Chapter 7
1096 Words
Chapter 6 — The School of the Gifted
The thought stayed in her mind long after her mother had told her about Royal High Academy.
She couldn't understand it.
For years, her mother had told her stories before bedtime.
Stories about people who were born with strange abilities.
Stories about powerful families.
Stories about supernatural beings and people who could do things ordinary humans could never imagine.
When she was younger, she had listened to those stories with wide eyes.
Sometimes, she would ask her mother if those people truly existed.
Her mother would never laugh at the question.
Instead, she would become unusually serious.
"Some things in this world are not meant to be understood by everyone," her mother would say.
At the time, the little girl had believed every word.
She believed the stories were real because of the way her mother told them.
Her mother's face always looked different whenever she spoke about those things.
She looked serious.
Almost afraid.
But as the years passed, the girl convinced herself that they were only bedtime stories.
After all, what kind of world had people with supernatural powers?
It sounded like something from a fairy tale.
Now, at fifteen, she was being told that she would attend Royal High Academy.
A school known not only for educating children from wealthy and powerful families, but also for people who possessed supernatural abilities.
She stared at her mother.
"Mother, why Royal High Academy?"
Her mother smiled gently.
"Because it's one of the best schools."
"But it's expensive."
"I know."
"Then how are we going to afford it?"
Her mother became quiet.
The girl watched her carefully.
She knew that something wasn't right.
Her parents had never lived like wealthy people.
They had never given her expensive things.
They had never acted as though they had enough money to send their daughter to one of the most expensive schools in the kingdom.
So where had the money come from?
And who were the people who had brought the letter?
She remembered them clearly.
They had arrived at their home without warning.
They had spoken privately with her parents.
And after they left, her parents had behaved strangely.
Her father had barely spoken.
Her mother had looked nervous.
Yet the following morning, her mother had simply told her that she was going to Royal High Academy.
The girl couldn't understand.
"Mother," she asked again, "what was in that letter?"
Her mother's smile faded.
"It's nothing you need to worry about."
"But—"
"Just trust me."
The girl fell silent.
She wanted to continue asking questions, but she knew her mother would not answer.
She had seen that expression before.
It was the same expression her mother wore whenever she asked about her birth.
The same expression whenever she asked why the villagers avoided her.
The same expression whenever she asked about the strange things she had seen as a child.
Suddenly, everything seemed connected.
Her strange childhood.
The villagers.
The forbidden day.
Her mother's bedtime stories.
The strange presence that had followed her.
And now Royal High Academy.
She felt a chill run down her spine.
Could there really be a connection?
She shook her head.
"No."
She didn't want to believe it.
Maybe she was thinking too much again.
Maybe her mother was right.
Maybe everything was simply a coincidence.
That night, she went to bed early.
But she couldn't sleep.
She kept remembering the stories her mother had told her.
She remembered one particular story about a child who was born on a forbidden day.
A child whose birth was believed to bring something terrible.
At the time, she had asked her mother why the child was feared.
Her mother had only smiled sadly and told her to go to sleep.
She had never thought about the story again.
Until now.
She sat up in bed.
Her heart began beating faster.
"What if…"
She stopped herself.
No.
It couldn't be.
She was not a character from one of her mother's stories.
She was just an ordinary girl.
At least, that's what she had always believed.
The next morning, her mother helped her prepare.
Her clothes were packed.
Her belongings were arranged.
Everything she needed for school was ready.
The girl stood quietly while her mother fixed her hair.
"You're going to like it there," her mother said.
The girl looked at her reflection in the mirror.
"I hope so."
Her mother smiled.
"You'll make friends."
The girl almost laughed.
She had never had friends before.
She wondered if things would really be different at Royal High Academy.
She wondered if people there would also avoid her.
She wondered if they would look at her the same way the villagers did.
Then she remembered something.
Her mother had said the school was for people with supernatural abilities.
A strange thought crossed her mind.
What if she belonged there?
She immediately dismissed the thought.
"That's impossible."
Her mother looked at her through the mirror.
"What did you say?"
"Nothing."
Her mother smiled.
But for a brief moment, their eyes met through the mirror.
Something was hidden behind her mother's expression.
Something the girl couldn't understand.
And once again, she wondered what her parents were keeping from her.
Later that morning, she stood outside their home with her belongings.
Her mother hugged her tightly.
"Be careful."
"I will."
"Listen to your teachers."
"I will."
"And whatever happens…"
Her mother stopped.
The girl looked at her.
"Whatever happens, what?"
Her mother forced a smile.
"Nothing. Just be careful."
The girl nodded.
She turned toward the road.
Royal High Academy was waiting for her.
She had no idea what awaited her there.
She didn't know that the school was filled with people unlike anyone she had ever met.
She didn't know that some of them carried abilities her mother had once described only as fairy tales.
And she certainly didn't know that her arrival at Royal High Academy would begin to uncover the truth about the life she had been living for fifteen years.
As she walked away from home, a cold wind suddenly passed behind her.
She stopped.
Her heart skipped.
Slowly, she turned around.
Nothing.
Only the empty road behind her.
She remembered the strange presence from her childhood.
The strange eyes.
The feeling of being watched.
She shook her head.
"It was just my imagination."
Then she continued walking.
But somewhere behind her, hidden from her sight, something watched her leave.
And for the first time in fifteen years, the secret surrounding her birth was beginning to move.
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