Amazing
~Euphoria~
The moment I stepped off the ship, I was amazed.
The location of the school had never been disclosed to the public.
Nobody knew where Yueying University was, and now I understood why.
It was on an island.
A beautiful, massive green island surrounded by dark water.
Tall pine trees stretched toward the sky, mixed with other trees I couldn’t even begin to name.
I’d never seen anything like them before.
Their branches twisted and curled in strange, beautiful shapes, almost as if they had grown that way on purpose.
The moon hung high in the sky, bright and full, and despite the darkness, the forest seemed to glow from within.
Tiny lights flickered between the trees, and faint blue-green illumination seemed to spill across the forest floor.
Wow.
I didn’t even know what else to say.
“Gather round, students.
Gather round.”
My feet started moving before I even realized what I was doing.
I followed the other students and stepped farther onto the dock.
Then I turned around.
Wow.
Ship.
That was not the word I should have been using to describe what had brought us here.
That was a ship.
A large, luxurious ship.
From the outside, it had this beautiful rustic appearance, almost like something from another era, but the moment you stepped inside, everything was modern.
It was a perfect blend of old and new.
I turned back toward the school.
And somehow, that was even more impressive.
Incredible didn’t even begin to cover it.
The school looked like something straight out of a fantasy story.
Massive stone buildings rose beyond the trees, their towers disappearing into the night sky.
Warm golden lights glowed from countless windows, and long pathways stretched between buildings surrounded by gardens, fountains, and enormous trees.
I couldn’t hear a word the woman was saying anymore.
I was too busy taking everything in.
“Miss Ri-chan, are you listening?”
I blinked.
The woman with blood-red hair was staring directly at me.
“I’m so sorry, Miss.” I straightened immediately.
“I was distracted.
The school is beautiful.
I’ve never seen anything so beautiful.”
“In the backwater country mud hole you crawled out of, of course you hadn’t.”
My smile disappeared.
I slowly followed the voice.
It belonged to a very pretty girl with soft blonde hair.
My cheeks burned.
I looked down at myself.
My clothes.
My luggage.
My violin case.
My luggage was an old brown leather case that had been battered and worn down over the years.
It had belonged to my great-grandfather, who had traveled the world before he died.
My violin case and violin weren’t perfect either, but they were probably the best-kept things I owned.
I suddenly felt very small standing among all these beautiful people.
“Once a bitch, always a bitch.”
I turned my head.
A tall, dark-skinned woman stood nearby, her long, gorgeous braids woven with threads of gold that shimmered beneath the moonlight.
“Niera.”
“Clarice.”
The two girls stared at each other.
Oh.
These two clearly had history.
And judging by the looks on their faces…
Bad history.
I shrunk into myself.
Conflict had always made me anxious.
It gave me a feeling of dread that went bone-deep.
“Ladies, that’s enough.” The woman with the blood-red hair stepped between them.
“You need to save it for the school.
You’re going to need it.”
Thankfully, that stopped their argument.
She turned her attention back toward me.
“Now, Miss Ri-chan, I won’t repeat myself again.”
There was aggravation in her expression, mixed with something else.
Curiosity, maybe?
I was starting to notice something.
I looked more like the beasts than the humans.
And I think she noticed it too.
“Sorry about her.” The beautiful dark-skinned girl approached me with a small smile.
“She’s a real piece of work, that one.
I’m Niera.”
She turned and pointed toward another girl standing nearby.
“And that’s my older sister, Natari.”
I followed her finger and looked through the crowd until I found another girl who looked almost exactly like her.
They had the same beautiful features, though Natari carried herself with a little more maturity.
“We’re second and third-year students.
What about you?”
“Oh, me?” I pointed to myself like an idiot.
“Um…
hi.”
I stumbled over my words.
“I’m sorry.
I’m really nervous.”
I looked at Niera again.
“You’re so pretty.”
Why did I say that?
Ugh.
Why me?
I’m such an embarrassment.
“Sorry.
I’m Euphoria, but you can call me Ria.
That’s what all my friends call me.”
What an unusual name.”
It was her sister who had walked over and now stood beside Niera.
“Oh.
Hi.
Um.
My mom gave it to me.” I smiled softly.
“She said it was because being pregnant with me brought her peace.
So she named me after that feeling.”
“I see.”
Natari studied me for a moment before smiling.
“So, Ria, what year are you?”
“Oh.
I’m a first year.”
I gave her a small nod.
“Where are you from?” Natari asked.
“Alamosa River Village.” I paused.
“I think it’s pretty far from here.
I was pretty landlocked.”
Niera laughed softly.
“We’re from Nigeria, but we moved to Europe when the war started.
Our family owns a mine, so my city became a war zone.
We left immediately.”
“Oh wow.”
That explained their accents.
“My Ba and I did the same.
We moved to the country too, to get away from the bombings.”
The moment I said it, memories flashed through my mind.
The scent of ash.
The smell of blood.
The screaming.
The sky glowing orange from fires that seemed to stretch forever.
It clung to the air, assaulting my nostrils even though I was nowhere near that place anymore.
Even though it had been so long ago.
Even though I was so far away.
Sometimes the memories were so real, it was like I was reliving them all over again.
“Are you alright?”
Niera’s voice pulled me back.
She placed a gentle hand on my shoulder.
I looked at her and gave her a small smile.
“Yeah.
Sometimes I get flashbacks.
But I’m okay.”
I took a breath.
“Thank you so much for asking.”
Niera gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze before letting go.
“Enough chit-chat, ladies.
Let’s get down to business.”
The blood-red-haired woman stepped forward again, gathering everyone’s attention.
I turned toward her, suddenly remembering that I was standing on a secret island at a school filled with powerful beast people…
And I had absolutely no idea what was about to happen next.