The whole school stood silently as the students waited with anticipation in their classrooms. Everyone was either sitting or standing still, waiting for the loudspeakers to begin. The projector at the front displayed a page that said: ‘This Year’s Events’. They were waiting. Waiting for the results.

Demund and his friends likewise were anxiously stressing their attention on the speakers. It would begin any time now.

With a static crackle and slight buzz, the speakers of the school all came to life at once. A male voice began to speak.

“Ahem. Hello—hello? Is this working? Mike test, one, two, three—”

“Yes, it’s working, President. Could you please start now?” said a female voice. “The students must be waiting.”

“Ah, yes! But first, why are you so grumpy this morning, dear Vice-Pres? It’s like you—”

A sudden noise like a fish being slapped across a wall echoed through the speakers.

*Static* “I-I’m sorry about that. Let me start again.”

Demund stared at Riley and Rhyne with confusion. Riley shrugged his shoulders while Rhyne kept a goofy smile on his face. Apparently, this year’s student council members had some screws loose.

The male voice recovered itself and began speaking once more.

“Hello, everyone! Since our Vice-President dislikes wasting time—”

Something like wind blew into the speakers—as if someone dodged a fist.

“—we will be announcing the results now. First!”

Everyone clenched their fists. What would this year’s events be?

“Long jumping!”

A cheer resounded from the floor above the class Demund was in. It was obvious which class had voted.

“Crazy Race!”

This time, shouts of satisfaction echoed out from all directions.

“What’s the Crazy Race?” asked Demund.

“It’s a popular race that the students made, but it’s nothing special,” explained Riley. “Just multiple things merged into one. Like eat-the-food-off-the-strings, go through obstacle courses…it’s like the relay race but crazier.”

“I see.”

He turned his attention back to the speakers again as the names of the events appeared on the screen at the front. So far, six things had been announced. There were usually a total of 20 events for the whole school, not counting the two default ones. If the student council, however, determined that the events were too little or too much, they could increase/decrease them as they pleased.

“Eating Contest!” announced the speakers.

“Is that even a sport?”

“Apparently.”

They waited as the names presented themselves one by one. So far, the most popular ones like soccer had been announced. Volleyball was pretty high up in line too followed closely by Dodgeball. But so far, there was no sign of the Male-Female Two-Legged Race.

“And finally, Water-balloon fight! That will be it for the announcements. Please plan your teams right now. Student Council out!”

The speakers went off with a cackle of electricity. To Demund and his friends’ disappointment, the sport they wanted had not been announced. They shared sad smiles and looked at the screen.

Suddenly, the speakers screamed back on.

*Static* “Ah, hello, everyone! We forgot to mention that this year’s Crazy Race will contain a course that was made possible through a student’s great dedication!”

The male speaker cleared his throat.

“Though the student’s wish did not receive many votes, his hard work had to be recognized. I present you, the confetti spreader’s—Male-Female Two-Legged Race!”

“President! You can’t just add thing like that!” shouted a voice from the back of the speakers.

“Well, now I did! It’s final!”

The speakers turned off as the faint scream was heard in the distance. It seemed like the event really had been added, much to Demund’s surprise.

“I guess…congratulations?” said Demund, turning towards Riley.

“Yeah…congrats, man,” added Rhyne. “Never knew it would really make it.”

Riley hastily wiped the shocked expression from his face and replaced it with a proud smile.

“I am a genius, after all.”

“Heh.”

“Suit yourself.”

Despite their sarcasm, the three friends shared a victorious smile. Guess the student council wasn’t that bad, thought Demund.

〄 〄 〄

Shidey stared at Shaden who was staring at his mother who was staring at a list of things to buy on a sheet of paper. The black cat licked its paws and wondered why her master was so fixated on the servant. Maybe he was exerting dominance over her? She couldn’t know. She was a just a cat, after all.

Shaden watched his mother curiously. Melsei had never used a list to buy things during her trips to the market. Every single time she would depart with her trusty bag in hand, her coin purse tucked between her clothes. Today she looked like she was contemplating what to obtain on her trip. He tried to read the words on the note, but it was too far away. Dang, he was curious.

Melsei noticed Shaden watching her and quickly folded the small sheet of paper. She slid it into her pocket.

“Shaden~, watch the house while I’m away, okay~?” she said while pinching Shaden’s cheeks lightly. Shaden nodded.

Nowadays, he was free to roam around the house. The crib had been removed, replaced with a small mattress to the side of his parents’ room. While it did make it inconvenient for him to experiment during the night, it let him be freer than ever during the day. Plus, he could touch the cat more now. He was content with that for now.

Shaden waved at Melsei as she went out the door. He saw his mother’s figure disappear behind the wood and quickly headed towards the window. After using his mana-hands to pull himself up, he watched the streets. His mother soon came out of the building, her feet directed towards the center of the city.

Shaden hoisted himself down and sat on the ground. Shidey came over to him and meowed, asking for his affection (which he gladly gave with his fingers). He thought about his mother’s unusual behavior.

After having literally nothing to do, he had become increasingly sensitive about changes in his life. He just had to know what was going on. He placed his chin on the cat’s soft, black fur and thought to himself.

Eh. It probably had to do with something his father did, like obtain a promotion in the city guard. Or maybe his brother had gotten excellent grades in the Academy. His parents had talked about that sometimes during dinner.

Whatever it was, it was going to be big. Already, the house was being a little renovated, like the removal of his crib. Someone had gotten their hands on something good.

A sly smile crawled over Shaden’s two-year-old face. He definitely didn’t want to miss out on the fun. If he proved himself to be capable from a young age, the respect his parents would have for him would rise, allowing him to do whatever he pleased when he grew up. It was a tactic to make his parents trust him. He clapped, impressed by his own genius. Shidey just looked at her master with worried eyes.

“Shidey, we’re going on an adventure. I can’t be left out on this.”

“Meow~,” said Shidey.

This was definitely some kind of celebration and he would be a part of it. Shaden silently opened the windows then proceeded to close them. It was definitely a bad idea for a child to be floating out of a window in broad daylight. Yep. He would use the front door. Being safe was always good.

Shaden walked to the window and turned the doorknob with his mana-hands. After pulling the structure open, he beckoned at Shidey who quickly followed behind. The black cat silently went to take her position beside her master.

Shaden closed the door behind him and looked at the stairs. He had never tried to go down them by himself yet—they were still too big for his body. Well, he didn’t worry. He had telekinesis.

He half-floated down the stairs as Shidey trailed after him, meowing all the way. Her master was a weird one. It made her freak out the first time she had seen it, but by now, she had accepted the reality. Her master was some kind of naked bird without wings.

Shaden carefully reached the bottom of the stairs, alert for any signs of people. Thankfully, no one had moved into the bottom floors yet. He calmed his nervous mind and placed his feet on the ground. After walking down the corridor and reaching the front door, he twisted it open with his mana-hand.

The sun greeted Shaden as he emerged from the building. Shidey was excited too. This was the first time she and her master were going out on a hunt together. Or she believed that’s what it was. She was predatory by instinct.

Shaden’s plan was to find some flowers or pretty rocks by the road to give them to whoever the event was for. He suspected that it was some kind of celebration, and celebrations required gifts. Truthfully, he wanted to see the ‘WTF?’ expressions on his family’s face when he presented the gift. It would make him feel more special, and someday in the future, his family might testify, “Shaden was a special child since when he was young.”

He shook his head and cleared his thoughts. The future was still a long way off. He had to focus on the present.

〄 〄 〄

Shaden inspected the stone ground of the city. And sighed.

There were no flowers. No loose stones. Nothing of value. Nothing he could give as a present to his family.

He had walked quite a distance from his house, navigating the streets so that bypassers would not see him. If anyone did see him, he would walk up to a nearby building and act like he lived there by petting Shidey. Shidey was very cooperative in his little acts.

But as far as he went, he couldn’t find anything. It was as if someone swept the floors every day (which they did but once a week). The road was clear of any impurities. There were some weeds, but who would want a weed for a present?

Shaden sighed again. The only flowers around were the ones that sat outside building windows. They definitely belonged to someone, so he couldn’t just steal them. He wished he could find someone to ask for flowers. Or anything. He just needed something pretty.

So he continued to walk…wait.

What if he went to the market?

He had seen children run around there. If he could disguise himself as one of them and find something of value…!

It was decided then. Shaden knew the way to the marketplace and shops. He just had to avoid being seen by as many people as possible. While he was small, he could pass for a five-year-old if he talked fluently.

He smiled. His plan was perfect!

〄 〄 〄

He shouldn’t have come here.

He should have stayed home where he felt less short.

Shaden walked grumpily as he passed through the crowds emanating from the center of the city. He had almost been stepped on twice now and had been questioned about his parents more than six times. It was annoying. This was becoming more bothersome than he had thought.

But he pushed through, searching for kids to blend in with. Well, not that other people were too curious about his identity. Just as he thought, his fluency in talking made them believe he was truly older than he looked.

He had picked up some stones along the way. The streets near the marketplace had more things lying around than where he lived. It was much busier and filled with life. Aside from the giant people frustrating Shaden, everything was great.

But he had to find something soon. He really would be giving out stones at this rate.

“Wait…what if…I did a magic show?”

“Meow~?”

Shidey meowed curiously as her master stopped and thought to himself. He was in that weird paw-on-chin position again. Her master was truly impressive. He could stroke himself on the chin whenever he liked with his magnificent paws.

Shaden thought. Magic shows weren’t uncommon in his old world. If he used telekinesis to juggle the stones he picked up, maybe he might earn some money to buy better things. That sounded much better than scavenging for good.

But where? This place was too crowded.

Shaden continued to walk along the street. He noticed that the crowd looked strangely packed on one side of the road some few blocks away. He realized it was a street musician playing his stringed instrument after he heard the pretty sounds coming from that direction.

He knew what he had to do.

Shaden pushed through the crowds of people. After seeing Shidey almost get trampled, he picked up the cat with the assistance of his mana-hands and weaved towards the sound. He finally managed to break through into a small opening.

Like he had thought, a musician in somewhat-ragged clothes was strumming his strings in a beautiful manner. The crowd watched as his fingers flew across the wooden panels, making various sounds that resembled a symphony. The musician’s face was covered under a hat, but his grey beard and experienced fingers were clearly visible to everyone. Shaden too watched silently in awe.

This guy was amazing!

Finally, the wonderful song came to a close. People clapped and flicked some coins into the musician’s cup, and he gratefully tilted his hat for the audience. He then set up a sign that read ‘5-minute break.’

Shaden watched as the crowd went on their way. The musician himself was counting the coins he had received from his little performance. After clearing his throat, Shaden approached the man and stood in front of him, with Shidey in his arms.

“Excuse me.”

The man looked up, eyes still covered under his wide hat. He glanced at the small boy in front of him.

“Do you need something?” he asked in a surprisingly gentle voice. Shaden was slightly taken aback. Not only were this man’s skills amazing, but his voice sounded beautiful too! He wondered why the man had not sung.

“Um. Mister?” asked Shaden in a squeaky voice. He had become more nervous than he wanted too. “Is it okay if I perform next to you for your next song?”

Maybe he was too direct. But the man didn’t seem to mind.

“What can you do, young one?”

“Erm…I can juggle.”

“Oh? Would you like to show me?”

The conversation was going surprisingly well. Shaden put down Shidey on the ground and gladly took out four stones from his pocket.

“Okay. Here it goes.”

He quickly attached his mana-hands—or rather, mana-strings—to the stones and tried his best to juggle them naturally. The stones half-floated though the air as they bounced off of Shaden’s hand.

Dammit, thought Shaden. It looked too unnatural.

The man didn’t seem to mind.

“Where did you learn how to do this?” he asked.

“This? Oh…well…I learned it—”

Shaden stopped himself. His sneaky instincts and his desire to be mysterious clouded his head.

“It’s a trade secret,” he replied.

Shaden thought the man raised his eyebrows from under his hat. Maybe he shouldn’t have tried to sound cool. He really hoped he didn’t mess up.

The man gave a hearty chuckle and pat Shaden on his head.

“Alright, boy. You can perform next to me,” said the bearded musician. "How about we split the income 50-50? Do you understand what that means?”

“Yes! It’s a deal.”

The man chuckled. This boy was sure interesting.

“It’s time to start now. Are you ready?”

Shaden placed his hands on his hips and gave a triumphant smile.

“Of course!”

〄 〄 〄

The bearded musician watched as the interesting boy jumped through the streets happily with his bag of coins in his hand. He stroked his grey beard and took off his hat to get a better view.

There really are gems hidden among the dirt, he thought to himself.

More importantly, from whom had the boy learned from? He didn’t seem to be even three, but judging from his speaking ability, he was very well learned. Whoever had taught him was a top-class educator.

Most impressive was his capacity for magic. The man knew telekinesis when he saw it. He himself had practiced the art a little a few years back. He had failed to master it as he had turned his attention to other spells, but he knew how it functioned. It required incredible amounts of mana and concentration.

If the boy was able to do it so skillfully at his age…

The man stroked his beard again in thought. Someone like that would definitely find his way to the top even if he didn’t interfere. His master would guide him well. The man’s curiosity grew, but he knew when he had to restrain himself. If he took in every talented child he spotted on the streets, he would fail at his work. He had more urgent matters to attend to.

The Fourth Elder of the Consortium retrieved his belongings from the ground and went on his way. He had to attend a meeting soon.

He was satisfied, his boredom gone for the day. This was why he loved roaming the streets.