No one at Romance Academy expected the silence.
After the first Claiming Trial, the grounds should have been loud—arguments, sobs, anger, relief. Instead, an unnatural stillness spread through the academy, heavy and watchful, as if the magic itself was holding its breath.
Lyra felt it before she understood it.
Her chest tightened sharply as she crossed the courtyard with Kael, a sudden ache rippling through her bond—not pain, but disturbance, like a thread snapping somewhere far away.
Kael stopped mid-step.
"You felt that," he said quietly.
Before Lyra could answer, a scream cut through the air.
Everyone turned.
Near the eastern training ring, a crowd had formed. Students pushed closer, whispers rising in panic. Lyra's heart pounded as she and Kael forced their way through.
At the center stood Ivy.
She was on her knees.
Her hands clutched her chest, her face pale, tears streaking down her cheeks—but it wasn't her crying that froze the crowd.
It was the look on Darian's face.
He stood a few steps away from her, unmoving, eyes wide and hollow, as if something vital had been ripped out of him. The bond-mark on his wrist—once glowing softly—was fading. Cracking. Breaking.
"No…" he whispered. "Ivy, please. Look at me."
Ivy shook her head violently. "I can't," she sobbed. "I tried. I really tried. But every time the trials come, every time they threaten us… I'm terrified. And fear keeps growing until there's no room left for love."
The unclaimed male who had challenged her stood nearby, face unreadable. He hadn't touched her. Hadn't forced her.
He had only whispered doubt.
Headmistress Selvara stepped forward, her expression grave. "Speak clearly, Ivy," she said. "Do you reject the bond?"
The words hit like a blade.
Lyra's breath caught. Kael's hand tightened around hers.
"I don't want to hurt him," Ivy cried, looking at Darian at last. "But I can't keep breaking every day just to prove I'm strong enough to love him."
Darian took a step forward, his voice breaking. "We could have fought it together. I would have protected you. I still will."
Ivy's tears fell harder. "That's why it hurts so much."
Silence fell.
Then, barely above a whisper, she spoke the words no one had ever heard spoken aloud at Romance Academy.
"I release the bond."
The air shattered.
Magic recoiled violently, a shockwave rippling through the ring. Several students stumbled back. Lyra cried out, her wolf howling in agony at the sound—an instinctive response to a bond dying.
Darian collapsed to his knees.
Not screaming.
Not crying.
Just… empty.
The glowing thread between them vanished completely, dissolving into ash-like light that faded into nothing.
A bond had broken.
For the first time in the academy's history.
Students stared in horror. Some girls clutched their mates tighter. Others trembled, fear settling deep in their bones.
"This changes everything," someone whispered.
Lyra felt sick.
She had believed bonds were unbreakable—challenged, tested, scarred, but eternal. Watching Darian's silent grief made her chest ache painfully.
Kael pulled her closer, his voice low and shaken. "If bonds can break… then nothing here is safe."
Headmistress Selvara raised her staff, her voice echoing with sorrow and warning. "Let this be known. Love is powerful—but it is not invincible. Those who challenge bonds must now face the truth: breaking one has consequences far beyond heartbreak."
As healers led Ivy away, Darian remained where he was, staring at the ground like a part of him had died.
Lyra couldn't look away.
She pressed her hand to her chest, feeling her bond with Kael burn warm and fierce—alive, whole.
But fear crept in beside it.
If one bond could break…
What would it take to break hers?
And why did the academy's ancient magic feel so uneasy, as if something far worse had just been awakened?