Hikari and Airi arrived at school.
As they walked toward Class 2-A, they could hear students whispering around them.
One student looked at his friend.
"Slenderman… wasn't that supposed to be just a myth?"
Another student shook his head while opening his phone.
"Maybe it used to be a myth because nobody had seen him before. But after watching this video… we know Slenderman is real."
Another student added excitedly, eyes shining.
"Slenderman's power is insane. In the video, he summoned a gigantic eye in the sky, the heavens turned red, strong winds blew everywhere… you can clearly see everything!"
When Hikari and Airi reached the classroom and opened the door, the atmosphere changed instantly.
All the students slowly gathered around Hikari, staring at him with admiration.
"Eh… that's Hikari, right? The one who fought Slenderman?"
"You were amazing! You really fought that thing?"
"We watched the video already!"
Hikari looked at them in shock.
"How do you all know?"
One of the students smiled and turned his phone toward Hikari.
"We all watched this video… and we played it again so you could see it too, Hikari."
Hikari smiled awkwardly, his eyes slightly watery as he spoke in his heart.
"Eh… since when was someone recording?"
Airi patted Hikari's back proudly.
"You were amazing, Hikari… but stay calm, okay?"
Gradually, the classroom atmosphere returned to normal, though whispers about Hikari could still be heard everywhere.
Some students kept glancing at him in admiration, while others looked half-afraid and half-amazed.
Hikari sat at his desk quietly, staring at the table.
Airi sat in front of him, occasionally turning around to check on him.
She whispered softly,
"Hikari… are you really okay?"
Hikari gave a small nod.
"Yeah… it just feels strange. Everyone looks at me differently now."
Not long after, the teacher entered the classroom.
The room immediately fell silent, and class began as usual, almost as if yesterday's events had never happened.
However—
Hikari suddenly frowned.
"This pressure…" he thought.
"It's similar to yesterday… but fainter."
His gaze shifted toward the window.
The sky looked normal, but for a brief moment—just a moment—he saw a black shadow moving quickly across the school rooftop.
Hikari clenched his fist.
"Am I just too tired…?"
When the break bell rang, Arou, Lumina, Tomo, and Haru immediately approached Hikari.
Arou smirked.
"Hey, now you've really become the center of attention."
Hikari smiled faintly.
"I don't want to be known for something like this."
Lumina spoke seriously.
"The video of your fight has already spread everywhere. And if Slenderman was defeated, then maybe…"
Tomo continued nervously,
"Other creatures might appear too."
Haru nodded.
"And this school could become a target."
Hikari fell silent for a moment before speaking firmly.
"If someone really is targeting this school… then I'll face them myself."
Airi, who was standing in front of them, immediately looked at him.
"Hikari, don't carry everything by yourself."
Hikari smiled softly.
"This time… I have all of you."
—
Somewhere else—
A dark room filled with strange symbols trembled faintly.
A low voice echoed through the darkness.
"So… Slenderman has fallen?"
Another shadow laughed quietly.
"That's exactly what makes this interesting."
A red eye slowly opened within the darkness.
"Hikari Mikami… you've begun stepping onto the game board."
"And this game… has only just begun."
—
Class in 2-A continued as usual.
The atmosphere had calmed down significantly, though some students still glanced at Hikari from time to time.
Hikari sat at his desk while Airi sat directly in front of him.
He tried focusing on the teacher's explanation, but his head felt heavy, as if an invisible pressure had suddenly appeared.
Hikari closed his eyes for a moment.
When he opened them again, something appeared in his vision.
••Name: Airi Mikami
••Power: -
••Title: -
••Tier: -
Hikari froze.
He blinked several times, and the display instantly disappeared.
Hikari (in his thoughts):
"Why… can I only see Mom's name?"
He tried looking at another student.
The same thing happened—their name briefly appeared, but everything else was blank before disappearing.
Not long after, the teacher called Hikari to the front of the class to solve a problem.
As he stood up, the heaviness in his head returned.
But this time, it wasn't someone's identity appearing.
Instead, different words surfaced before his eyes.
WARNING
SUBJECT DATA DOES NOT MATCH THE TIMELINE
Hikari stood still for several seconds.
Hikari (in his thoughts):
"Does not match the timeline…
What does that mean?"
Even so, he quickly solved the problem and returned to his seat.
Airi slightly turned around and asked quietly,
"Hikari, you look pale. Are you okay?"
"I'm fine… really," Hikari replied with a faint smile.
Soon, the break bell rang.
Hikari left the classroom and stood in the school hallway, staring outside through the window.
The wind blew gently.
Suddenly, his vision darkened for a moment.
He saw a brief image—
the school destroyed,
the sky completely dark,
and himself standing alone while holding his spear.
Hikari stepped back and touched the wall.
Airi noticed immediately and hurried toward him in panic.
"Hikari?! What's wrong?!"
The vision vanished instantly.
Hikari looked at Airi, his breathing still uneven, and spoke softly.
"Mom… if one day I change… you'll still think of me as your son, right?"
Airi fell silent for a moment before smiling gently.
"Of course. You'll always be my son."
Hikari slowly nodded.
Deep inside his heart, he realized—
something inside him had started to awaken,
and it wasn't supposed to happen yet.
—
Classes continued normally, but ever since the Slenderman incident, the classroom atmosphere felt different.
Some students still occasionally glanced at Hikari and whispered among themselves.
Airi sat in the seat in front of him while Hikari sat directly behind her.
Several times, Airi turned around, noticing how unusually quiet Hikari had become.
Finally, she asked softly,
"Hikari, what's wrong with you today?"
Hikari looked slightly surprised before giving a faint smile.
"It's nothing. I'm just a little tired."
Airi stared at him for several seconds.
She knew he was lying, but chose not to push him further.
She turned back toward the blackboard, though her worry still remained.
When lunch break arrived, Hikari didn't go to the cafeteria.
Instead, he walked through the empty school hallways, trying to calm his thoughts.
But eventually, his steps slowed.
His chest felt heavy, as if something invisible was pressing down on him.
Hikari stopped and leaned against the wall.
"This feeling… it's the same as back then."
Memories of the battle against Slenderman flashed through his mind again.
It wasn't fear—
it was something stranger.
As if a fragment of that existence still hadn't completely disappeared.
Suddenly, his vision trembled again.
Not Slenderman.
Something else.
Not even a clear form—
just a cold sensation, as if something was watching him from far away.
Hikari closed his eyes and took a deep breath.
"What is this… leftovers of his power?" he muttered.
But deep inside, Hikari understood.
This wasn't merely a remnant.
There was a connection.
—
The final school bell rang.
Arou, Lumina, Haru, and Tomo approached Hikari outside the classroom.
Arou grinned.
"Our hero looks gloomy today."
Hikari smiled faintly.
"It's nothing."
But Lumina looked at him more seriously.
"You look pale."
Hikari stayed silent for a moment before quietly speaking.
"Ever since that battle… I feel like it's not really over yet."
Everyone fell silent.
Airi stepped closer.
"You mean Slenderman?"
Hikari shook his head.
"Not directly him. But… something was left behind. And it feels like… it's connected to me."
Airi clenched her fists.
"If that's true, then we'll help you."
Hikari looked at Airi, then at everyone else, and smiled faintly.
Inside his heart, he whispered,
"If I really am connected to that creature… then I have to be prepared."
Outside the school, the sky looked bright and peaceful.
But for Hikari—
the storm was far from over.