The next morning, Liam made his way to the academy, his thoughts still lingering on the events of the previous day. The encounter with the traffickers, the contract with Richa, and Bianca’s strange entity had all left him feeling drained.
But there was no ti to dwell on it. He had to get through the day as usual, pretending that everything was normal.
As soon as he stepped onto the academy grounds, a familiar voice called out to him.
"Liam! You’re finally here. How was your little dungeon hunt?"
Liam gritted his teeth as he turned to face Victor.
Victor stood there, hands casually in his pockets, that sa infuriating smile plastered on his face. His golden-blond hair glead under the morning sun, and his sharp green eyes held a glint of amusent.
Liam could already feel the irritation bubbling up inside him. Sothing about Victor’s smug deanor always rubbed him the wrong way.
And today was no different.
That damn smile.
Before he even realized it, Liam had already clenched his fist, his body moving on instinct. He wanted to wipe that grin off Victor’s face, just once.
He swung his arm—
But just as he was about to throw the punch, a strange sensation washed over him.
It wasn’t fear. It wasn’t hesitation.
It was as if sothing deep inside him was screaming:
"Don’t."
At the last second, Liam pulled back his punch, his fist stopping just inches away from Victor’s smirking face.
Victor let out a low chuckle, completely unfazed.
"Now that’s a wise decision. You would’ve hurt yourself if you tried that."
Liam’s jaw tightened. He knew Victor was strong—far stronger than he let on—but hearing him say it so casually made his blood boil.
Still, Liam forced himself to calm down. There was no point in getting worked up over this.
Instead, he crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.
"Do you know about the traffickers?"
Victor tilted his head, his smile never wavering.
"Traffickers? What traffickers?"
Liam wasn’t fooled.
Victor was good at playing innocent, but the subtle flicker in his expression—so brief it would’ve gone unnoticed by anyone else—told Liam everything he needed to know.
Victor knew.
And not just in a passing way. He had known about the traffickers before Liam even asked.
Liam exhaled slowly, forcing himself to let it go. He wouldn’t get any answers out of Victor, not now.
Instead of pushing the issue, he turned away.
"Forget it."
Victor simply laughed.
"You’re so fun to tease, Liam. Anyway, enjoy class."
Liam didn’t respond. He just walked past Victor, determined to get through the day without losing his temper.
______
The rest of the day passed in a blur of lectures, practical training, and notes Liam barely paid attention to. He had other things on his mind.
But then, in the last period, the teacher dropped an announcent that pulled Liam out of his thoughts.
"Alright, class. For the next few weeks, you’ll be working on a group assignnt."
A collective groan echoed through the room, followed by students imdiately whispering among themselves.
"I’ll let you form your own groups. Each group must have at least three mbers, but no more than five. Choose wisely."
The teacher continued.
As soon as the words left the teacher’s mouth, the classroom erupted into movent. Everyone imdiately turned to their friends, forming groups within seconds.
Liam, however, remained seated.
He didn’t even bother trying.
Because he already knew what was going to happen.
Sure enough, as he scanned the room, he saw it—the way people subtly avoided his gaze, the way they shifted their bodies so they wouldn’t have to make eye contact with him.
No one wanted to work with him.
It wasn’t surprising. Liam had never gone out of his way to be friendly with his classmates. Most of them either feared him, envied him, or outright disliked him for reasons he didn’t care to understand.
He leaned back in his chair, exhaling slowly. Great. Another assignnt I’ll have to handle alone.
Just as he was about to ask the teacher if he could work solo, a voice interrupted him.
"Liam, you don’t have a group yet, do you?"
Liam blinked and turned his head.
Standing beside him was a girl with dark brown hair tied back into a ponytail. Her golden eyes were sharp, calculating, and filled with a quiet confidence.
Seraphina Rell.
Liam frowned.
"You need sothing?"
Seraphina crossed her arms.
"You’re good at magic, and I don’t like working with weaklings. So, join my group."
Liam studied her carefully. Unlike the rest of the class, Seraphina didn’t seem the least bit hesitant about approaching him.
Before he could respond, another voice chid in.
"If Liam’s in, then I want in too."
This ti, it was a boy with silver hair and mismatched eyes—one blue, one green. He leaned against the desk with a lazy smirk.
Zephry Lysander.
Seraphina shot Zephry an annoyed look.
"No one invited you."
Zephry grinned.
"Yeah, but you need a third person, and I’d rather team up with you two than get stuck with so clueless idiots."
Liam stared at the two of them, slightly baffled.
First, Seraphina. Now Zephry
What was going on today?
Still, it wasn’t like he had any better options.
He sighed and finally nodded.
"Fine. We’re a team."
Seraphina nodded in satisfaction. Zephry just smirked.
Across the room, Liam caught Victor watching them with amusent, as if he found the whole thing entertaining.
Liam scowled but ignored him.
At least he had a team now.
He knew that he was being used by the pair, but Liam did not feel like he had a choice in his partners.
’Just grin and bear with it for now.’
Once the groups were finalized, the teacher clapped her hands. "Alright. Now that you all have your teams, here’s your task."
She waved her hand, and glowing text appeared in the air, detailing the assignnt.
"Your group will be required to investigate a specific magical phenonon happening within the city. You will be given a list of potential leads, and it will be your job to gather evidence, form theories, and present your findings at the end of the project. So of these leads may be connected to real dangers, so use caution."
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