The Void Esper (2)

Valencia stood and brushed dirt from her clothes.

“No worries… a slum orphan like me should know to stay out of your path,” she said flatly.

The girls gasped and then laughed.

“Did she just call herself a ‘slum orphan’?”

“Wow, I called you that once, and you owned it!” Renai crowed.

Valencia gave a chilling smile and a small bow.

“It’s true… nothing wrong with the truth.”

Renai scoffed.

“What is her problem? Was she always this weird?” someone asked.

“I’ve noticed she gets scolded a lot, but she never argues back,” another added.

“Let’s go—this gives me the creeps,” Renai said, and they pushed past her.

Then, Professor Haeg approached, a ball balanced on his finger.

“Hello, students!” he called. “This is your activity. Guides must be physically fit in case of danger or separation from their Espers. So—catch!” He threw the ball hard into the forest. “Whoever gets it gets a week off!”

Students sprinted after it. Valencia groaned.

“You just want to see who has endurance for Physical Espers…” she muttered and picked her way through the underbrush.

She walked until she realized she’d gone too far. Turning, her vision blurred and her legs trembled. The forest was too quiet. She stepped back and snapped a twig underfoot. A growl answered. Her breath stopped.

Red eyes glowed from the bushes.

“W-Who’s there?” she whispered.

Something crept out and roared, birds scattering. Students near the forest froze. They darted their heads around, their eyes searching through the words.

“What was that sound? A monster?”

Renai grabbed the ball and bolted back.

“Run!” she screamed. Everyone fled—except Valencia. She froze, falling back and staring at the creature.

Shade cut across her face. Purple flickered in her irises. The monster loomed, thick saliva dripping from its jaws. Valencia hyperventilated, crawling backward with her eyes shut.

“Control… focus…” she whispered.

The creature lunged. Valencia thrust her hands forward. “Now!”

A dark orb erupted behind the beast’s tail and yanked it backward. It thrashed, desperate to strike, but the Void swallowed only it—precise, controlled, deadly. A consuming hole lingered in the air, pulsing with quiet menace.

She gasped and lowered trembling hands. Her eyes widened, yet she felt nothing.

Clenching her fists, she turned away. “No one… must know.” She walked off, hiding before any adults could search the forest for the monster.

But where could a creature that shouldn’t be on Academy grounds have come from?

The Void vanished, obedient and silent.

Someone stood by the edge of the cliff, turning their back and light pooling faintly at their feet.

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