An hour later, Vassili's blond hair appeared in the lobby as Mia and Ethan sat down on the armchairs to have a quick lunch. The vampire greeted them quickly before inviting them to join a quieter place far from potential eavesdroppers. Mia led them to her room, the couple settling on the bed to leave the desk chair to the professor.

Nervousness began to shake the blonde's body at the thought of going back to the memories of the night before. Ethan, seated next to her, placed his hand over hers in an attempt to calm her down. She gazed into him, taking a deep breath, missing the smirk from the professor who was watching the scene with interest. A second later, when she felt ready to speak, Vassili raised his hand to stop her.

"You don't have to tell me what happened. Unless you have names to give me, I can't do anything."

A feeling of relief crashed over the blonde, quickly replaced by incomprehension which also won over Ethan.

"Won't there be an investigation?" asked the Vila, half flabbergasted."No."

Mia was torn between the satisfaction of being able to simply forget about this affair and the indignation at the thought that her attackers were going to get away with it as if nothing had happened. Ethan seemed to be thinking only of the second option since his grip tightened with rage on the blonde's hand before letting go so as not to hurt her.

"I know what you're thinking, Ethan, but I wouldn't recommend trying to track them down and punish them yourself. It's in your best interest not to stand out too much. Your mother..."

"Fine," Ethan cut in, resigned.

"Can someone explain to me what's going on?"

It didn't take two hundred IQs to figure out that she hadn't been told everything about the situation she was trapped in up to her neck.

"Well, let's not beat around the bush. The Headmaster is unaware of your presence here, Mia. And it would be better if it stayed that way," he explained with a pointed look toward his two interlocutors.

"Why?" Mia inquired, surprised.

Turning back to Ethan, she was all the more surprised to find that there was no trace of questioning on the Vila's face. His expression was closer to immediate understanding and resignation.

"Because the Headmaster actively participated in the genocide under my mother's orders," Ethan elaborated with a sigh. If he had learned of your presence here, he would have immediately denounced or even executed you out of respect for her."

"Under your mother's orders?"

New pieces of the puzzle seemed to fit together with this information fresh in Mia's brain. Ethan wasn't just afraid that they might meet the same fate as Kayn and Greya, he knew it wasn't a matter of if, but when.

But to kill your own son for something like that... You have to be damn twisted for that. What mother would dare to do that... Ethan talked about his brother who died protecting humans, don't tell me that...

"She was the one who carried out the 'cleansing' operations during the war," Vassili continued. "She even came up with the idea. Ethan's family has always been well respected among the Vilas... It was not very difficult to rally the most influential families. The other races just followed, seeing the opportunity to win easy battles."

"I thought they were just exterminated because they were the weakest, implying that it was not necessarily the goal," continued Mia, stunned. "And it was your mother who ordered the whole operation?" she repeated, turning to Ethan.

He simply nodded, sighing again.

"When she bonded with my father who is also a Vila, they quickly established themselves as one of the most influential families. Their respective lines were already ancient and honored, but two Vilas together... it's a bond that commands respect and power. The children of such a marriage are powerful. I don't know when this popularity started going to her head, but she became obsessed with the idea of ​​magical purity. Humans aren't magical..."

He didn't finish his sentence since the result of the statement was logical and obvious. With all these new elements, the fear that Ethan's mother might attempt their life became more and more tangible.

Yet another threat, she sighed.

"I think you understand now why it's so important that you lay low on this case. Do you have any more questions, Mia?"

Silence settled for a few tens of seconds. Mia took the opportunity to think quickly about the situation. For Ethan's mother, although it was a surprise, it was consistent with the Vila's past behavior. As for the Headmaster... It explained why they hadn't been called to testify regarding the investigation into the werewolf's death and the fireball that had nearly killed her. To keep a low profile. A question naturally arose in her mind.

"How can he not know I'm here? With the number of students who seem to hate me, I'm surprised no one has reported me yet."

A smirk settled on the professor's lips. She couldn't figure out the reason for this reaction, but it seemed positive.

"The students always go through the teachers before contacting the Headmaster. Most teachers don't want you dead, so it wasn't hard to convince them to send these students back to their jobs. For the most recalcitrant teachers... let's say that hypnosis is a power that can be very useful."

Ah, so that part of the myth is true. Inevitably, dangerous and deadly assumptions are always true here.

"If you have no more questions, I'll leave you to your business," he announced, getting up and wishing them a good day before leaving the room.

"You don't believe in that purity story?" Mia inquired, turning to the Vila.

He sighed as he let himself fall back on the bed, putting his arms behind his head.

"I believed in it for quite a while. She's good with words... It's not hard to stuff a child's head. But I already didn't believe it anymore when I learned that you were my soul mate."

"What made you change your mind?"

"My mother, when I realized that she's master of manipulation and that she's... crazy. I discovered that she was responsible for the death of my brother which I never had the chance to know because of her."

Great.