The following morning, Zack found himself sitting through another Ecology class.
Ico, as always, sat beside him in her snug, slightly oversized school uniform. But the lecture was too abstruse for the young dragon girl, whose interest had already dissolved like mist.
"Huff… puff…" She was completely sprawled on her desk, her soft chest rising and falling as she dozed, the fabric of her blouse slightly undone.
"...In other words; Stradias' element is wind, Seshias' element is wind and earth, and Leviathans' element is water."
The woman standing at the lectern was none other than Professor Clarisse—with a figure that often distracted even the most focused of students. She had an unusually intense interest in Ico as a subject of research, and for that very reason, Zack was always on edge around her, worried she might swoop in to "examine" Ico more closely.
"Well then, what is a Vaestro's element?" Clarisse asked with a crisp voice, her gaze scanning over her students before stopping at the register. "Let's have Princess Silva answer this one."
Silva, however, sat still and unmoved, gazing listlessly out the window. She looked like she wasn't even aware she'd been called.
"Princess? Is something the matter?" Clarisse's voice held a note of concern now—but Silva didn't budge.
"Geez... Then, Chaterine Peggau, please answer."
"Yes!"
Chaterine stood up like a spring, her golden curls bouncing with enthusiasm. Her chest puffed up, straining her tight blouse just a bit too high for comfort.
"A Vaestro's element is light." She answered with confident elegance.
"Right… is what I would like to say, but unfortunately, you were only half-right." Clarisse smirked. "A Vaestro's element is indeed light, but they also retain the original element of their dragon lineage. For example, a Vaestro born from a Stradia would possess both light and wind elements."
"Hey, Zack. What's up with Silva?" Rayleigh whispered, ignoring the lecture entirely as he leaned toward Zack.
Zack sighed deeply, eyes drifting toward Silva's lifeless expression. "She's been completely out of it ever since she heard that the Ironblood Valkyrie is coming to Roshar. It's like the news shattered her."
Rayleigh tilted his head, puzzled. "Wait, the 'Ironblood Valkyrie' is her older sister, right? What kind of trauma could a family visit cause?"
Zack scratched the back of his head. "I don't really know the full story…"
"Would you like me to explain?" came a sweet, silken voice behind them.
Zack nearly jumped out of his chair.
"Shanon?! What are you doing here?!"
Seated elegantly in a vacant seat behind them, Shanon wore her royal maid uniform with pride—tight-fitting and meticulously arranged. Despite the formal outfit, her tone was light and teasing.
"Hehehe. Since Her Highness has fallen into such a slump, it is my sworn duty to guard her—even if from the shadows. Professor Clarisse has kindly permitted it."
"You call this 'guarding from the shadows'?" Zack muttered in disbelief, but his concern shifted quickly back to Silva.
"I'm more worried about the reason she's like this."
"Are you worried as a classmate… or as a man?" Shanon asked, her voice dipping with a sultry smirk.
Zack's face instantly turned scarlet. "Y-You…! Don't say weird stuff like that! The princess and I are just comrades from the battlefield and student council members. It's only natural to worry!"
"Oh? If you insist. I'll let it slide for now." Her smirk deepened. "Her Highness Vivian is a warrior through and through—raised with discipline so brutal that it would break the average person. From the time Silva could walk, she was subjected to survival training. Pushed into freezing lakes, forced to explore haunted ruins, made to climb sheer city walls barefoot… even sent into cursed forests."
Zack's jaw dropped. "That's not training—that's just cruelty."
Shanon gave a sweet giggle. "Incidentally, I played the ghost in the haunted forest."
"YOU were part of that?! That's insane!"
It was no wonder Silva was so fragile when it came to her older sister. Vivian had effectively become a symbol of terror. Her name alone sent shivers down the spines of knights.
"That's why, for Silva, her sister is the embodiment of childhood trauma. It's more than just sibling rivalry."
"I get it now…" Zack sighed heavily. Just the thought of having to meet Vivian soon made his head throb.
"She definitely earned her nickname, that's for sure. Still... I do like strong women," Rayleigh muttered with a dreamy expression.
"You do you, man. I'm not judging."
"…Stradia, Seshia, and Leviathan—what are the necessary conditions for them to become Vaestros?" Clarisse's voice cut through Zack's musings. "Zack. Answer that question."
"W-What? Me?" Zack stood up awkwardly. Clarisse's gaze felt like a scalpel slicing through his mind. At the same time, her gaze flicked toward the sleeping Ico, who had slipped further down onto her desk, her skirt riding dangerously high.
Zack gulped.
"Uh… I don't know."
"Correct."
"I'm sorry—wait, what?"
Clarisse smiled playfully. "That's right. Scholars have debated the conditions for a dragon to become a Vaestro for centuries. But the truth is still unknown."
She shut the textbook and addressed the class.
"Old records suggest dragons once became Vaestros naturally. But after the near-extinction event, the frequency dropped drastically. Even now, most dragons die before ever reaching that stage."
The class erupted into whispers and questions. It was the first Zack had heard of this, and the implications were heavy.
"Which is why... some scholars now question the role of breeders. What if the key to evolving into a Vaestro lies not with the dragon… but with the breeder?"
The bell rang, cutting her off. Class was dismissed. Silva, looking like a ghost, was helped out by Shanon.
Zack remained seated, concern still etched into his brow. "Is the princess really going to be alright…?"
There were only six days left until Princess Vivian's arrival. With each day, Silva only grew more anxious. But the real question burned in Zack's mind—Why now?
"Officially, Vivian's visiting to inspect the city after the Necromancia attack," Roderika had explained, "but in reality, she's likely coming as a representative of the Royal Knight's Hawks."
That meant more than inspection. She was coming to investigate the threat. A warrior without peer—Vivian had ended wars, led armies, and slain monsters. She'd embarked on her first campaign at just twelve years old.
Though not a breeder, Vivian overcame a congenital illness through sheer grit. Her strength in battle was terrifying—she charged first, cleaved enemies by the dozen, and never once lost a duel. It was said she could decapitate three men in a single stroke.
Some bards claimed she slew a basilisk with nothing but a sword—no armor, no allies. And that was why they called her the Ironblood Valkyrie.
But not everyone admired her. With such brutal effectiveness came a trail of enemies—survivors of conflicts she'd crushed. Assassins who still whispered her name with hate.
The city was only just recovering from the Necromancia attack, and now they had to host a living legend… and a walking storm. Even the principal of Roshar had begun to sweat.