Gaga was once an ordinary Raven.

Like all its kin in the Silent Death Mountain Range, Gaga’s life was routine. At dawn, it would fly from its nest to find food—Insects, carrion, wild fruit, and on a lucky day, even an injured small beast.

Before nightfall, it would return to the ancient tree where the flock lived, squeeze in among the dense branches, listen to the Clan Leader’s grating lectures, and then drift off to sleep.

Its days were as bland as the morning mist, repeating endlessly.

Until that afternoon.

Gaga remembered it clearly. That day, it had flown a little farther than usual, hoping to find something different to eat.

In the shade of a valley it had never visited before, it saw a short tree bearing two bright red fruits. They were so red they looked ready to drip blood, standing out starkly in the gloomy gray of the forest. 𝕗𝐫𝚎𝗲𝘄𝐞𝕓𝐧𝕠𝘃𝕖𝐥.𝐜𝚘𝚖

"CAW?" Gaga landed on a branch, tilting its head in curiosity.

The fruit’s aroma was unique. It wasn’t cloyingly sweet, but crisp and sharp, a tempting scent that drilled straight into its mind.

Gaga’s stomach began to rumble. It looked around—no other beasts, and none of its own kind.

’Just one taste... caw.’

It carefully used its beak to pierce the skin of the fruit.

The moment the juice touched its tongue, Gaga froze solid.

’So delicious! Impossibly delicious! Every feather on its body was cheering!’

In a flash, it devoured the entire fruit. Savoring the taste, it was about to peck at the second one...

"GURGLE..."

A strange churning suddenly started in its stomach.

And then, excruciating pain struck!

"CAW!!!"

Gaga shrieked, tumbling from the branch to the ground and thrashing wildly in the dead leaves.

The pain felt like a thousand red-hot needles stabbing it from the inside, like an invisible hand tearing at its organs, its bones... even its brain!

The pain was so intense Gaga’s eyes rolled back in its head. Its wings flapped erratically, sending dislodged feathers and dead leaves flying everywhere.

’I’m dying, I’m dying, I’m dying... caaw...!’

He truly thought this was the end. Countless fragmented images flashed through his mind:

The warmth of his eggshell, the clumsiness of his first flight, snatching half a frozen snake during last winter’s famine, the Clan Leader’s beautiful daughter...

After what felt like an eternity, the excruciating pain receded like a tide.

Gaga lay collapsed on the ground, his chest heaving, his feathers a total mess as if he’d been through a hurricane.

He panted for a long time before shakily pushing himself up.

Then, he froze.

The world... was different.

It wasn’t just that the colors were more vibrant or his vision was sharper, though those things had happened too.

The way he "perceived" the world had fundamentally changed.

From the rustling of the wind in the distant treetops, he could distinguish the subtle sway of each individual leaf.

From the sound of Insects squirming in the dirt, he could tell what kind they were, roughly how long they were, and whether they would be tasty.

He could even count the approximate number of dust motes floating in the air.

What shocked him most, however, was that he had started to "think."

Not the instinctual reactions of "hungry, must eat," or "danger, must flee," but true, active thought.

’What did I just eat? Why was that fruit growing there? Did my screams attract any Fierce Beasts? Should I fly away now, or wait and observe?’

One after another, questions bubbled up from the depths of his consciousness, clear and coherent.

Gaga tried to move his wings...

"WHOOSH!"

With just a gentle flap, his body shot into the air with a SWOOSH, as fast as a black lightning bolt, even leaving an afterimage!

Startled, he quickly pulled back and landed with a stumble.

’I... I’m faster? Caw?’

He then looked at a nearby Rock that was half a man’s height and tentatively swiped at it with the edge of his wing.

"SLICE!"

The Rock split in two, the cut surface as clean as if sliced by a sharp blade.

Gaga stared blankly at his own wing. The feathers were still black, but in the sunlight, they now shimmered with a faint, iridescent light.

His heart hammered in his chest as a thought surfaced: ’I... I’ve become powerful?’

Over the next few days, Gaga secretly tested all his new abilities.

He could now make hairpin turns mid-flight, his speed rivaling the fastest falcon. He had enough Power to easily snatch a full-grown elk and carry it high into the sky.

Most miraculously, when he focused his mind, his body could expand to an enormous size with a "POOF."

His wingspan stretched a full eight meters, making him look like a moving thundercloud!

In his enlarged form, a single flap of his wings could conjure a gale. His feathers were hard enough to deflect spears, and his eyes could shoot beams of gray light that would stun any beast on the spot, leaving it dazed as if its soul had fled.

He could also shrink, becoming even smaller than a sparrow.

Gaga was both amazed and overjoyed, but his newly intelligent mind warned him: ’Don’t show off.’

He quietly flew back to the ancient tree where his flock roosted.

The Clan Leader was the same arrogant old Raven as always, perched on the highest branch, squawking out orders:

"...A deer carcass was found in the western valley yesterday. I saw it first, so none of you are to touch it! You will wait for me to distribute the shares. Do you hear me? CAW!"

The Ravens below responded lazily, "We hear you... caw..."

Gaga landed on a branch in the corner, listening in silence.

Before, he would have thought the Clan Leader’s words made sense. The strong eat first—that was the natural Law.

But now, listening to him, Gaga just thought it was stupid. ’It’s just a deer carcass. Whoever gets to it has the right to it. Why should we wait for you to dole it out? By the time you’re done, other Fierce Beasts will have already picked the bones clean.’

He looked at the other members of his flock. They would peck each other’s feathers out over a single tiny grub, squabble endlessly over petty matters, and when they huddled together at night, some would always secretly break wind...

Gaga was suddenly struck by a thought: ’They’re so stupid.’

But he didn’t say it out loud.

He simply stayed quietly in his corner. He started hunting alone during the day, as he no longer enjoyed raw meat. He now preferred to cook his prey before eating.

Though his first attempt ended with charred meat and nearly setting his own feathers ablaze. At night, he chose the outermost branch to rest on.

He began to live in isolation, until a month later.

That day, the Clan Leader summoned Gaga and said in a commanding tone:

"There’s a cliff to the southeast. Beasts often fall to their deaths at its base. You’re a fast flier, so go stand watch there today. If you find a carcass, drag it back for me. CAW!"

Gaga tilted his head. "Why me? That place is far, and it’s often patrolled by rock eagles."

The Clan Leader flapped his wings impatiently. "Just go since I told you to! Stop asking so many questions! I am the Clan Leader!"

The old Gaga would have probably obeyed without a word.

But the new Gaga could think. ’Rock eagles are one of the Ravens’ natural predators. The Clan Leader knows this perfectly well, yet he’s sending me alone to guard the cliff. Isn’t this just sending me to my death?’

’Is it just because I’ve been keeping to myself lately and not following his orders?’

Gaga replied calmly, "I’m not going. If you want it done, go yourself."

The entire flock of ravens fell silent in an instant.

Every Raven’s small eyes went wide. They stared at Gaga in disbelief. How dare he talk back to the Clan Leader?!

The Clan Leader was stunned for a moment, then erupted in fury, his feathers puffing out in anger.

"You dare defy me! CAW...! Today, I’ll teach you a lesson about rules!"

He shrieked and lunged, his sharp beak aimed straight for Gaga’s eyes.

The surrounding Ravens quickly backed away, clearing a space, their eyes filled with schadenfreude.

’He angered the Clan Leader. Now there’s going to be a good show.’