Lis's Point of View
It had already been two weeks since Grandma and I arrived in the capital.
Utoria—the shining heart of the Kingdom of Deogon—was nothing like the quiet village I grew up in. Towering walls surrounded the city like giants standing guard, and inside them… was a whole different world.
Every day, the streets were packed with life. Nobles in fancy cloaks rode past in horse-drawn carriages while barefoot kids chased each other through alleys. Merchants shouted over one another in the markets, and guards in polished armor stood at every corner like silent statues.
It was loud, it was chaotic... but it was alive. And here, everyone had their place whether they liked it or not. That was the rule of the kingdom's strict hierarchy.
For now, Grandma and I were staying at the Church headquarters thanks to the generosity of our sponsor, Mother Otrey.
We had left Canos with Mother Otrey.
It struck me as odd when she mentioned that the church in Canos would be relocated. Everyone who had been working there had temporarily moved to the capital—including her. I tried asking why, but even Mother Otrey didn't seem to know the reason. Or maybe she simply couldn't say.
Even so, my thoughts kept drifting back to my big brother. He was still in that town all alone.
She told me that her father earned noble status as the commander of the knight order. Meaning, her father was commoner but luckily when she was born she became a noble.
"Lis, let's go to the academy together!"
That cheerful voice snapped me out of my thoughts. It was Misa, about the same age as me, and the first person who really welcomed me when I arrived here. She studied at the same academy I'd just enrolled in and also helped out at the church.
Being around her was oddly comforting. She was always smiling, always talking—about her life, her family, and anything else that crossed her mind. It was hard to feel lonely when Misa was nearby.
She once told me that her father had been a commoner, But after rising through the ranks and becoming a commander in the Knight Order, he was granted noble status.To her, it was a casual story. But to me it sounded like a miracle.
As the two of us made our way to Strando Academy—the place I'd been enrolled into—I found myself quietly grateful for Misa's presence.
It had only been a week since I started studying there, but it didn't take long to realize that discrimination based on social status was still very much alive, even within the academy walls.
Some students looked at me like I didn't belong. Whispers followed me in the halls more than once.
But Misa was always there, walking beside me with that same cheerful smile. As the daughter of a newly ennobled knight commander, her presence seemed to keep the worst of the judgment away.
Thanks to her, I had never been treated poorly.
"Ah... I miss Cloe!" Misa suddenly sighed, hugging her books to her chest as we walked.
I blinked. That name had come up more than once, but I'd never asked. Still, the way she said it, with such fondness, made me curious.
"Oh... yeah, who is Cloe, by the way? I never got the chance to ask."
Without any hesitation, Misa began talking her eyes lighting up as she spoke about Cloe.
"Cloe's... different from us," she said softly. "She's a beastkin. One of the tiger tribes, I think."
That surprised me. I'd never met a beastkin before. I'd only read about them in books.
"She was captured and sold into slavery when she was just a child," Misa continued, her voice softening. "But my father bought her not to make her serve us, but to set her free. Still… Cloe chose to stay with us. She said we were the first place that felt like home."
Misa smiled, though there was a hint of sadness in her eyes.
"After that, we grew really close. She's like family to me."
It was the first time I'd ever heard about beastkin from someone who actually knew one. I'd only read about them in textbooks always from a distance, like they were myths or rare creatures, not real people.
I couldn't help but wonder what Cloe was like, probably cheerful as Misa.