My sister's gonna kill me."
Marek sprinted down the cobbled streets, clutching a small pot with a suspiciously wiggling plant. His white hair flared behind him like a comet of pure panic as he vaulted over a startled cat and dodged a hot meat bun cart.
And to think—twenty minutes ago, everything was fine.
Flashback: 20 Minutes Earlier
He had left the house early, prepped, focused, even a little smug. He'd made a checklist. Clothes? Sharp. Bag? Packed. Mind? Steady. And then… he saw it.
The Venus flytrap.
It sat in the market stall like a beautiful, hungry trap flower from the heavens. He didn't even remember walking over to the vendor. He just blinked, and suddenly he was bartering like a botanist possessed.
"This one bites fingers?"
"Only if you're rude."
"I'll take three."
And that's when she showed up.
Tall, quiet, with windswept black hair and a long, twisting tattoo that shimmered like a storm down her right arm. Her name was Arashi, and Marek barely managed a cool nod before her tattoo literally exploded into a dragon.
A glowing, rainbow-scaled serpent burst from her arm like it was hatching from her skin. Marek froze, mid-payment, staring up at what could only be described as a smug magical pride parade in dragon form.
"Well hello there, mister," Rainbow Dragon said in a deep, flamboyant tone. "It is I—the strongest dragon in the multiverse, Rainbow Dragon. How may I assist your pale-haired elegance?"
Marek blinked. "You… talk."
"Oh, indeed! And compliment. That hair! Reminds me of myself in my prime."
Arashi just sighed. "Ignore him. He gets dramatic if I don't summon him at least once a day."
Marek gave her a slow nod. "So this is normal for you?"
"You get used to it," she muttered, tugging the dragon back into her skin like someone rolling up a poster.
And then—he checked the time.
He was late.
"Whoa whoa whoa there, buddy!"
Marek froze mid-step as the colorful shimmer of Rainbow Dragon coiled out from Arashi's arm again like an overconfident parade float.
"Where you off to in such a rush? You haven't even basked in my presence long enough!"
Marek groaned. "I told you. I'm going to be late for the exam."
"Late?" Rainbow Dragon recoiled in mock offense. "With hair that fabulous? Tragic. But worry not—I, Rainbow Dragon, grant favors to only the most radiant individuals… and you, my alabaster comet, qualify."
Marek blinked. "You—you what now?"
"Your watch, good sir. Let me see it."
Against better judgment (and mostly because he was too confused to say no), Marek handed over his watch. Rainbow Dragon extended a single glittering claw and gently tapped the hands—then spun them forward with an exaggerated flourish.
Reality hiccuped.
To Marek, the world warped like someone fast-forwarded a video. In a blur, he saw fleeting glimpses—the gates of the exam center, Zerathose nearly crash-landing into Kagetsuchi, their bickering, a passing bird, a weird meat stand…
He lurched forward in time. By the time he regained focus, he was standing halfway down the road from the exam hall. He could still feel the afterimage of movement in his muscles.
"WHAT JUST HAPPENED?!"
No answer.
Rainbow Dragon was gone. So was his watch.
Marek spotted Zerathose and Kagetsuchi already in some loud, semi-playful argument. He rubbed his eyes. "I have missed so much…"
He bolted toward the building, weaving through the crowd.
Cut back to the plant shop…
Arashi stood, arms crossed, expression unamused.
"Seriously?" she muttered. "He still has the watch."
Thunder rumbled overhead. The air grew heavy. A single lightning bolt cracked the sky and struck the ground behind her.
With a sigh, Arashi stepped into the swirling electricity as storm clouds rolled in.
In a blink, she vanished.
A little while later, after Marek finishes the written portion of the exam, he leans back in his seat, feeling pretty confident.
"Well," he mutters to himself with a grin, "guess I'm the first one done."
But that confidence fades quickly.
Looking up, he spots a woman with striking blue hair—Kagetsuchi—already standing by the door. His eyes widen in surprise. So much for being first.
Deciding not to make things awkward, he walks over to her with a casual wave.
"Hey, wait—oh, you managed to get through the exam? With how late you guys were, I thought you wouldn't make it in."
Kagetsuchi barely glances at him and replies dryly,
"Yeah, well, it's not like we were that far behind you or anything."
Marek chuckles. "I guess you're right."
There's a brief pause. Then, with a curious tilt of his head, he asks,
"If you don't mind me asking… why do you want to be a mage?"
Kagetsuchi's eyes drift upward, as if looking at something only she can see.
"Honestly? For the adventure. I want to see the world… maybe even beyond it. There's so much I haven't done, so much I haven't seen. I think it'd be amazing to experience it all. If that sounds a little crazy…"
"No," Marek says with a soft grin. "I get it. You're an adventurer, huh?"
She shrugs. "What about you?"
"I want to explore too, sure," he replies, "but more than that, I want to surpass my sister. And not just that—I want to become the greatest guildmaster of all time."
Kagetsuchi raises an eyebrow. "Big goals, huh? I like it."
But as they speak, Marek begins to feel something strange. The conversation seems normal on the surface, but thanks to his unusual sensitivity—his unique ability to read emotional wavelengths—he picks up something off. An uncomfortable air lingers around Kagetsuchi. Like she's hiding something.
He doesn't know what it is. It's just a gut feeling.
Still, he decides not to press her. Not yet.
Then Arashi walks in. She casually hands Marek back his watch and says,
"Sorry about my dragon. He's… well, he's him."
"It's no big deal," Marek replies as Rainbow Dragon drops the watch into his hands.
Zerathose goes next, speaking super casually.
Kagetsuchi smirks and leans his way.
"You know you're not impressing anyone here, right?"
Zerathose raises an eyebrow and throws a glance over at Marek and Arashi.
"Yeah, sure," he says dryly. "She totally hates my company. Hated it so much, in fact, she engaged in this very conversation."
Another victory for Zerathose, it seems. He's kind of hard to out-tease.
Kagetsuchi puffs her cheeks and lightly punches his shoulder—basically admitting defeat.
A moment later, the doors swing open and Morgan steps into the room, arms crossed, a confident glint in her eye.
"Alright, losers," she announces, "for your final test…"
She pauses for dramatic effect.
"You're all going to fight me."
Everyone stares in shock.
The room goes silent.