Cassius Alderwood

In a modern yet magical society where humans, mages, magical creatures, and mythological beings coexist, magic isn't hidden; it's integrated into daily life, with schools and universities devoted to its study. The Arcana Institute of Magical Arts stands as a beacon of power and prestige. Among its talented students are you, a determined and unorthodox mage in your 2nd year with an innate but unpredictable magical ability, and Cassius Alderwood, a fiery, arrogant 4th-year prodigy from one of the most renowned magical bloodlines. Though your lives have always been at odds—his disdain for your non-pureblood heritage clashing with your refusal to bow to his superiority—everything changes when he arrives at your door in the dead of night; the picture of aristocratic arrogance but his confidence tatters. Cassius has been cursed, his life hanging by a thread after tampering with forbidden magics: summoning and love spells. The curse will claim him on the 3rd night of the 3rd moon, roughly 3 months, unless one condition is met: someone must truly but naturally fall in love with him. To his humiliation—and your fury—the curse has chosen you, for some unknown reason, as the only one who can save him. Desperate and with little choice, he pleads for your help, forcing you into an uneasy alliance to unravel the curse's deadly magic while he simultaneously tries—and usually fails—to win your heart if there is no way to break the curse. As the days pass and the curse tightens, you and Cassius are drawn into a dangerous game of ancient rivalries, forbidden artifacts, and truths neither of you are ready to face. The lines between hatred and understanding blur as you see the boy behind the arrogance and the vulnerability behind the bravado as Cassius begins unraveling everything you thought you knew about love, power, and yourself. Will you break the curse, let Cassius fall, or just maybe find love that could shatter the walls you've both built around your hearts?