Shayne walked away from Doohleen Academy with a heavy heart, each step feeling like an echo of his failure. The Mei-zart family, to which he belonged, was known throughout Hwarthings as the lowest of the low. No one from his family had ever become a Mythe Being or achieved anything noteworthy. They were always seen working in farms or markets, struggling just to survive. In Vegras, where the Mythe Beings were celebrated as symbols of success and magic, being part of a family like the Mei-zarts meant living a life filled with disappointment and poverty.
Vegras was divided into two realms: the Royal Realm and the Low Realms. The Royal Realm was where the most powerful Mythe Beings lived, their lives filled with magic and splendor. In contrast, the Low Realms, where Hwarthings was located, had very little magic and were home to the less fortunate. People from the Low Realms, like Shayne, were often called "peasants" and dreamt of becoming Mythe Beings to escape their harsh realities. For Shayne, that dream was everything. He had hoped that by joining Doohleen Academy, he could turn his life around.
But today, all of that seemed out of reach. His sprint test score was embarrassingly low, the worst in his class. With a sprint distance of only 438 meters, Shayne felt utterly defeated. The memory of his classmates laughing at him, especially Scot's cruel taunts, was still fresh in his mind. Shayne's face was flushed with shame as he hurried away from the academy. He tried to escape the humiliation, but in his distress, he stumbled over a small stone and fell hard onto the ground, his tears flowed freely now, mixing with the dust on his face. As he scrambled to his feet, he heard more laughter behind him, further amplifying his embarrassment
"Haha! Your sprint is so poor, just like you. An ordinary stone makes you fall!" Scot's laughter echoed in Shayne's ears, adding to the sting of his failure.
The other students' voices and laughter seemed to follow him as he fled from the academy grounds.
As Shayne ran, his emotions overwhelmed him. His dream of becoming a Mythe Being, which had once seemed so attainable, now felt like a distant fantasy. Every step home was a reminder of his failure. He barely noticed the surroundings, lost in his thoughts and feelings of inadequacy.
Suddenly, he collided with an old woman who was foraging for herbs near the bushes just outside the academy. The impact sent both of them sprawling onto the ground. The woman's basket of herbs spilled across the dirt, and Shayne quickly scrambled to his feet, his face red with embarrassment. "I-I'm so sorry!" he stammered, reaching out to help her gather the scattered herbs.
The old lady looked up at him with a gentle gaze. Her face was weathered by years of hard work and hardship, but her eyes held a kind warmth. Despite the mess, she offered a reassuring smile. "It's alright, young man," she said softly. "I wasn't paying much attention either."
Shayne was taken aback by her calm and kind demeanor. He felt a lump in his throat as he looked at her. "I didn't mean to be so clumsy," he said, his voice trembling with a mix of embarrassment and frustration.
The old lady continued to gather her herbs with deliberate care. "Life has a way of being difficult," she said, her voice soothing. "But it's often during these hard times that we find out what we're really made of."
Shayne was surprised by her words. He had expected harsh words or disapproval, not the comforting advice from this stranger. "You don't understand," he said, his voice barely above a whisper. "I'm failing at everything. I couldn't even complete a simple sprint. Everyone is laughing at me. I feel like I'm letting everyone down."
The old lady paused her work and looked at Shayne with a thoughtful expression. "The journey to greatness is rarely straightforward," she said gently. "It's filled with challenges and setbacks. But what really matters is how you face these challenges. It's not about how many times you fall, but about getting back up each time."
Shayne listened intently, her words starting to resonate with him. He nodded slowly, trying to absorb the meaning behind her advice. "Thank you," he said quietly. "I'll try to remember that."
As he began to walk away, the old lady's words lingered in his mind. The path to becoming a Mythe Being still seemed daunting, but her advice gave him a glimmer of hope. Maybe he wasn't as hopeless as he felt right now. Maybe, with hard work and determination, he could overcome his failures.
Shayne wiped his tears and took a deep breath. The road ahead was still filled with challenges, but he felt a renewed sense of purpose. The dream of becoming a Mythe Being wasn't as distant as it had seemed just moments ago. As he continued his journey home, he knew that the path to achieving his dreams would be difficult, but he was ready to face it with newfound resolve.
With the old lady's words echoing in his mind, Shayne felt a bit stronger. He realized that while the future was uncertain, he had the strength to keep going. And perhaps, one day, he would prove that even someone from the Mei-zart family could rise above their circumstances and achieve greatness.