I was in Seclusion for so long that everyone forgot about me

When I opened the door, the smell hit me first. Warm, rich, fruity, meaty—spices and the unmistakable smell of fresh bread. Oh yes. My stomach—or whatever I had now—made a sound somewhere between a growl and a plea.

There were a few students inside, though not as many as I expected. The place was apparently called a mensa—a kind shared dining hall where students and professors gathered during their free time. Which, judging by the half-empty room, they didn’t seem to have much of.

Or… maybe the midday meal time was already over? Wait. Did this place have fixed eating hours? Did they ring bells or something? Ugh, didn’t matter. What mattered was filling my belly with food.

Belly—that was still such a weird word to use for myself. I was pretty sure I didn’t actually have one. Not really. Not the way humans did.

Ever since she gave me this new form, something always felt… not quite there. In the beginning, I’d been more of a spectral—barely tangible, but still there. Then, over time, it all got more solid. More like what people would recognize as an elemental. And now, the more I shapeshifted—into animals, humanoids—the more it all felt real. My tail, fingers, ears, tongue… they moved like they actually belonged to me. Like they’d always been mine.

It was strange. Intimate and kind of exciting.

But what surprised me most? I could feel hunger again. Not quite the rumbling, desperate kind—more like an urge. A desire. And oh girl, did it feel good. Not just the hunger, but the taste. After what felt like an eternity of drifting and not eating, being able to put something in my mouth and enjoy it? Absolute bliss.

I mean, it was an eternity. So yeah, checks out.

My internal food quest led me to a counter where people in aprons stood behind glass panels, serving food onto plates and passing them to students to load onto their trays. Others were bringing special dishes out from somewhere in the back—probably the kitchen. The students ahead of me were busy choosing their portions. Some took a little. Others piled their trays high. A few looked like they knew the staff and got something special.

I passed a cluster of tables where students whispered and stole glances in my direction. Some ignored me. A few murmured about ‘the fight’ and ‘the transforming wolf-girl’. Most of it sounded like awe. I tried not to puff up my tail from pride.

Like the good pup I currently was, I trotted into the line and waited my turn.

“I would like some of the meat!” I said with a wide, charming smile.

The old lady behind the counter raised a brow. “Sorry. Students and teaching staff only.”

“But I basically belong to the teaching staff! As of today!” I argued.

She looked at me flatly. “You? I really doubt that. And I don’t think it’s funny that someone sent you here as a joke. Students are supposed to come themselves, not send their servants or slaves.”

My smile dropped fast.

“Listen, lady,” I said, tail flicking. “I’d rather not argue. Lord Ulrich hired me today. I even held a training fight in the arena. Half the academy saw it. Ask literally anyone.”

The woman sighed. “Listen, kid, I’m really not in the moo—”

“She’s telling the t-truth,” a voice squeaked beside me.

I turned to look. A girl, barely five feet tall, stood there with her hands clenched nervously. Long brown hair braided neatly down her back. Big eyes and pointed ears. Yep. Definitely a wood elf.

The old woman blinked at her, then looked back at me with a scowl. “You’re saying this beast-kin’s faculty?”

The girl nodded frantically. “Sh-she belongs to the Jaeger Matriarch! She’s a temporary teacher!”

The lady froze. Her gaze snapped back to me, now very slowly reevaluating her situation. “S-sorry. We get a lot of nobles from the Empire who don’t follow protocol. I assumed th—”

I raised a hand. “Really, no biggie. Just a portion, and something extra I can carry out”

Her demeanor shifted instantly. “Of course, of course,” she said, as she started scooping food onto plates and handing them over.

I glanced back at the elf girl. She was still standing there, fidgeting with the ends of her braid, looking like she regretted saying anything.

“Thanks,” I said, flashing her a grin. “That was nice of you.”

She blinked, then gave a shy nod and practically vanished back into line.

There was so much food behind the glass I didn’t know where to start. So I didn’t choose—I just pointed. This. That. Yes. Double that. That shiny roasted thing that smelled like danger and joy. That weird square thing with sauce. Meat. More meat.

Eventually, my tray was overflowing with plates. A respectable mountain of food. Exactly as it should be~. A few nearby students stared. I saw the look in their eyes: How is she going to eat all that?

From behind me, a voice muttered just loud enough to hear, “Guess even the dogs get fed if they bite hard enough.”

I flicked an ear but didn’t turn around. Not worth it.

What was worth it? Two bread rolls in my sleeves and something suspiciously sticky tucked into a pocket. Maybe I looked like a starved little wolf right now. But honestly? I’d earned it.

They could judge all they wanted. I had a mission. And it was called: Lunch.

It took me only a few minutes to find a table I was comfortable sitting at and I was just about to start eating when the same voice from before came up next to me.

“H-Hello, could I sit here with you?” she asked shyly, a tray with soup and salad in front of her.

I tilted my head. “Sure, I have no problem with that.”

She smiled and sat down. “Th-thank you.”

I smiled back at her and was about to take a bite of the honey-glazed meat when she yet again talked to me.

“C-can I ask you something?”

“Mhrm?” I said, eyeing her.

“Wh-where are you from?” she asked.

“Uh, why do you want to know this? I don’t think it is something that should matter. Do you have a problem with me being here?” I answered, now rather annoyed.

“I-I n-no. I just... your aura, I've never seen something like this before,” she answered sheepishly.

“My aura?” Weird. I don’t think there should be something off about that.

She blinked. “Y-yes! It feels just like the ancient Holy Mother Tree in my hometown.”

I thought for a second. “Malerâ?”

The girl gleamed. “How did you know? I—I mean, most of the beast-kin or humans don't know or care about elven towns... especially not when they're home to wood elves.”

“I’ve been there, actually. Can’t speak the language, but it sure was a beautiful place. Lovely cuisine, lovely people,” I answered honestly, reminded of a past lover who once wanted to show me their home.

“That’s so amazing! I really—” started the girl, but got interrupted by some incoming pests.

“Tana, you’re still here? I’m surprised you didn’t manage to get yourself sold yet,” laughed a girl with a terribly shrill voice. Her hairstyle was… something. You didn’t see platinum-blonde hair ending in princess drills every day. She was about the same height as the wood elf.

“Ida, it's not worth talking to such a lowlife. You do notice that she is unwilling. It’s almost a sacrilege that such rabble is allowed to be within these walls at all. We, as aristocrats, are obliged to ensure that the common folk—and things like her—know where they stand,” the second girl said, letting a bright silvery flame appear in her palm.

I was puzzled for a moment about what kind of magic it was, until I saw how ridiculously weak it was. Was she for real? Unfortunately, the elven girl didn’t seem to share my opinion. Her eyes widened in fear.

The second girl, who was a bit taller than the first and had long, straight raven hair flowing nearly all the way down her back, was about to do something with the weird flame before I cleared my throat.

Jerkily, the three intruders turned towards me and stared as if they hadn’t even noticed I was sitting at the table.

“I didn’t know they let in more dogs. Ran away from your owner?” the first girl scoffed.

Tana looked at me now, her eyes silently begging me not to make it worse. I guess I could play along for a bit.

“Oh, my owner? You mean the Asche Jaeger Matriarch? She’s in the library, whilst I’m allowed to eat here in peace,” I smiled, my fangs showing.

“Huh? As if a Matriarch would be with a beast like you. And I didn’t hear of a Matriarch being here. Stop lying, filthy beast,” the third person of the group said angrily—a boy who stood in the middle of them. He was tall, rather well-toned, and had a hideous bob haircut that looked like he’d lost a bet with a particularly spiteful barber.

I sighed. “Seems like you weren’t here when the headmaster announced us and basically summoned everyone to the arena to watch a mock fight between us and the champions. Who even are you three clowns?”

The boy looked at me and sneered with theatrical arrogance. “We are of the Order of the White Knights, a student society whose mission is to keep our empire—and especially our beautiful King's Garden—free of all the lower races. Like that wood elf over there. A disgusting beast that at most has a place in the slums as the lowest-priced slave. Moreover, I am the eldest son of the Marquis von Grau, and therefore the heir, which means that you must show the respect I deserve. Just look at us; our wealth makes even the Grand Dukes envious.”

I frowned, and my voice dropped colder, “So a racist order of buffoons who think they matter in a place where your standing has no meaning. And you're still trying? Nah, I’m sure you’re clowns. Can you please go now? I want to eat.”

I ignored them and focused my attention back on what was probably the best piece of meat I’d ever seen—tender, glazed, golden, still slightly steaming.

And then it burst into a silvery flame.

“Oops~ My hand must have slipped,” said Ida in a sickeningly sweet tone.

“Ida, that was really clumsy of you. Don’t you think so too, Oliver?” said Adelheid, smirking like this was the best fun she’d had all day.

“Yes, I think so too. Here, let me turn off that dangerous fire!” said Oliver, matching their mocking tone, and flicked a weak water spell straight into my tray.

The flame sizzled out. So did everything else. Sauce, broth, chunks of meat—half of it soaked my tray and lap, the rest hit me in the face.

I took a deep breath, brushing soggy food out of my face with one hand as I looked at the laughing trio.

Should I just kill them? They were only humans, after a—

I stopped at the thought, surprised I’d even phrased it that way. “Only humans.” And I hadn’t counted myself as one of them either.

Huh.

But I guessed it made sense. After everything that had happened—and everything that connected me to her—it was almost funny I’d ever thought of myself as human at all. I probably never was. Not with my mother being an ash dragoness and all. Not with what I was now either.

And oddly enough… it didn’t bother me. Maybe it should have. But the more I saw of the current Empire, the more I felt nothing but exhaustion. Disappointment. Rot. Hypocrisy.

My eyes drifted to Tana. She was staring at me in shock, mouthing words only I could hear. “Y-you can’t. Adelheid is Lord Ulrich’s eldest daughter.”

Something broke inside me.

Ulrich? The one who acts like his school’s above all that imperial crap? The one who paraded around the diversity of his so-called champions? And yet his own daughter was the leader of a racist order sowing hatred in this place, completely unpunished?

So that was it. Humans hadn’t learned a damn thing.

Maybe this was why the main family hated me. Not because I was dangerous. But because I had gathered every race under my banner—given them a place, a future, a hope. Because I believed in something beyond fear, beyond bloodlines. A world where gender, race, status, and upbringing didn’t matter. A world where no one had to beg to exist.

And they were terrified of it.

I started to laugh. Not the kind of laugh that brings joy.

It was low, sharp. Broken glass in the wind. My dark cackling filled the space like a crack in the walls of the world itself—and even the trio stopped laughing.

“Will this never end?” I asked aloud, my voice calm and bitter. “All this hatred. All these fights about who’s better, who’s richer, who’s more pure. About names. About power.”

“The fuck are you talking about, filth?” Oliver snapped.

I looked at the ruined tray in front of me, gaze unfocused. My voice dropped into a whisper. “Wasting food just because you think someone else doesn’t deserve to eat. Just because you think they’re lesser.”

My gaze snapped back up—clear now. Cold. “You know what? I’m done. You’ve won. Humans like you… don’t deserve to live.”

“What are you—” Ida began, reaching out to summon another flame.

She never finished the sentence.

There was no hand left to cast anything with.

She screamed. A sharp, jagged sound as blood sprayed from where her arm ended abruptly at the wrist. She tried to grab it—instinctive—but her other hand was already gone too.

Tana froze, paralyzed in shock. The others stumbled back, too stunned to speak, to move, to believe what had just happened.

Screams spread across the mensa as some students ran. Others stood frozen, unsure if they were next. A few adults—likely professors—shouted commands and tried to rush in.

But none of them reached me.

The air around me twisted and pulsed, an invisible force pressing outward. A wind that didn’t howl—but refused. Like the air itself denied them entry.

They pushed. They screamed. They cast spells. Nothing got through.

“What the fuck did you do?!” Adelheid cried, gathering herself enough to reach Ida and try to heal her. I recognized the glow—it was the same kind of holy magic Alicia used.

“How dare you do that to the Archduke’s daughter!” Oliver roared, his face red with panic. He threw a water blade at me.

It barely made it halfway before the wind shredded it into mist.

He threw another. And another. Each one harmless. Each one nothing.

The more he tried, the more desperate he looked. His face twisted—fear, rage, disbelief—until I almost laughed at the sight.

Goddess, his face. So deliciously desperate.

What would it look like if he was crying? If the fear fully overtook him? What would it feel like when he realized just how powerless he truly was?

I smiled. A wide, dark grin spreading like ink on water.

Then I stood up.

With one simple motion of my hand, the entire table beside me flew sideways, shattered by the winds surrounding us. The fragments became weapons, slicing through the air, cutting through cloth and skin. The trio screamed as shards struck them—thin trails of blood appearing across their arms, faces, legs.

Tana dropped off the bench, covering her head with her arms, but… no harm came to her. The barrier didn’t push her away.

She looked up, realizing it. Her eyes met mine—and what I saw there wasn’t relief.

It was fear. Horror.

And for a moment… that hurt. Just for a moment.

But the feeling vanished, washed away in the wind.

My gaze returned to the humans. Ida’s hands had returned. The holy magic had done its job.

Unacceptable.

She didn’t deserve hands.

With a flick, I corrected that nature’s mistake.

This time, not just her hands—but her feet vanished in a blur of motion. A blink—and they were no longer hers. They lay twitching, bloodied, on the other side of the barrier.

Her screams echoed louder than before, raw, real, tearing.

People gathered beyond the wind wall, frozen in place. Professors, guards, students—none could cross. Every spell they tried just kept vanishing into the air.

Ida had stopped crying. Her eyes were dulling. Her skin pale. She bled out in Adelheid’s arms, whose face contorted with grief—and fury.

I laughed again. The sound was a whisper in the storm, but it filled everything.

“How does your superiority feel now?” I asked her, voice drifting like mist through the barrier. “How does it feel to be a powerless human who fails to save her friend?”

“Fuck you!” she screamed.

“Ts-ts-ts,” I muttered—and with another flick, Oliver screamed as his arm fell to the floor.

He had seen the motion—tried to raise a shield of water—but it was too slow. Too thin. Like butter under a hot knife, my wind cut through.

Blood sprayed, painting the ground in chaotic strokes. The wind carried it—splashing it onto the walls, into the air.

Like a wonderful painting. A canvas made of blood, of pain, of silence and screams.

The thought took form in my mind, and so did my body—I changed.

Back to the form I had when I first made the contract with her and yet different. Weightless. Wild.

I grew—taller, broader. A towering wolf-kin silhouette cloaked in wind—limbs long and sharp, fur pale and ghost-like. I was probably around six and a half feet tall now, ethereal and storm-bound, the air coiling around me like it was waiting for a command.

It felt amazing—like the storm wasn’t just mine, but me, wild and relentless, power rushing through every breath like I could tear the world apart just because it felt right.

Gasps rippled through the crowd outside the barrier as they saw my new form. The professors froze mid-spell. The air around them stilled.

Every face I saw was pale.

Even Adelheid’s. Even Oliver’s.

I looked at them—really looked— and spoke with a voice laced with wind and something older—steady, commanding, and final.

“You are not worthy to live,” I said to Adelheid. And something in the air cracked like thunder.

My hand began to move—to finish the canvas I had painted in my mind—when something slipped through the barrier.

And stopped me.

A figure stood between me and my target, shimmering faintly in the wind.

“Please, princess, you have to stop,” said a soft, desperate voice. Familiar. Grounding.

“Na-Na?” I asked slowly, my voice echoing strange and fragmented in my ears. Her presence... it soothed something in me. Her voice didn’t fight the storm—it just slipped through it, and for some reason, that was enough.

“I don’t know what these students have done,” she said, bowing her head slightly, “but please… spare them.”

“Spare… them?” I echoed, trying to gather my thoughts. They felt scattered—thrown into the storm I'd become. Her words pulled them in again. They began to form shapes.

“I beg you, princess,” Na-Na said again, her voice trembling just enough to reach me where nothing else had.

“What have I…” I began, blinking, and the haze started to clear. The trance shattered. I looked down—at my hands, at the blood on the floor, at the students beyond the barrier. At what I had done.

The wind around me stilled.

Without hesitation, I dropped the elemental form and returned to my younger wolf-kin self.

Everything felt heavy again. Like the wind had left me hollow.

And just like that, the barrier dropped too.

The professors rushed in the moment the barrier fell. They went straight for the injured, magic already glowing at their fingertips.

“Bring them to the infirmary—hurry!” ordered Na-Na sharply. Then she turned to me.

“Thank you for sparing them, even if they are unworthy,” she said with quiet sincerity, bowing.

“I-I didn’t mean to go that far,” I admitted, my voice barely more than a whisper. It came out smaller than I expected.

“If you did go that far,” she replied, “they probably deserved it. I’m just glad I could stop further bloodshed. I like this place—and I would’ve hated to be forced against it. But… as per codex, I cannot remain idle when fae royalty is involved.”

Royalty?

…

Wait—what?

I blinked at her. Confused wasn’t even the start of it. Since when was I royalty?

So I just nodded, not really sure what else to say. “Thank you, Na-Na. For stopping me.”

“Always, your highness,” she said, bowing once again before turning to follow the others.

I turned, searching for Tana, but she was already gone. Most of the students were. The ones who stayed behind just stared—quiet, wide-eyed. Then one of them bowed. Then another. Like it was normal. Like I was something they had to show respect to, even in this place.

Even the teaching staff, even the guards who had arrived late, bowed their heads when I met their gaze.

“Y-Your highness,” said a voice behind me—one I hadn’t even noticed arriving. It was Jolford, awkward as ever. He scratched the back of his neck and looked like he wanted to disappear.

“Could you please come with me? We need to… go to the headmaster’s office. He is rather… unhappy.”

“S-sure,” I mumbled, already cursing under my breath.

I had absolutely no idea what just happened.

Then my mind snapped back to what the System had said: “You’re already part of it.” Was this why the fae mistook me for royalty? Had something been activated? Twisted? What exactly had they turned me into? Had she done it? Or was it the System all along?

Just—

‘Asche? What the heck are you doing? You were supposed to listen in.’ Her voice suddenly cut into my head.

Fuck. I totally forgot about her.

‘Um… I think we have a problem,’ I said through the link.‘ I might have killed the daughter of an Archduke.’

Silence.

‘…I’m coming.’