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Thursday, 4 February 20XX | 10:32 |

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It was just any other day in Ivan Weiss' life. A peaceful day which he loved so much. The sound of birds chirping, the gentle breeze caressing his hair, and the familiar clack clack sounds the teacher made when she wrote on the blackboard.

Everything was peaceful.

Nothing beats peace, no matter how dull or monotonous his daily life could be. At least he could gaze at the distant sky and enjoy the sounds of people and animals around him, or even enjoy the sound of rain.

He couldn't imagine the world being plunged into chaos and war. One where you lived a life of constant uneasiness, wondering who to trust, who would stab your back, or slit your throat when you least expecting it.

He shivered despite the warmth.

Reluctantly he returned to reality and listened to the teacher's explanation.

"...launched an attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941. This resulted in the World War II as we all know. Now, the question. What led the attack on Pearl Harbor?"

No one raised a hand for a moment, until somebody in the back row did. "Um, to demonstrate their superiority?"

"One reason down, nicely done, Yvone. The attack on Pearl Harbor was meant to undermine American morale, so that--"

As the explanation dragged on, Ivan begun stared into space and once again swam in his daydream.

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Thursday, XX/XX/XXXX | 10:40 |

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A lady garbed in white was kneeling in a huge, candle-lit room. Her hands were clasped, as if she was in prayer. Underneath her was a complicated rune that extended to the four edges of the room, with her in center.

In the stillness, she heard somebody approaching and ceased her prayer.

"How is the preparation, High Priestess Lemerista?"

She opened her eyes slowly and faced the newcomer. Bowing, she murmured, "We still need the mana stones, my Lord. Without them, it will be difficult to open a portal to another world."

"How long must we wait, then?"

"Please, cease your worry, my Lord. It takes approximately four hours to deliver the shipment. We will begin the preparation as soon as the shipment arrive."

A small smile crept into his face as he stroked his beard, "All right, then. Proceed as we planned. I am counting on you."

"I will not disappoint you."

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Thursday, 4 February 20XX | 12:47 |

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"Pass!" a ponytailed boy waved several meters ahead of him.

Ivan managed to shake down an opponent tailing him and kicked the ball towards the boy, which then he kicked towards the upper edge of the goalie.

The ball went in!

"Andre boi, you did it!" Ivan ran towards the ponytailed boy and made a mess of his hair.

Andre laughed joyfully, "I was just lucky I had no one beside me."

The rest of the team came and each gave him a bro hug.

"Nice pass, Ivan, mate!" someone slapped Ivan on his back, at which he smiled.

Despite their good teamwork, they lost the match in the end. It wasn't a competitive sport, though. It was just the usual after-lunch match between classmates.

Ivan stretched his body as he walked down the path to the canteen, followed by Andre. The ponytailed boy spoke first, "Man, running around makes me hungry again! I'm gonna grab some grub. You?"

"Nah, I'll pass. I'm not that hungry, so I'll just buy some Pocira. You want something to drink?"

"Oh, I want some Pocira, too!" he groped his pants pockets and produced some money. "The medium size. Here's the money; thanks! Ouf, money is tight this week. Look for a table, a'ight? Imma back in a flash!"

With a nod, both separated. Ivan went to the beverage section and came back with two bottles of Pocira after queueing for a while. His eyes darted back and forth seeking an empty table, and by sheer luck he found one amongst the nearly full canteen.

Before someone stole his spot, Ivan half-running towards it. In the process he almost collided with someone carrying a tray of food, but he skillfully evaded them, thanks to his athletic body.

I made it safely, he thought as he plop on the chair with a small smile. Battle over table became a tradition during lunch time when a crowd of hungry students kept coming nonstop. Thus, finding an empty table was akin to finding a needle inside stacks of hay.

He waved at a familiar guy carying a tray, "Yo, over here!"

"Oh, you really got a table!" Andre smiled ear to ear, placing his tray slowly and sat down, "I did ask for it, but to think you found one! I was ready to eat on the floor just like usual."

"We do that almost every day, I've had enough of it," actually eating on the floor wasn't as bad as people thought it would be. The canteen had many designated areas to eat on the floor, although they were based on the student's choosing. The school then installed several clean cloths and low tables for added comfort.

This was called lesehan.

"I prefer eating on the floor, though. You can even take a nap afterwards," Andre informed and then munched on his savory nasi lemak.

Ivan shrugged at that, "Well, to each of his own."

He got a big smile as a response.

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Thursday, 4 February 20XX | 15:15 |

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The long-awaited school bell finally rang, signaling the end of school day. Most students prepared themselves to go home, while others who belonged in a club stayed behind for one hour or possibly more.

Although Ivan and Andre both frequently played football, they belonged to go-home club, meaning they headed home as soon as the bell rang. This day, too, was no exception.

"...just like King and Ratman," Andre explained as the two came out of the school gate, his hands moving about expressively, "I adore King, or rather, the person behind the King. Why does Ratman patrol Catham? Cuz King exist. But why King exist? Cuz he thinks every superhero needs villains."

"Basically King exists solely for Ratman's heroic deeds? Doesn't he sound like some sort of sacrifice so that Ratman can be famous?"

"No, Bro, you don't understand. They compliment each other. Just as darkness can't exist without light, Ratman and King are made for each other. I said it again, they compliment each other."

Ivan began to feel uncomfortable when he noticed two girls ahead of them snickering. It was obvious they heard their childish discussion about superheroes and supervillains. Carefully he took note of Andre's expression...

...thankfully he didn't hear them. Despite his rather... sturdy build, he was a softie and was easily hurt, especially when others slighted

him about his hobby or interest.

"...examine it closely, the story of these two is humane. Everyone has agenda, the raison d'etre and their actions justify it. Everything isn't as black and white just like fairytales told us."

Ivan was speechless listening to his friend. When he thought about it, his friend was right. Human was a selfish being and driven by hidden agenda, and to understand why someone became evil or did something we didn't expect them to, one must understand the reason behind it.

"If you're this good at understanding fictional characters, wouldn't it be better if you use this skill in your studies? Or better yet, use it to get a girlfriend."

"Ey, shuddup, Bro!" Andre punched his arm, "this and that are different. You can't possi--"

...all of a sudden, the ground underneath them shone.

"Wh-What the hell?!" Andre yelled. Amids confusion, he didn't forget his friend and shielded Ivan with his body.

Two girls in front of them start screaming in fear and ran towards opposing direction, only to bump into some kind of invisible wall.

"The heck is this? We can't get out! Is this a prank or something?" one of them pushed the wall, but to no avail.

"...what should we do?!" the glasses girl whined. "What if we can't get out? I'm scared..."

Her friend quickly produced a phone from her bag, "Don't panic, okay? I got this! I'll call the police!"

"L-Look at the ground!" Ivan pointed at the weird writing that suddenly materialized out of nowhere.

"That looks like some kind of fantasy writing," a new voice joined in. Ivan didn't have the time to see who that was before everything flashed in a bright light.

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Thursday, XX/XX/XXXX | 15:21 |

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"The summoning is a success! We succesfully summoned heroes from another world!" one of many hooded figure in white exclaimed joyfully. Before them, in the center of the rune were the said heroes, in the position exactly as they were summoned: one girl was holding her phone close to her ear, one girl with glasses collapsed on the floor, on the verge of crying, a ponytailed teen shielding his best friend, and one amazingly normal guy behind them.

The soldiers encircling them let out a deafening roar, knowing that their peaceful future was now guaranteed.

The five "heroes", however, was confused beyond belief.