The academy's grand hall was buzzing with noise and hustle-bustle. After long vacations, students were wandering around, hugging friends, and sharing stories about their time away. At one corner of the hall stood Leo and Ray, surrounded by a group of their classmates. Everyone shared just one burning question—"What did you do during such a long break?"
Suddenly, Noah raised both hands in the air from the middle of the group and shouted,
"Come on guys, let's head to class! Classes are about to start anyway."
Hearing him, everyone nodded and started moving towards the classrooms. But right then, Leo stopped in his tracks. He looked at his retreating friends and said thoughtfully,
"You guys go ahead... Since I'm back at the academy, I should go meet Principal Valeria first. I think it's necessary."
Noah stopped and looked back. A mischievous smile played on his lips as he teased,
"Alright, go ahead! But don't start crying later if you get lost in the academy and can't find your way back to class!"
Everyone laughed at Noah's comment, but Ray took a step forward, his expression as calm as ever.
"I'll go with Leo. I have some business with Principal Valeria that I need to take care of."
Leo looked at Ray with a warm smile and nodded.
"Let's go then."
The two turned away while the rest of the students headed towards class. As Leo and Ray walked deeper into the academy, smiles spread wider across their faces—especially Leo's, whose face shone with the sheer excitement of returning.
However, after walking for a while and climbing a flight of marble stairs, Ray suddenly stopped.
Leo looked back, surprised, and asked,
"Why did you stop, Ray? What's wrong, any trouble?"
Ray looked at Leo with a slight hint of annoyance.
"There is trouble, bro..."
Leo asked without missing a beat,
"What trouble?"
Ray replied dryly,
"Do you even know where Principal Valeria's chamber is? Because I sure as hell don't."
Leo's jaw dropped. He ran a hand through his hair and said,
"Uh... I don't know where the chamber is either."
They were standing there staring at each other when light footsteps approached from behind. A boy walked up to them and placed a friendly hand on Ray's shoulder.
"What's wrong, juniors? Any trouble here?"
Leo and Ray both turned their attention to him. A flash of recognition lit up Leo's face.
"Kyron! It's you?"
Kyron wore a long, mysterious smile.
"Hey! It's me. How are you two?"
Then Kyron leaned in slightly, lowering his voice,
"By the way... I heard you guys did an amazing job with that Morveth incident. I read it in the newspaper, and after digging a little through my connections... I found out that you guys saved a lot of lives."
Hearing this, Leo's chest puffed out with pride, and his shoulders squared higher. But on the other side, Ray's slight smile vanished instantly. His expression grew as serious and grave as ever. Fixing Kyron with an intense gaze, he asked in a sharp tone:
"How do you know about everything? Are you present everywhere? And who are these 'connections' of yours that tell you things no one is supposed to know?"
Kyron saw Ray's angry reaction, but his mysterious smile only grew deeper. Tilting his head slightly to the side, he said calmly,
"Why are you getting so angry? I was just trying to dig up a little information. Don't worry..."
Kyron placed his index finger against his lips and whispered,
"Don't worry, I won't tell anyone that you two were involved in the Morveth incident. This secret stays with me and will be buried deep inside forever. So you can trust me. As for my information... well, that's a secret, so I can't tell."
Ray stared at Kyron for a few seconds, then a faint, acknowledging smile touched his lips.
"Alright, senior, I trust you. I was just curious... wondering if this is some special ability of yours that lets you get news from everywhere?"
Kyron chuckled lightly and replied,
"Haha! If any such ability or magic existed, I'd definitely try my best to make it my own."
Right then, Ray cut in,
"Kyron... can you show me and Leo the way to Principal Valeria's chamber?"
Kyron blinked, giving them a blank, silent stare for a moment. Confusion crossed his face before he gestured to the side and said,
"You guys are standing right in front of Principal Valeria's chamber."
Leo and Ray looked to their side. Right next to them was a massive, heavy wooden gate covered in intricate, beautiful patterns. On the wall beside the door, golden letters on a white marble slab read:
PRINCIPAL VALERIA CHAMBER
Leo stared blankly at the gate and said,
"So we've been standing right outside the principal's chamber talking this whole time?"
Ray let out a deep sigh and clutched his head.
"Yeah... looks like it."
Kyron removed his hand from Ray's shoulder, smiled faintly, and stepped forward to knock twice softly on the wooden door. Then he stepped back a few paces.
Thud... Thud...
Within seconds, the door swung inward. Standing in the doorway was a tall man, about 185 cm in height, with light tan skin and a sharp, well-fitted black suit. On his right wrist was a premium leather watch, its second hand ticking slowly. Both of his hands were covered in old, deep scars, proving he had fought many dangerous battles in his life.
With a calm tone and completely expressionless face, he said,
"Welcome to the principal's room."
He stepped aside, and Leo, Ray, and Kyron stepped inside.
The chamber was grand and royal. In the center stood a large dark wooden executive table piled with papers, a small ink-pot, and luxury pens. Antique paintings and rare magical weapons hung on the walls. On one side of the room was another wooden coffee table surrounded by soft, comfortable sofas.
Sitting on that sofa was an elderly woman around 55 years old. Wrinkles lined her face with age, but her aura was powerful and commanding. She wore an elegant dark blue long gown, its long sleeves and borders trimmed with silver embroidery. Delicate magical symbols woven into the gown glowed faintly. A polished silver belt circled her waist, and a bright blue crystal pendant hung around her neck. Sleek black heels adorned her feet.
Holding a teacup filled with hot tea, she took a sip and smiled,
"I knew you two would come straight to my chamber the moment you entered the academy."
Leo chimed in casually,
"Oh come on... You can see the future, right? That's how you always know everything beforehand, right, Principal?"
Principal Valeria gave a warm, affectionate smile.
"You two have grown up... I'm so happy to see you. And I heard about Morveth—"
Before Principal Valeria could finish, Leo cut her off.
"Stop right there, Principal Valeria! Since morning, all I've heard is Morveth, Morveth—my ears are ringing with that word. Please don't talk about that topic anymore."
Valeria chuckled at his youthful annoyance.
"Alright, alright! No more talk about that topic."
Then her expression turned serious. Setting her teacup down on the table, she looked at them and said,
"You two need to be a bit more careful now. The world knows that Chris was the one who stopped everything in the Morveth incident... But the world doesn't know that you two were there too. Felix Ward's father, Anthony Ward, used his heavy connections and a lot of money to wipe your names entirely from the case. Still... many dangerous people know that you two brought down those threats. So be even more cautious from now on."
She paused for a moment and continued,
"Anyway, your second year went well, so I expect your third year will go just as well."
Leo made a face.
"I told you not to talk about this topic!"
Valeria smiled and raised both hands,
"Fine, fine! No more talk. Happy?"
Then Ray stepped forward and asked in a serious tone,
"Principal, have there been major changes in the academy? Because during the attack in our first year, the academy was destroyed. When we came back for our second year, it was bigger... But now, in our third year, the academy feels even larger and different."
Valeria winked with one eye and said proudly,
"This academy is the best in Norvia, so of course it has to be the best! That's why I commissioned some major changes—expanding the Training Ground and Fighting Arena, upgrading the library, and shifting a few classrooms. You can explore the rest of the changes yourselves."
Suddenly, Valeria's eyes dropped to their clothes. Raising an eyebrow, she asked,
"By the way... why aren't you two wearing the official academy uniform?"
Leo shrugged casually,
"Why should we? Is wearing this uniform mandatory?"
Valeria took another sip of tea and replied with a sly smile,
"Not mandatory... But unless you want to lose your Student Badges, I suggest you wear it."
Leo's eyes widened in panic. He immediately stammered,
"No, no! We'll put them on right now!"
Ray grabbed the back of Leo's collar and yanked him back.
"We need to go now. It's almost time for our class."
Valeria waved her hand.
"Alright, go on. Besides, I have a mountain of paperwork to clear and a party to attend."
Leo threw a parting taunt,
"Must be nice having all that free time, huh!"
Valeria replied with a light laugh,
"Even the party is because of work, Mr. Leo."
Ray grabbed Leo's collar tighter and dragged him toward the exit.
"You won't understand these things yet. Just shut up and move!"
Ray dragged Leo out of the chamber. Kyron turned around to follow them out when Valeria called his name:
"Kyron."
Kyron stopped in his tracks and looked back. Valeria's expression was stern and serious.
"I'm leaving the responsibility of these two in your hands."
Kyron smiled confidently, nodded, and walked out of the chamber.
Stepping outside, the three of them walked down the corridor as Kyron led Leo and Ray toward their new classroom. Suddenly, from the far end of the corridor on their left, muffled sounds of scuffling and shouting reached their ears.
They saw two senior-looking boys cornering a younger student and bullying him, having already snatched his purse and shoving him around.
Seeing this, Kyron gave Leo and Ray a gentle push from behind and smirked,
"Go ahead, you two... and help him out. Besides, you're about to become members of the Disciplinary Committee in a few days anyway."
Leo gasped in shock, turning around to stare at Kyron.
"WHAT?! Why us?!"
Kyron replied with his trademark mysterious smile,
"As the Head of the Disciplinary Committee, I chose your names and submitted them to the Principal."
Leo took a deep breath, annoyed, but then looked ahead at the student being bullied.
"Fine then..."
Leo and Ray took sharp steps toward the dark corridor. Leo puffed out his chest and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"HEY! STOP RIGHT THERE AND LEAVE HIM ALONE!"