“AH-HEEM!”

  Allegedly, that sound had been a sneeze. The sheer force of it belonged to a knight, not the small fleece-swaddled figure in front of Eydis. Koala—no, Birgit, who, right after, unleashed a trumpet-like nose blow, sending a wave of eucalyptus straight at Eydis.

  Eydis didn’t bother hiding her disgust and dove into Natalia’s arms. Natalia squeaked in surprise and immediately angled her curry awaY.

  Never again. One fever-cuddle was plenty. Birgit could keep her germs. Eydis thought.

  “Uh-oh. Bless you, B. That doesn’t sound like nothing.” Colette rested her elbow lightly on Birgit’s shoulder.

  “I’m good, just allergies,” Birgit said. “I think? Or seasonal flu.”

  Colette slowly slid her yellow scarf up higher to cover her nose while casually easing half a step away.

  “We’re really sitting out here in this weather?” Natalia complained, and turned to Eydis. “And… I need my arm.”

  “Mmm?” Eydis played innocence. She wouldn’t give up this warmth without a fight.

  “I can’t eat like this,” Natalia whined, wriggling her captured arm.

  With a sigh, Eydis detached herself from Natalia and poked at her plate. Turmeric, butter, and cumin rose into her royal nostrils, prickling her eyes.

  From the back of her mind, Cerberus tried: Bark, bark!

  Which loosely translated to: You don’t get to be picky, Your Majesty.

  But Eydis, ever the master of selective hearing, filed Cerberus’s protest under “unimportant yapping.”

  Still mourning the loss of her space heater she muttered absently, "You were cute once, Natalia.”

  “C-C-Cute?”

  “You were. Before you rejected my extremely reasonable offer.” Eydis gave her plate a death stare, oblivious to Natalia quietly combusting beside her.

  Only when the air grew warmer, a localised heat radiating from Natalia’s direction, did she tip her chin to gaze at Natalia.

  "Not. A. Word, guys!" Natalia blushed harder.

  "But didn't you say you dis—" Birgit’s words were cut off by Colette’s elbow. “Ow.”

  An unspoken exchange zipped between Colette and Birgit, carrying all the subtleties of twitching brows, shifty eyes, and a clear “drop it” mouthed by Colette that was impossible to misread.

  Sadly, Birgit had never been one to pick up on social cues. Her brown eyes darted between Eydis, who looked quietly entertained, and Natalia, whose complexion was now approaching the shade of her butter chicken curry.

  “You’re flushed, Nat,” Birgit persisted. “Could be curry, exertion, or… embarrassment?”

  Eydis’s grin widened.

  Colette sighed. “Whatever happened to girl code, girl?”

  “Code! It’s the cold,” Natalia said quickly, too quickly.

  “R-right! Code—The weather,” Birgit stammered after receiving a thigh pinch from Colette. “Or maybe… up your vitamin C? Studies say it helps. A little.”

  Natalia nodded eagerly. “Perfect. I’ll just raid the whole citrus aisle. Mandarins, oranges, apples, whatever!”

  Birgit inhaled. “But apples…”

  The topic naturally changed to food and gossip, but it didn’t last long. Soon enough Eydis noticed the not-exactly-discreet stares landing on their table from every direction.

  The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

  Birgit’s glasses slipped when she slumped slightly. “Wish people would stop with the juice-box gossip. It wasn’t dramatic.”

  “You were hospitalised,” Colette said.

  “But—“

  “For two hours,” Colette added.

  “Still...”

  “Juice box?” Natalia rolled her eyes. “Try getting surprise-chiropracticked by a power-hungry newbie on camera. I’m a meme.”

  “Oh my gosh, that short actually went viral,” Colette said. “I’m not a fan of Tiffany but what happened to her was tragique. Heard her dad even gathered people for a prayer circle over it.”

  "A prayer circle?" Eydis pretended this was news to her.

  “Pretty much a PR stunt. Complete with fliers.” Birgit pushed up her glasses. “Vote Blackwood: The Man Who Cares. His face is everywhere.”

  Eydis arched a brow.

  “Wow. Frog-dissection enthusiast is planning a career change now?” Colette’s grin tilted up one side.

  “Still love frogs. Still read too much. What happened to Tiffany, and to me, feels… hmm off. Like, really wrong,” Birgit said.

  “Supernatural you mean? Everyone’s kind of assumed that already,” Colette said.

  “Not just that,” Birgit muttered. “It’s her dad. His rise has been freakishly fast. Suspiciously fast for someone running as an Independent. And now he’s hosting a masquerade ball at City Hall.”

  Natalia perked up. “Wait. Like, with masks and everything?”

  “Yes. All that. But City Hall usually gets booked a year in advance. I heard this event was kind of impromptu. One week it’s prayer circles, next it’s a fundraising gala.”

  "Fundraising? How utterly pedestrian.” Eydis baited Birgit with a knowing look. “Unless, it’s just a vanity parade in disguise. Redundant for someone already bathing in wealth.”

  Colette snorted. “Welcome to democracy. My parents vote on hairstyles. C’est la vie, or rather, c’est la democracy.”

  "Democracy is mostly illusion,” Birgit said. “And Eydis, you clearly don’t know how expensive these campaigns are. Even small Senate races eat up tens of millions. But Alchymia’s not like the rest, we’re technically our own Territory.”

  Natalia groaned. “This is giving me a headache. I’m just glad I don’t have to vote. When is it again? May?”

  “End of May,” Colette said. “You’re not eighteen till July, right?”

  “Lucky.” Natalia nodded, before diving into birthday plans with Colette.

  Eydis glanced over at Birgit, who had deflated a little. “What exactly makes a Territory so special?”

  Birgit perked right back up. “Wait—you didn’t know? But aren’t you—Oh. Right. Sorry. I keep forgetting.”

  “So did I,” Eydis said dryly. “You’ll have to pardon my chronic amnesia.”

  “S-sorry…” Birgit cleared her throat. “Alchymia is basically the beating heart of Gifted society. We report to the High Assembly, bypassing the Federal Government, so our Senate seat matters nationally.”

  “And running as an Independent?”

  “A waste of money,” Birgit said flatly. “The big two parties control everything. Even with serious funding, Thomas shouldn’t be polling anywhere near this high.”

  Lowering her voice, she added, “Unless it’s not just politics. Unless there’s something else going on with Tiffany’s dad. Something less… natural?”

  Colette clapped her hands. “Like Gifted!”

  “He’s not Gifted!” Birgit groaned.

  “So the establishment is off balance, is it not?” Eydis cut in.

  “You mean the major parties? Yes, they are scrambling for more exposure. Their adverts stalk me on my phone,” Birgit muttered.

  Colette rested her head on Birgit’s shoulder. “My feed’s nothing but puppies and face masks. Maybe your social thingy thinks you’re the next candidate.”

  Birgit tapped quickly at her phone and turned the screen toward them. The photo showed a silver-haired man with saintly eyes and gentle smile. In bold beneath him: Vote Noah Blackwood, followed by a tidy list of bullet points.

  “Noah Blackwood? Running opposite Thomas?” The corner of Eydis’s lips curled. “Their spending must be excessive.”

  "Excessively excessive,” Birgit said with an eager nod. “Hundreds of millions, maybe more. Scrollit did the maths and it was eye-watering. There must be some sibling rivalries going on.”

  “And I wonder whose event Thomas pushed out of City Hall in favour of his gala. Eydis leaned back.

  “Aside from that, don’t you think it’s strange that Thomas rose so fast and he’s not even Gifted?”

  “Of course,” Eydis said, patting Birgit’s shoulder. “Your analysis is thorough. Hard to argue with.”

  That was sincere, mostly. But Eydis had already made her decision. She wouldn’t be watching this ball from a distance. She’d enter it.

  Birgit turned pink. Across the table, Natalia, quiet until now, mumbled, “You’re into politics now, Eydis? Weird I haven’t seen any of those ads. My feed’s been dead.”

  She started scrolling through her phone, frowning.

  Colette peered over the screen. “Maybe they’re targeting a more… mature audience. Meanwhile, Nat’s is full of romantasy web novels with emotionally unavailable love interests.”

  “I—what? No! I’m over that phase.” Natalia shot Eydis a guilty look, tilted the phone away and mashed the volume down.

  Eydis didn’t pay attention; she had already started planning. The real problem was how to get into this exclusive event. How? No gown. No network. And above all, no invitation. Crashing a gala packed with politicians and the city’s most powerful Gifted was the furthest thing from easy.

  Even so, she had to take the risk. And maybe Athena and the rest of the student council were on their way to the same trap.

  A sharp yelp yanked her out of her head. Natalia shoved her phone into her pocket so fast it nearly bounced back out, her cheeks flaming bright.

  “You good?” Colette asked.

  “I’m fine! Totally fine!” Natalia grabbed her plate and cutlery in a rush. “Never better!”

  She all but sprinted out of the courtyard.

  The rest exchanged baffled looks.

  “Interesting.” Eydis watched. Weird. But whatever that was could wait. She had a masquerade to attend.

  And before that, a more pressing challenge to survive.

  Astra.

  She eyed Primrose dormitory. Beige walls had never looked so fortified. Inside, Astra was almost certainly seated at her desk in that trademark motionless poise, giving off waves of frost and silent disapproval.

  Eydis straightened her blazer, her back, and then headed for the dorm.

  Let the battle begin.

  Birgit: 18, 1m56

  Colette: 17, 1m61