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Chapter 16 – Trial by Fire

Author: Joy
last update Last Updated: 2025-08-29 14:08:55

Caspian’s POV

I regretted it the second I blinked back into my room. Teleporting was supposed to be my great escape move, my way of staying untouchable. But this time? Stupid. Absolutely stupid. I should’ve stayed just a second longer, long enough for Ari to catch sight of me. Then at least he’d know I wasn’t sneaking around like some shady intruder in the middle of the night. Now, instead, I’d left the impression of a guilty man bolting from the crime scene. Genius, Caspian. Real genius.

And the worst part? I couldn’t stop replaying it in my head. Ari out there, sharp-eyed and suspicious, probably putting two and two together. I’d just gifted him every reason to think I was hiding something. Me, the great Caspian Duskbane, reduced to looking like a thief tiptoeing through his own Academy.

I was still pacing the floor, chewing on that mistake, when the dorm door creaked. Ari walked in.

I froze.

For half a second, my brain blanked out. I wanted to casually ask, “Hey, so, uh… what happe
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