[Scene I - The Last Coffee Break!]
The hum if fluorescent lights was the only thing that made Yuuya Asakawa feel alive anymore.
A cheap paper cup of coffee steamed beside his monitor, half-empty, bitter. Around him, the office buzzed with muted conversations, keystrokes, and the occasional burst of fake laughter aimed at someone higher up the corporate ladder.
Yuuya didn't laugh. He never really did.
He adjusted his tie and let his eyes drift toward the cityscape outside the glass windows. Concrete towers stretched endlessly, each one filled with hundreds of people just like him- faceless, tired, disposable.
"Another day, another spreadsheet," he muttered under his breath, voice dry enough to crumble.
He reached for his cup again when the sound came.
A sharp metallic crack.
Then--shattering glass
For a second, his brain didn't register it. It was like someone had popped a balloon in another room. But then he felt it-- heat tearing through his side. His body jerked, coffee spilling across his desk.
The window beside him splintered. A bullet hole.
Someone screamed. Someone else yelled for cover.
Yuuya blinked, confused. His chair toppled backward, and he fell to the floor. He wasn't supposed to be shot--he was nobody. His heart pounded, but his body was already growing numb.
Through blurred eyes, he saw the CEO--his boss, flanked by panicked assistants--ducking down nearby. A second crack. Another spray of glass.
("W-wait... this isn't... meant for me, is it!?")
The thought was absurd, yet strangely calm. His blood spread across the carpet. His coworkers were scrambling. No one touched him. No one called his name.
Then--
The office lights flickered.
Everything... went white.
[Scene II -- The Gods' Last Breath]
A weightless void swallowed him. His pain was gone. His desk, his cubicle, his spilled coffee all vanished.
Instead, two voices echoed in the white expanse.
One was deep, proud, carrying the sound of war. The other was soft, solemn, like the toll of a temple bell.
"Bearer of fate unbroken," the deep voice thundered.
Forgive us, for this is our last plea."
"Our strength wanes... and this world collapses," the softer voice whispered, each syllable trembling," You will carry what we can no longer hold,"
Yuuya's vision sharpened. Two silhouettes stood before him--one armored in radiant steel, holding a blade larger than a man; the other robed in white, eyes blindfolded, hands clasped like a judge pronouncing sentence.
They were... gods. He knew without knowing.
and they looked exhausted.
"What...? Why me?" Yuuya's voice cracked, sounding small in the vastness. "I was just--an office worker. I'm not... I'm not anyone important."
The armored one laughed bitterly.
"That is why. The blade of destiny strikes truest when it begins from nothing."
The robed figure extended a trembling hand toward him.
"Take them. Our Titles. The 'Eternal Vanguard'... and the 'Silent Arbiter.' They will keep you alive... though they will cost us everything."
Yuuya shook his head.
"Wait. You can't just--! I don't even know what that means!"
But before he could finish, light surged from their bodies, piercing into his chest. His breath caught as burning power seared through him, rewriting something deeper than flesh or bone.
The armored god fell to one knee. The robed goddess collapsed beside him. Their bodies fractured like glass.
"Live well... young Yuuya..."
And then they were gone.
The void cracked apart.
[Scene III -- The Sky and the Sea]
Wind roared in Yuuya's ears.
His stomach lurched. His arms flailed.
He was falling.
"Wha--what the hell?!" he shouted, air tearing the words from his mouth.
Above him stretched a sky unlike any he had ever seen--painted in twilight blues with two moons hanging heavy in the clouds. Below him, endless ocean shimmered with streaks of pale light, as if stars had spilled in the waves.
His heart nearly stopped. This wasn't Tokyo. This wasn't Earth.
The titles of the gods burned faintly in his mind like brands he didn't understant:
[Eternal Vanguard] & [Silent Arbiter]
There was no time to think. The waves rushed closer. His scream tore loose as the world turned into a wall of water.
SPLASH!
The impact knocked the air from his lungs. Salt stung his throat, his eyes. He struggled wildy, thrashing against the pull of the sea.
("No--no, I'm about to fucking drown--")
Somehow, his limbs didn't feel weak. He kicked hard, breaking the surface, grasping ragged breaths. The ocean stretched endless in all directions--but in the distance, faintly illuminated by what he could only describe as lanterns and firelight, he saw it:
A coastline.
Wooden piers. Paper lanterns strung along narrow streets. Buildings shaped in Edo-period style--but glowing faintly with some kind of magic that had been woven into their very beams.
A village. A city. A place of people.
Yuuya coughed seawater and began to swim desperately toward it, unaware that the two moons above watched him like judging eyes.
[Scene IV -- The Coastline of Another World]
The sea tasted like iron and salt, rougher than any water Yuuya had ever swum in. His arms burned, his legs screamed, and yet...
He wasn't slowing down.
In fact--he realized after a dozen frantic strokes--his body felt stronger than it should. The fatigue came, yes, but it didn't bite as sharply as he remembered from his rare trips to the gym. His lungs held more air than seemed possible, his muscles didn't seize, and each movement sliced through the water like he'd trained for years.
Still, fear made him thrash like a beginner.
"Gah--hngh--don't die... not fucking here---! Just got here, I can't drown already!"
His own voice cracked, absurd against the crashing waves.
he forced himself to slow, to breathe. To move with rhythm. He wasn't an Olympic swimmer, but some instinct guided him, adjusting his strokes, steadying his kicks. It was as if his body knew what to do.
By the time he reached the shallows, he collapsed face-first into wet sand. His chest heaved as seawater poured from his lips. He rolled onto his back, staring at the twin moons glowing above.
"...I should be dead. Twice over."
His voice came out rough, hoarse, but alive.
He coughed again, dragging himself farther up the shore until the tide only lapped at his ankles. Lanterns flickered in the distance. he wasn't alone. Civilization.
And yet, before he could even think of approaching, something flickered in the corned of his vision.
A faint blue window--translucent, like a holographic screen from some RPG--hovered in midair
Yuuya froze.
"...Oh, you've got to be fucking kidding me."
The glowing text shifted, as if responding to his attention:
[Status Identified]
Name: Yuuya Asakawa
Race: ???
Level: ???
Titles:
- Eternal Vanguard (Inherited)
- Silent Arbiter (Inherited)
Attributes:
Strength: Unmeasured
Agility: Unmeasured
Endurance: Unmeasured
Perception: Unmeasured
Charisma: …Low.
Yuuya blinked at the last line
"...Wow. Even here, I get shit on by numbers."
The screen pulsed again, expanding:
Notice: Two divine essences reside within host.
Warning: Vessel not designed for godly power.
Result: Stabilization achieved through irregular soul pattern.
He sat up sharply.
"Wait, wait, hold on--what the hell does any of that mean? irregular? Vessel? You're talking like I'm a cup of tea!"
For a moment, silence. Then--just faintly, like an echo etched into his skull-- he heard it: the armored god's booming laughter.
"The blade of destiny strikes truest when it begins from nothing."
and the robed goddess's soft whisper.
"Judge with eyes unclouded... even if they weigh you down."
Yuuya clutched his head, groaning.
"Great. I'm haunted by fortune cookies."
The status window shimmered again, collapsing into a smaller tab. This time, two icons pulsed faintly: one a burning sword, the other a set of balanced scales.
Out of curiosity--or maybe desperation--he reached toward the sword icon.
[Scene V -- The First Glimpse of Power]
The instant his fingertip brushed the glowing emblem, heat surged through his veins. His body tensed, adrenaline flooding every muscle. The ocean air seemed sharper, the sand beneath his hands more defined, every grain distinct.
Instinct--not training, not memory, but something deeper--took hold. His hand closed into a fist. His stance shifted, steady, grounded, ready. His breath slowed.
He knew, without knowing how, that if a blade were placed in his hand at that very moment, he could fight. not like an amateur swinging wildly--but like a seasoned warrior, honed by centuries of battle.
His pulse raced. His lips parted.
"...This... this feeling is insane."
The burning sword icon dimmed, power ebbing like an exhale. His body relaxed, leaving him trembling on the sand.
The other icon--the scales--still pulsed faintly. He hesitated, then touched it.
This time, no heat. no rush of strength. instead, the world... sharpened. The distant crash of waved split into layers of sound, and his gaze caught details he'd normally miss: the way lantern light on the docks, the footsteps of patrols moving between buildings, even the faint conversation of two fishermen grumbling about tides.
And--more unsettling--something else.
When his eyes drifted toward the coastline, faint outlines shimmered in the air, like threads. they connected people to places, to each other, to unseen forces. A fisherman tied to the sea. A guard tethered faintly to a blade at his hip. A child curled by a lantern, thread knotted around her mother's hand.
Yuuya shuddered.
"Okay. That's... definitely not normal vision. Gods, what did you dump into me?"
No answer. Just silence.
The icons dimmed, fading back into the translucent menu. His body sagged. Whatever those powers were, they weren't free. they drained him, leaving his head light, his breath uneven.
Still--
He smiled, despide himself.
"...Guess I'm not just some office drone anymore, huh?"
His smile didn't last long. The faint sound of footsteps reached his ears, coming from the village. More than one set. Sharp. Heavy
Torches flickered into view. Shadows stretched along the beach. Voices barked in a tongue he couldn't fully understand--though somehow, pieces of it clicked in his head, as if his mind was translating on the fly.
"Report! Something fell from the sky near the shore!"
"The priestess said a sign would appear tonight--!"
Yuuya's stomach dropped.
"...Oh, fantastic. I've been here fifteen minutes and I'm already someone's fucking prophecy."
[Scene VI -- The Patrol's Arrival]
The voices drew closer. Torches bobbed, carried by armored men in lacquered breastplates, their designs etched with faint magical sigils. The wore straw hats and carried katanas at their sides. Their movements were sharp, disciplined.
When their eyes fell on him, they froze.
One of them barked, voice sharp.
"You there! State your name and domain!"
Yuuya blinked. The words were foreign, yet... something in his mind translated them enough to understand
"Uh... Yuuya Asakawa... Tokyo...? Japan...?"
The guards stiffened, muttering among themselves.
"His tongue is twisted."
"Look at his garb--alien cloth, drenched in seafoam."
"The priestess spoke of a sign, but this.. this reeks of intrusion"
Yuuya raised his hand slowly.
"Hey, listen, i don't want trouble. I'm just--lost, okay? Fell in the ocean, swam here, almost drowned--"
The patrol leader stepped forward, blade half-drawn. His voice was cold.
"You are no pilgrim, and non fisherman. Your garb is strange, your tongue foreign. Intruder."
The steel hissed free.
Yuuya's blood ran cold.
"...Wait, wait, hold on, let not go fucking crazy here--"
The first guard lunged, blade arcing downward.
And Yuuya moved.
Not by choice--by instinct. His body tilted aside at the perfect angel, the blade passing harmlessly inches from his shoulder. his eyes widened.
"...I didn't even--"
his fist clenched, almost of its own accord. he threw a punch.
it landed.
the guard's body shot backward like a ragdoll, slamming into a plaster wall with an ear-splitting crack. The wall crumbled, collapsing around him. his armor shattered like brittle porcelain, fragments scattering across the sand.
The man groaned once before going limp. His ribs had crumpled under the impact.
Yuuya stood frozen, staring at his trembling fist.
"...W-what... the hell did I just do?"
The other patrolmen recoiled, gripping their blades tighter. their eyes burned with alarm.
"Impossible!"
"A single blow... through steel?"
"MONSTER!!"
Yuuya's heart hammered. He staggered back, voice breaking.
"N-no, wait-- I didn't mean to-- I wasn't even trying--!"
Their blades gleamed in torchlight as they spread, forming a ring around him.
Yuuya's chest seized. Panic surged. Instinct screamed on thing: Run.
[Scene VII -- Flight into the Unknown]
He bolted, sand spraying beneath his shoes. The patrol shouted, chasing a few steps before halting. They didn't pursue--not after what they'd just witnessed.
Instead, their leader barked harshly.
"Fall back! This is no omen--this is an intruder! we must report to Lord Shinkai at once!"
Their Voices faded as they retreated toward the village.
Yuuya, lungs burning, darted along the shoreline with no sense of direction. lanterns faded behind him. The sea stretched endlessly to his right, cliffs and rocky outcroppings to his left.
("What do I do? where am I supposed to go?!")
His breath ragged, he pushed himself into the shadows of jagged rocks, finally collapsing against a stone outcrop. His hands shook uncontrollably.
He looked at his fist again-- the one that had crumpled armor, wall, and bone in a single blow.
"...T-that wasn't me... right?... That couldn't have been me."
But deep down, he knew. it was him. Or rather--the thing the gods had forced into him.
The titles burned faintly in his mind.
[Eternal Vanguard] & [Silent Arbiter]
He pulled his knees to his chest, head dropping forward.
"...I just wanted to finish my coffee break."
The waves answered with silence, broken only by the distance, fading drums of alarm bells in the village.