Chapter 34

The academy, sprawling under the cover of night, seemed almost serene. Tall towers cast shadows over the silent courtyards, with the moon hanging high, its pale light illuminating the sharp, angular architecture of the military school. Yet, despite the stillness, there was an unspoken tension in the air, like a predator lurking in the dark, unseen but felt by those who paid attention.

Far from the dormitories, in the tallest building, on the highest floor, an office light flickered. Inside sat a scrawny, skeletal man, his face gaunt and his fingers long and thin, like the talons of a vulture. His desk was immaculate, save for a single lamp that bathed the room in a dim, yellow light. The man's cold, sharp eyes were locked on the document before him, but his focus was far beyond the words on the page.

A knock on the door broke the silence, reverberating in the stillness of the office. "Enter," the principal said, his voice thin, barely rising above a whisper.