Four years passed.

  Time moved strangely when measured against memory. Some days felt long and quiet, filled with practice and routine, while entire seasons seemed to vanish between one sunrise and the next. And it wasn't long until they were actually adults on the road to their dream college.

  The road leading to the Royal Academy of Magic stretched up the mountainside like a pale ribbon carved through green hills and old forests. The capital city y somewhere beyond the ridges ahead, but the academy itself sat apart from it, perched high above the surrounding countryside like a fortress of schors and nobles. Even from miles away the towers could be seen rising above the treeline, their white stone catching the sunlight so brightly that they looked almost unreal against the blue sky.

  Four years had shaped the two of them into something the quiet vilge roads had never quite been prepared for.

  Ruby had grown into the kind of beauty that revealed itself slowly, the longer someone watched her move. She stood taller now, her posture naturally straight from years of training and hard work. The softness of youth had sharpened into confident lines, her face carrying a calm intensity that drew attention even when she was doing nothing at all. High cheekbones framed warm amber eyes that seemed to hold quiet fire behind them, always studying the world with a thoughtful, measured gaze.

  Her dark red hair had grown long over the years, thick waves falling down her back with subtle hints of copper when the sunlight struck it just right. When the breeze shifted across the road it lifted strands around her shoulders, catching the light in warm glints that contrasted beautifully against the deep red gem resting against her chest.

  Training had shaped her body as much as time had shaped her face. Her shoulders were strong and defined, the result of years spent practicing spell forms, carrying wood, and sparring beside Lena. Her waist tapered naturally into the strong curves of adulthood, and when she walked there was a smooth steadiness to her movements that spoke of bance and control. Ruby moved like someone completely comfortable inside her own skin.

  The ruby medallion resting against her colrbone seemed almost designed for her. The deep crimson stone glowed faintly against her skin, its color so rich it almost looked alive when sunlight brushed across it. It drew the eye without effort, sitting just above the steady rise and fall of her breathing like a mark of something far more important than simple jewelry.

  Beside her, Lena was impossible to overlook.

  Where Ruby carried quiet strength, Lena carried movement.

  Her elven heritage showed in nearly every part of her appearance. She stood slightly taller than Ruby but far slimmer, her body naturally lean in the way elves often were. Her movements carried a lightness that made every step seem effortless, as though gravity itself had a slightly weaker hold on her.

  Her hair had grown lighter over the years, settling into a soft golden blonde that shimmered in the sunlight like pale wheat in summer wind. It was tied loosely into a braid that hung over one shoulder, though several strands had escaped during the long journey, framing her face in bright, wind-tossed curls.

  Her ears, slender and gracefully pointed, peeked through the golden strands of hair whenever the breeze shifted them aside. The shape gave her profile a striking elegance that many humans found captivating without quite understanding why.

  Her features were sharper than Ruby’s, her cheekbones a little higher, her jawline a little cleaner. But what made Lena truly stand out was the energy behind those features. Her eyes carried a bright, mischievous spark that rarely stayed still for long, always watching, always curious, always ready to ugh or challenge someone.

  Years of training had given her a lithe strength that showed clearly when she moved. Her arms were slim but defined, shaped by endless hours wielding her staff and practicing air manipution spells. The fitted travel jacket she wore moved easily with her, revealing the smooth athletic lines of someone who had spent more time climbing trees and racing across fields than sitting in cssrooms.

  She walked with a natural confidence that bordered on swagger, her long strides rexed and easy despite the long road they had traveled.

  Side by side, the two of them looked strikingly different.

  Ruby was warmth and steady fme.

  Lena was wind and quicksilver light.

  Among the polished carriages rolling toward the academy gates, the noble students dressed in silk coats and embroidered cloaks barely noticed the two girls walking up the road.

  But the few who did gnce down from their carriage windows often found themselves looking twice.

  Ruby adjusted the strap of her travel pack and wiped a bit of dust from her sleeve. The road had been busy for hours now, far busier than any road near their vilge had ever been. Carriages rolled past at regur intervals, their polished wheels crunching over the gravel as they climbed the long slope toward the academy gates. Many of them were drawn by sleek horses with braided manes and gleaming harnesses decorated with silver or gold fittings.

  Inside the carriages sat students.

  Rich ones.

  Ruby could tell immediately.

  Some wore tailored coats trimmed with embroidery. Others had cloaks csped with jeweled brooches or carried luggage that probably cost more than her family's entire house. Servants rode behind several of the rger carriages, perched on baggage wagons loaded with trunks and travel chests.

  Ruby watched another carriage pass, its cquered bck frame reflecting the sunlight like polished gss. The driver barely gnced at the two girls walking along the side of the road.

  Lena whistled quietly.

  “Well,” she said, “this is already making me feel poor.”

  Ruby ughed softly.

  “You felt rich before?”

  “Occasionally,” Lena replied. “Usually right after finishing a meal.”

  They continued walking up the road together, their boots crunching against the gravel shoulder as another pair of carriages rolled past. Lena wore a loose travel jacket over a simple shirt and trousers, her hair tied back to keep it out of her face while they climbed the hill. She carried her staff slung across her back alongside a small pack that looked much lighter than Ruby’s.

  “Look at that one,” Lena muttered.

  Ruby gnced up.

  The approaching carriage was enormous compared to the others. Deep blue paint covered the wooden frame, and a crest of a silver falcon spread across the door in intricate detail. Two servants rode on the rear ptform while the horses pulling it looked like they belonged in a royal parade.

  The carriage rolled past slowly.

  Inside, a girl about Ruby’s age sat by the window wearing a pale silk dress and reading a book without even gncing outside.

  Lena watched it disappear up the road.

  “…we are going to hate some of these people,” she said with absolute certainty.

  Ruby snorted.

  “You haven’t even met them yet.”

  “I can feel it already.”

  They stepped aside as another smaller carriage rattled past, this one piled high with luggage tied under a canvas tarp. The driver tipped his hat politely as he went by.

  Ruby watched the line of travelers continuing toward the distant academy towers. Nobles. Merchants. Schors. Students from across the kingdom and beyond.

  Four years ago she had stood in the quiet grass behind her house, staring at a fme in her hand that burned wrong.

  Now she was walking toward the greatest magical institution in the region.

  It felt strange.

  Exciting.

  And slightly terrifying.

  Lena nudged her with an elbow.

  “You’re doing that thinking thing again.”

  “What thinking thing?”

  “The one where your face looks like you’re about to fight a dragon.”

  Ruby rolled her eyes.

  “I’m just wondering what it’s going to be like.”

  Lena grinned.

  “Full of rich idiots with too much money and not enough sense.”

  “That’s encouraging.”

  “Oh come on,” Lena said. “You know half of them probably learned magic from private tutors and expensive books.”

  Ruby raised an eyebrow.

  “And?”

  Lena shrugged.

  “And we learned it from pure instinct, hand me down books, and a woman who made us practice until our arms stopped working.”

  Ruby couldn’t help smiling at that.

  Lyriel had not gone easy on them during those four years.

  Training sessions had become longer and more demanding as Ruby’s abilities continued to develop. Controlling hellfire without revealing its true nature had been difficult at first, but Ruby eventually learned to mask it within normal fmes or manipute existing heat sources instead. To most observers her magic still looked like ordinary elemental fire.

  Only she knew how much stronger it had become.

  The medallion shifted slightly against her chest, warm for just a moment.

  Ruby ignored it.

  Lena tilted her head toward the mountain.

  “Well,” she said, “there it is.”

  Ruby followed her gaze.

  The academy gates stood far ahead now, carved from white stone and framed by towering pilrs that rose nearly three stories tall. Beyond them stretched a vast complex of buildings, courtyards, and towers connected by arched walkways and terraces that overlooked the valley below.

  Students and carriages streamed through the gates in a steady flow.

  The Royal Academy of Magic.

  Ruby felt something stir in her chest.

  Excitement.

  Nervousness.

  And somewhere deeper than either of those emotions, the faint sense that the path she had stepped onto four years ago was finally beginning to unfold.

  Lena stretched her arms over her head and grinned.

  “Well,” she said.

  “Ready to kick a bunch of rich kids' butts at magic?”

  Ruby looked at the academy towers one more time before starting forward again.

  Her smile slowly returned.

  “Absolutely.”

  The closer they got, the rger everything became.

  From a distance the academy had looked impressive. Up close it felt almost absurd, like someone had asked a king to build a city for schors and then told the architects they still were not allowed to think small. The outer walls alone rose higher than any building Ruby had ever seen in person, smooth white stone fitted so cleanly together that the seams nearly vanished. Tall banners hung between the pilrs at the gate, each one marked with the academy crest embroidered in silver thread that fshed when the sunlight caught it.

  Guards stood at either side of the entrance in polished half-pte engraved with runic patterns. Even the armor looked expensive. Not ceremonial either. Ruby could feel the mana woven through the metal from several yards away.

  Lena gave a low whistle.

  “They enchant the guards’ armor,” she murmured. “That is a level of rich I am deeply uncomfortable with.”

  Ruby smiled faintly, though her attention was elsewhere.

  The gates stood open, and beyond them the academy grounds spilled outward in wide terraces and winding stone paths. White buildings with blue-gray roofs climbed the mountainside in elegant tiers. Some were long and schorly, with rows of tall windows and ivy climbing the walls. Others rose into towers capped with crystal spires or domes of polished copper that gleamed softly in the sun. Archways connected the higher levels, and far above all of it stood the central tower, broad at its base and spiraling upward into the sky like a carved pilr of light.

  Students moved everywhere.

  Some walked in clusters with their families. Some stood awkwardly with too much luggage and no idea where to go. Others already looked perfectly at ease, which Ruby found suspicious.

  A fountain stood just past the gate in the middle of a circur pza. Water arced upward in smooth silver streams before twisting in midair into delicate floating patterns that should not have held their shape for more than a second. Tiny lights flickered inside the water like trapped stars.

  Lena stared. “Okay. That’s cool.”

  Ruby nodded. “That is cool.”

  They stepped through the gate together and were immediately swallowed by noise.

  Voices rose from every side. Wheels rattled over stone. A horse snorted somewhere behind them. Students ughed nervously, parents called st-minute advice, attendants in silver-trimmed uniforms moved through the crowd with lists and clipboards, directing new arrivals toward different registration tables set up beneath shaded canopies.

  Ruby adjusted her pack and looked around.

  “This is chaos.”

  “This,” Lena said, grinning, “is organized chaos. Which means if we stand here too long someone in a uniform will tell us to move.”

  As if summoned by her words, a young man in academy colors approached them with the pained expression of someone who had already answered the same question fifty times that morning.

  “New students?” he asked.

  Lena looked around theatrically. “No, we’re here to rob the pce.”

  He blinked.

  Ruby covered a ugh with one hand. “Yes. New students.”

  The poor man looked relieved to focus on her. “Names?”

  “Ruby Suncleanser.”

  “Lena Vale.”

  He scanned the list in his hand, finger moving down the parchment. When he found Ruby’s name, he stopped.

  His expression shifted.

  Just a little.

  Not enough that anyone else might notice, but Ruby did.

  Then his finger moved down a second line, found Lena’s, and he looked up again with a flicker of surprise.

  “You two are to report to the eastern registration hall,” he said.

  Lena frowned. “Is that not where everyone reports?”

  The young man hesitated for half a second too long. “Most students are assigned through the outer pavilions first.”

  Ruby’s eyes narrowed slightly. “And us?”

  He cleared his throat. “You have prior arrangements.”

  Lena slowly turned to look at Ruby.

  Ruby stared straight ahead.

  The attendant continued quickly, clearly eager to hand off the problem. “Follow the blue markers along the path. The eastern hall is the building with the bronze roof and gss atrium. Someone will meet you there.”

  He offered a stiff little nod and escaped before Lena could ask anything else.

  For a few seconds neither of them moved.

  Then Lena said, “Prior arrangements.”

  Ruby rubbed at her forehead. “I heard him.”

  “I just think it’s interesting that we’ve been here for one minute and already your weird noble cryptid has reached through time to make things complicated.”

  Ruby exhaled slowly. “He is not my weird noble cryptid.”

  Lena crossed her arms. “The man appeared out of thin air, paid for your academy tuition, paid for mine because you asked, and vanished before your father could blink. That is either a noble or a highly organized ghost.”

  “Those are not the only two possibilities.”

  “They are the funniest two.”

  Ruby could not argue with that.

  She touched the medallion absently through the fabric of her shirt. It was cool now, resting quietly against her skin like it had not spent the st four years ruining her life in increasingly elegant ways.

  “Come on,” she said. “Let’s just get this over with.”

  They followed the blue painted markers set into the stone path, winding away from the main pza and deeper into the academy grounds. The crowd thinned slightly as they moved farther from the central entrance. Here the buildings felt older somehow. Less decorative. More deliberate. Beautiful still, but in a quieter way. The path passed through a courtyard lined with marble statues of long-dead mages, then along a low wall overlooking the valley below. The view opened suddenly and dramatically, the green slopes rolling down beneath them while the capital shimmered in the distance like a cluster of jewels in the midday sun.

  Lena slowed near the wall and looked out.

  “Okay,” she admitted softly. “This pce might actually be worth all the rich people.”

  Ruby smiled. “High praise.”

  “Do not get used to it.”

  They reached the eastern hall a few minutes ter.

  It was less crowded than the other buildings they had passed, and far more intimidating. A broad stairway led up to tall gss doors framed in bronze. The roof curved overhead in elegant metalwork, and inside Ruby could see a polished floor reflecting the light from the atrium ceiling. Two attendants stood by the entrance, both older and better dressed than the boy at the gate.

  One of them stepped forward the moment Ruby and Lena approached.

  “Miss Suncleanser. Miss Vale.”

  It was not a question.

  Ruby exchanged a quick look with Lena.

  “Yes,” Ruby said carefully.

  The woman inclined her head. “We’ve been expecting you.”

  “Of course you have,” Lena muttered under her breath.

  The woman either pretended not to hear or truly did not. “Please follow me.”

  Inside, the hall was cool and echoing. Sunlight poured through the gss above, painting pale gold across the white floor. A long desk stretched along one wall, though only two clerks occupied it. Beyond that stood a series of carved wooden doors, each marked with small metal pques.

  Ruby noticed one immediately.

  Evaluation Chamber Three.

  That sounded deeply unpleasant.

  The woman led them to a side desk set apart from the others and withdrew two folders from a locked drawer. One she pced before Ruby. The other before Lena.

  “Your enrollment documents,” she said. “Housing assignments, preliminary course pcement, academy conduct codes, dueling restrictions, and your summons for initial magical assessment.”

  Lena picked up the top page and skimmed it. “There are separate rules for sanctioned duels, unsanctioned duels, and accidental duels?”

  The clerk gave her a tired look. “You would be surprised how necessary that became.”

  Ruby almost smiled.

  Then she looked at her own folder and her amusement vanished.

  A bck wax seal marked the inside packet.

  Silver crescent.

  Bck rose.

  Her pulse slowed in one hard beat.

  Lena noticed immediately. “Ruby.”

  “I see it.”

  The woman at the desk csped her hands politely. “That packet is not from the academy. It was left with strict instructions that it be delivered upon your arrival.”

  Ruby stared at it without touching it.

  “When?” she asked.

  The woman’s expression did not change. “Four years ago.”

  That made Lena lower her papers very slowly.

  “You’re joking.”

  “I am not.”

  Ruby finally reached out and picked up the sealed packet. The wax was smooth beneath her thumb. Unbroken. Patient. Waiting exactly as it had been intended to.

  A strange chill moved down her spine.

  Four years.

  He had known she would come. Not hoped. Not guessed. Known.

  “Do I have to open it now?” Ruby asked.

  The woman shook her head. “No. But you are expected in your assessment within the hour.”

  Lena leaned closer. “Expected by who, exactly?”

  This time the woman paused.

  “By the academy,” she said at st.

  Lena made a face that very clearly said liar.

  Ruby tucked the packet into her folder before she could change her mind and handed over the first set of enrollment forms. “What about our housing?”

  The woman gnced down. “Temporary shared quarters in the initiates’ east dormitory until elemental pcement is finalized.”

  Lena brightened a little. “Wait isnt that today?"

  “Yes.”

  “Oh, so no shared room tonight.”

  Ruby did not miss the small note of disappointment in her voice.

  The clerk took their paperwork, stamped it with a crystal device that fshed blue, and slid two slim brass tokens across the desk.

  “Your room keys. Bring your belongings to East Dormitory after your assessments. An attendant can direct you there.”

  Ruby picked up the token. It was warm from the enchantment id into the metal.

  Across the hall, somewhere behind one of the carved doors, a pulse of magic rolled briefly through the air like distant thunder. Several voices rose at once, followed by a muffled crack that sounded suspiciously explosive.

  Lena looked delighted.

  Ruby looked tired already.

  “This pce is going to be a problem,” Ruby said.

  Lena smiled, sharp and bright. “Oh, absolutely.”

  And with the sealed letter hidden in her folder and the academy waiting to judge what kind of mage she had become, Ruby could not shake the feeling that the real reason of her being here was written in this packet.