Good Morning, Human.

Elise’s POV

A low moan escaped me as my eyes shifted beneath my eyelids. My face twisted when soreness seized my entire body the moment consciousness returned.

Slowly, I opened my eyes.

“Ugh…” I groaned.

My vision was blurry, but my memories were painfully clear.

I vividly remembered staring at the academy gates, spending hours inside the Hall of Admission, and wasting the rest of the day searching for Old Lunar Hall—only to discover that I would have to spend the entire night scrubbing my room.

I winced at the lingering haze in my head, only to freeze when something warm brushed against my side.

Then something poked my cheek.

Whatever sleepiness had been threatening to drag me back under vanished the instant I sensed another person beside me.

I gasped and turned my head.

For one long second, my entire world stopped. Even my brain ceased functioning when I saw the person lying right beside me.

Silver hair. Sharp silver eyes. And a foxlike smirk plastered across his face.

Kael.

Kael lay on his side, his temple resting against his knuckles. His silver eyes gleamed with mischief as he pressed his forefinger against my cheek again.

What in the world…?

“Good morning, human,” he greeted me with a smile.

I stared at him blankly, watching his smile stretch into a grin.

“AAAAAH!”

A panicked scream tore from my throat. I shoved him away with both hands and scrambled backward, completely forgetting that the bed had an edge.

Before I knew it, my body tipped over.

Unfortunately, Kael was faster.

Just before I fell, he caught my wrist and effortlessly yanked me back. I crashed against his chest, my face striking something warm and painfully solid.

“Haha…” His laughter rumbled beneath my ear.

“Careful,” he said. “Don’t break your neck before your first class.”

I froze, unsure whether the gasp or the terror came first. I looked up at him, dread, horror, shock, and every emotion in between written across my face.

The moment my senses returned, I jolted away from him.

“What in the world are you doing in my bed?”

Kael tilted his head as though I had asked him something ridiculous.

“You mean our bed?”

My jaw dropped as his grin brightened.

For one alarming second, I wanted to check the number on the door and make sure I hadn’t spent the entire night scrubbing the wrong room.

“Haha! Relax. It was a joke.” He laughed heartily as he sat up on my bed as though it belonged to him. “I thought it was funny.”

I stood frozen beside the bed, staring at him.

Hitting the First Prince of the Northern Wolves was probably not the wisest way to begin my first day at the academy.

But alas…

I snatched the pillow he was reaching for and clutched it against my chest.

“Get out,” I warned.

To hell with caution. I had nearly suffered a heart attack the moment I opened my eyes.

“Why—” Kael didn’t get to finish as I hurled the pillow at him.

He caught it with both hands before tilting his head to peer around it. “You’re rather violent for someone who begged us not to kill her last night.”

“First of all, you broke into my room.” I raised one finger. “That makes this an entirely different situation.”

“Nuh-uh.” He shook his head and climbed leisurely out of bed. “For your information, I didn’t break into your room.”

My brows furrowed as my gaze darted toward the door.

It was slightly ajar, with the key still dangling from the lock.

I could have sworn I had locked it last night.

Standing beside the bed, Kael stretched his arms above his head, seemingly unconcerned by the fact that he had nearly frightened me to death.

“Zarek told you to read the house rules,” he said. “But I suppose you haven’t gotten around to that yet.”

Of course I hadn’t.

I had spent the night battling centuries’ worth of dust.

Kael studied me for a moment before his casual smile returned.

“Also, you drool in your sleep.” He pointed toward the corner of his mouth.

I covered my lips instinctively. “I wasn’t—”

“You talk in your sleep too,” he added dismissively as he turned his back on me. He stopped at the door and glanced over his shoulder. “Would you like to know what you said?”

I talked in my sleep?

Maya had told me I sometimes did, especially whenever I was sick. But I wasn’t sick, and I doubted this shameless prince was telling the truth.

“What did I say?” I asked cautiously.

A wicked glint flashed through Kael’s eyes. “You begged me to stay.”

My heart stopped, and that only made his grin widen.

“You’re lying.”

“Probably.”

I snatched the pillow from the floor and hurled it at him again, but he stepped to the side and dodged it before it could strike him.

His low, taunting laughter drifted back into my ears. 

“See you around!” He was about to walk away when he paused and turned back as though he had forgotten something. “By the way, didn’t you promise we wouldn’t see so much as your shadow?” he asked. “Yet here you are.”

My eyes widened.

How was I supposed to hide from them if they could simply enter my room—the only refuge I had in this entire dormitory?

Before I could answer, Kael walked away, laughing like a villain pleased with his latest crime.

I clenched my hands into fists, my jaw twitching.

“What the hell?” I breathed, scoffing in disbelief.

I ran my fingers through my hair and turned away from the door, trying to calm myself.

Then my gaze landed on the small clock hanging on the wall—the only thing in the room that appeared to function properly.

My eyes widened so much they nearly bulged out of their sockets.

“Damn it!”

I shoved all thoughts of Kael to the back of my mind.

I was going to be late.

In a panic, I scrambled around the room, gathering my belongings and preparing for the academy’s opening ceremony.

I hadn’t thought much about the distance yesterday. But after pulling on my creased uniform and rushing out of the dormitory, I realized something very important.

I had no idea how long it would take to reach the main building from here.

“Oh, you’re still here?”

I stopped.

Kael stood outside, idling near the path as though he had all the time in the world.

“Aren’t you attending the opening ceremony?” he asked. “Attendance is mandatory.”

“You’re still here too,” I pointed out.

His only response was a smile.

“See you there!” He waved, then bounded down the path. After only a few steps, he suddenly picked up his pace.

In a flash, he was gone.

“Huh?” I stopped and blinked in disbelief, staring at the empty path ahead.

That was… fast.

At that exact moment, the entrance behind me opened.

I turned and saw the other three emerging from Old Lunar Hall: Zarek, the dragonborn; Lucien, the vampire; and Evander, the fae prince.

They walked with casual, unhurried strides. Zarek didn’t even spare me a glance.

Lucien, meanwhile, wore a pair of tinted spectacles as he dragged his feet beside Zarek. He looked as though his life force was slowly leaking out of his body.

“See you there,” Lucien greeted in a voice devoid of energy.

Then he turned toward Zarek. “I think Kael might win the bet.”

The two continued past me.

Before I could ask what he meant, Zarek bent his knees slightly. The ground beneath his boots cracked.

With one powerful leap, he launched himself into the air.

At the same time, Lucien vanished from my sight in the blink of an eye.

In the blink of an eye!

My jaw dropped as I stared at the now-empty road.

“Haha! Elise, you should start running!”

Only Evander remained.

Just like the others, he didn’t appear to be in any hurry. He slowed and stopped beside me, still wearing that bright, pleasant smile.

I pointed toward the spot where Zarek and Lucien had disappeared.

“Where did they go?”

“To the ceremony.” Evander shrugged before drifting forward.

My eyes dropped toward his feet, realizing they weren’t touching the ground.

They were hovering several inches above it.

Evander smiled sweetly. “See you there, Elise!”

Then, he floated away, gaining speed until he, too, disappeared from sight.

They had left me standing there with my mouth hanging open.

For several seconds, all I could do was stare at the empty path and contemplate yet another disadvantage of being human.

I couldn’t leap through the air like Zarek.

I couldn’t run as fast as Kael.

I certainly couldn’t disappear like Lucien or float like Evander.

All I had were two ordinary legs… and they needed to start moving fast.

“Damn it!” I screamed before sprinting down the path, praying I would reach the opening ceremony before it ended.