CHAPTER EIGHT — Assigned to Him Alone
689 Words
The courtyard outside the Evaluation Hall slowly emptied after the first ability tests ended, leaving only drifting voices and fading footsteps. Aria waited until most students were gone before slipping out, pressing her notebook tight against her chest as she walked toward the academy gardens.
Her heart still raced from earlier.
Minimal measurable ability.
Barely passed.
Barely anything.
But what unsettled her most wasn’t the result.
It was the way Keal had looked at her—like she was a locked door he intended to open.
Aria slipped into a quieter path lined with moon-petaled flowers, trying to breathe out the tension. She had almost reached the dormitory wing when—
“Aria.”
The voice froze her instantly.
Keal stood near the archway, arms folded, the shadows clinging to his form like they were loyal to him.
She turned slowly.
“Walk with me,” he said—not a request.
Aria hesitated, but followed. Keal walked ahead with decisive strides, his coat brushing the ground, his aura sharp enough to cut silence in half. They stopped near the deserted training grounds where the wind carried only faint rustles of leaves.
Keal turned to her.
“You know why I called you.”
She blinked, unsure.
His eyes narrowed slightly. “Your evaluation wasn’t normal.”
Her fingers tightened around her notebook.
Keal continued, voice low but controlled. “The crystal picked up something—something small, yes, but not something I’ve seen before. You don’t have a typical elemental or combat signature.”
Aria swallowed, not knowing how to respond even if she could speak.
He stepped closer.
“I’m assigning you to a specialized training schedule.”
Her eyes widened. She scribbled quickly:
Why me? I’m not good at anything.
Keal read the words, expression unmoving, but his jaw flexed.
“That’s exactly why,” he said. “You’re unpredictable. And unpredictability is… dangerous if left untrained. For you and for others.”
Aria’s breath hitched. Dangerous?
Her?
She shook her head frantically, writing fast:
I don’t want to cause trouble.
“You’re not causing trouble.”
His voice softened. “But you will need control.”
Aria stared at him.
Keal continued, “You’ll train separately from the rest of your group for specific sessions. I’ll be supervising most of them.”
Her cheeks warmed. She looked down, heart beating too fast.
Keal noticed—but pretended not to.
“Your schedule will start tomorrow evening,” he said. “After general classes.”
She nodded slowly.
He paused before adding, “You don’t have to be afraid. This isn’t punishment.”
Aria blinked in surprise.
“It’s protection,” he said quietly.
Her breath caught.
Protection—from whom?
From what?
She scribbled the question shakily:
Protection from what?
Keal held her gaze.
“From yourself… and from the academy.”
A chill traveled down her spine.
Before she could write another question, a group of students passed by the far end of the grounds. Their laughter echoed faintly—carefree and unaware. Keal’s posture changed immediately, becoming distant, unreadable again.
He stepped back.
“I’ll send the schedule to your student panel. Make sure you follow it. Don’t miss a session.”
Aria nodded, hugging her notebook tighter.
Keal turned to leave, then paused as if fighting the instinct to say one more thing.
“Aria.”
She looked up.
His eyes held something new. Not coldness. Not annoyance.
Something sharper.
Searching.
Pulled toward her without him meaning to be.
“You did better than you think,” he said.
Before she could fully absorb the words, he was already walking away, disappearing into the shadowed corridor that led toward the instructor’s wing.
Aria stood alone in the quiet training grounds, her heart beating in uneven, startled rhythms.
She had been in this academy for barely a week…
but somehow, she had caught the attention of the one instructor who never paid attention to anyone.
And she didn’t understand why.
But somewhere deep inside—
something as quiet as her voice stirred in response.
Something that had waited years to be awakened.
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