Page 16 of Academy of the Wicked, Year One

I look at the strange girl who's turned our world upside down in the span of a single night. At the runes still glowing faintly on her skin, at the way the school's magic continues to weave around her like a protective cocoon, at how even the embodiment of death itself seems drawn to her presence.

"She needs to stay," I say with absolute certainty. The others turn to me, various protests forming on their lips, but I hold up a hand. "Think about what we've witnessed. The school's wards adapting. Her survival of Duskwalker blood. A shadow creature acting of its own will. These aren't coincidences."

I step closer to where the creature holds her, studying the peaceful expression that's replaced her earlier fury.

"Whether we understand it or not, Wicked Academy has chosen her. And I, for one, am very curious to find out why."

Everything happens for a reason, and it seems this woman can be the key to unlocking the secrets hidden within Wicked Academy’s walls.

3

SHADOWS OF DOUBT

~CASSIUS~

In five centuries of existence, there are certain truths I've come to accept as immutable.

Death comes for all things.

Power demands sacrifice.

And Duskwalker spirits bow to no will but their master's.

Yet here I stand, watching my shadow creature –my eternal companion since my first breath– cradle this impossibility in its arms with a gentleness I didn't know it possessed.

How?

The question echoes through my mind like a curse.

My spirit has never responded to another being in all our years together. It is an extension of my will,my darkness, my curse. It exists to serve only me, bound by blood and ancient magic that predates civilization itself.

But now...

I watch as tendrils of shadow adjust their hold on the unconscious figure, ensuring their strange guest's comfort. The sight makes something in my chest constrict painfully.

It's wrong. It's impossible. It's...fascinating.

Her words echo in my memory, each repetition underlining the absurdity of our situation.

"I needed the Chalice of Restoration... my sister is dying... please, you have to believe me!"

The desperation in his voice had been real – that much I'm certain of. But Nikolai is right – none of this makes sense.

No one breaks into Wicked Academy.

The wards aren't just barriers; they're sentient protections woven from the darkest magic imaginable. They don't just keep people out; they destroy those who try to enter uninvited.

Yet she walked in.

Not only walked in but survived long enough to reach the Artifacts Chamber. Survived long enough to fall through whatever trap brought her to Damien's quarters.

Survived long enough to...

A pulse of heat shoots through my body, centered where her fangs had pierced my skin. I force my expression to remain neutral even as my body betrays me with its reactions. My heart pounds against my ribcage like a war drum, each beat sending echoes of remembered pleasure-pain through my veins.

It’s not like I haven’t been bitten before.

In worst-case scenarios, I’m always there to help my fellow royal elites, but I’ve never experienced…that.

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