Here's the Marco was dragging little Jevan behind him, while Jevan stared at the ground, searching in his head for a way to avoid provoking this boy's anger. In the past, he might never have believed that the woman called Yara was a witch, but after what he had seen with his own eyes supernatural phenomena. A boy who could make his body hard as stone, another who could release poisonous fumes from his flesh, and that ghost walking beside him.

He had come to think that anything was possible. He himself could fight five boys older than him at once. So would it really be surprising if there was a witch who turned naughty boys into frogs? Even if he didn't know exactly what a frog was, he had no wish to find out by turning into one.

What convinced him further was that Yara knew he had stolen bread from the bakery, even though no one knew not even the baker himself. On top of that, Jax and Vensen's confirmation only cemented the idea in his head.

As Marco pulled him along the long hallway, they passed a short haired girl with red hair and violet eyes, carrying a stack of books in her arms. Marco waved to her, then turned to Jevan.

"This is Valera."

Then he pointed at little Jevan.

"Valera, this is Jevan, the one I told you about."

Jevan looked at the books in her hands and immediately reached out.

"Let me help you carry those."

"No need…"

But little Jevan had already taken the books from her before she could finish.

"Where do you want me to take them?"

"To the study room."

Little Jevan turned to Marco.

"I'll drop these off, then catch up with you."

Before Marco could say anything, Jevan had already dashed off toward the study room. He ran until he reached it, then kicked the door open with his foot and stepped inside. The place resembled a classroom in a middle district academy: several neatly arranged desks, a chalkboard hanging on the wall. Valera followed him in.

"Where should I put these?"

She pointed to one of the desks.

"Put them there."

Jevan set the books down, then wiped sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. Valera sat on the desk, opened one of the books, and began reading, while Jevan wandered around the room.

She noticed and lifted her head, narrowing her eyes.

"You wanted to help me just to get away from Marco, didn't you?"

"Who? Me? Impossible."

"What did Vensen tell you?"

"He didn't tell me anything."

"He told you Lady Yara's a witch, didn't he?"

Jevan said nothing. She let out a long sigh.

"Don't believe him. Lady Yara loves to joke. She won't actually turn you into a frog."

He feigned indifference.

"Who said I believed that nonsense?"

"Then why are you trying to avoid Marco?"

He couldn't answer. He grabbed one of the books from the desk, pretending to be absorbed in reading.

She reached out, pulled the book down from his face, and smiled slyly as she rested her cheek in her palm.

"You're reading the book upside down."

He put the book back the right way.

She sighed deeply.

"If you keep avoiding him, you'll hurt his feelings. Marco isn't the type to get close to people easily, but he's been talking a lot about you. He said he made a new friend."

Little Jevan couldn't believe what he'd heard. In his eyes, Marco was just an annoying boy who clung to anyone he met. But thinking about it… he didn't really seem especially close to anyone else here. He hadn't seen him run to them, dragging them around everywhere.

Jevan put the book back on the desk, then left the room. And sure enough, Marco was waiting for him outside the door. But this time, his usual bright smile was gone.

Jevan stared at him for a moment, then said hesitantly,

"Do you want to take a little walk outside?"

A spark of joy returned to Marco's face.

"Of course."

But before they could take a single step, Yara appeared in their path.

"And where do you two think you're going?"

Little Jevan immediately backed up, turning to bolt, but Yara grabbed him by the collar and lifted him off the ground with ease. He couldn't break free of her grip. In that moment, he muttered inside his head:

"This woman is no ordinary person. She's definitely a witch."

Yara looked at him.

"You didn't answer me. Where do you think you're going?"

He swallowed hard.

"I was… I was just going out to get some fresh air."

Yara set him gently back down, then patted his head as though she were stroking a kitten.

"You should've said that from the start. You can do that after the lessons are over."

"Lessons?"

"Yes, lessons. And I think you should bathe first as well. Marco, show him to the bath."

***

[Jevan perspective]

It was fun watching that kid in front of Lady Yara. When he stood before her, he looked like a terrified kitten. And all this when she hadn't even done a single thing to prove she was a witch. I honestly wondered if she did have some kind of authority power, what would his reaction be?

For now, the boy had borrowed some clothes from Vensen, since they were about the same height. Marco had led him to the bath, and here he was, stepping inside. He began peeling off his mud stained clothes, then slid into the tub, staring curiously at the faucet. He didn't know how to use it, so I showed him.

What really astonished me was that the moment he opened the tap and water began filling the tub, steam rose from it. Hot water? Here?! Heating water with steam was unbelievably expensive. To have a hot water tap for filling a bathtub? Did he find some kind of treasure?

Little Jevan lifted his head from the tub and looked at me, droplets of water dripping from his hair onto his shoulders.

"Why did you disappear for all those years?"

I didn't know what to say. Even I didn't have a clear answer to how my time travel worked. But I decided to tell him a little truth, wrapped in lies and improvisation.

"Look, staying in the physical world consumes a lot of power. And every time I use my abilities, I get more exhausted, which forces me to go into hibernation."

Little Jevan nodded like he understood everything. Good. Because I didn't understand a thing of what I'd just said. But it was enough that he bought it. Well, I don't think someone who actually believed that woman was a witch without any proof would doubt a ghost floating beside him, showing him supernatural tricks right before his eyes.

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