As Kai strolled aimlessly through the quiet paths of the academy, he found himself at the edge of the Observation Ridge.
The night was calm. A gentle breeze rustled through the leaves, carrying the faint scent of dew-soaked grass and distant blooming mana-lilies.
His steps slowed.
Under the arching branches of a crimsonleaf tree, he spotted a figure.
And then he stopped altogether.
She stood, no, sat beneath the sprawling canopy, the rich red leaves shifting around her like a curtain of velvet fire.
The moonlight, cold and serene, poured down from above, painting her form in soft silver.
Which clung to her like a second skin, tracing the gentle slope of her shoulders, the elegant line of her back, and the cascading fall of her platinum-silver hair, which shimmered like stardust in the breeze.
Her profile was visible, delicate and serene, as though carved from porcelain.
Emerald green eyes stared up at the sky, quiet and unblinking, reflecting the stars above.
