At the dining table in the Main Hall, Marcus walked over to greet Lily and Eirene. With a brother's easy warmth, he urged his sister to eat more, before returning to join his friends at the Drakemont House table.
The moment he was out of sight, Lily leaned closer to Eirene, her voice edged with frustration."Why aren't we allowed to eat with our friends, no matter which house they belong to? Who made this silly rule—that every meal has to be with our own house fellows?"
Before Eirene could answer, a girl sitting beside Lily leaned forward with a knowing smile."You're wondering the same thing I did when I was in first year."
Both Lily and Eirene turned to her in surprise.
"Hello! I'm Tina, a third-year student," the girl introduced herself.
"Hi," the two greeted her politely.
"So… we can actually join our friends at their tables?" Eirene asked hopefully.
Tina shook her head. "Not exactly. What I meant is—if you want to eat with friends from other houses, you can use those." She pointed toward the smaller tables placed between the three large house tables and the professors' table at the front of the hall.
Lily's eyes lit up. "Oh, wow! That's wonderful. Thanks for telling us, Tina."
"You're welcome," Tina replied, her smile fading slightly. "But there's one more thing you should know."
Eirene and Lily leaned in with curiosity.
Tina's tone softened as she continued, "If you start eating at other tables too often, your own housemates may begin to distrust you. They might think you're leaking information to rivals… which could harm your house's chance of winning the championship trophy at the end of the year."
Both girls froze, jaws dropping in shock.
"So… it's safer if we just eat here," Eirene whispered. Lily gave a reluctant nod.
Seeing their disheartened faces, Tina quickly added, "Don't worry. If you earn your house's trust by contributing some points, no one will question your loyalty. You'll have more freedom to meet friends. Another option is to stay out of the competitions altogether—then your housemates won't suspect you of anything."
Her words were meant to comfort, but they only deepened the weight on their young hearts. With a shared sigh, Eirene and Lily lowered their gazes and began eating in silence.
As Eirene lifted her head again, her eyes caught sight of Kalen. He was walking past, heading toward his house table. Without thinking, she smiled at him—soft, almost shy. But Kalen's eyes slid past her, cold and distant, as he strode away without a word.
The smile froze on her lips, and a pang of hurt stabbed her chest. Why does it feel like he's angry with me? But… why?
Kalen, meanwhile, sank into one of the empty chairs at his table. He silently filled his plate, when the seat beside him scraped against the floor. Looking up, he found Robin Maverick, his roommate, sitting down.
"Where did you go?" Kalen asked with a frown. "You left with me just a few minutes ago."
Robin gave an apologetic smile. "Sorry, I should have told you. I went to the letter box to collect a message from my family."
He gestured toward the far-right corner of the hall, where a section decorated like a miniature post office stood glowing in warm candlelight.
Robin's smile faltered. "I didn't want to upset you… since you said you have no one left in this world."
"It's okay," Kalen replied softly, and began eating his meal, hiding his emotions from everyone. But before his first bite could reach his mouth, he was startled by Robin, who accidentally made Kalen's spoon slip onto the table. Somehow, Kalen managed to drop the food into his plate instead.
It all happened so quickly that no one else noticed—except Professor Seraphina Duskbane. She was quietly eating her meal at the professors' table while chatting with Dr. Maeron, but she didn't mention it to anyone.
"What?" Kalen looked at Robin.
"Look! I found a letter for you as well," Robin said, handing the cover to him. "Open it quickly and tell me who sent it to you."
But the cold look on Kalen's face made Robin fall silent.
"It's fine, no issue. You don't need to tell me," Robin said, opening his own letter instead. It was from his mother. She had written only a few words: Take care of yourself, study hard, and don't cause trouble for the other students or teachers.
Robin frowned. She still doesn't trust me at all. Am I really her biological son… or not?
Kalen had already finished reading his letter when a faint smile appeared on his face. He looked at Robin, who was staring at him in shock, his jaw dropped.
"Don't be upset. Let's see who wrote me," Kalen said calmly.
He opened the letter Robin had handed him. Inside the cover was a small slip and a card. The name written on the card made his eyes widen—Elysia. It was his mother's name.
Robin opened his mouth in pure shock, a bank card, WOW!
Kalen looked at the slip in his hand and read it aloud.
"Hi Aeron, this is the life-saving card of your mother's account. It has been kept for you. You will need it now. Use it wisely. Good luck on your new journey! Always follow the path of light, like your mother."
With that, the letter ended. There was no mention of who had sent it.
Kalen's heart clenched. For the first time in many days, he felt a spark of happiness—not because of the money, but because he had found yet another thing connected to his mother. He slipped the card safely into his pocket. Then, both he and Robin quietly began eating their lunch.
At the second table, Eirene and Lily had already finished their meal.
"Have you planned for tomorrow?" Lily asked suddenly.
Eirene blinked. "Tomorrow? What do you mean?"
"You don't know?" Lily leaned closer, lowering her voice. "We need to buy things for our studies—pens, ink, notebooks. My mother already gave me the money for it."
The words struck Eirene like a stone. She forced a smile, though her chest tightened painfully. "I'll… tell you by tomorrow morning," she whispered, rising from the table with her heart weighed down by unspoken worries.