Kairos stood right in the middle of the doorway, framed by the cold stone archway.
His white-gold robes caught the dim torchlight spilling in from the hallway outside.
There was something raw and naked on his face that Sera had never seen on a royal or noble before.
Shame.
”I am sorry,” he said again, his voice cracking slightly at the edges as he looked around the room.
”High Priest Varis is on his way here right now.
I just came ahead to warn you.
That’s all I could do.” Caelum didn’t hesitate.
He took two long strides forward, positioning his broad frame directly between Sera’s bed and the entrance.
”Not necessary,” Caelum said, his tone icy and cold.
”It is necessary,” Kairos insisted, forcing a bit more strength into his voice.
“Temple laws are absolute.
Any awakened bloodline revealed in public has to be registered within twenty-four hours.
It is not a choice.” ”And if I refuse?” Sera’s voice broke through the heavy silence.
Kairos turned his head, his pale eyes shifting away from the prince to look straight at her.
“Then the Temple will take you by force.
And that process…
is not very civilized.” ”You say that like you’re giving her an option,” Lucien cut in from the side.
He was leaning against a table, his usual arrogant playfulness totally gone.
”But you know as well as I do that that’s complete garbage, Elowen.
Varis doesn’t register anyone out of duty.
He extracts them.
Piece by agonizing piece.” Before Kairos could respond, heavy footsteps echoed down the stone corridor outside.
High Priest Varis arrived himself.
He was a tall, gaunt man dressed in sweeping white robes.
His face was drawn, and his eyes looked completely hollowed out.
”Ah,” Varis said, his voice dropping into the small room like cold oil on water.
“So this is the girl.” He walked right inside without bothering to ask for permission, acting as if the entire academy already belonged to him.
“A Dragon Bloodline.
I have spent nearly fifteen years searching every corner of this realm for a trace of it.
And it finally turns up inside a discarded, zero-score girl.” ”She isn’t an item you’re hunting down,” Caelum said coldly, not moving an inch from his stance.
“She is a person.
And she is under the academy’s protection.” ”Of course she is,” Varis replied smoothly, taking a slow step forward.
“A person holding something inside her skin that could destroy the whole kingdom in the wrong hands.” ”Extraction,” Kairos chimed in, closing his eyes tightly, “should not be an option unless there is no other way to secure the magic.” Varis turned his head toward his junior, looking more amused than angry.
“Kairos.
Are you really going to question the Temple’s protocol in front of outsiders?” ”I am just saying,” Kairos muttered, glaring at the stone floor, “the Temple has gentler options available for initial containment.” ”Gentler,” Lucien repeated, raising an eyebrow high as he let out a bitter, sharp laugh.
“Well, now that is fascinating.
Because I remember back when we were students, you told me extraction protocol had ‘minimal discomfort’.” Lucien stepped forward, his dark eyes flashing.
“That word ‘discomfort’ is still stuck in my head, Elowen.
It was such a poetic way of saying that people scream until their lungs bleed.” Kairos felt a sudden wave of heat rush to his neck, his cheeks turning bright red.
“That was in a completely different context” ”Every context sounds exactly the same when you use that exact word to hide what you’re actually doing,” Lucien shot back.
”At least I am standing here trying to do something!” Kairos snapped, an aggressive edge breaking through his exterior.
“What are you doing, Moreau?
Besides standing in the corner making stupid, useless jokes?” ”Me?” Lucien placed a hand dramatically over his heart, feigning total shock.
“I am keeping morale up.
That is an underrated, life-saving skill in a fight.” ”This isn’t a fight!” Kairos yelled.
”Isn’t it?” Lucien pointed around the small room at Varis’s cold smile, at Caelum’s tight jawline, and finally at Sera’s trembling palm.
“So what is this, exactly?
A cozy little tea party?” Caelum closed his eyes for a single second, letting out a heavy, controlled breath.
“Moreau.
Shut up.
This isn’t the time.” ”There is always time, Your Highness,” Lucien smiled, though his sharp, watchful eyes stayed locked entirely on Varis.
“Especially when people are about to show their real, ugly faces.” Varis finally lost the last thread of his patience.
“Enough of this childish drivel!
I will not stand here and listen to boys argue while sacred business is conducted.” ”Boys?” Lucien’s smile widened into something dangerously sweet, his hand dropping casually toward the subtle hilt at his waist.
“High Priest, I might be ten years younger than you, but I can promise you one absolute truth.
If you try to lay a single finger on this girl or drag her out of this room by force…” Lucien’s voice dropped into a dark, razor-sharp whisper.
“…you will find out real quick that I am no child.” ”Is that a threat against the Temple?” Varis sneered.
”It’s an observation,” Lucien said flatly.
“Threats usually have a lot more colorful details attached to them.” Suddenly, someone choked back a small laugh in the suffocating silence.
It was Sera herself.
Every single head in the room turned instantly toward the bed to look at her.
”Sorry,” she muttered, quickly covering her mouth with her trembling hand.
“This is just…
all of this is way too much nonsense for one afternoon.” As the stress peaked inside her chest, the sharp burning sensation in her palm flared back to life with violent intensity.
This time, she didn’t even attempt to fight the pain.
A blinding, bright golden light burst out from between her fingers and along with it came a deep, dangerous silver radiance that swirled through the air.
The twin colors spread across the walls and stone floor like a living shadow taking its very first breath after centuries of sleep.
The temperature in the small infirmary dropped so fast that Sera’s own breath instantly turned into visible mist in the freezing air.
And deep inside her chest, somewhere far beneath her ribs, something massive shifted.
An emotion rose up with staggering force.
It wasn’t expressed in thoughts or words.
It was pure, unadulterated anger.
It didn’t feel like her own ordinary, timid rage.
It was something ancient, immense, and terrifyingly heavy like something buried under mountains for a thousand years taking its very first deep breath.
This anger was a response to every single person who had ever looked down at her.
It responded to everyone who had ever called her “weak,” “worthless,” or a “discarded child.” Every insult, every deliberate humiliation it all gathered into a single point of pressure.
The weight of it hit her so hard that her knees buckled, nearly sending her to the floor.
Sera forced herself to stand her ground, pressing both hands hard against her chest.
She gasped for air, struggling frantically to tell the difference between her own wildly racing heartbeat and that second, strange, thunderous rhythm echoing from deep within her soul.
Varis took a fast, panicked step back, absolute terror showing on his pale face for the very first time.
”This…” the High Priest whispered, his voice trembling uncontrollably.
“This is impossible…
Such a rapid, complete awakening means…” He couldn’t even finish his sentence.
The raw pressure filling the room was pushing him back toward the doorway, moving his feet so fast that his long robes nearly tripped him.
His eyes landed back on Sera’s glowing figure.
”This isn’t just a dormant power…” Varis stammered out, backing completely into the dark hallway.
”This is someone.”