SOLEIA'S POV

Every corner of Elysium Academy was mesmerizing. I never thought there would be a gym, a cafeteria, and a shopping center here.

Nagulat ako dahil nilibre talaga ako ni Callie. Syempre, 'di ko sinayang ang pagkakataon. Nagpabili ako ng libro.

I secretly chuckled when I saw the frown that started to form on her face.

Tila rinig sa buong shopping center ang halakhak ni Talia. "You look so funny, love!" saad nito habang nakaturo kay sa mukha ni Callie. "I can't believe you got rejected!"

"Pwede bang tumahimik ka muna?" naaasar na sagot ni Callie. "Akala ko pa naman ay type niya rin ako."

"Gusto mo, ilibre nalang din kita?" nakangising tanong ko sa kanya. "Since we're friends now, think of it as..." Napatigil muna ako. "A starting friendship gift!"

Bahagyang lumawak ang simangot niya pero hindi nakatakas sa paningin ko ang lihim niyang pag-ngiti. "So?" I asked.

Agad siyang napangisi sa sinabi ko. "Siyempre gusto ko! Ano pa'ng hinihintay natin? Tara na!"

Rinig na rinig sa buong lugar ang mga tawa namin habang tumatakbo. Sinasaway na nga kami ni Amari pero parang wala kaming naririnig. Dumiretso kami sa isang flower shop kung saan sinalubong kami ng mga nymphs ni... Persephone.

Persephone is my father, Hades', real wife...

"Buy me flowers, Soleia! Sinunog kasi ni Raven 'yung mga bulaklak ko bago sila umalis kaya kailangan ko ng bago ngayon. Babatukan ko talaga ang lalaking 'yun pagkauwi niya!"

"Don't you think you have too many flowers? It's crowding our dorm, Callie," pagsulpot na naman ni Amari. Nakakagulat talaga siya.

"I am a daughter of nature, duh! Mahilig ang nanay ko sa mga halaman kaya hayaan mo na ako. Agree ka 'di ba, Tazyn?"

Agad na tumango-tango ang anak ni Apollo bago ngumiti nang malawak. "Mhm! Syempre naman!" Ang cute niya talaga.

Pati si Cole ay sumang-ayon na rin kaya wala nang nagawa si Amari kundi payagan si Callie na bumili ng bulaklak. "Ganda nito, oh!" Nakita ko ang tinuro niya at nakita kong mga forget-me-not flowers ito.

"One bouquet of this please! 'Yung magandang kasama ko nalang po ang bahalang magbayad."

Agad na napatawa ang mga nymph sa sinabi ni Callie. "Dear, all of you radiate exquisite beauty," sambit ng isa habang tumatawa. "Which one of you will pay?"

Tinuro ako ni Callie. "Siya po." Dahil sa sinabi niya ay agad silang napatingin sa'kin. They scanned me from head to toe before giving me a smile. "Ganda po, noh?"

"If the beauty of darkness was a person, that would be you. Who is your deity, child?"

"It's-" Napatigil ako dahil kinakabahan akong sabihin ang pangalan ni Hades. Mga nymph pa naman ni Persephone ang kausap ko. They are loyal to their mistress, and if they find out they're talking to a child born out of infidelity against their mistress, they would probably be wary of me. "Hades is my deity."

But then again, the gods were known to have children from different goddesses, and even other gods, anyway.

They were stunned for a second, and I thought I was doomed. Ang ikinagulat ko ay 'yung mga sandaling nginitian nila ako nang malumanay. Walang pait o galit laban sa'kin. "There is no need to be afraid, child. One's beauty cannot be determined by their origin."

Dahil sa sinabi niya ay gumaan ang pakiramdam ko. Habang nasa counter kami ay bahagya akong nakangiti. "Our mistress is kind and soft-hearted. She would surely love you even if you weren't from her own flesh and blood."

May tumapik sa aking balikat at nakita kong si Cole 'to. Nginitian niya ako.

"Please give me a blessing given by your deity to check your bank account."

Binigay ko ang singsing na bigay sa'kin ni Hades. Hanggang ngayon ay 'di ko pa rin alam ang saysay nun pero iniingatan ko pa rin ito.

"Magkano kaya ang laman?" Beads of sweat started to form on my forehead. What if Hades forgot to give me an allowance? How would I pay for Callie's flowers then?

"Good news, my lady. You received 500-" Hindi ko napigilang mapasinghap. Wait, 500 pesos lang ba?!

"Hala, kuripot pala si Hades?" bulong ni Cole sa'kin.

Natawa ang nymph sa mga reaksyon namin. "500 ma'am," natatawang saad nito. "500 million."

My eyebrows furrowed for a second, trying to comprehend what the nymph said, but Callie's shout caught my attention. "Psh, 500 million- HALA, 500 MILLION?! IN PESOS O IN DOLLARS BA 'YAN?!"

Agad na umiling ang nymph kaya nakahinga ako nang malalim. Grabe naman kasi kung 500 million dollars ang ibibigay sa'kin eh- "No, Miss Callie. The god deposited 500 million, not in dollars nor pesos but in uhm..." Hinintay ko ang sasabihin niya. "Gold bars and diamonds."

Sabay-sabay na nanlaki ang mga mata namin. "Love, do you think your father would mind another daughter?" biglang tanong sa'kin ni Talia habang nakatulala.

"Tumahimik ka, baka marinig ka ni Apollo, hindi ka na sisikatan ng araw bukas," pagbabanta ni Callie. Hindi talaga natatapos ang pag-aaway nila.

I was still not in my right mind. Hindi ko naman akalain na ganito na pala ako kayaman. "Magkano po lahat ng bulaklak?"

"Originally, it would've been a million pesos but since a beautiful demigod is buying beautiful flowers... in the name of our mistress, I'll give it to you for free."

Agad na kinuha ni Callie ang mga bulaklak mula sa nymph at paulit-ulit na nagpasalamat. "Ganda talaga ng genes niyo, noh? Nakalibre pa tayo!" sigaw nito na mukhang narinig ng iba pang demigod dito.

Nakakahiya talaga siyang kasama paminsan-minsan.

"Will you drop by the dorm? We're gonna be late for class," ani Amari.

Napanguso si Callie. "Pupunta sana ako kaso may klase nga pala tayo. Sa bagay, tama ka..."

"Let's go then."

Nangunguna si Amari sa paglalakad habang nahuhuli ako. Mukhang lutang yata ako dahil habang naglalakad na kami paalis ay may nabangga pa akong lalake.

Dahil hawak ko ang librong binili ni Callie para sa'kin ay agad itong nahulog. Luluhod na sana ako at akmang pupulutin ito nang maramdaman ko ang malakas na presensiya na nagmumula sa lalakeng nasa harapan ko.

His power is strong and overwhelming, I thought.

Due to the force of his power, my instincts took over, and I quickly got to my feet. I reached into my coat to retrieve my weapon and aimed it at his neck.

To my surprise, he mirrored my actions. He drew his weapon and positioned it against my neck, grazing it slightly.

His weapon is a star-shaped shuriken with sharp blades. What's intriguing is that the shuriken resembled a mirror as I could see my own reflection in it.

It seemed that both of us were taken aback by what we had done, as our weapons were aligned at each other's throats. After a moment, we both lowered our weapons simultaneously, realizing what had just happened. We each had a cut, and neither of us had expected this.

Bakit parang pamilyar ang nangyari?

"Haze?! Ba't nagpapatayan kayo ni Soleia?!"

Haze pala ang pangalan niya.

Tinago ko na ang sandata ko. My weapons are called feather blades. Like its name, they're shaped like feathers. However, instead of having a dull tip, they are as sharp as a knife.

Mabuti na lamang at mababaw lang ang pagkakasugat namin sa isa't isa. Wala namang dumudugo.

"You're here, Haze."

Napatingin si Haze kay Amari. "Amari," bati nito pabalik sa anak ni Athena.

"Where's Raven and Mavi?" tanong pa ni Amari. Tinuro ni Haze ang mga bagong dating na lalaki.

"Hihi, kumpleto na pala tayo!" biglang sigaw ni Tazyn nang makita ang tatlo.

I could sense Haze's intense gaze fixed on me, which was both intimidating and serious. I met his eyes, tilting my head slightly. I raised an eyebrow, and he did the same.

Naputol ang titigan namin nang may magsalita. "Hey, girls," bati nung isang lalaki. Tumigil ang mga mata niya sa'min ni Cole. "Oh. New members, Amari?"

Amari sighed before nodding. She gestured us. "This is Cole and Soleia. They are part of the Elysian Class now, just like us."

Una nilang binati si Cole bago ako. Kinindatan pa ako nung isang lalaki. Isa siya sa mga bagong dating. "Hey, beautiful."

"Stop flirting with her, you maniac." Mavi frowned at Talia's choice of words.

"Well, that's another way to say I miss you," Mavi joked, chuckling.

"Cole and Soleia, meet the last three members of the Elysian Class. Of course, the flirty guy is Mavi. He's a son of Poseidon." Ngayon ay si Callie ang nagsalita. "The serious one is Raven, the son of Zeus..." Sunod niyang tinuro ang lalaking tahimik lang.

"And this is Haze... I guess you've already met him." Huli niyang tinuro ang lalaking nabangga at nasaktan ko kanina.

Tinitigan ko siya, at ganun din ang ginawa niya sa'kin. Both of his hands were in his pockets as he stared at me. After a few seconds, surprisingly, he extended one of his hands toward me.

"Haze of the Elysian Class, son of Aphrodite, goddess of beauty and love."

Napatigil ako nang magpakilala siya sa'kin. Napakurap-kurap ako hanggang sa mapabalik ako sa katinuan.

Ayaw ko namang magmukhang masungit kaya tinanggap ko ang kamay niya. "Soleia of the Elysian Class, daughter of Hades, god of the underworld."

Haze continued to stare at me. "It's nice to meet you, Soleia."

I met his eyes with the same intensity.

"It's nice to meet you, Haze."

I don't think I'll get along with this demigod.