chapter 1 : The Arrival

The air smelled like secrets.

As the taxi slowed to a halt in front of the towering gates of Crimson Academy, Alina Carter felt her stomach twist into knots. The campus was unlike anything she had ever seen—ancient, ivy-covered buildings cloaked in mist, with lanterns flickering even though it was barely noon. It looked more like a castle from a gothic novel than a university.

"You're sure this is the place?" she asked the driver, her voice unsure.

The man gave her a tight-lipped smile. “Trust me, you’ll never forget it.”

Weird response. But then again, everything about her admission had been weird—from the mysterious scholarship to the sealed acceptance letter delivered by a man in a long black coat. Her mom had been too thrilled about the ‘free ride’ to question it. But Alina couldn’t shake the feeling that she was being pulled into something she didn’t understand.

And she was right.

The iron gates creaked open, groaning like they hadn’t moved in decades. Alina stepped out of the cab with her single suitcase, sneakers crunching against the gravel path as she moved forward. She glanced back once, but the taxi was already gone, swallowed by the fog that seemed to cling to the road like it had a mind of its own.

Weird.

She wasn’t even past the gates before someone nearly ran into her.

“Watch it!” a girl with bubblegum pink hair snapped, brushing past her in a swirl of expensive perfume. Behind her, a boy with silver piercings and an amused smirk raised a brow at Alina.

“New blood,” he said, eyes gleaming unnaturally in the dim light. “Fun.”

Alina shivered.

This wasn’t just another school. The place had a pulse of its own. She felt it thrum under her feet—dark, ancient, alive.

The main building of Crimson Academy towered like a cathedral. Gothic spires pierced the sky, and stained-glass windows flickered with candlelight even in the daylight.

Inside, the walls were lined with moving portraits that whispered when they thought no one was listening.

A bored-looking receptionist handed Alina a brass key with the number 317 etched into it.

“You’re in the east tower,” the woman said. “Third floor. Curfew is at midnight sharp. Break it, and... well, don’t.”

“Don’t what?” Alina asked.

The woman looked up, her eyes a little too glassy. “Just don’t.”

Room 317 was tucked into a narrow hallway with crooked paintings and flickering sconces. When Alina pushed the door open, the scent of old roses and something metallic hit her.

The room was oddly... regal. Dark wood furniture, velvet curtains, and a massive four-poster bed that looked like it belonged in a vampire movie. She laughed nervously. Fitting.

But something was off.

Her mirror was cracked—just slightly. And carved into the wooden bedframe were strange symbols she didn’t recognize. She traced one with her finger and felt a shiver run through her bones.

Before she could unpack, a loud bell rang through the academy.

Orientation

The Great Hall was packed. Students filled long candle-lit tables, most of them pale, stunningly beautiful, and eerily quiet. A few looked...normal. Like her. But not many.

The headmaster, a tall man in crimson robes, stood at the front.

“Welcome to Crimson Academy. Here, we do not tolerate weakness,” he said. “You are not just here to learn. You are here to survive.”

Alina blinked. Survive?

He continued listing the courses students were required to take:

Bloodlines & Ancestry Studies

Nocturnal Physiology

Defense Against Light Magic

Modern Vampire Politics

Occult Literature

Blood Ethics & Control

She leaned toward a girl next to her. “Is this a prank?”

The girl gave her a look. “You’re human, aren’t you?”

Before Alina could respond, the room fell into silence.

Someone had entered.

A tall boy with jet-black hair, dressed in all black, strolled in like he owned the world. His eyes—an unnatural shade of crimson—swept the room, and when they landed on Alina, he stopped walking.

He stared.

So did everyone else.

Whispers spread like wildfire.

“Lucian Blackthorne…”

“He never comes to orientation.”

“Why’s he looking at her?”

Alina’s throat went dry. The boy with the red eyes smiled—but there was no warmth in it. Only hunger.

He tilted his head like he was trying to figure her out.

And then he vanished into the shadows like he’d never been there.

***Download NovelToon to enjoy a better reading experience!***