"Someone had invested a fortune to erase me."
I clenched my fists.
It didn't make sense. No matter how much influence my father had, he wasn't a national threat. Something wasn't right. It was personal. Intentional.
"So... is this going to continue?" I asked, trying to stay calm. Inside, my heart was racing. "Are they going to send more?"
"Without a doubt," he gave me a serious look. "The Black Emblem doesn't fail. When they make a mistake, they come back. Until the contract is fulfilled."
I thought about what had happened today. How that man moved with speed, precision and lethality. He was a born killer. And yet... I took him down. One by one, with my shots. One in the heart, another in the shoulder, then in the knee. And finally... the head.
I'd never felt anything like it.
The excitement of hitting. Of controlling the field. Seeing the enemy fall before he could even reach me.
Today I understood: my bow is more than a weapon. It's my instinct. My extension.
"They can send as many as they want." I said quietly. "I'm going to take them all down."
My father turned to me with a slight smile—not a happy one. A grim smile, like that of someone who knows that war has begun.
"What's your idea?" I asked.
He stood up, walked over to the corpse, and looked down at it like a king judging a traitor.
"Let's send a message. We mustn't appear weak. On the contrary... we're going to show exactly what happens to anyone who tries anything against our family."
"What do you want to do?"
"Expose the body at the entrance to the mansion. Without hiding anything. I want everyone to see it. I want them to know. And to think twice before accepting a coin to kill us."
I stared at the corpse.
His eyes were still open. They stared at the ceiling as if searching for answers. But there was no one else there. Just emptiness.
Something strange awoke in me at that moment.
A warm feeling in my gut. A shiver ran down my spine. My mouth went dry and I felt my teeth clench.
It wasn't fear.
It was hunger.
A cold, silent hunger... that came with the idea that more of them were coming. And that I would be ready. Not by running away. Not hiding. But waiting.
I pointed to the corpse.
"They'll see this. And they'll know that the next one will fall faster."
My father nodded. The war had begun.
And I, for the first time... felt ready for it.
***
The next day.
I closed the door behind me and, without hesitation, plunged into the bath. The hot water enveloped my body like a silent blanket, erasing, if only for a moment, the weight of yesterday's bloodshed.
Only then did I realize how exhausted I was. Physically and mentally.
I knew the outside world was cruel, of course. But knowing is different from feeling. And yesterday... yesterday was the first time I saw death stare at me so closely - and smile.
I had always been treated as a warrior, even called a commander by some of the younger ones, as if that were a definitive title. But now I understand the truth: having skill with a bow doesn't mean you know how to kill with it. Knowing how to aim and shoot is not the same as mastering the art of war.
If I really had total control... that arrow would have gone through the assassin's skull before he even smelled the wet stone of the castle.
That's why archers are feared.
A good archer with a bow in his hands can be more devastating than a hundred soldiers. He can change the course of a battle before it begins. He can decide who lives... and who won't have time to scream.
I closed my eyes for a moment, taking a deep breath, and the water around me shuddered slightly.
If I hadn't been there yesterday... if my father had been away, as he usually is, that man would have done whatever he wanted inside the castle. He would have cleared the way until he lured my father into an ambush, where all his advantages would be for nothing. Maybe that's why they came after me first.
Maybe I was just a rehearsal.
I got out of the bath slowly, feeling the heat drain from my skin as if it were taking away my doubts. I took the towel and dried myself in silence, then put on clean, simple clothes, without any ostentatious marks. I was still digesting everything.
In the next room, Vera and Nora were still asleep. The confusion of the previous day had been resolved. The family understood the misunderstanding. And although I hadn't touched either of them, my parents had noticed - and were grateful.
What happened between us became a secret. A silent pact. A delicate balance.
Both of them are still with me, helping out on a daily basis, learning, maturing. They're growing up, and it's curious to see this up close. I let them. Not because I have to... but because they deserve this chance.
I finished getting ready and left the lodge. The morning wind blew cold against my face, and the haze of the New Moon still hung low over the streets. The city still seemed asleep, but I was already awake.
I went straight to school.
I didn't notice any new changes after consuming more centipedes. That strange, unique sensation I felt the first time... disappeared. But something inside me was still changing.
Hunger.
My appetite grew. It wasn't just a desire to eat - it was as if my body was demanding more energy, more matter, as if it was preparing for something. Something bigger.
The centipede didn't speed up the process, but dampened the hunger. And day after day, I notice differences. My reflexes, my strength, even my endurance. I test myself alone, when no one sees. I climb towers, run distances, hold the bow until my arm shakes.
I got into the carriage and headed off to school.
Since the attack, I've barely had time to think about Victoria... or anything else. All that occupies my mind now is one thing:
Becoming stronger.
The knowledge from the school is precious. Valuable as gold. Every lesson, every sentence from the teachers, every old text. I absorb it all. I analyze everything. I know this place is a blessing - few have access to what we have in New Moon. Our school is respected even by the empire. The teachers are protected as nobles. Well paid. Irreplaceable.
I can't wait to get to fourth year.
Only then will I have access to the school's internal library. They say that's where the real secrets begin.
And I need them all.