Chapter 62: Fractures in the Dining Hall
{IRIS}
Oh no... oh no... oh Goddess, what have I done?
Lord Val was very clear: Stay in school. Learn. Be invisible. Control the arcane simmering beneath your skin and cause no trouble.
Invisible.
Silent.
Unremarkable.
But here I was—having just hurled a ladle of garlic and ginger soup at a vampire. And not just any vampire... the moment I sensed her aura, I knew she was of noble blood. Ancient. Dangerous. Untouchable.
Yet the instant I saw her draw blood from Caroline’s neck, my body moved before my mind did.
"Bitch! Who are you?!" the red-haired vampire hissed, her fangs showing.
Everything blurred.
A second vampire—the man beside her—lunged faster than my eyes could follow. His hand closed around my throat, lifting me off my feet as though I weighed nothing.
"Iris!" Caroline’s voice cracked, her hand pressed against her bleeding neck as she staggered upright.
"You dared throw ginger at a vampire—at a noble?" the male vampire growled, his pupils dilating and flushing a deep, murderous red. "I should kill you right now."
The air left my lungs. His grip tightened; my toes no longer brushed the floor. He was tall, broad-shouldered, and feral—his face rough and carved like a beast bred for war. Every instinct screamed that he could snap my neck with a flick of his wrist.
He leaned closer and sniffed, his expression shifting into a frown. "You have no scent," he murmured darkly. "What are you?"
Fear stung my eyes, but I forced my jaw to lock, my voice scraping out in a trembling whisper. "I... I don’t have any obligation to answer you..."
His lips curled. "I should snap your neck for talking back to me."
"Valerius."
The single word cracked like thunder.
Lord Val’s voice rolled through the dining hall, low and dangerous. When I turned my head, his pupils had thinned to predatory slits.
"Let. Her. Go."
For a brief, terrifying second, Valerius hesitated. Then, as if compelled by an unseen force, he released me.
I collapsed onto the cold marble floor, coughing as air rushed painfully back into my lungs.
"Iris! Are you okay?" Caroline rushed to my side, her fingers trembling as she checked my neck and shoulders. At least she still cared—at least I hadn’t lost her entirely.
Lord Val’s gaze shifted to Valerius. "Any more trouble and you’ll be expelled. Haven’t I warned you?"
Valerius released a tight sigh. "Sorry."
Then Lord Val’s eyes slid toward the terrifying red-haired woman—the vampire who had struck Caroline.
"Morgana," he said, his voice cool and sharp. "They are only humans."
And just like that, he turned and walked away.
To him, to all vampires of noble blood, it seemed—humans were dust beneath their boots. Food in the hierarchy. Barely worth a second glance.
Morgana’s display was not only unnecessary; it was an embarrassment to their kind.
Her face flushed with anger before she spun toward us.
"We’re not finished," she spat, eyes gleaming with promise.
Then her entire demeanor transformed as she hurried after Lord Val, her voice shifting into a nauseatingly sweet tone.
"Wait, Lord Val! I didn’t mean to cause a scene... It’s just that these pesky humans can be so irritating. But you’re right—picking a fight with them is humiliating for our noble status..."
Her voice drifted away.
The other vampires gave us one last glance, their eyes blood red as they stared at Caroline and me. Then they left.
I stared at Caroline. "Are you okay?"
But my words were drowned out by a new, suffocating silence.
Only then did I notice the shift—the subtle but unmistakable widening of space around us. The crowd of students parted like we were infected, their gazes filled with fear, pity... and thinly veiled delight.
"Those two are dead."
"Too bad—they picked a fight with a noble vampire."
"Idiots."
"Should’ve known better."
"What...?" I whispered, scanning the sea of faces. Even our classmates—Caroline’s kind—stepped back as though we carried a lethal plague.
"Hey, guys!" Caroline called out, waving at her group of friends. But they retreated, avoiding her eyes like cowards.
"Jessica?" Caroline frowned, taking a step toward the girl who used to cling to her at every lunch.
Jessica trembled and shook her head. "I’m sorry, Caroline... We just—we don’t want to be implicated."
And with that, she fled. The rest followed without even looking back.
I felt Caroline go still beside me. The sting of betrayal radiated from her like heat.
"It’s your fault," one classmate muttered at me. "Why did you have to pick on a vampire? And Lady Morgana, no less."
"If you weren’t such a spoiled brat—"
"Caroline, you’re on your own this time."
Caroline’s jaw dropped. "Are you seriously just letting them walk all over you? A bunch of vampires?!"
One boy shrugged, unable to meet her eyes. "You’ll understand soon enough, Caroline. You should’ve kept your mouth shut and left when they were asking nicely."
The crowd dissolved, leaving us stranded in the center of the vast hall.
Just the two of us. Alone. Exiled.
It felt like Lorcan and my pack abandoning me all over again.
I swallowed hard. I didn’t know what to say. Caroline had always surrounded herself with people—friends, admirers, opportunists—but now, in the span of seconds, they had vanished.
Abandonment was a bitter taste. I knew it well. But Caroline... she was only now realizing how easily people disappear when trouble comes knocking.
"Uhm... Caroline..." I whispered.
Caroline let out a choked laugh—hollow and bitter.
"How funny," she murmured. "None of them saved me. None of them stood between me and those vampires. But they enjoyed my money well enough."
She turned to me, her eyes glassy yet determined.
"And you... Iris... I’m sorry." Her voice cracked as she forced a small smile. "You’re the only one who protected me, and I’ve been treating you like shit."
I shook my head immediately. "That’s not true. Right now, we should go to the infirmary and make sure the bleeding stops."
"Ah... right." Only now did she look down at her hand, still pressed against her neck. "I have to make sure I didn’t get any virus from that vampire bitch..."
Her attempt at humor was weak, but it was something.
As we walked, I kept one hand over the pocket where the Bloodveil vial rested—my emergency salvation. My layer of protection. I had prayed I wouldn’t need it today.
Yet something in my chest told me that things were nowhere near over.
The vampires had noticed us now.
And once they did... they never forgot a debt that must be repaid. In blood.
