Derb rested against the wall, all energy leaving his body once he was finally alone. He was in the predicament of a lifetime. He didn't think many people had been in his shoes before. Many less could probably be said to have survived… that last thought wasn’t helping.

He looked around the room, much comfier than sleeping in the forest. He felt blessed to have found a place with people so quickly. If he was stuck in that forest, even if it was a normal one, he didn’t think he’d survive it. He lived in the world of technology, a forest might as well be a graveyard for the likes of him!

By the words of caution from the old man, he didn’t even entertain the idea that he would have made it. He wasn't sure how strong a "Magic beast" was, but he wasn't taking that chance. He was lucky to be dropped so near the village. Really, if he didn’t know better he’d almost believe this was all planned out.

While Derb was considering his future choices he was scarfing down as much cheese as his stomach could handle. Unfortunately, the girl took his request for the cheese to heart and left with all the fruit... That didn’t matter right now. He had to figure out how to fend for himself in this new place. He was different than them, just a weak human. He needed something to fend off anyone.

The old man seemed extremely powerful but Derb was sure a gun or something could still take him down… not that he was considering killing him. Derb was more of a peace and love type of man, or more accurately a cry and hide type. It’s why he was so experienced in making others empathize with him. It was hard for Derb himself to feel empathy for his type of people, but he jotted that down to being so dumb that he was more primate than human.

Derb… was never really the same as the other kids… No, not that he was mature or weird or anything, he was just particularly dumb in anything that required anything more than common sense and intuition. Derb failed at even completing most school subjects, getting by because of his relationships with the teachers. However, he excelled at reading and history, which seemed to be unique.

But, how could it be? All you had to do was remember the things you saw with your big ol’ eyeballs. And all you had to do for reading was get where they were coming from, see how it’s like to be inside their shoes… Derb’s experienced enough in life to realize how humans reacted to certain things. How being too serious ended up being detrimental, and how easily people are to just pass things off as accidents if you act like there was no care in the world.

He made plenty of friends at work this way, and he was getting by just fine before this whole ordeal happened. Now he was left back at zero, in hard mode no less. He really couldn’t catch a break.

Derb yawned, all the constant fainting wasn't what he could call a good night's sleep. All his problems could wait until he had some proper shut-eye, so he did just that. Derb snuggled into the bed that was rather comfy and cool against his burning head. He couldn’t help but feel that things would be alright. He ignored the fact that his fever could probably kill him in his sleep.

He left that problem for his compatriots until after he fell asleep. a thought born from the deliriousness of said fever. The events happening were so outrageous he even forgot about his horrible sleeping habit, allowing him to rest peacefully for the first time in maybe a year.

___

Dark, damp, cold, a boy no older than eight wakes up in a cold cellar, he tries to stand but feels a horrible stabbing pain coming from every part of his being. He looks at his body and realizes in horror that his body was twisted terribly. with his legs shifted to look like a monstrous pretzel... His feet were gone, so were his fingers, on the rest of his body were strange symbols all intersecting and synergizing cut into his skin. He was producing blood in such a large amount he doubted it was natural, he was so fixated on himself that he didn’t notice the circle around him absorbing the blood falling out of him, only to siphon the energy back into him. Filling him with tainted energy that made him feel stronger and stronger. He knew something amazing was coming, something bigger than himself. He wished he were to be alive to see it, but this alone was precious enough.

Derb didn’t wake up after this dream

___

Tiffany was left to take care of Derb, at first she resisted helping the punk who attacked her when they were alone. but there was something to being able to take care of someone’s needs completely that rubbed her the right way. She started looking forward to waking up in the mornings and spending her time around his bed. Cleaning, feeding, and replacing his clothes was pretty therapeutic to her. It also helped that she was free from doing any labor until he was better.

She could tell her teacher was starting to get worried, though. Three days was a long time for someone to be asleep, even with blunt trauma to the head. The boy barely reacted to anything done to him, only gulping down his water and soup. The only expressions he made were that of discomfort, usually whenever he got poked by Tiffany as a form of entertainment. He was looking even more lean than before he got here…

She realized where her thoughts were leading, and shook her head in shock. She hit Derb on the stomach, as if he was at fault. She sighed, pulling him up from the bed and getting him in a sitting position. she smiled at how helpless he looked. If he was going to stay like this forever it’d just mean she’d have him all to herself! She wondered if this was how it felt to have a baby… maybe if he was lighter. She pulled her golden hair back and tied it into a ponytail. It was time for his supper, and she didn’t want to get her hair messy again.

_

Hannah was on her walk to get her teacher's alchemical ingredients. She had a small basket and a sack of coins, ready to haggle with the locals. Hannah was getting tired of getting so much medicine, why did they have to care for a devious conniver? Sure he may have understood her master’s greatness, but that just made it all the more devastating when he tried to run! He even insulted them by calling them a cult! Didn’t he know who they were? What they did to not just live, but thrive in this area? Honestly, had her teacher not been so kind she'd personally punish his insolence.

the first thing that set her off was when she used "hunter's gaze" on him. He looked as if he was just born. It wasn't because of his looks, but because of how his mana seemed completely pure and dormant. It was like that of a baby's, even his mana capacity was tiny. As children grew they obtained wilder auras due to their growth and lack of training. The impurities of living without training also caused it to change color, making it darker than Derb's pale glow. She was suspicious about it but her teacher was adamant.

Hannah sighed, realizing she hadn't talked to anyone today either. She used to come around to check up on Derb and Tiffany, thinking that it'd get boring taking care of a comatose patient. Tiffany quickly put a stop to that, however. saying that he needed 'absolute peace and quiet'. She didn’t know how to feel about leaving Tiffany with the person who assaulted her. Since the victim herself didn’t mind, Hannah decided to ignore it. She could hardly call a shove ''assault'' either way.

While Tiffany was taking care of Derb, Hannah was taking care of their teacher. He seemed stressed about the boy, for some reason. It wasn’t as if it was their fault in the first place. If that stupid guard held back a bit he wouldn’t have been in a coma in the first place. She missed talking to Tiffany… all this alone time had her focusing on all the problems they had. She promised that she would treat the other sister nicer as soon as they started going back to their normal routine.

___

The elder felt the subtle shift in the boy’s mana. Why he was changing, he didn’t know. It was as if the boy was finally coming into himself. He didn’t know whether this was good or bad. He was starting to doubt the boy was just an exiled and unwanted baby. He had no idea what was to come, but he knew one thing. “I’m going to make this kid my disciple if it’s the last thing I do.”

___

Derb awoke, feeling actually refreshed for once… weird. He sat up, looking around to see if there were any signs of people. He was still alone. As he was getting up he realized in horror that he swapped outfits in his sleep! His old clothes were gone and all he was left in was a loose-fitting robe and a pair of white pants. Speaking of loose-fitting, when did he lose all his... baby fat? He almost looked malnourished, which didn't look good at all.

Weird, despite his looks he still felt alright... His movements before seemed jerky and sluggish compared to now. It felt as if he finally came out of the water… 'what did they do to me?' was his first thought. His second was to start doing as many pushups as he could. He didn’t know if this was temporary and wanted to crush his record. After some consideration on the second one, he decided against it. There was a chance that he would peak at that point and would never get past it. He brushed his hand against his hair, only to find it thicker and longer… Even his eyesight was better, years of using his phone wearing them down. What was going on?

He heard a creak coming from the door. He saw it open a smidge as the blonde-haired girl peeked in at him from the outside. Derb neared her carefully and with a kind demeanor. He remembered she was the one who blocked his escape, no sense in making her hate him any more than she already does. “Um, were you the one who changed me in my sleep? There was really no need to do that, I could have gotten changed on my own. can you get me my regular clothes back?”

She shook her head no at him, offering no other explanation. He reminded himself mentally that she could probably take him all on her own if it came down to it, so he probably shouldn't argue. She responded before he actually became angry, however. “I… you were asleep for a very long time… we were scared of you getting bedsores so we swapped your clothes. I don’t know where your clothes are a-at the moment...” He instantly forgave her in his head, knowing the pain of being told to do something he knew nothing about. His opinion of her went up three notches. Although he was a bit worried at the last remark.

“Could you please tell me your name? I don’t want to keep referring to you as the blonde one in my head.” He gave her a smile to show her he wasn't angry, and she returned it. In a happier tone, she answered him. “My name is Tiffany! My friend is called Hannah! We both work and study under the tutelage of teacher!” He nodded and smiled, finally someone was answering his questions. "And what about your teacher? it feels rude calling him old man." She huffed at his rudeness, but didn't react to it. "His name is Gerald, not 'old man'. Be careful of how you address him." Derb grinned, he finally got the information he was looking for.

He walked away from the girl, turning his back to try to tighten the robes on him. “How long was I out anyways? I feel like I’ve been hibernating for a week!” He laughed at his own joke, stretching his arms and stiff muscles. It wasn’t until Derb turned around and saw the cringing face of the girl in front of him that he realized something was wrong. “Um… a-about that.”