What do you do first when you enter a new world? Yes, Steal!

"Why are we running?!" Kairo yelled, his feet barely keeping up as she dragged him along like a ragdoll.

"We're escaping, obviously," the girl shot back without even glancing at him, her grip firm on his hand as they bolted forward.

"Who are you? Why am I here?!"

"Like I know!" She yelled over her shoulder. "We'll talk after we're not dead."

And then—she stopped. Right in front of them stood some tough-looking guys, black-and-green suits, oversized guns. Blocking their path.

Kairo spun around, but more of them appeared from behind, sealing them in. The narrow hall offered no escape except for a sliding door next to them.

The girl didn't hesitate. She pulled out a minigun—wait, a minigun?—and fired. Magnetic waves shot out, slamming into the control panel beside the door. The door slid open with a hiss.

She shoved Kairo inside.

"Stay there. I'll handle them," she said, and the door slammed shut with a finality that left Kairo stunned.

What the heck is her problem?

He stumbled to his feet, trying to process what was happening. The windows in the room were like one-way mirrors. On the other side, he could see her—well, her silhouette—moving fast. Way too fast.

She zigzagged through the enemies, her body a blur, taking them down one by one. It was like watching lightning take out some seriously confused dudes.

"Is she a raccoon or something?" Kairo frowned, turning around. The room was no school lab, that was for sure. It was a full-on high-tech lab, with alien-looking gadgets everywhere. Just where the hell was he? Did he die or something?

His heart raced. No way. Did I die?

Did I get reincarnated?!

"No freaking way!" Kairo panicked, biting his fingernail. His legs were shaking. "Did Idris actually kill me? Or was it Rayne? No—it was Idris's fault! How dare she?!"

Kairo was losing it. He took deep breaths, trying to calm himself. Mom's probably worried about me...and Ivy... He grimaced. Actually, Ivy's probably celebrating.

Just then, something small and bluish slipped out from the edge of one of the control panels. It looked soft, bouncy, and—alive?

The thing was as big as a fox and seemed to be watching him, but Kairo was too busy spiralling into existential dread to notice.

"Blub...?" It made a cute, squishy sound.

"Huh?" Kairo finally snapped out of it, turning to face the creature. "What the hell?"

The creature inched closer, sliding on the floor like a snail. Kairo raised an eyebrow. "Whose toy is that?"

Curious, he reached out to touch it. The moment his fingers brushed against it, the thing clung to his hand.

"The heck?!" Kairo's eyes widened in shock. He tried shaking it off, stumbling backward. As he struggled, he knocked over a few chemical bottles, but the creature wouldn't budge.

"Oh come on, seriously?" It tightened its grip and—zip!—it clung to his chest, no matter how hard he tried to shake it off.

And then, in one quick motion, it slithered inside him—like it belonged there.

"Heh?" Kairo blinked, his mind still trying to catch up. "What the...?"

Then, his eyes went wide. "Ahhhhhhh!!" he screamed, his face twisted in a mix of horror and confusion. It was the kind of scream that could send shivers down a ghost's spine.

"Where the freak did it go?" He tugged at his shirt like it might magically pop out. But when he stopped, frozen in place, he looked down, his heart pounding. No... Was I imagining that?

Suddenly, the blue screen flickered to life again.

[System: Task Completed

<<1200 astral coins rewarded]

[System: New Ranking Acquired]

[System: Rank: Unknown]

"This thing is really starting to get on my nerves," Kairo muttered, running a hand through his hair, already feeling the weight of everything. His eyes caught sight of some tubes leading toward the corner of the room, stretching into another space. This place definitely wasn't a joke.

Is this some kind of tour? Kairo thought, walking toward the tubes out of curiosity. "Right, no way I'm talking to some glitchy blue screen with random words. I'll look like a total weirdo," he chuckled to himself.

[System: Dares you to say that again!]

Kairo ignored the screen as best he could and turned his attention to what the tubes were connected to—a huge cylindrical capsule, foggy glass, and dozens of tubes sticking out.

"Whoa, what is this?" he muttered, trying to peer inside, but the contents were too blurry to make out. His hand hovered near the glass.

"Don't touch it."

Kairo jumped, freezing at the sudden voice. A man stood behind him—shorter, older, with a shiny bald spot and a serious scowl. He was wearing a lab coat over something that looked like a suit of advanced tech—metal plates, maybe—and one of his hands was entirely robotic.

"How did you get in here?" the man asked, his voice sharp.

Kairo raised his hands, giving a half-surrender, half-gesture of confusion. "Look, I'm just as confused as you are."

The man eyed him suspiciously. "Where's your slave number?"

"Slave number?" Kairo blinked, then grabbed the man by the collar, glaring. "Who do you think you're calling a slave? Do I look like one?"

The man didn't back down. "Uh, yeah. Just look at you. You're smelly and wearing those rags."

"These are baggy clothes," Kairo said, leaning in a little closer, smirking. "It's a trend! Bastard"

The man scowled even harder. "And that smell? What's up with that?"

Kairo hesitated, knowing full well he hadn't showered in days. He scratched his head. Four days... but whatever. Who needs a bath, right? He grinned sheepishly. "I… um… I've been applying a lot of perfume. Basically bathed in it. You're pretty sharp, aren't you?"

The man's face twisted in disgust. "That's what stinks? I thought there was some kind of leak around here, but no—it's you!"

But no one noticed? Kairo thought, but he quickly refocused when he saw something on a nearby screen—silhouettes of people, with some information flashing across it.

"What's that?" he asked, pointing at the screen.

"Hey! That's classified!" The man snapped, immediately scrambling to turn the screen off. "You're not supposed to see that!" He started lecturing Kairo, but the younger man wasn't listening. Instead, his eyes were locked on a small blue chip half-inserted into a control panel slot.

Nodding like he was paying attention, Kairo swiftly swiped the chip and hid it in his pocket. Might as well grab something useful. If I'm stuck here, I'll sell this to make some cash.

"Hey, are you even listening to me?" the man barked, noticing Kairo's quick move. "Did you just take something? You did, didn't you?!"

"I didn't take anything," Kairo lied, but the man was already moving toward him, searching his pockets.

"I said I don't have anything," Kairo muttered, pulling his hands away from the man.

"I know you took it," the man growled, reaching for him and searching his every corner like he owned him. Kairo shoved his face away, taking a step back.

"Just back off, Pervert!" Kairo said, frustrated.

Just then, another screen flickered on.

[Entities Melding: Stage reached: 100%]

[Releasing: S-Level Entity]

[We hereby welcome you! The Chieftain of the Power Zero Anti-existence Analysis Bureau (P-ZAAB)]

The two were so caught up in their argument that they didn't notice the screen at first. But then, there was a sound—the tubes attached to the capsule suddenly detached.

"Huh?" Both of them turned, confused, as the glass on the capsule hissed open, releasing fog into the air.

Then, from the smoke, a tall, imposing figure emerged. The man wasn't wearing anything. He casually ran his fingers through his hair, then grinned wide.

"Hello! Baldy and... your kid?" he greeted with a playful tone.

"Nooooo!" The man screamed in confusion, eyes wide as if he'd seen a ghost. "He actually made it out? Alive?" He spat in disbelief, still staring at the newcomer like he couldn't believe his own eyes.

Kairo, still a little lost, watched as the man walked toward him with a grin that looked like he just found a new toy to play with.

The man extended his hand, his smile growing wider. "You look my age. Why not be friends?"

Something about him felt off, and Kairo wasn't sure what it was, but he couldn't shake the feeling.

"I'm Ariel Stellaris. What's your name?"