Aldred, the usually mild-mannered one whose voice rarely left a calm register, spoke up this time. His expression was unusually grave.
"Perhaps the question of who they are… or how they infiltrated… is not what we should be wasting our time on." He leaned back in his chair, his eyes narrowing into shadows. "The more urgent matter should be — what is their purpose for infiltrating us?"
The table fell quiet again.
Samantha folded her arms, her voice cold as frost. "Purpose? It's obvious. They want the students. This generation's top geniuses are in the first year, currently inside the hunting field." She started listing, each name dropping like a hammer.
"The heirs of the most influential noble houses: Arthur Ludwig, Alex Stale, Akira Frost, Cedric Raven, Nadiya Mystic, Luna Harper. And on top of that—the Saintess, Eveline Vale. The elven princess, Nyra Vilde. The heir of the wolf tribe, Kaela Howler."
