Mia returned to the library the next morning. She entered the room slowly, quickly taking refuge once again behind the shelves to the left of the entrance. Her heart was pounding as she slipped behind a row to scan for the vila's presence.

A weight seemed to lift off her shoulders when she realized he wasn't there. She had been right not to return at the same time, hoping to avoid crossing paths with him. She would never admit that she was afraid of him and preferred to attribute her attempts to avoid another conflict with him to her desire for tranquility.

She had already chastised herself enough, torn between her urge to confront him and her fear of aggression, realizing that she hadn't really followed the precautions that had been strongly suggested to her and had rushed headlong into the confrontation even though he was a vila. It was stronger than her, she had reached the limits of her patience. Especially when it came to a spectacular level of disrespect and injustice, as she had been a victim of. It couldn't really be called simple racism anymore; his hatred seemed oddly personal.

Mia wasn't out of the woods this morning either. Turning around to leave the aisle she had hidden behind, her body collided with that of another individual who dropped his books from the impact. It was a young man with a tired face and a hunched silhouette. He didn't react to the collision, simply bending down to pick up his books without even giving her a single glance.

"I'm sorry, I didn't see you," Mia apologized, inclining herself to help.

Finally, the man deigned to look her in the eyes, a wounded gleam shining in his gaze.

"Don't talk to me, please," he replied in a voice as low as a murmur.

Mia straightened up, totally caught off guard by his response. Did he, too, disdain the human she was and prefer to act as if she didn't exist? She did her best not to show that his reaction hurt her, putting her pride above all else, but the young man had no trouble deciphering her emotions. He knew them all too well. He stood up with a sigh and approached her, leaning slightly toward her face to speak discreetly.

"Don't take it personally, I have nothing against you. I know exactly what it feels like to be faced with disgust and disdain all day long. I've been through that my whole life, and it's even worse since I came to the Arena. It's just that... if they see me with you, it'll give them an extra reason to make my life impossible..."

Thus, she wasn't the only one subjected to this treatment. Somewhere deep within, it saddened her for her conversation partner as much as it reassured her to know that someone else understood her and experienced the same thing. No one should have to face such a situation, for any reason, but Mia knew all too well that nothing would change the condescending gaze of others upon them. Not even fighting back.

"Why do they despise you?" she couldn't help but ask.

"Ah, right, you know nothing about our world... I'm a hybrid child, born of a union between a magician and a werewolf. The different species don't like to mix, I'm what they call... an abomination..."

"I'm sorry," the blonde exclaimed with sadness, not knowing how else to react to his revelations.

"You're not to blame," he concluded with a tender smile. "Good luck."

"To you too!" she whispered as he disappeared from her field of vision.

Mia decided to tuck this interaction away in a corner of her mind so as not to weigh down the rest of her day. The only thing she wanted to take from it was a mental note to question Arry about the topic of hybrids. The explanations from the young man had raised many questions in her mind about it.

Today, she had planned to explore the architecture of the castle and thus returned to her initial plan. She had quickly abandoned her book on the human massacre upon realizing that it was just a series of facts and battles that she couldn't place or understand since she knew nothing about this world. Might as well start with the most basic thing: her new place of residence.

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While sifting through the shelves filled with books, some dusty and others almost new, she learned several things: first, the school had been built about forty years before her arrival, but it had only been about thirty years since it had been open to all species. It took them about ten years to convince them of the school's validity and to calm their minds enough for them to consider sending their children here. Next, the castle originally belonged to a vampire named Dimitri Vladistok, who consented to enlarge it and turn it into the school they knew today. And lastly, the building operated entirely on magic. This last fact didn't surprise her much; it was the logical conclusion she had arrived at. The castle seemed to have plumbing for running water and sewer systems, and the lighting strongly resembled electric bulbs that were activated by switches, but the technology to operate these structures properly seemed unnecessary when one had access to magic.

"Mia!"

She startled in surprise and cast a mildly annoyed glance at Arry. She hadn't seen her coming. Her friend quickly sat down and rummaged in her bag to retrieve a ticket, which she placed on the table and pushed towards Mia.

"Here, it's your ticket for this weekend's tournament. You can come and cheer me on!" she explained joyfully.

Mia had passed by posters of the tournament plastered all over the brick walls of the school multiple times, but she wasn't yet sure if she absolutely wanted to attend.

It seemed Arry wasn't really giving her a choice. Regardless, she remained curious about how this event worked and what the students and her friend were capable of.

If they have to attack me, I might as well know how...

"Saturday, at four p.m. I won't be able to accompany you since I'll be competing, but you can ask Lily to go with you, just so she can show you where it is."

At least she wouldn't be alone.

"Shall we go eat?" Arry asked.

"Sure, just let me put all this away," Mia responded, closing her book.

On their way, Mia seized the opportunity to question her friend about the topic of hybrids. She didn't tell her about her morning encounter, unsure of where exactly the redhead stood on this issue. The incident wasn't relevant, and she didn't want to create problems for the young man.

"I read in a book that species can mix and create hybrids?"

Arry looked uncomfortable, clearing her throat before answering. With a quick glance, she surveyed the surroundings to make sure the two young women were alone within earshot and that other students wouldn't overhear their conversation.

"It's a bit of a delicate subject... Only the union of a magician and another species can produce hybrids. For instance, a werewolf with a vampire will never produce children. It's because we are genetically close to humans, with the addition of magic. But this kind of union is not tolerated at all."

The redhead seemed to want to stop there, but Mia still didn't have the answer to the question that intrigued her the most.

"Why is it not tolerated? Why do they care?" she pressed, her curiosity undiminished.

"You won't let it go until I answer, will you?" Arry inquired with a tone of desperation.

"You're getting to know me well," Mia replied with a satisfied smile.

"Fine... Just know that I don't share this opinion, okay? Hybrids have always been somewhat frowned upon since most species can't mix. For them, it's a sign that it's unnatural. Unfortunately, the story doesn't end there. The only people who tolerated hybridization and even encouraged it were the humans. It was a way for them to ensure a stronger offspring, better equipped to fight other species on more equal terms. When the war broke out, the rumor that humans were seeking to parasitize other species and weaken them by mixing their blood with theirs spread like wildfire. Once peace was restored and humans disappeared, hybridization became completely taboo."

Mia wanted to delve further into the conversation and ask why humans had been decimated, but she didn't want to prolong her friend's discomfort any longer. Besides, she was beginning to form a vague idea of the reason behind this genocide from learning more about Istarea, and she wasn't sure if she wanted to learn more.

However, something else was on her mind now that she thought about it.

"You know, I was wondering... Does being seen with me not cause you any problems? I know Lily doesn't have any issues in that regard since fairies are inherently neutral, but not all magicians are... friendly towards me."

"Oh, don't worry about that!" she reassured with a smile. "The ones I associate with have nothing against humans and share my opinion on the matter. The others ignore me, I ignore them in return, and that's perfectly fine!"

This didn't necessarily mean that it didn't affect her redhead friend, but if it did, she wasn't showing it. Plus, she was old enough to make her own choices; it wasn't Mia's place to try and protect her in this regard. She needed friends, distancing them was clearly not a good idea.