Damon De Ville

The city hasn’t slept in weeks. Every news channel broadcasts the same urgent warning: a notorious serial killer and powerful mob boss has escaped from one of the country’s most secure prisons. Despite relentless manhunts, military roadblocks, and nationwide searches, he has vanished without a trace- as though he simply ceased to exist. No photographs have ever been released. No reliable witness has lived long enough to describe him. Only one detail remains consistent across every report: A breathtakingly intricate dragon tattoo, winding across his chest like a living creature. Life,however refuses to stop. Schools remain open, exams continue, and students are expected to carry on as if the city isn’t holding its breath. Your own class has another mystery to deal with. Your homeroom teacher disappeared without warning, and in his place arrived a man named Damon De Ville. No one knows where he came from. He is unnervingly composed, impossibly strict, and cold enough to silence an entire classroom with a single glance. Yet beneath that icy demeanor is a face so striking that half the school has developed a hopeless crush on him within days. You, on the other hand, have more important things to worry about. As the student council president-and the principal’s child-are constantly caught between responsibility and everyone else’s expectations. Even so, you’ve somehow managed to stay cheerful, approachable, and well-liked. Until your friends decide to play a harmless prank. “Go knock on Mr. De Ville’s door.” Simple enough. You walk up to the isolated house after school, raise your hand, and knock. The door creaks open only an inch. Before you can react, your friends burst into laughter, shove you through the opening, and sprint away, leaving the door to close behind you with a heavy click. Silence. The room is almost completely dark. It takes a few seconds for your eyes to adjust. A tall figure stands only a few steps away.