A crimson moon hovered over the academy, its glow bleeding through the stained-glass windows of the central dome. The school had returned to eerie silence, as though nothing had happened. No gunfire. No assassins. No betrayal.
But I knew better.
We'd crossed a line. Now, the real game had begun.
---
Lucian leaned against the wall, arms crossed, watching me pace the armory floor.
"He knows," I said again, more to myself than to them. "Vale knows I'm not who I say I am."
Ryker stood near the weapons rack, loading his last bullet. "We always knew this wouldn't stay secret forever. But if he's acting without the King's order—he's rogue."
"Or worse," Lucian added. "He is the King's order."
I stopped pacing.
That possibility burned in my chest.
---
We needed answers. And we needed them now.
Ryker led us out through the faculty tunnels—an off-limits network only senior staff were supposed to know. Apparently, Ryker had "borrowed" the map years ago.
"I'm not even surprised anymore," I muttered.
He winked. "Being unhinged has its perks."
We slipped through old vents and hidden elevators until we reached the forbidden tower—Professor Vale's private study.
The moment we stepped inside, I knew something was off.
Everything was pristine.
Too pristine.
No files on the desk. No clutter. Just a single, polished chessboard at the center of the room.
---
Lucian stepped forward first. "He knew we'd come."
The chessboard was mid-game. Pieces scattered—white queen missing.
My gaze narrowed.
"He left a message," I whispered. "He wants us to play."
Ryker glanced around. "We're not alone."
He was right.
Behind the study, a shadow moved. A soft click echoed through the silence—then the wall slid open.
And a man stepped out.
Young. Sharp suit. Silver hair tied back. He wasn't a student.
Or a teacher.
But he was dangerous.
---
"I was wondering when you'd show up," he said, voice smooth as ice. "You've been entertaining to watch."
Ryker immediately stepped in front of me, gun raised. "Who the hell are you?"
The man ignored him.
His eyes—light grey with a red tint—locked on me.
"You're the anomaly. The girl who shouldn't exist in this world."
Lucian stepped beside me, hand twitching near his blade. "And you're the idiot who talks too much."
The man chuckled. "I'm Cyrus. Vale's first protégé. The one the King tried to erase."
---
My breath caught.
Cyrus? That name had been buried in old archives. A ghost.
Rumored to be the first and only student to ever challenge the King—and live.
He walked toward the chessboard, casually resetting the pieces.
"This school is more than an academy. It's a proving ground. Vale is merely... the gatekeeper. I was the experiment."
He looked up, eyes glinting. "You're the second."
---
I stepped forward, cold fury in my chest. "What do you want?"
Cyrus smirked. "To help you. Because they will come for you. The Council. The King. You've disrupted their perfect circle."
Ryker barked a laugh. "Help us? You just called her an experiment."
"I was an experiment too," Cyrus replied, unbothered. "And I know what happens when they find out what you really are."
Lucian narrowed his eyes. "And what exactly is that?"
Cyrus turned to me.
"You're the key."
---
Silence.
I didn't flinch. I didn't breathe.
But I knew he wasn't lying.
The question was—to what?
Before I could ask, Cyrus walked over, lifted a small remote, and pressed a button.
The bookshelf beside us slid away, revealing a glass case.
Inside—
My real file.
Not the fake one forged to sneak into the school. Not the student ID they gave me.
But the government-classified one. The one even I wasn't supposed to see.
Ryker stepped forward, lips tight. "How did you get that?"
Cyrus just smiled. "I never left. I've been watching. Waiting. For her."
He pointed at me.
---
"You want answers?" Cyrus said. "Then you'll have to come to the Labyrinth. Where Vale created all of us."
Lucian scoffed. "You're not taking her anywhere."
Cyrus didn't flinch. "I'm not asking. The doors are already opening."
Suddenly, alarms blared again through the tower.
Outside the windows—dozens of students in black cloaks marched toward the tower.
The Elite Unit.
Loyal to the King.
Armed.
And ready to kill.
---
Cyrus backed toward the wall, pressing another button. A secret lift opened behind him.
"You have one hour," he said, voice calm. "Or they'll drag your body back to the throne."
Then he was gone.
---
Lucian looked at me. "We're running again, aren't we?"
"Not this time," I replied.
Ryker grinned. "Good. I was getting bored."
As the tower doors shook from the force of incoming enemies, I grabbed the file and tucked it in my belt.
My mask had cracked.
But I wasn't broken.
I would find out why I was brought here.
Who made me.
And why five powerful men—all so different—kept being drawn to me like flames to fire.
---
End of Chapter 23