?---it had been two days since she'd last spoken to him.....until

  ?

  ?"Are you gonna keep sulking forever?" Jasmine’s voice was light, almost teasing, but Micheal could hear the thread of irritation beneath it. He didn’t respond, keeping his gaze fixed on the cup in his hands.

  ?

  ?She stirred the soup in front of her with deliberate slowness. "Y'know, if you keep this up... I might actually start liking you."

  ?

  ?He didn’t rise to the bait. He didn’t even glance at her. Aki’s words still rang in his head: You're an orphan who thinks the world owes him something.

  ?

  ?Wasn’t that true? Where did he even see himself in a few weeks? Months? Years? He had no answer.

  ?

  ?Jasmine sighed, tapping her spoon against the bowl. "You're actually kind of cute when you're not spewing racist shit."

  ?

  ?He took a slow sip from his cup, the warmth spreading through him, but his silence was pointed.

  ?

  ?"I'll tell Aki you're ignoring me."

  ?

  ?"Go on." His voice was dry. "He already puts me through hell in training."

  ?

  ?"You deserve it."

  ?

  ?"Yeah, sure I do."

  ?

  ?"Yes, you do," she shot back immediately. "There was no reason to be so mean to me."

  ?

  ?"I'm sorry..." His voice was flat. "I've already said that. But that doesn't change how I see your type."

  ?

  ?He caught the flinch. Just a flicker in her expression before she masked it. A flash of guilt curled in his gut, but he ignored it.

  ?

  ?"So you're just a racist."

  ?

  ?"No. I recognize patterns. You guys detest us because we're better."

  ?

  ?"Bullshit. You're people have carried out more raids on us than we ever have you can't expect everyone to be okay with that"

  ?

  ?His lip curled. "As if you're any better? You hate those with cursed blood, don’t you?"

  ?

  ?Her hands clenched into fists. The hurt in her eyes was gone, replaced by something sharper. "No. I'm not a racist like you."

  ?

  ?"Oh, sure you aren’t." His voice dripped sarcasm.

  ?

  ?"You know what? I might not hate all of you cursed freaks..." She inhaled sharply, steadying herself. "But I have no trouble admitting how much I detest you."

  ?

  ?"Good to know. The feeling’s mutual. Except I know all of you bloodless are the same."

  ?

  ?Her jaw clenched, her knuckles white. Then, a long pause. A heavy silence stretched between them.

  ?

  ?Finally, she exhaled and crossed her arms. "Do you at least want to talk about it? Maybe if I understand why you hate me so much... I’ll be able to do something about it?"

  ?

  ?His stomach twisted. He knew he was being unfair. Knew he was lashing out for no reason other than that it was easy. But that didn’t mean he could stop himself.

  ?

  ?"You can’t do anything about it. It’s just the way you are."

  ?

  ?Another flash of hurt. This time, she didn’t hide it fast enough.

  Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

  ?

  ?"Then..." She hesitated. "Just for the sake of both our sanity—wanna talk it out?"

  ?

  ?He almost said yes. Almost gave in to the exhaustion in his own head, the weight of his bitterness. But no. He wasn’t that weak. He couldn’t be that weak.

  ?

  ?"Why do you care?"

  ?

  ?She hesitated again, then exhaled. "Because... well... I don’t think anyone is born inherently evil." Her voice was softer now. Careful. "I just want to understand what made you the way you are."

  ?

  ?His fingers tightened around the cup. "You wouldn’t understand."

  ?

  ?Jasmine’s patience was wearing thin. "Can you stop acting like you're some misunderstood, tragic villain? I’m trying to help, and you're acting like the world revolves around your misery."

  ?

  ?His face twitched, but he didn’t snap back. He knew she was right. He just hated hearing it.

  ?

  ?"Just drop it, okay? I’ve got training soon anyway."

  ?

  ?She let out a frustrated sigh and pushed her chair back. "Oh well. Have fun getting your ass kicked. I’m here if you wanna talk."

  ?

  ?She grabbed her bowl, pausing for just a second before turning toward the kitchen. "And wash your own damn cup."

  ?

  ?Micheal rolled his eyes but stood up anyway, taking his cup with him. As he reached the sink, he turned the tap on, rinsing it out.

  ?

  ?Jasmine raised an eyebrow. "Wow. You might actually be useful... if you could just learn to put a filter on that mouth of yours."

  ?

  ?He fought the urge to smile. "Don’t get used to it."

  ?

  ?"Oh, I already am." She smirked, then winked. "Now get out of my kitchen. Go on. You're ruining it with you're racist presence, and you're dropping water everywhere"

  ?

  ?She shoved him lightly toward the door before shutting it in his face.

  ?

  ?Micheal blinked, standing in the hallway, his hands still slightly damp. He didn’t move for a long moment, staring at the door, confused.

  ?

  ?He wasn’t sure why, but he didn’t hate that interaction as much as he thought he would.

  ?

  ?Aki was in his room, as usual, sitting with his back to the door, eyes closed, legs crossed in meditation. The space was simple—bare walls except for a few framed pictures of people Micheal didn’t recognize and an assortment of swords hanging in perfect alignment. The air carried a faint scent of incense, adding to the stillness.

  ?

  ?Micheal had seen this sight countless times, yet he never got used to it. The contrast between Aki’s stillness and the brutal beatings he delivered during training was almost eerie. And now, Micheal braced himself for yet another round of humiliation. He’d tried—again and again—to land a single hit on Aki, but it was useless. He didn’t even have the motivation to try anymore.

  ?

  ?The moment he stepped inside, Aki’s eyes snapped open, sharp as a blade. But this time, he didn’t rise. Instead, he sighed, an unusual break from his usual, near-mocking readiness to fight.

  ?

  ?“Come here, Micheal. Sit in front of me.”

  ?

  ?Micheal hesitated. No condescending smirk? No instant move to attack? What the hell was this? Still, he obeyed, lowering himself onto the hard floor, wincing slightly. How did Aki sit on this thing for hours?

  ?

  ?Aki studied him, his expression unreadable, hands resting in his lap. His silence stretched, making Micheal shift uncomfortably. Then, finally, Aki spoke.

  ?

  ?“I want to make one thing clear. It’s been nearly a week, and I haven’t seen a speck of progress from you.”

  ?

  ?Micheal rolled his eyes, already knowing where this was going. Another lecture. “Yeah, yeah, I know—I’m worthless and—”

  ?

  ?“If this carries on,” Aki cut him off sharply, voice cold, “I’ll just have to send you back to whatever dump you crawled out of and write a detailed apology to Axel, explaining how much of a disappointment you are.”

  ?

  ?Micheal flinched. Even though he was used to Aki’s insults, hearing them phrased like that—like he wasn’t even worth keeping around—hit differently.

  ?

  ?Aki sighed, his tone softening just slightly. “But I don’t want to dump more burden onto his shoulders—”

  ?

  ?“No, wait—that’s exactly what I want! Kick me out. Let me go back to my friends so I can—”

  ?

  ?“No, you cannot.” Aki’s voice was firm, unyielding. “Neither of your friends are currently engaged in any of the training programs at AOMC.”

  ?

  ?Micheal’s stomach twisted. “Wait, what?”

  ?

  ?Aki sighed, crossing his arms. “Lily has been called back to the palace under security concerns due to recent activity.”

  ?

  ?Micheal’s heart dropped. “W-wait, what recent—”

  ?

  ?“Your other friend, Angelica, hasn’t been enrolled in any of the disciplines. In fact, she hasn’t been seen since registration.”

  ?

  ?His breath caught in his throat. Missing? Angelica was missing? Why the hell hadn’t anyone told him this? A strange, creeping dread coiled around his chest, tightening with every second. “B-but… why wasn’t I informed?”

  ?

  ?“Axel thought it’d affect your training—”

  ?

  ?“Screw that, man! I don’t care about training! They’re my friends! My family!”

  ?

  ?“Calm down, Micheal.” Aki’s voice was sharp, but it did nothing to cool the rising panic in his chest.

  ?

  ?“There has been a resurgence of terrorist activity targeting citizens without cursed blood.”

  ?

  ?Micheal almost said good. Almost. But Aki’s stare pinned him down like a blade against his throat, and for once, he kept his mouth shut.

  ?

  ?“There are fears of a new blood manipulator terrorizing civilians. And, on top of that, Axel has been framed for most of the attacks—particularly the death of his uncle Sean, seventy political figures, and the foreign minister Jean, along with his wife and child.”

  ?

  ?Micheal clenched his jaw. The murder of an innocent child sent a rare pang of guilt through him, but there was something else, too—confusion. “Wait… Axel? There’s no way in hell.”

  ?

  ?“Yes. Axel.” Aki’s expression didn’t change. “There’s no concrete proof yet, but the events are too overwhelming to brush off as coincidence.”

  ?

  ?Micheal swallowed hard. “…You mean—”

  ?

  ?“Either Axel has lost his mind, or someone powerful is playing a long game, framing him for something catastrophic. Either way, Micheal, there’s a war brewing. If Axel saw even a sliver of potential in you, now would be the time to prove it.”

  ?

  ?His throat felt dry. “That’s… a pretty high expectation, don’t you think?”

  ?

  ?Aki’s lips curled slightly, but it wasn’t a smile. More like amused disdain. “Don’t kid yourself, Micheal. I expect absolutely nothing from you.”

  ?

  ?Micheal’s face burned with shame and anger, his fists clenching.

  ?

  ?“I’m simply stating the obvious,” Aki continued. “An attention-seeker like you should be thrilled at the opportunity. Imagine all the eyes on you, all the glory you could grab. Isn’t that what you want?”

  ?

  ?Micheal wanted to snap back, but he couldn’t. Because, deep down, Aki wasn’t entirely wrong.

  ?

  ?Still, he forced himself to focus on what mattered. “I still want to see Lily and Angelica.”

  ?

  ?“Princess Lily is under heavy guard. Angelica has been missing for a while now. I don’t think you’ll be meeting either of them.”

  ?

  ?“But I—”

  ?

  ?“Besides,” Aki cut in, “Axel sent a letter with specific instructions: You are to continue training under all circumstances. Lily will meet you when things settle down.”

  ?

  ?Micheal’s shoulders slumped. There was no way around it. No loophole. No argument that could change Aki’s mind—or Axel’s.

  ?

  ?He exhaled sharply. “And I guess nothing I say will convince you otherwise?”

  ?

  ?“Precisely.” Aki stood, cracking his knuckles. “Now, get up and grab a sword. We’ve wasted enough time.”

  ?

  ?Micheal dragged himself to his feet, grabbing a wooden blade from the wall. The dread hadn’t left him. If anything, it had only gotten worse.

  ?

  ?Something was very, very wrong. And he had no idea what to do about it.

  ?

  ?

  ?

  ?