Every morning, I wake up asking myself the same question.
Am I a loser?
It's the first thought that greets me when I open my eyes and the last one that lingers before I drift off to sleep. Sometimes, it feels as though I don't belong in this world.
Maybe it's because I've spent my entire life standing in the shadows of people far stronger than me. Living in their shadow has slowly planted an insecurity deep within me—one I can't seem to get rid of.
About two hundred years ago, the world changed forever.
People began awakening extraordinary abilities. They became known as the Chosen.
No one knows why it happened. All that is known is that it began with the mysterious appearance of the Stones.
The day the Stones appeared, history split into two eras.
The world before...
...and the world after.
As expected, humanity fell into chaos. Wars erupted between the Chosen and those left without abilities, leaving countless lives lost before peace was finally restored.
From the ashes, a new world was born.
Ninety years ago, academies were created to train the Chosen, and a ranking system was established:
Dove.
Catus.
Ursidae.
Kings.
Demis.
And, as you can probably guess...
I'm a Dove.
A harmless little dove.
In this world, strength is everything.
My name is **Tinashe Rezuya**. I'm twenty years old, and my ability is about as simple as they come.
I manipulate electricity.
...At least, that's what everyone keeps telling me.
**Bam! Bam! Bam!**
A sharp pain shot through my head.
"Hey, Tinashe, wake up, man. Look, Jane is here,"
my friend Dwayne said as he put back his right hand back in his pocket.
"Bro, come on. You know I didn't sleep at all last night," I muttered, rubbing the back of my head as I slowly looked up.
And there she was.
Jane.
She walked into the classroom wearing that same effortless smile—the one that had fooled me months ago. My eyes followed her as she made her way across the room.
Toward him.
She stopped in front of Dane and greeted him with a cheerful wave.
Dane.
The guy who was supposed to be my friend...
No.
The guy who used to be my friend.
"Morning," she said softly before leaning in to kiss him on the cheek.
My fingers curled into a fist beneath the desk before I even realized it.
Then she looked up.
For a brief moment, our eyes met.
The smile vanished from her face.
Without saying a word, she looked away as if I didn't exist.
"Hmph."
A bitter laugh escaped me.
"How funny."
A few months ago, I would've done anything just to see that smile.
Now...
All it did was reopen the wound she left behind.
"Still thinking about Jane, huh?" Dwayne asked, slipping one hand into his pocket as he glanced in her direction.
"No," I replied.
My voice came out strained. Even my throat felt tight.
Well... could you really blame me?
Dwayne raised an eyebrow.
"Come on, bro. Why lie? It's written all over your face."
"I said no." I let out a tired sigh before pushing myself to my feet. "Just give me a break, man. Let's head to the training rooms."
He chuckled and glanced back at Jane and Dane.
"You know," he said with a grin, "if I'd known this was all it took to get you to train, I would've broken your heart myself."
"Yeah, yeah." I rolled my eyes. "Just let me practice in peace before you annoy me even more."
His smile faded into something more genuine.
"You know what, bro? One day... you're going to beat all of us."
I blinked before looking at him.
Then I sighed.
"Man, I don't have the energy to argue with you."
We stepped outside, and the blazing afternoon sun forced me to raise a hand to shield my eyes.
"You've seriously hit your head."
"Nah," Dwayne laughed. "But you definitely did when you thought the strongest girl in school would fall for you."
His grin slowly disappeared.
"She belongs to the Frost Family, Tinashe. You know how they are. Everything they do—even love—is political."
He looked ahead as we continued toward the training hall.
"She didn't reject you because you weren't a good guy."
He paused.
"She chose Dane because he was the politically correct choice."
Another pause.
"And now that he's the strongest student in the academy... her family got exactly what they wanted."
I stayed silent.
Because he was right.
And that was the part I hated most.
This world.
Its rules.
Its obsession with strength.
And my complete helplessness within it.
The training hall came into view.
As soon as we stepped inside, someone standing near the entrance caught my attention.
"Oh... someone's already here."
I turned to leave, assuming the room was occupied, but stopped when I noticed Dwayne frozen beside me.
His eyes were wide.
"It... it's her," he whispered.
"Ashylene."
"Well..." I scratched the back of my head. "Am I supposed to know who that is?"
Dwayne stared at me as if I'd just committed a crime.
"You... don't know Ashylene?"
I shrugged.
"No."
"So... should I?"
My voice echoed through the training hall.
"Shhh!"
Dwayne lunged at me and clamped a hand over my mouth.
"What the hell are you shouting for?" he hissed.
The panic in his eyes told me everything.
Whoever Ashylene was...
She definitely wasn't ordinary.
I looked at the girl as she stared back at us, her silver-gray eyes slightly widened.
For a moment, I found myself studying her.
Sunlight streamed through the training hall windows, catching the edges of her dark skin until it seemed to glow with a warm bronze hue. Her long black hair shimmered beneath the light, swaying gently as she tilted her head.
She was...
Mesmerizing.
And yet...
I had absolutely no idea who she was.
Dwayne and I exchanged a glance.
Judging by the look on his face, he clearly knew her.
I didn't.
"Lo—"
Before I could finish, she cut me off.
"You..." she said, her voice calm but firm. "You're Dwayne, right?"
Dwayne blinked.
"...Yeah."
"You two know each other?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.
I shot Dwayne a grin.
"Never knew you had a secret admirer."
"Stop."
He frowned without even looking at me.
"You'd better not start thinking about trying your luck with her like you did with Jane."
He leaned closer and patted my back three times.
"Let that one go."
"Oh, come on." I brushed his hand away. "Why would I do that?"
I let out a small laugh before stretching my neck.
"You think I don't know where I stand? I'm practically at the bottom of this school... probably the bottom anywhere."
"And who decided that?"
A firm voice stopped me.
I looked up.
She was standing directly in front of me now.
Her expression had changed.
There was no smile.
Only irritation.
"Who told you that?" she asked.
For a second, I couldn't answer.
I glanced at Dwayne.
The idiot had already taken two steps backward.
He folded his arms with a grin.
"Go on, bro," he said. "Answer the lady."
Traitor.
I turned back toward her.
"W-Wait..."
I instinctively took a step back.
"Don't tell me I'm about to get beaten up just because of something I said."
"The school..." I answered quietly.
"They did."
She stopped barely an arm's length away.
Without breaking eye contact, she leaned forward until her face was only inches from mine.
Her gray eyes searched mine as if trying to understand something.
"So you're the infamous Dove everyone's been talking about."
She straightened again, resting one hand on her hip.
She wore a black athletic crop top beneath the academy jacket tied around her waist, along with fitted training leggings that made it obvious she'd come here to train—not to socialize.
"But..."
She paused.
"...that's the dumbest thing I've heard all day."
I frowned.
"...Huh?"
" Honestly, hearing you say that annoys me, don't let people decide your potential."
Her voice was calm, but every word carried weight.
"Don't let anyone tell you who you are. Your identity doesn't come from other people's opinions... it comes from you. From your own thoughts and your own choices."
She started tying her hair back, her eyes never leaving mine.
"So it's up to you."
She tightened the knot and looked at me.
"Will you remain a Dove forever?"
A small pause.
"Or will you rise above what everyone expects you to be?"
For some reason, those words stuck with me.
Before I could respond, she turned her attention toward Dwayne.
"Although..."
Her expression changed slightly.
"I find it strange."
She tilted her head.
"One of the top ten students in this academy... and not just that, the fifth strongest..."
Her eyes moved between us.
"...is friends with the Dove everyone looks down on."
She closed her eyes as she finished tying her hair.
"Honestly, I had a hard time believing it."
She looked back at me.
"But seeing it for myself..."
A small smile appeared.
"You must be a great person."
I blinked.
"Someone who doesn't judge others based on strength in a world where strength decides everything."
Her smile grew.
"And I like that."
It wasn't forced.
It wasn't fake.
It was genuine.
For some reason, that sincerity caught me off guard.
"I like you guys," she said.
Then she turned and walked toward the center of the training room.
"Before I leave..."
She stopped and glanced back.
"Can we have a duel?"
She raised a finger.
"A friendly one, of course."
My eyes widened slightly.
She was challenging Dwayne?
Dwayne.
The fifth strongest student in the entire academy.
The guy who had never lost a single official match.
The only reason he wasn't ranked higher was because he simply didn't care enough to chase the position.
"Are you sure?" Dwayne asked.
He removed one hand from his pocket.
She smiled.
"Of course."
"I want to learn something from the one and only Dwayne."
Dwayne stared at her for a moment.
Then he looked at me.
It was strange.
Almost like he was asking for my permission.
I gave him a confused look.
Why is he looking at me?
He sighed.
"Well..."
He ran his left hand through his hair.
"How can I say no to the daughter of the Void Family?"
The moment those words left his mouth, the atmosphere changed.
"Daughter of the Void Family?"
Before I could process what that meant—
BOOM.
The air beside me exploded.
A powerful shockwave ripped through the training room.
My eyes widened.
Dwayne was gone.
Then, in the next instant...
He was standing directly in front of Ashylene.
The distance between them had disappeared.
I couldn't even see him move.
A voice echoed through the room.
"Forgive me..."
Dwayne's expression was serious.
"I don't really know how to hold back."