Fuh-fuh-fuh. My name is Hideaki.

Behold—this is the time-stopping magic of chronomancy!

“—Time, halt!”

My vision was painted gray, the world turning monochrome. Proof that time had stopped.

With this power, I’ll use it for mischief and live life to the fullest! Pranking people, making easy money… I’ve already won at life!

……

……

……

Let me rewind a bit. This happened when I was in first grade.

After school, I was building a secret base in the mountains near my house, like always.

Well, calling it a “secret base” might be overselling it—it was just a small dugout big enough for two or three kids. I’d laid out an old bath towel inside, placed a PET bottle filled with spring water nearby, and even brought snacks to eat there. Digging deeper revealed damp soil, and it felt like digging a well—it was fun. Back then, we thought it was the coolest hideout ever.

Hey, cut me some slack—I was just a first grader.

Usually, my friends and I would play there together, but that day, I was alone. When I arrived, I noticed a small side tunnel a little deeper in than usual.

“Huh… Was this hole always here? Did someone dig it?”

Worried there might be wild animals inside, I cautiously peeked in. The tunnel curved right after the entrance, so I couldn’t see far. Gripping the penlight from my backpack, I crawled inside on all fours.

Oh, by the way, this was in the countryside of southern Chiba. No bears or wolves around here.

Back then, I didn’t even consider the danger before crawling in.

The tunnel was narrow, but after a short distance, it opened up slightly. Not enough to stand, but enough to sit up. Tired from crawling, I sat down to catch my breath and shone my light around.

That’s when I saw it—a small altar, like the Buddhist one at my grandparents’ house, sitting a little to my left.

As I got closer, an odd aura seemed to drift from it.

Something felt off—unlike my grandparents’ altar, there were no offerings. So, without much thought, I poured a little water from my PET bottle into a small cup on the altar and tore off a piece of my leftover bread to place on the empty dish.

Then, just out of habit, I clasped my hands together and prayed.

…I didn’t even know what to wish for.

Suddenly, an unbearably bright light surged from the altar. Since my eyes were closed, I didn’t see it clearly, but when I opened them in panic, I was already engulfed in white light—too dazzling to make out anything.

And then, I blacked out.

——

When I came to, I was standing in a pure white void.

A person sat at a small, neat wooden desk. An old man, maybe?

I say “maybe” because while I could see a thick white beard, the upper half of his face shone too brightly to make out.

“Ohoho, what a cute little guest.”

With that, the old man stood up and patted my head.

For some reason, it felt incredibly comforting.

“Hmm… I see. Ah, that bloodline? Then it’s… yes… fitting.”

He muttered to himself before crouching down to my eye level. His face was still glowing, so I couldn’t see his expression.

“I shall grant thee a special power—the magic to govern time.”

“Magic… to govern time?”

“Indeed. For now, thou shalt be able to stop time. All but thee shall freeze. When thou returnest to thy world, will it strongly in thy heart: ‘Time, halt!’ Then, time shall stop for all but thee.”

“Whoa, that’s amazing! Sounds fun!”

“Does it not? But be warned—it may not be as grand as thou thinkest. Or perhaps even greater. ‘Tis up to thy ingenuity. Also, keep this magic a secret. Should wicked folk learn of it, thou and those around thee may be in danger. If thou must reveal it, do so only to those thou truly trustest.”

There was an inexplicable weight to his words.

“Got it!”

“Use it for good or ill—‘tis thy choice, for ‘tis thy life. Now, the time hath come. I shall send thee back. Remember—‘Time, halt!’”

“Okay! Thank you, old man!”

“Ohohoho!”

With that laugh, white light enveloped me again, and my consciousness faded.

When I woke up, I was lying on the bath towel in my usual hideout.

The side tunnel with the altar-like object was gone—as if it had never existed.

“Huh? Was it… just a dream?”

The area had grown dim—dusk had fallen.

“Oh no, Mom’s gonna yell if I’m late!”

I adjusted my backpack and hurried to leave.

“Wait… If I can really stop time, couldn’t I just freeze it to buy myself more time to get home?”

Am I a genius or what?!

Well, I still didn’t know if it was real or a dream, but trying couldn’t hurt.

Alright, here goes nothing. Focus… “Time, halt!”

!!!

In that instant, the world lost all color and sound.

Everything in my vision turned monochrome.

The chirping of insects, the rustling of wind through grass—all noise vanished. The only sounds left were my heartbeat and breathing.

So this is what stopped time feels like… Kinda scary.

But it really worked! Time has stopped!