Cylus Vergil the son of a clothing vendor

This world is ruled by Eather, an innate energy that manifests through the imagination. Magic is only active when the user senses the energy pulsing within the Core—the center of Mana regeneration. Once the Core is depleted, magic can no longer be used.

The imagination has absolute limits. A small scale of power cannot become great. The type of power is also fixed from birth; a user of telekinesis cannot create fire, and the mechanism for channeling magic cannot be changed at will.

Those without Eather and a Core become commoners, such as merchants or tailors. However, for the nobility, possessing this power is mandatory. If they are born without Eather and a Core, they are considered trash.

*****

A golden light began to illuminate the sky and the earth. Birds flew in flocks in search of food. But amid the morning atmosphere, a commotion could be heard coming from the food stall.

“Hey, you there, you little rascal!”

A vendor wearing a white hat and his chef’s uniform shouted loudly while holding a wooden spoon.

“Hahaha, go ahead and catch me if you can!”

A young man in a white shirt, with long, tousled brown hair, golden-yellow eyes, and long, curled black eyelashes, was running while laughing mischievously, holding a bowl of red noodles in his hand.

The vendor clenched his teeth tightly and gripped his wooden staff firmly.

“You insolent brat!”

The vendor set off in pursuit of the young man, but someone darted past him so quickly that his figure became a blur; the wind caught the vendor’s clothes, and his hat fell to the ground.

The vendor’s face immediately relaxed; he picked up his white hat that had fallen to the ground and clutched it tightly.

“Please catch that naughty brat.”

Meanwhile, the young man who had stolen the red food realized someone was following him; he turned around and saw no one there.

He smiled broadly, but his eyes remained sharp as he scanned for a way out.

“Remember, you can run and hide without making a sound.”

The young man’s steps quickened as he entered a narrow room filled with tools.

He grabbed the item and repeatedly tossed it behind him.

His steps began to slow slightly, thinking the situation was safe. But the ground where he’d just stepped turned to ice, chasing after his feet.

He felt the cold temperature on the back of his calves, but his face showed no panic or anxiety—instead, he smiled even wider.

“All right, this is my first practice run, hahaha!”

Quickly, he jumped and hopped along the wall in a zigzag pattern, successfully climbing onto the roof of a resident’s house.

He stopped on the roof and glanced back with a smile.

“You’ve already lost. Never mind—I’m going to eat first.”

But when he looked ahead, there was another person with blonde hair and an annoyed expression. He didn’t have time to react because that person was already right in front of him.

“Ri—”

Before he could finish speaking, that person had snatched the food and fallen onto the roof.

“Rio, why did you take my food? I already bought it from Mr. Jalert.”

He let go of Rio’s hand, which was holding him back, then stood up with a disappointed look on his face.

“This isn’t yours. I know you stole it from Mr. Jalert’s shop. Why do you always cause trouble first thing in the morning, Cylus?”

Rio looked annoyed at Cylus’s behavior. He glanced at the item Cylus had stolen.

“These are Cvilne noodles, right? Hmm, why does the picture of the noodle box look like this?”

Rio looked at the picture on the noodle box. The image looked familiar—a red dragon mascot wearing glasses.

“This is a new release—Level 7 Spicy Noodles, Mr. Jalert! Wow, but I have to return it.”

Seeing that Rio was about to climb down from the roof, Cylus rushed over and grabbed his shirt tightly.

“Hey, give those noodles back!”

Rio stopped in his tracks and looked at Cylus.

“Cylus, this isn’t yours—you didn’t pay for it.”

Suddenly, the person who had been chasing Cylus earlier appeared on the roof behind them.

“His real intention wasn’t to steal Mr. Jalert’s new food creation—he was just being considerate this morning. Besides, he’s often left out.”

The person had blue hair that fell over his forehead, sky-blue eyes, and was neatly dressed; he spoke in a calm tone.

Rio looked at the person and then smiled with relief.

“You’re right, Eran. I thought he was trying to steal something. I’m sorry, Cylus—I didn’t mean to hate you.”

“Hey, you’ve already got that new stuff, haven’t you?”

Mr. Jalert’s voice came from under

the roof. The three of them looked at him.

Eran saw that Mr. Jalert was holding a wooden stick. Quickly, Eran created an ice slide leading to a quiet path and then pushed Cylus toward it.

“Hey, what’s going on, Eran!?”

Eran thought to himself, ‘I know Mr. Jalert is really furious because his new food release was stolen.’

“Cylus, don’t ask so many questions—just follow orders. You have to go to that ice slide; it leads to a quiet path.”

Finally, Cylus followed the order and climbed onto the slide, but he still didn’t understand.

The whispering sound alerted Mr. Jalert and the people inside the house.

“Hey, what are you doing on top of that person’s house? Get down here right now!”

The two of them went down the ice ladder to the surface and approached Mr. Jalert with slow, careful steps.

Mr. Jalert’s eyes were searching for something. He narrowed his eyes while resting his chin in his hand.

“Where’s that new stuff?”

Rio’s hand went into his pocket and pulled out some food.

“Here you go, Mr. Jalert. It’s still intact.”

Mr. Jalert took the food and hugged it tightly, closing his eyes.

His eyes opened again, and he tapped his hand on the wooden bench.

“Where’s the kid who stole it?”

Both of their faces immediately turned disappointed, and they looked away.

“I’m sorry, Mr. Jalert. That naughty kid just left the food behind, but he’s gone. Maybe he ran away because he was cornered.”

Mr. Jalert clenched his teeth tightly and gripped the wooden staff so hard that the veins in his hand stood out.

“Phew… it’s okay as long as this food is back in my hands. Thank you for your help, sir. As a token of my gratitude, here, take this food.”

Mr. Jalert presented them with a large, pale green dish.

The two of them took the food, excitedly glancing at it.

“Wow, this is food made from the Camellia sinensis plant!”

Rio’s mouth dropped open wide, his eyes sparkling.

“The Camellia sinensis plant is very rare and extremely expensive. It’s used for magical remedies, luxury items like perfumes and other goods, as well as food and drinks.”

Mr. Jalert explained.

“Where do you find people like this, sir?”

Rio moved closer to Mr. Jalert.

He just smiled, twirling his mustache. Then he walked away, leaving them with an answer.

“It’s a secret—how could you possibly know? Hahaha.”

That answer left them both stiff as withered paper blown by the wind.

*******

He turned his attention back to Cylus, who was walking slowly through a very quiet part of the village.

He looked down, his footsteps echoing.

“Why is he in such a hurry?”

He looked up again and raised his mallet.

“Hahaha! That doesn’t matter—I have to figure out how to become the Great Wizard King.”

But his steps halted when he heard the sound of someone crying mixed with a cynical laugh coming from the alley nearby.

Cylus approached the sound, then hid behind a wall to listen to what they were saying.

“Hey, Syimo, we gave you a final warning yesterday, but why are you still so stubborn, huh!?”

A red-haired bully with his hair swept up, wearing a sneering expression.

“I’m sorry, it’s my fault. I really am nothing but trash. Please give me one more warning—I promise I’ll do my very best.”

A young man named Syimo sat slumped against the wall, trembling as he looked at the bully.

“Ahh... it’s too late. If you want this problem solved, you’ll have to take my punch first!”

Syimo swallowed hard; his sweat instantly turned cold.

The bully launched a hard punch toward Syimo.

Syimo closed his eyes as the hard punch was about to strike him.

“STOP!”

Cylus emerged from behind the wall, looking annoyed.

The bully turned toward Cylus, and his attack stopped immediately.

“Who are you? Why are you interfering?”

Cylus gripped his fist tightly.

“How dare you bully someone weaker than you, you arrogant jerk!”

The bully’s face turned red, and he clenched his teeth so hard they clicked.

“YOU'RE REALLY PROVOCATIVE!”

Cylus smiled cynically and gripped his shirt tightly.

“That’s right, I am provocative. If you want to punch him, you have to punch me first!”

Hearing those words, Syimo was surprised to find that Cylus was actually a good person.

“FINE, IF THAT’S WHAT YOU WANT!”

The bully’s eyes flashed with menace as he clenched his fists tightly, making them creak.

Cylus took a slight step back but was ready to fight to protect Syimo.

And their fight truly began.