I slowly opened my eyes to a familiar ceiling.

  '...Finally, it's the weekend.'

  Yesterday, I managed to train to the point where I would only take light injuries from the goblins. And fortunately, I was able to avoid going to the nurse's office for the third time in a row.

  'There's still a long way to go in terms of training though...'

  I got myself out of bed and threw on some nice casual clothes before eating a couple of breakfast sandwiches Red had made earlier. Even though it was slightly lukewarm, that didn't detract from the taste at all, as the crispy bacon and soft runny yolk of the eggs perfectly complemented each other.

  'Pure heaven.'

  Afterwards, I left Evergreen Academy and followed the directions to Ocean City's subway, where it was crowded with people.

  'Should I have left earlier? Well, it probably wouldn't have made a difference anyways.'

  I hopped onto the subway and patiently waited the three hours it took to get to Cloud City. And after I arrived, I once again marvelled at the massive difference between Cloud City and Ocean City.

  Compared to Ocean City, Cloud City felt a lot more like a smaller and drier place to be in. There were less places to visit, and in general, the colors just felt more monotone.

  'Well, what happened back then probably doesn't help... anyways, I really should take everyone to Ocean City at some point.'

  With a light skip in my step, I began making my way home.

  ? ? ?

  "Guess who's back~?"

  "Brother Gene!"

  "Gene!"

  Thirteen year old Anna rolled up in her wheelchair, and ten year old Zen followed. They were the oldest two children in the orphanage, and they were also the ones who knew me the best.

  "Hey Anna, hey Zen! How have you both been?"

  "Good, I've been working on a new story concept."

  "I missed you!"

  Instead of answering my question, Zen ran up and hugged me. I patted his head lightly as I spoke to Anna.

  "When you write your story, can I be the first to read it?"

  "Mhm!"

  Anna nodded in affirmation, and I smiled in response before speaking to Zen.

  "And I've missed you too Zen, that's why I came back so soon. But I won't always have time to visit every weekend, you know?"

  "I know, I know... can I call you though? Grandma Marcia said you might not want to be bothered at college."

  "Of course you can! But you have to do it at noon, otherwise I can't guarantee I'll answer."

  "Okay!"

  Some of the younger children came over due to all of the commotion, and I did a quick count of them.

  'Ten total children. Looks like there hasn't been any adoptions or new additions since I left.'

  "How is Evergreen Academy? Is it as good as they say?"

  I turned my attention to Marcia, the old woman that ran the orphanage. Other than my parents, she's the person I respected the most in life, as she created a sanctuary for everyone here and took me in at my lowest point. Unfortunately, she can only really support ten or so children here, but she cares for each and every one of them and makes sure they feel loved. And whenever prospective parents come, she makes certain that they can properly care for the children. We're not biologically related, but she's like family to me, so I usually refer to her as Grandma Marcia.

  "Yes! It's a very nice school, and all of the people I've met are friendly- ah, I nearly forgot- I got gifts from Ocean City for everyone."

  The kids looked at me with curious eyes, and four year old Remy tilted her head in confusion.

  "Gifts? Where?"

  "I'm about to show you a magic trick, so pay close attention~"

  I ran over to the large living room and grabbed a big blanket before heading back. I lifted the blanket in the air, and then accessed my spatial storage area from the ring that was only visible to me. I pulled out an RC car, and when the blanket was lowered again, the kids gasped in amazement.

  "Woah!"

  "Where did it come from?"

  "A car!"

  I lifted the blanket again, and this time I grabbed the art supplies I bought and put them in front of me before lowering the blanket again.

  "So many colors...

  "I-I-I like this one the most!"

  Some of the kids went over to grab the toys and supplies I placed, but they still paid attention to me.

  "A Raymax doll? He's the one with the cool flames!"

  "Lilia's better, she has a zap guitar!"

  I continued to make the rest of the smaller toys magically appear, and I was eventually left with one last toy.

  "Alright, it's time for the big reveal..."

  I lifted the blanket once more, and I pulled the giant teddy bear outside of the spatial ring. When I lowered the blanket, the kids yelled in excitement.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  "It's so huge!"

  "Ah! Feel it! Feel it! It's so soft!"

  "Thank you mister Gene!"

  Once one kid said their thanks, the rest of them followed, and they happily grabbed the new toys I got and started to run around with them. A few of them stayed behind though, and Remy asked me a question.

  "How did you make them appear? Your ability is darkness..."

  "Good question! Wanna guess?"

  Five year old Tristan, who was a fan of wizards, shouted immediately.

  "Magic! It must be magic! You even said it was a magic trick!"

  "You're right, it is magic, but there's a special secret to this magic."

  "Is it the ring?"

  Anna pointed towards the obsidian colored ring I was wearing, and I grinned in response.

  "That's right, you're very observant. This ring can actually access another space where I can store things."

  "Oh~ how does that work?"

  Remy asked curiously, and I pondered for a moment before answering.

  "Honestly, I don't really know. But it was made with abilities, so it's probably related to that."

  "Mm... miss Marcia, how does that work?"

  Remy turned her attention from me to Grandma Marcia, and in response she gave a light analogy.

  "Think of it as borrowing an ability from another person to access a world all to yourself."

  "Woah..."

  "That's so cool! Let's go look for a magic ring Tristan!"

  "Okay!"

  Seemingly satisfied with Grandma Marcia's answer, Remy and Tristan ran off to play with the other kids. Anna also had left to continue planning her story, leaving me and Grandma Marcia alone to chat.

  "Sorry, I got a bit sidetracked there."

  "No apologies needed, the kids like your presence as a role model here."

  "Well, I like to think I try my best."

  I sat down in a comfortable position and listened to Grandma Marcia speak to me.

  "You know, you've grown up so much since I first saw you... you were about half my height when you first came here."

  "...I don't think I was that short."

  "Do you want to see pictures?"

  "..."

  I shifted my eyes and began carefully examining some of the windows to my right as Grandma Marcia let out a light chuckle.

  "Anyways, I hope you'll be happy on this path you're treading on. I was very surprised when you first told me you wanted to be a hunter."

  "Honestly, I didn't expect to find myself on this path either. But, I don't want to be a helpless kid anymore. And if I can help it, I don't want others to go through unnecessary tragedy either."

  "...You're a very strong and honorable person Gene, and as long as you're happy, I'm happy. I'll support you in whatever you want to do."

  "Thank you, I appreciate it."

  Grandma Marcia stood up and grabbed a couple of glasses. She filled them with milk before sitting back down and handing me one.

  "So, tell me about it. How's college been for you?"

  "Good! I've already made some friends there, and I've been working hard on improving my ability. The virtual reality systems are top of the line too, really incredible stuff..."

  Grandma Marcia listened closely to my adventures at Evergreen Academy, from my ranking exam to my excursion at the city. By the end of it all, she was smiling widely.

  "I'm really glad you've found yourself some supportive friends there-"

  "Gene! Gene! Can I show you something?"

  Before I had even realized it, Zen had run up to me.

  "Oh, sorry, you both were..."

  "No, no, it's alright Zen, we were just finishing up. You can go ahead and play with him Gene."

  "Okay. It was nice talking to you Grandma Marcia, let's talk more later."

  "Alright, sounds good."

  I let Zen drag me into our shared room. Everyone had individual rooms for the most part, but due to some extreme circumstances, Zen and I shared one.

  Five years ago, he was first brought to Skyward Orphanage by police officers. Zen was originally called "Ten" and he was found in a hidden cultists' base. He was raised from birth to be a torture specialist, and as such had an extremely twisted mindset. The forsaken city orphanage wouldn't accept him, so the police brought him here as a last resort.

  We let him stay, and as my mindset had mostly recovered at that point, I helped care for him. I didn't like how he just had a number for something as important as a name, so I posed an alternative, "Zen", and he liked it. I also showed him the world of dolls as a healthy way to vent out stress, and he gradually became a happy child who liked playing with the other kids. As a side effect, he's clingy towards me, but I'm just glad he's doing well.

  "Look! The doll clothes you got perfectly fit you!"

  "Ah-"

  Zen held up a plush doll of me wearing the Evergreen Academy uniform. It felt a bit surreal looking at a doll of myself, but Zen sketched and sewed it himself, how could I hate on it?

  "I look good~"

  "Hehe~"

  Looking at Zen hugging the doll tightly, I was suddenly reminded of something I thought of during alchemy class a few days ago.

  'Let's try something like this...'

  Using my dark energy, I made a tiny doll the size of my pinky on my palm. Zen watched in fascination, and he cautiously reached a finger towards it.

  "Be careful, I don't know if it'll hurt or not."

  "Okay."

  Hearing my warning, Zen first lightly poked it, and then cautiously grabbed the mini doll after showing no adverse reaction.

  "It's so small and cute... can you make it move?"

  "I can try."

  I tried carefully manipulating my dark energy to make the mini doll stand up, but I wasn't great at my control, and as a result the doll's head popped off. Zen burst out in laughter as he held the doll's head in one hand and its body in another.

  "Don't worry, I am the best doctor ever! I can fix you!"

  With an intense passion in his eyes, Zen laid the doll's head and body on his bed. He then pulled out a needle that was embedded inside another one of the dolls that he owned before stabbing it in the mini doll's head.

  "Nurse Gene! I need your help now! It'll die if we don't give it the purple thread!"

  "Yes Doctor Zen, I understand!"

  I quickly grabbed the purple thread off of one of the shelves in our room before handing it to Zed. He expertly threaded the needle before "stitching" the doll's head and body back together. Meanwhile, I was doing my best to manipulate the dark energy so that it would merge again. Fortunately, it worked, and the dark energy doll looked as good as new.

  "Perfect! Doctor Zen saves the day again!"

  Zen picked up the doll and smiled at it proudly, but just as he did so there was a sudden light knock on the door.

  "D-D-D- Doctor Zen... someone needs your help..."

  Seven year old James lightly spoke through the door, and five year old Carlie loudly shouted out afterwards.

  "It's Huge Teddy! Baby Nico accidentally spilled juice on it, and now it's bleeding!"

  This elicited an audible gasp from Zen, and his face immediately turned serious.

  "Nurse Gene, grab the supplies. I'll head onto the scene first."

  Without any further delay, Zen rushed out of the room, and I let out a light laugh as I grabbed some soap, water, and a towel.

  'It's fun being at Evergreen Academy, but nothing really beats the feeling of home.'