Chapter 4 Ch 2: Abandonment

“Horas, I know this is nerve-wracking but you need to wait for me in this corner for some more time. I will go and inform the adults that you and your brother are coming with me for now.”

Maybe a child would have been happy to hear those words but Horas was the writer of this weird world. He knew Jake Hollow's personality better than anyone else.

He also knew that there was no point in his rebuttal. Jake Hollow had become the guardian of the male lead through his shrewdness and wits. And it seemed like this dream would follow the same route this time as well.

So even though Horas wanted to run away from this gathering, he had no choice but to keep on standing where he was and wait for the tall man to come back with his brother.

His corner of the room was well-hidden in shadows which allowed Horas to observe the hall better. There were a lot of powerful people gathered in this small hall which made it difficult to single out anyone.

‘I guess it would not be possible to spot any future villains in this gathering.’

Horas gave up after looking at the party and trying to figure out who was a good person. He might have written this story but that did not mean he remembered all the details.

“Hey kid, I am done here. Let’s get you out of here and into a more comfortable environment.”

Jake Hollow had an easy and attractive smile on his face. But for some reason, it did not inspire confidence in Horas. He was sure that he had written something about Jake Hollow and his smile.

But it had been some time since he wrote this novel so maybe he was forgetting things.

‘I am sure everything will be alright. This is a dream and people cannot die in a dream, right?’

So Horas made the decision of trusting the only adult he recognized there. And that was how Horas Spencer left the hall of his parent’s death.

“This here is my baby, the pride of my life - my Julia. Isn’t she a beauty?”

Jake pointed toward his highly tech-advanced car and Horas remembered a single line he had written a long time ago about Jake Hollow.

‘Jake Hollow was a man obsessed with his car. It was to the point where he would do anything to keep his car safe, even selling out state secrets.’

Since Horas remembered those words, his hands went sweaty and he was afraid to even touch the car. His hesitation was clear in his step which caused Jake to push him ahead and into the car.

“I know the world is not a safe place but I will do my best to prepare you. You are a smart kid Horas so I am sure you will do well.”

Horas had never felt so bad by being called a ‘good kid’. He believed that Jake Hollow was a good man but he was scaring Horas right now. Especially that glint in his eyes, which was just not normal.

But what could a five-year-old say in this situation? Horas had no choice but to go along where he was being taken right now.

///////////////////////////

“Welcome to your new home. I hope you like it.”

The sign on the board in front of Horas said ‘Esper's school for gifted.’

It was a place Horas was a good acquaintance with since he had tried hard to flesh out this place and its importance.

You see, this new world had something called ‘dungeons’ and ‘scenarios’ that one needed to overcome to make the earth a safe place. As more and more dungeons emerged, more and more humans started getting supernatural powers.

And to make such individuals more polished and better fighters, the Esper’s school for gifted had been set up. It was the best school out there for gifted people. And it was also the place where the first half of his novel had taken place.

‘But why bring a five-year-old here? As I guess, this dream makes no sense.’

This was the only explanation Horas had about his current situation. This school accepted people from the age of thirteen onwards. And you needed to be exceptionally talented to enter this academy.

The second main lead had been able to enter it of course, but he had not been the best. It had, of course, been the protagonist.

“Horas, you should know that I really want to take care of both you and your brother but I can only take care of one. So you will have to be a good boy and be good for the people I am about to introduce you to.”

‘Ah, so I’m being abandoned? Isn’t this the plot I wrote for the second male read?’

At that time, Horas had felt like a genius when he had crafted this backstory for the second main lead. Often enough, it was the protagonist that was abandoned and then came for revenge.

But he had pulled something of a reversal in his book and made the elder brother the one being left behind.

It had been an attempt to fuel the elder brother’s resentment toward the main protagonist and to fuel the rivalry. But Horas had never gotten to flesh out this part in his story since he had abandoned it long before.

‘Did I imagine this scene being like this? I guess I read too many novels and now my brain is processing things in its way.’

It was tiresome but Horas saw no point in arguing with an adult who thought they knew better.

“Be cheerful, Horas Spencer. You are going to get an opportunity no other child had ever gotten - to spend your childhood in the best institution in the world. You want to make your younger brother proud, right?”

It was a good way to emotionally manipulate a kid. Horas hated that he had made Jake Hollow so compatible in everything he did. It was beyond annoying and a little creepy as well.

‘Anyway, it won’t matter for much longer. I am about to wake up any minute now and this nightmare would end.’

The more this dream dragged on, the more Horas was sure he was about to wake up.

His feet moved along the ground but Horas’s mind was in another place. Even when he stood in front of the most recognizable of the staff, Principal Marbel, one of the top guild masters in the world, he was not able to do anything but stare.

“JAKE HOLLOW, HAVE YOU GONE DRAFT? THAT KID IS FIVE YEARS OLD! YOU WANT HIM TO-”

“Look, I know what this looks like but I assure you that this kid is good. Anyway, you own me one so you have to take him in now.”

Horas knew that there was a fight going on in front of him but he did not interfere. In the end, Principal Marbel folded and took Horas in.

It was not a happy surrender and the agitation Principal Marbel felt was out in the air for the young child to feel. Why was he feeling such awkwardness when he was in a dream? And he was also beginning to feel hungry now.

“Looks like you have been abandoned kid. I don’t like that you have been left to me but I will do my best to take care of you. First thing first, you will need a device to keep track of you. I suppose you are not ‘too young’ to get registered with the system.”

Horas was dragged into the chamber where he was examined. But by the end of it, he had a sore wrist to show for it and a glowing light in front of his eyes.

The pain was real enough for Horas to realize that he was not dreaming and this was reality.

‘Fuck, I transmigrated for real.’