Man this sucks… I'm not getting any of this at all—Fugi sat at his desk as the teacher's droning lecture played on in the back of his mind. The sound of buzzing cicadas droning throughout the entire classroom.
He couldn't help but think back on it, that dream that he keeps having. It's bothering him so much that it's the only thing he could possibly think about.
"Shoya, pay attention to the front! "
The teacher's voice boomed across the classroom, causing the boy to flinch. Students snicker beside themselves, their heads hung low at their desks to hide their laughter.
"R-right…"
His gaze landed on a boy. His hair was a rich yellow, as bright as his smile and orange eyes. It was clear that the boy was popular, though he always had a tendency to leave his uniform untucked. He's been Fugi's friend ever since he joined this godforsaken school, and to still have a familiar face feels refreshing.
"Haruki?" He said with a hopeful voice.
The boy turned towards Fugi, his eyes laced with a look of disbelief, before quickly turning to the front of the class, pretending to not have noticed.
It's only par for the course; after being gone so long, I'm probably just an outcast by now. Man, how lame… Fugi sighed, resting his head in his hands.
A world where anyone can become a god—the idea sounds as appealing as it can get for an otaku like me… Living in my own power fantasy? Who wouldn't give the world just for that alone…
In this world, in this cold reality, nothing is ever certain. No matter how hard you work, you can still fail miserably and suffer. If only it were true.
I won't have to run away from my problems anymore. I can face them head-on… sadly, it was only a dream.
A world where anyone can become a god…
What I'd give for such a world.
"I knew it~" A voice rang that caused his heart to sink. The world around him froze in an instant, followed by a dead silence.
Cicadas stopped buzzing, and birds froze mid-flight. All the while, the voice rang out.
Jester?!
"Your heart longs for power, doesn't it, Pauper! More than your pitiful, cowardly existence!"
The air crackled with an otherworldly energy before it ignited into a beam of light that struck the ground in a deadly hum. The earth cracked under its weight, spreading and engulfing everything in sight, as though it were looking for something.
Crap! Crap! Crap! Crap! I can't move!
His body too remained a victim to the jester's power. His eyes shut tight in fear as the light devoured him whole. He felt the ground beneath his feet disappear in an instant.
"Welcome! One and all!" A voice filled with gravitas echoed within his mind. Wind blew past him in a continuous intense gust. He could feel his hair fluttering wildly against his brow. His uniform pulled behind him as though the wind was trying to take it away.
It was almost like—
"W-wait, HUH?! What's going on!? " The poor boy cried as he opened his eyes, witnessing the spectacle before him. He was falling at intense speeds; around him many others joined in the same fate. Their clothing was foreign, otherworldly.
One of them, a woman whose clothing looked similar to royalty, almost as though they were out of some kind of fantasy MMO. Her jet-black hair fluttering wildly behind her. She was a stunning figure, her cold, stoic face bound to leave her with wrinkles.
"I've hand-selected each and every one of you! Those who look for power in their life! Those who look to improve! Those who are desperate! To create their ideal world!"
Ideal world… so these people—wait, this voice is different!
His eyes fell to the world beneath him, high enough to witness the golden sun as it rose from its slumber. It kissed the world with its magnificent rays, lighting up the very soil beneath it. Villages and kingdoms, ruins and dungeons—it all aligned with the curvature of the world beneath it.
"If you truly mean for your wishes to become a reality…"
"Let the games begin!"
***
BEEP—BEEP
"P—please! Let me go! We can talk this out, can't we?!" Fugi begged, his face forced to tilt to the sky. Smooth leather strained against his skin, the sound ringing through his ears as he struggled to lower his head. He couldn't feel his arms; his body was restrained by his captor.
Though his pleas bore no response.
He could hardly see the blue between the trees that shaded them. Deep within the forest, where no one could hear him scream. A cold blade rested its tip on his Adam's apple, the tip pricking blood as it bobbed.
"Do you really have anything to gain from doing this?!" The boy stammered, "Look, I don't know you, and you don't know me; we can work this out!"
BEEP—BEEP
His breath only grew faster and faster; it burns, his heart burns, it feels like it's going to burst… But the sound of tearing flesh echoes throughout the forest, causing birds to take flight to safety. Fugi felt as the blade dived into his throat; blood gushed out from the wound and tainted the killer's black leather gloves.
His vision grew hazy the more he lost. The blue of the sky and the green forest blending together, he tried to speak, but it would only come out as messy gurgles. Something even he couldn't make sense of.
With a dull thud, he collided with the floor as he was set free, and his eyes turned hollow.
BEEP—BEEP.