The sun was sinking fast, setting the courtyard ablaze with fading gold. Long shadows stretched across the grass like silent witnesses as Kael entered the secluded place where he usually found peace.

  Tonight. That peace felt brittle.

  He had almost ignored the note. It could have been a prank, a trap, someone trying to flush him out. But there had been something about the handwriting: sharp, deliberate, like a person who already knew the answer to the question they were asking. That alone was enough to draw him here.

  His face stayes composed, but inside, his thoughts tangled like threads pulled too tight.

  Is the person I’m about to meet a friend… or a foe?

  His fingers brushed the hilt of his sword. The weight of it grounded him.

  "I knew curiosity would win." The voice slipped from the shadows like silk, calm and sure. Like she had been waiting for this moment all along.

  Kael’s heartbeat spiked. “Who’s there?“

  A figure detached itself from the darkness, step by step, until the dying light revealed her.

  "Astra?“

  The Name left his mouth before he could stop it. Of all people, he had never imagined her, the academy’s top beauty, admired by everyone, would be standing here. And certainly not that she might know something about his past.

  She tilted her head slightly, the faintest smile playing at her lips. “Wondering why I’m the one standing here?“ she asked, as if plucking the thought directly from his mind.

  "I mean…yeah.“ He muttered, still off balance. “I didn’t exactly assume you were my secret admirer.“

  Her eyes hardened. The softness vanished like mist.

  "Put that sword away,“ she said. “You won’t need it.“

  Kael kept his grip firm. “Then tell me. What do you know about my past?“

  "No.“ She answered simply.

  He almost laughed. Not out of humor, but out of sheer frustration. “Then this conversation is over,“ he snapped, his patience thinning.

  She didn’t respond.

  Instead, she moved closer, silent as a shadow. The last light caught her face. Calm Calculating. She stopped just in Front of him, close enough for the air between them to feel charged.

  Her whisper slid past his guard like a blade.

  "How’s the backlash, hm? And didn’t you think about the countdown when you used it, just to boost your ego?“

  Kael’s breath hitched. His eyes widened, fear flashing before he could mask it. He stumbled back, searching for words that wouldn’t come.

  "You’re probably wondering why I know your secret,“ she continued, voice cool and sharp. “Even though you never told anyone. Not even your precious friends, right?“

  Something flickered across her face then, brief, almost imperceptile. Disgust.

  "People worship words like they’re sacred,“ she said quietly. “They forget who bleeds for them.“

  "Wha…How?“ he managed, but she didn’t answer.

  Calm down. Think. She knows about my ability. But if she wanted to harm me, she would’ve gone to the academy. They’d have arrested me on the spot. Even if they doubted her, they’d keep watch, because I’m a threat. That leaves only one possibility…

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  "What do you want?“ he asked, cold now, collected.

  "Ah, now that’s the right question.“ For the first time, a real smile flickered across her face.

  "Let’s just say I have a goal,“ she said slowly. “And for now….you’re useful. Don’t make me regret it.“

  "So the first letter about the shadows, the one warning they could swallow me, was from you?“ Kael asked.

  "Of course.“ She replied without hesitation. “I had to make sure you stayed quiet.“

  She moved in until she was so close that her breath tingled against his skin. The sudden proximity made his grip tighten instinctively on the hilt.

  "But then,“ she hissed, her voice low and dangerous, “you did something so stupid that I had no choice but to meet you face to face and make this clear to you.“

  Her words cut the air like blades.

  "Don’t. Ever. Use. Your. Ability. In. Front. Of. Other. People. Ever. Again. Understand?“

  Kael flinched. She was right. “Yeah I know that myself. You don’t have to remind me.“

  "No,“ she snapped. “I do. Mister Turin almost noticed something was off in your fight. Your last move was too unnatural. I had to step in and say that it was pure luck. You should be grateful he believed me. Only because I’m the best student with a sword my word was unquestioned.“

  Kael let out a dry laugh. “Hah. Okay. I get it. I’m an idiot and the top beauty Astra is a genius admired by everyone."

  "Sarcasm,“ she said coldly, “is only for those who can handle it.“

  She straightened, slipping into the rhythm of someone who already had the conversation mapped out.

  "Back to the point. We’ll both live normally during our training and have nothing to do with each other. Under no circumstances should anyone see us together.“

  "That’s fine by me. I don’t want to see your face either,“ he remarked dryly.

  "Funny,“ she said with a trace of amusement. “First time we’re on the same page.“

  She ticked invisible boxes in the air as she spoke.

  "We complete our training. We both become Chroniclers. We receive our marks. And when we’re granted the right to venture beyond the walls, we’ll embark on a journey to solve the mystery of the Nameless City.“

  Her voice dropped slightly on those last words, as if she were speaking to herself more than to him.

  "The Nameless City is more than a mystery,“ she murmured. “It’s a wound. And wounds should be closed.“

  Kael had been half-listening, leaning against a tree, arms folded. But at those two words, Nameless City, something shifted inside him.

  A buried image rose up: an old yellowed map in a dusty classroom, the city’s name scratched out in thick black ink. A lesson that had left him with a strange chill he’d never been able to shake. His heart gave a quiet, traitorous thud.

  He straightened. “Nameless City….you mean the one from the tale our teacher told us?“

  Her lips curved, not quite a smile, but close. "Now you’re listening. Yes. Exactly.“

  "Why?“ he demanded. “Even if i said yes, every Chronicler before us has tried to solve the mystery of it’s disappearance. What makes you think we can succeed where they failed?“

  She turned away slightly, her cloak catching the breeze. “That’s a secret,“ she said coolly. “All you need to know is this timeline.“

  Her footsteps crunched softly on the grave as she started to walk off, as if the conversation had reached it’s end.

  "Wait,“ Kael called after her. Instinct kicked in. He ran up and grabbed her shoulder. “We’re not done ye-"

  The sentence never finished.

  Astra’s reaction was instantaneous. She twisted, caught his arm and hurled him over her shoulder with surgical precision. He slammed into the ground. Air left his lungs in a violent rush. His head struck the floor, the world flashing white around the edges.

  She was on him in a heartbeat. One knee pinning his back, her breath hot against his ear.

  "Dont you ever touch me,“ she hissed. The words weren’t loud, but they vibrated with dangerous certainty.

  Kael groaned. “Can you…please get up? Your chest is touching my back.“

  A startled sound escaped her. She pushed off him quickly, a faint flush creeping into her cheeks as she turned away to compose herself.

  "You have two options,“ she said, her voice sharp again. “Become one of the Chroniclers who tries to solve an unsolvable mystery… or rot in a cell beneath the Emperor’s palace. Your decision.“

  Kael slowly sat up, rubbing the back of his neck. Her presence was a storm. Controlled, dangerous, umpossible to ignore.

  "One day, you’ll come to me voluntarily,“ she said over her shoulder. “I’ll be waiting for that day to continue this conversation.“

  She walked away without another glance, as if the choice she’d offered was inevitable.

  Kael leaned against the tree trunk, his heartbeat slowly evening out.

  She’s dangerous and arrogant. But…the Nameless City. That mystery is haunting me since I’ve heard about it. And damn it… I trust her words. There was something in them, like a promise, or a threat. Maybe both

  He tilted his head back, staring at the branches swaying against the twilight sky. The summer air wrapped around him like a calm that didn’t quite reach his chest.

  "Hah. It’s no use pondering about that, “he muttered. “I’ll stay away from her for now. She won’t tell the academy about my power. She needs me. That much is certain.“

  He lay back, eyes half-closed, letting the warm breeze drift over him. For a moment, the courtyard seemed still.

  Then something shifted.

  Not the wind.

  A branch creaked softly in the darkness, too deliberate. Two faint glimmers blinked once, like eyes reflecting distant light….and vanished.

  He didn’t see them. But they say him.