MasukThe road home felt long and very draining for her. Serene rode under the night sky, the wind from the trees around blowing her hair thoroughly. The forest stretched endlessly around her…dark and suffocating.Her fingers tightened around the reins of her horse as she rode through.The further she went, the more she couldn't help but feel uneasy. Her horse shifted beneath her, uneasy. Its ears flicked back, nostrils flaring as it slowed without her command.Serene leaned forward slightly.“It’s nothing,” she whispered, more to herself than the animal.But her chest tightened.Ever since she left the academy gates… she's not been easy. A lingering feeling of restlessness wouldn’t go away..She pressed her heels lightly into the horse’s sides.“Move.”The horse obeyed, picking up pace, hooves striking against the dirt road with sharper urgency now.Branches scraped overhead.Leaves rustled.Then—She heard it…A branch ahead snap. Serene’s breath hitched as her eyes darted ahead.An
Serene’s POV“Explain yourself.”The words settled over the assembly hall like a blade at her throat.Serene stood at the front, every pair of eyes in the academy fixed on her. She could weigh the weight of each one of their stares. She drew in a slow breath.“My name is Serena Vale,” she began.Her voice echoed across the hall. A ripple moved through the crowd.“She said Serena—”“So. She really is a girl—?”Serene forced herself to continue.“I am the daughter of Alpha Vale of Mooncrest. I came here because I earned my place.”A few students scoffed, others laughed under their breath.She kept going anyway.“I trained for this. I fought for this. I didn’t come here to deceive anyone..I came here because I deserve to be here just as much as any of you.”The murmurs grew louder.This time not just whispers.She could hear voices clearly Bitch… What a wore… She's not supposed to be here.. She ignored and wanted to continue, but before she could say another word—“Enough.”The Pr
Serene’s POVThe silence in the room felt heavier than armor.Serene sat on the edge of her bed, her fingers curled around the broken pieces of the necklace.Across the room, Damien stood by the window, staring outside.Neither of them had spoken in several minutes.Outside, the academy was awake and lively, moving like any other morning.But inside this room, time had stopped.Serene’s mind refused to be quiet.Lyra told them.The words echoed over and over.The principal knew.Which meant the council knew.Which meant the academy knew.Her dream…the reason she had come here, the reason she had endured weeks of pretending to be someone else…was hanging by a thread.Damien finally moved.He turned away from the window and ran a hand through his hair, clearly frustrated.“Serene.”She looked up.His voice was tense.“There’s still a way out of this.”Her fingers tightened slightly around the necklace pieces.“How?”He stepped closer.“Don’t confess.”The words hung in the air.Serene b
Damien’s POV“Your precious little friend… is a girl.”Prince’s words hung in the courtyard like it was suspended in midair.For a moment no one moved.Damien pupils went wide instantly.Prince stood in front of him with that infuriating grin, clearly enjoying the reaction he had provoked.This could spiral out of control in seconds.So Damien forced himself to relax and to be smart on his way around this.Then he let out a sharp laugh.It wasn’t loud, but it was convincing enough.“You’re serious?” Damien said, shaking his head.The prince raised a brow.“Lyra has always had a strange sense of humor,” Damien continued calmly. “And clearly you fell for it.”A few of Prince’s friends snorted softly, but Prince didn’t laugh.“You grabbed my shirt pretty fast for someone hearing a joke,” Prince shot back.Damien shrugged.“You were insulting someone I know well enough.”Prince tilted his head slightly, his eyes sharp.“So that’s it?” he asked. “Lyra just randomly decided to lie about Sor
“Why are you packing?”The question hung in the air between them.Serena stared at Damien, her mind scrambling for words that refused to come.For a moment she simply stood there, my mind still processing everything happening right now.She hadn’t expected him.Not now.Not when everything was falling apart.Damien took a slow step into the room, closing the door behind him. His eyes moved briefly across the scattered clothes before settling back on her.“Serena,” he said again, more quietly this time. “What’s going on?”She opened her mouth, then closed it again.How was she supposed to explain this?How was she supposed to say the words that would end everything she had fought for?Damien’s brow furrowed slightly.“Talk to me.”Serena exhaled shakily.“Lyra knows.”Damien stiffened, then his expression darkened immediately.“She knows what?”Serena forced herself to meet his gaze now.“She knows I’m not Soren.”The room went still.For a long moment Damien didn’t move.“How?” He ask
Lyra stared at her as if the world had just turned upside down.For several long seconds she didn’t move.She didn't even blink.Her eyes swept slowly over Serena’s body again, as though searching for proof that what she was seeing wasn’t real.“…You’re a girl.”The words barely came out as more than a whisper.Serena’s heart slammed violently against her ribs.Panic surged through her so fast it made her dizzy.“Lyra—” she began quickly, stepping forward.Lyra immediately took another step back.“No,” she said sharply.“You’re not Soren,” Lyra said slowly, as if piecing the truth together aloud. “You’re… a girl pretending to be him.”Serena swallowed hard.“Yes,” she admitted quietly, but the word seemed to echo inside the room.Lyra’s eyebrows rose fully now.“You’re serious.”Serena forced herself to hold her gaze.“My name is Serena Vale.”Lyra blinked, and then the recognition flickered across her face.“Vale?” she repeated.Serena nodded slowly.“Youre the bloodline of the Moonc







