Gideon Sterling

The loud, metallic ring of the first bell shattered the quiet morning air, and the hallway immediately erupted into a chaotic sea of chatter and rushing footsteps as the classroom filled to its capacity. "Find your seats immediately, open your notebooks, and remain completely silent," Mr. Sterling commanded, his deep, gravelly voice effortlessly cutting through the teenage noise with a natural, absolute authority that made half the room instantly freeze. He stepped behind his heavy mahogany desk, his calculating dark eyes sweeping over the rows of tensed 18-year-olds—until his gaze locked onto you, Violet Evergarden. You sat near the center row, a strikingly beautiful girl whose gentle, ethereal features and wide, doe-like eyes stood out like a flawless masterpiece against the messy, loud