It seemed like an ordinary morning.

I woke up with a headache that day, awoken by the clamor of talk outside.

My eyes widened at the sight of a mage standing in the center of the playground, flailing his hands around like he was a dancing fish. A stream of water hovered all around him flowing in an endless wave through the air.

The mage snapped his fingers, and the dense stream collapsed onto the floor, splashing all over the audience that had gathered around him.

“Ah!” he cried, “My mistake!”

He walked to the closest splashed audience member and walked over to him, putting his hand on his clothes, and expelling the water that had soaked into the audience member’s clothes, throwing it behind him.

There was someone else behind him, who shrieked at the sight of water being flung their way.

“Sorry!” the mage cried, a mess forming around them.

Who was this idiot who thought they were hot shit?

After a little bout of running around, the mage managed to dry everyone who he had splashed.

Some were berating the mage for his carelessness while some parents were calming down their hysteric children who had been terrified by the hysteria caused by the mage.

Adrian, seeing me--and remembering that I had told him I was a former mage--gestured for me to walk over.

I did so.

“This is the kind of person you used to be?” he said in a hushed whisper, “I thought better of you, Rao.”

“Don’t lump me in with him. I wasn’t anywhere near as clumsy. Besides, I’m not a mage who deals with water,” I protested.

“That’s not important,” he looked at the mage in the center, “That mage--he called himself Alaric--he offered to take some of the children away for a magical education a year from now,” he looked me closely, “He said that Nix and Lea had talent.”

“Who’s Lea?” I asked, a little irked at Alaric’s actions. This damned mage did the one thing that I had decided not to do the moment I landed in this village. He assessed the magic force of all the children in the village. I was a little angry--should I put that mage in his place?

Assessing magic talent would just create a rift between the talented and the untalented. I had avoided assessing the children intentionally, to remove the possibility of me treating a child different for their talent in magic.

This Alaric fellow… he had trampled on all of that while I was asleep.

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“You wouldn’t know Lea. She’s the daughter of a friend of mine,” he told me.

“I understand the situation,” I said, walking toward Alaric, away from Adrian.

I approached Alaric’s back. Alaric was in the middle of apologizing to a small group of villagers. I pulled him toward me--checking his magic force as I did so--freeing him from that situation.

This was not mercy of any kind.

He fell backward, stumbling into my arms, I was the only thing holding him up, “Gah!” he called, startled, “Let go of me!”

“Sure,” I said, dropping him onto the bare sandy ground.

Recovering from the drop, Alaric looked at me with a dead stare, a little embarrassed, “Are you trying to humiliate me?” he asked.

I simply responded, “What else would this be?”

Alaric grit his teeth, “Don’t anger me,” he countered, “I’ll drench you.”

I sighed at the water mage’s stupidity, “WIth what magic force?” I asked innocently.

The mage must have checked his magic force reserves because his face cringed.

I laughed.

“You’re a pitiful mage,” I said, “Showing off your magic like that, you exhausted yourself,” I gave him a smirk, “Not only that, you caused a mess, forcing you to further drain your magic force. It would be a wonder if you had any magic force in reserve,” I said--like I didn’t just check his magic force when I touched him earlier.

Right now… this mage was practically a mortal man.

“You threatened to drench me, right?” I asked, “That’s good; I won’t feel bad about punishing you.”

I wasn’t doing this for the villagers. I was doing this for myself.

This Alaric fellow… he recklessly introduced magic to those who had lived perfectly well without it. Above all, he had identified the talent between the children--a hasty identification.

Nix was already quite unreserved and frankly--a little overbearing. Hearing that he was particularly talented in this mystical force… it would further warp his sense of self-importance.

I could only pray for the children that were told their talent was no good.

So, as I prepared to hit the mage, I could safely tell myself: punishment was in order for Alaric.

Alaric gripped my hand, trying to pull himself up. As he grabbed my wrist, his eyes widened, he must have sensed my magic force.

“Your magic force…” he muttered reflexively, “It’s controlled and refined! You…” he made eye contact with me, “You’re a ma-”

“Don’t say it, bastard,” I interrupted, “I’ll rip your eyes out,” I threatened.

“Yes, sir,” Alaric deferred, now understanding I was a mage--or at least proficient in magic, wasn’t as assertive, “I’ll shut up.”

I looked around, and the villagers were frowning at the sight. I had been a little violent but this much was nothing.

One man suddenly blurted, “Is that all magic amounts to?” he commented, “Being overpowered by physical force?” He said, not understanding anything.

The villagers had been disillusioned about the wonder of magic. This was natural. No matter the proficiency of a mage… we were still mortal. Anything that could kill a normal human, could kill a mage.

“Not that I would ever let that happen to me,” I joked to myself.

I told the villagers succinctly, “I’m taking this mage with me,” I said, dragging a stood-up Alaric into my house, and locking the door behind me.