Chapter 13
Annalise
I thought I was one of the best fighters on the battlefield.
I wasn’t.
I thought I was one of the best hunters in the academy.
Turns out, I wasn’t.
And I thought I was smart.
Guess what? I wasn’t.
My hands clenched so tightly my knuckles turned white as I sat in the Wolven Instinctual Intelligence class. Sylus, with his smooth confidence, stood at the front of the room, explaining magic and potions with the kind of eloquence that could hypnotize an entire room. His words dripped with knowledge, precision, and an infuriating kind of grace.
It had become routine—a ritual of humiliation. The professor would pose a question. I’d answer, thinking I had it right, but then Sylus would follow up with something better. Always better. His answers would counter mine, leav
