[////// POV]
Inside a metro, a teenage boy sat in a corner, slowly scrolling through his phone while reading something.
"Waaa! Waaa!"
"Tsk… Make that brat shut the hell up! Why are you having babies if you can't even control them?!"
"I'm sorry!… Darling, please—"
"Waaaawaa!"
Looking to his right, he saw a baby crying while a furious man hurled insults at the mother, who was desperately trying to calm the child, though it was clearly pointless.
"Seriously! Some of us are tired from work and you—"
Looking around, the boy noticed no one was doing anything, as if the man was right and the woman should've just walked all over Tokyo with the baby. He wondered if he should step in.
'Can a foreigner like me really stand up for someone else?'
His family had moved from the US for work, and ever since, he had always felt like a stranger in his own life.
That thought lingered for a moment. Eventually, he turned back to his phone and resumed reading a novel called Fate's Outcast, which had become quite popular in Japan. Before he could finish the chapter, a sound echoed through the metro.
Ding
"Next station! Shibuya!"
'Finally.'
"Waaa!"
He glanced one last time at the baby still crying in her flustered mother's arms, while the angry man continued shouting.
"I'm sorry… maybe someone else."
For him, it was always someone else. Saving a stranger or confronting an angry adult weren't things he would ever do. Turning away, he stepped off the metro and disappeared into the crowd.
"Haha… He totally deserved it."
"Imagine taking a girl to McDonald's on their first date."
"Haaa… Yeah, I'm really unlucky."
Looking up, he saw a group of gorgeous girls whispering, glancing at a guy while making harsh remarks.
'The hell is wrong with McDonald's?'
He thought for a moment, but after glancing at his own body, he dismissed it… he wasn't athletic; in fact, he was quite overweight.
Bump
"Ah! Sorry—"
As he exited the station, someone bumped into him and disappeared before he could respond. Well, this was Tokyo—a city for people with busy lives, something he clearly didn't have.
"Haaa… alright."
Without thinking much about it, he walked down the street until he stopped in front of a house. Unlocking the door, he stepped inside.
creak
"I'm home!"
"Heyo!"
A young boy answered. They shared the same features—it was clearly his brother.
"Did they leave again?"
"Yeah, they went to an event."
"Oh… great."
"There's good food on the table though!"
"Yeah, let me change first. I'll be right there."
"Alrighty!"
There was no sign of their parents. It was late, but work seemed to keep them busy. His tone made it clear he was frustrated by their absence.
thud
Entering his room, he tossed his backpack onto the bed and opened his laptop.
'Yeah… I can finally finish the last chapter.'
To be honest, Fate's Outcast had been a long ride—over 1000 chapters—and he was finally near the end. He was what most would call an otaku, having read over 200 novels already.
'Hmm… Wh-what?'
Something strange happened. The novel was gone from the website. In a hurry, he searched other platforms, but nothing appeared—as if it had never existed.
'Impossible.'
He opened X and searched for it.
Nothing.
No posts, no mentions.
So he made one himself.
#Hey, does anyone know anything about Fate's Outcast?
The f*ck are you talking about?
What even is that?
Is that a movie or something?
Idk.
Nice bait bro.
'Ragebait?? Man…'
Frustrated, he pressed his hands against his forehead and collapsed onto the bed.
"Nathan! Come on!"
"Yeah, coming."
His little brother called him. Nathan sighed, changed quickly, and went downstairs. His brother was already eating pizza.
"After we eat, wanna play FIFA?"
"Sure, but I'm not going easy on you."
"Yeah, yeah~."
In reality, Nathan was terrible at the game and always lost. But he loved his little brother, so he kept playing anyway.
[////// POV]
"Yo, pass the ball!"
"Finish it!"
Ignoring his teammates, a boy rushed forward, struck the ball, and scored. He celebrated with a "suiii," as his teammates piled on him.
"Good job, Adrian!"
"Haha, nice one!"
His name was Adrian, a teenage boy training to become a professional football player at an academy in the UK.
Bzzz Bzzz
"I gotta go! See ya!"
His phone vibrated. He rushed off while his teammates called after him. Reaching the locker room, he changed quickly and stepped outside, where a car was waiting.
thud
"Any goals today, kiddo?"
"Bet. Two goals."
"That's my boy."
"Thanks, Dad!"
They fist-bumped as the car pulled out and joined a busy road.
"Haa… seriously."
"Mind if I put something on?"
"We're stuck anyway. Go ahead."
His dad sighed, staring at the traffic. Adrian put in his AirPods and started scrolling through reels.
'Hmm? A novel disappeared?'
A video popped up—a YouTuber reacting to weird X posts. One was about a guy losing his mind over a missing novel.
'His ID… alright.'
Curious, Adrian searched it. The guy had made dozens of posts, begging for the novel to come back.
'What the hell…'
He checked the account location.
Japan.
'Weird…'
"Finally, we're moving."
Traffic cleared. After about twenty minutes, they arrived home.
"I'm heading in first."
"Alright! I'll park."
Adrian entered without greeting anyone—his mom wasn't there.
thud
He dropped onto his bed, exhausted. Still, he changed, sat at his desk, and opened his computer.
'Time to call the boys.'
He joined Discord, and soon his friends were online. They played for about an hour until—
"ADRIAN! DINNER!"
"C-coming!"
His dad's voice sent a chill down his spine. He apologized to his friends and left the game.
"Sit. Let's pray."
"Okay."
They weren't religious, but after the accident, they had started praying.
'Mom… I'll become the best player in the world for you.'
That was his promise.
A year ago, she died.
It changed everything.
His dad stayed strong and helped him move forward.
"Uhm… Dad, can you—"
"Alright, go back to your friends."
"Yaa! Love you, Dad."
Shameless, but his dad understood.
Adrian rushed upstairs and opened his computer again.
But instead of his game…
A black screen.
White words.
'Fate's Outcast'
His eyes widened.
The same name.
Then—
Darkness.
No sound.
No warning.
He collapsed onto the keyboard.
And everything went black