Page 54 of Ghost Ribbon

Ilya waved a hand like he was brushing away a fly and strode toward me with a grin that was way too bright for this early in the morning.

“Mario, I came to drive you! Aren’t I nice?” he said, already closing the distance between us. “I brought snacks. Well, I ate the snacks on the way here, but the thought counts, right?”

I just stood there, listening, a little overwhelmed. His words came out in a rapid stream, barely pausing for breath. I nodded once or twice because it felt like the polite thing to do, but my brain was still catching up to the fact that Ilya, actual Ilya, was here to pick me up.

Before I could say anything, he grabbed my wrist and started pulling me toward the car.

“Come on, come on! We’re going to be late if we stand here chatting all day.”

I stumbled a little as he dragged me the last few steps, nearly tripping over my own feet. He opened the back door with a flourish and basically shoved me inside like I weighed nothing. I landed on the leather seat with a small oof, clutching my backpack to my chest.

Ilya slid in after me and slammed the door shut, already talking again as the car pulled away from the curb.

“Buckle up, Mario! Safety first and all that. Not that I usually follow rules, but y—”

I finally found my voice, cutting in before he could keep rambling.

“Did Alexei send you?”

Ilya waved a hand again, completely unbothered, and grinned at me.

“Sure he did. I’m his most trusted. Obviously. Who else would he send for something this important? Me. The reliable one. The charming one. The one with the best driving skills. Well, maybe not the best driving skills, but definitely the most enthusiastic.”

I stared at him, not entirely convinced, but I didn’t push it. Something about the way he said it felt a little too smooth, but I was too overwhelmed to question it out loud.

Ilya kept talking the entire drive, jumping from one topic to another without any real pause. He told me about some prank he pulled on Dimitri last week, complained about how boring the academy was getting, and at one point asked if I wanted to see a knife he kept in his jacket “just in case.” I politely declined.

By the time we pulled up in front of the academy gates, my head was spinning a little from all the words. Ilya leaned over and opened the door for me with another bright grin.

“Thanks for the ride,” I said quietly, clutching my backpack a little tighter as I stepped out.

He slid out right after me, slammed the door shut, and fell into step beside me. I blinked, a little thrown off, but I didn’t say anything.

We started walking toward the main building together. The morning sun was already warm on the stone path, and a few students glanced our way as we passed. I tried to ignore the stares. Walking next to one of the Void Kings was bound to draw attention, even if Ilya wasn’t actively threatening anyone at the moment.

“Maybe I should have enrolled in the art campus instead. But then again, that insect goes there, so no thank you.”

I glanced sideways at him, confused. “Insect?”

Ilya stopped mid-step for half a second, then kept walking, his grin turning a little sharper.

“Yeah, Kento. Your bestie’s brother. That smug, pretentious whore”

He kept going without missing a beat, waving his hands around as we walked down the hallway. Students moved out of our way without us even having to ask.

“I’ll get rid of him one day, I just have to convince Dimitri to let me.”

I tried not to laugh, but a small, nervous smile tugged at my lips anyway. Ilya’s energy was overwhelming, but there was something almost funny about how seriously he was taking this feud with someone I never met. I of course knew Rei had a brother but he was mostly absent.

“He sounds… intense,” I offered politely, keeping my voice soft.

“Intense?” Ilya repeated, scoffing dramatically. “Intense is putting it lightly. That insect will—”

He cut himself off with a bright laugh, like he remembered he was talking to someone who probably didn’t want to hear about murder plots before first period.

“Anyway,” he said, waving it off again, “that’s why art campus is off-limits for me.”

We reached the hallway that split off toward the history wing. Ilya didn’t slow down. He just kept walking beside me, still talking a mile a minute about everything from the terrible coffee in the school cafeteria to how Dimitri had been acting weird lately because of “that silver-haired fairy,” which I assumed meant Rei.