Battle Strategy.
The idea behind the class was simple enough: learn how to fight — not just on your own, but as part of something larger. Tactics, formations, decision-making, commanding squads.
That was why nobles attended the same class.
They were the ones expected to give orders, not bleed on the front lines. The ones who would dictate the flow of war from a safe distance, while students like Vael and Kiera did the actual fighting.
Still eating, Vael and Kiera drifted into familiar conversation — the past.
The real past.
The one no one but the two of them remembered.
They were quietly discussing a moment in the forest when a cold voice sliced cleanly through the room.
"Come with me."
Alina.
The Ice Witch.
These past few days, she had blended into the academy's background so well she might as well have vanished. But Vael knew better. He knew exactly what she carried behind those calm eyes.
She was speaking to him.
Vael sighed internally. There was no point pretending she'd go away if he ignored her. If she sought him out, then she had a reason — and it wouldn't be small.
Kiera raised an eyebrow at him but said nothing.
Vael stood.
"Lead the way."
Alina turned without another word, her long, frost-touched coat swaying behind her as she walked down the empty hallway. Vael followed.
Alina led them into a corner of the academy Vael hadn't even realized existed.
Clearly, she'd been exploring far more diligently than anyone else.
Once they were far enough from wandering students and curious ears, she stopped.
The air here felt colder — though Vael suspected that had more to do with her than the location.
"So, about your little plan…" Vael began.
"So you didn't forget," she replied, arms crossed. "Good. I was hoping you were serious about this. Because we'll need your help."
Vael paused, studying her face.
"In the cave, last time, you said that 'mutual friends' suggested I might be useful. Who are they?"
"That hardly matters," she said without missing a beat. "What you should know is that they're trustworthy. So I'll put my trust in you as well."
"…Sure," Vael said slowly. "Then what did you want to talk about?"
For the first time, Alina hesitated.
A flicker — small, barely there — but enough for Vael's instincts to pick up on.
"Well," she began, voice dropping, "there's something I need to confirm. Something I've been keeping to myself."
Her eyes locked onto his remaining one.
Cold. Sharp. Searching.
A voice flared in Vael's mind—Oculor's, urgent and sharp:
Contractor. Prepare yourself. Do not react.
The warning struck just in time. Vael forced every muscle in his face into stillness, locking down his expression before instinct could betray him.
Alina's question lingered in the air like frost.
"Did you escape a secret lab about a year ago?" she asked.
"One up north?"
Inside, Vael froze.
But outwardly, thanks to Oculor, he didn't so much as blink.
His thoughts spiraled.
This is bad. Why does she need to know that? How much does she know? Who told her?
Oculor slithered deeper into his socket, whispering again, more controlled now:
I think you can trust her, contractor. Maybe not the full truth, but I believe it is necessary to affirm her hypothesis.
Vael kept his gaze steady, unreadable, buying himself precious seconds.
Kiera, hiding not far from them, didn't speak aloud or even move, but her presence sharpened—ready, tense, waiting. She trusted him to handle this, yet remained prepared for the worst.
Vael drew in a slow, silent breath.
Time to answer without answering.
"I did. What of it?"
The words left Vael's mouth with practiced neutrality, the kind of steady tone that revealed nothing—neither admission nor pride, neither fear nor irritation. Just fact.
Relief washed over Alina's face so clearly it startled him. Her shoulders loosened, her posture eased, and even the frost in her eyes thawed for a brief second.
"Good," she breathed. "This means they weren't lying."
They.
There it was again—those unnamed "mutual friends."
Whoever they were, they had said far too much.
Vael felt his pulse climb, but Oculor steadied him—pressing a cold wave of calm into his mind.
Maintain control, contractor. She is fishing.
Still, the next question caught him off guard.
"The reason I summoned you here was to first affirm this," Alina continued, "and second, to ask…" Her eyes hardened again, like ice fixing into shape.
"Were you the one who slew Veltren?"
For a heartbeat, the world narrowed.
Kiera stiffened beside him—not visibly, but Vael felt it through their bond, a subtle shift in her presence. She was ready to react at the slightest signal.
"I feel like you might not fully trust me yet. And I get that. Which is why I'll tell you the reason behind this interrogation."
Alina leaned back against the cold stone wall, completely at ease.
"Veltren, despite his lack of personal strength, was a powerful man. He was the brother of the heir to one of the oldest families in the coalition of kingdoms."
She paused, letting the weight of that settle.
"That's why it was strange for him to personally oversee the burnings in the northern villages. And to inspect that lab."
She gave Vael a moment to process.
"So, when he died, the Crowns rushed to bury the story. God forbid the masses learn about the murder—and about the lab. What happened afterward is still unclear. Some sources say everyone in the lab was killed. Silence doesn't come cheap."
"Needless to say, Veltren's family—especially his son—was furious."
She held his gaze.
"Which brings me to the reason we're having this conversation. His name is Nate de Veltren. He's in our cohort at the academy. In fact, we'll meet him later."
A breath.
"And I want you to kill him."
…
Vael stared at her as though an extra leg had just sprouted from her forehead.