Ren woke up early that morning.
For a few seconds, he just stared at the ceiling.
"…It was a dream," he whispered.
He turned toward the window. Bright sunlight filled the room. Birds sang outside. Everything looked completely normal.
Ren slowly sat up and rubbed his face.
"Yeah… definitely a dream."
But then he remembered the glowing circle in the sky, the magic gate in his backyard, and the mysterious voice.
He paused.
"…Okay. That was a very detailed dream."
He shook his head quickly.
"No, no. I need to stop thinking about this."
He got out of bed and got ready for school.
At school, everything felt normal. Students laughed and shouted in the hallways. Teachers called out to sleepy kids.
"Normal… totally normal," Ren muttered as he sat at his desk.
His friend Sato came over.
"Yo, Ren! You look tired. Stayed up watching anime again?"
Ren gave a weak smile.
"…Something like that."
But inside, he kept remembering the gate and the voice. He shook his head again.
"Nope. Not thinking about it."
In math class, Ren stared out the window.
"Another world…" he whispered without thinking.
The teacher suddenly pointed at him.
"Takeda! Answer this!"
Ren froze.
"Uh… the answer is… isekai?"
The whole class went quiet, then burst out laughing.
"LOL! He really wants to go to another world!"
Ren sank into his seat, embarrassed.
"…I should stop talking."
During lunch, Ren sat alone under a tree. He opened his lunchbox but didn't feel like eating. He kept thinking about the glowing circle.
For a second, he thought he saw a faint glow in the sky. He stood up fast.
"What the—?"
But it was gone. Everything looked normal again.
Ren sat back down slowly.
"…I'm going crazy. Or maybe I just need more sleep."
After school, Ren walked home alone. The sky turned orange, just like the day before.
"If it was a dream," he said softly, "why does it feel so real?"
A strange feeling grew in his chest — not fear, not excitement, but something in between.
"Whatever it is… I'm not going to forget it."
At home, dinner was simple — rice, soup, and vegetables. For a moment, everything felt peaceful.
Ren picked up his chopsticks.
"At least this is real. No magic here."
But then he stopped.
"…What if I accidentally summon a gate while chewing?"
He shook his head.
"No. Stop. That's impossible."
He kept eating, but he kept glancing at the window suspiciously.
Later, Ren tried to do his homework. Five minutes later, he was staring at the ceiling.
"Why is this harder than opening a magic gate?" he sighed.
"This is worse than isekai training."
Suddenly his phone rang. It was Sato.
"REN!! BRO!! DID YOU SEE IT?!" Sato shouted.
"The new anime Season 2 just dropped!"
Ren sighed in relief.
"…That's it? You scared me!"
He almost watched it, but forced himself to finish homework first.
"…Just one episode," he whispered, reaching for his phone anyway.
The next day, Ren walked to school still thinking about the anime.
"That MC got a new power so fast… unfair."
He kept muttering to himself and almost bumped into people.
In class, he sat down and noticed something on his desk — a pink envelope.
"To Ren"
His eyes widened.
"…Is this… a quest item?"
He looked around nervously, then opened it.
Inside was a note:
"Meet me after school behind the gym."
Ren's heart beat faster.
"This is definitely a hidden event."
After school, Ren went behind the gym even though he felt nervous. The place was quiet.
"Why am I actually here?" he whispered.
Footsteps approached.
A girl with long hair and calm eyes appeared. She looked beautiful, and a little shy.
Ren froze.
"…Eh?"
"I… I'm glad you came," she said softly.
Ren pointed at himself.
"M-Me?"
She nodded.
"I wanted to talk to you… alone."
Ren's face turned red.
"W-Why alone?!"
The girl smiled nervously.
"You're funny."
Ren's heart raced. For the first time, he wasn't thinking about isekai or anime — only her.
The wind blew gently between them.
"So… why did you call me here?" Ren asked, voice shaking.
The girl took a deep breath and looked into his eyes.
"I like you, Ren."
Ren's brain stopped.
"…Eh?"
She stepped closer.
"I said… I like you."
Ren pointed at himself again.
"Me? The guy who talks about isekai in class?"
She nodded.
"Yes."
Ren's heart pounded like crazy.
"This is… definitely not a side quest."
The girl smiled shyly.
"Will you go out with me?"
Ren panicked.
"I-I need time to process reality! My system is lagging!"
She laughed softly.
"You're really strange, Ren."
She introduced herself.
"My name is Ami."
Ren nodded quickly.
"R-Ren Takeda!"
Ami looked at him gently.
"I know."
She stepped even closer.
"Ren… will you date me?"
Ren felt his face burn.
"This is harder than fighting a demon king…"
He looked down, embarrassed.
"Why would you like a guy like me? I'm just weird… I talk about fantasy and anime all the time. I'm not cool or special."
Ami shook her head.
"No. I think it's cute. You talk about the things you love with your whole heart. I like that about you."
Ren felt warm inside. For the first time, he felt truly seen.
"…That's unfair," he whispered.
Ami smiled softly and waited for his answer.
Suddenly —
CRACK!
The air split like breaking glass.
A bright light exploded around them.
"W-WHAT—?!" Ren shouted.
He grabbed Ami's hand without thinking.
"Don't let go!!"
Ami held on tight.
"Ren!!"
The ground vanished. They started falling through the sky.
"AAAAAAAAH!!" they both screamed.
Wind rushed past them. Below, they saw a huge battlefield — soldiers fighting, monsters roaring, magic exploding everywhere.
Ami's voice shook with fear.
"Is that… war?"
Ren held her hand tighter, scared but trying to stay calm.
"Yeah… This is definitely not school anymore."
He gave a nervous smile.
"I think we skipped the tutorial."
Ami shouted, "THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR JOKES!!"
Before they hit the ground, another bright flash hit them.
The world twisted again.
They landed hard on a cold metal floor.
"Oww…" Ren groaned and sat up.
Ami rubbed her head.
"Where are we?"
They were in a huge space station. Giant spaceships floated everywhere. Strange alien beings fought in the air with energy weapons. Explosions lit up the darkness like fireworks.
Ren stared in shock.
"…Aliens?"
Ami grabbed his arm tightly, her voice full of fear.
"Ren… what is this place?!"
Ren swallowed hard.
"I think… we just got dropped into a galactic war."
He added quietly,
"And we didn't even finish our romance route yet."
Ami looked at him in disbelief.
"WHY ARE YOU STILL THINKING ABOUT THAT?!"
Before they could say more, another flash came.
They fell again — straight into water.
SPLASH!!
"BLAAH!!" Ren coughed as he came up.
"I can't breathe—!!"
Ami surfaced beside him, scared.
"Ren!! Where are we now?!"
They were in a wild ocean. Giant metal warships fought above the waves. Energy beams shot across the sea.
A huge wave crashed over them.
They held onto each other tightly, hearts pounding with fear and confusion.
Ren wiped water from his face and sighed.
"At this point… I officially quit trying to understand this universe."
Ami shouted back, voice shaking,
"THIS IS NOT THE TIME TO QUIT!!"
The water beneath them began to glow with a strange symbol.
Ren's eyes widened.
"…Uh oh."
Ami: "Don't say 'uh oh'!!"
The ocean started spinning around them.
Once again, everything twisted in a bright flash.