The couple walked side-by-side from the ravaged training ground to the academy's main refectory. The usual chatter of the dining hall dipped as they entered, then swelled into a fervent wave of whispers. Every cadet's gaze followed them—the anomaly and the Ice Queen, together, marked by the faint sheen of sweat and the subtle, powerful aura they couldn't quite hide.
They ignored it all. They loaded their trays—simple, hearty food—and found an empty table in a corner. They ate without speaking, not because there was nothing to say, but because the cafeteria was no place to say it. Their silence was its own conversation.
Meanwhile, the quiet of the advanced training sector was broken not by a couple, but by a solitary figure. Princess Elreth Samael walked with a rigid, purposeful stride into a different sealed chamber. Her ornate academy uniform was gone, replaced with functional, heat-resistant training leathers with her spear.
