He was so close his lips were almost touching mine—
and I froze.
Didn't even try to pull away.
"Alan. I'm here."
Andrew's voice cut through it like a blade.
I shoved Clyde away.
"Uh…" Storik stopped in the doorway of the three-bed ward—empty except for me. His взгляд flicked between us. "Did I… interrupt something?"
"We were arguing. Again. Nothing more," Silius said calmly, like nothing had happened. "You're free?"
"Yes. We've got a few hours before classes. No one will bother us." He looked at me. "Alan, can you walk?"
"Of course," I said, throwing the blanket aside and getting to my feet—
too fast.
The room tilted.
I swayed.
Both Silius and Storik reached for me at the same time—
but I caught myself.
"Where are we going?"
—
We left the academy and headed toward the elite dorms.
I didn't ask questions.
Walking was already a problem.
Every step hurt.
The gunshot was bad enough—but Paul had really worked me over too. I was just glad I could still speak without choking on it.
We turned several times, stopping here and there.
It didn't take long to realize Silius was guiding us through telepathic links—keeping us off the radar.
Eventually, we reached his room.
I'd been inside elite quarters before—planting bugs for him—but this—
This was different.
His bedroom alone was bigger than most of the others.
First floor? Status?
Didn't care.
Kristina, Goward—and, unexpectedly, Taisha—were already there.
"Good evening, Instructor," I said.
"Pathetic, Holivan," she replied coolly, rising from the bed where she'd been sitting cross-legged. "Is this what I taught you? How to end up in the infirmary?"
She walked straight toward me.
That never meant anything good.
She hated it when I got hurt.
Said it meant I wasn't learning.
Still—
I didn't expect her to suddenly pull out that oversized needle and, in one clean motion, slice my shirt open.
"Hey—!" I snapped, trying to cover up, but she slapped my hands away and tore the rest of it apart.
"This is unacceptable," she said, pointing the needle at my throat. "How did you let an enemy get this close, you useless boy?"
Her voice rose.
Just a little—
but I'd never heard that before.
"With all due respect, Instructor, I didn't exactly have a choice after getting shot," I shot back.
"Have you even looked at yourself?" she ignored me completely and turned me toward the full-length mirror.
My neck—
hidden under my collar before—
was completely blue.
Finger marks.
Dark.
Ugly.
My chest wasn't much better. One massive bruise wrapped around the scrape from when I'd hit the pavement.
"Taisha, maybe don't strip him in front of everyone," Silius said, stepping in and throwing a sheet over my shoulders. "Cover yourself."
"Wow, Alan," Kristina said, leaning forward. "You're… seriously blue."
Andrew said nothing.
Just frowned and moved to the far side of the room, where a small table was set up.
I tightened the sheet around myself, making sure my throat was covered, and sat down next to him.
The others followed.
"So," Clyde began once everyone was seated, "today's incident was… unusual. I don't believe it was a coincidence. One of the possessed was our former instructor."
"To fall that low. Disgusting," Taisha said coldly. "That's what happens when someone chooses the other side."
"It's still strange," Kristina added. "From what I understand, none of the four were connected. And yet they ended up in the same place."
"Who reported the possessed in the gambling house?" Silius asked Andrew.
They were already synced.
You could feel it.
"The information came from a scout. Nothing suspicious," Andrew said.
"Paul knew how our system works," Taisha said calmly. "Send a possessed into the city, make enough noise, and security responds. No need to assume there's a traitor."
"True," Andrew nodded. "But something still doesn't add up. How did four possessed coordinate? Did they share a goal?"
He glanced at me.
Silius was already watching.
Waiting.
"What do you think?" he asked.
Every head turned.
I shifted in my seat.
I hated this.
"When Paul—when the possessed was chasing me… he mentioned a 'master.' Someone who led the entity to him."
"A master?" Goward spoke up for the first time. "That's not funny."
I looked between him and Silius.
Silence.
"What does that mean?" I asked.
"You seriously can't figure it out?" Goward snapped.
"Enough," Kristina cut in. "Alan doesn't know everything."
"A master…" I repeated slowly, thinking. "You're not saying a demon's involved?"
It clicked all at once.
"You're not completely hopeless," Taisha said. "Yes, entities often serve demons. But I've never seen possessed hosts—still under contract—being directly controlled by one. That stage is beneath them."
"But he said it. I heard it."
"No one's saying you didn't," Andrew said, resting a hand on my shoulder. "It's just… unusual."
"Stop coddling him, Storik," Silius said coldly. "He's not a child."
"Back off, Silius. How I handle my student is none of your business."
"And yet the way you handle him leaves him constantly injured."
"You blaming me for that?"
"Enough," Kristina said, pressing her fingers to her temples. "You argue all the time—I'm used to it—but not now. If Alan's right and a demon is involved, this just got a lot more complicated."
She looked at me.
"Tell me—did you piss off anyone important recently?"
She stopped the second she saw my expression.
"…Right. Stupid question."
Of course it was.
I didn't remember what the old Alan had done.
And as for me now?
Half the hidden world wanted me dead.
That narrowed it down to—
basically every aristocrat.
"Don't be ridiculous, Chris," Silius said sharply. "Demons don't answer to anyone. And they don't run errands for petty grudges."
"I might be missing something," I said, exhaustion finally catching up with me, "but why are we secretly meeting here to discuss something everyone already knows?"
Silence.
Heavy.
"You really are something," Silius said at last, his voice cold. The looks around the table said enough—they couldn't believe I'd just said that. "That's enough for today."
I let out a breath and pushed myself up—
"You," he added.
I stopped.
"Stay."
I clenched my jaw—and sat back down.
"Good boy," Clyde murmured near my ear as he passed behind me to see the others out.