10:41 PM — Valeforth Academy Grounds, Sector 3
The moon watched in silence, pale and distant, its light catching on the edges of stone towers and glinting off the wrought-iron fences that surrounded the courtyard. The shadows stretched long tonight—longer than they should.
A place like this should be safe.
But it wasn't.
Princess Avalith stood in the dark, just beyond the chapel ruins in Sector 3. The surveillance blind spot. The place no one talks about but everyone knows exists. Her breath left her in faint clouds, colder than it should've been for July.
Her hand rested on the hilt of the blade strapped to her hip.
She had followed him.
Not with intent. Not with reason.
Just instinct.
Just that awful suspicion that had wormed its way into her veins ever since she saw the masked killer on her pendant's recording.
The same night her heart refused to beat normally again.
The same night her mind fractured into doubt.
She stood under the brittle arch of a broken doorway, watching him.
Noven.
He was sitting again. On the low edge of a crumbled stone bench in the courtyard. No cloak. No armor. Just a plain academy shirt. Alone, under moonlight.
Like he didn't feel hunted. Like he didn't care.
Her fingers clenched.
This was her moment.
She could end it here. Quietly. Quickly.
A strike through the back. One pulse of mana to the heart. The crown would call it justice. Her brother would be proud from his grave. The people of Valeforth would whisper her name like a hymn.
So why—
Why did her feet feel glued to the ground?
Why was her sword trembling in its sheath?
She wanted to do it.
Didn't she?
Didn't she?
Her chest felt tight. Not from fear. From confusion.
The blade remained where it was. Her heart, however, had leapt toward him. As if… refusing.
She didn't understand it.
Noven finally turned his head.
Their eyes met.
His gaze was calm, unreadable.
Just like always.
He said nothing.
But his presence… it pulled at something in her. Something old. Something irrational.
Like he wasn't the danger.
Like he was the reason she'd never felt safe around anyone else.
"Speak."
Her voice cracked the silence like frost splitting wood.
"If I draw my sword, I won't miss," she warned. "I'll kill you where you sit."
Noven tilted his head slightly. "Then why haven't you?"
She blinked.
That should've enraged her.
Instead, it made her chest twist.
Her fingers tightened again.
"…Last night," she said. "That was you, wasn't it?"
A long pause.
Then he said softly, "No."
Flat. Precise. Delivered without a flicker of hesitation.
Avalith's eyes narrowed. "Don't lie to me."
"I'm not," he replied.
She stepped forward. "You used her—me. Called me a pawn. Killed Unit IX like they were insects. I saw you."
"No," Noven said again. His voice was low, but not cold. It held… logic. "You saw someone wearing a mask. Someone using force techniques. Someone with a grudge against Unit IX."
He stood slowly. No threatening motion. No shift in aura.
Just presence.
"But you never saw my face," he said. "And if I were him, I wouldn't have let you live."
Her breath caught.
That…
That made sense.
Too much sense.
Was that a confession or a deception?
Her mind reeled. It was the way he said it. The confidence. The calculation. It was flawless.
And for some reason… she felt her shoulders relax.
Just slightly.
She didn't even realize how tense she had been.
But her eyes stayed sharp. Her thoughts still stormed.
"I still don't trust you," she said quietly.
"I don't need you to," Noven replied.
She turned to leave.
She needed space. Distance. Anything to restore her clarity.
But her foot caught on a dislodged brick at the edge of the walkway.
She stumbled forward—
Too fast to catch herself.
And crashed directly into him.
Her hands caught his chest.
He didn't move. Just stood there. Solid. Still.
Their bodies pressed close.
She stared up—her face barely inches from his.
And for the first time in her life—
Avalith felt heat bloom in her stomach.
Her cheeks remained composed. Her lips unshaken.
But her pulse—
It betrayed her.
It surged like wildfire.
His skin was warm. His scent—faint ash and old paper—cut through her thoughts like a blade. And those eyes… calm, calculating, deep enough to drown in.
Her fingers gripped his shirt unintentionally.
What is this? she thought.
No. She knew what this was.
Attraction.
Not fleeting. Not shallow.
It was the first time she'd ever wanted to know someone.
Ever craved understanding.
Ever doubted a mission because of one person.
It was him.
It had always been him.
His silence. His intelligence. His terrifying self-control.
She had always noticed him—before she even realized it.
And now her heart beat louder than the academy bell ever had.
She pulled back fast. Regained posture. Composure. Royal bearing.
But the storm inside her refused to quiet.
She brushed imaginary dust from her sleeve and refused to look at him again.
"You should… be careful out here," she said, tone icy again.
"I always am."
She turned and walked away.
But even as her boots clicked sharply across stone—
Her heart didn't leave with her.
Final Scene
Back in his room, Noven sat again on his bed.
He reached into the drawer and pulled out a black pendant—one identical to the one Avalith wore.
He held it between his fingers.
And stared at the dim reflection of his own eyes.
Then whispered to no one:
"…You shouldn't fall for someone like me."
The moon watched in silence again.
But this time—
It felt closer.
Like it had seen everything.