The sun hung low over the sprawling lawns of Elysium University, casting long shadows that stretched like fingers across the manicured grass. I leaned back in the wrought-iron chair outside the campus café, my legs crossed casually, one polished loafer tapping against the leg of the table. The air smelled of fresh espresso and the faint perfume of the girls who always clustered around me—Jisoo with her floral notes, Mina with something sharper, like citrus laced with desperation. They laughed at my every word, their eyes darting to catch mine, but I barely registered them. My attention was elsewhere, scanning the quad like a predator surveying his territory.