The smoke still hung in the air like fog that refused to leave.
Screams echoed from the plaza behind me. The crowd was broken, scattered, their cheers turned to fear. Some still stood, staring in shock. Others ran. A few fainted. Most just whispered the same word over and over:
"Demon…"
"Monster…"
"That wasn't magic…"
"That wasn't human…"
Maybe they were right.
I stood at the center of the shattered execution platform. The sacred stones were cracked and burning. The judge—who once stood above me like a god—now lay half-buried in rubble, groaning, his gold-trimmed robes covered in ash.
The manacles that held me were gone. The chains had melted the second the black flame touched them.
I didn't feel tired.
I didn't feel strong either.
It was something else.
I felt awake. For the first time in my life, I felt real.
A squad of royal knights marched into the square, weapons drawn, armor glowing with mana. They moved fast, forming a circle around me.
One stepped forward, taller than the rest, with red markings on his black armor. A captain, maybe a commander.
"Stand down," he said. His voice was calm, but his eyes were locked onto me like I was a beast ready to strike.
"On what charge?" I asked.
His jaw tightened. "You just destroyed a royal platform. You attacked a judge. You released forbidden energy in front of nobles and civilians. What do you think the charge is?"
I smiled. "Self-defense."
He raised a hand. "Binding circle. Now."
Seven mages formed a ring and activated their spell. Runes lit the ground around me—bright blue lines forming a complex, fast-closing seal.
"Contain the target. If he moves, release level-three suppression."
The rune circle snapped shut.
I felt the force of it. My legs froze. My arms locked in place. My breath caught in my chest.
The magic pushed down on me like gravity times ten.
The commander watched me closely.
"Let's see if the rumors are true," he said.
I took a deep breath.
Then I took a step.
CRACK.
The seal shattered.
The light from the rune circle snapped like breaking glass, and the mages recoiled, coughing and gasping from backlash.
The force vanished in a blink.
I moved my arm.
No resistance.
The magic didn't hold.
I looked up at the commander.
"You done testing me?" I asked.
He stared, quiet. The other knights raised their swords, but he raised a hand to stop them.
He stepped closer.
"What are you?" he asked.
"I don't know," I said. "But I know what I'm not."
"And what's that?"
I looked him dead in the eyes.
"A mistake."
They called me a mistake my whole life.
Too weak. Too weird. Too empty.
No spark. No glow.
No future.
Every test crystal they shoved in front of me turned cold. Every magic school rejected me before I could speak. Every guard, every teacher, every kid in the slums laughed the second they heard the word Void.
I never had a birthday. Never had a gift. Never had anyone shake my hand.
Now they looked at me like I was a god.
Or a devil.
Maybe both.
The commander didn't attack. He just kept his eyes on me, like he was thinking hard.
"You can't walk away from this," he said.
"I already did."
"There are laws. Even for people like you."
"People like me don't get laws," I said. "We get burned."
Silence. A wind passed through the plaza, cold and sharp.
One of the knights stepped forward. "Captain, permission to engage—"
"No." The commander didn't look away from me. "He's not unstable. Not yet."
"Sir, he blew up an entire—"
"I said no."
The knight backed off.
I stepped off the broken stone and landed on the marble steps below. My boots echoed through the now-empty plaza. No one stopped me.
"Where are you going?" the commander called out.
"Home," I said. "If I still have one."
The streets of Elaria were silent as I walked.
Not even a whisper. Not even a bird.
Shops were shut. Windows locked. People watched from behind curtains, hiding.
The boy with no magic just tore open the sky.
I passed the bakery where I used to sweep floors for scraps. The owner peeked through the door and slammed it shut when he saw me.
I passed the school gates where I'd been kicked out, twice, just for showing up.
I passed the crystal tower where the nobles trained. I remembered the laughter. The guards chasing me away like a rat.
Now nobody said a word.
I turned down a narrow alley and reached the edge of the slums. The part of the city where the lights didn't reach. The part where people like me were thrown away.
My room was a broken attic above a blacksmith's shop. No bed. Just a blanket and a wooden crate.
I opened the door. It was quiet. Dust floated in the air.
Same as always.
I sat down, leaned back, and stared at my hands.
The black marks had faded again. But I could still feel it. Like a heartbeat under my skin.
What are you?
That voice again.
I didn't answer. I just closed my eyes.
I didn't know what the next day would bring.
I didn't know what the kingdom would do.
I didn't even know if I was still human.
But I knew one thing.
I wasn't a Void anymore.
And the world was finally starting to notice.