"You piece of shit! You think you're so smart? How dare you get more marks than me!"
A fist suddenly slammed into Kai's stomach.
The air rushed out of his lungs and he bent forward in pain.
The classroom around him burst into laughter.
"Maybe that will teach you to stay in your place," the boy said before walking away.
Kai slowly straightened his back and picked up the books that had fallen to the floor.
He didn't say anything.
He never did.
Moments like this had become normal for him.
"Kai… Kai, are you here?"
Kai blinked. The memories disappeared.
The voice pulled him out of his thoughts.
He looked up and saw the girl still standing in front of him outside the school gate.
She tilted her head slightly.
"So… will you go out with me?"
Kai stared at her for a second.
His mind was still stuck between the present moment and old memories.
Ah well… this is the first time in my life someone has asked me out.
And a girl at that.
What should I do?
The girl looked a little worried.
"What happened, Kai?" she asked softly. "Do you not like me?"
Kai quickly shook his head.
"Oh, no! No, that's not the case," he said.
"I'll come."
Her face brightened instantly.
"Really?"
Kai nodded.
She smiled widely.
"Yay! Then we'll meet tomorrow. Six in the evening."
"Okay," Kai said. "I'll be there."
The girl's face turned slightly red.
Then she quickly turned around and ran down the street.
Kai stood there for a moment, completely confused.
"Why is my life suddenly going so well?" he muttered.
He sighed and started walking home.
The next morning Kai woke up earlier than usual.
His house wasn't very big, but it was more than enough for one person.
The small kitchen was quiet as he prepared breakfast for himself.
A pot of simple soup simmered on the stove.
Kai poured it into a bowl and sat down at the table.
The house was silent except for the sound of a spoon tapping lightly against the bowl.
"This is strange," he said to himself.
"No girl has ever asked me out before."
He took a sip of the soup.
"Not even the boys at school care to talk to me."
Kai stared at the table for a moment.
Then he shook his head.
"Stop it, Kai," he muttered.
"You're thinking too much."
He finished his meal and stood up.
Today was just another normal day.
At least…
That was what he thought.
After finishing his meal, Kai washed the dishes and glanced at the clock on the wall.
5:10 PM.
He froze for a moment.
"Wait…"
Kai rushed to his room.
"I almost forgot!"
He opened his closet and stared at the few clothes hanging inside. Most of them were simple and old, but he picked the cleanest shirt he had.
After changing, he looked at himself in the mirror.
For a second he felt awkward.
Why am I even nervous? he thought.
It was just a simple meeting.
Still, this was the first time someone had asked him out.
Especially a girl.
Kai grabbed his jacket and stepped outside.
The evening air was cool and calm. The streets were slowly filling with people returning from work. Cars passed by while the sky slowly turned orange with the setting sun.
Kai walked toward the meeting place.
It was a small park not far from his house.
As he walked, his mind kept wandering.
Why did she ask me?
He had never been popular in school. Most students avoided him because of the rumors about him being cursed.
Even today he still didn't understand why people believed that.
He had never done anything to them.
Kai sighed.
"Whatever," he muttered.
"Just go and see what happens."
A few minutes later he reached the park.
There were children playing near the swings, couples sitting on benches, and street lights slowly turning on as the sky darkened.
Kai checked the time again.
5:57 PM.
"Looks like I'm early," he said quietly.
He looked around.
Then he saw her.
Umi was standing near the fountain in the center of the park.
The park looked peaceful. A group of kids were chasing each other near the playground while an old man slowly fed bread to a group of pigeons. The fountain in the center of the park made a quiet splashing sound as water fell back into the pool below.
The lights around the walkway had just turned on, giving the whole place a warm yellow glow. For a moment, everything felt normal.
Kai stood there watching the people around him. It was strange. Most evenings he would have gone straight home and spent the night alone reading or drawing random shapes in his notebook. Today was different.
She was looking down at her phone, occasionally glancing around as if waiting for someone.
The soft light from the street lamps fell gently on her, making her look different from how she looked at school.
She was not the type of girl who looked stunning at first glance. Instead, she had a soft and natural kind of beauty that slowly caught your attention.
Her long dark hair moved slightly with the evening breeze. A few strands fell across her face as she looked down at her phone.
Her eyes were bright and lively, the kind that always seemed curious about the world. When she smiled, her cheeks lifted slightly, giving her a very cute look.
She wore a light sweater and a simple skirt that moved gently in the evening breeze.
It looked like she had spent some time choosing what to wear.
For a moment Kai just stood there watching her.
He suddenly felt a little nervous.
Not because she was scary.
But because she looked… genuinely kind.
And people like that rarely talked to someone like him.
Kai scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Okay… calm down," he whispered to himself.
Kai took a deep breath.
"Alright," he whispered to himself.
"Let's go."
He started walking toward her.
Each step felt strangely heavy.
His heart was beating faster than usual.
He didn't know why.
Maybe it was nervousness.
Maybe it was something else.
Just as he was about to reach her—
Everything changed.
The sound of the park suddenly disappeared.
The warm evening air vanished.
Kai stopped walking.
"What…?"
The world around him blurred.
For a split second it felt like the ground itself disappeared beneath his feet.
Then—
Silence.
Kai blinked.
The park was gone.
He was no longer outside.
Instead, he was standing inside a large room.
The walls were made of a strange dark metal he had never seen before. The surface looked smooth but strangely alive, reflecting faint blue light across the room.
At the top of the ceiling there was a massive circular design.
Complex lines and shapes formed patterns that looked almost like… geometry.
Kai stared at it for a moment.
"What the…"
Then he looked down at himself.
And froze.
There was a belt around his waist.
He definitely hadn't been wearing that before.
The belt was dark metal, but the center of it glowed with soft blue light.
Five thin lines were carved along its surface.
Only one of them was glowing.
Kai slowly touched it.
"What is this thing…?"
He quickly looked around the room again.
"Hello?"
No answer.
The room was completely silent.
Just as he was about to move—
The door suddenly opened.
A group of people entered the room.
Kai turned toward them.
The moment he saw their faces…
His eyes widened in shock.
None of them were human.