Zian:

I stood in the doorway, watching my father in silence.

I knew it bothered him.

Whenever I did that, he would feel very hesitant.

"What are you doing, Zian?" my father asked, glancing back at me briefly before returning to the files he was assembling.

He had come back only a few hours earlier, and the first thing he did was gather documents.

He had summoned the Luckers and ordered that everyone be removed from the basement.

I knew exactly what he was doing.

He was preparing to shut the academy down completely.

"I just wanted to see what’s happening," I replied, shoving my hands in my pant’s pockets.

"There is a lot that is happening, I will tell you about it," he uttered, still busy in his work.

"Where’s my brother?" I asked with a deep sigh leaving my lips.

Saying the word brother made my chest tighten.

We haven’t been close.

And who was to blame for it?

Me, of course.

I just didn’t understand why, whenever I saw him, I wanted to get rid of him.

Even though later I would think about it and feel bad.

Until recently.

I realized why I wanted him gone.

I stepped fully into the room, folded my arms across my chest, and leaned against the wall behind him.

"He’s been sent to the North side," my father answered. "Didn’t you see the news?"

He was referring to the earlier incident, when my brother had openly transitioned to protect his mate.

Even I had been stunned seeing their wolf forms.

"I saw it," I said quietly. "I’m just surprised it escalated this far."

My father nodded in agreement, still focused on his work.

"I kind of expected him to do that. I wish I had done a better job," My father’s voice carried a hint of pain and I chuckled to myself over it.

"Yeah, I bet," I commented.

He was picking up whatever he needed to do whatever he could to save his good son.

I kept watching him in silence. My heart felt heavy.

"So you’re not going to help me?" he asked finally, gesturing toward the files.

"To do what exactly?" I asked him, stepping closer but still not helping him.

"I mean, what is the plan?" I questioned.

"I need to assemble all of this. People need a clear picture of why this academy is dangerous."

My father’s words echoed through the room like a joke.

I laughed under my breath.

"You are going to expose your own academy?" I asked in bewilderment.

I knew how hard my father had worked over the years to run this academy.

So for him to say he was going to shut it down by exposing it was just unbelievable.

"That is the only way to bring Ian back. Besides, I am done with the revenge," he commented, once again surprising me with his dedication to save Ian.

"Hmm, you want to end everything for him. I wonder if you would do that for your other son," I laughed, but said it under my breath.

My father took a deep breath, but he did not deny me.

He did not say that he would.

And it hurt so bad. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"Please, can you help me, Zian?" he suddenly changed the subject, not even caring about my feelings.

He was back to focusing on something that would bring his favorite son back.

Who cares about me, right?

Ian truly got it all.

He gets to have the love of his father.

He gets to find a mate who is practically the best mate in the world.

He gets to make friends and have a circle.

While I was asked for help?

The help that would bring that brother back that I don’t even want to see.

"That’s strange. You need my help now? I thought I was the bad one."

He turned to look at me.

"Zian, please. Not now. We’ll discuss this later," he said, exhaustion and sadness clear in his expression before he turned back to the files.

His hesitation came from only one reason.

His beloved, perfect son was trapped on the North side.

"Didn’t it feel strange when you made that plan?" I asked, my breathing growing heavier.

"What plan?" he replied without turning around.

He was too busy trying to find a way to save his favorite son.

"The one where you decided to kill me and present my dead body as Ian’s, so you could save him instead."

That was enough.

He froze and slowly lifted his head from the files.

By the time he turned around, I already had my hand raised.

A needle rested between my fingers.

Before he could react, I injected it into his neck.

The liquid entered his bloodstream.

It was a mixture designed to weaken a wolf, laced with silver.

Fear flashed across his eyes. Hurt followed.

Strange.

I should have been the one in pain. I was the one betrayed.

"Why did you do this?" he demanded, gripping my wrist.

But the strength he usually had wasn’t there anymore.

"You’re still asking why?" I replied, my voice cold. "You were going to trade my life for his."

I reminded him of the conversation I had overheard.

I had only heard enough before I left and decided everything.

That was when I understood I was alone.

"That you regretted not killing me when I was a child."

I watched him collapse to the floor.

For the first time in my life, he fell at my feet.

"Come on, Father," I said calmly, stepping back and straightening my shirt. "Now we go to the North."

The plan had been forming in my mind the entire time they were trying to bring the academy down.

"We’ll go there. I’ll kill Ian. I’ll drink his blood and mix our scents. Then I’ll make Clementine believe both Zian and the Headmaster are dead."

I paused.

"And then I’ll return as Ian."

I walked to the table and picked up my father’s card, the one required to summon and start the train.

I took the keys as well.

That card didn’t just start the train. It could summon it.

And the keys would allow me to enter directly through the Dark Side of the North.

I knew which territories held which monsters. I had read every book my father and grandfather owned.

I was prepared.

Over time, I had been preparing for this.

I had gathered information quietly.

I had also spoken to people who had dealt with similar situations before.

That was how I found out that Nook had Clementine.

I approached them with a large payment in exchange for a specific medicine.

I would say I was given drugs. It was a herb that could make it appear as if I had been injected with something that erased fragments of memory.

No one was actually going to inject me.

I was going to use it strategically.

It would help explain any inconsistencies.

And once my scent was masked, it would be easier to fool Clementine.

When I returned to the mainland, I would tell everyone that my father had become a monster and that I left him behind.

I would say the real monster was Zian, the one those people had seen with Clementine that day.

I would present it carefully.

I would tell them that now Zian was dead.

That the person that had stood outside Clementine’s cage that day truly was him. It would be simple.

The council was already on my side. They would listen to me.

Clementine would support me, thinking she is saving Ian.

And once Clementine was in my control, I would take over the academy again under the pretense of saving the North.

But before that, there were still things to do.

I lifted my father and placed him in my car.

From there, I drove straight to the Dark Side.

When I arrived, I opened the fence.

Miss Rue was waiting for me.

"Rue?" I said, then laughed.

As I dropped my father’s body onto the ground, Rue’s eyes widened.

"I can’t believe I’m seeing the Headmaster again. And in this condition," Rue scoffed, though I could tell she was still angry.

"Well, you’re lucky," I said calmly. "You met me before you met them."

I reminded her of what had happened a few days earlier, the first time I had slipped into the Dark Side.

I had seen her there with Mr. Rick.

They had been frantic, running like fools.

A flying monster had tried to attack them.

And Rick, instead of protecting her, had shoved Rue forward to save himself.

That was when I stepped in. I saved Rue.

And I left Rick to his fate which was death.

The fear in his eyes had been satisfying to watch.

He was a coward, hiding behind a woman.

"So, is it time for us to go back?" Rue asked, a bright smile forming on her lips.

"Sure," I replied evenly. "Just know this. Today is our main war."

The moment I said that, she noticed something.

We were fully prepared.