The corridors of the Academy were teeming with students enjoying their break. However, in the midst of that lively atmosphere, an unusual sight began to unfold.
Footsteps came to a sudden halt. Cheerful conversations were cut short mid-sentence. Students instinctively moved aside, pressing their backs against the hallway walls to clear a path as wide as possible for the single figure walking past them.
The 'King of Terror' was strolling casually through the academy corridor. His academy cloak fluttered softly behind him. His facial expression was as cold as ice, his jaw set firm, and his blue eyes stared straight ahead, completely indifferent to the terrified gazes of the students around him. The aura of dominance radiating from his body was so thick it made the very air feel difficult to breathe.
Without a hint of hesitation, the blue-haired student turned and headed straight for the door of Class 1-C.
Unlike Class 1-A, which was filled with the elite, primary heirs of nobility, and children of wealthy merchants, Class 1-C housed a more diverse group of students. As Arvin stood right at the threshold of the classroom, the world inside seemed to stop.
Upon realizing the 'King of Terror' was standing at their door, every student in the room fell into a state of utter shock. Their laughter and chatter ceased as if someone had pressed a pause button on the world. They glanced at one another with pale faces. Not a single one of them had ever expected the most terrifying and feared student in the entire academy to set foot in their classroom.
No one dared to speak. The room suddenly became as silent as a graveyard. Even breaths were held tight, so as not to draw the monster's attention.
Arvin ignored the dozens of eyes staring at him in fear. He swept his gaze across the room, looking at each face one by one until his eyes finally locked onto a single target. He had found the person he was looking for.
As fate would have it, in the middle row of desks, the red-haired youth was sitting in his seat. He stared at Arvin with a look of restrained surprise.
"Ordion!" Arvin called out, shattering the absolute silence of the room.
His voice wasn't overly loud, yet the heavy, pressurized tone within it was enough to send shivers of fear down the spine of anyone listening.
Instantly, every eye in the class turned toward Ordion. The red-haired teeanger student looked increasingly startled and confused. Why was the 'King of Terror' specifically seeking me out and calling my name? What did I do?As far as I remember, after the incident where I was slammed against the dormitory wall a few days ago, I haven't made a single mistake.
Seeing Ordion still frozen in his chair, Arvin's artificial patience began to wear thin.
"Are you deaf?" Arvin spoke again, his voice rising several octaves, echoing loudly against the classroom walls. "Are you going to step forward and come here, or must I drag you over here by force with my magic?!"
Hearing the undeniable threat, Ordion flinched. His survival instinct took over. He stood up abruptly from his seat, his chair creaking harshly as it scraped against the floor.
His heart raced, pumping blood violently through his body. His legs felt a bit shaky, but he forced himself to walk. He had no idea why Arvin was looking for him, but defying the blue-haired man's command was tantamount to suicide.
Quickly, with held breath, Ordion walked through the gap between the desks, approaching Arvin, who stood like a grim reaper at the classroom door. Several students from outside the class began to gather at a safe distance, peeking in to see what was happening.
However, the next event happened so quickly that no one had time to react.
The moment Ordion arrived right in front of him, Arvin's right hand shot forward like lightning.
Grab!
Without any pleasantries, Arvin immediately seized Ordion's neck with one hand, tightening his grip and lifting the red-haired teenager's body until his feet dangled off the floor.
Ordion struggled instantly. His hands reflexively grabbed Arvin's iron-hard wrist, trying to pry off the deadly grip. He was being choked. His airway was forced shut until he could barely breathe, his face beginning to turn red from the lack of oxygen.
The brutal sight caused the entire class to hold their collective breath in horror. Several female students covered their mouths tightly, terrified that Ordion was truly about to be killed with Arvin's bare hands right before their eyes.
While holding Ordion's body in the air, Arvin brought his face closer. His eyes stared piercingly into Ordion's eyes.
"Listen to me carefully!" Arvin hissed coldly. "Since you can't speak right now, answer me only by nodding or shaking your head before you run out of breath and pass out! Understand?!"
With his consciousness beginning to fade, Ordion nodded frantically with great effort.
"Good!" Arvin said. "Answer my question with absolute honesty! If my instinct detects even a hint of a lie in your answer..." Arvin tightened his grip just a bit more. "...you know what the consequence will be."
Ordion nodded again, faster this time, tears beginning to well in the corners of his eyes from the pain in his neck.
Once he was sure Ordion understood his position, Arvin fired his question without a moment's hesitation.
"Do you have romantic feelings for me?!" Arvin asked bluntly, his voice loud enough to be heard by every student in the class and those huddling in the corridor.
Thump!
Ordion's eyes widened to their limit. His heart, which had been racing from fear and lack of breath, now beat even faster from the sheer shock of hearing such an explicit and blunt question. How does he know? The secret I've kept hidden for so long is suddenly being exposed in public in the most life-threatening situation possible.
However, from the wild fluctuations of the heart rate and the dilation of Ordion's pupils that couldn't be hidden, Arvin's sharp instincts immediately recognized the truth. Without needing to speak, his body had provided the confirmation: Ordion truly did have feelings for him, exactly as Alrain had said last night.
Seeing Ordion still in shock and hesitant to give a definitive nod, Arvin didn't lose his momentum. He needed a direct confirmation.
"Answer my question now!" Arvin growled, his voice dropping into a deadly threat. "Or I will torture you right here and now until you cry out, begging me and wishing for death to end your suffering!"
Hearing that, a violent shiver ran through Ordion's entire body. As someone who had observed Arvin from a distance for a long time, Ordion knew his temperament well. If Arvin issued a threat, it was nothing less than a harsh ultimatum. He never played around with his words and would truly follow through.
With immense hesitation, overwhelming shame from being watched by dozens of people, and out of sheer necessity to save his life, Ordion finally gave in.
The red-haired student closed his eyes tightly and gave a slow, deliberate nod. It was a faint but honest confession of his feelings toward the teenager who was currently choking him.