Cal and Sophia sat in the café, taking a break after their long day, their orders now resting on the table.

  However, Sophia had taken her break to the next level. She had drifted off to sleep, her head gently resting on Cal’s shoulder.

  Cal gnced down at her, a smile tugging at his lips. He shifted slightly, trying not to disturb her, content to let her rest while he quietly sipped his drink—a warm cup of green tea.

  On the table, Seraphix, an unassuming bck cat—or so it seemed—pped at a bowl of milk with quiet contentment.

  Cal removed his gloves, revealing a striking pattern etched into his hand. A serpent dragon coiled up a tower, its intricate form surrounded by symbols of stars.

  When Cal first shook Seraphix’s paw, he felt a distinct pattern embed itself into his hand, accompanied by a spell that seemed to imprint itself within him—a spell he ter identified as telepathy.

  Telepathy was not something a typical spell could replicate, nor could it be achieved with an amulet. Beyond a handful of legendary creatures known to possess the ability, no one seemed capable of creating a spell that enabled direct communication with another person. While limited examples existed—such as the bond between a beast and its master—those were constrained to a mutual connection between the two, unable to extend to others.

  'Seraphix trusts me,' Cal thought. 'This is perfect—it’s exactly what I needed.'

  As he examined the newly etched spell, he marveled. Its complexity was breathtaking, yet its function felt intuitive, almost as if it had always been a part of him.

  'It feels like... a bloodline ability.'

  His gaze shifted to Seraphix, who nonchantly continued drinking milk.

  'It looks like an ordinary cat.'

  His bloodline ability, 'Eyes of Discernment', could unravel most forms of 'Concealment', making it easy for him to see through disguises. Yet, as he examined Seraphix's body, he found no trace of anything concealed. It appeared as though the creature had simply been born a cat in this world.

  Normally, Cal could easily distinguish between beasts and ordinary animals, as they appeared distinctly different to his eyes.

  'Is this what perfect concealment looks like?'

  Even so, something still stirred deep beneath Seraphix’s exterior, detectable only when Cal pushed his ability to its absolute limit.

  For a fleeting moment, he glimpsed another realm within—a dark, incomprehensible world teeming with strange, formless entities moving freely in its depths.

  Suddenly, one of the creatures turned its gaze toward Cal.

  Instinctively, he looked away, his pulse quickening. Just being noticed by the creature sent a chill down his spine. He activated his other bloodline ability to steady himself.

  After some time, Cal began to rex as he continued his drink, but suddenly, a peculiar sensation surged through his mind.

  “So, how long have you two been dating?” Seraphix asks abruptly.

  Cal choked on his tea.

  'Dating!? Did Sophia say we were dating?'

  The revetion left him stunned.

  For as long as he could remember, Cal had harbored feelings for Sophia. But despite her frequent dispys of affection, he’d never dared to act on them.

  After all, Sophia constantly insisted they were just 'friends', and Cal had resigned himself to the idea that she only saw him that way.

  Looking at Seraphix, who patiently awaited his answer, Cal’s mind raced. After a moment of awkward silence, he finally stammered out a reply, activating his bloodline ability, 'Words of the World'.

  “Since we... were kids, I think. I don’t really keep track.” His face burned with embarrassment.

  “Wow, so it was a preorder,” Seraphix remarked.

  “Huh?”

  “Nothing.”

  An awkward silence followed until Seraphix spoke again. “Say, do you know anything about Sophia’s condition?”

  At the mention of it, Cal’s expression darkened.

  'Of course, I couldn’t hide it from Seraphix.'

  To the world, Sophia was just a frail, talentless individual. But Cal knew the truth—her condition was far worse than anyone could imagine.

  “It’s a long story,” he said quietly.

  “That’s fine. I want to hear it.”

  Noticing something at the table across from him, Cal activated a sound-concealing barrier around his own table.

  After steadying himself, he refocused his attention on Seraphix and began to speak.

  “Alright,” he said. “I’ll tell you.”

  ***

  As a child, Sophia was the first—and perhaps the only—person Cal ever felt truly comfortable being close to. Since then, he has watched over her.

  From the moment Cal met Sophia, he knew her future would be fraught with hardship.

  Born into a high-ranking noble, Sophia cked the qualities that defined her lineage. She neither inherited the physical capability of the Kovalevskas nor the magical prowess of Naphael.

  In every sense, Sophia was utterly devoid of talent.

  This made her a target of ridicule. To others, she was a nuisance, an embarrassment, and even a subject of doubt as to whether she should have existed at all.

  Her circumstances drove her to seek relentless self-improvement. Whether through studying, training, or exploring unconventional methods, Sophia refused to resign herself.

  At the time, Cal regarded her efforts as admirable, believing she simply enjoyed the process of hard work.

  But everything changed when they entered the academy. Her drive escated into obsession. With access to advanced tools and experimental materials, she began testing increasingly dangerous methods to gain even the slightest sembnce of talent.

  This obsession led to frequent cshes between them.

  Cal tried desperately to intervene, but Sophia persisted, often conducting experiments in secret to evade his interventions.

  The breaking point came when one of her experiments nearly cost her life. In a desperate attempt to enhance her mana sensitivity and gain the ability to conjure mana, she used an underdeveloped amulet to forcefully inject unknown mana into her body.

  The experiment backfired catastrophically, leaving her body and mana circuits irreparably damaged—ironically destroying the very potential she had hoped to unlock.

  At that moment, Cal could no longer contain his anger. He seized Sophia's notebook, which contained her research pn and record, and cast a spell to burn it in front of her.

  Sophia, still recovering from the experiment in her room, was visibly shocked. She immediately sprang to her feet and lunged at him. In her haste, Cal lost his bance, and they both fell to the floor.

  Sophia, fists clenched, her grip tight on his clothes, looked furious as tears welled in her eyes.

  "Why did you burn it?!" she cried. "I worked so hard on it! Why do you always dismiss my efforts like they're nothing!? You’re smart, you're good with mana, you’re even physically capable. But me... I have nothing! Why can’t you understand? This was the only thing I could do for myself. No... I get it now. You’ll never understand. You think I’m stupid, don’t you? You think I’m just some clueless girl who doesn’t know what she’s doing..."

  Sophia shed out. Cal could only watch in silence as she vented her anger.

  He had never seen her like this before.

  As her words sank in, it dawned on him that, even after all these years, there was so much about her that he didn’t know.

  In the aftermath, Cal made a difficult decision. Rather than stopping her, he chose to support her experiments, but only under his strict supervision to ensure her safety.

  It was the only way he could protect her—from herself.

  ***

  Sophia is an anomaly to me, though not in a good way like Cal.

  After observing most of the people around me—both noble and commoner—I’ve finally started to draw some conclusions. There’s something undeniably wrong with Sophia.

  Her stats are absurdly low, even when compared to commoners. Typically, by adolescence, everyone achieves double digits in all their stats. Yet, aside from her dexterity, Sophia’s stats resemble those of a child.

  Even stranger are her mana capacity and level, which dispy a ‘/’ symbol. At first, I thought this indicated a cap. But after hearing Cal’s story, I suspect it represents her previous level and mana capacity before she damaged her body.

  Turning to Cal, I ask, "Has she ever received treatment?"

  "Not officially. She always refuses. Most of the time, I’m the one who performs basic check-ups."

  "You?"

  "Ah, right, I forgot to mention. I'm a medical mage student," he expined.

  'That's unexpected,' I thought.

  With his stats, he could easily rival most of the royal knights at the pace.

  "What’s Sophia’s major, then?" I ask.

  "She’s a magical engineering student."

  'I see. No wonder she’s skilled in design and crafting.'

  Cal hesitates for a moment before asking, "Is there anything you could do to help her?"

  I do have some ideas about how to help her, but I’m uncertain if they would work.

  After a brief pause to collect my thoughts, I respond, "I do, but I’m not sure it’s the best option avaible."

  "I see," Cal says with a nod. "Then I’ll keep looking for a solution too."

  Cal then adds, "Also, I have a question."

  "What is it?"

  Cal hesitates again, deep in thought, before finally asking, "Why did you come to this world?"

  I fall silent.

  It’s a good question—one I don’t fully have an answer to. I don’t even know how I ended up in that gaxy-like realm.

  My memories of the past are incomplete.

  While I remember enough to recognize who I am, the ter parts of my life remain unclear. I don’t even know if I died or if I was simply transported there.

  But one thing is crystal clear.

  "Cal," I begin, "I think you misunderstand. It was Sophia who 'called' me here."