Chapter 204: Academy Initiation.
Nicholas took a seat on one of the hovering armchairs like it was his own living room, his posture smooth and confident, legs crossed with aristocratic grace.
It was as if he were sipping wine on a palace balcony instead of sitting in the private villa of the most dangerously unpredictable newcomer in the Ambassadors Academy.
Creed leaned back across from him on the other couch, one arm draped along the top, relaxed but focused.
The girls had vanished into the background for now; Lilith sharpening her nails with methodical precision, Tierra flipping through one of Creed’s weapon catalogues with genuine interest, and Meredith trying to balance an orange on her hex for reasons that defied all logic.
It gave the room a strange quiet, like the eye of a storm, perfect for what Nicholas was about to drop next.
"There’s something you should know," he began smoothly, his voice low but direct, each word carefully measured.
"And I’m only telling you this because it’s better you hear it from me than get blindsided like an idiot stumbling into a dragon’s nest. There’s an... initiation."
Creed blinked, his expression shifting from casual interest to alert attention. "Initiation? Like a welcoming party with cake and awkward icebreakers?"
Nicholas raised an eyebrow, a smile playing at the corners of his mouth but not reaching his eyes.
"Yeah, if by ’welcoming party’ you mean an ambush led by a pack of violent seniors who treat you like a training dummy made of flesh and regret."
Creed straightened slightly, his relaxed demeanor evaporating like morning mist. "Wait, what exactly are we talking about here?"