I never expected to wake up again.

I thought I would go to the afterlife.

Or maybe I have been kept alive to be tortured and questioned.

But then, why would they give me a bed if they were going to torture me? 

I slowly opened my eyes, blinking away the sleep.

"I see, you're awake." 

Instantly I was on my feet, years of training doing its job.

"Don't worry, I would have killed you a long while ago if that was my intention." He tried to reassure me.

Now that I was fully awake, I took a good look at the man in front of me.

Brown strands hung down his face, curling in random directions and amber eyes stared right at me.

But the scariest part was his physique.

In simple terms, he was ripped. His muscles bulged out of his arms as if waiting to be set free.

Yeah, I wouldn't want to pick a fight with this guy.

"Who are you?" I asked, mana pumping in my veins to create an illusion.

"My name is Daniel, and I am an instructor of Sanctity." 

Sanctity? The institute where there was supposedly no discrimination against us beastkin?

"Where am I?"

"Inside my room, in sanctity." 

Good, just a bit more.

"Why did you bring me here?" 

"Because I found you passed out in the dirt, I couldn't just leave you there to die." He replied, glancing towards the door, where my real body was.

"I know what you are trying to do, you know."

I stopped in my tracks, startled so much that my illusion fell.

"How?" 

"You have much to learn about hiding your mana flow." 

"Are you going to keep me locked in?" 

He shook his head, "No, you are free to leave anytime you want. But do you want to?"

"What do you mean? Why wouldn't I want to?"

"I can train you." He reasoned.

"What makes you think I want to be trained?" I retorted.

"Don't you want to take revenge against your Fathers killers, Prince Ryoto?"

I stopped in my tracks.

What?!

How did he-

Okay, calm down.

Think rationally.

It's been at least a day since I began running, considering how long I ran and how I lost consciousness.

And Father was the King, so it makes sense if his death was made public so soon.

"How do I know you're not one of them?"

He shrugged, "I assume you are capable of sensing the mana inside one's body. Tell me, does my mana seem like theirs?"

It's true, his mana was much different than the assassins or my father's.

Father's mana burned with radiance, hurting my head if I focused on it too much. But his mana is more tranquil, like a dim light that didn't hurt your eyes, but still lit up the room.

I shook my head.

"I can train you, prepare you to be on their level if not stronger. It all depends on your potential and if you're willing to accept." He offered his hand to me.

I was weak when they attacked us, too weak to be anything but a liability. Maybe if I had stayed home, this might not have happened.

Training under an instructor of Sanctity was bound to help me in that aspect.

"I accept your proposal."

He nodded, "Good, but I have one condition."

A feeling of dread crept up my body.

"What is it?"

"I want you to finish your education in Sanctity before you head out. You can return home on short trips though, to meet up with your family. I suggest you do so right now, they must think you are dead." He stated.

I sighed.

Okay, I can work with that.

"Yeah, sure. But I'm not going back home. If I do, Mom will never let me out and I'll be forever stuck inside the castle walls."

He hmmed, "I see. But you should let them know about you surviving."

"Yeah, I'll write them a letter to let them know."

He nodded, "That's good. Now, how about we start?"

I shrugged, "Why not?"

Eight years. 

I'll have to wait eight years to have my revenge.

That should be more than enough time to surpass even my Father.

Ryla POV:

"Ryla! We need to hurry!" My father spoke urgently.

Sighing I moved a few strands of my aqua-colored hair behind my ear.

"Coming Dad!" I called out, adjusting my small wings, the same color as my hair, and fixed the hair around my golden horns.

Today was the anniversary of King Benjiro and Prince Ryoto's death. While King Benjiros body had been found, Prince Ryotos hadn't, making me question if he was actually dead.

My Father didn't want to miss this. Even though I don't see the point of grieving over someone you have never met.

But I still had to attend it with him, when I could have better used the time to train for Sanctity.

"Where's Mom?" I asked as I neared the door, my father standing there with his pristine white hair and massive wings, which he retracted in his back.

"Right here." Her voice came from behind me as she walked in, her indigo hair flying around her hair.

"You guys ready?" Father asked.

"Yeah, Dad." I've been ready for the past hour.

Mother only nodded.

"Well, let's go then." He remarked, heading out of the house.

It took us nearly an hour to reach the capital by carriage, half of the time was spent on security checks.

I could see the marks left behind by the assassins when they attacked the capital.

They're like permanent scars, never fading.

48 people died that day, and hundreds more were gravely injured.

There was a massive crowd when we reached the memorial, probably hundreds of people were gathered here.

We were barely on time, considering the new King, King Hojosa, walked onto the stage just moments later.

The crowd exploded in cheers upon his arrival.

It took him a few minutes to calm them down.

"King Benjiro… was a great king. He led us through many great wars, and drove the opponent forces to a standstill. But I'm not here today to talk about his military prowess, no. I'm here to talk about how awesome a father he was. Even when he was neck deep in his administrative work, he always found time to spend with us. He was always there, a stone's throw away. When my little brother broke his wrist after falling from the stairs, when my baby sister decided it would be a good idea to stick her arm in the fireplace and almost burned her skin off."

This elicited a row of chuckles from the crowd.

I found my lips unconsciously twitching up to form a smile.

"But most importantly, he was there to comfort us when uncle Ulric was found dead in his backyard and my little cousin went missing. Even though he was hurting inside, he never showed it, and stayed strong for our sake. He saved hundreds of lives the day he died, without him the death casualty would have been much higher. And I am sure he protected Ryoto until his last breath, just to give him the sliver of a chance to escape. His death affected all of us differently. Some of you lost the symbol of hope that you looked up to, others lost their goal of surpassing him. But we, we lost a pillar of our lives."

There it is again, he doesn't believe the prince is dead.

He looked down for a few seconds, halting his speech.

I kinda feel bad for him now.

"It… never gets easier. The void left behind in our hearts when someone we loved leaves us." He looked up, his eyes glistening with tears, "All we can do is hope they are happy in the afterlife." 

He raised his arm, "May his spirit guide us ever forward."

Silence ensued, until a single voice spoke out, "For King Benjiro!"

"For the King! For the King! For the King!" The crowd chanted, my father among them.

While my mother dried her tears, I solemnly stared at the stage as King Hojosa was led off stage.

3 Years Later

I hurriedly pushed the final items into my bag as my Mother called from below.

"Ryla, honey you're going to be late."

"I know mom!" I shouted back, putting on my shoes.

Today, I will finally be entering Sanctity.

And I was running late.

I picked up my bags and got out of my room, heading downstairs.

The carriage was already waiting for me outside once I got there.

As I set my bags in the carriage, a hand fell on my shoulder and I turned around.

Only to be met with my mother's face as she gazed into mine.

Suddenly she embraces me without warning, “You stay safe out there okay? Write us some letters once in a while.”

I patted her back, “I will mom. I’m only going to be there for three months before vacation starts.”

“Who knows if you will return to us during your vacations.” Father spoke.

“Why wouldn’t I?”

He shrugged, “You might find someone there who you like and go to his house.”

I felt the heat rush to my cheeks, “Dad!”

“I’m kidding, haha.” He laughed at my expense.

“Seriously though, do take care.” He said once he was free of his laughter.

“I will, Dad.” I knew how dangerous the forests near Sanctity can be, and I can take care of myself. I did get to the A-class after all.

I got into the carriage and settled down, “Well, I’ll be off then.”

The carriage began moving away as my parents waved at me.

I waved back once, before relaxing in my seat, and watched as the city grew farther and farther away, and Sanctity grew closer.