The four teenagers were safe for the moment, huddled in the claustrophobic darkness of the underground bunker. The immediate threat was gone, but the reality of the impossible powers held by Takashi and Kento demanded an explanation.
Kento, still visibly buzzing with the raw energy coursing through him, stretched his arms wide. "Woahhh… this is so fun and refreshing. I can control thunder just like my own power! It's incredible!"
Takashi, ever the measured intellect, considered his own experience. "Yeah… I feel like a lot of energy has entered my body. It feels like I could run one full lap of this entire ruined city in just one second."
Kento's eyes widened with immediate interest. "Really, bro? Try it."
Takashi nodded, accepting the challenge. He took his running stance in the small space outside the bunker entrance, focusing the strange, vibrant Phore energy into his legs. He charged up and launched himself. The effect was immediate and stunning: he was an instantaneous yellow blur, a streak of light traversing the ruined jungle perimeter outside. Within just one second, the yellow aura around him faded as he returned, having completed an impossible full lap of the area. His eyes were glowing faintly with residual power.
Kento stared, completely awestruck. "Woah, you were so fast… mind-blowing! But what is all this actually? How is any of this happening in this world? I can't understand anything at all!"
Takashi, already piecing together the impossible data, spoke with a low, certain intensity. "I guess I got it. Did you hear about the Soul Apocalypse book? It was recently published by a writer named JAMU-AKATO."
"I guess I heard about it," Kento replied, scratching his head. "But I don't know anything about the Soul Apocalypse."
"All of these things, the Phore, the monster, everything is from that book," Takashi explained, his confusion still immense, but his conclusion firm. "I am also confused why all this is happening, but at least I've figured out that it all originates from that book. The laws of reality have been rewritten by fiction."
"HUH!! STRANGE!" Kento exclaimed, finding the revelation bizarre but undeniably true.
"Let's solve all the mystery behind it," Takashi declared, his focus hardening from survival to investigation.
"Yeahhh!" Kento agreed, embracing the new reality with gusto. "Now we also have power, or Phore, whatever! First, let's hunt all of these monsters!"
"No," Takashi countered, stepping back into the role of the tactician. "First, I need to find my friends, Nitsuki and Sami. By the way, those monsters are called Soul Reapers. And those humans who gain Phore are called Soul.R Hunters."
"Yeah, whatever," Kento conceded, impatient but following Takashi's lead. "Let's go and find your friends."
They then began their initial journey toward the city, Takashi using his strange, superhuman speed in controlled bursts, and Kento occasionally using his thunder power to traverse large obstacles, moving rapidly toward the north where the school was located.
During their journey, Takashi asked Kento the inevitable question. "By the way, how did you manage to get here?"
Kento recounted his own tale of survival. "Ah, I was just fishing by the river outside the city earlier today. Two other unknown people were fishing nearby with me. Then, suddenly, the sky turned dark navy blue and after a moment there was that blast. In that blast, those two people died, but I somehow survived by falling into the water, which offered just enough protection."
He continued: "Once the immediate shock passed, I couldn't do anything else but start moving toward where the blast had come from. I mean, toward the huge, strange thing that fell from the sky. That's how I ended up near the impact site and met you."
As Kento finished his explanation, a loud, guttural sound suddenly came from their left side, the distinct shriek of a Soul Reaper. Takashi and Kento didn't waste a moment; the instinct to use their new Phore powers was immediate and unified. They rushed toward the source of the noise.
Takashi arrived first, a yellow blur of motion. He struck the Soul Reaper hard with a concussive kick, momentarily stunning the massive creature. Kento arrived a heartbeat later, channeling his power into his fist. He hit the monster with a devastating thunder strike, instantly killing the Soul Reaper and leaving a smoking crater where it had stood.
—Here their flashback ended.
Takashi finished his story, his gaze settling on Nitsuki and Sami. "That's how Kento and I ended up with this superhuman power, or Phore. It's the only explanation for what we can do."
Nitsuki stared, struggling to assimilate the sheer absurdity of the revelation. "What is this all nonsense... Soul Reaper, Soul.R. Hunter, Phore, Soul Apocalypse... what is happening!" His logical world was crumbling.
Sami, ever the pragmatist, offered the only path forward. "This is unbelievable. But it's happening, and we have to accept it."
"Yeah," Nitsuki sighed, the weight of acceptance settling on his shoulders. "There is no other way."
Kento, restless and energized, stood up and began wandering around the confines of the bunker. His eyes, sharper now, caught sight of a slight structural anomaly. He noticed one wall that looked suspicious, slightly different from the others, perhaps a seam or a false panel. He used a small, controlled amount of his Phore, striking the wall lightly. The thin panel instantly broke away, revealing a hidden compartment. What he saw inside left him genuinely astonished.
"Hey guys, look!" Kento exclaimed.
Nitsuki rushed over, his eyes widening at the sight of the hidden cache. "Woah, where did all these guns, swords, and bullets come from?! Maybe this was some kind of military underground base!"
Takashi, ever the skeptic of Nitsuki's theories, immediately countered: "How would a military base be here? Keep your logic to yourself."
"AGAIN!!!! Stop you two!" Sami interjected sharply, cutting off the habitual argument. "See, we can use them as our safety or protection. That's all that matters right now."
"Yeah, you are right actually," Takashi conceded. "But Kento and I don't need it. We have Phore. You two take all of these."
"Blah blah blah," Nitsuki muttered good-naturedly, already moving to inspect the weapons. "Let's grab it, Sami."
Sami and Nitsuki began hastily arming themselves. Sami grabbed a heavy, tactical sword, testing its balance. Nitsuki collected a handgun and grabbed several loose bullets.
"There are only a few bullets," Nitsuki noted, disappointed by the limited ammunition.
Sami then noticed a dusty metal box on the ground nearby. She opened it and saw armor inside, several pieces of lightweight, military-grade protective gear.
"Hey Nitsuki, look! There is some armor, grab it all!"
They quickly donned the armor, securing the plates over their chests and limbs for protection. It was a small comfort, but a comfort nonetheless.
Kento, his patience for strategy exhausted, bounced on the balls of his feet. "Now let's go, everyone. We will hunt together!"
Takashi frowned, a sense of strategy returning. "Wait, before that we need to—"
He was cut short. Suddenly, the underground base started shaking violently. Everyone looked up, shocked, wondering what new danger had found them. Then, a searing laser beam, shot from above, pierced the earth and struck one corner of the base, instantly destabilizing the support. The entire ceiling began to collapse in a catastrophic roar of concrete and soil.
But luck was with them. Kento and Takashi, propelled by their Phore powers, reacted instantly. Together, they grabbed Sami and Nitsuki and launched themselves upward with impossible speed, escaping the collapsing structure just before the ground slammed shut. They shot out into the open air, momentarily suspended above the wreckage. Ahead of them, they saw two more Soul Reapers hovering, their malicious eyes confirming they were responsible for the attack.
Kento, thrilled by the immediate combat, shouted: "Haaaa!! Let's hunt them!!!!!!!"
Nitsuki, clutching his gun and armor, could only let out a raw, terrified sound. "Aughhhhhhhhhhhh!"