By the time Rian made it back to the dormitory tower, her muscles were screaming, and her head throbbed with the aftermath of restraint. Every step across the courtyard had felt like dragging iron weights behind her. But when she reached the door of the shared dorm room and stepped inside, relief washed over her in a cool wave.
Kael wasn’t there.
Rian let the door close softly behind her, allowing her shoulders to sag for the first time all day. The quiet hum of the room’s enchantments—the faint pulsing of magic in the walls, the rustle of curtains swaying in the window’s breeze—was the only sound that greeted her.
No footsteps. No questions. No golden eyes watching her too closely.
She dropped her backpack by the couch and sank into the farthest cushion, bracing her elbows on her knee
