Late that night, the academy was silent. But in the server room, a single light flickered.
Yuna sat on the floor, her laptop glowing. Her glasses were off now, revealing eyes that were sharp, predatory, and brilliant. On her screen, a map of the global financial market was scrolling at lightning speed.
A notification popped up: [USER: ARES. ENCRYPTION LEVEL: GOD. MESSAGE: Target located within Aurelian Academy. Proceed with caution.]
Yuna's fingers flew across the keys. "I'm already inside," she typed.
Suddenly, the door to the server room creaked.
Yuna didn't panic. She didn't hide the laptop. She simply closed her eyes for a second, counted to three, and turned around just as Jaxon Thorne walked in, holding a flashlight.
"I knew it," Jaxon said, his voice dropping an octave. "No 'charity case' has eyes like yours. Who are you really, Yuna Vane?"
Yuna stood up, her hoodie falling back to reveal her athletic, poised stance. She stepped into his personal space, the "shy nerd" completely gone.
"I'm the person you should be terrified of, Jaxon," she whispered, poking his chest. "But if you're good, I might just let you be my shadow."