Merlin exhaled slowly.
Of course he was.
The story was changing.
The plot shifting.
The timeline bending around him.
And every step he took was pulling the cast deeper with him.
Morgana pointed to the door.
"Return to your dorms. Together. Stay alert."
Then, with a voice that echoed through the warded chamber:
"This academy will not lose a single student. Not this year. Not to them."
Merlin swallowed hard.
He wasn't sure if it was reassurance
or a declaration of war.
The walk back from the warded chamber should have been loud.
Normally, Nathan and Adrian would already be bickering, Liliana would fret over every tiny detail, Ethan would complain about the lighting, and Elara—well, she'd pretend none of it concerned her while staying clearly within arm's reach of Merlin.
But now?
Silence.
