Arou had finished changing clothes. He stepped out of his room wearing something casual—a light jacket, a dark T-shirt, and a simple pair of pants. His school bag had been left behind.
"I'm ready," he said shortly.
Lin got up from the sofa.
"That was quick."
Arou glanced at everyone in the house.
"I'm heading out for a bit."
"Don't stay out too long," Priscilla said.
"Be careful," Lumina added.
"If you get kidnapped, don't cry," Nora chimed in.
"Shut up," Arou replied flatly.
Arou and Lin said their goodbyes and left the house.
---
They walked without any real destination.
No plans. No specific place to go.
Just two people carrying strange secrets of their own.
For the first few minutes, neither of them said anything. The only sounds were their footsteps and the soft morning breeze.
Then—
"Rou."
"Yeah?"
Lin kept her eyes forward.
"Are they really your family?"
Arou was silent for a moment.
"I don't know."
Lin stopped walking.
"How can you not know?"
Arou sighed.
"The truth is… they're people who were never supposed to exist in this world."
Lin quickly turned toward him.
"They came from my dreams," Arou continued. "And somehow… they appeared in my world."
He gave a small, bitter smile.
"I know it sounds weird. But that's what happened."
Lin didn't laugh or look particularly surprised.
Instead, she slowly nodded.
"I see…"
Then, in a calm voice, she said,
"If that's true… then we're the same."
Arou stopped.
"The same?"
He looked at Lin.
"Don't tell me… you too?"
Lin nodded.
"I had the same kind of dream."
"And someone from it appeared in this world?"
"Yeah."
Arou stayed silent for a while.
"…How many?"
"Not many," Lin replied. "But they're strong."
Arou chuckled.
"Strong?"
"Mm."
"Hahaha." Arou laughed lightly. "Maybe the people from your dreams aren't as strong as the ones from mine."
Lin gave him a faint smile.
"Eeh… I guess so."
"Wanna have them fight?" Arou joked.
Lin frowned.
"Fight?"
"I mean… pit them against each other."
Lin immediately shook her head.
"No. That's mean."
Arou shrugged.
"Fair enough."
They continued walking.
---
Eventually, they reached a park.
Arou sat down on a bench, and Lin stood for a moment before sitting beside him. Neither of them talked much. They simply watched people passing by, children running around, and couples laughing together.
After a while, they left.
They stopped at a small restaurant by the roadside, ordered some drinks, and sat there for a while.
Then they headed to the mall.
Bright lights, noisy crowds, escalators going up and down. Arou noticed Lin staring at the shop windows with a blank expression, yet there was obvious curiosity in her eyes.
"Do you come to places like this often?" Arou asked.
"No," Lin answered honestly. "It's… crowded."
"You don't like it?"
"It's not that I don't like it," Lin said quietly. "It just feels unfamiliar."
Arou nodded.
"That's what the real world is like."
They kept walking.
Before they realized it, the afternoon had already arrived.
The sky was turning orange.
Their pace gradually slowed.
The sun was beginning to set, casting long shadows across the road.
Arou stopped walking.
"Lin… let's head back for a while. I have work."
Lin turned toward him, slightly confused.
"Even though it's a public holiday?"
Arou shrugged.
"I don't know. Let's go there first, then."
"Alright."
They headed toward the bookstore. The streets were fairly quiet, probably because most people had decided to stay home.
When they arrived in front of the bookstore, Arou reached for the door.
It didn't move.
He pulled again.
Still locked.
"…It's locked?" Arou muttered.
Lin stepped closer.
"What happened?"
"Looks like they're closed too," Arou said with a small laugh. "Hehe."
Lin stared at him.
"Didn't you ask your boss first?"
"I don't know where he lives."
"You could've called him."
"I don't have his number either."
Lin pointed toward the bookstore window. A sheet of paper with the store's information was posted there, including a phone number.
"This," Lin said. "Isn't that the number?"
Arou stared at it for a moment.
"Eeh… oh. Right. I didn't notice."
He quickly pulled out his phone.
"Alright, I'll call my boss."
The call connected.
"Hello, how can I help you?" his boss answered.
"Uh, sir? It's Arou."
"Oh, Arou. What's up?"
"Is the bookstore closed today?"
"Yeah. It's a public holiday."
"Oh… I see. Sorry for bothering you, sir."
"Don't worry about it."
"Alright, sir. I'll let you go."
"Okay."
The call ended.
Arou slipped his phone back into his pocket.
Lin looked at him.
"Well?"
"It's closed."
"Then what are you going to do now?"
Arou thought for a moment.
"I have no idea."
"Go home?"
"Not really," Arou answered honestly. "It's way too noisy at home."
Lin smiled faintly.
"I see. Then where do you want to go?"
"Maybe we can just walk around for a while," Arou said. "What about you?"
"I'll come with you."
Arou nodded.
"Okay."
They started walking again, with no particular destination in mind.
Their pace was slow, and they filled the time with casual conversation. The city in the late afternoon felt calmer—not too crowded, but not completely empty either.
"So," Arou said while looking ahead, "why did you move to this city?"
Lin thought for a moment.
"I used to live somewhere else by myself."
"By yourself?" Arou glanced at her. "What about your parents?"
"They work in this city," Lin replied. "That's why I came here. I wanted to see them."
"What are their names?"
Lin fell silent.
"…I don't know. I forgot."
"You forgot?"
"Yeah. I know I have a father, a mother, and an older brother."
Arou nodded slowly.
"I see. I guess it's understandable if you haven't seen them in a long time."
Lin simply nodded.
"Mm."
"What about what they look like?" Arou asked. "Maybe I can help you find them."
Lin shook her head.
"Eeh… I don't remember anything."
Arou sighed.
"Yeah… that's going to be difficult."
"You don't have to help me," Lin said quickly.
"Why?"
"I don't want to trouble my friend."
Arou gave her a faint smile.
"Alright. But if I hear anything, I'll let you know."
"Yeah," Lin replied softly. "Thank you."
They kept walking until they reached a bridge. The streetlights were beginning to turn on one by one.
Lin stopped.
"Why did we come here?"
Arou stopped beside her.
"We were walking without a destination, remember?"
Lin went quiet for a moment before smiling.
"Right."
They both laughed softly, without a care in the world.
"I'm sorry," Lin suddenly said.
Arou turned toward her.
"For what?"
"For making you spend the day with me."
Arou shook his head.
"You didn't force me. I wanted to go out too."
The sky grew darker, and the evening breeze swept gently across the bridge.
They continued walking until they eventually reached a park. The park lights were already on, illuminating the paths and neatly arranged wooden benches.
Arou and Lin sat side by side on one of them.
Without saying anything, they both took out their phones. The atmosphere was peaceful, with only the sound of the wind and the occasional footsteps of people passing by.
"Lin…" Arou called quietly.
Lin turned toward him.
"…?"
"Wanna exchange contacts?"
Lin gave him a faint smile.
"Sure."
They exchanged contact information. There was nothing special about it—just a few taps on their screens.
Yet somehow, it felt like their relationship had moved beyond being mere acquaintances.
Not long after, Lin opened another app. Her expression became slightly more serious.
"Rou," she said, tilting her phone toward him. "Have you seen this news?"
Arou leaned closer and looked at the screen.
"A portal?"
"Apparently, mysterious portals have appeared in several places," Lin continued. "Maybe they're portals between worlds."
Arou frowned.
"How do you know that?"
Lin shrugged.
"I'm just guessing."
"Ah." Arou leaned back against the bench. "Maybe it's just AI."
Lin immediately turned toward him.
"AI? Are you calling me?"
"Huh? No." Arou chuckled.
"I mean the information might be AI-generated. You know, unreliable stuff. Sometimes people make things up just to trick others."
He glanced at Lin.
"Your name is Ai Lin, so you misunderstood."
"Oh…" Lin nodded slowly. "I didn't know. Sorry."
Before the atmosphere could return to normal—
Rapid footsteps approached.
Someone was running toward them.
A woman emerged from behind the trees. She had long green hair, a tense expression, and was breathing heavily.
Arou instinctively stood up.
"Who is she?"
Lin froze for a moment.
"…She's someone from my dream."
Arou quickly turned toward her.
"What?"
"Her name is Riel."
Riel immediately looked at Lin in panic.
"Lin, this is bad."
"What?" Lin stood up. "What's wrong?"
"Vowl has come to this world!"
Lin froze completely.
"What?!"
Arou looked between the two of them.
"Hey… who's Vowl?"
Lin swallowed.
"Vowl is the strongest being in my dream."
She clenched her fists.
"We can't even fight it."
"What?!" Arou exclaimed.
Riel looked at Lin anxiously.
"What are we supposed to do?"
Arou, however, smiled faintly.
"Hehehe…"
Lin immediately turned toward him.
"Why are you smiling?"
"Nothing," Arou said casually. "I just want to ask…"
He looked straight at Lin.
"How strong is this Vowl?"
Lin took a deep breath.
"Very strong. I can't even explain how powerful it is."
Her voice trembled slightly.
"In my dream… we died more than sixty times just trying to fight it."
Arou went silent for a moment.
Finally… Zata has found someone worthy of fighting.
"Then," Arou said quietly but firmly, "can I meet it?"
Lin stared at him.
"Eeh?"
Riel immediately shouted,
"Are you trying to get yourself killed?!"
"No," Arou replied calmly.
"If something that powerful is willing to destroy our world…"
His gaze hardened.
"…then my friends and I will be the ones to destroy it."
"Are you kidding me?!" Riel exclaimed.
Lin stared at Arou more closely.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean it," Arou answered.
"For once, we finally have an opponent who's actually strong."
Lin narrowed her eyes.
"Don't tell me… you have powerful beings in your dreams too?"
Arou nodded.
"Yeah."
"How strong?"
"Maybe not as brutal as Vowl," Arou replied simply.
"But they're strong enough."
Arou took a small step forward.
"So… let us fight it for you."
Lin was silent for a moment before giving him a faint smile.
"Then… we'll help you."
Riel sighed.
"Suspicious… but I guess we don't have much of a choice."
Under the dim lights of the park,
three worlds that were never supposed to meet
were slowly beginning to overlap.
And without any of them realizing it—
something far greater
had already begun to move.