And so, the selected students were finally led to their assigned dormitories.
Because Veronica had somehow ended up in the Dragonspire Class instead of Evangeline, she was now being placed in the room that had originally been intended for the heroine. Meanwhile, Evangeline's new dorm ended up directly across the hall from hers.
Veronica stood in front of the door with a deep sigh, her arms struggling to hold up her ridiculously heavy luggage. "Room 402… This should be it, right?" she mumbled, wiping sweat from her brow.
A voice yawned lazily in her mind.
"Can't you read, stupid human? The numbers are literally written on the door," Yumike said, her tone as sarcastic and unbothered as ever.
Veronica's eye twitched. Ignoring her, she exhaled and quietly opened the door.
Inside, it was like any other typical campus dorm. There were four beds arranged neatly, each with a small desk, a wardrobe, and a nightstand. A large window let in warm sunlight, and the walls were plain but spotless.
Her eyes immediately scanned the space.
Three out of the four beds were already claimed.
The one in the far corner neatly made, looked untouched. That had to be hers. Just her luck, the one in the furthest, most awkward corner. Veronica sighed.
As she passed by the first occupied bed, a girl with bright auburn hair looked up from where she was organizing her books. Her eyes lit up with friendly curiosity.
"Oh! You must be the new roommate. I'm Karina," she said warmly, waving with one hand while holding a stack of notebooks in the other. "Welcome."
Veronica blinked, caught slightly off guard by the easy friendliness, but nodded back. "Thanks. I'm Veronica."
Karina smiled and turned back to her things, already humming under her breath.
On the next bed, someone lay sprawled out, clearly uninterested in any form of social interaction. She had her arm draped over her eyes, one leg kicked off the edge of the bed, and didn't so much as flinch when Veronica entered. It was as if her existence wasn't even worth acknowledging.
Veronica raised a brow but didn't take it personally.
Then, there was the third girl.
She sat quietly on her bed, back straight, hands resting on her lap. She looked small and delicate, with silver-blonde hair that fell over one eye. The moment Veronica looked her way, the girl quickly lowered her gaze, her fingers nervously fidgeting with the hem of her blanket. Not a single word left her lips.
And those pointy ears! She was an elf!
It seemed her life in this academy wouldn't be dull after all. Veronica's lips curved upward not in joy, but in quiet amusement.
She took her time unpacking, sliding clothes into drawers, lining up her books, and placing a small mirror where she could keep an eye on the room behind her without anyone noticing. All the while, she observed. Watched. Measured.
Three dormmates. Three very different pieces on the board.
First… the green tea bitch type. Karina Hart, a witch. Sweet smile, honeyed voice, eyes that flickered with calculation when she thought no one was looking. In the original story, she had played the role of the heroine's first friend here… only to twist the knife in her back.
She had been jealous of Evangeline who had entered the Dragonspire Class, while Karina had been stuck in Spellweavers. That jealousy had festered into petty sabotage and well-timed betrayals, all hidden under a mask of concern.
Next… the arrogant demon, Lyra Moon. Her contempt was obvious, she didn't bother with fake politeness. She had disliked Evangeline before and had already shown her disdain toward Veronica. Still… Veronica could use that honesty. The openly hostile were easier to predict than the smiling snakes.
Lastly… the quiet elf, Sylfi Hawthorne. So timid she almost disappeared into the air. She kept her gaze down, spoke little, and never drew attention to herself. On the surface, harmless. But harmless didn't mean useless. If Veronica could coax her out of her shell, Sylfi could become an unwitting informant.
These three had been in the academy longer than her. They would know the whispers, the politics, the rivalries—the kind of information no handbook would ever provide. And in a place like this, information was worth more than friendship.
And the villain... She still hadn't seen his face during the selection. Just a glimpse of his silhouette and that suffocating aura that clung to the air long after he was gone. It was enough to make the hairs on her neck stand up.
If she wanted to survive here and complete the missions the system kept throwing at her, she needed to start planning now.
Her nightmare wasn't coming.
It had already arrived.
A sudden, all too familiar ding echoed in her mind.
> [Congratulations, Host, on successfully entering Draconveil Academy.]
Reward: 25 Exp Points
Current Exp: 75 / 10000
Veronica froze. Then her eyes landed on the string of zeros like they were mocking her.
"…Seriously?" she muttered under her breath, a little twitch pulling at the corner of her mouth. At this rate, she would be stuck at Level 1 until the end of the century.
Still, she sighed and dismissed the panel. Complaining wouldn't fill the exp bar. She just had to find… faster ways.
And there was something else that bothered her.
The five male leads.
If there was one thing Draconveil Academy was known for aside from its strict elite magic divisions it was them.
Each one more dangerously captivating than the last. They weren't just popular, they were untouchable. Students whispered their names with awe, admiration, and fear. Professors turned blind eyes to their antics.
They walked through the academy like they owned it and in some ways, they did. With a single glance, they could silence a room. With a smile, they could make someone fall. Everyone, whether human or supernatural, seemed to orbit them like moths to flame.
And yet, despite their terrifying strength and prestige, their power still paled in comparison to the one man who stood at the top, Zareth Drakthorn, the Dragon Crown Prince and the academy's hidden patron.
Tomorrow… one of them would finally encounter Evangeline.
Veronica exhaled sharply, lying back on her bed.
She still remembered how it played out in the original storyline. A simple, "Are you alright?" and it was game over. That single moment was the beginning of their downfall. One by one, they became obsessed with her. Protecting her, fighting over her, hurting each other for her.
And in the middle of all of it was Evangeline, who never asked for any of it.
Veronica clenched her fists.
She wasn't going to let it happen.
One of her missions in this world was to break the bond between the heroine and the male leads. Stop their possessiveness, their twisted love stories, their endless drama.
She was going to protect Evangeline from those maniacs.
No matter what it takes.