"BEEPBEEEPPPP... BEEPBEEEPPPP."
Just like that, the blare of car horns erupted from every direction.
The dead silence shattered as noise flooded back in. Everything, inexplicably, returned to normal. Couples strolled along the sidewalk, flirting. A shop attendant bowed enthusiastically to a customer. Bicycles whizzed merrily down the street. And the blood-soaked intersection where they'd just stood was now clogged with traffic, filled with honking horns and drivers yelling, "What the hell are you doing standing in the middle of the road?! You stupid or something?!"
Somehow, the corpse of the big guy and the pool of blood had vanished without a trace. Not a single trace. As if everything that had just happened never existed. This REX person, the Raptors, those two weirdo kidnappers... It was incomprehensible. Hoang's brain felt like it was about to explode. He asked himself:
"Am I dreaming...?" It was a seemingly naive question, but who could blame someone witnessing the supernatural for the first time? Hoang was the type who was always buried in novels and light novels anyway. But even so, he probably couldn't believe what had just happened—and yet, he couldn't not believe it either.
The group shuffled awkwardly to the side of the road, enduring countless stares and the colorful "affection" of the drivers at the intersection.
"Minamoto! How many times have I told you not to wander around alone late at night? That doesn't look like the Zebra way at all. Very naughty!"
"I just went to buy some skincare stuff, Sensei... Huh? Wait, where'd my stuff go?" Minamoto Misaki pouted, as if whining to an older brother. She realized her cosmetics had either been crushed by the dinosaurs or lost somewhere along the way.
Zebra stood with his arms crossed, scolding her, pointing his finger at Minamoto Misaki like a teacher lecturing a delinquent student. Although... this zebra-headed guy was just as weird and bizarre as the rest of the situation. How was he her teacher?
Wait. This wasn't the time for that.
Isao. Isao-kun. He was in trouble.
"Please... help Isao... he's lost too much blood... Please help him." The desperate plea came from a foreign boy, his tone thick with fear for his best friend's life—a best friend who was truly in critical condition. The anxiety bled through every syllable of the Japanese he'd spent years perfecting.
"No problem, no problem at all! Why? BECAUSE I AMMMM ZEBRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA HAHAHAHAHA!"
WHOOSH!
"Huh... huh? Where'd Isao go?"
"AHHHH! Is... Isaoooo!"
Before the words could fully form, Zebra had scooped Isao onto his back and shot into the sky like a zebra-headed missile. Yes. They flew straight toward the station. Zebra rocketed off at breakneck speed, like the launch of the Takabisha roller coaster.
Hoang stood there, stunned. He knew there was a medical center right by Senriyama Station in that direction. But what worried him was how Isao-kun must be feeling. Oh god... in that condition. Hoang didn't know whether to laugh or cry for his friend.
Watching the scene, Minamoto could only give Hoang an awkward smile.
Guess she's used to that kind of thing, huh. Hoang chuckled weakly to himself. That thought, along with all the other bizarre events of the night, echoed in his head like the gears of fate slowly grinding into motion.
"Are... are you okay?" Misaki asked softly.
"No, I'm fine... I'm okay."
"By the way, what's your name? You really look like a foreigner, right?"
"Fu fu. Yeah, that's right. Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Tran Nhat Hoang. Currently pursuing a Master's degree at Osaka University—one of the most prestigious universities in the world, I might add. Hehehe–."
Hoang suddenly puffed up with confidence. Chin raised. Lips curled like a banana. The anxiety, fear, and shock of the night's horrors evaporated completely in the radiant glow of the mightiest international student on Earth. The Library Destroyer. Light Novel Addict. Bookworm War God—though, surprisingly, no glasses. All nicknames bestowed upon him by his bosom buddy, Takahashi Isao. Hoang's pride was like an exfoliating scrub for the soul.
Misaki blinked, taken aback by the over-the-top introduction.
"Ah... I... I go to Handai too!" Misaki perked up. "You go there too? Oh, wait... actually, I used to go there, is more like it. Hee hee."
"Huh. You... you go there too? Then we go to the same school."
The two high-fived as if they'd just finished a nail-biting relay race and emerged victorious.
"Oh, but... what do you mean you used to go there? I don't get it." Hoang stroked his chin, puzzled by the statement from the stunning beauty before him. Initially, he'd pegged her as a foreigner based on that gorgeous hair—maybe American or European. But her features were distinctly Japanese. So it wasn't a huge shock. In this day and age, you could dye your hair any color. Especially as a student. Like Isao with his crazy, curly Western-style mop. His own hair was more of the tousled, messy-bedhead look sported by handsome male leads in Anime. He felt a bit rude asking about it, but since he'd already blurted it out, there was no taking it back.
"Well, you see... I kinda ate a 'Dream Apple' a few months back. So now I'm a first-year student at the Osaka Supernatural Academy."
Minamoto Misaki said it so casually. Right there on the bustling roadside. The wind swept past them, etching an expression of pure "WTF" onto the foreign student's face. Hoang froze as if struck dead by an answer that didn't belong to this world. Or more accurately, didn't belong to his world. Even though superpowers were genuinely rare—only about 1 in 100000 people acquired them from a Dream Apple—it wasn't complete fantasy. In fact, it had been a fear of humanity for millennia. Not because of any inherent danger. It was more like taking a bite was playing a game of Russian roulette with fate. So even though eating one could grant powers, hardly anyone dared. The success rate was abysmal.
And yet Hoang had been completely oblivious. He'd dismissed all supernatural elements as things that only existed in Anime, Manga, or Light Novels. Anything related to Dream Apples, he'd written off as urban legend. Understandable, really. He'd never met anyone with powers.
But tonight. Right here, near Senriyama Station, a truth had been slammed right in his face—a truth he couldn't believe, and yet had no choice but to believe.
Especially with the beautiful girl in front of him serving as living proof, alongside everything that had just transpired at this very spot. The spot where he'd hit his first home run. And the spot where he'd witnessed the power of the Dream Apple.
He kept muttering under his breath like a market vendor dealing with a particularly difficult haggle.
"Uh... Hoang-san?" Minamoto wore a crooked little smile, watching his brooding face and the lips frantically mouthing silent incantations like a monk possessed. More than possessed, even.
"Yo, Library Destroyer!"
An utterly, utterly familiar voice rang out from behind Hoang, cutting off their conversation.
Hoang's pupils dilated. He spun around. Minamoto also looked toward the voice and smiled softly.
It was the voice of a guy with curly, Western-style hair. With that authentic Kansai drawl. His shirt was drenched in blood, yet his body bore not a single wound. That familiar, gummy grin—it was so familiar that Hoang froze for a beat, like he was witnessing a phoenix rising from the ashes.
Behind him stood someone—gentleman or young man, age indiscernible. He wore a crisp suit vest as if he'd just finished dining with billionaires. The bizarre part was the zebra head mask he wore. Equal parts amusing and mysteriously hyperactive.
"I... Isao." Hoang's lips trembled. He couldn't believe his eyes. In front of that eerily silent police box, the guy had been stabbed and left clinging to life by a thread. And now... now he was standing right in front of Hoang. Completely fine. Not a scratch. Even if his clothes looked like a Halloween costume gone wrong.
That face.
That smile.
There was no mistaking it.
It was TAKAHASHI ISAO.
"Hey! Why are you standing there like a statue, my friend? What's wrong? You look like you just saw me drop dead or something. Hahahaha!"
Isao laughed. He laughed as if telling his friend, "It's okay. Because we're... friends, right?"
"ISAOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!" Hoang shot forward like a kid who hadn't seen his dad back from a US Army deployment in ages. He tackled Isao in a bear hug.
The two crashed to the ground like they were in a wrestling match.
Tears welled up in Hoang's eyes—probably from happiness. Happiness at seeing his friend. Seeing someone important to him come back unharmed. He didn't know how it was possible, but this was more than good enough. Better than any dream. Better than any of the insane impossibilities he'd witnessed tonight.
"All's well that ends well, eh?" Zebra stood with his arms crossed next to Minamoto. He was probably smiling under that zebra head. Even a hyperactive nutcase like Zebra could feel a soft, emotional tug at the sight of true friendship.
"How did you do it, Sensei?" Minamoto couldn't help but ask. She seemed to have a guess.
"You know how it is. I was thrashing around so much earlier, I almost forgot I even had that move." Zebra said flatly.
"You used Life Reversal, didn't you."
"—END OF CHAPTER 2—"