For the first time in what felt like ages, Star Academy wasn't under attack. No alarms, no monsters, no emergency missions.
Instead, the biggest threat was… sheer boredom.
Yujin lay sprawled on the grass near the main building, arms crossed behind his head, watching clouds drift lazily across the sky. Sylvia sat beside him, tinkering with a small gadget, her silver hair glinting in the sunlight.
"I forgot what peace feels like," Yujin muttered.
Sylvia glanced up from her work, smirking. "That's because you're a trouble magnet."
Not far away, Kain sat with his back against a tree, Mira perched comfortably beside him, her head resting on his shoulder as she scrolled through her phone. Kain absently ran a hand through her hair, half-listening to her complaints about the cafeteria menu.
"I can't believe they're serving mystery stew again," Mira huffed.
Kain gave her a small, fond smile. "I'll hunt down a dragon for you next time."
---
Morning Classes: A Comedy of Errors
First period: theory class with Professor Rowel Vayne.
Rowel swept dramatically into the room, tripped on the podium, knocked over the chalkboard, and calmly pretended it was all part of the lesson plan.
"Today, we study defensive rune patterns—"
BANG.
A flash of light erupted from the back of the room.
Yujin spun around. "Sylvia, what did you—?"
Sylvia coughed, holding up a slightly smoking gadget. "Small… miscalculation."
Mira burst into laughter while Kain deadpanned, "And they say I'm reckless."
By the end of class, nobody remembered the lesson, but everyone remembered Yujin frantically trying to help Sylvia disarm her humming, half-melting device while Kain and Mira filmed it for blackmail material.
---
Lunch: A Duel for Love (and Food)
The cafeteria unveiled a special menu item: limited-edition dragon meat skewers.
There were 20 skewers.
There were 200 students.
Chaos erupted.
"I'm getting you one, don't worry," Kain assured Mira smoothly, slipping through the crowd like a knight on a quest.
Yujin, meanwhile, was in full combat mode, dodging elbows and trays to secure skewers for Sylvia.
Ten minutes later, Kain proudly presented Mira with her skewer, only to turn and see Yujin triumphantly holding up two — one for himself, one for Sylvia.
Sylvia took hers with a sweet smile. "You're the best."
Yujin grinned at Kain. "Loser buys dessert?"
Kain smirked. "You're on."
---
Afternoon Training: Couples' Disaster
In the training yard, students were paired up for teamwork drills.
Yujin and Sylvia were tasked with moving a giant boulder using only support magic and gadgets.
Kain and Mira? Same challenge, but with Mira constantly teasing Kain.
"Kain, maybe if you stopped glaring at it, it would cooperate," Mira giggled.
Kain sighed. "I'm going to throw you over that boulder."
Mira smirked. "Promise?"
Meanwhile, Yujin and Sylvia were having their own fun.
"Gently, Yujin! You're overloading the stabilizer!" Sylvia warned as sparks flew.
"I am being gentle!" Yujin protested, narrowly dodging a burst of steam.
In the end, Mira and Kain's boulder rolled halfway across the field before crashing into a tree, while Yujin and Sylvia's wobbled like a drunk duck but somehow crossed the finish line.
Avelyn Drake gave them all passing marks, though she muttered something about "next generation disasters."
---
Evening: The Great Prank War
That night, Yujin opened his dorm door to find a familiar note:
"Prepare yourself. — Sylvia"
Moments later, his room filled with hundreds of tiny enchanted drones, all projecting an adorable, chibi version of him singing a love song. Sylvia watched from the doorway, laughing behind her hand.
Across the hall, Kain walked into his room to discover Mira had filled it with rose petals and written "KAIN MIRA FOREVER" on his mirror in pink marker.
"…You're unbelievable," Kain muttered as Mira appeared behind him, grinning.
"I know," she said, standing on tiptoe to kiss his cheek.
---
Final Scene: Peace on the Rooftop
Later that night, the four of them gathered on the academy rooftop.
Yujin sat with Sylvia curled up beside him, her head resting on his shoulder. Kain leaned back with Mira stretched across his lap, fingers lazily tangled in her hair.
Yujin let out a deep sigh, gazing up at the stars. "You know… I kinda like days like this."
Kain gave a rare soft smile. "Me too."
Mira chuckled. "Who knew you two battle maniacs were such romantics?"
Sylvia glanced up at Yujin with a quiet smile. "We need days like this. So we remember what we're fighting for."
Under the vast, glittering sky, the four of them sat together — warriors, lovers, friends.
For the first time in a long time, the world outside could wait.