The lobby of Dorm Four was functional at best. Worn tile floors, notice boards covered in papers, a few scattered chairs that had seen better days. A desk sat near the entrance where an older woman was sorting through documents.

  She looked up as Leon approached, her expression neutral but not unkind.

  "New student?"

  "Yes. Leon Ashford."

  She checked a list, running her finger down the page. "Room 204. Second floor. You'll be sharing with Noah Clove—he arrived yesterday." She handed him a key. "I'm Mrs. Hendricks, the dorm mother. Meals are served in the cafeteria at set times—breakfast 7 to 9, lunch noon to 2, dinner 6 to 8. Kitchen is off-limits to students. Any problems, you come to me. Understood?"

  "Yes, ma'am."

  "Third and fourth floors are female students only. First and second are male. No exceptions to that rule." Her tone made it clear this wasn't negotiable. "Orientation is tomorrow at 10 AM. Don't be late."

  "I won't."

  "Good. Welcome to Valorian."

  Leon thanked her and headed for the stairs, dragging his suitcases up to the second floor. The hallway was narrow, doors lining both sides with room numbers marked clearly. 204 was near the end.

  He knocked, then used his key when there was no answer.

  The room was small. Two beds, two desks, two wardrobes. A window between them looked out over the street. One side was clearly occupied—bed made, desk organized, a few personal items visible.

  Leon set his suitcases down on the empty side and started unpacking.

  He was halfway through when the door opened.

  "Oh, hey! You must be my roommate."

  Leon turned. A guy about his age stood in the doorway, average height, dark hair, friendly smile. He wore casual clothes and carried a bag from one of the shops Leon had passed.

  "Leon," he said.

  "Noah Clove." Noah dropped his bag on his bed and extended a hand. Leon shook it. "When'd you get in?"

  "About an hour ago."

  "Cool, cool. Where you from?"

  "East coast. You?"

  "Midwest. Small town, you wouldn't know it." Noah flopped onto his bed. "Man, this place is wild, right? Like a whole city just for students."

  "Yeah. It's... a lot."

  "You settling in okay? I got here yesterday so I've had a bit more time to figure things out."

  "Still processing, honestly."

  Noah grinned. "Fair. So what's your background? Like, how'd you get in?"

  Leon hesitated. "Academic qualifications, mostly. Someone sponsored my application but I don't know who."

  "Unknown sponsor? That's unusual. Mine was through my older brother's connection—he knows someone who works with one of the academy's partner companies. Between that and my test scores, I managed to get in." Noah shrugged. "D4 status though. Guess that's what we get."

  "Better than not getting in at all."

  "True that." Noah sat up. "Hey, so orientation's tomorrow at 10. You got the email, right?"

  "Yeah."

  "Okay, so there are rules you need to know. Like, mandatory rules. Break them and you're in serious trouble."

  Leon stopped unpacking. "What kind of rules?"

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  "Hierarchy stuff. The seating at orientation is arranged by status—A region gets the closest to the platform, best seats. Then B, then C, then D. We're in D, so we're furthest back."

  "Makes sense, I guess."

  "But here's the important part: we don't sit until all higher status students have sat down. And we don't leave until they've left. A goes first, then B, then C, then finally D."

  "We can't just... sit when we get there?"

  "Nope. You sit before someone higher ranked and you'll get called out for it. Publicly." Noah's expression was serious now. "And during the entire orientation, D region students aren't allowed to speak. At all. Questions, comments, nothing. Only A, B, and C can participate."

  Leon stared at him. "That's insane."

  "That's Valorian." Noah leaned back against the wall. "This place runs on hierarchy. Your status determines everything—where you live, where you can go, how you're treated. D4 is bottom of the barrel, man. We've got to be careful."

  "How do you know all this?"

  "Read the student handbook thoroughly. Also talked to some upperclassmen yesterday. They were... not super friendly, but they warned me about the basics." Noah pulled out his phone. "Oh, and apparently D2 and above get their own rooms. That's why we're sharing."

  Leon looked around their small space. "Of course they do."

  "Could be worse. At least the roommate lottery worked out. You seem normal."

  "Thanks, I think."

  They talked more while Leon finished unpacking. Noah was easy to get along with—laid back, pragmatic about their situation. He'd done his research, knew which areas of D region had decent food, which shops were worth visiting, basic navigation tips.

  "Oh, one more thing," Noah said around 8 PM, when they were both settled in. "There are apparently only four A1 status students in the entire academy right now."

  "Four? Out of 1,600 students?"

  "Yep. One of them just enrolled this year. Before that it was only three." Noah pulled up something on his phone. "The new one is the grandson of the vice chairman of Amigos Innovation."

  Leon's attention sharpened. "Amigos Innovation?"

  "Yeah, you know it?"

  "I've heard of it. They're one of the major sponsors here, right?"

  "Major is an understatement. They're owned by Remeria Foundation—like, one of the biggest conglomerates in the world. Each company under Remeria has a vice chairman but no chairman since it's all owned by the foundation itself." Noah scrolled through his phone. "Apparently this guy's grandfather is a huge deal. Hence the A1 status."

  Leon felt something twist in his chest. Remeria Foundation. Iris's empire. Of course someone from one of her companies would be here, at the very top of the hierarchy.

  "You okay?" Noah asked.

  "Yeah. Just tired."

  "Fair. It's been a long day."

  Around 9 PM, they headed down to the cafeteria for dinner. The space was crowded—apparently most of the dorm's residents ate here. Long tables, basic setup, food served cafeteria-style.

  Leon grabbed a tray and joined the line. The food was decent—nothing fancy, but edible. He and Noah found seats at one of the middle tables.

  A girl sat down across from them, tray in hand. She had short hair and looked tired. "New faces. First years?"

  "Yeah," Noah said. "I'm Noah, this is Leon."

  "Emma. Third year." She started eating without ceremony. "Which rooms?"

  "204," Leon said.

  "Ah, second floor. Not bad. Could be worse."

  Another guy joined them, sitting next to Emma. "We doing introductions? I'm Jay, second year."

  "Noah”, “ Leon."

  "Fresh meat," Jay said, but he was smiling. "You guys figure out the hierarchy situation yet?"

  "Getting there," Noah said.

  "It's brutal at first," Emma said between bites. "But you get used to it. Just keep your head down, follow the rules, and D4 life isn't terrible."

  "Reassuring," Leon muttered.

  Emma shrugged. "It's realistic. This place runs on status. Fighting it just makes things harder."

  They ate together, Emma and Jay offering occasional bits of advice—which professors to avoid, where the decent study spots were, how to navigate the various restrictions. It was practical information, delivered without much warmth but not unkindly either.

  More students filtered in and out. Leon noticed everyone here had D4 on their IDs. Made sense—this was Dorm Four's cafeteria.

  After dinner, he and Noah headed back to their room. Leon was exhausted—physically and mentally. The day had been overwhelming.

  He got ready for bed, set his alarm for 7 AM.

  Noah was already in bed, scrolling through his phone. "Big day tomorrow."

  "Yeah."

  "Just remember the rules. Sit after everyone else, don't speak, leave last. Follow that and you'll be fine."

  "Got it."

  Leon turned off his light and lay in the unfamiliar bed, staring at the dark ceiling. Tomorrow he'd attend his first official event at the Academy.

  He closed his eyes and tried to sleep.

  Morning came too quickly.

  Leon's alarm went off at 7:00 AM. He got up, showered in the shared bathroom down the hall, and got dressed. The student handbook had specified formal attire for orientation—he wore the only decent clothes he owned, a button-down shirt and slacks that were a few years old but still presentable.

  Noah was ready by 8:30, wearing similar clothes. They grabbed breakfast in the cafeteria—quick and simple—then headed back to their room to wait.

  "Orientation starts at 10, but we should probably leave by 9:05," Noah said, checking his phone. "It's about a thirty minute walk to the main auditorium."

  "Okay."

  Leon checked his appearance one more time. He looked fine. Normal. Nothing that would make him stand out.

  At 9, Noah stood up. "Ready?"

  Leon grabbed his student ID, pocketed his phone, and nodded. "Ready."

  They left the room, joined the flow of other students heading out from the dorm. The hallways were busy, everyone moving toward the same destination.

  Outside, the morning was clear and cool. Groups of students walked together, some looking nervous, others confident. Leon and Noah joined the stream heading toward the academy's main campus.

  This was it. The real beginning.

  Leon took a breath and kept walking.

  The orientation was about to start.