The classroom was steeped in silence. Outside, through the windows, snowflakes drifted lazily, but inside, the tension was thick, like fog. Nadia and Alicja sat side by side, hunched over their notebooks, trying to focus on contemporary history notes, but neither they nor Natan, who sat in the desk next to Leon, could concentrate.
The classroom door opened belatedly, loudly, and brazenly. Leon entered—but it wasn't the Leon they knew. He was upright, slow, his steps heavy, his gaze piercing. A dead silence fell over the room.
"Mr. Sim…" the teacher spoke coldly, straightening behind her desk. "Are we supposed to explain why we arrive twenty minutes after the bell?"
Leon's eyes swept across the room, pausing briefly on Nadia, whose body visibly stiffened. Alicja immediately grabbed her hand under the desk, a silent reassurance that she wasn't alone. Natan froze, avoiding any eye contact.
Leon smirked crookedly and nonchalantly tossed his bag onto a desk."Maybe I didn't find this lesson interesting enough to show up on time?" he said, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Please step outside," the teacher's tone sharpened. "We'll talk when you decide to return with respect."
Leon snorted with laughter."Respect? You demand respect?" He walked slowly toward the desk, leaning slightly toward her. "From whom? Kids who can barely read between the lines? Or from a teacher who's been repeating the same lines for a decade, just waiting for retirement?"
The entire class froze. Alicja opened her mouth as if to speak, but Nadia shook her head—better to remain silent.
"You've crossed a line," the woman said, taking a deep breath, trying to keep her composure. "I will report this to the administration immediately."
Leon straightened, smiling, and said,"Maybe you should report yourself. To the lockdown ward. Or better—kitchen duty. That's where there's room for people like you."
A murmur of indignation ran through the classroom. Several students recoiled slightly in their desks. Natan held his breath, staring at Leon like a wild animal.
The teacher turned pale. She braced herself against the desk, struggling to stay upright, then grabbed her gradebook without a word and stormed out of the room, slamming the door so hard the windows rattled.
Leon stood for a moment, an expression of satisfaction on his face, as if he had just won some private battle. He slowly sat down next to Natan, who edged as far as possible to the edge of the desk.
Alicja and Nadia exchanged glances. They already knew that the General was growing more confident. And more dangerous.
***
A strict atmosphere prevailed in the principal's office. An older woman with gray hair and sharp facial features sat behind a massive desk, her hand resting on her forehead. Next to her stood the vice-principal and the school psychologist.
Leon walked in without knocking, wearing the same defiant smile on his face that everyone already knew. He took a seat in the chair opposite, crossing one leg over the other and surveying the office with disdain.
"Your behavior today was absolutely unacceptable," the principal began coldly but firmly. "You used words toward a teacher that could be considered verbal abuse. Regardless of who your parents are, we cannot tolerate such treatment of our staff."
Leon laughed briefly, without a hint of remorse."But that's exactly what you said—'regardless of who my parents are'... Well, unfortunately, that's precisely what it all depends on." He leaned slightly forward, his voice dropping lower, colder. "My dad pays quite a lot to this school. One phone call and I could cause a real stir. So maybe we can skip this little performance and let me go back to class?"
The vice-principal shifted uneasily. The psychologist glanced at the principal, but she remained unmoved, her fingers tightening on the armrest of her chair.
"You are not above the rules," she replied calmly but sharply. "If this happens again, even your 'father' won't be able to help you. This is your final warning."
Leon looked her straight in the eyes with something that could be mistaken for fascination—or perhaps amusement.
"We'll see who's giving the last warning, Principal."
As he walked down the hallway toward class, some students peered at him through partially open classroom doors. Upright and calm, as if he had just won a chess game, Leon passed them by as though they were mere ghosts—insignificant pieces of scenery in his own theater.
There was something unsettling in his eyes. Something… inhuman.
When Leon returned to the hallway, Alicja, Nadia, and Natan were already waiting near the classroom, though they kept to the side, pretending to review their notes. As he approached, his steps seemed to echo in their ears—the tension in the air was palpable.
Alicja raised her gaze first. Her face was tense, though she tried to appear indifferent.
Nadia froze. Her heart raced. Every approach of the General, in Leon's body, made her nauseous, fearful, and… angry.
Natan instinctively stepped back half a pace. His fingers trembled, though he tried to hide it, gripping his backpack strap tightly.
Leon stopped in front of them. His smile was slightly mocking, his eyes gleaming with cold superiority.
"Did you miss me?" he asked, feigning warmth. "I have a feeling you get awfully tense when I'm not around."
No one answered immediately. Finally, Alicja summoned the courage.
"What did you tell them? The principal?" she asked cautiously, trying to hide her tension.
Leon shrugged.
"The truth. That there's no place in this school for people who can't control themselves. Especially teachers. I'm sorry some of you can't distinguish authority from insecurity."
Nadia visibly flinched. Leon's voice was the same, but it sounded entirely different—as if someone who had spent their life wielding words like knives was speaking through him.
Natan lowered his gaze but gathered his courage to whisper:"Leon never talked like that. You… you really aren't him."
For a moment, silence fell. Leon raised an eyebrow, then looked at Natan with something resembling amusement, though his eyes were empty, black with hatred.
"Of course I am him," he said calmly. "I've just… matured. I've seen who I really am. And you know what? I'm not that naive boy you used to like."
These words hit Natan hard. He lowered his eyes, breathing heavily, while Alicja clenched her fists.
Nadia took a step forward, as if to say something sharp, but at the last moment she withdrew. In her eyes, the familiar fear was too clear—the fear Hanna once felt toward someone who held her completely in their grasp.
Leon walked away without a word, leaving the three of them in absolute silence.
"He'll come back. We just have to keep him alive…"
"And kill the General," Alicja added. "Once and for all."
Natan nodded, even though his hands still trembled. Yet in his eyes, for the first time, a spark of determination shone.
***
The corridor was almost empty—the evening filled the school with a silence broken only by the occasional creak of the floor and distant laughter drifting from the yard behind the school.
Nadia walked slowly, her eyes fixed on the floor, arms crossed over her chest as if trying to shield herself from an invisible chill that had gripped her throat for the past few days. Suddenly, around the corner, Ariel appeared—a boy from an older year, smiling, hands tucked into his jacket pockets.
"Nadia! Hey!" he called softly, careful not to break the quiet of the classroom wings. He stopped right beside her. "Why weren't you guys there? I thought everyone liked the bonfire. Alicja, Natan, you… even Leon didn't show up."
Nadia gave a faint smile."We weren't in the mood. A lot has been happening lately."
Ariel tilted his head with slight concern."Are you okay? You look… tired."
At that moment, the corridor seemed to freeze. The air thickened, as if someone had poured something cold and heavy into it. Ariel glanced to the side and went pale when he saw Leon's figure approaching silently from the darker end of the hallway.
Nadia didn't have time to say anything. The General, in Leon's body, moved forward without a word and, in a fraction of a second, grabbed Ariel by the collar, pressing him brutally against the wall. His face was close, his eyes black as tar and completely lifeless.
"Touch her again, and I'll tear your hand off. Understand?" he hissed in a low, icy tone. "She's not someone you can talk to. Look at. Breathe near."
Ariel struggled to break free, but Leon's grip was unyielding. He gasped quietly, terrified.
"Don't you get it?" The General leaned even closer. "This is no longer your life. This is my territory. And you just stepped onto a path where people vanish."
Nadia froze, eyes wide, hands trembling limply at her sides.
"Leave him," she whispered. "Please."
The General looked at her slowly. He smiled coldly, as if her voice had been exactly what he needed to gain even more control.
"I did it only for you, Hanna," he said quietly, almost soothingly, which made it all the more terrifying. "I don't like anyone touching what belongs to me."
He released Ariel with such force that the boy slid to the floor, gasping, eyes wide.
The General adjusted his shirt cuff and walked away as if nothing had happened, leaving behind a frozen trail of fear and silence.
Nadia dropped to her knees beside Ariel, placing her hand on his shoulder. She was shaking."I'm sorry… he… he's not himself."
Ariel nodded, still unable to speak.