CHAPTER 3 – The First Enemy
482 Words
Lila sat alone at the academy dining hall, her hands wrapped around a bowl of untouched soup. The room buzzed with whispers—about her power, her arrival, her survival. Every time she lifted her head, eyes slid away as if she were a warning sign no one wanted to stand near.
It was only her third day here, and already she felt like a ghost.
The doors slammed open.
Conversation stopped.
A tall boy walked in, shadows clinging to him like living things. Black jacket, black boots, eyes sharp enough to cut through steel. Students shrank back to give him space. His presence wasn’t loud… it was dangerous.
Lila froze.
She recognised him instantly.
The boy from the attack.
The one who had knocked the monster away from her like it weighed nothing.
The one who stared at her like she wasn’t supposed to exist.
And now he was walking straight toward her.
Her heart hammered.
Don’t look scared. Don’t look weak.
He stopped beside her table. His voice was low, almost a growl.
“So. You made it to the academy,” he said.
“Sorry to disappoint you,” she replied, lifting her chin.
A small, humourless smile curved his lips—like he’d expected her to break.
“Names matter here,” he said. “Mine is Raven.”
Lila blinked.
Raven.
The strongest student.
Top rank.
Cold, untouchable, feared by everyone.
He leaned closer.
“And you are the girl with the forbidden mark.”
Whispers exploded around the hall.
Lila’s pulse spiked.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
But Raven tapped the side of her wrist—the one with the strange birthmark she’d always hidden.
A spiral shape, glowing faintly for just a second.
“Liar,” he said softly. “That mark means you are cursed. And curses bring death.”
Her chair scraped the floor as she stood.
“Stay away from me.”
He laughed once—quiet and cold.
“You walked into a world built on fear,” he said. “You don’t get to demand safety.”
Lila swallowed hard.
She wanted to scream, to run, to disappear…
Instead she forced her voice to stay calm.
“If my mark bothers you,” she said, “don’t look at it.”
The room gasped.
Raven stared at her like she was something new… something impossible.
Then he stepped back.
“For your sake, learn fast,” he whispered. “Because I will not protect you again.”
He turned and walked away.
But the strange thing was—
Lila couldn’t shake the feeling that he already had protected her.
And she didn’t know why.
She sat down slowly.
The soup was still cold.
And she realised she had just made her first enemy.
But deep in her chest, something whispered:
He won’t always be your enemy.
- Writer
