The Council dismissed me twenty minutes later, though it felt like hours.
They'd argued among themselves after I revealed the scroll's contents, voices rising and falling in waves of disagreement. The woman elder wanted me confined to campus for my own protection. The scarred man thought I should be expelled entirely to avoid the political mess. The younger one suggested using me as bait to draw Gideon out.
None of them asked what I wanted.
The Headmaster finally ended it by pointing out that technically, Gideon hadn't broken any rules by sending an invitation. Creepy and threatening? Yes. Against Academy policy? Not exactly. They couldn't stop me from going if I chose to. Couldn't force me to stay if I refused.
So they let me go with warnings that felt more like threats and promises to "discuss this matter further" in the morning.
I took the scroll with me. The weight of it in my hand felt wrong, like holding something poisonous that might bite at any moment.
