Class 2-A sat in the slow drift of afternoon light.
Dust hovered faintly in the air, visible only where sunlight crossed the room at an angle.
Chalk tapped softly against the board as the teacher drew uneven circles—one, then another—followed by dividing lines through them.
"If we divide this equally," she said, her voice steady, "everyone receives the same amount."
Most students nodded.
Some copied.
Some did not think about it at all.
Saelis Zane Peran did.
His elbow rested on the desk, fingers lightly supporting his chin.
His gaze was no longer fixed on the board—it had already moved beyond it.
Equal… only if everything is the same.
His eyes moved across the classroom.
Desks were not the same.
Bags were not the same.
Even the way students leaned forward—some attentive, some distracted—was not the same.
So how did it become equal?
"Saelis?"
The voice drew him back—not sharply, but with enough intent.
He blinked once.
"Yes, ma'am."
"Is it clear?"
A pause.
Not long.
Only long enough to determine what mattered.
"Yes."
It was not incorrect.
Only incomplete.
The teacher did not continue immediately.
She paused—slightly longer than she did with others.
It was not the first time.
There had been smaller moments before.
Subtle ones.
A slight movement of his fingers when something did not align.
A quiet correction, barely spoken.
Enough for her to adjust her explanation mid-flow.
Not enough to interrupt the class.
But enough to notice.
She continued.
The bell rang.
Noise returned.
Chairs scraped.
Bags shifted.
Conversations resumed without direction.
The lesson ended.
The question did not.
Saelis stood, picking up his bag by hand, fingers loosely wrapped around the handle.
He did not sling it over his shoulder.
Not yet.
Carrying it made movement easier—quicker to stop, quicker to change direction.
The corridor was louder.
Voices overlapped.
Footsteps did not align.
"Saelis!"
Ace
Already walking toward him.
"You going to the lab ?"
Saelis tilted his head slightly.
"…Maybe."
Ace smirked.
"That means yes."
They walked.
Halfway down the corridor—
Saelis shifted the bag onto one shoulder.
Not out of habit.
Only because it made movement easier now.
He did not say anything further.
But he was already going.
End of Chapter 1