"Is this the the Third Dimension Space?"
After school, Ryuji didn't head home immediately. Instead, he found a quiet spot to test out his new ability.
Looking around at the barren, rocky landscape and the eerie, lonely atmosphere, he realized he had fully entered the Third Dimension Space.
"It's like having a personal storage dimension," Ryuji muttered to himself.
This space could come in handy. If he stored things here, there'd be no need to worry about losing them.
"Now, let's try virtualization."
Ryuji had already tested distorting space and entering the Third Dimension. The next thing to try was the most broken aspect of the Third Dimension's ability: virtualization.
Virtualization would allow him to enter a state where he became completely immune to any physical attack.
"The trick is to leave my body in the third dimension while projecting an image of myself in the real world. That way, no attack can land on me," Ryuji explained to himself, remembering how it worked.
After all, with his true body in another dimension, how could he be hit?
In time, as he grew more proficient, he'd even be able to phase only parts of his body, achieving partial virtualization.
"Looks like this will take some practice to master," he muttered, testing it out. The ability itself wasn't difficult to activate, but he'd need to hone his skill to use it effectively in battle.
As Ryuji immersed himself in mastering the virtualization ability, elsewhere…
---
Yumiko, Yui, and Hina didn't go to their usual club activities that day. Instead, the three of them were walking toward the school gates.
"Are we really going?" Hina asked, a bit uncertain. After school, Yumiko had suddenly suggested they head to Tobe Sho's place. As a friend, Hina didn't refuse, but she was still confused.
What was the point of going to see Tobe?
"Hmph, I just want to clear things up. I didn't say anything wrong that day. He couldn't handle the truth and had a breakdown. That's on him," Yumiko huffed, clearly still upset. She blamed Tobe's dropout on her words, but she wasn't going to take it back. It wasn't her fault if Tobe couldn't handle criticism.
"Uh…" Hina sighed, realizing this was Yumiko's way of dealing with her feelings. She glanced at Yui, who had been strangely quiet for a while now.
"Yui? Yui!" Hina called out after noticing her friend wasn't paying attention.
"Huh? What's up?" Yui blinked in confusion, finally snapping out of her thoughts.
"What's up with you? You've been out of it since school let out," Hina asked, frowning. Yui had been acting strange all afternoon.
"I…" Yui hesitated. She wanted to say something but stopped herself. If Ryuji really has superpowers or something, and I tell my friends… what if it puts them in danger?
After thinking it over, Yui forced a smile and shook her head. "It's nothing. I'm fine."
Hina didn't press further. She could tell Yui was hiding something, but if Yui didn't want to talk, she wouldn't push her.
"Let's catch up to Yumiko. She's getting ahead of us," Hina said as she noticed Miura already walking ahead.
---
Meanwhile, Ryuji, who had wrapped up testing his abilities, decided to stop by Shizuka's place to check on her.
He sent Miko a quick text, letting her know he'd be busy for a bit and would head home after her club activities were over. Then, he left the school.
"Here he comes."
Yukino's older sister, Haruno, had been waiting outside the school. When she saw Ryuji leaving, her eyes lit up, and she hurried over to intercept him.
"Excuse me!" she called out, deliberately tripping over her own feet to stage a fall.
"Huh?"
Instinctively, Ryuji stepped forward and caught her.
Huh… smells nice, Ryuji thought absentmindedly.
"Thank you so much," Haruno said, still holding onto his arm, her voice full of mock embarrassment.
Yukinoshita Haruno? Ryuji quickly recognized her. She looked almost identical to her younger sister, Yukino.
But there were subtle differences. Compared to Yukino, Haruno appeared more vibrant, while Yukino looked slightly malnourished.
Ryuji lingered on Haruno's face for a moment longer than necessary, then smiled and shook his head. "No problem."
"..."
He's a scumbag, Haruno thought, instantly reading his expression. She was great at reading people, and the way Ryuji's eyes changed told her everything she needed to know. (Bruhhh???)
This only confirmed her suspicions. If it weren't for me, someone as naive as Yukino would be easily fooled by a guy like this.
"My ankle feels a little twisted. Can you help me to my car?" Haruno asked, her voice soft and fragile.
"Sure," Ryuji replied casually, not seeing any reason to refuse.
As they walked, Ryuji spotted Haruno's flashy sports car parked nearby. It was the same model as Hiratsuka's, only in a different color.
"Thank you so much," Haruno smiled sweetly after settling into the driver's seat.
"You're welcome, Miss Yukinoshita," Ryuji responded with a grin.
Haruno's smile faltered for a split second.
"How do you know my name?" she asked, narrowing her eyes slightly. She hadn't introduced herself yet.
Ryuji shrugged. "You look way too similar to your sister. Figured it out pretty easily."