"Ohhh, how cute you four are."
Gu Luo turned toward Leolia, who seemed to be melting from cuteness at the scene before her.
He looked around him and, for some strange reason, his three classmates all had expressions of terror on their faces.
"Quick, Gu Luo, run!"
"Damn it!"
The four companions were about to make a run for it, but Leolia was faster.
"Children! Kiaaa!"
By the time they were about to move, Leolia had already leaped onto them and was now hugging all four of them in her arms.
"Arg! Leolia, I'm suffocating."
Shěn Yán was trying to free himself from underneath Leolia's forearm while Lǐ Xīnyí finally managed to get her head out from under her armpit after several attempts.
"You smell like sweat."
She placed her hand on Leolia's face to try to free herself, but nothing worked.
"Let us go, Leolia."
Yoeel said.
"Come on, don't be shy. We've known each other for so long, you can call me mommy."
Shěn Yán immediately shouted. "You can always dream, old hag!"
After several minutes, Leolia finally grew tired of cuddling her children and released her grip.
Gu Luo and his classmates fell back onto the floor, exhausted and out of breath. They all took deep breaths of fresh air.
Lǐ Xīnyí couldn't stop coughing.
"You really need to stop doing this, Leolia. Cough! Cough!"
Once everyone had finally caught their breath, they said goodnight to each other and went to bed, leaving only Leolia and Gu Luo in the room.
"You must be tired. I'll show you your room."
Leolia led Gu Luo to the back of the main building, where a mountain path climbed even higher. After about ten minutes of walking, a traditional building, though one that seemed more modern to him, appeared.
Once inside, the smell of the wooden beams immediately filled Gu Luo's nostrils.
The dormitory building had an inner courtyard with a traditional garden, and the rooms were arranged all along the corridor that went around the inner courtyard.
In front of one of the doors in the distance, a sports bag had been placed.
Leolia stopped in front of the door bearing the inscription '08'.
"Sorry, I said you could choose your room, but it looks like they've already brought your things."
"It's fine."
"If you ever want to change, you can always come see me. We'll ask the staff to change your room sheets..."
"It's fine, Leolia."
She smiled. "Good."
She took a key from her pocket and inserted it into the lock.
The door opened onto a room containing a bed, a wardrobe, and a desk placed against one of the walls next to a window.
Leolia handed the key to Gu Luo. He took it and put it into his trouser pocket.
"Well, I'll let you rest. It's late."
"Okay."
Leolia gave him a smile and then left the way they had come.
Gu Luo was about to enter his room when he heard Leolia turn around.
"Yoeel will probably come to get you tomorrow morning, knowing him, so don't worry."
Gu Luo nodded. "Okay."
He entered his room and dragged the sports bag containing his school things inside, then closed the door and let himself fall onto the bed before curling up into a ball.
Then, overcome by fatigue, he fell asleep fully dressed.
Gu Luo was awakened by loud knocks on his door.
He rubbed his temples and sat up. The sun was already shining through his window.
"Gu Luo, are you awake?"
Yoeel's voice came to him through the wooden door.
"I-I'm coming!"
Gu Luo hurried to get up. His gaze was drawn to a hanger hanging from his wardrobe. He hadn't noticed it yesterday because he had been too tired, but his uniform was waiting for him.
"I'm getting dressed!"
His muffled voice came from the other side of the door.
"Don't worry."
It was a black suit, a tie of the same color, and a white shirt.
He put everything on and opened the door.
"Sorry."
"It's nothing, we're on time. You found your uniform, I see."
Yoeel started walking and Gu Luo followed him.
"Yeah, I hadn't noticed that you all wore the same uniform yesterday."
Yoeel scratched the back of his head.
"Oh, you know, they call it a uniform, but the VEIL definitely doesn't want to bother and prefers to remain discreet with its supplies, so they give us the same suit as the one provided to the operatives."
"I see."
"And besides, you don't have to worry. The others will never admit it, but we all arrived the same way you did, and we all have more or less unusual backgrounds."
Yoeel paused in his tirade before continuing.
"So if you ever need anything, don't hesitate to ask me."
"Sure."
Gu Luo thought that everyone seemed to come from complicated situations, and he preferred not to reveal to the others that he came from a perfectly normal family and was nothing more than an ordinary boy.
Yoeel continued walking in silence for a few seconds before turning onto a small path that descended slightly down the mountain.
Gu Luo followed him without saying anything.
As they moved forward, the landscape slowly changed. The traditional buildings he had seen the previous day gradually gave way to large structures made of wood and stone, all connected by small paths.
At this early hour, the place was completely quiet. They could hear the birds and the sound of the stream flowing further down the valley.
A few people were already walking around, some of them also wearing black suits with ties.
Gu Luo discreetly observed them.
Some looked to be around his age, while others seemed to be young adults.
"Does everyone here belong to the VEIL?"
Yoeel shrugged.
"Not exactly. Most of the people you'll see are members of the VEIL, but there are also staff members who work here."
"And the students?"
"Us?"
Yoeel turned around while walking backward.
"We're a bit of a special case."
"What do you mean?"
"Let's just say that the VEIL prefers to keep us here rather than let us wander around freely."
Gu Luo asked, even though he had already more or less understood the situation.
"Why?" Gu Luo asked, even though he had already more or less understood the situation.
"Because we're dangerous."