CHAPTER 45
Most of the Academy had settled into quiet, with the distant sounds of training and lectures humming beyond the windows. Inside her room, a rare silence lingered.
At the end, Krios was convinced and stepped outside the room.
Sorayael sat on the bed, her silver hair falling loosely over her shoulder, golden eyes half-lidded with amusement. Across from her, Azi leaned on the window frame, arms folded, watching the breeze ripple across the courtyard.
Azi exhaled through his nose, not looking at her. "Tirelessly."
A smile tugged at the corners of her lips. "Did you miss me that much?"
She let out a soft laugh. "Still as smooth as ever, Azi."
He shrugged. "And you're still as reckless as ever."
Sorayael playfully kicked at him with her foot. "You try getting pulled into another plane and see how you handle it."
Azi caught her ankle with ease and smirked. "I'd probably charm my way out."
She rolled her eyes and pulled her foot back, the light between them warm with laughter and quiet comfort.
Then.. a knock came and the door opened.
Two figures entered.
One moved with practiced, fluid elegance. Reinhold-tall, poised, with that same composed expression as before. His cloak drifted behind him like a banner of dusk and starlight. The moment his eyes met Sorayael's, he paused, placed a hand over his heart, and bowed his head with reverence.
The other is Deimon-followed just a step behind. His blue hair slightly disheveled, red-gold eyes intense yet distant. He said nothing. Instead, he dropped to one knee before her, bowing deeply, as though standing in the presence of something sacred.
Azi straightened, alert, his gaze shifting between the two strangers. His body instinctively tensed-not in fear, but in assessment.
Sorayael blinked at the sudden formality, slightly embarrassed. "I told you two not to do that when others are around..."
Azi narrowed his eyes slightly. "...Who are they?"
Sorayael hesitated, then gave a small smile. "It's.. a long story."
Deimon finally turned to glance at Azi, as if just now acknowledging him. He gave a lopsided smirk. "You her boyfriend or something?"
Azi blinked. "Excuse me?"
Reinhold let out a sigh so soft it was nearly inaudible. "Not the time, Deimon."
Azi raised a brow but said nothing, stepping slightly closer to Sorayael.
Reinhold, ever the picture of restraint, inclined his head again. "We came to inform you, my lady. The message was passed along, as planned."
Sorayael gave a quiet nod, her gaze flicking between the three men in the room, all wildly different and somehow, all tied to her now.
Azi's eyes narrowed the moment the two boys entered the room-one graceful and composed, the other almost recklessly casual. But it was Deimon who made his pulse tick.
A flicker of memory surged in his mind. That night. Smoke. Screams. The base of the Voidwalkers. And in the midst of chaos... a man with wild, sharp eyes and a smile like a dare-cutting down enemies before vanishing into the shadows.
Everyone paused.
Sorayael blinked, startled by the outburst. Reinhold stilled, but it was Deimon who tilted his head lazily.
Azi's mouth opened slightly, but no words came out. He glanced at Sorayael-her silver hair catching the sunlight from the window, her golden eyes looking at him with confusion and concern.
'No. She didn't need to know. Not yet.'
He stepped back, swallowing whatever explanation lingered on his tongue. Sorayael eyed him, clearly unconvinced, but didn't press.
She instead let out a soft breath and turned to him with a smile. "You should return to class."
Azi frowned. "Seriously?"
Reluctantly, Azi exhaled and turned toward the door. But he paused to glance once more over his shoulder, glaring hard at the two strangers.
In his head, 'They wouldn't do anything weird to Feifei, right?'
He finally stepped out, and the door clicked shut behind him.
The moment he was gone, the atmosphere shifted. Sorayael's playful expression dissolved into something sharper, more serious.
Her golden gaze swept toward the two, still kneeling. Reinhold bowed his head low with palm pressed to his chest in solemn reverence, while Deimon knelt with a dramatic flourish, one knee down but clearly less ceremonious.
Both boys looked up.
Reinhold was first to rise. With measured elegance, he placed one hand behind his back and the other to his heart as he spoke.
He bowed his head once again. "If you walk toward ruin, I shall draw you back. If you walk toward war, I shall walk beside you. That is my vow."
Sorayael said nothing at first. Her eyes met his, and for a moment, the room was silent.
Then, of course, came Deimon.
Reinhold gave him a sidelong glance. "Would you prefer I sing it?"
Deimon turned to Sorayael, twirling a dagger between his fingers. "Alright, my turn."
He grinned. "No titles, no prophecies. I don't care for star-blessed bloodlines. But I do know how to get into places people say are impenetrable. I'm good with blades, better with poisons, and amazing with explosions."
He gave a small, exaggerated bow. "You want quiet murder? I'm your shadow. You want noise? I'll bring the thunder."
Then, straightening, he added with a lazy smirk, "Also, I give fantastic foot massages. That's worth something, right?"
Reinhold spoke over him. "Because we've waited too long for the right heir. And you, Sorayael Elaris, are the one Velthira chose."
Deimon gave an exaggerated yawn. "That too, I guess."
Sorayael leaned against the windowsill, arms crossed. The light danced over her silver hair like threads of moonlight.
Her gaze turned steely. "Things are going to get worse from here. There'll be more eyes. More traps. More lies."
She looked between them.
Reinhold gave a silent nod, his presence calm and resolute.
'She's really not an ordinary kid.. my liege..'
Deimon's grin widened. "I live for it."
A silence fell for a moment before she broke it-calm but heavy with buried flame.
"I won't sit still anymore."
Reinhold lifted his head slightly, a flicker of understanding in his gaze. Deimon, meanwhile, leaned against the wall with arms crossed, waiting.
'I know someone caused it and I feel like the Emperor has something to do with it.'
Her voice didn't crack. It was steel lined with frost.
Reinhold stood slowly, his expression unreadable. "You seek justice."
A heartbeat passed. Then another.
A long silence settled before Reinhold finally murmured, almost to himself, "Strange.. the Emperor prepares for war... and yet no one knows who the enemy is." he said as if he saw something from the future.
Sorayael's gaze sharpened. "You mean something's coming?"
Reinhold's lips pressed together. "No.. I only know what the patterns whisper, and even they tremble."
Deimon pushed off the wall, stretching his arms lazily behind his head. "I don't know a damn thing about emperors or assassins," he admitted, "but if it means blowing something up or getting some well-deserved payback, count me in."
Sorayael allowed herself a slight smile.
Reinhold gave a low bow, hand over his heart. "As you command."
Deimon smirked. "Finally, a job that suits my style."
The two faced her now with the weight of solemn purpose between them, their earlier bickering forgotten.
Sorayael's expression hardened. Her golden eyes gleamed like the sun after stormclouds.
She clenched her fist.