Ren stirred, eyelids heavy, body weighed down by exhaustion. The haze of unconsciousness burned away slowly, like smoke fading after fire. The first thing that sharpened into focus wasn't the ceiling—it was Dianca.
She sat at his bedside, eyes red, cheeks raw from tears, her face carved with worry. The moment their gazes locked, she broke, collapsing into his arms, sobs muffled against his chest.
"I thought you were gone," she whispered, voice trembling like glass about to crack. "I was so scared, Ren."
He sighed, a faint smile softening his sharp edges. One hand rose to pat her head, calm and steady. "Hey, hey... I'm here. Still breathing. Still annoying." He tapped her forehead lightly. "Keep crying like that, and your face will get all puffy."
Her sobs fractured into shaky laughter, her grip tightening.
"Relax," Ren murmured, fingers threading through her hair. "If we burn out on fear, this world won't need to break us. We'll do it ourselves."
A voice cut through. "Finally awake."
Alex leaned against the wall, arms crossed, his usual grin replaced by weary relief. "Good to see you alive, man. Miss Sofia and Class Prez went to meet her—the queen, they say."
Ren leaned back against the bedframe, rubbing his temples as memories flooded back. The throne. The tree. Her voice. "So it's real. Another world. And we're stuck in this… palace." He raised an eyebrow. "No king, though. That's odd for a nation, isn't it?"
Dianca lifted her head, her thumb brushing his cheek, eyes still red. She glanced toward the door, where a female guard snapped orders at a trembling male servant, her voice dripping with disdain. Her gaze hardened. "This place… women rule here. Men are nothing to them."
Ren blinked, then chuckled darkly. "Bottom of the ladder, huh? Figures. Not our world." His smirk sharpened. "Guess I'll have to bow without spitting."
Before Alex could reply, a sharp knock rattled the door. A classmate peeked in, nervous. "Ren, Miss Sofia's calling everyone to the meeting room."
Ren stretched, joints cracking. "No rest for us." With Dianca close and Alex trailing, he stepped into the corridor.
The palace unfolded in cold majesty—marble floors gleamed like mirrors, gilded walls dripped with wealth, tapestries pulsed faintly with runes. Beautiful, but cruel. The kind of beauty that could swallow you whole.
His classmates shuffled in clusters, pale, hands trembling, some clinging to each other like shipwreck survivors. Can't blame them, Ren thought. This isn't an adventure. It's a cage. A gilded one, but a cage.
In the meeting room, Miss Sofia stood at the center, shoulders straight but eyes shadowed with exhaustion. "My students," she began, voice steady but heavy, "I know you're afraid. But we face what's ahead."
Bianca stepped forward, her posture rigid, fingers twitching with the pressure of speaking for them all. Before she could speak, a boy bolted for a glowing rune on the wall, desperation in his eyes. The rune sparked and faded, leaving him slumped against the stone. Bianca's shoulders sagged. "No way out," she muttered, voice tight. "We're here to stay."
The room erupted. "No way!" "I need to go home!" "My parents—what about them?"
Miss Sofia's voice cracked like a whip. "Enough!" Her authority held, barely. "This is reality. We can't go back. But they've promised us something—power. Magic, if we follow their rules."
The panic thinned, replaced by uneasy whispers of curiosity.
The students followed Sofia through gleaming corridors, the air humming with runes, as if the palace anticipated their arrival.
Now they were trapped in a palace that felt like a gilded prison. "So, bets on the magic we'll get?"
Alex scratched his chin, a spark of his old energy returning. "Anime-style, probably. Fireballs. Lightning. Teleportation if we're lucky."
Ren smirked. "If I get stuck with 'Magic Laundry Folding,' I'm done."
Alex laughed, tension easing. "With your luck? Bet on it."
"Oi." Ren's grin was sharp, easy.
The levity died fast. A venomous voice echoed from a side hall. "Useless! Can't even clean properly. Your hands are as clumsy as your brain."
Ren's gaze flicked over. A maid in pristine uniform lounged arrogantly, a man kneeling at her feet, scrubbing the floor. She pressed her foot into his back, shoving him down with casual cruelty. "Men are pathetic," she sneered. "Be grateful I let you touch the floor I walk on." She tapped his cheek with her bare foot—not hard, but enough to humiliate—and strode off.
The man stayed kneeling, face hollow, shame heavier than his breath.
Alex's grin vanished, fists clenching. "Damn… I thought Dianca was exaggerating."
Ren's eyes lingered on the servant, expression unreadable. "It's their world, Alex. Cruel or not, this is their normal. Doesn't mean it's right… but if we judge them by our standards, we'll just keep losing here."
Alex frowned, voice low. "You sound like you've already accepted it."
Ren's smirk returned, edged with steel. "Step one—accept it. Step two—understand it. Step three—beat it at their game. I'll drag you to step three, don't worry."
"…Gee, thanks," Alex muttered, a faint smile breaking through.
The students trudged through the palace's corridors, the air thick with the hum of runes, as if the walls anticipated their arrival. Ren's mind flashed to the classroom—papers flying, lightning cracking, the vortex tearing them from home. Now they faced a queen who held their future.
The students entered the grand chamber. Queen Onelia Bonelis sat on her throne, golden aura spilling like sunlight made flesh. The air bent under her presence.
"Welcome back, children of another world," her voice rang, each syllable heavy. "I am Onelia, Queen of Melincia—the Human World."
A cloaked woman stepped forward, raising a pale hand. Light shimmered into visions: Earth's cities, cars, steel towers. "This is your world. Science and pattern."
Another advisor lifted his staff. Floating mountains, fire rivers, spell circles burning with runes appeared. "And this is ours. Magic and pattern."
Murmurs rippled through the students.
Alex tilted his head. "So… your world runs on magic, ours on science. Same roots, different rules?"
Ren chuckled. "Exactly. Science is stone—solid, stubborn. Magic's water—twisting, adapting. Both build the world."
The cloaked woman's eyes gleamed. "Well said. Both are patterns, woven from the same cosmic thread, shaped by different laws."
Queen Onelia rose slightly, aura deepening. "Now, you all will awaken your magic here."
The crystalline floor split, a crimson carpet unfurling. Two massive crystal orbs rose, pulsing with raw power. Ren felt the air hum, a faint energy seeping from the walls, like the palace itself was waiting.
"This," an advisor announced, "is the Awakening System. Step onto the mat. Touch the orbs. Your inner power will answer."
The students froze, fear binding them.
Miss Sofia's breath trembled. "If no one else will… I will. It's my duty." She grasped the orbs. Energy surged, lifting her briefly into the air before setting her gently down again.
"W-What… I-I can't… what happened?" she gasped, hands shaking, clutching her chest.
The advisors bowed. "Aerial Flight and Heart Protection. Your magic."
Gasps filled the chamber.
A girl clutching her friend's hand, as others stared, eyes wide.
Ren's lips curved into a wolfish grin. "Now this… gets interesting."