Chapter 2 — The House Floating in Midair.
After returning inside, the three of them looked at Ivan with astonishment.
Richard had just been about to complain about why Ivan had rushed out without grabbing the umbrella hanging on the wall—but the words died in his throat.
Because he realized that despite the heavy rain, Ivan showed no signs of being soaked at all. Even his hair was completely dry.
Ivan understood why his family was staring at him. Indeed—he wasn't wet.
He didn't know why either. This hadn't been within his expectations. He hadn't taken an umbrella simply because he felt the distance was too short to bother.
Just another strange phenomenon, he told himself.
"You didn't get rained on, Ivan?" Jenny asked gently.
"Mm, no."
"Then let's eat. Jessica, you should eat a little more too."
The family didn't seem overly shocked. This wasn't the first time something strange had happened around Ivan.
Dinner continued. Midway through the meal, Ivan picked up a piece of steak with his metal fork and was about to bring it to his mouth—only to notice the fork had bent.
"Kid, that's the three hundred and twenty-sixth fork you've ruined," Richard reminded him, looking at the warped utensil in Ivan's hand.
"What about spoons?" Jenny smiled gently and teased. "Have you kept count?"
"Uh… countless," Richard thought for a moment before answering.
Ivan didn't want to damage the tableware either. But as he grew older, the frequency of bent utensils increased—more often, more noticeably. Deep down, he felt uneasy. What would eventually happen?
After dinner, Richard cleaned up the dishes while Jenny went to Jessica's room to have a heart-to-heart talk with her.
Ivan understood—if someone was to truly integrate into a family, the most important thing was making them feel at home. Communication was the best way. So he joined in as well.
"Do you have any hobbies, Jessica?"
Jenny asked gently, sitting by the bed.
"No… um, thank you, Mom," Jessica replied softly.
"I'm very happy you're willing to call me 'Mom' so soon. Don't overthink it, sweetheart. People die—it's part of life. Cherish those who are still alive, and live happily, okay?"
Jenny held Jessica's hand.
"You still have us."
Jessica raised her head and met Jenny's gentle gaze.
"Thank you."
"If there's anything you like, just tell us. From now on, we're family," Jenny said with a smile. "Look—this is Ivan, your brother. Before long, you'll be going to school together. You'll make new friends."
And so, Jenny continued to gently guide and comfort Jessica. Occasionally, Ivan chimed in as well. Through this conversation, Ivan gained a better understanding of her.
And naturally, he learned about the misfortune she had suffered.
Half a month earlier, a traffic collision had caused radioactive chemical materials from a military vehicle to leak. The radiation had critically injured her entire family, leaving them hospitalized. During that time, her father had written a will, stating that if he died, he hoped his old friend Richard would inherit his estate and raise Jessica as his own daughter, giving her sufficient love and care.
As the night deepened, it was time to sleep.
Ivan felt his throat was a little dry. After entering his room, he glanced at the desk—and sure enough, his personal mug was there, still containing some drink.
He walked toward the desk to grab it. Suddenly, a pale blue light wrapped around the mug. It floated up and moved horizontally toward Ivan.
Naturally, Ivan grabbed the handle. He stared blankly at the mug in his hand as the blue light faded away.
A thought suddenly crossed his mind—do I have superpowers?
"Can I… send the mug back the same way?"
Thinking this, he focused his attention, imagining that after he released the handle, the mug wouldn't fall to the ground.
The moment he let go, a vivid blue glow appeared again. The mug stopped in midair instead of falling. It moved—slowly gliding through the air—and finally settled back onto the desk several meters away.
He had never imagined something like this before.
After all, who would casually imagine a cup moving on its own? This was his first attempt.
At that moment, an indescribable joy surged through Ivan's heart. oﾟ▽ﾟo
"Do I really have superpowers? So that's how it is… those bent spoons weren't caused by something else—but by me."
With that thought, Ivan repeatedly tried controlling the mug, succeeding every time.
He turned and looked at the wardrobe. The door suddenly flew open, and a plaid shirt shot out, wrapping itself around his body in the blink of an eye.
All of it came from his imagination.
He felt his heart pounding. At some point, tiny specks of blue light began floating around him. Everything felt utterly unreal.
The chair, the camera, the pen holder—everything rose into the air, forming a beautiful scene within this narrow blue space.
For a moment, Ivan was intoxicated by the vast ocean of psychic energy. He drifted—imagining that everything around him was drifting too.
Bang!
The bed tore free from the wooden floor and floated up. The framed pictures on the wall tore loose from their nails and floated as well.
From the outside, a thick slab of earth was ripped straight from the ground, steadily lifting the entire two-story house as it slowly rose into the sky.
Ivan floated inside the house, blue psychic energy swirling around him. As he drifted toward the window, he found the night scenery breathtaking.
Without thinking, he lowered his head and looked down through the window—and nearly jumped out of his skin.
The ground was getting farther and farther away. The ranch and the motorcycle below were shrinking rapidly.
Realizing that this was likely his doing, Ivan immediately steadied himself and focused all his will on lowering the house.
Without his psychic energy sustaining them, the floating objects inside the house fell to the floor one after another, producing a series of clattering, crashing noises.
"Hey, kid! What are you doing up there?"
Richard's voice sounded from outside Ivan's room.
Ivan didn't respond. He didn't dare be careless—if the house fell, the consequences would be disastrous.
His family could be hurt.
At this moment, Ivan barely dared to breathe. He didn't rush his control, instead letting the house descend slowly.
Because the descent was so steady, with not the slightest tremor, Richard and Jenny were completely unaware that the house they were in was suspended high in the air.
Ivan only hoped they had already drawn the curtains and wouldn't look outside—to avoid being frightened.
"Kid? Are you up there? Jessica?"
"Are you okay, sweetheart?"
Richard and Jenny kept calling out from the first floor. At the same time, Ivan heard footsteps coming up the stairs.
"This is bad. They must think something happened to me. I need to respond."
"I'm fine, Mom!" Ivan called out loudly.
"Oh? Then those noises just now—?"
"I accidentally dropped a cup. I'll clean it up right away!"
"Be careful not to cut your hands on the shards," Jenny reminded him quickly.
"Kid, are you sure it was just a cup?" Richard asked doubtfully.
That heavy bed slamming onto the floor—he had felt it very clearly downstairs. It had startled him badly.
"Hoo…"
Inside the room, Ivan finally let out a breath. He had successfully lowered the house—foundation and all—back to the ground, landing it steadily.
He felt that, for him, this was actually quite easy. He'd just been too nervous since it was his first time.
Suddenly, he heard the sound of the door handle turning.
Oh no.
The room was a complete mess—the bed standing upright, shattered frames, a slanted desk, the wardrobe lying flat…