Teleportation was never gentle. The air around them shimmered violently before it sucked them back into reality. When their feet hit the cold marble floor of Damien's dorm, the warmth of the west wing's illusion melted into icy stillness.
Damien took a lazy step back, stretching his arms with the elegance of a king bored by battle.
"Your mother," Cora started, voice still trembling slightly, "she might be quite the person... but is she truly that cruel?" Her brows furrowed, struggling to grasp how a woman could harbor so much venom—even beyond death.
He snorted, turning to the mahogany bar cart at the corner of the room. Crystal decanters shimmered under soft light, but he bypassed the alcohol, grabbing a simple glass and filling it with water like it was some rare elixir. "Cruel?" he echoed, handing her the glass with a lazy grin. "To the world, yes. But to us? She's... protective." His tone dipped into something darker. "Obsessively so. You'd have to offend her bloodline to understand how far she'll go."
Cora's fingers curled around the cool glass. "Does she... remember her past life too?"
Damien's smirk widened, a flash of white teeth under shadowed eyes. "No. None of them do. Not Mother, not the others. Only Max, Leonard, and I were... favored " His voice dropped, laced with an arrogance that dared the universe to argue.
Cora's grip tightened. She lowered her gaze to the water, seeing her reflection distorted. Would his mother ever accept her? The masked girl? The one not meant to be part of Damien's world?
As if reading her mind, Damien leaned closer, voice curling like smoke. "Don't stress your pretty little head, little bird. My mother is twisted—but I'm worse. And lucky for you... I don't follow rules. Not even hers." His finger tapped the tip of her nose with maddening gentleness.
She huffed, rolling her eyes. "You're ridiculous."
"Dangerously so." He winked.
"I should really try to decode that book you gave me. If there's even a thread of truth that I'm a mermaid... I need answers."
He nodded. "And fast. Because if the mask is tied to that—if you're sea-related—then we need to know who put it there... and why."
Cora instinctively reached for the mask covering the lower half of her face. It had become a second skin, yet now it felt heavier—more deliberate. Like a prison, not protection.
"I have notes to catch up on," she said quietly.
Damien opened the dorm door for her with stepping out with her ."By all means, little bird. Go learn to be the best student."
But their path was blocked by a tall, grim figure.
Professor Graves stood rigid, hand raised mid-knock. His dark eyes scanned Cora slowly with a hollow glint, then locked onto Damien with a disapproving tilt of his head.
"I wasn't aware we'd started allowing female students into the boys' dormitory," he said, tone colder than the hallway around them.
Cora shrank slightly under the professor's gaze. There was something oily in his smile—something that made her skin crawl.
Damien, of course, looked positively thrilled.
"I would've assumed you were eavesdropping," he drawled, crossing his arms, "but then again... you've been single for a while now, haven't you, Professor?" He gave Graves a pointed once-over, the corner of his lip tugging up arrogantly. "Cora here merely needed... reviving. Tragic case of the school's boredom nearly killing her."
Cora's eyes widened. "Damien—!"
He patted her head condescendingly. "Don't be shy. I'm sure Professor Graves understands the need for a little... warmth. Even if he's never had anyone to provide it."
Graves's expression tightened. The polite mask cracked, just for a second, before slipping back into place. "It's against school policy—"
"Yes, yes," Damien interrupted breezily, turning to Cora. "Go study, darling. You're all gingered up now." He nudged her shoulder with just enough pressure to make her glare at him.
Without another word, Cora turned on her heel and stalked away, cheeks burning with a cocktail of embarrassment and disbelief.
When she disappeared around the corner, Damien turned to Graves, his smirk razor-sharp. "Loneliness looks bad on you. Jealousy worse."
"Your Highness," Graves bit out, jaw clenched. "This isn't about—"
"Why are you here, then?" Damien's voice dropped, lazy mockery slipping into something colder.
Graves hesitated before saying tightly, "There's been another death."
Damien's smile lowered only to rise again.
"Another? Deaths happen almost every night in Oscar Island unless it's publicly revealed " he asked, voice sharpening.
Graves nodded grimly. "Two students. Male. Found on the edge of the beach close to the forest. Gruesomely mutilated. It doesn't appear natural."
Damien's eyes darkened, that magnetic smugness draining into a a lopsided grin."When?"
"Two hours ago. Discovered by another student."
"And now you involve me?" Damien's tone was questioning. "You didn't contact me the last time."
"This is different," Graves said. "This... feels like a message and the dean said you need to check this."
Without waiting, Damien began to walk. His presence shifted—no longer the narcissistic prince but a predator in his element. "Show me."
As the two disappeared down the corridor, the weight of what lingered in Oscar Island settled like a storm cloud.
Meanwhile, Cora moved through the building with a pit in her stomach. She rubbed her wrist, the faint memory of glistening scales flashing behind her eyes. Was she safe here? Could mermaids survive in a place that once hunted them down like prey?
She remembered the vision—night creatures tearing into a mermaid, hungry, cruel.
Pulling out her phone, she quickly texted Amelia.
Where are you?
No response.
She turned the corner near the library—and froze.
Roseline stood like a queen in velvet, flanked by Sienna and another girl she didn't recognize. The air around them was heavy with perfume and petty danger.
"Cora, was it?" Roseline's voice was silk—too smooth, too sweet. "I'm Roseline. Damien's childhood friend."
Cora nodded stiffly. She'd seen her around Leonard and Maximilian. But Roseline's gaze held that same possessiveness Marina once had when claiming expensive jewelry.
"I heard from Sienna you're her roommate," she continued, smile not touching her eyes. "I'd love to chat. How about the cafeteria?"
The girl beside Roseline moved to grab Cora's wrist, but she jerked away.
"I have to study," Cora said coolly. "Excuse me."
The third girl made a move to block her, but Roseline lifted a hand.
"Let her go."
Cora didn't look back.
As soon as her figure disappeared, Roseline's smile dropped.
"I want her watched," she told Sienna. "Anything useful... and I'll make sure you get your little moment with Damien."
Sienna's eyes glittered. She flipped her brunette hair over her shoulder and nodded. "Deal."
She didn't care what it took. Damien deserved better—and she was better.
As she strutted away, Roseline turned to the unnamed girl and muttered under her breath with a bitter smirk.
"Fool."
And with that, the shadows in Oscar Island thickened. Secrets tangled tighter, and the whispers thickened