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The same small classroom in Udaipur stood bathed in sunlight.
In the corner, Mayank sat quietly, his chin resting on his hand.
"It's been so long since that weird window popped up... and look at these idiots—still not understanding anything."
He sighed, eyes moving around the room.
Aryaraj stood near Akshat, excitement plastered across his face.
"I got super speed! Watch this!" he yelled—and in a flash, blurred from one corner of the room to the other, wind rustling papers in his wake.
Before he could stop, he crashed straight into Akshat.
Nothing happened. Akshat didn't even flinch.
"Woah—how are you fine?" Aryaraj said, rubbing his head.
Akshat grinned. "Body enhancement. Guess I'm built different."
Mayank smirked to himself. "Super speed and body enhancement… not bad."
His gaze shifted to Ankit, who stood frozen, staring at a small creature in front of him—a wolf cub with big silver eyes, soft gray fur, and a tiny tail that wagged nervously.
"What is this thing...?" Ankit muttered, leaning closer.
The creature tilted its head and let out an adorable squeak, like it recognized him.
Ankit gasped—then dramatically fell backward two desks away, clutching his chest. "It's too cute!"
Laughter broke out.
The boy beside him, Gautam, snorted. "Let me try petting it."
The moment he reached forward, the cub snapped its tiny jaws, biting his finger.
"OW!" Gautam yelped.
"Guess he doesn't like idiots like you," Ankit said, rubbing his nose.
Mayank chuckled. "Childish. And that guy's supposed to have gravity manipulation?"
He then glanced toward the girls at the back.
They were chatting happily, showing off their newfound powers like kids with toys.
Dhanprabha lifted a pen into the air using invisible force, grinning wide.
"See? Pretty cool, right? I got telekinesis!"
Tehsin nodded, holding a faintly glowing orb between her palms.
"I got something called energy manipulation. I'm not sure how it works yet, but I can make these small balls."
Ritika interrupted proudly, electricity crackling between her fingers.
"I can control lightning!"
The spark jumped, making Jasmine's hair stand up.
"Hey!" Jasmine pouted. "Why am I the only one without an offensive ability? What am I supposed to do with barriers?"
A faint blue shield shimmered into existence before fading away.
Mayank watched quietly. "Barriers can save lives. She just doesn't realize it yet."
He leaned back, folding his arms. "Everyone's got something cool. Am I really the only one with two abilities? Is it really that rare?"
Then his eyes landed on Narayan, still sitting calmly in the corner, phone in hand.
"Wait… is that a phone? How the hell did he sneak that in?"
Mayank walked over. "What did you get, idiot?"
Narayan didn't look up. "Shut up. I'm checking what's happening around the world."
"How'd you even get a phone inside?"
Without expression, Narayan replied, "Teleportation. Pretty cool, huh?"
Then, glancing up, "What about you?"
Mayank rubbed his nose proudly. "Heh, I got two abilities—Flame Weapon Summon and Battle Instinct. Both C-rank! Everyone else got D-rank!"
Narayan nodded slowly. "Ranks matter more than the ability itself. A weak power can become terrifying if it's high-ranked."
"Yeah, that makes sense…" Mayank said. "But what do you think about that manga thing? Is it actually true? I've read a lot, but you—you've read like everything."
Narayan smirked faintly. "B-rank teleportation."
Mayank's jaw dropped. "What—really?!"
Narayan shrugged. "Makes sense. We're mid-tier manga readers at best. Most people don't read fiction at all."
Mayank chuckled. "Do you think just seeing a few manga panels counts? Or maybe edits and clips on social media?"
"Maybe," Narayan replied. "When I teleported to the teachers' room earlier, I overheard that some of the young staff also got D-rank powers."
"So even they must've seen something—like old comics or cartoons."
Narayan didn't respond. His expression darkened as he stared at his screen.
"What is it?" Mayank asked.
Narayan's face turned pale. "What the hell is this…"
Mayank leaned over—and froze.
On the phone, a news stream showed aerial footage of a ruined city—smoke rising, skyscrapers half-crumbled, fires spreading.
No people. No sound—except the reporter's trembling voice.
"Th… this is just one city. In thirty minutes since the awakening event, a whole country has been… obliterated. Everything—gone. No survivors… no bodies. Experts believe it was done by a single person—someone is cur—"
The feed cut off as something massive—like a blazing fireball—struck the helicopter. The last image was a burning wreck spiraling toward the ground.
Silence filled the classroom.
Mayank and Narayan stood frozen, the phone screen now black.
"Is… is it real?" Mayank whispered.
Narayan's voice was barely audible. "Doesn't look fake. The world's changing… and not in a good way."
In that moment, Mayank realized something—the laughter echoing through their small classroom felt distant, fragile, meaningless.
Because outside these walls, the world had already begun to burn.
Then—
A scream echoed from the school gate.
The sound pierced the silence like a knife.
To be continued.
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