The darkness didn't loosen.
I kicked again, hitting nothing but empty air.
"What part of leave me alone do you people not understand?" I snapped, irritation bleeding through my voice.
I couldn't see anything, but I could feel their gazes shifting around me like shadows circling prey.
'Unbelievable,' I thought sourly. 'Four grown men ganging up on one guy because they're paranoid.'
The one holding my chin was probably Lucien. I mean… he did that in the game all the time. I could practically feel the frost in his breathing. It was as calm and as measured as always.
'If they're this touchy with someone they want to kill,' I mused dryly, 'I wonder how they act around the female lead.'
A faint hum of amusement drifted through the darkness and, at the sanm che, te grip on my ankle tightened.
I felt the heat of his body through the narrow space between us, close enough that my shoulders tensed automatically.
"Hey, stop crowding me like this. I'm really sorry if I was threatening in any way," I muttered, trying to shove myself backward.
The hand on my left wrist tugged me closer instead, accompanied by a quiet chuckle.
My mind raced.
'Okay… think. Think.'
They clearly believed I was dangerous.
Which was ridiculous.
Sure, I knew a few things about the future, but that didn't mean I was planning anything! Nothing I've done should give my knowledge away, so why?!
'If anything, I'm the one in danger right now,' I grumbled internally.
That sly bastard who kept tugging on me laughed softly, like he'd just heard the funniest joke in the world.
My irritation spiked.
"What's so funny, Elinor?"
No answer.
Of course.
"Lord Atlas," a cold, stone-like voice to my right spoke up, "is there truly nothing you're planning to do?"
His fingers brushed lightly against my wrist.
Not restraining me.
Just… there.
My pulse jumped despite myself.
Okay. That was unnecessary.
The playful one drifted closer again, his voice finally breaking the silence.
"Relax," he said lightly. "We're only making sure you're not lying."
Yeah, right.
'Four guys trapping me in magical darkness just to make sure,' I scoffed internally. 'They must be scaredy-cats.'
I shifted again, trying to pull free.
'If I could actually see them,' I thought irritably, 'this would be way less intimidating.'
Another quiet chuckle rippled through the group.
My brows furrowed.
Why do they keep acting like that…?
They were behaving as if they were making sure I couldn't go anywhere.
Which, for the record, I wasn't planning to anyway.
Where would I even run? I'm basically blind right now.
Lucien finally spoke again, his voice low and cool.
"You're thinking a lot."
I snorted.
"No kidding. I'm surrounded by the four of you. It's not exactly reassuring to know my classmates treat an innocent student this harshly."
That earned another amused breath from Elinor.
'Seriously, what do they want from me to be they dcsr?'
A beat of silence passed.
For some reason, the darkness around us felt a little tighter.
Knock knock.
The sound was soft.
But in the suffocating dark, it landed like a stone dropped into still water.
Every muscle in my body went rigid.
Someone was at the door.
For the first time since this ridiculous interrogation started, I felt something dangerously close to relief.
Because if someone walked in and found four elite academy heirs surrounding a student in magical darkness—
Yeah.
That wouldn't look great, would it?
I let out a slow breath through my nose.
Then I said, very deliberately and very loudly,
"Oh good."
The hands around me paused.
"If you don't let go now," I continued in a satisfied tone, leaning my head back slightly despite the grip on my chin, "you four are going to get in trouble."
Silence fell again.
"Status is neutral inside the academy, as you know," I went on, sounding far too pleased with myself. "Meaning technically speaking, four noble heirs cornering one student in a locked room—"
I gave a small shrug, as much as the hands allowed.
"—probably doesn't look great to the principal."
A quiet breath escaped someone.
Not amused this time.
'I bet that was Cassian.'
Then Lucien's fingers left my chin.
At the same moment, the grip on my ankle loosened.
The hands on both my wrists slid away.
For a brief moment, I sat there awkwardly with my arms half raised, like I'd been about to shove someone.
"…See?" I muttered under my breath. "You can be reasonable when needed."
Another knock.
More impatient this time.
Knock knock.
Before I could say anything else, the darkness vanished.
Not slowly.
Not fading.
It simply collapsed.
Like a curtain being torn away.
Light flooded the room so abruptly my eyes burned.
I squinted hard, blinking rapidly.
Shapes slowly swam back into existence.
And the first thing I noticed was that there was absolutely no one there.
I straightened.
"…Huh?"
I turned in a slow circle.
Empty.
The room was completely empty.
No Lucien.
No Elinor.
No Cassian.
No Rowan.
How was that even possible?
'Ah, maybe they climbed out the window.'
For a moment I just stood there staring at the place where they'd been.
Then I rubbed my wrist.
"…Wow."
They really bolted just like that.
That was actually kind of impressive.
Knock knock.
The door opened before I could answer.
A man stepped in first.
That was, most definitely, Principal Molianis—the one man who had been appearing in my nightmares for the past week.
He was an older man with silver hair tied neatly behind his head and a long coat trimmed with academy insignia. His presence filled the room in a quiet, immovable way.
His sharp eyes swept across the room.
Then settled on me.
For a moment, no one spoke.
"Lord Atlas."
I straightened automatically.
"Yes, Principal Molianis?"
He studied me for a long moment.
Then he said something that made my stomach drop.
"Your lack of kinetic energy is… fascinating."
Ah.
He went straight to the point. What a man.
Clasping his hands behind his back, he slowly sat down beside me.
"At first," he continued calmly, "the other teachers believed your body simply failed to produce kinetic flow."
Ah, it's coming…
"But now that we've observed today's phenomenon, it seems that conclusion was not entirely accurate."
"That's..."
He stopped me mid-sentence.
"As you know," he said calmly, "kinetic generation is compulsory in all living beings."
Yeah.
I know.
Believe me.
I know.
"However, the ability to absorb and reject kinetic force…"
He paused thoughtfully.
"That is something I have never seen before. I have therefore concluded that this discovery requires constant observation."
I had a very bad feeling about the word observation.
And sure enough—
"From this point forward," he said, "the professors of the academy will be monitoring your condition closely."
There it was.
I felt my soul leave my body.
"…Monitoring?"
He nodded.
"For research purposes."
Research. Great. Love that.
Which was basically the exact thing I wanted to avoid.
"I didn't even think survival without kinetic energy was possible," he continued thoughtfully. "As you know, no living entity can be born without it. It aligns us with the world. Yet you…"
Looking faintly amused, he sighed.
"You do not need to worry, Lord Atlas. Your studies will continue as normal. We will make sure you remain safe."
Um… continue that sentence?
Because that wasn't reassuring at all.
I had raised quite a few death flags in just a few days.
"However," he added calmly, "several professors will wish to examine your ability, Lord Atlas."
Examine.
I rubbed the back of my neck.
"Is… that mandatory?"
He smiled politely.
"Not really. But if you wish to discover more about yourself, that will inevitably happen at some point."
First the four main characters corner me in a dark room.
Now the entire academy faculty wants to study me like a lab experiment.
This day just kept getting better.
The man finally stood and turned toward the door.
"For now," he said calmly, "return to your room."
He paused briefly.
Then added, "You should write a letter to your family. Perhaps you believed you could not, but we have never prohibited correspondence."
Oh. Atlas's family?
Sometimes I forget even side characters can have families.
"Yes… how much of… this can I disclose to them?"
"Certainly you cannot specify our theories—not yet, at least, since they are not properly supported. But you may describe your general condition."
He looked at me again and smiled.
"We will personally enchant the letter before it is sent, so that nothing spreads beyond its intended recipients. Have a pleasant rest, Lord Atlas."
Finally, he left the room, leaving me sitting there in silence.
Now that I actually thought about it, this whole anomaly of mine could technically make me even richer.
Nope.
No.
No!
That was not the priority, come on now.
The only thing I needed to do now… was take control of these powers.