Ever Been to Heaven? 1

6:30 am

“Enjoy your drink, sir,” a cute server with a silver collar said.

I nodded my head before I glanced out toward an island not too far off from the mainland. The strong whiff of freshly ground coffee beans filled the air as I sat outside a café. This wasn’t a usual thing for me, but I figured things should be different for once or twice, and from what I’d heard, the drinks here were rather good. The crowd confirmed that, including a couple of people wearing the same uniform as me.

One monotone-expressed girl sat there absorbed in a compendium. From what I’d read, it was a common activity aside from idle chatter or getting work done. Maybe I should try to look preoccupied as well.

While I pondered that, my attention drifted to the ground where a couple of ants were marching along. The one in front carried a large piece of food while the others followed with smaller pieces or none at all. Just as I was about to see where they’d end up, a leather dress shoe suddenly crushed the leading ant, scattering the followers in all directions.

“Ah, now time to get some service. Waiter, get over here immediately.” Someone said, smacking the table with their hands multiple times.

My eyes followed the shoe to its owner, who probably stood around 190 cm with a steady build. His uniform, similar to mine, snuggly covered him as he smoothly ran his fingers through his wild rainbow-coloured hair. A few customers gave him weird looks before turning away.

Our entrance ceremony wouldn’t commence for a while, regardless, so now was the perfect time for a detour. The steam from the mug rose toward me as I reclined in the chair, just taking in the world around me.

Maybe I should try one of those pastries as well? Lighthearted decisions were the best ones to make, and hopefully, this was the first of many.

As the same server approached another customer with a tray in hand, about to deliver his order, my eyes finally closed. My mind was clear as the skies on a perfect beach day — but as soon as the peace settled in, it was taken away by the sound of metal hitting the ground, causing my eyes to snap open once again.

Clank!

“I’m sor—”

“I swear you people can’t get anything right.”

“Eekk!” The server flinched at the outburst as the student raised his hands in disgust.

“I swear, the more we try to incorporate you into our society, the more painful it is. We have no use for Fades here.”

Fades was a term coined when a Lit and an Unlit conceived an offspring, as the inherited magic wasn’t as potent as that of someone born from two Auralite mages.

It was easy to differentiate what people referred to as Lit from Fades due to a simple collar. A jejune approach to things, but what did I know entirely? I was under the same constraints.

I tapped on my neckband and sighed as minor feedback emanated.

The student continued.

“If we didn’t give you these jobs, what else would you have? Now be grateful and do things properly. I swear, the nerve of these lots.”

“.....”

Ashamed to say that he wore the same uniform as I did, which didn’t make things any better as people began to take even more notice. What I wouldn’t give for a meteorite to randomly hit and take us all out at this moment.

“Why don’t you give it a rest?” a voice said, coming to the server’s rescue. Judging by their identical attire, it was safe to assume they were co-workers.

The male co-worker stepped forward.

"Tsk, another one of you ragamuffins. This place is brimming with roaches today.”

“Who the hell are you calling a roach? We’re people just like you!” he snapped.

The student paused, as if processing his words before letting out a hearty, sardonic laugh.

“Just like you? Are you attempting to imply that you and I are equal in any way, shape, or form? Now that’s hilarious. If this server job doesn’t pan out, you have a future in comedy, since you Fades never seem to make it to where you can actually properly utilize magic big time.”

“Grrrr…” The co-worker narrowed his eyes.

“Why are you looking at me with such anger? Did I say anything incorrect? In this world, the superior ones are the freest of the bunch in this mage society. You know that every time you stare into the mirror,” he smugly replied, pointing to his bare neck.

Words cut deep, but the gesture truly drove the knife in. The male co-worker was riled up now, whipping out his mage’s relic, which was basically a slim rod with the ability to perform various spells.

Upon seeing that, the crowd gasped as the male student grinned, pulling out his own relic in retaliation.

“Now this is more like it. Show me you have a spine, you roach.”

The girl who had been absorbed in her book raised her head in mild curiosity before slightly shaking it and returning to her previous action. She seemed like the type not to be involved in anything, an admirable trait in my opinion.

Chairs shuffled backward as people made space, but the situation didn’t last long as another person wearing a school uniform stepped forward, this time a female.

“Violence will get us nowhere, so stop this at once,” she pleaded, placing a hand on her above-average-sized chest — a gesture that made it feel as if the words were coming straight from her heart.

Would she be the one to defuse this situation, or would the Regulators have to step in?

“Another one? No, you’re just like me, so why are you attempting to play social justice warrior? Does it make you feel warm inside when you cozy up to them?”

“No, I’m nothing like you. This idea of inferior and superior is idiotic and overplayed if you ask me.”

“Oh? Why so?”

“Those you’ve labeled as inferior have contributed as much to society as any full-mage, and you know that’s a fact, so quit acting clueless.”

“At the end of the day, who cares if they contribute or how much they did? Back then, they were the ones who lost, and nothing can change that. Once a loser, always a loser.”

The brave girl gritted her teeth.

“So what? That was almost a century ago.”

“And so what? Has time stood still, or have those roaches decided that it was their rightful place? Maybe they decided that going against the order of things is futile.”

Whoever this guy was, he had zero intention of backing down, and so did this girl — quite the standoff, if you had to ask me. And if you did, I couldn’t even tell you who was right or wrong.

I started to grow bored of the engagement and broke my gaze, but I accidentally locked eyes with the girl sitting a bit beside me as she gave me an icy stare before I quickly looked down.

“Hey, hey, hey! What’s going on here? It’s bad for business,” another voice said, this time, a male who wore a tag that read Manager.

The male co-worker quickly hid his relic.

“Your servant here brought the wrong order, and I want a refund,” the male student demanded.

“But I—” She tried to defend herself, but was immediately cut off by the manager, who raised his hand.

“Mhm, that’s all? I’ll make sure she gets you the correct order alongside proper training.”

“Much better, and also deal with your other one as well. He tried threatening my life.”

“Oh, did he now? I apologize for that, sir, but have this meal on the house.” The manager deeply bowed.

The pretty girl who had tried to stand up for the server looked on disappointedly as the three of them went back into the shop.

Weirdly enough, I felt a brief sensation like a flicker, which made zero sense at the time. Now that the show was over, I picked up my cup of coffee and was met with nothing but disappointment.

Ice-cold?

I looked into my cup with dismay before downing the entire thing in one chug, money already spent, then stood dejectedly from my seat. It was time to leave, regardless, as my exciting academic journey was about to commence.

Here’s to four years of quiet.