Kaito climbed through Ren's bedroom window again, nearly knocking over a stack of books.
Ren didn't even turn around this time. He was already staring out the window toward the park.
"You know," Ren said, "normal people use doors."
Kaito Tanaka, a 16-year-old boy with spiky blond hair and sharp blue eyes, brushed glass dust off his sleeves. "Your mom scares me. Windows are safer."
Ren ignored him.
A strange glow flickered in the distance.
The Door above the park was reacting again.
Kaito followed Ren's gaze. "They're messing with it again?"
Ren nodded. "Yeah."
He could feel multiple ki signatures near the park. Fighters. Curious idiots. And one huge presence at the center.
The same one from earlier.
Kaito swallowed. "That big one again?"
Ren grabbed his jacket. "Yeah."
Kaito's eyes widened. "Wait, we're actually going?"
Ren hesitated only a second.
"Yeah."
They slipped downstairs quietly. Ren's mom was focused on the TV, so they slipped out the front door unnoticed.
The moment they hit the street, Ren grabbed Kaito's arm.
They shot into the sky.
They slowed before reaching the park, landing on a nearby rooftop.
Hundreds of civilians filled the area. Police lines collapsed under pressure. Cameras and phones pointed upward.
And floating just above the crowd stood Raiga, aura blazing.
Raiga, a large adult man with a shaved head, thick beard stubble, and a massive muscular frame, laughed as ki swirled around him.
"See?" he shouted. "It reacts to power!"
Several other hidden ki users floated nearby, watching nervously.
Ren spotted Mika hovering above a tree line.
Mika Hoshino, a 16-year-old girl with short black hair and sharp gray eyes, glanced at Ren briefly before turning back to the Door.
Her expression said everything.
This was going wrong.
Raiga roared and launched another massive ki blast into the Door.
The blast vanished into its surface.
Then the Door pulsed.
The glowing outline returned.
Ren's stomach dropped.
"Back," Mika shouted. "Everyone back!"
Nobody listened.
The Door slowly split down the center.
Darkness spilled outward.
Cold air flooded the park.
The crowd went silent.
The crack widened.
Inside wasn't another landscape.
It was a massive throne room of black stone and red light.
And seated on the throne was a man.
He stood slowly.
He was tall. Taller than any human present. His body was lean and muscular, perfectly proportioned for battle. His skin was dark gray, almost metallic, with faint glowing lines running across his arms and chest like cracks in stone.
Long silver hair flowed down his back. His face was calm and handsome in a cold, emotionless way. His white eyes had no pupils, giving him an inhuman stare.
He wore no armor. No weapons.
He didn't need them.
He stepped forward.
The moment his foot touched Earth, the ground shattered beneath him.
Every ki user present felt it.
Pressure.
Not aggressive.
Just absolute.
Kaito grabbed Ren's sleeve. "What… is that?"
Ren couldn't answer.
Raiga laughed nervously. "So you're the big boss?"
The man tilted his head slightly, observing the world.
"So this is Earth."
His voice was calm, smooth, and completely unafraid.
Raiga charged, fist glowing with energy.
He threw a full-power punch.
The ruler didn't dodge.
He caught Raiga's fist effortlessly.
Shock rippled across the park.
Raiga screamed and fired an energy blast at point blank range.
Smoke exploded outward.
When it cleared, the ruler stood untouched.
He flicked Raiga away.
Raiga flew across the park, smashing through trees and concrete, crashing unconscious into a building.
One move.
Panic exploded.
People screamed and ran.
Police abandoned their positions.
The ruler flexed his fingers slowly, like testing the world's gravity.
"Your world feels fragile," he said calmly.
Ren felt anger rise.
People were going to die if someone didn't stop him.
Without thinking, Ren shot forward and landed in front of the ruler.
Kaito cursed and followed. Mika joined instantly.
The ruler looked down at them.
Interest flickered in his eyes.
"You are stronger than the others," he said to Ren.
Ren clenched his fists. "Leave."
Kaito whispered, "Ren, stop talking."
Mika stayed silent but ready.
The ruler stared for a moment.
Then he moved.
Nobody saw how.
One moment he stood still.
The next, Ren's vision blurred.
Pain exploded in his stomach.
The ruler's fist was buried in his gut.
Ren's body folded and shot backward, smashing through the rooftop behind him.
Kaito shouted, "REN!"
He charged forward.
The ruler casually backhanded him.
Kaito spun through the air and crashed into a parked car, metal folding around him.
Mika attacked next, firing rapid ki blasts.
The ruler walked through them.
He grabbed her wrist mid-strike and slammed her into the ground.
The park cratered.
Silence fell.
Ren struggled to breathe, crawling from rubble.
His body screamed in pain.
The ruler stood calmly, looking down at the three fighters.
"So weak," he said.
He turned away from them and slowly rose into the air.
Civilians watched in horror.
The ruler looked over the city skyline.
"Tell your world," he said calmly, voice echoing across the park.
"My name is Vareth."
His eyes flicked toward Ren.
"Grow stronger."
Then he shot into the sky.
A shockwave shattered windows across blocks as he vanished into the horizon.
Silence filled the park.
Fires burned.
People cried.
Sirens wailed.
Ren pushed himself onto his back, gasping.
Kaito groaned nearby, half buried in wreckage.
Mika slowly sat up from her crater.
Ren stared at the sky where Vareth vanished.
One thought repeated in his mind.
We're not ready.
The Door still floated above the park.
Open.
Waiting.
And their enemy was now free on Earth.
Ren clenched his fist weakly.
One Door opened.
Nine remained.
And humanity had just gotten crushed in the first round.