REVALIENCE: The House of The Crows

Prologue

It wasn't what he imagined. Perhaps, more of a child's play in comparison. But as Na Jaemin watched the person in front of him writhe in pain, he knew it was something out of ordinary.

It was supposed to be harmless— a little teasing and a little tweaking. But what lies before him was a pure contradiction of what he initially thought.

Life has now become a gamble.

Jaemin knew he was different from the start. He was different from other kids in school, different from his neighborhood friends, and different from anybody he knew. It was peculiar, and apparently uncommon, that he could see inside a person's mind. And he was beyond ecstatic as a child.

He had not understood that at the ripe age of six, he would have the ability to gain access within people's thoughts— their wants. It wasn't until at the age of fourteen that Jaemin had an inclination of what he has. He finally understood it. Or so he thought.

What Jaemin sees was not an imagery of people's thoughts, it was their desires. Not for an object, but for someone.

And the man that lay struggling before him may have been the reason why it finally dawned on Jaemin.

It was an hour ago, a little after noon, as the teenager strolled in a park. With a phone in hand and a pair of earphones in his ears, Jaemin was casually listening to Ariana Grande's Problem when he bumps into a man.

It wasn't Jaemin's fault but the man who bumped into him gave him a snarky look. Jaemin's earphones had also been unplugged and the way the man mockingly laughed at his song choice and calling him unpleasant names made Jaemin's blood boil.

Control yourself.

Yet the moment the man had pushed Jaemin to the side and sat at one of the park benches, Jaemin knew he had to do something. It didn't help when the man whistled at any woman who passed by him like a pervert he is.

Jaemin knew it. He could see right through the man's mind— all the perverted thoughts running through his brain and that's when Jaemin knew he had to teach the pig a lesson.

Walking towards a bench near him, Jaemin sat quietly where the man could not notice him. Just teach him a little lesson. Jaemin thinks, seeing clear images of the man's disgusting perversion.

He moves his finger slightly, as if tugging an invisible string connected to the man.

The man's imagination continues to get more explicit as Jaemin gains more control in his mind. He is now unable to divert into his lust, his will overpowered by Jaemin.

Jaemin tugs more, smirking as he feels the impending energy come into him. Yes, he had learned that he can, in fact, extract energy from his target. It fuels him more than any food he eats.

The satisfaction in Jaemin's heart becomes bigger as the man breaks in cold sweat. The latter breathes harder as one hand clutches his chest and the other grabbing a handful of his hair.

Jaemin could not understand why, but it's as if a voice is whispering inside his head to do more— to stimulate the man more. He had never come this far with his ability and it tempted him.

Jaemin wanted to do more.

As he crawls into the man's consciousness like a parasite, Jaemin lets it all out. Every stimulus he could give the man he gave. Jaemin snapped out of his concentration when the man let out an ear deafening shriek.

The man's body jolted, falling to the ground as he trembled. A crowd had formed around him and Jaemin rushed to see.

His eyes were all white, and the blood that came out of his nostrils and ears contrasted his blueing body.

Jaemin could not stop it. He doesn't know how to take back the strings that are now taking the life form of the man. All Jaemin did was run away and cry— passing by dozens of people all confused and calling for help. He locked himself into his room, trembling under the covers of his favorite blanket. His earphones on full blast to take his mind away from the unfortunate incident that had occured.

That night, Jaemin did not sleep. And it was the beginning of one of his sleepless nights. Jaemin never knew what happened to the man.

He did not want to know.

His ability scared him. What he thought is a harmless, useless ability is in fact a silent killer.

As Jaemin grew up, he learnt the roots of his ability. It wasn't something only he possesses, but it was something his family had for generations.

Jaemin came from a powerful lineage of witches.

And their power stems from lust— Temptation as they call it.

"Desire will always be evident in any creature" His grandmother once said, after Jaemin had told her about the incident with the man.

His power went beyond control and it scared Jaemin. But at the same time, the less he uses his powers, the weaker he grows.

So for his twentieth year, Jaemin is enrolled in an academy where humans and people like Jaemin coexist. It was where his mother, grandmother, and generations before him had gone to.

Kingsthrone Academy.