เข้าสู่ระบบPEARL – POVThat guy—Lucien—walked straight toward me like he belonged here. My spine stiffened the moment he leaned down, his breath grazing my ear.“Don’t worry. I won’t bite,” he murmured, voice smooth like silk laced with poison. “But remember what I told you.”Then he moved away and took a seat in the back row like nothing had happened.But everything had changed.My fingers curled tightly around my quill. Goosebumps prickled my arms, and a cold sweat broke out at the back of my neck. I couldn’t focus. His words kept circling in my mind like vultures.What exactly does he know?Is it… that I’m a girl?My throat tightened.My aunt had warned me that those responsible for my parents' deaths still believed I might be alive. That they were watching. Waiting. And if anyone suspected—even slightly—I could be their next target.Was Lucien one of them?I tried to keep my expression blank, but inside I was spiraling. I forced myself to breathe, to look down at the parchment in front of me
PEARL POV I sensed him before I saw him.A silence fell over the hallway, subtle but unnerving, like the moment just before thunder cracks. My steps slowed. I clutched the books to my chest tighter, reminding myself to keep my posture loose, my walk confident…like a boy.But then I saw him. Leaning casually against the marble column by the library entrance was a stranger. Tall. Dressed in black robes with silver threading at the sleeves—an emblem I didn’t recognize. His eyes, cold and calculating, scanned the room with the kind of detachment that made your skin crawl.He didn’t smile. Didn’t blink.Just watched.And when his gaze locked onto me—it stayed.I stiffened.There was no warmth in the way he looked at people. No flicker of curiosity or friendliness. It was the gaze of someone used to hunting the truth… and enjoying it. He tilted his head slightly.“Perin,” he said, with a voice like velvet wrapped around a blade. “The infamous scholar with a perfect challenge record, I pres
DEMYAN – POVLater that day…The classroom was quiet. Scrolls rustled softly, quills scratched faintly over parchment, and the low hum of the lecturer’s voice droned on about werewolf treaty negotiations from the Old Age.I should’ve been listening. I really should’ve.Instead, I was watching Perin out of the corner of my eye.He sat beside me, hunched slightly over his notes, a tiny furrow between his brows as he wrote. His sleeves were rolled up, and a few strands of hair had fallen loose near his cheek. He kept blowing them away absentmindedly.It was… distracting.And not in the usual, he’s-a-good-duel-partner to me but today it was something else. Something I hadn’t felt in a long time. Something I didn’t want to feel, especially not for someone who constantly avoided me like I carried the plague.And yet, there I was.Staring at his hands. Wondering why he smelled faintly of wildflowers and smoke. Wondering why, when he looked at me sometimes, I felt like I was standing too clos
PearlLater that night, I couldn’t sleep.I turned to one side, then the other, curling deeper into the thin sheets of the academy cot. The night air was cool, but my skin felt warm—like I’d been holding my breath for hours.Demyan.He caught me and I didn’t pull away. I should have. I meant to. But for a heartbeat, standing there in his arms, everything went quiet.It wasn’t supposed to feel like that.I pressed my hands over my face and groaned silently.Why did he have to say things like that?Why did he have to look at me like he almost knew?He didn’t. He couldn’t. I made sure of it.That bathhouse trick worked perfectly—he never got close. I had everything under control. And yet… there’s this flicker in his eyes lately, like he’s not quite convinced anymore. Like he feels something, even if he doesn’t know what it is.Just like I do.And that’s the worst part.I used to hate him. Loud, arrogant, prick Demyan. But somewhere between the arguing and the teasing and him helping me a
PEARLWe reached the edge of the Scholar Woods, where a few academy staff waited to tie the blindfold and time us. The forest loomed ahead, tall trees casting dappled shadows across the marked path. I could already spot ropes, low-hanging branches, and what looked like a shallow stream near the middle.Perfect. Just enough to humiliate us.Demyan turned to face me, his hands already behind his back like a prisoner accepting his fate.“Go ahead. Blind me,” he said dramatically. “Let the world fade into darkness.”“You are so dramatic.”He grinned. “That’s what makes me fun.”I tied the cloth over his eyes a little tighter than necessary. “If you fall, don’t blame me.”“Oh, I will,” he said easily, “and I’ll make sure the whole academy knows it.”“Ready?” one of the scholars asked, raising a small brass timer.I took a breath. “Ready.”“Begin.”We stepped into the woods, my voice already firm and clipped. “Okay, step over a root in three… two… now.”His foot barely missed it.“Oh, you a
Demyan POVI’ve never been drawn to any man before…not like this. Perin is different. Gentle yet strong, secretive but honest in ways that disarm me. And the way he looks at me when he thinks I’m not watching—it unsettles something buried in my chest.I sighed, stepping back into the cabin. The door creaked open.There they were—Rowan, Killian, and Perin—sitting together, heads bent over their notes, talking quietly as they studied for the upcoming test.But my eyes found him instantly.Perin.His lashes dipped low as he concentrated, one hand tapping against the page, the other clutching a pencil too tightly. He looked up when he sensed me, our gazes locking for a second that felt like an eternity.And just like that… the confusion came crashing back.I walked inside slowly, heart thudding, wondering if I would ever be able to look at him the same again.Because even now—even now—I couldn't look away.I sat back in my chair, trying to focus on the scroll in front of me, but my eyes k







