The sea shimmered under the morning sun, turning the horizon into liquid silver. Waves rolled gently across the sand, their rhythm calm and slow—just like the rare peace the teachers of Berbeign Academy finally had.
Mila known secretly to few as Milly stood near the shoreline, the hem of her pale summer dress fluttering softly in the sea breeze. Her silver hair shimmered like moonlight in daylight, brushing against her shoulders, and her blue eyes reflected the vastness of the ocean.
"Miss Mila! You're actually early this time!" one of the teachers shouted, waving from a beach mat.
Mila turned and smiled faintly. "I thought I'd catch the sunrise. It's quiet… I like that."
"Quiet, huh? You sound like someone's grandma," another teased, laughing as he carried a basket of drinks. "Come on, sit with us. We've got juice and snacks. The academy actually paid for this trip!"
Mila chuckled softly. "That's rare."
She joined them under a wide parasol, sitting cross-legged as the others chattered around her, about their students, academy gossip, and summer plans.
"By the way," said one of the male teachers, lowering his voice, "that duel you had with the Sage last week… was that real? You actually fought him?"
Mila blinked innocently. "Rumors like to add details that never happened."
"But they said you burned the ground into glass!"
She sipped her drink with a calm expression. "If the ground turned to glass, I think I'd have been fired by now."
The group laughed, though one of them still looked unconvinced.
As the chatter went on, Mila's gaze drifted toward the glimmering ocean. The laughter around her felt distant, like an echo behind a thick wall. She had recovered completely from her paralysis, but… something in her still felt restrained like an invisible weight pressing on her chest.
"Miss Mila?" one of the teachers called softly, noticing her silence. "You spaced out again. You okay?"
Mila blinked and smiled politely. "Yes. Just… thinking."
"About what? The students? Don't tell me you actually miss grading papers!"
"Something like that," she said, a small laugh escaping her lips.
They returned to their chatter, but Mila eventually rose and walked toward the waterline, letting the waves wash over her bare feet. The warmth of the sun, the scent of the ocean it should've been peaceful. Yet her mind wandered back to that empty field, where she had stood beneath a crimson dragon's light that had almost destroyed her.
That wasn't just magic, she thought, eyes narrowing slightly. It was something else.
The wind brushed past her silver hair. For a moment, she heard it again a faint whisper inside her head.
Still pretending to be human, are we?
Her lips tightened. "Not now," she muttered under her breath.
"Mila?" a teacher called from behind. "Talking to yourself again?"
She quickly turned, smiling. "Just… rehearsing class instructions!"
"On vacation?" the teacher laughed. "You really are something, Miss Mila."
Mila chuckled faintly, but her gaze lingered on the horizon once more. The blue of her eyes met the blue of the sea two calm surfaces hiding something far deeper beneath.
No one can know… not yet.