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The same small classroom stood bathed in sunlight.
In the corner, Mayukh sat quietly, his chin resting on his hand.
"It's been so long since that weird window popped up... and look at these idiots—still not understanding anything."
He sighed, eyes moving around the room.
Arya stood near Aksh, excitement plastered across his face.
"I got super speed! Watch this!" he yelled—and in a flash, blurred from one corner of the room to the other, wind rustling papers in his wake.
Before he could stop, he crashed straight into Aksh.
Nothing happened. Aksh didn't even flinch.
"Woah—how are you fine?" Arya said, rubbing his head.
Aksh grinned. "Body enhancement. Guess I'm built different."
Mayukh smirked to himself. "Super speed and body enhancement… not bad."
His gaze shifted to Anvit, who stood frozen, staring at a small creature in front of him—a wolf cub with big silver eyes, soft gray fur, and a tiny tail that wagged nervously.
"What is this thing...?" Anvit muttered, leaning closer.
The creature tilted its head and let out an adorable squeak, like it recognized him.
Ankit gasped—then dramatically fell backward two desks away, clutching his chest. "It's too cute!"
Laughter broke out.
The boy beside him, Gaurav, snorted. "Let me try petting it."
The moment he reached forward, the cub snapped its tiny jaws, biting his finger.
"OW!" Gautam yelped.
"Guess he doesn't like idiots like you," Anvit said, rubbing his nose.
Mayukh chuckled. "Childish. And that guy's supposed to have gravity manipulation?"
He then glanced toward the girls at the back.
They were chatting happily, showing off their newfound powers like kids with toys.
Pranidhi lifted a pen into the air using invisible force, grinning wide.
"See? Pretty cool, right? I got telekinesis!"
Tarima nodded, holding a faintly glowing orb between her palms.
"I got something called energy manipulation. I'm not sure how it works yet, but I can make these small balls."
Ridhima interrupted proudly, electricity crackling between her fingers.
"I can control lightning!"
The spark jumped, making Janvi's hair stand up.
"Hey!" Janvi pouted. "Why am I the only one without an offensive ability? What am I supposed to do with barriers?"
A faint blue shield shimmered into existence before fading away.
Mayukh watched quietly. "Barriers can save lives. She just doesn't realize it yet."
He leaned back, folding his arms. "Everyone's got something cool. Am I really the only one with two abilities? Is it really that rare?"
Then his eyes landed on Nex, still sitting calmly in the corner, phone in hand.
"Wait… is that a phone? How the hell did he sneak that in?"
Mayukh walked over. "What did you get, idiot?"
Nex didn't look up. "Shut up. I'm checking what's happening around the world."
"How'd you even get a phone inside?"
Without expression, Nex replied, "Teleportation. Pretty cool, huh?"
Then, glancing up, "What about you?"
Mayukh rubbed his nose proudly. "Heh, I got two abilities—Flame Weapon Summon and Battle Instinct. Both C-rank! Everyone else got D-rank!"
Nex nodded slowly. "Ranks matter more than the ability itself. A weak power can become terrifying if it's high-ranked."
"Yeah, that makes sense…" Mayukh said. "But what do you think about that manga thing? Is it actually true? I've read a lot, but you—you've read like everything."
Nex smirked faintly. "B-rank teleportation."
Mayukh's jaw dropped. "What—really?!"
Nex shrugged. "Makes sense. We're mid-tier readers at best. Most people don't read fiction at all."
Mayukh chuckled. "Do you think just seeing a few manga panels counts? Or maybe edits and clips on social media?"
"Maybe," Nex replied. "When I teleported to the teachers' room earlier, I overheard that some of the young staff also got D-rank powers."
"So even they must've seen something—like old comics or cartoons."
Nex didn't respond. His expression darkened as he stared at his screen.
"What is it?" Mayukh asked.
Nex's face turned pale. "What the hell is this…"
Mayukh leaned over—and froze.
On the phone, a news stream showed aerial footage of a ruined city—smoke rising, skyscrapers half-crumbled, fires spreading.
No people. No sound—except the reporter's trembling voice.
"Th… this is just one city. In thirty minutes since the awakening event, a whole country has been… obliterated. Everything—gone. No survivors… no bodies. Experts believe it was done by a single person—someone is cur—"
The feed cut off as something massive—like a blazing fireball—struck the helicopter. The last image was a burning wreck spiraling toward the ground.
Silence filled the classroom.
Mayukh and Nex stood frozen, the phone screen now black.
"Is… is it real?" Mayukh whispered.
Nex's voice was barely audible. "Doesn't look fake. The world's changing… and not in a good way."
In that moment, Mayank realized something—the laughter echoing through their small classroom felt distant, fragile, meaningless.
Because outside these walls, the world had already begun to burn.
Then—
A scream echoed from the school gate.
The sound pierced the silence like a knife.
To be continued.