Chapter 5. In the Middle of the Forest: pt. 2

After we arrived in the dining hall, I immediately looked around. The chairs and tables were made of wood, just like the floor. Small chandeliers were even hung from the ceiling. It was also cool inside because of the centralized air conditioning. But even so, the food smelled fresh.

A lot of students were also starting to fill up the cafeteria. Thatʼs why we immediately lined up to buy food.

I bought pizza, spaghetti, and a can of Coke, while Mikan bought pasta, a sandwich, and juice.

As I looked for a place to sit, the empty table in the middle caught my eye. I was about to sit there when Mikan suddenly pulled me away again.

“Why do you keep on dragging me?” I snapped at her.

“Look around you,” she whispered nervously.

I rolled my eyes and did what she said.

I frowned. Why do they take a bad look at me? What did I do? Can someone please explain to me what the hell is going on?

We sat at the far end, on the left.

“Whatʼs with those weird stares?” I asked when we sat down.

She looked at me in disbelief. “You really donʼt know yet?”

My forehead creased. Besides the fact that Butler Lin gave me a tour of the entire academy earlier and gave me a bracelet, he didnʼt mention anything else.

“Donʼt know what? Hello? Newbie here!” I irritably said to her.

She looked at me seriously. “Listen carefully, okay?”

I nodded at her.

She took a deep breath before she continued.

“Because the seat you intended to take earlier is reserved for the children of the owner of the academy, including their cousins ​​and friends. So, if you still value your life, donʼt make the mistake of sitting there.” She looked around before bringing her face closer to mine.

“Also, do not touch anything here that is exclusively for them. People here will gang up on you. Students here treat those siblings as a prince and princess, as well as their cousins ​​and friends. All six of them are respected here. So, the number one rule here is to never get on their bad side,” she calmly and slowly explained to me.

My brow rose.

Respected? They think too much of themselves. I donʼt care if theyʼre the son or daughter of the president or even of a king from a faraway land. My point is that all of us here are just the same—we are all just students and people. There must be equality here!

“Have you seen them?” I asked curiously. In truth, it is still hard to believe what she said. I didnʼt think there was anything like it in real life.

A prince and princess? We donʼt have such a thing in our country.

Suddenly, her eyes sparkled.

“Yeah! Theyʼre so awesome! Theyʼre so beautiful and handsome! They often get a perfect score on exams and quizzes. They also know how to use different kinds of instruments and even love sports.” She pouted.

“Itʼs just that Iʼve only seen the prince once because he doesnʼt study here right now.”

I winced. Even though I havenʼt seen them yet, it felt like I never wanted to meet them.

She started eating while I didnʼt say a word. Iʼm still trying to process all the new information I learned in my brain.

What is this place I transferred into? Is this really a school?

But she said something that caught my attention.

“Why isnʼt that supposed prince studying here?”

She immediately covered my mouth with her hand.

I briskly removed her hand. “What are you doing?” I glared at her.

She just gave me a peace sign. “We donʼt talk about them like that. Especially him. Someone might hear you,” she whispered.

I let out a deep sigh before starting to eat again.

I didnʼt care. So what if they heard what I said?

I never thought she was going to answer my question. So, I was surprised when she suddenly spoke again.

“Honestly, no one even knows why. But I heard that he will be studying here this year.” Her voice was filled with excitement.

I just shook my head when I suddenly looked at the bracelet she was wearing, which was the same as mine.

“Last question,” I said while she was murdering her pasta.

“Spill it.”

“Whatʼs up with that bracelet?” I asked while pointing at it.

Suddenly, she stopped eating and looked at it. “They say that itʼs for protection. Iʼve been wearing it for five years now, so Iʼm used to it already.”

“But donʼt you find it weird? If the students here are required to wear that, why donʼt most of us have that? The biggest question is protection for what?”

She shrugged. “Honestly, thatʼs what I thought at first. But I didnʼt know anything else strange about it. All I know is, whoever gets it is required to wear it all the time. That is one of the major rules here that all of us who have this have to follow.”

Her face suddenly became serious before her gaze dropped to my wrist.

“Do you have this one too?” Sheʼs now looking directly into my eyes.

I met her gaze. “Yeah. And I donʼt have any plans to wear it until I discover the truth behind it,” I said with finality, then stood up and left her.

***

Ever since I left Mikan in the dining hall earlier, she hasnʼt spoken to me again.

Which is a good thing. My world is more peaceful, and I can finally think straight now.

When our last class for today finally ended, I was the first one to storm out of the room. I didnʼt even manage to look at Mikan.

Iʼve been thinking about it for a while, and now Iʼve decided.

This academy has lots of mysteries and secrets. And I won't let myself not find out about them.

My first destination was the forest.

I got here safely because no one else was around. If they really forbid entry here, it should at least have a guard or a barrier.

But there was none. The whole area was wide open, and the atmosphere was so inviting.

I started to walk into the forest. I didnʼt see anything else around other than trees, plants, and different kinds of flowers. Only the sound of the wind and the chirping of birds could be heard. There were also many small trees, branches, and stones scattered everywhere I passed. I just walked straight so I wouldn't get lost.

I turned my back. I could still see the academy from here. But I knew I had come a long way.

I looked down at my wristwatch. It was already 5:00 pm. It was still early, after all. But the tall trees blocked the little light that entered the forest, making my surroundings darker.

I sighed deeply. I wondered whether I should continue or not. It looked like I had nothing to gain from this.

A few minutes had passed, and I finally decided to go back. But when I was about to turn my back, I tripped on a rock in front of me. I noticed that something was flashing in front of me, but I just didnʼt pay attention to it.

I slowly stood up, and when I looked up, I saw something...

House? Oh. Scratch that. Itʼs more like a mansion!

But wait. In the middle of the forest inside the academy? Seriously?

I was even more confused. I didnʼt see anything like that while walking earlier.

Until I realized that I was slowly getting closer to it, when I stopped right in front of it, I looked up in amazement and observed its entirety.

It looked like it went up to the fourth floor, and there was a veranda at the very top. It was also surrounded by huge windows that were covered by long curtains from the inside. There were also two pillars in front and a door in the middle.

Who actually lived here? Academy staff? Because Butler Lin told me earlier that the entire academy still covers this inner forest.

But the joy and wonder I was feeling suddenly changed to fear and trepidation when a strong wind blew, and someone spoke from behind me.

“Who are you, and how the hell did you enter here?”