The most dangerous monsters are never the ones that bare their fangs.

They are the ones who smile.

The corridor was silent.

Only the echo of departing footsteps lingered.

Aurelia stared down at the book in her trembling hands.

The place where his fingers had brushed hers still tingled.

Impossible.

She had shaken countless hands before.

Nothing had ever felt like...

That.

"Aurelia?"

Emily waved a hand in front of her face.

"You've been standing there for two minutes."

"I..." Aurelia forced herself to breathe.
"I'm fine."

Emily glanced down the hallway where Professor Cassian Veyre had vanished.

"You know..." she said thoughtfully,
"I've never seen Professor Veyre stop for anyone."

Aurelia frowned. "What do you mean?"

Emily folded her arms.
"He usually ignores everyone. If students greet him, he nods. If they ask questions outside class, he just walks away."

"But today..." Emily's voice lowered,
"He actually apologized."

"That's..." Aurelia hesitated.

"Weird." Emily finished.

Aurelia looked away.
"Maybe he was just being polite."

Emily laughed softly.
"Professor Veyre? Polite? I seriously doubt it."

Meanwhile...

Cassian entered his office and quietly locked the door.

He stood motionless.

His heartbeat still hadn't slowed.

His wolf paced restlessly beneath his skin.

You touched her.

It was an accident.

Liar.

Cassian closed his eyes.

The scent of wild honey and rain still lingered on his fingertips.

Warm.
Soft.
Dangerously addictive.

No.

This couldn't happen.

Not again.

Never again.

He walked to the window overlooking the university grounds.

Students filled the courtyard.

Yet he found her instantly.

As if every instinct inside him already knew exactly where she was.

"...Aurelia."

He whispered her name for the first time.

It felt...

Natural.

Too natural.

As though he had spoken it a thousand times before.

Across campus...

Vivienne Noir watched Aurelia from the second-floor balcony.

Her emerald eyes narrowed.

Something was wrong.

Professor Veyre had looked at Aurelia differently.

Not as a professor.

Not as a stranger.

As though...

He recognized her.

Vivienne clenched her jaw.

"No."

She refused to lose again.

Even if she didn't understand why.

The afternoon orientation finally ended.

Students dispersed toward their departments.

Emily glanced at the timetable.

"Looks like our first class is..." She stopped reading.

"Oh."

"What?"

Emily slowly looked at Aurelia.

"Our Ancient History professor... is Professor Cassian Veyre."

Aurelia's stomach tightened.

"...Today?"

"In fifteen minutes."

The Ancient History lecture hall was unlike any other.

Dark oak walls.
Towering bookshelves.
Candles flickering inside iron lanterns.
Ancient maps adorning the walls.
At the front, a massive blackboard.

The room smelled of old parchment and cedarwood.

Students settled quietly, whispering.

"They say his classes are impossible."
"My brother failed twice."
"I heard he never repeats himself."
"I heard he expelled someone on the first day."

Whispers ceased as the door opened.

Cassian Veyre entered.

Every student straightened instantly.

He wore a fitted black shirt beneath a charcoal blazer, sleeves rolled neatly to his forearms.

His expression was unreadable.

Cold.
Controlled.
Commanding.

Without a word...

He placed a worn leather journal on the desk.

The silence thickened.

Then—

"Good afternoon."

His voice was calm.
Deep.
Authoritative.

"I am Professor Cassian Veyre."

"I don't care about your family names."
"I don't care about your reputation."
"And I certainly don't care how powerful you think you are."

Several Alpha students exchanged uneasy glances.

"In this classroom..."
"You earn respect."
"You are not born with it."

No one moved.

No one dared.

Cassian picked up a piece of chalk.

Across the board he wrote two words:

History Repeats.

Turning to face the class, he said,
"Tell me. Why do civilizations fall?"

Hands rose slowly.

"War."
"Greed."
"Politics."
"Power."

Cassian nodded once.

"Correct. But incomplete."

His gaze swept the room.

Finally, it rested on Aurelia.

"You."

Every eye turned to her.

"What is your name?"

"...Aurelia Valerius."

"Answer."

She hesitated briefly.

"They fall..."
"...because people refuse to learn from the past."

Silence.

Cassian's eyes lingered on hers.

Then...

For the briefest moment...

Something unreadable flickered across his face.

"Correct."

He looked away before anyone noticed.

But Vivienne saw it.

The softness.
The hesitation.
The impossible familiarity.

Her nails dug into her notebook.

Why her?
Why did everyone look at Aurelia like she was special?

The lecture continued.

Ancient kingdoms.
Forgotten wars.
Broken alliances.

Cassian spoke with such precision that even the most distracted students listened.

Aurelia found herself unable to look away.

Not because he was handsome.

Though he undeniably was.

It was something else.

The sadness behind his eyes.

A sadness that felt...

Familiar.

As if she had once been the cause.

The thought made her chest ache.

The bell rang.

Students hurried toward the door.

"Aurelia."

She stopped.

Cassian stood at the front.

"I'd like a word."

The room fell silent.

Emily looked puzzled.

Vivienne's expression darkened.

As the last student left...

Cassian closed the door.

Only the two remained.

For a long moment...

Neither spoke.

Then Cassian walked to his desk and picked up an old silver pendant that had slipped from Aurelia's bag during class.

He held it out.

"You dropped this."

Their fingers brushed again.

Another jolt.

Stronger than before.

Aurelia looked up.

The pendant bore the crest of House Valerius—a symbol unseen for generations.

Cassian's heartbeat quickened.

He masked it behind his usual calm.

"Be careful with things that are... irreplaceable."

Aurelia nodded, slipping it beneath her shirt.

"I will."

She turned to leave.

Just before reaching the door, Cassian spoke without looking at her.

"Miss Valerius."

She glanced back.

"If you ever feel..."

He stopped himself.

"...Never mind."

For the first time in years...

Cassian Veyre didn't know what to say.

Aurelia offered a small, confused smile before leaving.

The door clicked shut.

Cassian stared at his reflection in the window.

His wolf whispered one word.

Found.

One forgotten pendant. One dangerous secret. And one question Cassian can't ignore...

What happens next? 👀

Some names are spoken for the first time...

Yet they echo like a memory.