Morning came slower this time.
Not because the academy was quiet. It wasn't. The usual noise was already there students moving, voices mixing, footsteps echoing through the halls. But for Ethan, everything just felt… heavier.
He stood inside the uniform room, facing a long wooden counter.
"You're the last new student," the staff member said, flipping through a list. "Ethan Vincent."
Ethan nodded once.
A folded set of clothes was placed in front of him.
Black trousers. White short sleeve shirt. Black tie with gold stripes. Clean. Neat. Exactly how it was meant to be worn.
"Make sure you're in proper uniform from now on," the man added.
Ethan didn't reply. He just picked it up and left.
The corridor felt louder than before.
Maybe it wasn't.
Maybe he was just noticing it more now.
Students passed by in their uniforms, each one wearing it differently. Some neat. Some rough. Some like they didn't even care.
Ethan kept walking until he found a quiet spot near the back of the building.
No one there.
Good.
He placed the uniform on a bench and stared at it for a moment.
Just clothes.
But it didn't feel that simple.
He picked up the shirt and wore it without thinking too much. The fabric was light, short sleeves because of the heat. It fit fine.
Trousers next.
Then the tie.
He paused.
His eyes dropped to his left hand, and he began to stare at the dragon vessel mark.
Slowly, he wrapped the tie around it.
Once.
Twice.
Tight enough to stay.
The mark underneath disappeared.
Just like that.
Ethan adjusted it slightly, making sure it didn't look too obvious.
Then he left it.
No blazer. Not needed.
He glanced at himself in the window beside him.
Nothing special.
Just another student.
He turned away first.
The training grounds were already active.
Voices, movement, bursts of magic here and there. Not chaotic, just… busy.
Ethan stepped in quietly, scanning the area.
That was when he noticed something.
People weren't just training.
They were watching.
Not everyone.
But enough.
"…You look lost."
Ethan turned.
A girl stood there, not too far from him.
White hair.
That was the first thing that stood out.
It didn't look dyed or styled to impress. It just… was.
Her eyes were sharp, like she had already figured something out about him.
"I'm not," Ethan replied.
She tilted her head slightly. "You are."
A small pause.
"You just don't know it yet."
Ethan looked at her properly this time. "Then explain."
She studied him for a second, then spoke.
"Elara."
That was it.
Ethan nodded. "Ethan."
"I know."
Of course she did.
They stood there for a moment, the noise around them filling the silence.
Then she spoke again.
"You didn't grow up in a place like this," she said.
It wasn't a question.
Ethan didn't deny it. "…I didn't."
"Village?"
"…Yeah."
She nodded slowly. "Makes sense."
Ethan frowned slightly. "What does that mean?"
"It means," she said, folding her arms lightly, "you don't understand what this place is."
Ethan stayed quiet.
So she continued.
"This isn't just a school," she said. "It's one of the three elite academies."
No reaction.
Elara noticed.
"…You've never heard of them," she said.
"No."
She let out a small breath through her nose.
"Jupiter. Oracules. Heatherium," she said. "Those are the only academies royals attend."
Ethan's brows pulled slightly.
"Royals?"
Now that caught his attention.
Elara nodded.
"Five of them are here."
Ethan listened closely now.
"Elijah Desmond," she said. "You've probably seen him."
Ethan didn't respond.
"Nicholas Desmond. A senior. You won't see him much."
She continued like it was normal.
"Morphisa Kirraman."
Another name.
"Echidra Sinclair, another senior."
Then—
"…Me."
Ethan blinked.
For the first time
He actually reacted.
"…Wait."
Elara looked at him.
"You're serious?"
"Yes."
"You're… a royal?"
She nodded once. "Minos."
Ethan stared at her for a second longer than he meant to.
"…You don't look like it."
It just came out.
Elara raised a brow slightly. "What does that even mean?"
"I don't know," Ethan said honestly. "I just didn't expect it. I was told royals were the highest status, and should never be disrespected or mistreated by anyone."
She looked at him, then let out a small laugh.
"…That's what you were told."
They started walking slowly.
Ethan's mind was still catching up.
Royals.
In school.
And he was just… here.
Elara's gaze shifted slightly.
"That one," she said.
Ethan followed her eyes.
Zakura.
Standing a bit away, water moving around his hand smoothly.
"You know him?" she asked.
"Yeah."
Elara nodded.
"He's from the Fallz family," she said.
Ethan didn't react.
"…Seria Kingdom," she added.
Still nothing.
"You really don't know anything," she muttered.
Then she pointed slightly.
"Look at his eyes."
Ethan focused.
Under each eye—
A faint black mark.
Like a gill.
One on each side.
"…That's how you know," Elara said. "All male children from the fallz family all have it."
Ethan watched for a second.
"…So he's a royal too?"
Elara shook her head slightly.
"Not exactly."
A pause.
"He's a bastard."
The word sat there.
Ethan didn't look away.
"He has their blood. Their name. Zakura Fallz," she continued. "But not their position."
Zakura's water slipped for just a second.
Then returned to normal.
Like nothing happened.
Ethan turned slightly.
"…Why are you telling me all this?"
Elara didn't answer immediately.
She just looked at him.
Then her eyes dropped—
To his hand.
The tie.
Wrapped.
Covering.
"…Because you're hiding something too," she said.
Ethan didn't move.
Her gaze sharpened slightly.
"I can see it," she continued. "You're hiding your Dragon Vessel mark."
Silence.
This time—
Ethan felt it.
Not fear.
Not panic.
Just that quiet tension again.
He didn't unwrap it.
Didn't explain.
"…It's not your business," he said.
Calm.
But firm.
Elara held his gaze.
Then nodded once.
"Fair."
No argument.
She stepped back slightly.
"I've said enough," she said. "The rest… you'll learn the hard way."
She turned.
Then paused.
Without looking back—
"This place isn't kind to people who don't understand it."
Then she walked off.
Ethan stood there.
The noise came back slowly.
Voices. Movement. Power.
But his attention stayed on one thing.
His left hand.
Wrapped.
Hidden.
He tightened it slightly.
"…It's better this way."
This time—
He didn't sound sure.
Not far away—
Zakura glanced up.
Their eyes almost met again.
Then he looked away first.
And across the field—
Reginald watched.
Quiet.
Waiting.
Jupiter Academy didn't care where you came from.
Village.
Royal.
Didn't matter.
If you stepped into this place, you were already part of something bigger.
Whether you understood it or not.