Outside the classroom window, a gentle breeze carried the scent of spring. The sky stretched wide and blue, clouds drifting lazily across the horizon. From his seat in the third row, Tanaka Izumi stared blankly outside, eyelids heavy, lost in the lull of the scenery.
"Tanaka-kun…"
A voice reached his ears, but it sounded slow and distorted—like a dream.
"Tanaka Izumi!"
His eyes blinked open as the voice sharpened.
"Y-Yes?!" he snapped back to reality.
The stern eyes of Ms. Nakami, their English teacher, stared directly at him. "If you're not going to pay attention, you can stand in the hallway."
With a sigh, Izumi stood, scratching the back of his head as he dragged himself out of the classroom. He leaned against the wall in the hallway and muttered to himself, "I was up all night studying physics… I just want to make it to the IPhO…"
As he spaced out, a pair of students passed by—one male, one female.
The guy was slightly taller than Izumi, with sharp black hair and pale red eyes that gave him a distant look. The girl beside him had flowing dark hair with soft blue tips at the ends, her eyes a striking violet. She walked past without noticing Izumi at all, but the guy gave him a casual side glance—nothing special, just the kind of look people give in passing.
"I've seen that guy a lot," Izumi murmured. "He's in the last class, but he's actually pretty smart. He's won a bunch of math and science competitions… maybe he's just a troublemaker. That's probably why he's behind in classes."
Before he could spiral further into his thoughts, a cheerful voice echoed through the hallway.
"Heeey! Izumiii!"
It was Sota, his close friend from another class, waving as he jogged over.
"I just wanted to tell you—there's gonna be a tech expo tomorrow at Narita Mall! Naomi, Kenji, Asahi, and I are going. Wanna come?"
Izumi hesitated. "I don't know… IPhO is next month, and I still have—"
"C'mon, just this once! It'll help you relax. You can't just study forever!"
Reluctantly, Izumi gave in. "...Fine. I'll meet you all at the entrance."
The next morning, the group met at the mall entrance as planned. The center of the mall was abuzz, a massive stage set up for the expo—but the event hadn't started yet.
"There's like 25 minutes until Raidon Hiroshi shows up," Naomi said, eyes sparkling with excitement. "Let's grab some hot boiled peanuts before it starts."
They walked over to a nearby stall.
"Yes, can I help you?" the vendor asked politely, then muttered under his breath while preparing the peanuts, "Poor kids… still in high school."
Just as Naomi turned to leave, the vendor suddenly called out.
"Hey."
She paused and looked back, confused.
"If you came for the expo… sorry to break it to you. It's been postponed to next week."
"What?!" Asahi looked like she was about to cry, but accepted the news without protest.
The group looked disappointed—except for Kenji, who didn't really care for tech. He'd only come because Naomi was going.
"Well, we're already here," Sota said, trying to lighten the mood. "Let's just hang out for a while."
They agreed and eventually ended up on the third floor, relaxing and chatting. From there, they had a perfect view of the expo stage below.
Suddenly, a loud voice boomed through the speakers.
"Hello, and thank you all for attending my expo!"
Everyone froze.
"Wait… isn't that—?!" Naomi gasped.
"It's Raidon Hiroshi!" Sota exclaimed.
From below, Raidon stood confidently on stage, addressing the crowd.
"My name is Raidon Hiroshi. Today, I present our newest invention—Gamma Energy. Energy so powerful, it can turn the impossible… into possible. With this everlasting source, we can build infrastructure, feed the hungry, and revolutionize technology. These stones are the new gems of modern science."
Back on the third floor, something smelled… off.
"Ugh, what's that smell?" Naomi said, covering her nose.
The stench of rotting garbage wafted from the elevator behind them. It opened slowly, releasing a thick green gas. A figure stepped out.
A man in a hooded coat, wearing a gas mask.
In his right hand, a shotgun. In his left, a rifle.
Before the doors fully opened, his arm stretched out—and he fired the shotgun at a nearby man, killing him instantly.
Screams erupted.
Chaos broke loose.
The hooded man began shooting anyone in sight as the mall erupted into madness.
The kids ran.
They sprinted toward the other elevator to escape. One by one, they piled in—except for Asahi.
A gunshot rang out. She fell to the ground, a bullet in her chest.
"Asahi!!" Naomi screamed.
Inside the elevator, time stood still. They watched helplessly as the doors closed, sealing their escape.
"What's happening right now…?" Sota's voice trembled. His hands shook.
Kenji pounded the elevator wall in rage, fists clenched. Naomi sobbed silently, crumpled in the corner.
Izumi stood still. He said nothing. But inside, he felt something breaking.
Back on the stage, Raidon's expression shifted when he heard the chaos above. Gunshots echoed through the mall. Panic spread through the crowd.
He quickly retreated backstage, escorted by his bodyguards.
As he ran through the back exit, a dead body crashed from above and struck him. He escaped—but not without injury.
The kids reached the first floor, breathless.
"We need to find the second entrance," Izumi said quickly.
Suddenly, the sound of heavy stomping came from outside.
An elephant burst through the glass doors of the first entrance.
Riding on its back was a girl wearing a hood, laughing maniacally. She wore no mask.
"WHAT THE HELL?!" Sota shouted.
They turned and ran toward the second entrance—but the automatic doors were jammed.
"This way! The back exit!" Izumi yelled.
As they bolted, two monkeys leapt from above and latched onto Kenji.
"Go!" Kenji yelled. "I'll catch up!"
Izumi grabbed one of the monkeys and flung it off. But more jumped in.
"Is this place a zoo now?!" Kenji yelled, fighting them off. "Don't worry about me! Just go!"
They hesitated—but finally ran for the exit. The three of them burst outside where police had already arrived.
"Come this way!" an officer shouted, waving them to safety.
They collapsed into the arms of rescuers, overwhelmed by what they had just witnessed.
Later, at the evacuation center, the three sat in silence.
Naomi hadn't spoken a word. Sota tried to comfort her. Izumi, meanwhile, scanned the crowd.
He saw around 40 survivors in total.
And among them—the guy with pale red eyes and the girl with blue-tipped hair.
"…Why are they here too? Are they always together?" he wondered. "Is she his girlfriend or something?"
Curious, he walked over.
"What are you two doing here?" he asked.
The guy glanced at him. "Just came to buy some toys. Why?"
"Toys? For what?"
The girl snapped. "It's none of your business!"
Izumi felt a pang of guilt. "S-Sorry… have you seen a tall guy in an orange shirt with long hair? Kinda buff? That's my friend."
They both shook their heads.
"…Thanks anyway."
He returned to his group without saying anything, not wanting to shatter their hope.
That day, only 40 survivors were found.
All were taken to the local police station to give statements.
Naomi was too traumatized to speak.
Sota trembled through the entire process.
Izumi… sat quietly, emotions buried deep beneath his calm expression.
Somewhere in the chaos… their lives had changed forever.