It has been years since the discovery of the new world – Aetheria.
When humans first found the existence of this world, it was when mysterious portals emerged on Earth. And those said gates led them to Aetheria.
At first, some suggested starting a war, that it was time for mankind to fulfill the prophecy – To be the race that inherits the stars, starting by colonizing this newly found world.
But eventually, UN decided that peace was a strategic move.
Because this world, not only it has advanced technology that's beyond human's comparison, but it also has what was supposedly fiction – Magic. Or, by how the people of Aetheria called it – Life Force
So, a contract was made. A contract that kept peace between the two worlds.
In the settlement, authorities from both planets argee that every conflicts will be solved strategically and without unnecessary violence. In addition to that, a new ceremony was made – every year, a group of students from Earth will be sent to Aetheria. To study, to train, to witness the power of Life Force.
The limitation to the number of students is 150, due to the fact that the portals cannot be used by a large group of people. However, in some people's point of view, the number is unsatisfactory, because there are millions of students out there, and yet only 150 at most can gain access to the other world. But this debate was quickly squashed, because it was proved that many students, across the globe, barely passed the tests that were drafted by the UN. Besides, the average number of those who passed is barely 100, let alone 150.
Moreover, this ceremony is annual, which means those who failed still can attempt again when the right time comes.
This year is no different. Out of millions of students who took the exams, only 41 managed to pass the said exams.
Like every other important ceremonies, those students' personal information is kept a secret, only their families know.
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"Damn it!" A male student groans as he walks along the cave's entrance with other chosen students, holding his nose as his eyes dart around the muddy, dirty cave. "This place is dirtier than I thought."
"Well, in that case, should've stayed home instead." Another snickers at his reaction, even though it is easy to tell that he's also uncomfortable by the smell.
"Please stay silent, kids." A middle-aged man speaks up, and then he sighs, by the looks of his face, he'd rather be somewhere else other than guiding those teenagers to the portal.
And then, the short trip continues in anything by silence. However, amid groans and grunts of other students, some seem particularly indifferent.
'Finally! After 5 whole years.' Among the indifferent teens, a girl thinks to herself, her earlier poker face cracks into a satisfied smile. She's been taking the tests since she turned 12, which is the required age.
"Okay kids, we are here." The guide stops, and the group quits talking immediately.
Before them stands an imposing, violet-hued portal, its surface shimmering with otherworldly grace that borders on unreal. It carries the quiet majesty of a quiet night, with scattered glimmers that seemingly represent the distant stars. An illusion so vivid it feels as though the night sky itself cracked open.
"Woah.." Many of them have their mouths agape from the sight before their eyes.
"Damn... Looks ethereal, eh?" The girl clicks her tongue. She has expected the otherworldly beauty, but this? This is barely the other world yet, and the beauty already feels rapturous.
"Alright, I can only lead you guys to here. There will be more guides on the other side," The aged guide turns to face the group of teenagers, his eyebrows furrow slightly as he takes a look at all of them. "And before that," He continues, taking out a clipboard. "I'll check the attendance. If you hear your name then come up and take your watch."
The watch that the aged man mentioned is a special smartwatch that includes all kind of functions that a smartphone has, along with a digital encyclopedia that carries all kind of information humankind has learnt about Aetheria.
And just like that, each name is shouted out loud, then each teenager comes up, receives their watch and disappears into the portal. Everything happens in total silence, but the tension is palpable, as kids wait impatiently for their names.
"Robin?" The guide raises an eyebrow before looking up, and then the girl steps up, presenting herself.
The man's eyes scan the imposing girl standing before him. The girl is tall, probably the tallest among all the teenage girls, about 5'8 tall. Her complexion holds a warm beige glow. She has long, toulsed black hair that gathered into a neat ponytail with loose strands. She is striking, both for her androgynous beauty and her defined physique. Speaking of which, this girl has just turned 17 recently. What a surprise that a girl so young can achieve such masculine proportions.
"You are taller than I expected in a girl." The man clicks his tongue. "I bet you go to the gym, eh?" He continues, the corner of his lips curls up into a smirk as he takes out Robin's assigned watch.
"No really, sir. I just do some exercises in my free time." Robin replies, a polite smile on her face as she takes off her own watch and then watches as the matured guide puts the special watch on her left wrist.
"Good to know there's still a teenager who does exercise than just using smartphone all day." The man sighs, then motioning her to step into the portal as he shouts. "Next!"
Robin hears footsteps behind her as another kid's name is said. She didn't bother to look behind, because right now, the only thought in her mind is how she has managed to achieve what she's been craving for 5 years straight. Five years of staying up late to study and getting up early for physical training. Her hard work has finally been paid off today.
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"Welcome to Aetheria, kids!"
A cheerful voice of a young woman warmly welcomes the new teenagers. Her eyes full of delight as she scans the youngsters' reactions. "Yeah, I definitely expected that reactions!" She chuckles out loud. "I was no different when I first came here either!"
The chosen, however, are still caught in the impossible beauty of this world. The air was crystalline, touched with light that shimmers through the trees. Meanwhile, Aetheria's bird-like species wheel high above, their cries weaving into the wind. The land stirs with motion and color, alive with the rhythm of countless lives in motion – the pulse of the realm brimming with both grace and energy.
"This... Is Aetheria?" One of them finally speaks up, eyes still wide from the scenes unfolding in their eyes.
"Yeah! Of course it is, silly!" The woman chuckles out loud again. Compared to the earlier tired-looking guide, this woman seems more energetic.
"And since you're all here now. I guess it's time to explain the rules here!" She says, voice full of energy.
Basically, everyone has to break into smaller groups for easier management. To be more specific, into 10 different groups.
However, a problem appears when the guides realize the number is odd. But it didn't take long before they decide that a group will have an extra member.
"So. I'll be your guide for the next few days. Feel free to ask questions, kiddos." A matured man stand in front of the group that has one more member compared to other groups. "The name's Viktor by the way."
Robin stands there, along with her now teammates as her eyes scan them all. And let's just say, almost all of them are familiar faces, which are those that appear on the newspaper.
The first person to catch her eyes is the extra member of the group. The guy has a pale complexion. His hair, long and wavy, falls into ash-blonde cascades that gracefully shape his handsome face. His lime-green eyes are sharp and luminous, carrying a balance of elegance and an unmistakable lift of pride. And his name tag is as clear as day: Aysen Glazastov.
Not only is he an "oldbie" in this 'exchange students' ceremony thing, he is literally the definition of "hard-worker-turned-genius". This guy literally has like hundreds of fan girls who swoon over both his looks and talent, but it is a well-known fact that his ego is bigger than the mass of universe itself, and more fragile than thin glass.
The moment the guides eyes land on Aysen, he immediately chuckles. "Oh hey, Aysen. Here again? Looks like you really have a persist will to study this realm, yeah?"
Aysen only glares at the man, then tsks, his irritation to be in a group with those... "kids" is blatant.
"Yeahhh... Alright, you're no different from the last time," Viktor laughs while the Robin and the three other members just stare.
"Alright, sorry guys. Just happy seeing an ol' buddy." The guide turns back to them, his smile turns into a small grin. "Alright, let's see who we have here."
Then the man holds up his clipboard, eyes scanning over the group's name's, then stop at a certain one. "Robin?"
"Yessir?" Robin immediately responds to the guides call, slightly confused why he calls her.
"It shows here that this is not your real name. I just wanna ask if you're uncomfortable being called by your name?" Viktor asks carefully, "And, no worries. We totally don't mind some of you using fake names instead of real ones, I'm just curious."
"Oh, that– uh." Robin scratches her face, smiling awkwardly. "I don't mind being called by my name, I just– uh, prefer being called Robin, I... guess?"
There is a moment of awkward silence between the whole group, while the other four members just exchange perplexed glances.
"Well, that's totally valid." Viktor says reassuringly, even though he is also a bit perplexed by this revelation himself. "Alright, sorry for let you wait, let me see."
"Marcello." The moment the name slips past his mouth, a quiet "I'm here" can be heard, albeit difficult to heed.
And when Robin sees the quiet guy's appearance, her eyes widen in surprise.
Marcello Salvatore. The one and only heir of the Salvatore family and their enterprises. His looks, however, aren't as striking. He's pale, almost ghost-like, with messy brown hair that looks as if it hasn't been combed in days. The dark circles under his violet-hue eyes only add more to the ghostly look. And he certainly isn't a muscular guy either as he stands at 5'7 and has a skinny build. Let's just say, one might even mistake him for a real ghost.
"Akira?" Another familiar name of another famous person.
And Robin can confirm that it's another prodigy: Akira Fujiwara. When people talk about her, it always includes a "It would be such a waste of talent if she doesn't become a doctor!", which, is actually true, since she has achieved two medical degrees at age of 17. She is the same as Aysen, a genius who has hundreds of fans drooling over.
She has that "Ice queen" beauty, if that's the right term. For a girl, her 5'6 height is certainly enough to be deemed "tall". Her complexion is cool sand in hue, with shoulder-length black hair is left loose, even a little bit messy, but in an appealing way that makes people's eyes linger a little longer. She was born with heterochromia, which resulted into eyes with two distinct colors. Her right eye is pastel gold, while her left one is gray blue, which, surprisingly, is a good combination that's set off by her skin.
"And lastly, Keziah."
And yes, another famous– wait what?
Robin's expression becomes bewildered as she heads this new name.
"I'm here!" The Keziah girl immediately waves her hand excitedly as her name is mentioned.
When Robin takes a better look at Keziah, she can confirm that this girl is not a prodigy or a famous people... but she has seen her on the news before, though.
Keziah Hughes, one of the victims of the incident that leads to the downfall and bankruptcy of a worldwide confectionary factory. To sum things up, that incident has led to the loss of taste buds of many "lucky" kids who were chosen to try out a new type of candy.
Compared to others, Keziah isn't exactly striking. This girl is probably the shortest in the group, as she is about 5'5, a lot shorter compared to others. She has tan skin with shoulder-length brown hair are tied into two pigtails. Her eyes, pools of hazel hue, sparkle and full of excitement. Obviously a kid full of energy.
"Okay, since this is the first day, there's really nothing much to do right now. Y'all are free to go. Don't wander too far, though." He said, eyes become stern all of a sudden, then they soften a little. "We wouldn't want any of you come back injured."
And then Viktor just... walks off, his free hand waving dismissively as he turns his back against the youngsters.
The group continues standing there in silence for a moment, then Aysen speaks up with an irritated voice.
"That's it? How boring." Aysen sighs out loud, displaying his clear boredom and disinterest. "That's it. I'm going."
"Wait what? Where are you going?" Keziah raises an eyebrow, her eyes showing curiosity but she also seems pretty upset at Aysen's attitude.
"None of your business, kid." He rolls his eyes in annoyance, and eventually splits himself from the group, wandering off alone.
"That's... not quite the good attitude, eh?" Robin clicks her tongue, but she isn't very much shocked, she, on the other hand, expected the kind of person like Aysen – Always prideful, always thinking they're superior.
"Well, in that case, I'll also go alone. See you all later." Akira says with a deadpan face, giving others a nod before heading a different direction herself.
Marcello stays silent like the introvert he is, looks between Akira's direction and then at Robin and Keziah. "Well... I'm used to go alone, sorry." Robin just gives him a reassuring smile, indicating that she's completely fine with his decision, only then does he also split up with them and walk away.
"Well damn. I think our group is not very much... functional. I mean, an extrovert with God complex and two introverts? Yeah, we ain't gonna work well together alright." Robin sighs quietly, pinching the bridge of her nose as she shakes her head lightly. Then she turns to Keziah. "Anyways, where do you wanna go?"
"Let me think..." Keziah puts a hand up to her chin, thinking for a moment before they both hear a shout at their direction.
"Kez!! Over here!"
Turning over, and there is a girl, smiling brightly and waving at Keziah's path. "Oh, that's– that's uh, that's my friend," She turns to face Robin. "Do you mind?"
"No, no, it's fine. Just go." Robin chuckles lightheartedly, waving her hand dismissively. But when Keziah runs to her friend, she lets out another quiet sigh. "Yeah great, now I'm alone."
Such a shame that in her friend group, she was the only one who passed the test, so frustratingly, for someone who's definitely not into making new friends like Robin, she knows absolutely nobody but her group members.
She puts one hand on her hip and looks around. "Well, I guess I will just wander around, then."
Robin walks around the lively market, eyes gluing to the 3D screen her watch has created. "Damn, advanced technology alright."
Like mentioned, this smartwatch has all kinds of functions of a smartphone, along with an encyclopedia... Maybe she should check it, she doesn't know much about this place after all.
Do you want to check "Encyclopedia: Knowledge about Aetheria"?
The moment she clicks "Yes", the screen changes, kinda glitches for a few seconds before showing her the information she wanna know.
You are currently in: Silviar Town.
Silvia Town is one of the only towns that hadn't been renovated with the new technology of Tehranika Co.
Surrounded by a huge forest full of carnivorous Primal Beasts, traveling becomes quite the challenge for the townspeople, but they refused to let Tehranika Co. renovates the town.
Tehranika Co.: The largest and most advanced technology company in the whole Aetheria. This company used to have only the people of Aetheria as employees as it was founded by an Aetherian, but now humans are also allowed to work there. More surprisingly, its current CEO is a human, otherwise known as Dimitrik Glazastov.
"Oh– right. I almost forgot about that." Robin's eyebrows furrow as her eyes glue to the CEO's surname, "Glazastov". Too obviously, Aysen is Dimitrik's son, maybe the only child, but people can't assume that yet since the CEO is very secretive about his personal life.
Walking while reading is never a good idea to begin with, because then Robin immediately loses balance and almost falls to the ground as someone runs into her. "What the fuck was that–" She quickly cuts herself off the moment she takes a better look at the person.
It was an aged woman, probably in her 40s. From her expression, it's apparent that she's been crying. "Oh my god– I'm so sorry." She quickly gets up from the ground, trying to run away but Robin stops her.
"Wait miss, I'm sorry to stop you, but what happened? You look worried, maybe I can help." Her expression is a mix of confusion and concern as she sees the tears prickled at the woman's eyes.
"I think my son is missing, but the police cannot help because it's only been half a day, which is not long enough to file a formal report," The woman sobs as she explains. "So I have no choices but to find him myself."
"Well, I can help you find him if you need. I don't have anything important to do right now, and I certainly cannot stand seeing a crying mother finding her son alone." Robin smiles, her hands holding the woman's soothingly.
"Really? Thank you so much, I really appreciate your kindness." She says, still sobbing from stress and distress, her hands squeezing Robin's tightly.
"No problems, where did you last see him?" Robin quickly goes straight into the problem. She needs to know where to start to find the kid.
"I-I don't know." The woman sniffles, her hands let out of Robin's and go up to her face to wipe her tears.
"But I remember he used to say he want to explore the forest."
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"Fuck, this was never the good idea to begin with, wasn't it?" Robin curses under her breath as she walks deeper into the forest, one of her hand gripping the flashlight tightly.
When she first came here, the time was already a bit late, and now it's literally nighttime. Staying in a forest full of carnivorous Beasts definitely would be the least thing anybody with a clear mind wanted to do at such a time.
But she had promised the mother that she would find her kid. She cannot go back on a promise like that. Moreover, what if the kid's in danger?
A cry of what seems to be a raven cut off her train of thoughts, for a moment, it feels like her heart just literally drops to her stomach.
"Damnit, maybe I should just–... go back?" Robin turns her head around, looking at the darkness behind only makes her feel more nervous.
And in that moment, she hears a shout from afar.
"Somebody help!"
Her head immediately turns to the direction of the sound, and it didn't take much more time before she starts sprinting towards it.
"Hey kid! Are you there?!" She shouts out loud, so maybe, just maybe, the kid will hear it and becomes less worried.
And then, there's another reply.
"Please help me!"
But she quickly reaches the end: A high cliff.
She looks down, and there's the kid. Crying and hanging on a tree branch desperately.
"Hang on, kid!" Robin puts her flashlight down as she lies down on the dirty ground, but that isn't her concern right now.
Her hand reaches out, trying to reach the kid, but it is out of her reach – maddeningly, just slightly.
Just as she's thinking a way to get the kid up here safely, a bird's cry put out that little hope.
"Bird of prey?!" Her head shoots up, and there it was. A huge air-type Beast that looks like a white hawk back on Earth, but that thing's definitely twice the size of a matured man.
It didn't take long before the monstrous thing spots both of her and the kid. And of course, it goes for her first.
Fortunately, her reflexes are fast enough to skid just out its sharp claws' reach. But the friction created a few scratches.
"Fuck!" She swears, eyebrows furrow as she looks back at the Beast. It has noticed its miss, and turned around to aim at her again. This thing doesn't give up its preys easily, does it?
At the same time, there's a scream and what sounds like a tree branch being snapped, and there was no other ways to explain it other than one fact: The tree branch broke, and the kid fell.
Robin doesn't waste time at all, she immediately gets on her knees, and in a swift motion, she jumps down the cliff.
The wind tears at her as she hastily reaches her hand out to the kid, and finally manages to catch the child tight in her arms.
Twisting mid-air, she turns so her back faces the earth, bracing herself for the fall as she shields the child in her embrace.
The Beast still doesn't give up, it stoops in a killing dive, its talons outstretched – only to falter when the pair vanishes into the canopy of the forest below, leaves bursting around them like a storm, sounds of branches snapping under their weight.
The pale hawk-like Beast lets out a piercing cry as it veers away–reluctant but resigned– abandoning the preys it had hunted with such relentless intent.
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"Miss! Please wake up!"
The fearful, desperate cry of the child, along with the cold conditions of the night brings Robin back to her consciousness, albeit still slightly dazed from the fall.
"Agh... Are you alright, kid?" Is the first thing she says when she sits up, hand holding her head, her whole body feeling sore.
"I-I'm okay," The boy sniffles. "B-but miss, you're injured!"
"Ah..." That's when Robin's brain actually registers all the pain from the bleeding wounds on her body. "Don't worry," She smiles through the pain, her shaky hand pats the boy's head reassuringly. "It will heal eventually."
Only them does the child finally stops crying loudly, only sobbing quietly now. "But... Will you be fine?"
"Of course. Let's get out of here now, it's dangerous here at night." Robin lets out pained grunts as she struggles to get up on her feet, stumbling a little but eventually gains back her balance.
She reaches her hand out to the kid, motioning him to get up. The boy sniffles, but eventually takes her hand and gets on his feet.
"Ah... I left my flashlight up there. Guess we have no choices but to walk in darkness... hold my hand tight, alright? I don't want you to be lost again." She sighs, holding the little boy's hand tightly.
The child flinches slightly at the mention of walking in complete darkness, clearly scared and nervous, but he walks with Robin anyways.
Just like that, a teenager and a kid hold onto one another's hand as they step deeper into the shadows of the quiet night.
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They've been walking for like... what? Hours? Robin barely keeps track of the time. Not to mention, her nyctalopia is certainly a big challenge during these hours of darkness.
Who knows what's hiding in the gloominess of the night? Most likely another carnivorous Beast.
She just hopes they won't come across another monster like earlier. That was close as hell, she thought she became that pale hawk-y thing's night snack already.
But then, the boy shakes her a little, seemingly urgent. "Miss! Look over there!"
He points, and there it is, the light from afar.
When Robin sees the light, she wastes no time, she scoops the boy up into her arms and runs towards the light, hoping that it's the light of the town.
Maybe she shouldn't get her hopes up too high.
What she finds is simply a small hill in the middle of the forest... But hey! There's a stream!
She slows down until she completely stops in front of it. She then eases her hold and let the boy slip out of her arms. "Well, at least we have water here."
Robin gets to her knees and starts washing her wounds, she's been walking with them for a while now, luckily they show no signs of infection.
And, maybe, now her luck has run out.
Because then, there's a shuddering bellow to their side, like thunder cracking through the hollow sky, startling them both in awe.
"Fuck." Robin immediately catches the boy into her arms again, who's now shaking in fear as a large figure of what seems like a feline carnivore steps out from the shadows.
Another carnivorous Beast. One that looks more like smilodon than a tiger like she expected, which is probably worse.
And this time, she doesn't even have time to react when the monster lunges at them. She could only shield the boy with her body and closes her eyes shut, hoping that a miracle will happen. Or at least the boy will have a chance to run away and survive
...
"W-what?-" She stutters, still in awe, heart still pounding in her chest as nothing happened to her. Her entire body feels limp from the earlier experience.
Slowly, she turns her head back, her face sweating bullets, pulse quickened. And that moment, she sees a figure. A man. Who stands firmly next to the corpse of the Beast that attempted to attack her earlier. A claymore pierced through its head effortlessly.
And then, that man turns to face her. And in that instant, her heart skips a beat.
Eyes that seems to cradle all the world's misfortune, yet glimmers with a beauty too heavy to name. A face shaped as though some divine sculptor had poured both sorrow and grace into the same chisel stroke. His hair, black as midnight waters, falls in quiet waves, framing skin sun-burnished, the hue of somebody who had lived under harsh skies.
There was a beauty to him–unmeasured, unmeasurable– darkened by gloom, laced with grief, and burning with hidden rage of someone who had endured too long yet never once turned away.
And in that moment, that solemn figure becomes a burning memory. A source of light and hope.
His lips part, then close, but eventually, he speaks up. "You're Robin?"
The girl snaps out of her thoughts, eyes still caught by the beauty of the man standing before her. "Uh, yes. And you're...?"
"Lucius. The townspeople and your group are very worried." He states in a deadpan tone, not even bothered to help her get up before he walks back to the Beast's corpse and pulls his claymore out. "Now get up, and follow me."
"Wow, okay." Robin raises an eyebrow, than quickly get on her feet, arms still holding the boy, who's shaking in her embrace, tears rolling down his face, his little hands gripping at her shirt as if she will disappear the moment he lets go. "Now now, don't be scared, we're safe now, buddy."
Lucius barely gives them a worried glance, only continues with an impatient tone. "Don't waste time."
"Alright, alright." Robin lets out a huff. And she just thought of him as some kind of savior earlier, turns out he's just a guy who gives no damn about others, huh? Kinda reminds her of a certain someone with blonde hair.
She hastily follows his steps, walking just right behind him, only then did she realize a thing: This guy is... short, for a guy. Literally shorter than her half a head. And just earlier she thought he would be tall... she should learn to be realistic sometimes.
It didn't take long before they see the town's light from afar, and when they get out of the forest entirely, there are many people standing in front of them, including the mother of the kid.
"Jason!" The woman cries in happiness as she sees her son comes back safely. Robin quickly let the boy slip out of her arms and watches as he runs towards his mom and hugs her.
"Thank you. Thank you so much." The mother looks up at Robin, her eyes full of tears.
"No problems, ma'am. I'm always happy to help... others–" Before she can even finish her sentence, her entire body goes limp.
The last thing she sees is her guide, Viktor, running towards her before the darkness of unconsciousness claims her vision.
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Robin slowly gains consciousness, but her vision is still quite blurry. After a moment, she realizes that she's in what seems to be a medical tent.
"Agh.. my head.. hurts.." She groans as she sits up on the bed, one hand holding her head.
"Be careful, your conditions are still not in good terms." A voice speaks up on her side, and when she turns towards it, she's surprised to see the boy's mother, but now wearing a nurse uniform.
"Ah, I still haven't introduced myself yet, have I? I'm Freya. And again, thank you for saving my son." The woman, now known as Freya, smiles brightly at her.
"Ah, it's nothing, Miss Freya. I'm always happy to manage to save a life. After all, who knows what your son could be in the future? Might as well become a successful man." Robin chuckles lightheartedly. She looks down at her arms, now full of bandages covering her wounds.
"Your friends are waiting outside, let me call them in." Freya quickly stands up from her seat, but just as she's about to step out of the tent. A crashing sound of a thunder can be heard outside, followed suit by a heavy rain.
Robin looks perplexed. Weird, the watch says that it is supposed to be a quiet night with no rain tonight, why suddenly–
"The portal has collapsed!"
The shout of somebody outside makes her heart drops to her stomach. Did she hear that right?
"Robin!" Freya calls out to her with a concerned expression as she stands up from the bed and walks hastily out of the tent.
Outside, the place where the purple-hue portal used to be is now empty. As if the large gate just disappears into thin air.
Next to it, there are the guides, looking anxious and confused at this sudden development. They try to make calls, but none works. Signal and network are also not working. Not any network though, but the one that connects between Aetheria and the HQ on Earth.
Clearly, something terribly wrong has happened.
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On the top of a hill, a man in a black suit stands there, taking an overall look at the whole Silviar Town.
His white comedy mask prevents people from seeing his reaction, but then he chuckles.
"So it's time."
And in a blink, he vanishes into thin air, while the town below is slowly turning chaotic.