CHAPTER 235: HAS ARRIVED

Chapter 235-

Daphne

You leave the academy for a couple of weeks and all hell breaks loose.

Seriously.

What do you mean the male lead is about to get this guy expelled?

There goes my carefully planned reunion with my little bunny.

I sigh, rubbing my temples as I stride through the halls of Felaris. The gossip I picked up on the way here was irritating enough—students whispering about the "Longear’s new lover" and how the prince himself was dishonored. Hilarious.

But expulsion? No. I’m not letting that happen at all, who knows with Isaac gone Poppy might fall back into his arms, probably what he’s planning too.

I adjust the cuffs of my coat, my tail swishing behind me, and head straight toward the disciplinary chamber.

***

Nima

The disciplinary hall feels cold. Sterile. Detached.

The ceiling arches high, banners of Felaris draped down in stiff waves of crimson and gold. At the far end, a podium rises like a judge’s throne, where several professors sit in rigid lines, their robes heavy, their gazes heavy too.

It really is like a court.

No—this is a court.

Felaris’ own version, at least.

I shift nervously in my seat at the back. Poppy sits beside me, stiff, hands clenched in her lap. Isaac stands at the front, flanked by guards, posture straight, shoulders squared.

"...as much as Felaris prides itself on equality," the head professor intones, his voice echoing off the stone, "your actions were unjustifiable."

His words slam down like a gavel.

Equality? At Felaris?

I nearly laugh out loud. The biggest joke I’ve heard all semester.

"You are fortunate," the professor continues, tone cutting, "that this incident occurred within academy walls. Had it been outside..."

He pauses, lets the silence sharpen the weight of his words.

"You would have been decapitated."

The words steal the air from my lungs, and Poppy next to me is not faring well either.

The judges continue, their voices droning like executioners reading off the charges.

***

Felix

Once or twice—probably more—I send glances toward Poppy. She doesn’t look my way. Not once.

It makes my jaw ache from how hard I’m clenching it.

My fists curl on my knees, nails biting crescents into my palms.

She’s supposed to be mine. Always mine.

But she’s sitting there, her gaze fixed forward, worry painted all over her face—for him.

The bastard.

I knew it from the moment they danced together at the ball. Everything started unraveling then.He’s the reason she won’t meet my eyes. The reason she won’t listen. The reason she thinks she can just... walk away.

The professors drone on about justice and discipline, about protecting royal dignity. My dignity. And still she doesn’t look at me.

My teeth grind.

When he’s gone—I’ll remind her what we had, what we were. What we still could be.

***

Nima

"Give us five minutes to decide," one of the professors intones, and the panel rises from their high seats.

Five minutes. As if it even matters.

We all know what their verdict will be.

The room exhales a collective breath as the judges file out. The silence left behind is suffocating. Only the rustle of robes, the nervous shifting of students, and the heavy clank of Isaac’s chains as he shifts his weight break the stillness.

Beside me, Poppy’s nails dig crescent moons into her palms. Her lips tremble, but she doesn’t cry. She hasn’t shed a single tear here, not even with Felix watching her like a predator sizing up prey. She’s holding herself together by sheer force of will, I don’t think I could ever be capable of.

The professors return, robes swishing as they ascend back to their seats. The murmurs in the hall die instantly, every ear straining for the words we all already know are coming.

Their leader clears his throat, face carved from stone.

" After consideration, this council has reached its verdict. For the crime of assaulting a royal heir, you are hereby expelled from Felaris Academy. Effective immediately."

Everyone knew what the verdict would be.

From the moment Isaac threw that punch, from the second the guards dragged him off, the whispers and stares had already decided his fate. This whole "trial" was a performance, a formality to make the Academy look impartial. But it wasn’t. It never was.

The professors shuffle their papers, the verdict written into record, the guards already moving forward to drag Isaac away. Felix leans back with a satisfied expression, golden eyes flickering toward Poppy as if expecting her to finally break.

The scrape of armored boots against the floor echoes as the guards approach Isaac. The tension coils so tightly I can barely breathe.

And then—

The double doors of the chamber slam open. The crash reverberates through the hall, silencing every whisper, every breath. Dust swirls in the sudden gust of air.

"Whoa, whoa," a voice cuts through, rich and amused, vibrating with unshakable authority. "Let’s calm down a little bit."

Every head turns, professors frozen mid-motion, students twisting in their seats, the guards halting in place.

Daphne Nyxclaw has arrived.

I can’t help the way my head turns at the sound of that voice. My heart stutters, racing in my chest as though it wants to leap out and run straight to her.

Weeks. This is the first time I’ve seen her in weeks.

She walks into the chamber with that infuriating ease, as if the gazes of nobles, professors, and even royalty mean nothing. Her tail flicks lazily behind her, her raven hair falling like ink across her shoulders. Her golden eyes sweep the room once, taking in the scene like a predator sizing up a clearing full of prey.

The judges falter. I see it in their stiff shoulders, in the way one of them lowers his gavel halfway as if he’s suddenly uncertain whether he has the authority to bring it down again.

Even Felix tenses. His smirk wavers, though he forces it back onto his face a moment later, as if pretending he’s unaffected can undo the truth.

"Lady Nyxclaw," one of the professors says, his tone tight. "This is a closed disciplinary meeting."

Daphne doesn’t stop walking. She doesn’t even glance his way.

"Then you should’ve closed the doors properly," she purrs, her voice carrying through the hall like velvet over steel.

She stops at the center of the chamber, directly in the path of the guards moving toward Isaac. Her presence alone halts them.