Chaos.
That was the only word that could possibly describe the scene now.
Screams tore across the vast field, overlapping and crashing into one another like violent waves in a storm.
"Mama!"
"What is this?!"
"There's no signal!"
"Where are we!? Somebody explain this!"
Students ran in every direction. Some collapsed to their knees, sobbing uncontrollably. Some shouted in raw desperation. Others screamed the names of friends and teachers, their voices swallowed by the chaos.
The deep blue sky above answered nothing.
At the far edge of the field, Kai, Duke, and Mike huddled close together, as if proximity alone could anchor them to something real.
Kai's breathing came fast and shallow. Cold sweat slid down his spine even though the air wasn't warm.
Kai:
"Damn it… what the hell is going on?"
Duke crossed his arms, eyes sweeping across the unfamiliar horizon. His voice had lost its usual sarcasm.
Duke:
"I think… we've been transported to another world."
Kai snapped his head toward him, eyes wide.
Kai:
"Don't start that crap! This is real life, not some anime or light novel where people get….teleport to out of nowhere!"
Mike was staring down at his phone. The screen displayed the same merciless words over and over:
No Service.
He tried calling.
Nothing.
He tried texting.
Failed.
Mike shook his head, voice rough.
Mike:
"I can't get a single bar. Calls, messages… all useless."
Kai tightened his grip around his own phone, knuckles whitening.
Kai:
"Try again… just one more time. Maybe it'll work….maybe….maybe it's just temporary."
They dropped to the grass together, placing their phones side by side as if performing some strange ritual. Three glowing screens. Three desperate faces hovering above them.
They waited.
No vibration.
No signal.
No way back.
—
Meanwhile, near the center of the chaotic crowd, the three so-called "musketeers" stood shoulder to shoulder.
Chad folded his arms across his chest. His expression was tense, but he still carried a rare steadiness.
Daniel rested his hand against his chin, eyes scanning constantly, analyzing, processing.
Chad:
"So… what do you two think?"
Daniel:
"High probability we were drugged as a group. Then transported here by some organization."
Hajime shook his head immediately.
Hajime:
"That doesn't add up."
Daniel frowned.
Daniel:
"Why not?"
Hajime:
"The number of people is too large. And all of us arrived in the same positions we were in at school. No one felt themselves being moved."
Daniel went quiet for a moment.
Daniel:
"…It's still the most rational hypothesis. Unless you'd rather believe the entire school was instantly teleported here."
Chad glanced around, pointing into the distance.
Chad:
"It seem like not just the students. I see a few teachers too."
Hajime inhaled slowly, steadying himself.
Hajime:
"Put the supernatural debate aside. The priority is keeping everyone alive. The more we panic, the faster people die."
Chad looked at him carefully.
Chad:
"You have a plan?"
Daniel gave a small nod, as if he had already expected Hajime to take the lead.
Daniel:
"First step: contact the teachers. Gather everyone together. If we stay scattered, our survival rate drops to near zero."
—
After a tense stretch of persuasion, shouting, calming, and borderline commanding, the chaotic crowd gradually compressed into one massive group.
Hundreds of students stood shoulder to shoulder. Fear was written across every face.
Kai, Duke, and Mike were swallowed into the mass — three so-called "average idiots" lost among strangers.
Hajime stepped forward.
He straightened his posture, drew in a deep breath, and projected his voice.
Hajime:
"Everyone, please stay calm."
The murmuring softened.
Hajime:
"I know you're scared. I am too. But if we lose our heads now, things will only get worse."
A voice from the crowd shouted:
"Then do you know where we are!?"
Hajime exhaled slowly.
Hajime:
"I don't want to believe it either. It sounds absurd. But… it seems we may be in another world."
The crowd erupted.
"Another world!?"
"That's impossible!"
"Is this some kind of joke?!"
As Hajime, Chad, and Daniel struggled to maintain order, Kai clung desperately to the last shred of hope.
Kai (breathing hard):
"Well? Any signal at all?"
Duke and Mike sank into the grass.
Duke lowered his head.
Duke:
"No… nothing."
Mike stared at his now-black screen.
Mike:
"Mine… just died."
Kai's grip tightened around his phone.
Kai:
"DAMN IT!"
Duke and Mike looked up.
Kai stood frozen, head lowered. His shoulders trembled. His eyes were red.
Kai:
"So…that's it? We're stuck here forever?"
Duke answered quietly, as if saying it too loudly would make it more real.
Duke:
"For now… yeah."
Suddenly, Mike shot to his feet and pointed into the distance.
Mike:
"What the hell is that?"
Kai and Duke turned.
Far across the endless stretch of grass, figures were moving toward them.
At first they looked like distortions in the heat — dark ripples against the green.
Then they became clearer.
Silhouettes.
Human-shaped.
Wearing long black cloaks that fluttered faintly in the wind.
They walked slowly.
Deliberately.
Silently.
Not like students.
Not like teachers.
Their formation was steady, spaced evenly apart, as if disciplined. As if they had done this before.
The grass parted around their boots.
No one among them waved.
No one called out.
They simply advanced.
A heavy stillness spread through the air, thick and suffocating.
At the center of the crowd, Hajime had already noticed.
His voice faltered mid-sentence.
Chad's jaw tightened.
Daniel's analytical gaze sharpened instantly.
All three locked onto the approaching figures.
Around them, the students began to notice too.
The murmurs shifted.
From confusion—
to dread.
The wind, which had once felt refreshing, now carried something colder. Something wrong.
Kai swallowed.
Duke muttered under his breath.
Mike took an unconscious step backward.
The cloaked figures drew closer, their faces still hidden beneath deep hoods.
Not rushing.
Not threatening.
Just certain.
A chilling realization spread like ice through the crowd:
This world was not empty.
And they…
were not the first to arrive here.