Extending his hand forward, Kaelan stood, looking at Ray. Ray also looked at him for a moment before finally shaking his hand. “It’s nice to meet you, Kaelan,” Ray said, smiling at him. Behind him, Kai watched their greetings, but in deep thinking, lost in his thoughts.

“By the way,” Ray spoke up. “Why were the girls here?”

“Ahh…” Kaelan chuckles a little, his expression getting flustered as he starts to explain the situation to Ray. “Well, Your Highness… It all started with one girl approaching me. But before I knew it, more girls came forward and started asking me about myself.”

Ray listens attentively, while Kai just mused to himself. “A chick magnet…”

But just then, they hear the sound of a bell, ringing throughout the ground of academy. “What’s this sound?” Lala wonders out loud, as Ray comes back to Kai’s side, taking on his wheelchair.

“Well, it’s a warning bell that classes will be starting soon. So, we better get to our room and get prepared!” Ray wheels Kai ahead, as Lala follows them behind. As they go past Kaelan, Ray looks back. “It’s nice meeting you Kaelan, but you should get ready as well!” Kaelan too waves at them, as he says in low voice.

“Right, need to get ready…”

As Ray and Kai finally took a turn, they reached a room at the corner of the building. When the door to the room opened, Lala and Kai were in awe. The room was spacious, enough for five people to live in. Beds, study desks, and wardrobes were neatly arranged, and by the window was a beautiful view to watch the sunset. Lala was completely awestruck, while Kai looked around, inspecting the room.

Ray shook Kai gently, saying, “Get ready, Kai! Our class is starting soon!”

Kai tapped Ray’s hand five times, assuring him he would get ready. Ray then quickly turned his attention to Lala, calling her name. As she heard Ray’s voice, she looked over at him. Ray apologized, saying, “I’m sorry, Lala, but I’ll show you your room after our class. Can you please wait until then?”

Lala quickly stepped back, looking shocked and flustered. “No, Your Highness, please don’t apologize to me. I can wait until the class is over.”

Ray sighed in relief and thanked her for understanding. He then turned back to Kai, urging him to hurry up. Kai just yawned in response.

After some time, they were in front of the class. As Ray and Kai entered the room, they could feel the weight of everyone’s gaze upon them. Whispers filled the air, and curious eyes followed their every move.

Ray tried to ignore the stares, focusing on finding a seat for Kai. He wheeled Kai to a spot near the front, ensuring he had a good view of the instructor. Lala followed closely behind, but this time not in a maid's uniform. She too had wore the academy's dress, with her hair dancing in the wind. The boys in the class started to whisper among themselves, praising her beauty, while girl girls looked at her curiously, wondering which family does she belong to.

But to their looks, Lala started to feel uncomfortable. Her eyes darting nervously around the room. Noticing her being uncomfortable, Kai pointed his projection to her. "Don't worry Lala, you can join in our classes. The principal gave his permission after all." Lala slowly nodded, but she still had her guard up.

As they settled in, Ray could hear snippets of conversations around them.

“Isn’t that the 1st Ranker?” one student whispered.

“So, it's true that he uses a wheelchair?” another murmured.

Ray took a deep breath and turned to Kai, thinking he might be feeling uncomfortable. But to his surprise, Kai was yawning. Ray was surprised, as he wondered to himself. "Is he not hearing them or something?"

But Kai was lost in his own world, his expression calm and composed. He mused to himself, sighing. "Getting others attention is nothing new to me..."

Lala, still feeling the intensity of the stares, took a seat next to them, trying to blend in.

But just then, the instructor entered the room, and the chatter gradually died down. Ray glanced around one last time, meeting the curious eyes of his classmates. As they met eyes with him, they paused and looked ahead.

When the teacher entered, she looked over the class. But when her eyes fell on Kai, she paused for a moment before regaining her posture. “Welcome, new third-year students,” she greeted them warmly. “I am Ms. Elizabeth.”

This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

Everyone in the class greeted her in unison. Kai, too, looked over and paused for a while. Her crimson short hair and emerald green eyes behind her glasses seemed too familiar. "Have I seen her somewhere before?" he wondered.

Just then, he felt Ray nudge him. Kai looked over as Ray leaned towards him and whispered, “She kind of looks like Nino.”

Kai pondered for a moment. “Right, she does look like Nino and Mono,” he thought. He projected a small screen towards Ray, asking, “A relative of theirs?”

Ray shook his head. “There’s no one that I know of. Maybe just someone who looks similar to them?”

Kai shrugged and focused his attention back on the class. The class went on smoothly, as Lala was excitedly listening to the teacher, while Ray and Kai just smiled at each other looking at Lala's excitement.

After some time, the class ended. Ray wheeled Kai ahead, with Lala tagging behind them. “Class was pretty average,” Kai mused to himself. But Lala seemed to have fun, as she was humming all the time as they were going around the campus. Looking at her, Kai smiled, when Ray spoke up.

Ray informed them, “Our next class will be in thirty minutes, so we have some free time now.” As they were walking, they noticed Mono and Nino approaching. Kai looked at Ray, who was about to take a turn, but Kai tapped Ray’s hand on the wheelchair. Ray looked at him, and Kai gestured to move forward. Ray sighed and continued to wheel forward.

As they moved closer, Mono noticing them, quickly came over. “Hey Kai, Ray. Good morning!” she said excitedly. Kai greeted her back with his projection. Nino followed her, but when she saw Ray, she looked away and stood there silently.

Mono and Kai started to converse animatedly, while Ray stood by, looking slightly sad. He glanced at Nino, who avoided his gaze, making the moment feel even more awkward.

Ray cleared his throat, trying to break the tension. “So, how was your morning, Mono?” he asked, attempting to join the conversation.

Mono turned to Ray with a bright smile. “It was great! We had an interesting lecture on magical artifacts. You learned that too, right Ray?”

Ray nodded, forcing a smile. “Yeah, it's fascinating.”

Kai, noticing Ray’s discomfort, decided to change the subject. “Well, have you seen the training grounds? I heard they are supposed to be amazing.”

Mono’s eyes lit up. “Yes, they are! I love to train there! We should all go check it out sometime.”

Nino, still standing quietly, finally spoke up. “That sounds like a good idea,” she said softly, glancing briefly at Ray before looking away again.

Just then, Mono noticed Lala standing quietly behind them. “Oh, I think we’ve met somewhere before, but I don't remember. Who’s this?” she asked, looking at Lala with curiosity.

Ray smiled and introduced her. “This is Lala. She’s Kai assistant, also new here and will be joining us in our classes.”

Lala gave a small, shy wave. “Hi, nice to meet you.”

Mono beamed at her. “Nice to meet you too, Lala! I’m Montina Von Lunaris, and this is my twin sister, Niatina Von Lunaris,” she said, gesturing to her sister.

Nino gave a brief nod in acknowledgment. “Hello,” she said softly.

Ray’s heart lifted slightly at the friendly exchange. “I’m sure you’ll get along great,” he added.

Just then, the bell rang, signaling the end of their free time. “We should get going,” Ray said, wheeling Kai towards their next class. “See you later, you two.”

Mono waved cheerfully. “Take care!”

Nino gave a small nod, her expression unreadable. As they walked away, Ray couldn’t help but feel a mix of emotions. He hoped that with time, things would get better between him and Nino.

As they went their separate ways, Kai looked behind, watching Mono and Nino going back, as Ray wheeled him ahead, with Lala walking beside them. Ray, noticing Kai’s backward glance, asked, “What’s wrong?”

Kai narrowed his eyes, looking back for a few seconds. But he finally shook his head, replying, “No, it’s nothing,” as he looked forward again.

But as they moved ahead, behind them, a woman stood by the side of the wall, watching them intently. Her eyes were fixed on Kai, and her lips curled up slightly, as if holding back a multitude of words she wanted to say. As she saw the three take a turn, she finally whispers to herself, her voice filled with relief.

“… I won’t let it repeat this time.”

But as they moved ahead, behind them, a woman stood by the side of the wall, watching them intently. Her eyes were fixed on Kai, and her lips curled up slightly, as if holding back a multitude of words she wanted to say. As she saw the three take a turn, she finally whispered to herself, her voice filled with relief, “…I won’t let it repeat this time.”

Back to the three, as they were walking, Lala was asking Ray about the classes. But Kai was deep in thought, his mind recalling a few minutes ago.

A few minutes earlier:

Kai was listening to Mono, thinking to himself, "Looks like she really enjoys training," and he smiled. But just then, he heard the sound of Eva’s power going off. “Huh? Eva?” he called out to her, but there was no response. He tried calling multiple times, but still, no response came.

"What’s wrong? Some kind of hacking? Interference? No, that’s not possible. Then what could it be?" he wondered, when suddenly he heard a voice. “Kai…” The voice was of a woman. Kai became alert, his mind racing.

"A woman? Someone hacked Eva? But there’s no such technology now, so how…"

He was still wondering when the voice continued, “Listen to me, Kai. In ten days, some assassins will attack the Archduke’s mansion. They aren’t just normal assassins; they are highly trained, and each of them is as strong as the commander of the imperial army. No matter what you do, you must protect your little sister, Elysia.”

Kai’s heart skipped a beat at the mention of his sister. “Elysia?” He was confused, but Elysia’s name got him on guard.

The voice added, “I can’t say more than that… Please protect her...” and then it faded away. Just as suddenly as it had gone off, Eva’s signal came back online.

"What..." Kai was left speechless, wondering what just happened.

-To be continued