Sam excused himself from the table, the pleasant atmosphere of the lunch still lingering in his mind. The queen had warmed up to him, and Luke's endless curiosity had kept the conversation light and enjoyable. But as Sam made his way to the restroom, his instincts—finely tuned from years of experience—began to alert him that something was off.
As he stepped into the restroom, the first thing he noticed was the unnatural stillness. The air felt heavy, charged with tension. Sam's eyes flicked around the room, taking in every detail. He quickly realized he wasn't alone. In the reflection of the mirror, he saw the faintest shadow of movement—a shoe sliding silently across the tile floor, the slight shift of weight in a stall.
Four of them, he counted. They were waiting, poised to strike.
Sam didn't panic. Instead, he moved calmly to the sink, his movements relaxed, as if he hadn't noticed anything unusual. He turned on the faucet, letting the water run over his hands as he waited for them to make the first move.
The attackers were patient, but so was Sam. He knew they wouldn't wait much longer. Just as he reached for a paper towel, the first one struck. A man lunged at him from behind, a knife glinting in his hand. Sam sidestepped the attack with fluid grace, grabbing the man's wrist and twisting it sharply. The knife clattered to the ground as the attacker grunted in pain.
Before the others could react, Sam delivered a quick elbow to the man's throat, sending him crumpling to the floor, unconscious.
The second attacker came at him from the side, aiming a punch at Sam's ribs. But Sam was already moving, blocking the strike with his forearm and following up with a swift kick to the man's knee. The attacker collapsed, and Sam delivered a precise blow to his temple, knocking him out cold.
The third and fourth assailants hesitated, realizing they were outmatched. One of them attempted to rush Sam, but Sam ducked under the wild swing, delivering a powerful uppercut that lifted the man off his feet and sent him crashing into the wall. The last attacker tried to flee, but Sam was faster. He caught the man by the collar, spun him around, and delivered a knockout punch that sent him sprawling.
Sam exhaled, the tension leaving his body as the last attacker fell. He hadn't even needed to use magic. He bent down to retrieve the knife from the first man when suddenly, he heard a soft sound behind him—too soft, almost like a whisper of movement.
Before Sam could react, someone else did. A figure darted out from the shadows, delivering a swift kick to the fifth assailant that Sam hadn't noticed. The attacker flew across the room, hitting the wall with a sickening thud before slumping to the ground, unconscious.
Sam straightened, recognizing his unexpected ally. It was Alan, a fellow student from his class. Alan stood there, his usual laid-back expression replaced with a serious one.
"Thanks," Sam said, genuinely surprised.
"No problem," Alan replied, brushing off his hands as if nothing had happened.
The tension in the room dissipated, and the two moved to the sinks to wash their hands. As they did, Sam couldn't help but ask the question that had been nagging at him. "Why didn't you do anything during the terrorist attack?"
Alan looked at him, his expression unreadable. "What do you mean?"
Sam didn't miss a beat. "You were in the same room with Masha and the others the other day. I could tell you were conscious, but you acted like you were out cold. And your mana level—it's way above the usual for someone in our class."
Alan's eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of surprise flickering across his face. "Wait, how could you tell? I suppressed it."
Sam simply shrugged, turning off the faucet and reaching for a towel. "I have my ways."
Alan leaned against the sink, studying Sam for a moment. "Aren't you curious? Don't you want to know why I did it?"
Sam met Alan's gaze, his expression calm. "Not really. I'm not interested in who you are or why you hide your true power. That's your business."
A slow grin spread across Alan's face, his usual carefree attitude returning. "You're a strange one, Sam."
Sam chuckled softly. "I've been told that before."
Their conversation was light, with an undercurrent of seriousness that both acknowledged but didn't delve into. It was as if they had reached an unspoken understanding—neither would pry too deeply into the other's secrets, at least for now.
As Sam reached for the door to leave the restroom, something strange happened. The moment he touched the handle, the world around him seemed to ripple, the walls and floor distorting as if they were made of liquid.
Sam yanked the door open, but instead of the hallway, he found himself staring at an identical restroom. The same sinks, the same stalls, even the same unconscious attackers were sprawled on the floor. He took a step back, confusion washing over him.
"What the…?" Sam muttered, his eyes narrowing.
Alan, who had been following behind, stopped short, his face mirroring Sam's shock. "What's going on? It's like… everything's repeating itself."
Sam quickly assessed the situation, his mind racing. It didn't take long for the realization to hit him. "We're in a Hollow World."
Alan's eyes widened as the gravity of the situation sank in. "A Hollow World? Here? But how…?"
Sam shook his head, his expression grim. "I don't know. But we need to get out of here. Fast."
A Hollow World—a twisted, alternate reality that existed parallel to the real world. Whatever happened here didn't affect the outside world, but it could trap those within it indefinitely. And someone had just pulled them into one without them even noticing.
"We need to find the source and destroy it," Sam said, his voice steady despite the tension. "And we need to do it quickly."
Alan nodded, his earlier nonchalance gone, replaced by a fierce determination. "Right. Let's get out of here."
The two of them steeled themselves for the challenges ahead, knowing that whatever had trapped them in this Hollow World wasn't going to let them go easily. They were in for a fight, and this time, there was more at stake than just their lives.
Together, they prepared to face whatever awaited them in this twisted reality, knowing that the real battle was only just beginning.