Electra’s POV

I followed behind Irina as she led the way up the final flight of stairs that led to the dorm rooftop. The sound of our footsteps echoed against the walls, and for a moment neither of us spoke. I was still thinking about the conversation I had just had with Roxana, and the more I thought about it, the more irritated I felt. That conversation had been uncomfortable from beginning to end, and by the time it was over, I had learned almost nothing useful.

Roxana had walked into my room as if she had something extremely important to say, yet somehow managed to leave me with more questions than answers. She had thrown accusations at me, told me that Irina was suffering because of me, and then walked away like that was enough explanation for the chaos she had just dumped in my lap.

I didn’t like that.

I also didn’t like hearing about someone’s life through someone else’s frustration, especially when it was clear that half the story was missing. If something serious was going on with Irina and her family, then I wanted to hear it from Irina herself. At the very least, I wanted to understand what Roxana had been talking about before deciding whether any of it actually mattered.

The door to the rooftop opened with a creak as Irina pushed it open and stepped outside. I followed her out, and the cold morning air hit my face immediately. The rooftop was quiet, and the city beyond the school walls looked peaceful under the morning light. The school still looked like it was mostly asleep, which made it the perfect place for a private conversation. Irina walked straight toward the edge of the rooftop without looking back, and I followed her until we stopped near the railing.

She finally turned around to face me, and the look on her face made it clear that she was already suspicious.

"Why do you suddenly want to talk to me alone?" she asked.

Her tone wasn’t hostile, but it definitely wasn’t casual either. She was watching me carefully, like she was already trying to figure out what I was really planning to say.

I let out a soft sigh before answering her. The truth was that I had already decided that if I wanted answers, then I had to approach this carefully. Walking up to her and asking if her family was threatening to disown her because of me would probably make her shut down immediately.

So instead, I took a different approach.

"Can you tell me about yourself?" I asked.

Irina blinked in confusion. For a moment she just stared at me like she wasn’t sure she heard me correctly.

"About myself?" she repeated slowly. "Are you asking me to talk about myself?"

"Yes," I said, nodding once. "That’s exactly what I’m asking."

She continued staring at me like the request made absolutely no sense to her.

I shrugged slightly before continuing. "Look, from everything you all have told me since I woke up without my memories, you and I were apparently the closest in the group. Best friends, according to you. If that’s true, then I think it’s fair that I actually know something about the person who’s supposed to be my best friend."

Irina looked slightly taken aback by that explanation. She clearly hadn’t expected my question to go in that direction, and for a few seconds she didn’t say anything. Eventually she shifted her weight and looked away briefly before answering.

"Well," she said slowly, "for starters, my name is Irina."

I raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed, but she continued anyway.

"I’m from Varin," she added. "And I’m twenty-one years old, which means I’m a year older than you."

Then she shrugged slightly. "And... that’s basically the basic details."

I stared at her for a moment, waiting for her to continue. When she didn’t, I frowned slightly.

"That’s it?" I asked.

Irina looked confused again. "What else do you want?"

I crossed my arms and leaned lightly against the railing. "Come on, Irina. That can’t be all there is to you. Don’t you have anything more interesting to say about yourself?"

She gave me a skeptical look. "Like what?"

I thought for a moment before asking the first thing that came to mind. "Well... do you have a girlfriend?" I asked. "The way Seraphina is apparently supposed to be mine."

Irina reacted immediately. "Absolutely not," she said.

Her answer was so quick that it almost made me laugh. "I’m not interested in anything serious," she added quickly. "And I never have been."

I tilted my head slightly, trying to understand that answer. The way she said it sounded firm, almost defensive, but I didn’t push the subject further. Instead, I let out a quiet sigh and shook my head.

"Honestly," I said, "that still feels like very little information."

Irina frowned slightly. "What more do you want to know?"

"Everything," I replied simply.

She looked at me like I had just asked the most ridiculous question imaginable.

"I’m serious," I continued. "Tell me more. Do you have parents? Are you a princess? Or just someone ordinary? What kind of family do you come from? What kind of life did you have before coming here?"

I paused before adding the part that I knew would make her more willing to answer.

"I really need details," I said quietly. "I’m trying to fill in the gaps in my memories. Maybe talking to you like this will help something come back."

That was a lie, but it was a useful one. If Irina thought she was helping me recover my memories, then she would probably be more open about sharing things she normally wouldn’t.

Irina studied my face for a few seconds as if she was trying to decide whether she believed me. Eventually she let out a quiet sigh and leaned back against the railing beside me.

"Well," she said slowly, "I’m not a princess." 𝙛𝒓𝓮𝒆𝔀𝒆𝙗𝓷𝒐𝙫𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝓸𝓶

I nodded.

"But I’m also not exactly ordinary either," she continued. "Because no ordinary person could afford to attend a school like Elysium Girls High."

Irina crossed her arms lightly as she continued speaking. "My family is from Varin, like I just said," she said. "We’re a military family. Generals, mostly."

That caught my attention. "My father is a general," she added. "And so are most of my brothers."

"Brothers?" I asked.

Irina nodded. "I’m the only daughter," she said. "I have five older brothers and one younger brother."

As soon as she said that, I noticed something change in her voice.

It was subtle, but it was there. Her tone had lost the casual edge it had earlier, and there was something heavier underneath the words now. I didn’t know why, but the moment she mentioned her family, something about her entire posture shifted.

I turned slightly to look at her more carefully. "Do you not get along with them?" I asked calmly.

Irina let out a short, dry laugh. "If you’re the only girl in a family full of men," she said, "getting along isn’t always easy."

Her answer sounded light, but I could tell it wasn’t the full story. There was something else there that she wasn’t saying. Before I could ask anything else, she suddenly turned toward me and studied my face.

"Let me ask you something," she said.

"What?"

She tilted her head slightly. "How do you think you and I became best friends?"