Morning light poured through the stained-glass windows of the Academy's great hall.
Yukino adjusted her new uniform, feeling the weight of curious eyes around her.
Rumors had already spread.
"The girl who calmed the beasts."
"The one who used forbidden resonance."
She ignored them all—until she felt someone's gaze from across the hall.
A boy stood near the faculty staircase.
Golden eyes. Calm. Familiar.
Their eyes met for a heartbeat—
and something deep inside her chest trembled.
He looked away first.
But even as the crowd moved, Yukino couldn't shake the strange ache in her heart.
> "Who is he?" she whispered.