(In the dim shadows of an impossibly vast, infinite library—where endless rows of towering bookshelves stretched into a dark void without end—gravity seemed to have no meaning. Deep within one small corner of this endless sanctuary, lot of books floting in without gravity.
Suddenly one of them dropped hitting the stone floor with a soft thud and automatically flipping open to reveal it's empty page's.)
ARYAN
Title: [NONE]
Skill: [NONE]
Aryan sat perched on his porcelain throne, staring blankly at the faded bathroom tiles. The exhaust fan buzzed rhythmically as he sat there in complete boredom, his chin resting heavy in his hands while his mind spiraled into deep tactical calculations.
"Okay, look. So I skipped today," Aryan muttered under his breath, his eyes narrowing in intense internal debate. "And obviously, I'm gonna skip the day after. Right after that is a national holiday. Basic human psychology dictates that by the time I step foot back in class, the teacher's brain will have completely auto-reset. They won't even remember my face.
In his own mind, he wasn't just a high school kid dodging attendance.
While his uninspired classmates were rotting away in a poorly ventilated room that smelled like stale sweat and academic despair, Aryan was sitting here, taking a massive dump, casually drafting the ultimate survival playbook. He skipped school with terrifying consistency, yet somehow managed to stay at the top of the marksheet. He was just built different,
AYUSH
Title: [NONE]
Skill: [NONE]
Meanwhile, inside the suffocatingly strict hallway of the high school, Ayush stood outside the Principal's office like a condemned prisoner waiting for execution. The sole reason for his public trial? His glorious, immaculately maintained curly hair.
"Man, I hate this school, seriously," Ayush grumbled under his breath, crossing his arms tightly over his chest. His jaw clenched in pure frustration. "They just don't get the vibe at all. These curls are literally the only thing keeping my personality alive right now. They're keeping my confidence afloat. If my hair wasn't like this, I wouldn't even have the courage to stand here right now, fr."
He glared furiously at the frosted glass door of the office. An overwhelming sense of insecurity and frustration burned deep in his chest—a quiet resentment against a system that punished individuality. Why was that bald principal so unnaturally obsessed with my hair anyway? The guy needed to focus on the crumbling plaster walls and leaky ceilings, not my hair, which was an absolute, non-negotiable work of art.
VIKAS
Title: [NONE]
Skill: [NONE]
Further down the dimly lit hallway, Vikas was leaning casually against a metallic locker, attempting to pull off a mysterious, brooding smolder while looking like an absolute, unsalvageable creep as he stared down every girl walking past.
"Hey Shreya..." Vikas drawled out smoothly, lowering his voice to sound deep. "Heard you went to Mussoorie over the weekend."
Shreya halted mid-step, her brow furrowing in instant disgust. She instinctively took a full step backward, clutching her bag tight against her chest. "Vikas, my account is completely private and we aren't even friends on Insta. How did you know?"
Vikas merely smirked, leaning a bit closer, completely blind to the agonizing awkwardness radiating off the interaction. "I just... happen to know".
The final bell clanged, signaling sweet freedom. Aryan was walking casually toward the gym, feeling fresh as a daisy after his high-IQ 'stay-at-home' protocol, when he spotted the two familiar, utterly drained losers slumping out of the main school gates.
"Yo! Look at this guy!" Vikas yelled instantly, pointing an accusing finger across the street. "We were literally suffering in class all day and this man is walking to the gym bro where were you"
Aryan rolled his eyes so hard it physically hurt. "Shut up, Vikas. I have to stay at the gym because my relatives spawned at my house today. Their unhinged kids are literally doing parkour on my bed. If I go back home right now, I'm genuinely gonna crash out."
Ayush looked completely drained of life, his shoulders slumped. "Is the gym even open?"
"It's a 24/7gym" Aryan said. "Come with me."
Ayush looked down at his navy blue uniform. "Wait, but we're still in our school clothes, bro. We can't hit the gym like this."
Aryan paused, blinking. "Oh, true. Well then, let's go to your place first, change into some normal drip, and then head out."
Thirty minutes later, after a quick outfit change, the trio walked down the narrow alleyway toward the gym, only to stop dead in their tracks. The heavy metal shutter was pulled all the way down, A brightly colored paper was taped dead center: Closed for maintenance.
Vikas slowly turned his head toward Aryan, his face a mix of pure spite and sarcasm. "Wow. What a visionary."
"How was I supposed to know?!" Aryan snapped back, his composure instantly cracking.
"Brooo..." Ayush groaned loudly, tilting his head all the way back to stare hopelessly at the sky. A heavy weight of boredom and irritation settled over him. "I'm so bored. I'm frustrated. I just want to do something fun, fr."
Vikas's eyes suddenly lit up. He looked around before stepping closer to the squad. "Guys, listen. A new aesthetic restaurant just opened down the street. I heard they serve all kinds of authentic foreign food from different countries. And hey, don't worry about the cash—I'll take care of the bill. Let's go grab food, and then we can head over to my place to play games on the console. Tell me that's not a W plan?"
Aryan grinned, nodding along. "Yeah, that sounds fire. But after eating, let me cook a bit—let me suggest a quick walk around the quiet side of town just to digest and vibe. What do you think?"
Ayush's face softened, a small, genuine smile breaking through his usual stressed expression. "Damn, that plan is actually solid. Let's do it, boys."
They made their way to the restaurant, taking a booth near the corner. They ordered a table full of completely new, exotic dishes they had never tried before. The table was filled with laughter, loud jokes, and bright banter. Ayush took a bite of his food, a warm, soft smile resting on his lips as he watched Aryan and Vikas argue over who was better at video games. They were talking and eating like true, inseparable friends.
Inside his heart, a quiet, vulnerable thought surfaced in Ayush's mind. Wow... do I even deserve friends like this?
He swallowed hard, brushing the melancholy thought aside with a gentle tilt of his head. Well... I don't know. And honestly, I don't care to know right now. I'm just happy like this.
After finishing their meal, they headed out for their evening walk, drifting toward the quiet, heavily wooded jungle road on the edge of the city. There were no streetlights, no speeding cars, and no crowd—just the calm rustle of leaves and the open road. The three of them walked side by side, cracking jokes, laughing freely, and enjoying the peaceful atmosphere.
Suddenly, the world went dead quiet.
The sound of rustling wind, crickets, and distant nature completely vanished into a void. A strange, piercing, high-pitched mechanical humming echoed directly inside Aryan's skull, vibrating against his brain.
Scanning Target: ARYAN
Compatibility: 100%
Initializing Isekai Protocol...
Aryan froze mid-step, looking around wildly as he grabbed both sides of his head in discomfort. "Guys... do you hear someone's voice inside your head right now?"
before anyone could answer, Vikas gasped, pointing a trembling finger down the dark road. "WAIT, WHAT THE HELL?!"
A massive, white truck. barreling down the narrow road straight toward them at a lethal, speed.
Time seemed to slow down. Seeing the metal giant rushing toward his brothers, Ayush didn't hesitate—he think to push Aryan and Vikas out of the way.
Before the impact could shatter the air, everything instantly dissolved into absolute pitch-blackness. Pure, suffocating silence.
A second later, the darkness shattered.
The trio suddenly materialized all at once in the exact same positions they were standing in before, hitting the ground with a soft thud.
Aryan shook his head, rubbing his eyes as he looked around. The asphalt road was gone. The streetlights were gone. Instead, they were standing on jungle surrounded by ancient trees,
Ayush looked up at the sky, his breath catching dead in his throat. In the sky there were two distinct, one half-moon shining in a cold silver light, and beside it, a smaller, ominous moon glowing in a deep, blood-red.
Ayush turned to look at Aryan and Vikas, his eyes wide with raw confusion and quiet fear. "Guys... what just happened? Where the hell are we?!"
Before anyone could utter another word, a glowing, translucent holographic screen snapped open directly in front of their faces out of thin air.
[ SYSTEM NOTIFICATION ]
Quest: Survive for 30 minutes.
The three of them stared at the floating blue text in absolute, frozen shock. Their expressions twisted from confusion into ugly, angry, deeply terrified contortions.
"Bro, WHAT?!" they screamed together in an explosive, horrified shout.