CHAPTER 2: INTERSECTION OF STRANGE WATER.

Author's Warning:

This story is not intended for readers under sixteen. It contains language, plot elements, and emotional nuances unsuitable for the immature. Consider carefully before reading, and only continue if you are truly comfortable with the content the story carries.

Part 1.1: Elemental World - Water Realm - Discovery.

Chapter 2: Intersection of Strange Waters.

Before light, there was darkness.

Not a terrifying darkness, but a formless void, soft as water. The body was no longer heavy, nor did it have a shape. Consciousness drifted like a small strand of algae swept along by a current, without pain, without haste, without resistance.

In that place, Shogo heard nothing, nor did he feel the sensation of being watched. No more Tokima. No more surveillance systems. No more days passing like lines of buggy code.

There was only a strange sensation, as if he were drifting through the skin of another world.

And then...

The white light slowly dissolved, leaving behind a damp mist and the sound of waves murmuring in the distance.

Shogo opened his eyes.

The ceiling made of dried leaves swayed gently in the sea breeze. The scent of salt, sand, and herbs mingled in the air. Sunlight filtered through the gaps, illuminating his face, which was pale with exhaustion. Before he could gather his thoughts, he heard a slight movement in the corner of the room.

A girl of about ten years old was squatting nearby, her round eyes wide, her gaze a mix of curiosity and worry. She wore simple clothes, her feet covered in sand, her brown hair matted and tangled from the sea wind.

The first sound was unclear. As if echoed through a layer of water.

Shogo could not understand it. It was just soft, strange syllables, unlike the language of the Cherry Blossom Nation, unlike any system voice he had ever heard.

The sound rang out again, closer this time. Something in his head clicked, like a switch being flipped.

The third time, those sounds... began to arrange themselves into words.

Each letter, each pause, as if his ears and brain were relearning how to listen to a language he had never studied.

Then finally, he heard clearly.

"You... are the one who fell from the sky, right?"

The girl asked, her voice as soft as a whisper.

Shogo sat up reflexively, but a wave of dizziness washed over him, causing him to sway. The girl immediately reached out to steady him.

"Calm down. You fainted on the beach. My grandfather and I found you lying next to a strange object."

"The beach?"

Shogo repeated, trying to connect his fragmented memories. The last thing he remembered was a stream of white light, then the void.

"This is Suiha village, on the edge of the Water Realm,"

The girl said, her eyes never leaving him.

"You are wearing strange clothes, and that weird golden thing, too."

She pointed to the corner of the hut.

Lying there, on a piece of cloth, was the office suit Shogo usually wore, now soaked and covered in sand, and beside it was the golden belt.

The belt looked like a piece of futuristic technology, yet it had the shape of an ancient artifact. The center was a black vortex, still and quiet, yet it seemed to swallow the surrounding light. Shogo stared at it, feeling a strange chill spread throughout his body, as if the object were silently calling his name.

"Little girl, what is the date and year right now?" Shogo asked, his speech erratic as he wasn't used to this.

Hearing this, the girl shouted outside.

"Ah, Grandpa, what date is it today?"

"Today is the tenth of February, in the year eight thousand two hundred and twenty-three, that is all I remember, my dear."

The old man replied.

"That's right, mister. This year is the tenth of February, eight thousand two hundred and twenty-three."

"Oh, and mister, my grandpa didn't let me touch it. He said it is some kind of Divine Object, very dangerous, and sacred."

The girl shrank back.

Shogo reached out, intending to touch the belt.

"Don't touch it."

A calm voice rang out from outside the hut.

Both Shogo and the girl turned. From the misty fog by the seashore, a young man approached.

He was about eighteen to twenty years old, with black hair falling down, the tips dyed blue like ocean waves. His eyes were as cold as the ocean, his gaze both perceptive and guarded.

He wore a type of light armor in sea blue with wave patterns, silver wave-like trimmings running down both sides. On his hips hung a pair of curved swords like crescent moons. Each of his steps on the damp ground made a very soft "clinking" sound, as if the seawater itself was cushioning his every move.

"Are you the one who fell from the crack?"

The young man asked, his voice cold but not hostile.

Shogo nodded, retreating instinctively.

"I... I am Shogo. I don't remember clearly what happened..."

"Kaien. Captain of the 8th Water Guard of the Water Realm."

He replied briefly and stepped fully into the hut, his eyes never leaving the belt.

"Is this yours?"

"I'm not sure. She and her grandfather said it fell with me. I've never seen it before."

Kaien narrowed his eyes, dissatisfied with the answer. He walked around Shogo, crouching to observe the belt more closely. His eyes flashed with vigilance.

"This is not a normal belt. It doesn't carry any clear elemental energy... but there is something deeper, darker."

"Could it be..."

Kaien stood up straight, his eyes still fixed on the belt.

"There are things... that should not exist in any realm."

He spoke slowly, his voice sinking into memory.

"They carry no elemental attributes. Cannot be synchronized. But when they appear, they always come with a... crack in the world."

Shogo swallowed hard, sensing that the thing lying beside him was not just a strange weapon.

"Do you mean... there have been objects like it before?"

He asked in a questioning tone.

Kaien nodded slightly.

"This thing has existed for a very long time, but now I don't see them anymore."

"Usually these things have an element, but yours has none."

"If this thing is misused, it has the potential to destroy an entire Nation."

Shogo shivered involuntarily. The last sentence—sounded like a power he could not comprehend.

"And if someone who is not the owner tries to hold it?"

Kaien turned his head, his gaze sharpening.

"How would I know? I've only heard of it."

The air suddenly grew heavier, but before Shogo could ask anything more, the ground shook... A slight tremor spread from the coastline. The waves, which had only lapped gently before, suddenly rose high.

From offshore, a giant shadow rose—a Level 3 Sea Demon. Its massive body was covered in black scales, its head was a series of fins as hard as steel, and its eyes burned red like fire. It let out a long roar that shook the entire village.

A cry went up from afar.

"Sea Demon! A Sea Demon is coming!"

The curved swords glowed at his hip, and water from the air gathered into a pale blue aura surrounding him.

"Stay here. Don't let that thing touch you, understand?"

Saying this, he lunged out of the hut, moving like a rushing torrent, heading towards the Sea Demon's position.

Shogo stood frozen. His heart hammered wildly. His entire body seemed to stiffen.

The sea roared like a beast being awakened. From the surface, a giant creature emerged, its body covered in a layer of black scales like charred steel, its head fins as sharp as spears, its fiery red eyes swirling deep like hell.

"Sea Demon..."

Kaien muttered softly, his feet sinking slightly into the sand, his hands raising to the hilts of his swords.

The Sea Demon's body towered like a living cliff. Every time it moved, the entire sea surface vibrated, creating waves running counter to the wind. On its back, sharp black horns stood upright, glinting with a metallic sheen under the afternoon sun. Under the dry, rough scales, strips of black mucus, shiny as an oil spill, dripped onto the water, where dead fish floated white-bellied.

Its mouth split vertically, stretching across almost its entire head, revealing rows of teeth stacked like saw edges. When it roared, the sound didn't just echo; it vibrated like a sonic breaking frequency, causing the listener's chest to ache.

Kaien hissed through his teeth:

"It's a Tri-Segment Sea Demon... This is bad."

Shogo turned, not yet having asked when from the monster's chest, dark flesh masses suddenly split open.

From there, three large tentacles reached out like steel whips, each nearly ten meters long, surprisingly flexible. The tip of each tentacle divided into three branches, flat like scythe blades, capable of slicing stone like thin paper.

"It doesn't just use brute force."

Kaien said in a low voice.

"This type has the ability to temporarily poison seawater and absorb elemental energy upon physical contact."

The Sea Demon slammed its fins into the water.

From its back, a black-purple streak of light rolled down, then launched a stream of corrosive gas—not the breath of fire, but a form of material decomposition reaction. Wood, stone, metal that came into contact all turned black, smoldering without fire.

Shogo stood still. The veins in his ears pulsed in erratic rhythms. The smell of salt, blood, and sea wind mixed like a fierce nightmare. He couldn't believe his eyes. This wasn't a game, not a movie—this was real.

"This creature... can't be real."

"No, I have a feeling I've seen something even more terrifying."

He stepped back a pace. But he couldn't take his eyes off Kaien, the young man standing in the face of danger without hesitation.

"Stay away from here."

Kaien's voice was low, not loud, but very clear. And then he lunged.

Shogo was stunned. In that moment, the world seemed to slow down a beat.

Kaien didn't run like a person; he moved like water sliding past every obstacle. His entire body merged with the movement, his two swords drawn, a blue light spreading softly, as if the sea were whispering.

BOOM! A tail whip from the Sea Demon made the sea explode. But Kaien was already in the air. He spun, his blade carving a curve like moonlight.

"Scales... the scales were cut?"

Shogo gasped. The giant monster screeched, blue blood spraying out in streams.

Steam rose like mist, but he clearly saw: Kaien stepped across every wave, every wind, as if he had lived here his whole life. Not a wasted movement. Every blow was chillingly beautiful.

"I am witnessing... another world. A person of this world. Unlike anyone in the place I used to live."

Then the Sea Demon sprayed a black gas—poison, perhaps. Shogo was blown backward, even though he was standing far away. But Kaien stabbed his sword into the ground, "Water Shadow Wall!" A wall of water was created as currents gathered and blocked the attack like a natural reflex.

It didn't just block; it countered. The poisonous gas was swept back, forcing the Sea Demon to retreat.

"No armor needed... No giant weapons needed... Just himself."

Shogo swallowed hard. His throat was dry.

Shogo felt his heart beating fast, very fast. But not because of fear. He was startled to realize: he was feeling something. Truly.

Not just "psychological fluctuations" scanned and filtered by the Tokima system. Not fake emotions after being balanced by neuro-stabilizers.

But... fear. Amazement. Admiration. Confusion. And even a spark of grit rising up.

All at once. Strong. Full. Real.

How long had it been, three years since he felt anything that real?

He looked at his hands, still skin and flesh, but something was different. As if his nervous system had just been unmuzzled, and now, every emotional signal surged like a broken levee.

—"In Tokima... this would be considered an emotional imbalance, taken away by a red color chart; if I didn't stabilize in time, I would be..."

But here, he was no longer watched by anything, no longer bound by rules. No longer advised by medical staff to take sedatives because "emotional indicators easily exceed the threshold."

He was feeling. Wholly. Freely.

And because of that, it made him feel... alive.

He saw a light nearby.

The golden belt emitted a faint light. The black vortex began to spin slowly, as if responding to the chaotic heart beating within him.

A voice rang out... as if echoing from the depths of his consciousness.

—"Are you afraid?"

"...No."

Shogo replied silently, his hands trembling.

—"Don't tell me you're just going to stand and watch, like that time?"

"...No."

—"Then... accept this power; you will no longer be someone who stands and watches."

Shogo looked down at his palms. He didn't know what world this was. Didn't know who he was in this giant picture. But for the first time in his life... there was something beyond reason, beyond ordinary logic.

He no longer wanted to just stand on the sidelines, not out of duty, not because someone told him he had to. But because... his heart was saying it for itself.

The wind blew against him, salty and bitter. Sand covered his clothes. But Shogo felt none of it.

He sat amidst the sound of waves, the sound of swords clashing and monsters screaming, yet he felt as if he were in another place, deep within himself.

The light from the golden belt entered his pupils, his heartbeat and breath becoming one. No longer in Tokima. No longer on Earth. No longer the past, the sorrow, or the name that once made him choke up.

There was only one question.

"If this is a chance to live again, not as a shadow."

—"do I dare to step forward?"

Shogo clenched his fist, his hand still trembling. But not because of fear.

He slowly stood up, eyes fixed on Kaien, who stood amidst the waves splashing like fireworks.

—"If I have to choose... then this time, I don't want to be the one standing behind, I don't want to be a failure who only knows how to watch."

On an island on the opposite side, on a moss-covered rocky outcrop high above the opposite shore, a hundred paces from Suiha village, a figure stood quietly watching.

A dark cloak fluttered in the sea breeze. Long hair hung past the shoulders, the figure small and thin but standing as straight as if unaware of the wind. From behind, age and gender were indistinguishable; only a gaze locked onto the bearer of the golden belt below.

A soft laugh rang out, like someone talking to themselves:

"Oh? The vortex has started reacting? After 1000 years, it appears again."

The voice was unclear if it was happy or curious, but contained a secret satisfaction.

"No one touched it, yet... it still fluctuates. He is unlocking it himself, hahaha, the Divine Object has chosen a new owner."

A strong wind rose. The cloak billowed up as if lifted off the ground. The person turned and disappeared behind the cliff, leaving nothing but the sound of the waves.

———

Side Story, optional reading.

SIDE STORY:

YEAR 2191, MINUTES OF THE SECRET MEETING AT THE CHERRY BLOSSOM NATION

Underground Meeting Room 7-Delta lay deep beneath the capital city of Tokima, white light shining down on faces so calm they no longer resembled humans. No one blinked faster than the regulation, heart rates were kept between 45–55, expressions were as emotionless as wax statues.

Because—

If emotions exceeded 50 points, they would die immediately.

That was the new punishment imposed on the entire Cherry Blossom Nation a few days ago.

Sitting at the head of the table was Prime Minister Kishimoto Reiji, his frame thin, his back straight as if fixed by a steel frame.

To his right were:

Hisatomi Kenichi, Minister of Defense.

Shiramine Aoi, Director of Internal Affairs.

Yasuhara Takumi, Director of Technology.

And in the position of special guest, wearing a long dark blue cloak, was the man from the Dragon Nation:

Zhao Min Kai, the soon-to-be manager of the emotional system for the entire Cherry Blossom Nation, and also the diplomatic bridge between the two superpowers.

His face was calm, his black eyes deep like an ancient well. He also had to keep his emotions below 50 because he was stepping onto territory subject to the penalty.

A beep sounded, the screen in the middle of the meeting table lit up, displaying cold information that had been recorded:

Announcement from the Rule System: Instance: "God-Demon Great War"

Status: Challenge failed.

Player: Hoshino Shogo.

National Penalty: Emotional threshold limited to below 50 points.

Death Threshold: 50 points or higher.

Duration: 5 years

The meeting room was deathly silent.

Not because they were thinking much, but because... they didn't dare to think too deeply.

Kishimoto Reiji spoke in an even tone, neither rising nor falling, like a machine reading a document:

"Start the meeting. Topic: Hoshino Shogo failed the SSS-level instance, God-Demon Great War, leading to national-level punishment."

Hisatomi Kenichi replied in the exact same tone.

"Hoshino Shogo is the head of the S-Class Player project. His failure... has been confirmed by the Rule System. I suggest not prosecuting him criminally, as that would create national emotional fluctuation."

Shiramine Aoi opened the file, her voice as thin as paper:

"The rule system appeared in front of the central plaza, issuing the penalty. Nationwide, the death rate due to emotions exceeding the threshold in the first 48 hours is 5.4%. The number is currently stable."

No one had any reaction. No anger, no panic, no pain.

They didn't dare.

Zhao Min Kai, a man of the Dragon Nation, quietly turned a page of a document. His voice was deep, but he absolutely did not let any emotion show:

"The Dragon Nation assesses that this punishment from the rule system is... let's call it very light, since the people of the Cherry Blossom Nation rarely express emotions anyway. It's lucky that the player Hoshino Shogo survived; otherwise, the loss for the Cherry Blossom Nation would have been the erasure of 70% of the population."

Yasuhara Takumi looked up:

"Mr. Zhao, thank you for the Dragon Nation's assessment. Regarding the technical support request, we... are ready."

Kishimoto Reiji ordered:

"We need an absolute emotional monitoring device, wearable and updated in real-time. The margin of error must not exceed 0.001."

Yasuhara nodded.

"The science team has started designing. Hoshino Shogo is also participating."

This statement for the first time caused a slight fluctuation in the room, but only at the 1–20 point emotional level, not enough to cause danger.

The name of the failure... remained a heavy shadow in this cold room.

Zhao Min Kai spoke up.

"I would like to add. Although emotions are limited, everyone can still maintain an index from 0 to 50 without being processed by the rule system. But... if the nation appears with another individual failing, it could create a new penalty; the Rule System is not merciful to the failures, the new penalty could be heavier than this."

The two words "new penalty" made the room temperature drop a few degrees, feeling like everyone was standing in a funeral where no one was allowed to be sad.

Kishimoto Reiji closed the file.

"So we agree, implement the Emotion-Band project immediately, a monitoring bracelet for the entire population. Completion deadline: before 2191/12/31."

"Understood."

"Understood."

"Understood."

Each person replied as if pre-programmed.

When the meeting ended, Zhao Min Kai walked out into the long corridor covered in black glass. He looked far towards the Sakura tower, where the young man named Hoshino Shogo was diligently installing sensors, trying to repair the mistake he created.

—"I didn't expect a genius like Hoshino Shogo to choose the wrong side in the instance. Fortunately, our player chose the right side."

—"The entire Dragon Nation should thank that kid, Zhao, now I have to get used to it here."

Zhao Min Kai breathed a very light breath.

The gauge on his left wrist reported:

[Emotion: 12/50], stable

He thought, as cold as a sharp wind:

"The year 2191 has just begun... The Cherry Blossom Nation will still have to pay a long price, I'll just have to wait for the next challenge."

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