{Elira}
~**^**~
My breath caught. I couldn’t help worrying—what if he crashed?
What if sothing terrible happens?
I quickly glanced at Zenon, but he keeps his gaze on the road, the curve of his jaw unmoved.
He didn’t seem in the least bit bothered.
Through the side mirror, I spotted Rennon’s black rcedes following behind, not too close, not too far, but just like a quiet guard in the distance.
And in that mont, it struck : here I am, heading to my first day at ESA in an envoy, guarded on the road by the triplet Alpha brothers themselves.
The thought lit a small, stubborn warmth inside —one even Luna Gwenith’s words couldn’t quite smother.
---
As Zenon drove through the grand gates of Elite Supernatural Academy, nerves replaced the brief pride I felt.
I saw the sprawling green lawns, the elegant white-stone buildings with high windows and ironwork balconies, and students in sharp uniforms moving across the courtyards like chess pieces.
At last—I’m here. Not as a visitor, but as a student.
Zenon pulled into a reserved space in the staff lot and turned off the engine. For a breath, there was silence. Then he turned to , his cold gaze steady.
"You’re about to find out what the four walls of ESA are really made of," he says, his tone unreadable.
I couldn’t tell if he’s warning , mocking , or... preparing .
Then, almost like an afterthought, he adds, "Rember this: you’re not defined by what others think you are. Only you get to tell them who you really are."
He didn’t look at , but his voice, though cold, carries sothing sharper than steel—a quiet insistence.
"And let my words live rent-free in your head. Because I’m not repeating them."
My eyes widened, realization cutting through my nerves. He heard.
Seven nights ago—when Luna Gwenith cornered in my room and called worthless—he must have heard. He might have heard cry, too.
Gosh! He was outside my room. But what for?
Sothing tight and painful blood in my chest, and for the first ti, my fear of Zenon shifted—into sothing closer to silent gratitude.
---
Zenon walkd into the administrative wing, his long strides forcing to hurry to keep up.
Outside an office marked Student Admissions, he stopped.
"Your guardian will et you here," he said curtly, then turned to leave.
"Thank you... for bringing ," I murmur, my voice smaller than I ant.
Again, he didn’t reply. His back moved away down the hall, tall and unbending.
I had thought Zenon would be directly in charge of helping complete my student profile.
But his actions of escorting here, made wonder why he had offered to take to school today seven days ago, when his friendlier brothers could have done it.
Inside, I found other new students in the sa fresh uniforms. A few looked up, so with curiosity, so indifference.
I handed over my docunts, registered my fingerprints and signed where I was told.
My new student ID card slid across the desk to , along with a rectangular al ticket and a na tag: Elira Shaw.
My na—bold and real in shiny letters.
As I left the office, a girl in the sa uniform approached , her black high ponytail swaying behind her.
"Hi! Elira, right?" she asked, glancing at my na tag already fixed at the left upper side of my jacket, before eting my gaze with a smile.
Then she reached a hand out. "I’m Cambria. I volunteered to be a guardian today, and they assigned to you."
For a heartbeat, I froze. Since my parents died, it’s been so long since anyone approached first with kindness that I almost forgot how to respond.
I forced my hand to move. "Nice... to et you," I said softly.
---
Cambria walked beside , explaining the school rules in a lively voice that made it feel like she was talking to a friend rather than lecturing.
"No phones during lectures or training, or in assemblies," she saud counting on her fingers. "No drinking, no smoking anywhere on school grounds. You can’t skip classes unless you’re actually ill—and the clinic is strict, so no pretending."
I nodded, trying to keep up, gripping my bag’s strap as we stepped out into the open corridor lined with marble pillars.
She gestured across the courtyard. "The cafeteria serves three als a day—only the best stuff, by the way. And you will need your al ticket every ti. Do you have it?"
"I... have it," I said, rembering how carefully I had tucked it into my backpack next to my student ID as soon as they were handed to .
"Good," she bead. "You can’t have any als at the cafeteria if you lose it. Unless you ask a friend, and that person decides to use theirs to feed you."
Her words made realize how important the al ticket was, and I silently vowed to guard it like treasure.
I couldn’t imagine starving in a school like ESA. That would bring back horrible mories.
We crossed the courtyard to a wide building with arched windows.
"This is the first-year dorm," Cambria explained. "Each year’s students have their own building. Second years are over there—and the third years, the scariest ones, are in that building near the east wall."
A question gnawed at the back of my head, then I let my curiosity get the better of .
"What year are you?" I inquired, finding my voice.
She flashed her badge at : Cambria S. "I am a first year like you."
My gaze widened.
How was that possible for my fellow first year student to know so much about ESA?
Then she smiled and quickly clarified, "The only difference, is that I’m a rit student."
I relaxed, having understood the situation.
Cambria was my peer—yet confident and at ease, like she’s been here for years.
Maybe that’s why she volunteered as a guardian, I think. Or maybe... she’s just kind.
Either way, the warmth in her smile made very comfortable with her.
At least, I didn’t have a an student for a guardian on my first day of school.
For now, this first day felt a little less terrifying.
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