Yumi Tachibana (1)
*Yumi Tachibana ran quickly towards her school. Today, she woke up late, and now she was trying hard not to be late for class. After running for several minutes, she finally arrived at school and headed straight to her classroom.
However, as she stepped into the room, suddenly a mysterious light appeared beneath her feet.
"Huh? What's this light?" Yumi was startled, her eyes widening.
Before she could react, the light enveloped her entire body. And in an instant, Yumi suddenly found herself in the middle of a vast forest.
"Huh? Ah! What's going on?" Yumi panicked, her eyes scanning her surroundings. There was nothing but towering trees and the sound of leaves rustling in the wind.
"W-what is this… Why am I suddenly in the middle of a forest?" she murmured, her voice trembling.
She tried to take a few steps forward, and there, she saw someone lying on the ground.
"Ah, there's someone… Should I wake them up?" Yumi hesitated. She observed the person carefully. They were wearing a school uniform, but it was clearly not a Japanese school uniform.
"Hmm… Alright, let's wake them up," Yumi decided, though her heart was still filled with fear. She was afraid that the person might be a bad guy, especially since she was in this unfamiliar forest.
Carefully, Yumi approached the person and started shaking their body.
"Hey, hey… Wake up!" Yumi tried to wake them up with a firm voice.
The person slowly opened their eyes, still looking drowsy.
"Who are you?" they asked, their voice hoarse.
*Ah, they're speaking Japanese,* Yumi thought, relieved.
"Yumi Tachibana!" she answered quickly.
The person—who turned out to be named Zen—looked at Yumi with a confused expression.
"Are you Japanese?" Zen asked while sitting up, his eyes still scanning the surroundings.
Yumi nodded, feeling a bit relieved that Zen could speak Japanese. "Thank goodness you can speak Japanese. I thought I was alone here."
Zen sighed, then stood up. "Where are we now?" he asked, his eyes continuing to scan the environment.
"That's what I wanted to ask you!" Yumi replied, her voice sounding panicked.
Zen fell silent for a moment, then suddenly his expression changed. He looked alert.
"What's wrong?" Yumi asked, puzzled.
"Quiet," Zen whispered, his eyes sharp.
Yumi immediately hid behind Zen, her heart pounding. Shortly after, five goblins emerged from behind the bushes.
*What are those goblins?* Yumi could hardly believe what she was seeing.
"Stay a bit behind me," Zen commanded, his voice calm but firm.
"Ah, O-okay," Yumi nodded quickly, then took a few steps back.
The goblins immediately attacked Zen. But Zen moved swiftly, dodging every attack. Quickly, he seized a wooden weapon from one of the goblins and used it to fight back.
*Thud! Thud!*
Zen struck the goblins with precision and impressive strength. In a matter of seconds, all the goblins were lying on the ground, motionless.
Yumi was stunned, her eyes wide as she watched the scene. *He defeated them all so easily… Is this a dream?*
She approached Zen, her voice still trembling. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine," Zen replied while looking at his now dirty school uniform.
Suddenly, a transparent screen appeared in front of them. Glowing text was clearly displayed:
**[Level Up!]**
"Huh? W-what is this?" Yumi was shocked, her eyes staring at the screen in confusion.
Zen also fell silent, his eyes narrowing.
"This… Clearly, this is a system."
Yumi, who enjoyed reading isekai novels, immediately recognized what was happening. But there was something that confused her.
---
[STATUS]
◆ Name: Yumi Tachibana
◈ Health: [100/100]
◈ Stamina: [100/100]
◈ Level: 2 (+1)
⋮
✧ Abilities:
⤷ Water Affinity [Basic]
---
*Ah, this is my status? But… Why did I level up? Wasn't it him who killed the goblins?*
Yumi turned to Zen, who was also staring at the screen with a puzzled expression.
"Hey, can you see this?" Yumi asked, her voice full of wonder.
Zen nodded slowly. "It seems like this is a system. But… Why don't I have a system?"
*Ah, it seems he can see my system. But why doesn't the system appear in front of him? This is strange…*
Yumi thought about it for a moment, but couldn't find an answer. She looked back at the screen, trying to understand what was happening.
*It seems because he doesn't have a system...* Yumi's thoughts wandered as she looked at Zen, who was inspecting the wooden weapon he had taken. *So I'm the one who leveled up? I feel a bit guilty.*
Her gaze shifted to her status, which was still floating in the air. *By the way, now I have water powers, huh?*
"Then, how do I use this power?" she murmured softly.
The system screen immediately changed, new text appearing with flowing water-like animations:
—
[TUTORIAL: WATER AFFINITY]
---
[ Your water power will manifest according to your will and imagination"
Examples:
• Focus on your palm → Water appears
• Strong emotions + hand gestures → Water attack
• High concentration → Form a water shield,]
---
"Ah, the system can talk!" Yumi exclaimed in surprise.
---
[SYSTEM EXPLANATION]
[Yes. I am the System Guide created specifically for those 'summoned' to this world. Allow me to explain]
[Health Bar reaches 0, you will die,]
[Stamina will decrease when using skills. If stamina reaches 0, you
cannot use your powers.
- Recover by: resting/eating]
---
Yumi nodded slowly, starting to understand. "Ah, I see. I get it."
"By the way, I want to ask, why doesn't the person next to me have a system?"
[""--""]