The School of Bermuda - Volume 1 - The hunter's daughter

-11-

Ree woke up in the middle of the night. Terrified moans reached her from the lower bunk. Lili seemed to be having a restless sleep. Still half asleep, the little blonde girl sat up and leaned over the guardrail, hoping to reassure her sister from another mother in the lower bed.

But what she saw woke her up completely, she even had to rub her eyes to be sure. Right next to the bunk bed, next to Lili who was whimpering in her sleep, stood a full-grown man. Ree dared not move and crouched down even further.

Her father had assured her that a spell prevented males from entering the girls' dormitory, and vice versa. Yet, this man was there. His white skin and hair shone like snow, so much so that she could see him perfectly even in complete darkness. She could see jeans, accompanied by a tiger skin jacket and what seemed to be a half-long skirt on the left side of his leg, also made of tiger skin.

The stranger knelt next to the bed. He then raised his hand to stroke Lili's hair, who, strangely, calmed down immediately. Ree couldn't believe her eyes. As he stood up, the intruder looked up at her, plunging his red eyes into hers, before raising a finger to his mouth, stretched into a mysterious smile, as a sign of silence.

Ree felt her heart pounding. He had seen her! He knew she was there, and yet... She wanted to open her mouth to ask him who he was, but he suddenly vanished. Was he a ghost? She shuddered at the thought. And why had he come to calm Lili? She couldn't fall back asleep, jumping at the slightest noise, watching the room to see if that strange man would return. So much so that when the rooster's crow reached the dormitories in the morning, she had not closed her eyes all night.

She made no comment when her friend left the room to go to the farm. When Lili returned, she noticed her friend's dark circles and pale complexion. 

"Are you okay, Ree?" 

So the young girl explained everything she had seen. 

"Stop," murmured the hunter's daughter as they joined the common room, "I don't find it funny..." 

"It's not to scare you, I saw it!" 

"What did you see?" asked Izãdo, joining them. 

"You look pale, Ree." 

"I didn't sleep a wink! There was a man in the room! We need to talk to the headmistress." 

And even before her friends could convince her otherwise, she hurriedly took them to the tallest tower. Unfortunately, no one answered. 

"She must have gone down for breakfast," remarked Lulis. "We shouldn't disturb her." 

"It's important! " Ree cut in as she left. 

She ran to the great hall, to the detriment of the three others who had a hard time following her. This time, the headmistress was there, sitting in her usual place. The little blonde girl ran towards her without hesitation. 

"Ree!" Izãdo tried to stop her. "I'm sure you just dreamt it!" 

"I didn't dream it, I saw him just like I see you!" 

"What's going on?" asked the headmistress as they reached her, attracting the attention of the teachers and students present. 

"Madam... last night, I woke up because I heard Lili having a nightmare, and I saw someone in the dormitory." 

"Another student?" 

"No, a man. An adult. He was all white and his eyes were red. I didn't dream it, he was real." 

The teachers who had approached to find out about the problem exchanged worried glances. 

"Did he do anything in particular?" asked the headmistress, who had suddenly lost her benevolent smile. 

"Nothing bad. He... calmed Lili. He put his hand on her, and she immediately calmed down. Then he looked up at me, gestured for me to be quiet, and disappeared, as if he had never been there." 

"Do you believe it?" Izãdo asked. "After all, there are spells that protect the dormitories, right?" 

"Every spell has its flaw," murmured Ingrid Namarié, lost in thought. "You have to be a powerful wizard or a magical creature to find it. Let's leave it for today, if you see him again, let me know, okay?" 

Ree seemed relieved to be believed by the headmistress and nodded. She joined her classmates for lunch in silence. They preferred not to mention this rather unusual incident any further and continued their day like any other.

This time, they had free time until 9 a.m., when the white magic class with Professor Sara Harisson, whom they had met on the boat, began. She was both as amusing as Professor Butter and as terrifying as Tera Noctis, but healing magic was an art that not all wizards mastered perfectly, and half of the class had more difficulty keeping up than the others.

Then came transfiguration, the art of taking on the appearance of another person, with the professor whom Lulis had bumped into. Despite his gruff appearance, this muscle-bound man turned out to be an excellent teacher who understood the requests of some students perfectly. However, as they left the room, the students had more questions about the scar on his face than about how to take on the appearance of their neighbor.

During the break, they were able to rest a little. Lili, Ree, Izãdo, and Lulis took the opportunity to consult the encyclopedia. Finally, after a good half-hour, they headed to the greenhouses for their botany class.

Professor Amano Furude was a handsome man with black hair falling on his shoulders. He must have been approaching forty and seemed quite tired, but his love for plants made his class fascinating. He began by presenting them with different flowers, including a strange daisy with petals of different colors. It was only useful for certain potions, he explained.

For the last hour of the morning, they found themselves once again in the company of Raphaël Minyar for their second spell class before the lunch break.

After a good meal, an hour's break, and two hours of flying lessons, they headed towards the main gate, completely unaware of what was written on their schedule as "racing training".

"Hey! First years, I won't wait for you!" 

The students dressed in blue turned to their teacher. She was an old woman with a stern look. Her hair was tied in a bun, and she wore a long white coat with sleeves that reached from her shoulders to her hands. Two straps prevented it from falling, and the opening at the front went from above her navel to the bottom of the garment, to her feet, revealing the white pants underneath, as well as knee pads. This was the racing uniform.

"Next time, I want to see you in your racing uniforms," she barked. "You'll quickly understand why! Follow me!" The old woman, named Céline Montlaure, turned her back on them and headed towards a more secluded area of the field that separated the castle from the forest.