Orange light pierced through the room, becoming the main source of illumination in the dark space.
A gust of wind blew in, swaying the white curtains.
A woman's voice broke the silence of the room. Her face was touched by the orange light as she knelt, facing a girl with dark red hair.
"Forgive me, Princess. I failed to carry out your orders."
Katarina looked at the woman, a breath escaping her lips.
"Let it be, Maya…"
Katarina tapped the sofa beside her.
"Sit here, tell me what you saw."
Maya swallowed and slowly stood up before sitting beside Katarina.
Maya glanced faintly at Katarina.
"Everything happened so suddenly…"
Katarina stared at Maya intently.
Maya kept touching her fingers.
"Yesterday afternoon, the protective barrier suddenly shattered…"
Maya lowered her head.
"Chimeras appeared all over the city in an instant…"
Maya's breathing grew heavy.
Katarina leaned her shoulder against the sofa.
"Some of the residents joined us. Lady Teresa suggested using the secret path…."
Maya looked at Katarina.
"Of course, it was a path built in secret and only known to a handful of people."
Katarina nodded.
Maya took a breath.
"Everything fell apart from there… the Blood Scythe from the Dark Side appeared. But Ophi, the right hand of Clay Overmas, was also with them."
Maya swallowed.
"He was very strange… he didn't respond to me. I know him. If he were conscious, there's no way he wouldn't recognize me."
Maya clenched her teeth.
"I should have been the one to fight them…"
Maya looked at Katarina.
"But Lady Teresa took over…"
Maya grimaced, her hands gripping her knees tightly.
"I should have been the one protecting them all… because that's my duty."
Katarina raised her hand, hesitating slightly, but eventually she gently patted Maya's shoulder.
"That was her decision… it's not your fault."
Katarina stopped patting Maya's shoulder, but her hand remained there.
"If you and your team had held them off, perhaps Lady Teresa would have felt too ashamed to show her face again."
Katarina sighed.
"This is my fault… I became too complacent."
Maya's eyes widened.
"How could this possibly be your fault, Princess? You predicted all of this."
Katarina smiled and shook her head.
"That wasn't a prediction. I only sent you there because they are my friend's family."
Maya swallowed, fidgeting with her hands.
"Did you know that Lady Teresa is Aril's mother? Because only a few people actually know that."
Maya stared at Katarina.
Katarina gave a faint smile and closed her eyes.
Images formed clearly in her mind—of a distant past or a present that had already changed.
An image of a two-meter-tall boy going berserk, beating Julian because his mother died at the hands of his family's subordinates.
Katarina took a deep breath.
'Back then, I cared about nothing but myself. I didn't even know that Teresa the Silent Mover was Aril's adoptive mother.'
Katarina massaged her forehead.
'Even though I know what will happen, I don't know the exact details…'
'Should I stop interfering? Or should I get more involved?'
Maya watched Katarina, who kept her eyes closed.
Katarina exhaled, opened her eyes, straightened her posture, and looked at Maya.
"What will you do? Will you tell Aril about Julian's family's subordinates?"
Maya's face turned nervous.
"That's up to you, Princess… I will follow whatever you decide."
Katarina slowly stood up, walked past Maya, and stood in front of the open balcony door.
The orange light illuminated her face, her dark hair swaying with the wind.
"Tell Aril. Tell him everything."
Maya looked at Katarina, her eyes widening.
"But what if he attacks Lord Julian?"
Katarina shrugged.
"What else can be done at this point?"
Katarina looked at Maya.
"Just tell him. Let whatever happens, happen. We can't change anything—neither the past nor the future."
Katarina stretched her body, the sound of her bones cracking.
"We can only prepare for what's coming, right? And as for Julian's family, let the kingdom handle it."
Maya lowered her head, then slowly stood and bowed slightly.
"Understood, Princess. I will tell Aril everything."
Maya circulated mana throughout her body, and slowly her form turned into mist.
Katarina inhaled deeply, then bent her knees and crouched.
Her fingers traced the floor.
"Come…."
"…Or don't come."
"Come…"
"…..don't come."
Her fingers stopped.
"Come?"
Katarina's eyes widened.
"Yes… at the very least, I should attend my friend's mother's funeral."
Katarina slowly stood up. Her gaze turned hollow.
She prepared herself.
After some time, Katarina left her dormitory.
Her steps led her toward the site of the funeral ceremony.
She chose to walk and take a bus, without any escort.
Every step she took drew attention from those around her.
They would never expect the descendant of the human king—the strongest human—to walk alone.
When the bus arrived at its destination, almost everyone got off.
Katarina stepped down, the wind immediately greeting her, her dark red hair fluttering, her black dress flowing with each step.
The sound of the wind filled her ears.
Katarina took a breath.
She walked up the stairs toward the hill.
Some students greeted her.
Upon reaching the top, she saw hundreds of people, rows of chairs, and orange light illuminating hundreds of photographs displayed at the front.
The murmur of conversations blended with the constant wind.
Katarina sat at the very back, unnoticed.
Her gaze swept across the scene.
Her blue eyes widened.
She saw a brown-haired teenage boy, nearly two meters tall, talking to an adult woman.
Katarina took a deep breath, her heart beating faster.
The boy's face stiffened, his eyes losing focus.
After the conversation ended, the woman left, leaving the brown-haired boy frozen in place.
Soon, veins bulged on his face, his fists clenching tightly.
The boy walked through the crowd, ignoring everything.
Katarina swallowed, following the direction he was heading.
The brown-haired boy stopped behind another boy with blond hair and blue eyes.
The blond boy turned around, raising an eyebrow.
"Aril? What is it?"
Aril only stared at him with empty eyes.
Aril took a deep breath, raised his fist, and launched it at the blond boy's face.
The blond boy couldn't react to the sudden attack and was thrown several meters back.
Shouts of shock erupted, drawing everyone's attention.
Thud.
The blond boy stood up and wiped the blood from his lips.
Aril glared at him, grinding his teeth.
"Bastard, your family's subordinates killed my mother."
Everyone was shocked by Aril's words.
Whispers spread.
"What did he say?"
"Julian's family's subordinates?"
"Does that mean his family attacked the city?"
A pink-haired girl shouted.
"What are you talking about!? There's no way Julian's family would do that!"
Julian stood up.
"Calm down, Eve."
Eve looked at Julian, while Julian looked at Aril
"I don't know what you're talking about, Aril."
Aril clicked his tongue, running a hand through his hair.
"You bastard."
Aril circulated mana through his body and charged at Julian.
Everyone was shocked, but Aril's movement was stopped by Alex and Ken.
Each of them held one of Aril's arms.
"Hey, calm down first, man."
Aril struggled to break free.
"That man's family killed my mother! I'll beat him to death!"
Ken gritted his teeth and glanced at Alex.
Julian looked at Aril with an empty gaze.
"I don't know what you're talking about. My family would never do that."
The tension slightly eased when everyone's smart bracelets started ringing.
Kring.
Kring.
Kring.
One student shouted.
"We can communicate again!"
Everyone checked their smart bracelets.
Katarina, standing at the edge, remained unfazed. She simply watched the commotion.
Aril loosened his strength slightly.
Whispers spread among those reading their bracelets.
"What is this? Clay Overmas has been arrested?"
"The kingdom detained him for the suspected attack on the city."
"And not just our city was attacked?"
"Some of his subordinates were captured? And some died?"
"No wonder, I heard professors whispering about those who captured Ophi and Darla."
Julian's eyes widened, and he swallowed.
The students looked at Julian with gazes he had never received before.
Julian averted his gaze and looked at Eve.
But Eve covered her mouth as she read the article on her bracelet.
The whispers grew louder.
Aril looked at Julian and charged again, taking advantage of Alex and Ken's momentary distraction.
Chaos erupted.
Katarina only watched from afar.
Katarina clenched her teeth, her hands digging into her skin.
Suddenly, her stomach churned, something rising from within.
Katarina covered her mouth and slowly walked down the stairs, leaving the funeral that had descended into chaos.
Her steps cut through the howling wind that whipped her hair and black dress.
She headed toward a public restroom.
Katarina entered one of the stalls and emptied the contents of her stomach.
"Huek….."
For a moment, only the sound of Katarina vomiting filled the space.
She wiped her mouth, her face turning pale.
She sat on the cold floor, her back resting against the stall.
She grabbed her hair.
A low growl escaped her.
Her feet scraped against the floor.
Slowly, she began hitting her own head with her other hand.
Thud
Thud
Thud
The sound echoed.
Fresh blood appeared on her forehead, flowing down to her chin, dripping onto her black dress.
Katarina stopped pulling her hair and took a deep breath.
Her gaze fixed on the ceiling.
'I underestimated fate….'
Katarina swallowed.
'I was too confident… in the end, I couldn't change anything.'
Katarina pulled her knees close, wrapping her arms around them.
'What should I do now?'
Voices of people chatting echoed as they turned on the faucet.
Katarina buried her face between her knees.
Eventually, they left, and the restroom fell silent again.
The sound of Katarina's breathing filled the space.
'Should I involve myself alone?'
Katarina sighed.
'This burden is too heavy…'
Suddenly, the image of someone appeared in her mind.
'Ah… there's that strange person too.'
Katarina closed her eyes.
'That person is strange… and I'm strange too. Can two strange people come together and solve everything?'
Katarina let out a small laugh.
'Is that even possible?'
Katarina opened her eyes.
'What would he say if I told him I've turned back time… and that he should already be dead?'
Katarina tapped her arm with her fingers.
'Yeah… that's one option.'
Katarina stretched her legs.
'The closest priority comes first.'
She moved her legs slightly.
Her hand stroked her chin.
'The closest thing is the academy, which will be closed tomorrow, and there will be a trial soon.'
Katarina exhaled.
'I have to prove Julian's family is innocent… and prepare something.'
The blood on her forehead had begun to dry.
'Yes… the future won't change if I only influence it slightly.'
A faint smile formed on her lips.
'So yeah… let's just throw everything into chaos.'
Katarina took a breath, slowly stood up, opened the stall door, and walked toward the sink.
A large mirror stretched before her, with several sinks lined up beneath it.
Katarina looked at her reflection.
Her long dark red hair was messy, dried blood streaking down her face to her chin.
Her black dress had several blood stains.
Katarina smiled faintly at her reflection.
She washed her face.
Cold water touched her skin.
Katarina turned off the tap.
She stretched her body, her bones cracking.
She slowly walked out of the restroom.
The wind greeted her face the moment she stepped outside.
Katarina looked at the sky as it gradually darkened.
'I have to meet him tomorrow.'
Katarina walked away, trying to defy fate once more.