February 4th, 2015 — 3:26 PM.
Patient No. 233 from the Central Morioh Bank fire incident.
Diagnosis: No abnormalities detected in the brain.
"Hey, young man… you don't have any family?"
An old man in the bed next to mine turned his head toward me, his voice hoarse but kind.
"....."
I slowly shook my head.
The old man let out a dry laugh.
"How strange… A young foreigner all alone in Morioh? That's crazy, hahaha!"
I looked at him in confusion. He didn't seem to mind and continued talking.
"My name is Wilro Zeppelin. I'm Italian, but I married a local woman and settled here. I ended up in this hospital because I rushed into the fire to save two little kids from the bank."
He paused for a moment, then smiled faintly.
"At your age, I've already seen a lot of strange things in this city. Morioh… is not like other places."
"?"
I tilted my head, not understanding what he meant by "strange."
I gave him a small nod of thanks, then quietly left the ward and stepped into the long hospital corridor.
I still couldn't understand anything.
I didn't know who I was. I had no memories — not a single fragment of my past. It felt like my entire life had been erased.
My fingers brushed against a city map of Morioh lying on a nearby table. I stared at the text in the corner, but the letters and words looked completely alien to me. I couldn't read them, even though something deep inside told me I should.
Who am I, really?
The question kept echoing in my mind as I stood there, lost in a world that felt both familiar and utterly foreign.
Through the large glass window of the corridor, I watched a flock of birds flying freely across the pale autumn sky.
I wondered…
Could I ever be that free again?
-!
"Patient No. 233, please prepare for discharge! Patient No. 233, please prepare for discharge!"
The sudden announcement crackled through the hospital speakers, making me flinch.
Who was coming to pick me up? And why only now?
I hurried back to my room. There was almost nothing there — just the clothes I had apparently been wearing before the fire. An old sleeveless hoodie with a deep blue hood, a black horse printed on the back, and a pair of faded jeans that looked like they belonged to a different decade.
Did I really dress like this?
I didn't have time to wonder. I quickly changed, returned the hospital tag, and stepped out of the building.
A stranger was waiting for me at the entrance.
He was a young man in his mid-twenties, dressed in a gray windbreaker with a silver cross necklace, black-trimmed shorts, and neatly slicked-back dark hair. His eyes were sharp and brown.
"Yo, kid. You doing okay, Jack? I'm here to take you home."
Jack… Again that name.
Who was this guy? Did I know him? Or was he mistaking me for someone else? No — he had called me by the exact name the doctors used.
"What's with that surprised face?" he laughed. "Don't tell me you're not coming to visit your future sister-in-law? Reina's been missing you like crazy."
Reina…?
"Uh… ahh… uh… m… mm…"
I tried to speak, but only broken sounds came out. I wanted to ask who Reina was.
"Oh right! The doctor said you lost your memory… and your ability to speak properly too." He scratched the back of his head. "I'm Kenta. Kenta Hirose."
Kenta Hirose… The name sounded faintly familiar, like I had heard it somewhere in the hospital, but I couldn't remember why.
"Alright, stop looking at me like I'm a ghost. You wanna go see Yasuho or not?"
Even though I had no idea who Yasuho was, I nodded.
Kenta led me back inside the hospital and up to the 5th floor. When the elevator doors opened, we walked down the corridor to Room 11-B — the same floor where I had been staying.
Before entering, I instinctively glanced toward the old man's room. Through the half-open door, I saw Wilro Zeppelin sitting at the small table, quietly writing something. He looked completely focused.
Just as I turned away, a calm voice called out from inside the room.
"It's been a while, Gappy."
I startled and looked back.
A young man around 23 or 24 years old was standing there. He wore a sea-green button-up shirt with small golden stars scattered across the back, paired with black track pants with white stripes. His presence felt strangely gentle yet sharp at the same time.
"Hey, you've been spending a lot of time abroad lately, huh?" the man called Gappy said with a soft smile.
"Yeah, work's been crazy overseas. Hard to find time to come back," Kenta replied casually.
"Oh? And this must be little Jack. You've grown up quite a bit," Gappy said, turning his gaze toward me.
I froze for a second. Kenta laughed and patted my shoulder.
"Come on, Jack. Say hello to big brother Gappy. Don't you remember? A few years ago he took you to the amusement park."
Even though I remembered nothing, I instinctively bowed my head politely.
Gappy…
Was that his real name? Or just a nickname?
Gappy looked me up and down, his gaze sharp and piercing. Suddenly, cold sweat broke out across my forehead even though I had no idea what was going on.
"You really don't remember anything? Not even how to speak?"
I nodded slowly.
"Looks like you were hurt pretty badly," he said, his voice dropping low.
Suddenly, Kenta's phone rang. He quickly excused himself to Gappy and stepped out into the hallway to take the call, leaving me alone with this complete stranger.
My head was spinning. Out of nowhere, all these people were showing up claiming to be my family. Who wouldn't be suspicious?
Gappy stared at me in silence for a moment, then turned toward the hospital bed where the pink-haired girl lay motionless.
"Yasuho… was hurt by those scum from The Freedom."
His right hand clenched into a fist so tightly that his knuckles turned white, barely holding back his rage.
"Hey kid… Do you believe in extraordinary powers?"
Before I could even react, the air around us shifted.
From out of nowhere, translucent soap bubbles materialized, floating silently in the air. Each one carried a shining five-pointed star inside.
And then came the truly unbelievable part.
Gappy raised his hand toward Yasuho. A much larger bubble slowly rose from her severely injured body, hovering right above her chest. In an instant, the deep burns, gashes, and torn flesh began to heal at a terrifying speed. The wounds closed and vanished as if they had never existed.
"You used to have it too, didn't you?"
5:39 PM, February 4th.
Under the blood-red glow of the setting sun, Gappy sat on the chair, the warm orange light pouring over him and Yasuho.
He looked straight at me with deep, unreadable eyes — eyes that seemed to declare an undeniable truth:
You had it too.
That single look made the doubt inside me grow even heavier.
Who the hell am I?
And what the hell is this "it" he's talking about?!