Chapter 1 One

It was the beginning of a new session in Nocturne Academy, and everyone was excited.

The academy grounds buzzed with life as students arrived in expensive cars, dressed in designer uniforms tailored to perfection, laughing as they reunited with friends after the break. A new session meant a new class, one step closer to graduation, one step closer to college, and for the noble heirs of Sangravia, one step closer to inheriting power.

There were celebrations everywhere.

Music blasted from the academy courtyard. Students compared gifts from their families, new cars, rare jewelry, and custom leather jackets from elite designers. The atmosphere was alive with excitement and pride.

But it wasn’t so for Lyra Vale.

Lyra lay in bed staring at the ceiling as the alarm bell rang sharply through her room.

She hated that morning had come.

The bruises from last session were gone, but the memories were not, the humiliation, the laughter, the whispered insults. 

The hands that shoved her down staircases and slammed her into lockers.

Even after two months away from school, every cruel moment still burned fresh inside her chest.

If there was any way to avoid returning to Nocturne Academy, she would have taken it.

But no one cared whether she went to school or not, no one cared about Lyra. She let out a slow breath and shut off the alarm, forcing herself to sit up.

Her room was cold and plain, tucked away in the far corner of the Vale estate like something forgotten. While the rest of the house gleamed with polished luxury, Lyra’s room felt like a storage space someone reluctantly allowed her to use.

That was exactly what her life had always felt like since she was the shame of the Vale family. She was born from her mother's affair with an unknown outsider, she carried the stain of mixed blood in a world where blood purity meant everything.

In Sangravia, your blood determined your worth, the Gold Bloods ruled, Red Bloods commanded fear, Blue Bloods were respected, Green Bloods lived comfortably, and Pink Bloods?

Pink Bloods were despised, they were reminders of broken bloodlines, of disgrace and impurity. It's a symbol of unfaithfulness if you slept with someone outside Sangravia and Lyra was one of them.

Her mother had died when she was young, leaving her in the care of a father who hated what she represented. Her siblings had inherited the pure Blue Blood of the Vale family.

Only Lyra carried the mark of betrayal and she had grown up unwanted in her own home, invisible unless someone needed someone to blame.

And school was no different.

At Nocturne Academy, blood rank mattered more than kindness, and Lyra had spent every session learning how cruel people could be when they believed someone was beneath them.

She got out of bed slowly, moving through the motions she knew too well, brushed her teeth, washed her face, took a bath, came out, and applied cream on her body, put on the academy uniform, buttoned the collar, tie the ribbon. 

She stared at herself in the mirror once she was dressed.

Her silver-blonde hair fell in soft waves over her shoulders, and her pale lavender eyes looked dull despite their natural brightness.

People said she was pretty but that never saved her from being the target of everyone if she wasn't careful. 

At Nocturne, beauty without status only made her more of a target. She grabbed her bag and headed downstairs.

As expected, the family was already gathered around the dining table. Her father sat at the head, reading the morning reports.

Cain, her older brother, laughed at something on his phone.

Elara, her younger sister, sat elegantly beside him, sipping tea.

No one acknowledged Lyra’s arrival.

She moved quietly toward the kitchen counter, deciding to make herself coffee instead of joining them.

She was reaching for a cup when Elara suddenly spoke.

“So,” her sister said lightly, “how long do you think it’ll take before someone puts you back in the hospital this session?”

The room filled with quiet laughter and Lyra froze, the words struck hard but she kept her face blank unable to say a word. She had long ago learnt that silence was safer and any reaction only entertained them. 

So she poured her coffee with steady hands even though her chest burned. 

"Make sure you don't make us come to school because you managed to report some bullies to the school, I don't want a hassle like that as a big brother," Cain said and they laughed even harder. 

"You're going to wear your old uniform to a new session? When everyone is getting new clothes, you're going in THAT!" Elara pressed harder. 

Lyra looked at her dressing and then at her father. 

Her father didn't even look up and once he did, "Table manners!" He blared at them and they kept quiet, eating at the table. 

Lyra was saved when her phone buzzed in her pocket.

She quickly pulled it out and Selene was calling, she answered immediately. 

“Where are you?” Selene’s cheerful voice burst through the phone. “I’m downstairs waiting with my new car, and if you don’t come out in the next minute, I’m leaving you.”

A small smile tugged at Lyra’s lips for the first time that morning, “I’m coming.” She grabbed her bag and left the kitchen without another word.

Outside the house, a sleek emerald car was parked in the driveway. Selene leaned against it, grinning.

“Finally.” Selene Ardent was the only person who treated Lyra like she mattered. 

She was Green Blood, comfortable, socially accepted, but not obsessed with rank like everyone else at Nocturne. Loud, fearless, and impossible to embarrass, Selene had chosen Lyra as a friend years ago and never cared what anyone thought.

Though in the last session, they weren't in the same class and that's why she had the worst session of her life since Selene wasn't always there to protect her. But hopefully this session, they would end up together again..

Selene's dark curls bounced as she threw her arms open dramatically, “Well?” she said. “What do you think of my baby?”

Lyra laughed softly, “It’s beautiful.” she admired. 

“I know,” Selene said proudly. "Guess what?" She said genuflecting and not even giving Lyra a minute to think before she burst the bubble.

"I'm in the same class with you!" She announced and Lyra leaped for joy before jumping into her arms. They danced around each other before Selene pushed her off trying so hard to keep a straight face. 

 “Let's get in before we’re late,” she said as they hurried into the car. 

The drive to school was the calmest part of Lyra’s day.

Selene filled the air with chatter about the break, the car, the academy gossip, and for a while Lyra even found herself laughing.

But the moment the gates of Nocturne Academy came into view, the ease inside her vanished. The towering black gates opened and students flooded the grounds.

The academy stood in all its grandeur, beautiful, cold, and merciless. Selene parked in the lot, and together they headed to class.

Lyra’s heart pounded as they entered the room, then her stomach dropped as she saw Seraphina Valeth. 

She was in the same class with her again.