"The best lies are the ones people want to believe."
***
The corridor outside Theoretical Foundations was nearly empty when Leo von Valerius erged from his seminar. Most students had already scattered to wherever students scatter. His golden hair caught the afternoon light through the arched windows, and I swear the guy actually glowed. Like soone had installed special Leo Lighting just for monts like this.
Passing servants straightened. Students lowered their gazes. The whole atmosphere shifted into "important person approaching" mode.
And there I was. Slouched against the wall near the classroom door. Robes wrinkled. Hair falling across my face because I couldn’t be bothered to brush it. Satchel hanging open to reveal a disaster of books and parchnts.
Perfect image. Exactly as planned.
"Kaelen."
The single word made the remaining students glance over their shoulders before speed-walking away. Nobody wanted to witness whatever was about to unfold between the golden son of House Valerius and the human equivalent of a participation trophy.
Leo approached. Each step deliberate. His sapphire eyes fixed on my face like I was a puzzle he couldn’t quite solve.
That’s the idea, pretty boy.
"Leo." I pushed myself reluctantly from the wall. Let my grey eyes dart toward the nearest exit before forcing them back to et his gaze. "I didn’t expect to see you here."
"We need to discuss what happened in the courtyard today."
My shoulders hunched further. Curled inward. Made myself smaller.
"I don’t know what you an."
"Don’t insult my intelligence, Kaelen. It doesn’t suit either of us." Leo stepped closer. His voice dropped to sothing private but no less intense. "Half the academy witnessed your display with the Blackwood commoner. The story has already spread to every corner of campus."
"Display?" I laughed. Made it sound bitter and unconvincing. "You an thanking soone who helped ? I thought nobles were supposed to honor their debts. Isn’t that what you’re always preaching about? Honor and duty and all that?"
Leo stepped closer still. Close enough that I had to tilt my head back to maintain eye contact. The height difference between us felt more pronounced in this mont. Golden prodigy looming over fallen disgrace.
God, you’re tall. And pretty. Life really isn’t fair.
"You paid him. In front of everyone who mattered in this academy." Leo’s voice went cold. "You turned basic human decency into a transaction. A business arrangent to be settled with gold."
"I compensated him for—"
"You bought him." The words hit like a slap. "You took whatever dignity that boy possessed and purchased it with coins from your father’s dwindling coffers. Do you even understand what you’ve done to him? Do you have any concept of the damage you’ve caused?"
I twisted my satchel strap. Wrapped it around my fingers until the leather dug into my skin. Nice physical detail. Sells the anxiety.
"I followed proper protocol. The Code of Noble Conduct clearly states that life-debts must be—"
"The Code exists to guide us toward honor. Not provide loopholes for cowardice."
Leo’s voice rose. Passion broke through his usual control. This was the Leo the novels described. The righteous hero who couldn’t stand by while injustice occurred. The protagonist’s most trusted ally. The moral compass of House Valerius.
"That boy risked himself for you. He faced down three opponents, took a beating, and stood between you and harm. The proper response was to stand beside him. To shield him from the consequences of his courage." Leo’s jaw tightened. "Instead, you marked him as property. You told everyone watching that his actions had a price. And you paid it."
"I couldn’t—" I let my voice crack. Let sothing raw break through. "You don’t understand. I’m not like you."
"Couldn’t what? Act with honor? Show courage?" Leo ran a hand through his golden hair. Frustration radiated from every line of his posture. "Kaelen, I know our families have complications. I know you feel overshadowed by Lucius, that you’ve spent your whole life being compared unfavorably to your stepbrother. But that doesn’t excuse this. Nothing excuses this."
Actually, buddy, it excuses everything. Because the pathetic mask you’re lecturing right now doesn’t exist.
My head dropped. Let my dark hair hide my face from his searching gaze.
"You wouldn’t understand. You’ve never had to—"
"Had to what?" Leo demanded. "That na, Leone, isn’t just yours to tarnish as you please. It belongs to your ancestors. To the heroes who built your house before drink and weakness eroded its foundations. When you drag that na through mud, you spit on every one of them."
Laying it on a bit thick there, golden boy.
"I’m sorry."
"Sorry isn’t enough." Leo’s voice softened slightly. The steel underneath remained. "That boy’s reputation is ruined now, and I doubt you even realize it. He’ll be seen as a sellsword who can be bought by the highest bidder. Every noble who needs dirty work done will rember that Rhys Blackwood has a price."
Yes. That’s the point.
"You didn’t just embarrass yourself today, Kaelen. You destroyed a man’s future to make yourself feel better about being rescued."
Sothing flickered across my face. A montary break in the mask. I let it show for just a fraction of a second before burying it again.
Oops. Careful.
"I didn’t think—"
"No. You didn’t. You never do." Leo’s voice held more sadness than anger now. "You react. You panic. You take the easiest path regardless of who it hurts. But leadership requires sacrifice. It requires putting others before yourself. Thinking beyond the imdiate mont to consider consequences that won’t beco clear for years."
"I’m not a leader," I whispered. Barely audible. "I’m just—"
"You’re a Leone. Whether you like it or not, whether you deserve it or not, that na carries responsibility that can’t be shed simply because it’s inconvenient."
The corridor had emptied entirely. The last students had sensed the familiar chill of a Valerius lecture and decided their presence elsewhere was urgently required.
"I’ll try to do better." I made my voice flat. Hollow. Defeated.
"Will you?" Genuine doubt colored his words. "Or will you simply find another excuse? Another way to avoid hard choices? Another commoner to hide behind when the world becos too difficult?"
My grey eyes flashed. Brief. Fierce. I buried it before Leo could identify what he’d seen.
"I should go. My attendant will be wondering where I’ve gotten to."
"Kaelen." His voice stopped at the corridor’s end. "The academy is watching now. Everyone who matters is paying attention to House Leone. What you do next matters more than you know."
I nodded without turning. Then walked away. Let my footsteps fade into the distant echoes of ancient stone.
Behind , Leo stood staring at the spot where I’d vanished around the corner.
There’s sothing wrong with that boy, he thought. I could practically feel it.
But the thought passed. Dismissed as unworthy of further consideration. Kaelen Leone was exactly what he appeared to be.
A disgrace to his na and his house.
===
The main notice board stood in the academy’s central atrium. Massive oak fra. Centuries of announcents had passed through it. Students crowded close to read the newest addition. Whispered speculation. Pointed fingers. The parchnt was trimd in formal blue and silver. The Prefect’s seal glead in crimson wax.
NOTICE OF DISCIPLINARY SPAR
By order of Prefect Alistair Valerius, acting under the authority granted by Academy Charter Section IV, a formal disciplinary action has been scheduled to address recent breaches of academy decorum and noble conduct.
Participants: Vance Thorne (House Aurum) vs. Kaelen Leone (House Onyx)
Date: Three days hence
Ti: Seventh bell, morning
Location: Central Training Amphitheatre
Nature: Non-lethal disciplinary combat under full academy supervision
Attendance: Mandatory for all students and faculty
By decree of the Office of the Prefect, this matter is considered settled through the outco of the scheduled spar. No further complaints regarding the incidents in question will be entertained.
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