I was halfway through a honey cake, which was, admittedly, excellent, when I felt it.
Eyes on me. Not the curious glances I'd been getting from other nobles, but something heavier. More deliberate.
I turned and saw Father standing with a group of older lords, his expression thunderous as he stared directly at me.
Victor stood beside him, looking uncomfortable. And the other nobles, three middle-aged men in expensive formal wear, were glancing between Father and me with barely concealed amusement.
Shit.
"I should go," I said abruptly, interrupting Seraphina mid-sentence.
"What? But we were just—"
"I need to get back to my family. Sorry."
I handed the half-eaten honey cake to Isabelle and extracted myself from Seraphina's grip before she could protest further.
"Thank you for the company," I said giving them a quick bow, then turned and headed toward Father's group.
Each step felt heavier than the last.
As I approached, I caught bits of conversation.
"Your son seems to be enjoying himself," one of the lords was saying, his tone carrying that particular inflection that made innocent words sound like criticism.
"Indeed," Father replied, his voice tight. "Jin has always been... social."
And the way he said 'social' made it sound like a character flaw.
Another lord with an impressive beard chuckled. "Nothing wrong with that at his age. Though I suppose it's different when they're preparing for more serious matters."
"Speaking of," the third lord interjected smoothly, "Lord Markhus, your son Sadrian must be excited about the academy entrance examination. Two weeks away, isn't it?"
Lord Markhus straightened with obvious pride. "Very excited. His instructors say he's testing at advanced combat levels. We're expecting him to place in the top rankings for his year."
"Impressive," the bearded lord said. "My own boy, Henrik, has been training with a former academy champion. His magic affinity scores are exceptional, fire and earth dual casting."
The portly lord nodded along. "The examination is quite rigorous, I hear. Only the best candidates make it through. But I'm sure all our children will do wonderfully."
He paused, then looked at Father with exaggerated concern. "Jin will be taking the examination as well, won't he? Being seventeen now?"
The question hung in the air like a blade.
I reached the edge of the group just in time to see Father's jaw clench.
"Yes," he said curtly. "Jin will be attending."
"Wonderful!" The portly lord's smile didn't reach his eyes. "It's so important for all children to have the opportunity."
Oh. We're doing this.
The subtext was clear as daylight.
Public humiliation wrapped in polite conversation.
Lord Marcus continued, oblivious or deliberately ignoring the tension. "Sadrian's been preparing for months. His swordsmanship instructor says he has real potential for the Combat Track. What track is Jin aiming for?"
Father's expression turned cold. "We haven't decided yet."
"Ah, keeping options open. Smart." The bearded lord stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Though I suppose with the examination being so soon, most students have already specialized their training. Henrik's been focusing exclusively on offensive magic for the past year."
"Dedication is key," the portly lord agreed.
I stood there, silent, watching Father's reputation take hits from every angle.
And the worst part? They weren't even wrong.
Jin's body had spent years poisoned and malnourished. Despite my eighteen months of recovery and training, I was still leagues behind those children who'd been preparing for the academy their entire lives.
And these lords knew it. Father knew it. Hell, even I knew it.
"Jin," Father said, his voice clipped. "Go wait by the carriage. We're leaving soon."
Not a request. A dismissal.
I nodded silently and turned away, feeling the weight of those lords' amused gazes following me.
As I walked back through the festival crowd, I noticed other eyes on me too.
Marcus Valen, still red-faced and furious, glaring from near a wine stall.
Adrian Westmore, standing alone now, Miriam having apparently abandoned him.
His expression mixing anger and humiliation as he watched me pass.
Two nobles I'd publicly embarrassed in one afternoon.
That wasn't a good idea, I thought, my stomach sinking.
I'd been so focused on the immediate satisfaction for petty revenge, helping Isabelle with her jealousy plot, that I'd completely failed to think about consequences.
Marcus's family had wealth. Adrian's family had influence. Both of them would be at the academy.
Both of them now had very personal reasons to hate me.
And I'd just made enemies of them in the most public way possible.
I'm going to have so many headaches coming.
I reached the carriage and leaned against it, suddenly exhausted.
Twenty minutes passed before Father, Victor, and Cedric finally emerged from the festival, their expressions ranging from thunderous to bored to sullen.
None of them spoke as we climbed into the carriage.
The door shut, and we lurched into motion.
Silence filled the enclosed space, broken only by the sound of wheels on cobblestones and horses' hooves.
Father stared out the window.
Victor examined his fingernails.
Cedric glared at me with undisguised hatred.
I leaned my head against the carriage wall and closed my eyes.
The festival had been... a lot.
Strange. Chaotic. Mildly entertaining in some moments, and uncomfortable in others.
But one thing was certain:
I'd made waves today. Drew attention. Made enemies. Created complications that would absolutely come back to bite me.
The smart thing would've been to stay invisible. Keep my head down. Not antagonize anyone.
But apparently I was done being smart.
Or maybe I'd just stopped caring about playing it safe.
Either way, the next two weeks were going to be interesting.
And by interesting, I meant probably disastrous.
The carriage rolled on through the afternoon light, carrying us back toward the manor.
Back toward whatever came next.
Two weeks until the academy examination.
Two weeks to prepare for whatever hell I'd just brought down on myself.
I kept my eyes closed and tried not to think about how many ways this could go wrong.
Spoiler alert... there were a lot.