Night had fallen some time ago. In the room, the six boys were sitting on the floor after their vow, eyes sparkling with curiosity and excitement. The atmosphere had lightened — almost familiar.

“Can you imagine, Bass? If this world works like in anime… we could have powers, dude!” Arnaud exclaimed, his eyes gleaming.

“That was my first thought,” Bass replied, grinning wide. “Like… maybe I could fly? Or shoot fire, who knows?”

Shadow, leaning against the wall, gave a slight smirk. Even Maxime, usually the quiet one, seemed captivated by the idea.

“Haven’t you two watched one too many shows?” Shadow mumbled.

“So what?” Arnaud shot back, mock-offended. “Just because you’re all dark and brooding doesn’t mean we can’t dream a little!”

While the lively discussion continued, Trafalgar sat silently, watching his friends. A faint smile formed on his lips.

“They’re finally themselves again…”

After everything they had been through since arriving here, this light-hearted moment felt deeply comforting.

But then, Albert’s calm voice broke the joyful rhythm of the conversation.

“Hey, you guys!” he said sharply.

Everyone turned to him.

“Didn’t you find something strange about what the tiger told us?” he asked.

A curious silence fell.

“What do you mean?” Maxime asked, a little confused. “The fact that he talks?”

“No,” Albert replied seriously. “I’m talking about the village attack.”

Trafalgar slowly lifted his head.

“You mean the fact that the attack happened two years ago, even though in our world the first disappearances only began three months ago?”

Albert nodded.

“Exactly.”

The others furrowed their brows, trying to piece it together.

Albert crossed his arms, wearing a smug expression.

“Tch… you guys are slow. It’s amazing how dull you all are. Trafalgar’s the only one who can keep up with me.”

“Just say it already, Mr. Genius,” Shadow sighed.

“Alright, listen up,” Albert continued, clearly proud of himself.
“If we assume the first disappearances happened three months ago in our world, how do we explain that their village was attacked two years ago… by a human from our world?”

“Maybe it was covered up?” Trafalgar suggested. “Or no one reported it. Just a one-off disappearance that went unnoticed.”

“I thought about that too,” Albert admitted. “But there’s another, much more likely explanation: what if… time doesn’t pass the same way here as it does in our world?”

A chill swept through the room.

“Wait… are you saying… three months back home could equal two years here?” Bass asked, stunned.

Albert began mumbling some complex calculations.

“If two years here equals three months there… then a day here would be about three hours in our world, if my math is correct.”

Everyone froze.

“That’s crazy. That means if we stay here a month… we’d only have been gone a few days back home?” Bass whispered.

“Yeah… but it also means time is against us here,” Shadow added. “If people from other dimensions are searching for the keys too… they might already be months or even years ahead of us.”

“And if we stay too long, we might come back… old?” Shadow said, his voice trembling.

A heavy silence settled. Everyone now understood — their journey wasn’t just about survival.

“We don’t have a choice. We need to move!” Arnaud shouted, jumping to his feet. “We have to find those keys before anyone else does!”

But Shadow stopped him, calm yet firm.

“And you’re gonna search with what? Your love of shōnens? We’ve got no powers. No abilities. Nothing.”

A moment passed. Then Trafalgar looked up, his eyes shining with intuition.

“If this world works like in anime… then there must be some kind of energy. Something people use to fight, to defend themselves... Plus, we have the maps and the book.”

Arnaud lit up instantly.

“Yeah! Like inner magic!”

“Maybe,” Albert agreed. “It’s plausible. We’ll ask Solano tomorrow morning. He probably knows the rules of this world.”

Little by little, calm returned to the room. Each boy, lost in thought, measured the scale of the challenge before them.

The Next Morning

The six friends slowly woke up, stretching their stiff limbs. One by one, they headed to the bathroom to wash up. Under Albert’s meticulous gaze, they tidied the room carefully.

“Without me, this place would look like a dump,” he grumbled.

They headed downstairs to the main room where they had eaten the night before. On the way, Trafalgar, a bit absent-minded, turned into the wrong room.

“Dude, that’s the bathroom,” Shadow laughed.

“Ah, right… they should really put up signs!” Trafalgar protested.

Eventually, they reached the main hall. Solano’s wife was there with their four children. She was simply beautiful — around fifty, always smiling. She wore light, clean linen clothes, and her graying hair was neatly tied back. A natural kindness shone from her eyes.

“Did you sleep well, boys?” she asked warmly.

The children, all between four and eight, laughed and played around them, mischievous yet well-mannered.

“Slept like a baby, Mrs. Solano,” Arnaud replied gratefully.

She smiled kindly.

“Oh, just call me Alexandra.”

“Alright then… Miss Alexandra. And where’s Mr. Solano?” Albert asked, sitting down.

“He’s walking around the village,” she answered.

“I see.”

They enjoyed breakfast in a peaceful mood. Warm bread, sweet fruits, and local tea delighted everyone. Once satisfied, Albert pushed back his chair.

“I’ll get some fresh air. I’ll look for Mr. Solano too.”

“I’ll come with you,” said Trafalgar.

“Same here,” Maxime added. “I want to go too.”

“Then we’ll go see Tiger,” said Arnaud. “Let’s make sure he’s okay.”

Alexandra gently intervened:

“Could you take the children with you? They adore him.”

The kids cheered with joy.

“Yaaaay!”

So the group split. Arnaud, Bass, and Shadow headed to Tiger’s room, kids in tow.

In Tiger’s Room

Tiger lay stretched out on large cushions. Seeing the children, he gave a low rumble of joy. They dove into his fur, laughing and playing.

“You’re back,” he said, smiling. “I thought I’d die of boredom.”

“How are you?” Bass asked.

“Fine. Just tired… but mostly, I’m bored to death.”

“That’s good. You need to rest,” Shadow replied.

“Where are the others?” asked Tiger.

“They went to find Solano. He always checks in on the village,” Bass replied.

“The people here are amazing. This family is wonderful,” Arnaud said dreamily. “Miss Alexandra is super kind, and the kids — so well-behaved.”

“That’s true of the whole village,” Tiger replied, stroking one of the kids. “Here, children are all raised according to Magellan’s values. It’s the rule.”

“Wooow…” Arnaud said in awe.

“As for Alexandra,” Tiger continued, “she wasn’t always like this. Two and a half years ago, during Edward’s attack, she took a blow to the head. She lost her memory. Since then, she’s been… someone else. Kinder, more loving. She never got her memories back.”

A thoughtful silence followed. The boys exchanged surprised looks.

Elsewhere in the Village

Albert, Trafalgar, and Maxime strolled through the streets.

“Wait… haven’t we already been here?” Trafalgar asked uncertainly.

“No,” Maxime sighed. “But you seriously have the worst sense of direction — in both worlds.”

“Dude, you almost got lost leaving the house,” Albert added, smirking.

“Hey, it’s my first time here!” Trafalgar protested.

As Maxime kept checking out the village girls with a flirty grin, the locals greeted the boys warmly. They were offered fruit, water… An elderly woman even gave Maxime some medicinal herbs.

Finally, they found Solano, helping an old lady open the shutters of her shop.

“Thank you, big brother,” she said affectionately.

Solano turned, smiled when he saw them, and walked over.

“So, slept well? Had a good breakfast? What brings you here?”

“We were just walking around looking for you,” Trafalgar said.

“Ahh, good,” Solano replied, leading the way.

After a few minutes…

Albert cleared his throat.

“One question. Is there… magical energy in this world?”

Solano raised an eyebrow...

On a Certain Island

In the heart of a giant casino, the air was electric. Chips clattered, glasses clinked, cheers and cries filled the air. Laughing women wove between the tables as croupiers rolled dice with flair.

At the back of the hall, half hidden in shadow, a massive man lounged in an armchair. Surrounded by women in tight dresses and silent henchmen, he laughed heartily. His face was hidden, but his build gave away immense power.

His phone vibrated.

“Hello?” he said in a deep voice.

A woman’s voice responded — soft but serious:

“Been a while.”

“Heh. It has. Any news from Magellan Island?”

“Yes. Something unusual the boss will want to hear.”

The man straightened slightly, now focused.

“Tell me.”

“Six kids… from the other dimension. They showed up yesterday.”

Silence.

“You serious? After all this time…”

He grinned — a dark, menacing smile.

“The attack on Magellan Island was planned in two weeks, but screw it. I’ll give the order to Van Castel. They’ll probably arrive tomorrow at night. And he won’t fail. He never does. And you… capture one of those six kids. Alive. Got it?”

“Yes, sir!”

But who is this mysterious woman on the phone? And who are these enemies lurking in the shadows? Let us know what you think in the comments! 👀🔥