The fifty-minute break period began, and all the fourth-year students headed toward the large cafeteria.
The vast hall filled with the sounds of conversation, laughter, and the light scraping of trays.
The trio sat with Rosalyn at a table near the window.
Their meals were simple yet filling: grilled meat slices with fresh bread, mashed potatoes, some legumes, fresh fruit juice, and a banana on the side.
Lucian began speaking as he cut a piece of meat:
“This is only our fourth day on this continent… and yet it feels like an entire year has passed already. Doesn’t it?”
Jenika nodded strongly because her mouth was full of food, making the gesture look funny.
Dastan smiled as he looked at everyone, then gently patted Jenika’s head and asked:
“Jenika, how are things with you? And what about your new mother?”
Jenika quickly swallowed her food and smiled shyly before answering:
“I was joking at first… my instincts just moved on their own. I never thought someone would adopt me one day.”
Dastan looked at her calmly and patted her head again with fatherly gentleness.
“You’re genuinely adorable. I can’t blame her… if I found an orphan with even half of what you have, inside or outside, I’d say I won the world and died happy.”
Jenika’s face turned bright red, and she lowered her head toward her plate, trying to hide her embarrassment.
The trio were clearly in a cheerful mood, while Rosalyn remained silent, her eyes fixed on Lucian with deep admiration.
She had fallen in love with him from the very first glance, and her imagination was now drifting into a world centered entirely around him.
“Lin… Lin… Liiin!”
Jenika shook her shoulder firmly, pulling her out of her pink fantasies where Lucian was kissing her in green fields.
“Lin, you’re part of us now. The way you think… it feels like you’re suffering from something, right?”
Rosalyn became flustered and stuttered slightly before replying:
“The student council… yes, that was your goal, wasn’t it?”
Lucian nodded.
“Correct. For the permits.”
Jenika smiled excitedly.
“Mom told me about it. She said that if I graduate with satisfying results, she’ll reward her only daughter and her friends with her personal permit, in addition to Himera’s and Azara’s permits.”
Dastan raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“When did you even go to her? No, before that… when did you become this close to her?”
Jenika sighed and smiled warmly.
“Last night… after Rosalyn fell asleep, I was about to sleep too… suddenly I saw the tip of a sword piercing through space in front of me.”
Everyone swallowed nervously.
Jenika smiled as she remembered the moment, her eyes shining with a mixture of happiness and sadness.
“She showed me the documents… the adoption was officially successful. I became her daughter legally. I felt overwhelming happiness… despite the guilt crushing my heart. Back at the orphanage, people wanted to adopt you all, but you refused because of me… and now I’m the one getting adopted.”
Dastan gently patted her shoulder and smiled warmly, making his handsome face even more charming.
“Jenika… stop. Your happiness is our happiness. This is the least you deserve for all your hard work.”
Jenika’s eyes teared up, and she quickly wiped them away.
Lucian encouraged her calmly:
“Continue.”
Jenika sighed and continued:
“The documents were ready. My mother’s house was unbelievably organized and clean. She told me I was her only daughter, and that she would protect me and make me her pride. I felt warmth I had never known before… is this what motherhood feels like?”
Then she added shyly:
“She even cooked dinner for me. I told her I had already eaten, but she forced me to finish the whole plate… then we washed the dishes together.”
Lucian let out a light laugh while Jenika continued:
“A question suddenly came to my mind… so I asked her directly: Mom, you’re the wife of the Lord everyone talks about… does that mean I’m his daughter too?”
Jenika paused briefly before continuing in a more serious voice:
“She answered me with something that shocked me… She said the Lord has four wives, and she is the third. And that each one of them had been intimate with him… privately.”
Jenika’s face reddened in embarrassment.
“Then she said: None of us ever became pregnant. Is he infertile? Or does he see us as nothing more than… containers for lust? I love him endlessly… but these thoughts never leave me. Especially after Julia announced her betrayal… my doubts only grew stronger.”
She sighed deeply.
“I want to know who I truly am. I don’t even want the position of principal… I just want my husband. I want to feel the warmth of his embrace and welcome him when he returns home. This position was forced onto me.”
Silence filled the table for several moments.
Jenika continued in a low voice:
“He once told me: The truth is bitter… I don’t want you to know it, and I don’t want the Second Academy to know it either. What does the Second Academy matter? I want you with me.”
Then she added bitterly:
“I slowly accepted the idea of being the third wife, and that there was also a fourth… it became normal with difficulty. But one night… I saw a look in his eyes… and his aura was suffocating. I was naked in our bed after an intimate night together… horrifying doubts about his feelings toward me entered my mind. I hated my life in that moment.”
Jenika smiled sadly.
“But after some time… a beautiful orphan girl appeared before me. When she saw me… she didn’t admire my beauty, she saw me as a mother. We were like two matching pieces… she wanted a mother, and I wanted a child. Then suddenly… you came to me on your own.”
She wiped away a tear rolling down her cheek.
“Even though only one day has passed… I’m incredibly happy. She hugged me… her tears falling onto me… my head resting against her chest. I truly cried… I felt sadness and happiness at the same time.” This story is hosted at novelping dot com.
Jenika whispered in a broken yet happy voice:
“I love my mother… I love my mother… I love my mother… I want our relationship to last forever.”
Rosalyn looked at her deeply moved and asked:
“And what happened after that?”
Jenika smiled warmly and continued:
“I went with my mother to her private hot bath. It was a luxurious place filled with aromatic steam and dim golden lights. I stayed with her the entire time, discussing fourth-year matters.”
“She told me it wasn’t as important as everyone believed. The fourth year is meant for people who want to make a name for themselves. The title of fourth-year graduate grants many privileges, while the first year is the true hell.”
Jenika raised an eyebrow in surprise.
“Then why are professors like Carpet and Ozex in the fourth year instead of the first?”
Ravina moved closer to her in the bath and gently rubbed her daughter’s back while slowly washing her hair.
“It’s simple, Jeni… think of it from two perspectives. Professor Ozكس… his beautiful face makes female students and perverts enter class just to look at him. As for Carpet… he guides children toward the path without regret and without return.”
Then she smiled gently and added:
“Come here, let me dry and comb your hair, my daughter.”
Jenika whispered shyly:
“Mom…”
“What is it, my little daughter?”
“One last question… I’ll tell you. Is what Cloud said true? Does hard work mean I can become one of the Twenty Numbers?”
Ravina paused for a moment before answering in a calm but heavy voice:
“Cloud hid a large part of the truth in his words… I was already one of the Special Numbers from the beginning.”
Jenika’s eyes widened.
“But one time… the Lord came while extremely angry. He tore my clothes apart and threw me onto the bed, saying: Today is the last pleasure between us.”
Jenika’s face turned red from embarrassment and discomfort.
“He… forced himself on me with indescribable brutality. I couldn’t resist. And when he finished, he told me: Tomorrow you will learn the sword from a master beyond compare.”
Ravina wiped hidden tears from her eyes before continuing:
“The next day, we went to the master’s place through a gate he opened… The master was Arkam… or Lucifer… my husband’s older brother.”
Heavy silence settled over the table.
Even Lucian and Dastan stopped eating and looked at Jenika with expressions mixed between shock and concern.
“Jenika…” Rosalyn whispered with a broken voice.
Jenika gave a faint smile and tried to lighten the atmosphere.
“Don’t look at me like that… I’m fine now.”