. The silence was heavy and suffocating."Don't look at them," Lisa whispered, walking right beside me. "Just keep your head up."I did exactly what she said. I kept my eyes fixed on the empty table at the far end of the hall. As we walked down the center aisle, students actively leaned away from me. The lower-class students looked at me with wide, terrified eyes. The elite students looked at me with deep suspicion and anger. No one threw insults today. No one tried to trip me. The fear Adrian had created with his fake ice display was working like a shield, but it felt incredibly fragile.We sat down, and I reached for a piece of toast. My hands were shaking so badly I almost dropped it."Everyone is staring," I muttered, keeping my voice l
The Grand Arena remained dead silent for what felt like an eternity. The giant spikes of solid ice Adrian had created still ringed the stage, glowing with a sharp, beautiful blue light. The freezing fog he had conjured rolled off the platform, spilling over the feet of the students in the front rows."Step down, Miss Williams," Headmaster Alistair finally said. His voice was loud, but I could hear a strange tremor in it.My legs were shaking so badly I could barely walk. I kept my head down, forcing myself to step through the frozen archway of spikes. The cold air bit at my skin, but the heat in my chest was roaring hotter than ever, completely confused by the icy display that everyone thought belonged to me.As I walked back up the stone steps toward my seat, the silence broke into a tidal wave of frantic whispers."Did you see that?""She isn't a mortal at all. She’s a high-level elemental.""She must be from a hidden bloodline. Look how thick that ice is!"Every single eye followed
The morning sun hit the tall stone windows of the elite boys' dormitory, waking me up with a start. For a second, I forgot where I was. Then I smelled the familiar scent of rain and winter air, and I remembered. I was in Adrian’s room.I sat up quickly, looking down at my arm. The deep scratch from the shadow-monster was completely gone, leaving only smooth, pink skin. The magical silver paste had worked perfectly.Adrian was already awake. He was sitting in a chair by the window, wearing a clean school uniform. His blue eyes looked tired, as if he hadn't slept at all. He had spent the whole night on the floor, keeping watch."You're awake," he said softly, standing up. "We have to move fast, Zara. Lisa already went back to your dorm to get you a clean uniform. You need to change before the rest of the campus stirs.""Why the rush?" I asked, swinging my legs off the bed.Adrian’s jaw tightened. "The High Council issued an order at dawn. Every single student at the academy has to gathe







