Chapter 2: How to Get Punched by a Queen

  I had a pn.It was a terrible pn, but it was a pn.

  Step 1: "Accidentally" bump into Zara.Step 2: Make her ugh.Step 3: Slip into her good graces and save the world.

  Easy, right?

  Wrong.

  The next morning, I stood behind a marble pilr, peeking out like a total creep. Zara was walking down the main hallway, reading something on her tablet, her bodyguards two steps behind.

  She looked fwless, as usual.Neat uniform. Straight posture. Eyes like cold knives.

  I took a deep breath.Operation Make the Queen Smile was a go.

  I counted down in my head.

  Three… two… one—

  I jumped out.

  And crashed straight into her.

  Papers went flying. Her tablet cttered to the floor. One of the bodyguards reached for his weapon.

  I held my hands up quickly. "Peace! Peace! No bullets today!"

  Zara stepped back, gring at me like I had just spat on her shoes.

  "You again," she said, her voice colder than ice.

  I grinned, trying to py it off. "Hey, accidents happen! In fact, meeting by fate is the first step of a great romance."

  Dead silence.

  One of the bodyguards choked, trying not to ugh.Zara's eye twitched.

  Okay, maybe not the best line.

  I bent down and quickly gathered her papers, handing them back. "Really, sorry. Let me make it up to you. Coffee? Tea? Eternal devotion?"

  Another twitch. Was that anger... or amusement?

  "You're pathetic," she said, snatching the papers.

  "Pathetically charming?" I offered.

  She turned sharply. "Come near me again, and I'll consider it an act of aggression."

  "Is that a maybe?"

  The next thing I knew, a hard fist smmed into my stomach.I staggered back, wheezing.

  Okay.So that’s a "no."

  I limped my way to the courtyard, holding my ribs and questioning every life choice that led to this moment.

  Max found me sitting under a tree, groaning.

  "Dude, what happened? You look like you got run over by a security drone."

  "Worse," I gasped. "I got punched by the Queen."

  Max whistled. "And you lived? Legendary."

  I grinned weakly. "New entry for the history books: 'Leo Veyl, first man to flirt and get demolished in under thirty seconds.'"

  He ughed, tossing me a cold bottle of water.

  I caught it and took a long drink, my mind racing.

  Despite the pain, I noticed something important.

  Zara hadn't ordered her guards to attack me.She hadn't reported me.She could have made my life hell — but she hadn’t.

  That meant... maybe, just maybe... she didn’t see me as a threat.

  Not yet.

  Good.

  I needed to stay underestimated if I wanted to get close enough to figure her out.

  But first, I needed to survive without getting my ribs broken.

  Later that afternoon, the academy grounds were buzzing.

  Rumors were flying faster than the patrol drones.

  "Did you hear? Crimson Bdes cshed with Azure Crown in the eastern quad!""Someone trashed the Verdant Pact’s greenhouse!""I heard Zara herself is calling an emergency council meeting!"

  The whole school felt ready to explode.

  I watched from the second-floor balcony, arms folded, heart heavy.

  This wasn’t just faction drama anymore.

  It was war prep.

  If the coup happened, there would be real casualties.And the academy's fake, shiny image would shatter.

  I clenched my fists.

  No way could I let that happen.

  That evening, I found myself walking toward the Student Council Tower.

  It was a tall, shining building near the academy’s center, guarded by elite students in sharp bck uniforms.

  Normally, only council members and faction leaders were allowed inside.

  Normally, I'd be insane for even thinking about it.

  But tonight?

  Tonight I was feeling reckless.

  And I had a pn.(Another terrible one, obviously.)

  I approached the main door casually, whistling.

  One of the guards stepped forward.

  "State your business," he barked.

  I gave him my best zy grin. "I'm here to deliver a message to President Zara Hales."

  He narrowed his eyes. "From who?"

  I leaned closer and whispered dramatically, "From destiny."

  The guard blinked. "What?"

  I used his confusion to slip past him.

  Behind me, he shouted, but I was already through the doors.

  Inside, the tower was quieter.

  Grand staircases spiraled upward, lined with deep blue banners and golden emblems.

  I moved fast, knowing security reinforcements would be coming.

  At the very top, I found it: Zara’s office.

  I pushed open the door without knocking.

  And there she was.

  Standing by the massive window, hands behind her back, staring out at the city lights.

  She turned slowly.

  First shock.Then anger.

  Then — to my surprise — a small flicker of curiosity.

  "You really are stupid," she said softly.

  I bowed dramatically. "Leonis Veyl, at your service, Your Majesty."

  "Get out."

  I stepped closer. "Not yet. I have a question first."

  She crossed her arms. "Speak."

  I looked straight at her, no jokes now.

  "Are you pnning to stop the coup?"

  Silence.

  The room felt heavy.

  Zara’s eyes sharpened.

  "And why," she said slowly, "would you care?"

  I smiled slightly. "Maybe I like this pce. Maybe I like breathing."

  She studied me carefully, like she was trying to peel away my skin and see what was underneath.

  Finally, she spoke.

  "I intend to survive," she said. "And survival requires power. Loyalty. Fear."

  I nodded slowly.

  "And trust?" I asked.

  She ughed — a short, bitter sound.

  "Trust is for fools."

  I felt a pang in my chest.

  No one said that unless they’d been betrayed before.

  Badly.

  Before I could say more, the door behind me burst open.

  Security guards flooded in, weapons drawn.

  Zara raised a hand. They froze.

  She stared at me for a long, long moment.

  "You’re lucky I’m in a good mood," she said finally.

  Then, to my absolute shock, she tossed me something.

  I caught it instinctively.

  A silver badge — the kind given only to "interns" for the Student Council.

  "You want to know what’s going on?" she said coldly. "Fine. Earn your answers."

  I stared at the badge.

  Was this... an invitation?

  Or a trap?

  Probably both.

  But it didn’t matter.

  I grinned and tucked the badge into my jacket.

  "See you tomorrow, President," I said, backing toward the door.

  As I left, I heard her mutter under her breath:

  "Idiot."

  Later that night, lying in bed, staring at the cracked ceiling, I turned the badge over and over in my hands.

  I had gotten closer to Zara than almost anyone.

  But I wasn’t sure if that made me lucky... or doomed.

  Max snored loudly in the bunk above me.

  Out the window, the floating city's lights shimmered like dying stars.

  Somewhere out there, the factions were sharpening their knives.Somewhere, the coup was ticking closer like a bomb.

  And now, I was standing right in the middle of it.

  Tomorrow, my real mission would begin.

  Tomorrow, I'd walk into the lion’s den — with nothing but a grin and a lot of bad ideas.

  "Sleep well, Leo," I muttered to myself.

  "Tomorrow, you might get yourself killed."

  I closed my eyes.

  And dreamed of falling cities, burning skies... and a girl standing alone in the rubble, her face hidden behind a broken crown.