I knew this week was going to be a disaster.
Every sign pointed to it, every move I'd made had been preparing for the fallout.
But there was one thing I didn't see coming...
I'd known about the breach before anyone else did.
I saw it, days before Xander and Rylan had to go clean it up.
The eastern forest plains had always been a weak point in Ravenwood's defense.
Most students didn't know about it—hell, even most professors didn't. But I did.
I'd spent countless hours studying the layout of the grounds, tracing the flow of mana through the academy's barriers, noticing the cracks that no one else seemed to see.
So when the monsters came pouring in, I wasn't surprised.
Goblins, hobgoblins, and worse—creatures I'd only read about in old texts and remembered from the game.
They broke through the weak point, swarming the grounds like a plague.
Xander, Rylan, and a handful of second-years dealt with it. Barely.
They fought hard, and in the end, they managed to seal the breach, but I already knew what caused it.
It wasn't some freak accident or natural occurrence. No, someone let them in.
Someone powerful enough to control a horde of monsters, to manipulate the flow of mana and tear open the academy's defenses from the inside.
But that was just the beginning.
The breach was a distraction, something to keep us busy while the real chaos unfolded elsewhere.
There was a field study last week—one I was supposed to be part of.
But I sent Maya instead. She needed the break more than I did.
I could see it in her eyes, the way she moved like she was carrying the weight of the world on her shoulders.
I told myself it was for her own good, that getting her out of the academy for a bit might clear her head.
But deep down, I knew the truth. I couldn't afford to be distracted by a field study.
Not when the second act was about to begin, and Maya was destined to become the final boss.
I've spent months preparing for it, mapping out every possible scenario, every twist and turn the narrative could take.
And the worst part? The administration knew.
They had to know, but they did nothing. Or maybe they couldn't do anything.
The cult had its claws deep in Ravenwood, and it wasn't letting go.
I knew all of this. I saw it coming.
I had been preparing for it, planning every move, every response.
But what I didn't see coming was my own expulsion.
Among all the names of those expelled or suspended for their involvement in these crimes, mine was listed.
Not because I had done anything wrong—no, I had been careful, more careful than anyone else. But I had gotten too close to the truth. I had seen too much.
Someone in power must have decided I was too much of a threat, and they acted before I could.
And that's how I ended up here.
Outside the gates of Ravenwood, standing in the dirt with my belongings scattered around me like trash.
The maid didn't even look at me when she tossed them out. My books, my clothes, even my pendant—all of it lay in the dust, meaningless.
The head of the disciplinary committee, a man whose face I had seen a hundred times, stood just inside the gates. He didn't bother with pleasantries.
He no longer cared who I was or what I had done.
"You've been expelled, Ashbourne," he said, his voice cold and detached.
"Until further notice."
I didn't say anything. What was there to say?
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I had seen this coming—just not for myself.
The gates swung shut behind me with a finality that sent a chill down my spine.
The sound echoed in the silence, like the closing of a chapter.
I stood there for a long time, staring at the iron gates of Ravenwood.
It should have felt like the end.
But it wasn't.