Falling at high speeds, the two were in utter fear as their body was spinning uncontrollably in the sky. Falling from the sky, they slowly passed through clouds as they could see the Earth below.
Neil wanted to scream, scream his heart out at the fact that they were supposedly falling to their doom. But he couldn't.
How could he? After seeing what the boy had done, Neil knew he had to stop him. He had just hoped that the authorities would believe what sort of explanation both the librarian and the boy had come up with.
"A weird vortex opening up in the middle of the library... Like anyone would believe that..."
Neil mumbled to himself as they picked up speed, closing his eyes for a moment to think.
Speaking of boys, Neil looked to his brother to see if he was ok. As expected, he was screaming his lungs out while his body flailed around.
Klein was filled with so much regret, he was just trying to close the portal. He felt stupid as he remembered how, moments ago, he recklessely ran towards the book and tore page after page.
He thought it'd fix everything, when it just made things worse.
Panicking and unsure of what to do, he looked to his brother Neil only to find him seemingly tranquil.
"Wh-What the fuck?!"
He could only spout out as his brother's eyes were shut like he was at peace. Looking back to the ground below and having screamed enough, Klein noticed the green below forming into a forest, spanning miles around them.
To their right, Neil noticed smoke, and not only smoke, buildings. The type of buildings you'd see remade in a museum, or one that you'd normally see in an Isekai Manga.
Even further than that, an even bigger building could be seen in the distance, just barely in sight as he noticed a glowing blue flash of light causing him to recoil and close his eyes.
Neil was unaware of the ground that they were only metres away from crashing into, as Klein grabbed his brother by the shirt.
"Get behind me Neil!"
It was almost out of instinct to put Neil behind himself, he was willing to take the full impact if it meant saving his brother. Klein was going to make sure it wasn't his brother, never his brother.
Closing his eyes and bracing for impact, Neil did the same as he took one more breath before clashing with the earth.
But then, there was silence.
Their eyes were closed, and they had expected death to come immediately after...
But it didn't.
Neil opened his eyes to find the ground inches away from Klein's head. The gusts of wind coming to a halt, almost as if time had stopped for both of them.
Their bodies had come to a complete halt, frozen in the air. The bristled grass moving with the weak gales of wind, as his hair drooped down.
What is this...?
Slowly reaching his hand out to touch the grass, and as if on queue, gravity returned. Falling on top of each other as Neil fell onto Klein, his older brother's face slamming into the grass.
Having expected the impact to be more fatal, Klein opened his eyes to find both of them completely harmless, with Neil looking more astonished at what had just happened.
"What the hell? How are we still alive?"
"I... Honestly don't know..." The brothers were dumbfounded, as they were now just lying beside each other. As Klein tried to get his bearings, Neil stood up and began to look around for any sign of where they might be.
At least the trees were the same, glad that hasn't changed.
It was like an untouched park, as some parts of stone could be noticed within the tall grass. Birds chirped in the distance, along with the sun and clouds looking identical to the one back home.
It didn't help him figure out where exactly the portal had taken them to.
"I've got no idea where we are," Neil said to Klein, just as confused as him.
"Well we're in some sort of clearing, no trees directly near us so... Maybe this spot was used for something."
Klein said, opting for Neil to double-check their surroundings.
He wasn't wrong when he said they were in a clearing, a pretty big one at that. Looking up he could see the sun already beginning to take a toll on them both, as Neil could feel his skin already drying up from the cold weather back home.
"In any case, we gotta get out of this forest. I honestly would prefer to find someplace less open."
Klein said, grabbing his wallet that wasn't too far from where they fell. At least if they were in a new world, their coins could have some value. If they even had the right currency, which was higly unlikely.
It was just then that an idea crossed Klein's mind, as he waved for his brother's attention.
"I want to try something, step back for a bit."
A bit confused by Klein's comment at first, Neil complied and took a few steps back and watched his brother raise his hand forward.
"Status."
...
.....
......
Nothing.
"Shit." Klein slapped his forehead in embarrassment, going back to Neil who gave him a questionable look. After a few seconds of thinking, Neil realised what his brother was trying to do.
"So, you think this is some sort of fantasy-gaming world? Doesn't that seem a bit unreasonable? I mean we didn't die-"
"Alright alright- I get it! Let me dream..." Stopping what he questioned, Neil remembered countless manga and anime his older brother would show him. The several stories depicting worlds with RPG stuff in it, as even he would get engaged with his older brothers antics. "It was only a few days ago when I got hit by that truck... It's not too farfetched to say this is the second coming... What if we actually died?"
"Haha-! Funny, now your just making me worried."
But maybe... No, thats stupid. The type of content like showing stats or secret abilities would've been extremely helpful, but unfortunately for them it wasn't the case.
"...I can't blame you though. I did spot a castle of sorts in the distance." Klein looked at his brother again, a castle? Now he was certain they were in a fantasy world, much like the countless manga he's read, or the shows that he's watched.
Not that it was going to help anything, he wasn't an expert in the survival field, that type of experience would go to his little brother.
"You seem cool-headed about all of this..." Klein replied, a bit put off by the fact that Neil wasn't as worried as he was.
"I saw buildings in that direction, a town or village would be nice..." Smiling back and ready to move out, Neil pointed in the direction he saw the smoke coming from. With their phones in their pockets, the two headed out to the new world that lay ahead of them.
"Hey, don't walk so fast...!" Klein shouted as Neil was already walking away leaving his older brother. Neil sighed as he went back to Klein, keeping an eye out as he wobbily walked beside him.
.....
Pacing towards what seemed to be a village in the distance, the two couldn't help but feel uneasy. They had just arrived in this new world, no gods to tell them what to do, and even no gaming mechanics.
Klein and Neil were going in just like any other person from modern society, with the former not being too happy about it.
The sound of a broken stick could be heard, as Klein turned to Neil who seemed pale in the face.
"Was that you?"
The brother turned his head to look behind them, only to find a hand hurriedly move behind a tree.
"No."
Neil whispered, suddenly feeling fearful for his life as he took a few steps back from the tree they spotted the small arms hide from. He wasn't too keen on checking out what was behind it, fearing it could be something they'd regret investigating.
Neil slowly moved past Klein, picking up a sharp branch from the floor, much to his surprise.
"Wh- What are you doing...!"
Klein whispered to Neil, but was promptly shushed before he continued.
Klein sighed at his brother's curiosity before following behind, tensing up in case something dangerous were to happen. Clearly, his brother wasn't thinking straight, suddenly wanting to see what was trying to follow them was idiotic on his part.
But he wasn't going to let him go alone.
A moment later he found himself moving behind Klein, grabbing a pocket knife out of his phone case. Neil heard his brother following behind. He was happy to know that despite his worry, Klein still going through with what he was planning.
Neil had already hatched a plan into his head, involving both of them moving from both sides of the tree to confront whatever was behind it. It was a pretty basic plan, but from his point of view, its better to stop whoever was following them now than just let them stalk until the sun goes down.
Nodding to each other as they were on both sides of the tree, Neil signaled Klein to move around first to check.
What- Oh you bitch! Klein pointed a venomous glare towards his brother before complying, walking around to check. As Klein moved around the tree, he noticed a tail wiggling away as he grew confounded by what he just saw.
A tail? You've got to be kidding me... I'm pretty sure humans don't grow tails, not one as fluffy as what he saw. A quiet yelp was heard from the other side, as Neil had caught what was following as Klein rushed to see what it was.
"P-Please...Let go..."
"Holy shit..."
He was half-right, as the 'animal' Neil held in his arms had a tail, one that looked almost like a fox of sorts. Her ears stood out, looking much wider than anyone he's ever seen. The girl looked very young, her skin paled white in comparison to the boys as it didn't seem natural.
Neil quickly let go as she scrambled to her feet, but failing to do so as she fell back onto the grass.
The two were stunned, were they witnessing a kitsune? One of them would've been screaming in excitement, had it not been for key things they noticed about this girl.
The scars on all over her arms, bruises, and cuts. The brother's expressions cringed as they continued to observe. The raggedy cloth that looks to be a blue outfit of some sort, or at least, what was left of it.
Looking back at the two, her violet eyes staring right back at them. Her long bleached hair blew in the wind as the brothers were dumbfounded, their excitement already changed to worry.
"What the hell..."
"A-Are you ok? Why were you following us?"
Neil was worried for the girl, though still a bit suspicious since she was following them. However, the two couldn't get over the injuries they saw before them, as the girl begun to speak up.
"I... I saw you falling from the sky. So I followed you..."
She spoke in a croaky voice, sounding exactly the same as when Neil had grabbed her, dry as the desert. The animal girl definitely needed water, as Neil moved to whisper in his brothers ear.
"She looks like a demi human..."
"I can see that..."
She was scared, had possibly been through something harsh before them, and wasn't sleeping right. The bags under her eyes being extremely evident of their claim, as the demi-human could barely keep her eyes open.
Her build in its entirety screamed 'please help me'.
A breeze blew by again, causing all three of them to wince at the coldness. Klein looked on at his brother Neil, as he knew what to do. Taking off his hoodie, he handed it to Neil before he knelt to the demi-human.
"Here, put this on. You must be freezing in those rags."
She stared at Klein's hoodie, hesitating for a few seconds before finally taking it. Briefly checking it before the girl put it on, she could feel the warmth of fur from the inside.
It felt amazing, it was like she was in her own personal blanket, a small smile appeared as she closed her eyes in satisfaction. That moment was cut off when she felt her body pressed onto another, her feet no longer touching the floor.
"Wh-what're you..!?"
Klein saw as Neil picked the kid up bridal style, sighing to himself as he turned to his brother.
"So you want her to come with us... You do realise this is us were talking about."
"Well we can't just leave her. Besides, she has your hoodie now."
Klein couldnt believe it, or maybe he should've expected this to happen. Turning away from the two, he had one last glance to the girl with the animal ears and tail.
She blushing wildly, seemingly confused at why he was carrying her.
"Fine... But if anything happens to her that fault lies with you.."
Klein wasn't keen on taking in children, it couldn't have been an hour since they had arrived in this new world.
Neil smirked as Klein trotted off to where he pointed the village was, looking back at the little girl who was still red as a tomato.
"Sorry about that, he can be very uncaring at first, but he's a really nice guy."
The girl didn't say a word, only nodding before looking down in embarrassment.
"Maybe I should put her down..."
Neil thought, realising it was weird decision to pick her up out of nowhere. Maybe it was because he felt sorry for her, the girl barely being able to stand up.
Anyone normal would feel sorry for another if they had as many bruises like that, especially that cut around the nose.
Trying to remedy the situation, he changed the subject to something more casual.
"I can't say it won't be for long, but how about you stay with the two of us?" He was given no response, as Neil kept his gaze ahead.
"Um... Hello...?" Neil would've continued if not for the fact that she had fallen asleep in his arms, the demi-human fast asleep.
Taken aback by this he smiled to himself, following Klein to their destination just beyond the countless trees.
"I'll take that as a yes..."
Klein gave Neil a glare of irritation as he noticed the girl still in his arms,.
"Did she say yes?"
"She well asleep in my arms. So that means something, doesn't it?" Realising she was asleep, Klein sighed as both he and Neil looked ahead to find the village in sight.
It looked bigger than expected, buildings across from each other spanning hundreds of meters ahead of them. It was just like the flea markets he and Neil used to go to, but instead of stalls, it was buildings across a wider scale.
Stepping out of the forest floor Klein could count three different pathways diverging from where they stood, each of them seemingly leading to different locations.
Both brothers were even more confused as to where to go, deciding to just power-walk throughout the streets of the town to find somewhere to stay.
What was even more awkward was the countless stares they were getting from the townspeople. It was uneasy seeing all the looks people would give the three as they passed by, some of disgust and others of intrigue.
"Why are they all staring at us?"
Neil was really put off by the glances, as Klein gestured to their clothes.
It wasn't too hard to pick them out from a crowd, along with the girl Neil carried in his arms their clothes had remained the same from when they were transported.
Klein's black singlet along with cargo shorts and red running shoes stood out immensely, and he was starting to feel a bit insecure.
Neil wasn't looking any better, with his bright-coloured shirt contrasting everyone else's dry, more toned-down colours on their clothing.
Klein turned to Neil to see if he was feeling the same, only to be surprised as to how he hasn't noticed the girl looking a bit too red.
"Neil, look at the girl! She's getting sick." Neil looked down to find the girl's cheeks still red, beginning to breathe heavily as she was starting to get hot. Thinking it might have to do with the hoodie he gave, Neil quickly took it off her and wrapped it around his hips.
Beginning to pick her up again he noticed red spots on parts of her rags. It was blood, leaking out from wounds that were left unchecked by the two.
"You idiot-!" Neil scowled at his own lack of awareness and quickly brought her up to his chest again. Klein looked ahead to find a sign sticking out of a building with a flask on it.
He was sure it was some sort of potion shop, as the sign also said "Apothecary" since those places usually sell medicines and even drugs. Rushing inside with the girl, they went in to find a lady working alone. "How may I help you-"
"I'm sorry but we need your help, please!"
The robed lady looked a bit unsure of the strangely dressed two that slammed their door open with a jackal in his arms. Though the expression on the slightly shorter boys' face, it looked as if he had regret eating away at him much like many others who walked in her door.
But she couldn't help it, seeing that girl in their arms as red as a sore really pulled her strings of sympathy. Sighing to herself, the potion-seller agreed to the brothers' plea before moving everything off her table.
Setting the girl on top, they watched she brought out a vial with a red coloured liquid inside of it.
Focusing at the slightly taller of the two she spoke fast, "Help me set her up so she won't choke on it immediately."
"Swallow it slowly." As Klein lifted the demi-human back to sit up, the lady slowly dripped the liquid into her mouth.
The little girl began to drank it, giving cringing expressions as it streamed down her throat. Moving to the girl's head, she placed her own hand onto the girl's forehead.
An intense glow of green lit up in that area, much to the brothers' surprise as they watched on in awe.
The lady glanced back at the two, who were mesmerised by what she was doing. It was a basic healing spell, and yet their expressions were almost as if it had been some sort of godly miracle.
"These two..." It wasn't the only thing that piqued her mind, but she wouldn't think about that now. Not while there's a little girl here running a fever of sorts, as she grabbed a chair to sit.
It could take hours before she would fully recover, yet the brothers decided to stay with her the entire time.
Neil sat by the potion lady on a chair, watching the with his hands clasped together. He was worried, that's for sure.
"She had those injuries along with a fever, so I'll need to stay by her for a while... What happened?" Florence asked, to which the younger brother responded.
"She was following us, I gave her this hoodie to wear which she was initially fine. But soon after..." He looked back to the girl whose breathing had finally calmed down. The feeling of guilt slammed Neil, he knew this was partly his fault.
Piecing together that the hoodie was the cloth around his waist, she looked back to Neil.
"It is a common fever among all Demi-human, as children grow there's a one in ten chance they'll get it. But since I've done this before, she'll be fine..." The potion seller said, glancing at the two brothers who stood beside her.
Neil inwardly smiled at knowing she would soon recover from the fever, putting his hands on his face with a sigh.
It would be immensely sad if someone, a child no less, died in his care as soon as they arrived. "Thank you so much, Miss.."
"Florence, and just so you know... I do not do this for free."