A first I

To the left, a bunch of kids play with a ball, their laughter almost contagious. To the right, adults sit around a table, deep in discussion about the economy. Whatever the topic, Kaji doesn't care. He turns to the left.

Reclining on a stool near the group of adults, he bites into an apple, savoring a rare moment of free time. Watching others play brings a slight tightness to his neck, but he keeps looking anyway.

"My friendo, I finally found you."

Kaji sighs and replies in a low, tired voice. "I'm soo happy to see you as well."

"Are you free?"

"Why?"

"Then let's go." Tokei grabs his wrist and tries to drag him along. Kaji doesn't budge an inch.

"Stop pulling me. Where do you want to go?"

"No time to explain—just follow me." He zooms off. Kaji could stay put, and Tokei probably wouldn't notice for a while.

He glances at the empty stool next to him, then stands up.

"Fine, I'll humor you this time," he mutters to no one.

༻──⋆༺𓆩⋆𓆪༻⋆──༺

At the island's edge, the wind messes his hair like a gust through a field of tall grass. Kaji stays at least ten feet from the precipice, unlike Tokei, who seems to be lacking in survival instincts.

The fool stands just two feet from the endless drop. Even if the clouds below can create the illusion of a comfortable cushion, everyone knows that going down means an eternal fall until either the sun or the thirst end you.

"Hello there neighbors!" shouts the birdbrain. "How are you doing!?" Far into the horizon, another island can be seen floating, atop the back of a giant silver creature.

"They can't hear you, dumbass." Assuming there are people on other islands. "You dragged me all the way to the border for this?"

"Come on, friendo, you don't see other isles every day. And the gods are always a sight to behold."

"Whatever. Since I've come this far, I guess I'll stay a while." He does find the gods intriguing, as they resemble almost no other creature he knows, save one.

Their massive bodies are adorned with wings—or perhaps fins—that extend sideways, yet remain still. What appear to be their heads are covered in multiple eyes with unusual forms, somewhat like an insect's. However, the biggest mystery to Kaji is how they sustain themselves. No one's ever seen them eat. It's unclear if they even have a mouth.

༻──⋆༺𓆩⋆𓆪༻⋆──༺

Through the window, Hoshina gazes at the distant island. It may seem far now, but not for long. The maidservant finishes tightening her boots.

"Are the boots comfortable like this, my lady?"

"They're fine, yeah."

"The propulsion magic is activated by flexing your toes and lifting your heels."

"Propulsion magic? Like my daddy's?"

"No, your boots aren't strong enough to make you fly, but they allow for quick maneuvering." She picks up a small box from the table and hands it to Hoshina. "This contains six energy gems. Whenever your boots, cane, or armor run out of power, you'll need to replace the gem. They can be recharged by—"

"I know that much, it's not like I've never used magic items."

"Forgive me, I meant no offense." She picks up a cane from the same table. "What kind of wands have you used before?"

"An earth wand. Daddy says it's the best one." The servant nods.

"This cane is equipped with earth." Hoshina tilts her head.

"Earth? Not thunder?"

"All canes include thunder, in addition to a basic element, as well as the ability to generate barriers. However, there's a five-second timer for the barrier to recharge."

"Ah, then what about Daddy? His staff used some strange black magic."

"The Lord's staff is in a league of its own. I'm sorry, I don't know the details of its powers." She adjusts a few other parts of Hoshina's armor and hands her the helmet.

As Hoshina is about to take it, a rumbling noise shakes the earth itself. She covers her ears until it's over.

Always so noisy.

"That's the first warning call, right?" The maid asks. "May I inquire how much is left until the battle?"

"Supposedly, Ikusagami will give another call and start approaching in about an hour. I need to be at the border by then."

"Understood. Let's hurry with the preparations."

༻──⋆༺𓆩⋆𓆪༻⋆──༺

"The heck was that? Did it just scream?" Tokei asks.

"Strange, I've never heard about the creatures being able to emit noise."

"Wait a second…" Tokei's expression looks serious for a change. "I think I know what's going on."

"What do you mean?"

"It might be… no, it definitely is one." This is getting old real fast.

"It's a what? Stop trying to make yourself seem interesting and speak."

"It's a mating call, our islands are in love." Why do I bother when it comes to this guy?

"I'm going home."

"What? Why? Don't you want to see it? Aren't you curious about how these giant things reproduce?"

༻──⋆༺𓆩⋆𓆪༻⋆──༺

Mr. Hige steps up to the platform, where Hoshina stands, equipped with the same type of armor as him. The others wear their clan's uniform. I may offer little protection, but at least it looks nice.

It's not that their clan can't make regular armor; it's just that it would be too hot to wear. Only magical armor can protect you while keeping you cool at the same time.

Mr. Hige stops at the center of the stage. She can't help but glance at his amusing goatee whenever he's nearby. In front of them stand around four dozen young warriors, all likely as eager as she is to prove themselves.

"Good morning my fellow brothers and sisters," says Mr. Hige, then turns to Hoshina. "And a very pleasant day to you, miss Hoshina."

As he directs his attention back at the public, he starts playing with his goatee. "I know that more than a few of you, including our dear miss, are new recruits, and you might be feeling a bit nervous and afraid of facing strong and scary enemies."

Mr. Hige raises his arm towards the crowd, catching their attention. "Let me tell you something you might be forgetting: you're all members of the Kaizokuren, the strongest and greatest clan in the world!!

He pauses for effect. "Oh, but Sir Fukuchou, why are we all new cadets except you? Where are the veterans? Grow up and stop relying on mommy and daddy for everything! You're barely a sixth of our army because otherwise our enemies would surrender after the first battle."

He stomps his foot. "So go out there and shoot them up with your rocks, sparks and watery fluids! Just don't break their asses too hard—we want them to be able to walk for a second round… and a few more."

He lowers his arm and scans the crowd. "Am I clear?!"

"Yeah!" Hoshina's voice is among the crowd's. Soon after, another loud sound reverberates through her eardrums. Mr. Hige speaks to the public once more.

"Our god is moving. When it reaches halfway, it will give another call. The moment it reaches its destination and stops, it will let out a final howl to signal disembarkation. Remember, even if these nobodies somehow manage to get a lucky shot and kill any of you, all who fulfill their purpose will go to the great afterlife!"

The whole crowd starts chanting, including Hoshina.

༻──⋆༺𓆩⋆𓆪༻⋆──༺

With a clean cut, it falls to the ground. She picks it up and hands it over to Kaji.

"Here, Nii, this cucumber is ready."

"Careful with the knife, it's not a toy."

"Yeah, yeah." Beneath the leaves of a tomato plant, Kaji spots a few small white flowers.

"Did you also plant flowers? What are they for?"

"They look good, that's all."

"Do they smell well?" Kaji takes a step towards them but Gurumi stops him.

"Don't sniff them, they stink. Ah, look Nii!" She points at the peppers. "I think tomorrow they will be good to harvest as well."

"Gurumi, what are you—?"

"Friendo!" Since Gurumi's present, Kaji restrains his first impulse to grunt.

"You got tired of watching a floating rock?"

"It's moving!" Tokei says as if it's a revelation. Kaji's stunned at the sheer stupidity.

"Uh… of course it moves, dumbass."

"Nii, no swearing!" Gurumi says, pouting.

"Dumbass isn't a swear word," responds Kaji.

"I'm serious," Tokei says, his face making it impossible to take him seriously. "It's getting closer!"

"And?" responds Kaji.

"They really are about to mate, let's go away."

"Didn't you say you wanted to watch? Besides, there's no way it's coming towards us—quit talking nonsense." Another loud sound follows, so powerful that the pebbles on the ground tremble. Garasa steps out from inside their home.

"What's going on?"

"Nii, was that our island turtle?"

"No," says Kaji with a more serious expression, "I don't think so. But it came from nearby."

"See? Told you." For once, Tokei's nonsense feels grounded. Kaji feels his heart start to race.

"If the creatures are about to do something, then it's dangerous to remain here. Tokei, I want you to escort my mother and sister."

He points to his family's grass hut. "I've hidden a few rice sacks under a wooden plank. You can take some as payment, but the rest are for my family." Tokei meets his gaze and nods.

"No," his sister complains. "I'm not leaving without Nii." Her mother places a hand on her shoulder. Gurumi looks up at her, then lowers her head.

"What about you?" His mother asks Kaji.

"I'll go see what's going on. I'll catch up in a few minutes."

"Kaji…"

"I'll be carefull, I promise." She carefully walks towards him and hugs him.

"Please be."

"Don't worry so much, I'm sure it's nothing." Kaji says, though his heart is beating like a drum.