Knock! Knock! Knock! Knock! Knock!
The door rattled under the force of the blows, the sound reverberating through Mael's small room.
The sudden knock made Mael spring upright in bed.
Ugh… my body feels so heavy.
He swung his legs over the side of the bed, then lazily slid off and trudged toward the door, every step dragging with lingering fatigue.
Using Time Stop too much had really taken its toll on me.
Click—
As the door swung open, Mael found himself face to face with an elderly woman who looked to be in her mid-fifties. Her brown hair, streaked with white, was neatly tied into a French twist, and she wore a simple tracksuit.
Mael looked up at her and yawned.
"Oh—hey, Mrs. Joann," he said sleepily. "What brings you here so late?"
Joann clenched her fist, her nails biting into her palm. She hesitated, drawing a slow breath as though steadying herself, before finally speaking.
"Boy… would you accompany me for a walk?"
Her voice wavered for just a moment before she forced it firm again.
"There's something I need to talk to you about."
"This late at night?" Mael asked, rubbing his eyes.
"Please—" Joann said, her voice soft with plea.
Noticing the sudden change in her usual demeanor, Mael sensed that something was troubling her. After a brief pause, he nodded.
"Alright," he said. "Let me just put my shoes on."
With that, the two of them set off for a walk. After covering some distance, they arrived at a nearby park a short way from the motel.
Walking side by side along the park's footpath, Joann drew in a deep breath and finally spoke.
"Listen, Mael… I have a favor to ask."
"Yes, Mrs. Joann," Mael asked gently. "What do you need help with?"
"It's Lily," Joann said quietly, after a brief pause. "Did you notice the books scattered across the desk this morning?"
"Yes, I remember," Mael said softly. "I helped her with a question, after all."
A faint smile crossed his face.
"Exactly—that's what I need help with," Joann said, her voice tightening as she finally confessed the reason.
She slowed to a stop, her steps faltering before she lifted her gaze to the star-filled sky.
Noticing this, Mael halted beside her and looked up at her face, waiting.
"My dear Lily will be enrolling in a special school soon," Joann said at last. "And I worry that her grades, as they are now, won't be sufficient for her to be accepted."
A special school? Mael asked.
"Yes," Joann replied. "A school that takes our people in—without scrutiny."
Mael frowned.
"And what do you mean by our people?"
A chill crept down his spine.
Does this mean… Mrs. Joann was once an angel too? Like me?
Joann stopped walking altogether and turned to face him. Her gaze sharpened.
"Stop the act," she said. "I know you have powers as well—am I right?"
Before Mael could react, Joann stepped toward a nearby tree and placed one hand against its trunk.
Suddenly—
Voosh!
The leaves rattled violently as apples began to sprout and swell along the branches, growing at an unnatural speed.
Seeing the scene unfold before him, Mael recalled an old truth—only about two percent of mortals in this realm had ever been granted a gift by him.
But that knowledge was nearly three millennia old.
Who knew how many more humans had awakened since then?
"This is my power," Joann said. "I call it the Touch of Vitality."
She then looked at him and added, "And yours… it's speed, isn't it?"
How did she get to that conclusion?
The answer came to him almost immediately.
It must have been when I used Time Stop to pick up her papers from the floor. She probably mistook it for some kind of speed-based magic.
Walking toward Mael once more, she spoke, her voice firm but trembling with a mix of worry and anger.
"You should have been aware by now that our kind are not treated well by the rest of human society. They think that we are all born with a curse!"
Her hands clenched into fists at her sides, knuckles whitening.
"This has caused some to be harassed… some even driven to the brink of suicide!"
Her eyes flashed with a sharp intensity, and her jaw tightened.
"They make us feel like we are the problem."
Her voice cracked slightly with restrained emotion.
"And I won't—I won't let that happen to my precious Lily!"
Joann snapped, her tone fierce, yet underneath it lay a trembling vulnerability, as though the fear of losing Lily burned through her like fire.
Mael stood still, silent, as he listened to Joann's words.
Her worry… it's heavier than I expected.
"I had planned to home-school Lily if she weren't accepted," Joann continued, her voice softer now, tinged with quiet resignation.
She reached out, placing both hands gently on Mael's shoulders.
"However… seeing you teach her so effectively," she said, her eyes glimmering with a mixture of hope and relief, "has given me new hope."
Me… giving hope? Mael blinked, taken aback.
Joann slowly lowered herself to one knee, bringing her gaze level with his.
"So, please," she said, her hands tightening slightly on his shoulders, "would you… help this old lady with her granddaughter's studies?"
Her voice trembled just enough to betray the depth of her desperation, and her dark blue eyes seemed to silently plead—
please… don't let her down.
Mael nodded.
"Yes… I can do that."
A sigh of relief escaped Joann's lips. Hearing the response she had been hoping for, she straightened up and began walking again.
"Sorry if this is too much to ask," she said softly, "but please… help her with her studies every day if you can. The entrance exam is in a month's time."
"Don't worry, it's fine. I'll help her," Mael replied.
He hesitated for a moment before adding, "However… I'll need some time to myself, since I still have to get money to pay next month's rent."
"You don't need to."
Joann's voice came quickly, almost cutting him off. She softened immediately.
"As long as you help Lily with her studies, you can stay in the motel as long as you want—completely free."
Alright…
A quiet smile tugged at Mael's lips.
Finally, no rent to worry about.
Joann's eyes softened, though a shadow of worry lingered behind them. She took a steadying breath before speaking.
"Mael… there's one more thing I should tell you."
Mael looked at her, waiting.
"I… I can be hard on Lily," she admitted, looking down at the ground, her hands twisting slightly in front of her. "Please don't tell her this, but it's because I'm afraid… afraid that if something were to happen to me—if I were to suddenly die—she'd be left alone and heartbroken."
Her eyes met his, glistening under the soft glow of the park lights.
"I push her, I scold her… because I want her to be strong enough to handle the world without me. Even if it makes me seem harsh, even if it makes her upset with me… it's only because I love her."
Mael hadn't expected to see this side of her—the fear, the vulnerability.
She's just… terrified of leaving her granddaughter behind.
And all this time, I thought she was just grumpy…
The night grew quiet around them, the stars reflecting off the park's still paths. Joann's shoulders relaxed slightly, a small, weary smile breaking through her worry.
And with that, Mael thought,
I've stepped into a new chapter of my life—as Lily's personal tutor.