Chapter 37 PALE FACE

Chapter 37 PALE FACE
CHAPTER 37. PALE FACE

IRIS'S POV

The moment that sentence escapes her lips, the world crashes down directly onto my shoulders.

I freeze. The air in the hall turns to absolute ice, trapping the breath in my throat. Around us, the entire hallway goes dead silent, as if someone has ripped the audio right out of reality. Nobody moves. Nobody breathes. Every single pair of eyes is locked onto me, wide with a mixture of horror and disbelief.

"I knew it," Kaelen murmurs.

His voice is a low, grounded anchor in the middle of the sudden chaos. I feel his hands, warm and solid, slipping under my arms to help me up. My knees are like water, threatening to buckle and drop me right back onto the cold stone floor.

Across the hallway, Sierra the witch backs away from me. She retreats toward her far pedestal, her dark robes sweeping against the floor as she puts some distance between us. I stand trembling a few meters away, my gaze flickering from her to the council of elders. They are staring at her as if she has completely lost her mind.

Sierra folds her arms across her chest, entirely unfazed by their silent judgment. She looks at the elders, then looks back at me, a calm, knowing expression settling over her features.

Elder Cyphros is the first to break the silence. He scoffs, a harsh, grating sound that echoes off the high walls. "There is no way in hell," he barks, his voice dripping with absolute denial.

Sierra merely raises a single, elegant eyebrow. "You just saw the signs with your own eyes, Elder," she says, her tone smooth and casual, though a dangerous undercurrent runs through it. "And you’re still doubting it?"

Cyphros his teeth together so hard I can hear the bone click. A flash of pure frustration crosses his face; he looks utterly humiliated to be proven wrong in front of minors. He frowns deeply, his piercing, blood-red eyes boring into me, searching for a flaw, a lie—anything to discredit what just happened.

I don't know what is happening to me, but a sudden, overwhelming wave of exhaustion hits me like a physical blow. The room spins violently.

Before my legs can give out completely, Kaelen steps closer, stepping into my collapsing space. He doesn't just hold me up; he sweeps me off my feet entirely, cradling me against his chest. I instinctively clutch at his shirt, looking up into his face.

When our eyes meet, I see something in his gaze that I have never encountered in anyone before. It isn't fear, and it isn't the cold calculation of the elders. It's a fierce, protective reverence. The sight of it causes a strange, beautiful warmth to pool deep within my chest, countering the icy dread in my veins. My eyelids flutter, heavy as lead, as I swallow hard against the lump in my throat.

Kaelen smiles down at me, a soft, breathless expression. He brushes a few stray strands of hair away from my sweaty forehead, shaking his head in sheer astonishment.

"Right from the moment I saw you back in that field, I knew you were extraordinary," he whispers, his voice meant only for me. "I didn't understand how you managed to do what you did, how you kept yourself protected, but I knew you were something else entirely. Whatever brought you here, it happened for a reason. You were being directed to exactly where you belong."

The warmth of his words spreads through me, but the heavy reality of the room quickly pulls me back. Out of the corner of my eye, I notice the elders keeping a strict, wary distance from us. They watch our interaction like scientists observing a dangerous, unpredictable anomaly.

"Give us some space, Kaelen," Elder Cyprus commands, his voice cutting through the air.

Kaelen doesn't move. He tightens his grip on me, his jaw tightening as he glares back at the elder.

"Kaelen," Cyprus repeats, his tone sharpening, dropping an octave to deliver a booming command.

I feel Kaelen roll his eyes, a silent, defiant gesture. Slowly, reluctantly, he begins to lower my feet back to the ground to see if I can stand. But the moment my boots touch the floor, my wobbly legs completely give way.

Kaelen catches me instantly, pulling me back against his solid frame. "She's too weak," he snaps, his protective instincts flaring. "She needs warmth. She needs rest."

Elder Cyprus lets out another bitter sneer. "Yeah, right. So supernatural she is, yet she can't even stand upright on her own two feet," he mocks, crossing his arms.

A low, menacing growl rumbles deep in Kaelen's chest. He takes a sharp step toward the elder, shielding me with his body. "Did you not just see the sheer amount of power that just left her body? You should be well aware that she is entirely new to this. She doesn't understand what is happening to her, let alone what she is. Can't you show a single shred of consideration for someone who is completely new to our system? For someone who is one of our own? She has been completely blind to the existence of all of this her entire life, and you're just going to stand there and act this harsh?"

Elder Cyprus doesn't offer a response. He completely ignores Kaelen's outburst, keeping his squinted, piercing red eyes locked onto me.

I am still struggling to move, trying to clear the thick fog in my brain and figure out the bizarre physics of the man standing before me. He exhibits undeniable vampire characteristics—the crimson eyes, the cold aura—but a greater, overwhelming part of his presence reveals the raw, feral nature of a wolf. A hybrid, the thought drifts through my mind. Perhaps he is a hybrid of both worlds.

Honestly, my mind is spinning too fast to bother with the supernatural anatomy of the council. A brutal, rhythmic pounding starts up in my skull, mimicking the heavy thud of a hammer. It feels like my head is literally being pulled apart from the inside out.

"She's exhausted," Sierra interjects quickly, stepping forward to cut through the mounting tension.

Every head in the hallway snaps toward the witch.

"She needs to rest immediately," Sierra continues, her voice firm and unyielding. "I am certain you all have a thousand questions, and I'm sure there are just as many answers we need to find as to why she is like this. But you are going to have to give her some breathing space, sir."

Elder Cyprus narrows his eyes at Sierra, his gaze calculating. He turns his head slowly back to me, clearly reluctant to let the matter drop. He wants answers now, but even he can see that I am on the verge of collapsing into unconsciousness.

Finally, he exhales a heavy, irritated breath. "We will deal with this in the morning," he declares. He glances sharply at Kaelen. "I entrust her into your hands for the night. I am not familiar with the layout of the school's premises or its many rooms, so you must take her to your private quarters. Ensure you take good care of her. See to it that she is strengthened and recovered enough to be thoroughly questioned in the morning. This matter is far from settled. We cannot risk letting the wrath of the moon goddess and the supernatural goddess befall our hands due to negligence. You may all leave."

Without another word, the elder turns on his heel, his heavy cloak billowing behind him as he stalks away down the corridor.

The exact moment he rounds the corner, the suffocating pressure in the room finally lifts, but the sudden release causes my body to crash in full force. A wave of intense nausea washes over me. I feel incredibly heavy, my stomach churning violently as if I am about to vomit. Deep within my veins, something foreign and terrifying begins to crawl, squirming beneath my skin.

I clench my fists tightly, my fingernails digging into my palms as a violent shiver wracks my entire frame.

"I... I don't feel so good," I whisper, the words barely catching on my lips.

Kaelen looks down at me, a flash of pure panic and worry washing over his features. Without hesitating, he lifts me back up into his arms, cradling me securely against his chest. He spins around, facing the witch with desperation in his eyes.

"We have to do something prompt about this," Kaelen pleads, his voice cracking slightly under the weight of his worry. "Can you help her?"

Sierra steps closer, her analytical expression softening into genuine concern as she takes in my shivering form and pale face.

"Bring her with me," Sierra says urgently, gesturing toward a door down the hall. "I can do something about this. Hurry."