An Extra's POV

The moment these words echoed in the air, the one being addressed suddenly froze up.

He slowly turned his head, mechanically shifting his face to look at Rey, who was a few steps behind him. Rey had a serious look on his face—something akin to a frown—as he gazed deep into Adonis\' eyes.

Then, before the latter could even utter a word in response to the name he had just been called, Rey took a few steps forward and caught up to him.

"I cast Sound Magic around, so no one heard what I said except you." Despite saying this, there was no hint of relief in the tense face that Adonis had.

Perhaps he would have felt a bit more relieved if he hadn\'t been called by his actual name by a new student, but right now? Right now, he was in the middle of making a choice.

He was thinking only one thing.

—How to get rid of R\'ai and keep his identity secret!

"Relax, Adonis. You\'ve grown a lot more tense since we last met." As Rey uttered those words, now right in front of the still Adonis, he placed his hand on his shoulder.

This time, there was no attempt to shrug it off, or walk away.

The boy was perfectly motionless.

"Who are you?" Narrowing his eyes, he finally uttered the words that anyone would be expected to ask in his shoes.

It was only at this point that Rey partially lifted the [Perfect Veil], revealing his true self right there and there to the boy who went from being cautious… to downright shocked. His bulging eyes revealed just how intense his surprise was, but the beads of sweat that danced on his face, and the slight tremors of his quivering lips also added to it. He slowly parted his lips as he uttered a single word.

It was both a confirmation and a question.

"... Rey?"

**************

Every room in the Boy\'s Dorm was identical, and Rey\'s was no exception.

It had the standard furniture—a bed, wardrobe, bedside table, a study desk, with a comfortable chair right behind it. The wardrobe was especially large, already equipped with uniforms and sufficient casual clothes for use.

Every student had this setup to allow them practice privately… in the comfort of their private spaces.

The room was painted a bland white, but there was an option to customize it if sufficient reason was given to the staff. There was no point to it anyway, so Rey didn\'t bother with any of that, and he had no intention to ever do so.

Within this cozy and neat room, Rey found himself seated on his considerably large bed while looking at the boy who sat opposite him—on the study chair.

For a moment, only silence existed in the air as the two looked at each other quietly.

However… it was only a matter of time before the decorum was shattered.

"How did you find me?"

Adonis broke the silence with his question, his golden eyes carefully observing Rey with every sentence he uttered. His fingers were interlocked, and it seemed he was trying his best to remain calm.

"Is that really the first thing you\'re going to say?" Rey mumbled, just loud enough so the latter could pick up what he said.

"...."

For another second or two, no one said anything. This time, though, Rey took the initiative and spoke first. "It\'s good to see you, Adonis. I\'m glad you\'re safe and well."

He meant every word of it too.

\'I still have many questions, and there are a lot of things to get off my chest. But right now… it\'s just such a relief to see you again, honestly.\' He made a smile as he watched Adonis\' countenance fall a little.

"Same here…"

His tone felt heavy, and while there was sincerity in Adonis\' words… it almost felt like he didn\'t fully mean what he said.

He wasn\'t happy to see Rey.

"You\'ve changed, man…" Seeing this caused Rey to utter the words he had been thinking for a while now. "What happened to you? Where have you been all this time… and I mean before you came here."

"....."

Adonis said nothing.

"What have you been up to? What exactly is it that made you leave everyone behind? I have so many questions for you, Adonis…"

"...." Once again, Adonis didn\'t respond.

At least, not until after a few seconds had passed and he managed to collect his thoughts.

"Why are you here, Rey?" Upon hearing the question, Rey frowned. He could feel a tinge of annoyance rising in his chest, but it vanished almost instantly.

\'I\'m trying to reason with you here, but you\'re not making it easy for me, Adonis…\'

Rey knew he had a lot of explaining to do on his part. He still hadn\'t apologized to Adonis for lying to him, and even now… even now he felt guilty as he looked at his friend\'s downtrodden face.

But… something was off.

The person he was looking at wasn\'t the Adonis he remembered.

"I can\'t tell you that."

\'There\'s still so much I don\'t know, Adonis. I want to trust you, but… you\'re not giving me anything here.\' Rey thought to himself. n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om

More than anything, he wanted to share the plan with Adonis. Having an Otherworlder as a trustworthy ally in this Academy was not something he expected, and it was probably not what Adrien expected as well.

If they both worked on this—in conjunction with Lucielle—they could achieve their mission and throw a wrench in whatever ulterior plans that Adrien was bound to have.

But… Rey couldn\'t just tell Adonis yet.

"I understand." A dry response came from the golden boy\'s lips as he finally raised his head and looked at Rey point-blank.

His eyes were cold—fueled with resolve, but concealed by a layer that seemed impossible to unravel.

"I also can\'t tell you anything about my purpose here either."