Inside a stuffy apartment, a young man, around 18 years old with a fit build, was sleeping on the bed. He was Fujiwara Atsuku.
The blip and the sound of fans from his computer was the only sound in the room. And the light from his two monitors was the only light shining on his face.
Tiririri~ Wake up! Wake up!
A strange loud alarm that rang from his phone on the table stirred Atsuku awake. He slowly moved his hand and reached out to the phone, stopping the alarm.
"Ugh. Is it morning already? Fuck, my head hurts."
The sheet on his body fell from his bed, revealing a rather trained body that couldn't be hidden underneath his shirt. He held his head, slowly got off the bed, and washed his face in the bathroom.
He looked at his reflection in the mirror and smirked. Young Asian hairless face and short black hair.
"I can't say I have yet gotten used to my old face. It's been a week, but seeing my young Japanese face is taking me back. Now that I think about it fuck my brain! I wrote too damn much last night!"
Splash!
With his hand, he splashed the flowing water from the faucet on his face. Even though he returned to Earth, his rugged personality couldn't be fixed in just a week.
The water was really refreshing. It woke his muddled mind up and brought him back to life. Looking at the mirror once again, Atsuku smiled warmly, or at least he appeared like that.
"Shall I go then? To the school."
***
The year was 2021.
The streets of Japan, entering the second year of the Reiwa Era, were filled with people trying to go to work and school, walking in quick steps. Cars were running on the streets, and the vendor called out to customers to sell their goods.
In this early spring, the school had just started, and it was Atsuku's first day of school after returning from Fantasia.
It was the start of his normal life after staying in his apartment for a week, training his body to get back into shape, and writing about his adventure in Fantasia to be his new novel.
Yes, he was a novel author and a good one at that. Even Fantasia was the result of his work when he was in his first year of high school. The series started well and gained momentum until it finished a month ago with 6 volumes.
A short series for a Light Novel, but it made some nice money for Atsuku. His new series about his adventure would be the sequel to his first novel, and he would be finished shortly later, if not for school.
"Argh, this is bothersome. But I need to keep up my appearance as a high school novelist. That's the reason why I got my popularity in the first place."
Atsuku released a tired sigh as he walked down the road toward his school, which was near his house. It was in Tokyo, Japan, more specifically, in Minato Ward. He was wearing a white shirt underneath a blue blazer and long pants, the usual school uniform in Japan.
The sun was blazing; he wasn't used to it. After spending 20 years under Fantasia's broken sky, the vast blue sky of Earth was a bit too bright for him.
The good news was that Fantasia's technology was similar to Earth's. Because Atsuku was taking Earth's technology as a reference for Fantasia, he could get used to it without any problem.
If there were a problem, then it would be that one—social relationship.
"I don't remember anything about my friends on Earth. How should I face them if they suddenly greet me?"
From his muddled memories that were filled with blood and killing, he remembered at least he had a few friends on Earth. Real friends who helped him when he was low and his motivation to return to Earth.
However, those memories were unclear at best. Even his own real personality was unquestionable at this point.
"Well... Let's see… I should be able to remember once I see them."
After 5 minutes of walking, he arrived at his school and stopped in front of the entrance, looking nostalgic at the sight of students entering the school.
"I will just wing it later."
***
After asking some students here and there, Atsuku managed to find his class and his desk. He used his skill from Fantasia to act like a normal high school boy. It should be perfect, but most students he talked to were surprised when he called out to them.
They were surprised not because they hated him but because he talked to them. Some replied happily and even showed him where his class was.
His classmate even looked strangely at him when he greeted them good morning and began to talk to themselves, murmuring about Atsuku's behavior.
"Was I such an introvert before?" He asked himself as he leaned his back against the chair. 'No good, I can't remember. Fuck, those killings and torture really got into me now.'
Tsk!
He clicked his tongue in frustration. But he couldn't do anything about it. No man would stay sane if they lived in Fantasia for more than 20 years. Their personalities would be twisted; he wasn't an exception.
'At least it is within my expectation. Unfortunately, or fortunately. The source of my problem hasn't shown itself yet. I quite remember one guy from my memories, that bastard childhood friend of mine.'
Although Atsuku called his friend a bastard, that friend he talked about was his loyal friend. He quite missed him during his time in Fantasia. So he was looking forward to meeting him again.
Because there was still time before the first class, Atsuku opened a light novel from his bag. The light novel he took out was a romance-comedy, and he used it as a reference to act like a regular high school. At least it was better than knowing nothing.
"It's still morning, so… Maybe he will arrive in 5 more minutes before the bell rings, like usual."
As he had guessed earlier, a few seconds before the bell that indicated the start of the first class rang, loud footsteps rang from outside the classroom, accompanied by a loud voice.
"Woah!! I am almost late!"
A boy with unkempt blond hair tied in a ponytail appeared from the door at the back of the classroom. He held his blazer in his hand and sweated hard as if he had just finished running a marathon. His clothes were a mess, and he looked like a delinquent. He didn't even put his tie properly.
The boy immediately looked in Atsuku's direction and smiled widely.
"Yo! Long time no see, Atsuku!" He greeted Atsuku with a loud voice, full of energy.
Hearing him, Atsuku turned to him with a smirk. His old memory jolted inside him, remembering who this guy was, "You're late as usual, Yamada. Did you just run a marathon?" He asked.
Yamada approached him and leaned his hand against his table.
"Hahaha, no. But it's nice to see you doing well, my pal. It seems that your novel is doing good."
"Yeah, me too. Glad to see you doing well too, bastard."
This was a morning exchange that he remembered from his memory. The exchange that he had always exchanged with his loyal friend every morning.