Muffled sound.
As if underwater.
Dark screen.
Ryo's breathing.
Heavy.
Irregular.
The image slowly fades in.
Ryo… falling.
Endless darkness.
No ground.
No bottom.
Something pulls him down.
Stronger.
And stronger.
An invisible force.
A suction.
Ryo tries to swim upward.
He can't.
Then—
Red eyes appear in the darkness.
Many of them.
Watching.
A distant voice echoes:
"You cannot escape what you are."
Ryo's eyes snap open.
Cut.
Scene 1 — Awakening
"RYOOOO!!"
Bill shouts.
"Ryo, we've been calling you for five minutes!"
Ryo slowly sits up.
"…Sorry. Didn't hear you."
Bill crosses his arms.
"Of course you didn't. You were making that stupid face again."
"What face?"
Bill imitates him.
😳
"That one."
Ryo protests:
"I don't make that face!"
Nara laughs.
"Yes, you do!"
Bill suddenly turns serious.
"So… what was happening this time?"
He points at a broken device.
"Every time you come back to reality, something breaks. This time… my pressure meter glass shattered."
Ryo looks at it.
"…Wow."
Scene 2 — Alan (57)
A voice calls out:
"Hey… are you guys friends with Nara?"
Bill smiles.
"Oh! It's you!"
Ryo stares.
"…Right… you… who are you again?"
PLOK
Bill punches his head.
"AII!"
"Are you stupid?! He saved our sister!"
Ryo rubs his head.
"Oh… right. That was you."
The boy smiles.
"Yeah… but she saved me too."
A pause.
"My name is Alan. As you saw… my element is ice."
Bill gets excited.
"YEAH! And Nara's is water!"
Ryo thinks out loud:
"That's actually really cool… they made this test on purpose, didn't they?"
Alan nods.
"Most likely."
Bill looks at the screen.
"And I think… it's your turn now."
Silence.
Ryo's eyes widen.
"…Oh. I forgot. I was second."
He runs off.
"I'm going!"
After a few steps, he turns back:
"Nice meeting you, Malan!"
Bill and Nara shout:
"DON'T DIE, RYO!!"
Alan yells:
"IT'S ALAN!!"
Scene 3 — Stands
Oliver watches as names appear on the screen.
RYO
His hand tightens on the armrest.
The metal bends.
Ashley notices.
"…Sir? Are you alright?"
Silence.
Focus on the screen.
On the name:
RYO
Kazume feels it.
An invisible weight.
Ryo's face flashes again in his mind.
Blurred.
Dark.
Kazume looks at his gloved hand.
It trembles.
He clenches his fist.
Isaac observes both Oliver and Kazume.
Then glances at a general watching the exam.
The man looks bored.
Isaac thinks:
He doesn't seem interested… that's good.
Ashley again:
"Sir?"
Oliver responds without looking away:
"…Yes. Everything is fine."
Scene 4 — Ryo's Arena
"Attention! Next participants, enter the arena!"
Ryo runs in.
"Same elements… same test!"
The trial begins.
Violent wind blasts.
Ryo tries to focus.
"Come on…"
He stretches his hands.
💨
The wind lifts him.
He almost flies.
"Damn it! That's not it!"
He grabs onto a rock.
Recovery room:
"COME ON, RYO!!" Bill shouts at the screen.
Scene 5 — Attempts
The arena shifts.
Ice.
Ryo runs, slipping.
"What if I do it like Malan— I mean… Alan?"
He stretches his hands.
Tries to create ice.
Nothing.
A spectator laughs.
"Hahaha! He figured out the trick… but the way he's doing it is weird!"
Some participants are eliminated instantly.
Ryo keeps trying.
"Damn… not this either…"
He tries sliding.
No balance.
Falls.
PUM
"Ow…"
A pause.
"…Wait… his name was Alan. Not Malan…"
He rubs his head.
"The ice froze my brain…"
Scene 6 — Random Rival (312)
A participant appears, sliding smoothly on an ice board.
⛷️
"Who are you?" Ryo asks.
"I'm the favorite to win!"
He speeds past.
Ryo shouts:
"Wait! Is that even allowed?!"
The arena shifts.
Earth.
PUM
The "favorite" crashes into a rock.
Ryo laughs.
"Hahaha! Idiot!"
He runs—
Not looking ahead.
PUUM
Crashes into a rock too.
"Ow…"
Almost falls.
But keeps running.
Participants are thrown away.
Trees burst from the ground.
Vines capture candidates.
Screams.
Scene 7 — First Qualified
A voice echoes:
"Congratulations! First participant has qualified!"
Everyone shouts:
"WHAT?!"
"ALREADY?!"
"How?!"
"We didn't even see all the elements yet!"
Scene 8 — Tero
The announcer gets excited:
"WOOOW! This candidate is different!"
"He's incredible!"
Tero crosses the arena.
Calm.
Cold.
Effortless.
He reaches the finish line.
First place.
Tero smirks.
"I guess this will be easy."
Scene 9 — Reactions
Stands.
Aiko watches.
"…Impressive."
Susumo nods.
"Indeed."
Ashley:
"He's so fast… no one even saw him move."
General Black:
"We have a clear favorite."
Final Scene
The previously bored general raises his head.
His eyes change.
Real interest.
Close-up on his face.
A slow smile forms.
Dark sound.
Kazume feels something off.
Oliver is impressed… but still uneasy.
Cut.
Bill (narration):
"That changed everything."
"No one had any idea what that boy was capable of…"
"His name is Tero."
"…Does anyone even stand a chance against him?"
End of Episode.