I was trapped in a muddy alley. The punches and kicks rained down on my body, a muffled sound lost in the noise of the poor district. It was just another afternoon, another "game."

  Suddenly, I heard a sharp, confident voice cut through the chaos.

  "Get away from him!"

  The other children froze. At the entrance of the alley stood Aline, her hands on her hips, her blue eyes as cold as winter ice.

  "What are you doing?" she said in a commanding tone.

  The group's leader said hesitantly, "We... we're playing. He's the devil."

  "I only see one devil here, and it's not him," Aline said, then she raised her hand. She didn't say a magic word, but a wave of powerful air rushed from her hand, strong enough to knock them all into the mud.

  They screamed and ran, shouting, "The witch! The crazy witch!"

  She approached me and held out her hand. I hesitated for a moment, then took it. She helped me up.

  "Why don't you fight back?" she asked, her tone a mixture of anger and curiosity.

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  I shrugged, avoiding her eyes. "It's useless. I'll get beaten in the end anyway. I'm weak, powerless, and on top of that, I'm a Prometheus."

  "So?" she said with an enthusiasm that surprised me. "Getting beaten while you fight back is better than getting beaten while you do nothing! At least they'll know you're not easy! And what does Prometheus mean? You're Hongbin, my friend. And on top of that, you're a chosen one like us, weren't you born in this world?"

  She sighed and looked at me with pride. "But you'll never reach my status as a chosen one, for I am a witch who uses the Mana Soul Gate on the Murim continent."

  I felt a pang of anger. She was boasting about her power while I had nothing. I said sarcastically, "Oh, a witch. And I'm a Prometheus."

  She looked at me with mock anger. "What? Are you comparing a witch to a devil? Witches are definitely stronger!"

  I found myself arguing heatedly for the first time in my life. "No, devils are stronger!"

  She laughed a clear, ringing laugh. "What, you horse? Do you want to see the power of a real witch? Look and behold the greatness of the witch Aline!"

  Suddenly, I felt the ground disappear from under me. I rose into the air. I screamed in genuine fear as I rose above the rooftops. She was moving me right and left as if I were a puppet on strings, and she was laughing below.

  "What do you say now, you devil Prometheus?" she shouted playfully. "Apologize to all witches immediately!"

  "I'm sorry!" I screamed as I clung to the air. "Put me down! I don't want to!"

  "I won't put you down!" she replied, laughing. "Didn't you say it's afternoon now? Shouldn't you be going to training?" she said. "Do you think those fools know anything about real magic?"

  She continued to move me in the air like a kite. I was completely helpless, just a puppet in her hands.

  So why... why was I smiling too? Why did this helplessness... feel like joy?