"How is that even possible? You said his previous personality was erased. Doesn't that mean he's sick?"
"No, Mr. Holivan," the doctor replied calmly. "It simply means this young man will never be who he used to be. He is a fully formed individual. His thinking is clear—aside from a bit of youthful extremism… and a touch of infatuation."
He shot me a knowing look.
Heat rushed to my face before I could stop it.
Does he know about Andrew?
The doctor glanced briefly at him—then back to the director.
Yeah.
He knows.
"Director, this student is perfectly healthy and fully meets the academy's standards. I also see strong potential for further growth."
"Thank you, Doctor." She turned to Theodore. "Mr. Holivan, your request has been fulfilled. You may leave."
"But, Director—"
"Holivan. You know the academy rules. They haven't been violated. Your brother chose to study here. Until that changes, there's nothing I can do," she said, cutting him off.
One by one, they started leaving.
I didn't move.
There was something I needed to know.
"Alan," Andrew called from the doorway.
"Give me a minute," I said. He nodded and stepped out.
"Doctor Skrink…" I hesitated. "My soul—"
The words stuck.
How the hell was I even supposed to ask that?
"Your soul is perfectly fine, Alan," he said gently. "I understand that the changes you've experienced may be unsettling, but there's nothing I can do about that. Sometimes… one man falls in love with another."
He smiled.
And just like that—
it clicked.
I'd been panicking for nothing.
He didn't see it.
Didn't understand.
Didn't notice there was another soul in this body.
Or maybe—
we'd blended so completely that there was nothing left to distinguish.
"Thank you," I said, a little awkwardly, backing toward the door.
"Alan," he added softly, "don't torture yourself over your lost memories or the changes in your personality. For you… this might be for the best."
And that was it.
My first real breath.
Deep.
Full.
Like I'd been suffocating this whole time without even realizing it.
The tension that had been coiled inside me for days—weeks—finally loosened.
I could breathe.
The problem wasn't gone.
I still wanted my body back.
But right now—
there was nothing I could do.
First, I needed to master defense.
Only then would I be able to leave the academy grounds.
"Hey, you okay?" Robert asked when I walked into the room.
"That was exhausting," I muttered, dropping onto the bed.
"So what'd the doctor say?"
"That I'm not insane, obviously!" I snapped.
"Really? I had my doubts," Robert smirked.
A pillow hit him square in the face.
Since I'd missed my evening training with Andrew, he decided to make up for it on Sunday.
The academy was almost empty.
For special division students, Sunday was the only day off.
The elites had already left their dorms Friday evening.
Not all of them, though.
For example—
Clyde Silius.
Who was currently sitting in the stands, watching my training like he had nothing better to do.
"He's seriously pissing me off," I muttered during a break. "Give me a cigarette."
"He's an elite. I can't exactly ban him from being here," Andrew said. He didn't look happy about it either. "By the way, you noticed? You're keeping up now. Not collapsing anymore."
"…Yeah," I said, taking a drag. "Guess you're a damn good coach."
"We'll increase the load tomorrow."
I groaned.
Didn't argue.
"Holivan. Didn't know you smoked."
Clyde walked up and casually took the cigarette right out of my hand.
"Hey! That's not against the rules!" I snapped.
"I don't like cigarette smoke."
"Then walk away and don't breathe it!"
"Watch your tone," he said calmly, crushing the cigarette underfoot.
Perfectly good cigarette.
Gone.
"Teacher Storik, when will the training be over?"
"About thirty minutes. You waiting for Alan?"
"Yes. I need him to do something."
"Isn't it my day off?" I snapped.
"Dear first-year special student," he said, leaning in until we were almost nose to nose, "you don't get days off from your patron."
A chill ran down my spine.
"Students are entitled to rest," Andrew cut in sharply. "Sunday is his day off. Whatever you need can wait until Monday. Alan—break's over."
I moved immediately.
No hesitation.
That guy—
he seriously freaked me out.
I never knew what he was thinking.
Never knew what he'd do next.
And if Clyde Silius ever decided to crush someone—
no one would be able to stop him.
Three months had passed since I arrived at the academy.
Strangely enough, despite all the looks from the elites, none of them had approached me again.
The older special students, on the other hand—
came at me twice as hard.
"It's jealousy," Andrew told me once. "You're a first-year who already caught the attention of an elite. Not just any elite—the future chairman."
"I knew that guy would be nothing but trouble," I muttered, grinding my cigarette into the dirt. "Maybe for them that kind of attention is a dream. For me? It's a nightmare. Because of that asshole, I don't get a single minute to myself."
"Maybe that's not such a bad thing right now," Andrew said. "Between your training and sticking close to Silius, no one's challenged you to a duel yet."
"…Yeah. Good point," I admitted. "Still don't think he's running me into the ground out of kindness."
"Who knows," Andrew muttered. "I don't understand him. And that bothers me."
Aside from the two badges I earned in my first week, I'd gained three more over the past months.
First—
defense.
That one nearly broke me.
My power didn't want to stay on the surface. It flooded my whole body, refused to settle into a thin layer over my skin.
Miror was… strange.
Her explanations made no sense half the time.
But once I figured out how to interpret them—
everything clicked.
My progress shot up.
She gave me two badges.
One for defensive coating.
One for control.
Andrew, on the other hand, trained me like he was trying to kill me.
Now my routine included self-defense on top of everything else.
I didn't bulk up the way I'd expected.
Still looked lean.
But now—
there was strength under it.
Tight.
Controlled.
And for once—
I actually liked what I saw in the mirror.
The third badge came during my first self-defense class.
I'd done similar training before, in my previous life.
Now my body could finally keep up.
I copied every move.
Every technique.
And during sparring—
I even managed to take down a few bigger guys.
That Friday, Andrew handed me another badge.
And this time—
he looked genuinely proud.