Light music performed by a live orchestra flowed out of a villa.

Inside, important guests of various races gathered in small groups.

Their voices mixed together over the music as they engaged in conversation topics relevant to their respective areas of interest.

Some waiters walked around with a tray on top of which were various kinds of expensive beverages, while others offered freshly-made appetizers to whomever called for them.

In the furthermost corner of the room stood a little boy.

The child was dressed in a blue garment traditionally worn by the etherioth species on formal occasions.

His long hair was held in a chignon wrapped around an expensive hairpin. Under the curtain of bangs that covered the boy's eyes, one could glimpse at an elegant headband as the sides circled around his head and disappeared into the chignon from beneath.

Although the child's clothes were unquestionably beautiful, there was no denying that no part of it was flattering on him.

In fact, one could go as far as to say that the child somehow made everything he was wearing appear far less appealing than they would on a common storefront mannequin.

The reason for this was that the child's haircut, built, height and current body language didn't match the delicate design of his attire.

And the child in question, Valderos Auraelis, was aware of all of that as he hid beside a supporting beam away from everyone, his attention focused on one particular part of the room.

Two figures sat together on a couch. In front of them were some close acquaintances.

The man's facial features were delicate but his eyes were sharp. His full lips were pulled in a straight line as he quietly listened to whatever was being said to him.

This man was dressed in the adult version of the clothes worn by Valderos.

However, while Valderos's olive skin only took from the appeal of the silver ornaments and the blue of the apparel that served to emphasize the dignified aura innate to etheriothkind, this man's brown skin and light blue hair only served to accentuate the beauty of the accessories he was wearing.

On the other hand, the woman seated beside him had well-defined facial features, with high cheekbones accentuated by makeup, a proud nose, piercing eyes and a strong jawline.

Her clothes highlighted her strong yet lean muscles and their colour complimented the coppery red tone of her dyed hair.

The woman's lips stretched into a smile as she actively added to the conversation on her side.

The two clearly belonged to two entirely different species—to two entirely different worlds. One was etherioth, the other, zostrek. And yet the picture of them together was more stunning than odd-looking.

Taking in their respective appearances, Valderos chewed on the inner side of his left cheek.

They seemed to be in their element surrounded by so many people.

Even though they were his biological parents, Valderos couldn't help but feel like a stranger when he witnessed this warm atmosphere.

He was the fruit of their union. As such, he was half etherioth and half zostrek. But he didn't feel like he'd inherited anything from either species.

So Valderos chose to stay away from them and everyone else's gaze.

He did his best to go unnoticed until the end of the party.

And he was successful...

That is, until his mother suddenly signalled to a passing waiter.

Valderos watched her confident hand gesture as she called the half-zarian to a halt and gracefully took the last glass off the tray.

The mixed-blood waiter politely excused himself without a word and disappeared behind a door.

Valderos couldn't help but follow his retreating figure with his gaze.

The way he behaved himself made it feel like he wasn't there. His presence hadn't even affected the people discussing nearby. It was almost as though he'd mastered the art of making himself invisible to everyone except to those he was serving.

Just as the hostess of the party brought the rim to her lips, her reptile-like eyes caught the little boy's gaze.

Valderos's breath hitched in his throat.

He froze on the spot.

His heartbeat accelerated.

Without tearing her gaze away from him, she spoke.

Her lips enunciated each syllable clearly:

"You're right; you're an unwanted stranger in our lives."

Her smile vanished in an instant.

Valderos took a step back. His mother's cold words were like a knife through his heart.

In that moment, both of his parents looked at him. An expression of unconcealed hatred was directed at him.

Just then, the sound of something bouncing not far away woke Valderos up.

Valderos instinctively looked in the direction of the sound, not fully registering the sudden pain in his arm. His movement was sluggish.

A basketball had landed right next to him.

Since he was yet to fully awaken, his dazed gaze barely registered the chubby girl running up to him.

He did however, notice that the sun was no longer as high as before. It was about to set.

He must have dozed off while watching the others play after their 4 o'clock lunch.

"Are you alright...?" she asked tentatively.

A tinge of guilt laced her words.

Valderos blinked his blurry, tear-filled eyes.

The little human girl looked somewhat familiar. But he had a hard time placing her, since no one was wearing the usual school uniform on this forced educational outing.

Jumping from one leg to the other, her twin tails bouncing on either side of her head, the girl glanced at the ball from the corner of her eye.

Valderos didn't move. He didn't respond to her words of concern.

He pressed on his cheek with his molars.

It was his first time being spoken to by a fellow classmate since joining this school.

He hadn't fully recovered from the nightmare. His heart was beating fast. He was doing his best not to cry but her probing eyes made him more uncomfortable.

The girl's bright smile eventually crumpled in front of his silence.

Her sweaty, flushed face eventually distorted in awkwardness.

"Uh...Sh-should I call M-M-Miss Betzy?"

She wiped the sweat dripping down her eyebrows with the back of her hand.

She didn't know what to do or say. Even the apologies she wanted to let out for hitting him with the ball were stuck in her throat.

Moments ago, she'd fearlessly volunteered to retrieve the ball in front of her playmates. She'd called them scaredy-cats for refusing to go anywhere near Creepy Valderos, the loner of their class, and even mocked them for believing stupid rumours.

But now she was starting to regret.

Valderos still didn't utter a word. He didn't make a sound. He didn't move an inch either.

All he did was stare right at her—or at least she believed he was staring right at her. She could feel it. But she couldn't say for sure since his eyes were hidden behind the shaggy black hair that covered half of his face.

Was it true that whoever looked at Creepy Valderos's face for too long became his puppet, just like the teachers?

She gulped and took a step back.

Was he casting a spell on her right now?

The little girl felt goosebumps all over her body.

Her big eyes filled with tears. Her lips quivered.

Hitting him with the ball was an accident. And she wasn't even the one who hit him in the first place, so why should she be the one to pay?!

As the feeling of indignation reached its peak and she prepared to deter him from wrongfully attacking innocents, a bird flapped its wings suddenly.

The unexpected noise in this heavy silence caused the girl to immediately think that Valderos was about to lunge at her.

She shrieked in terror. Her mind turned blank. All thoughts of trying to rationalize him vanished from her brain.

Tears and snot streamed down her face as she sprinted back to the safety of the guesthouse, her initial purpose for approaching the solitary boy long forgotten.

The others were right.

Creepy Valderos was a monster!