he stone corridors of the academy trembled beneath her footsteps, each stride of Rena Amberheart a quiet storm wrapped in velvet flame. Her heels clicked sharply, leaving faint scorch marks etched into the floor like dying embers. Students, once crowding the marble halls, now parted instinctively, their bodies swaying away as though caught in the pull of some magnetic tempest.
Her golden eyes burned with a simmering glare, not directed at anyone in particular—yet potent enough to silence chatter and bend gazes. Her long red hair glowed as if lit from within, flowing behind her like a living banner of warning. The aura around her shimmered with heat, the kind not born of anger alone, but of jealousy, dread, and the complicated ache of being left alone by someone whose attention mattered far more than she would ever admit aloud.
"Damn it, Jin…" she muttered under her breath, fingers curling into a fist at her side.
She had barely finished reading the final page of the mana theory book before he'd vanished—just like that. "I'm going to wander," he'd said with a casual flick of his wrist, as if his beauty didn't invite chaos. As if his mere presence didn't unravel the composure of every girl within a ten-meter radius.
And it wasn't just any girl she was worried about.
Her thoughts darkened as a particular face burned into her mind—icy blue eyes, a smirk carved from noble arrogance, silver hair like a blade unsheathed.
Sarafina Frost.
The Frost family. Her family's rivals in everything—status, power, politics, and worse, in elegance. The very embodiment of cold calculation and venom laced with sugar.
"Of course she'd go after him. That silver witch," Rena hissed. "She even touched him yesterday. She touched him, in front of me, and smiled like a damn queen."
The memory flashed—Sarafina's slender hand brushing Jin's, the graceful bow of her head, that voice dripping with frostbitten charm.
And Jin ? That infuriating bastard had just smiled back like he wasn't hers. Like his hand didn't belong exclusively in hers. Like he hadn't held her the night before as she trembled in his arms.
Rena's pace quickened. The air shimmered hotter.
If Sarafina dared touch him again, there'd be no restraint this time. Screw etiquette. Screw noble politics. Let the entire academy burn.
"Renaaaaa~"
"~"
The voice floated behind her, a singsong lilt wrapped in silk and sarcasm.
She stopped. Her spine straightened, the air stilling.
That voice.
She turned slowly.
And there she was.
Sarafina Frost stood with poise perfected over centuries of aristocratic breeding. Her silver hair fell in waves down her back, framing a heart-shaped face too perfect to trust. Ice-blue eyes sparkled with delight—not the warm kind, but the kind one sees before a venomous strike. Her uniform, immaculately pressed, hugged her curves in a way that would've been scandalous if not for the sheer composure she wielded like a rapier.
"Hello there…Fire demon... oh, I'm sorry, is it ? Rena? No, I always forget the names of things that don't matter," Sarafina said, tilting her head in mock confusion.
Rena's golden eyes narrowed. "Frost. What do you want? I don't have time to swat flies today."
Sarafina's smile widened, baring perfect teeth. "Oh, darling, I'm here for something far more interesting than buzzing insects."
Rena turned to walk away, ignoring her. But the voice chased her like frost along her spine.
"What do you think, Rena? May I have him?"
She stopped dead.
Her fists clenched at her sides.
Turning slowly, her gaze sharpened into a glare that could melt glaciers.
"What did you just say?"
Sarafina stepped closer, her heels whispering against the polished stone. "Jean. I'm asking if I can have him. You know, for keeps. Or maybe just for fun."
The silence cracked like thunder between them.
Rina's jaw tightened. "You want to die today, Frost?"
"Please," Sarafina scoffed, eyes gleaming. "It's not like you've claimed him officially, is it? Or are you already sharing a bed with him? No? I didn't think so."
Rena lifted her hand slowly, revealing the delicate shimmer of her wedding ring—simple, elegant, and devastatingly final.
Sarafina's eyes flicked to it.
They widened. Just a fraction.
But her smirk never left. "Married? Oh my. And here I thought he was just tolerating you. Well, I suppose even fire needs a vessel to burn."
Rena stepped forward. "Touch him again, and I'll make sure your fingers never feel warmth again. You think your ice magic will save you? I'll burn through every last strand of mana in your veins."
Sarafina raised her hands mockingly. "Temper, temper, little flame. All I did was talk. Or is it that you're afraid? That even married, you can't keep him? That you're not enough?"
Rena's expression darkened. The golden fire in her eyes roared to life.
"You want to test me, Frost?" she growled. "I've burned down better women than you just for blinking at what's mine."