Earth wasn't shaped like the old maps from school.
It wasn't a land planet.
It was a water planet.
Almost the entire world was ocean. Blue water stretched forever in every direction, with waves and storms and deep trenches that nobody even bothered exploring anymore.
In the exact middle of the planet sat one massive continent, about the size of Australia. It was the only "big land" on Earth, and it mattered more than anything. Most of humanity lived there. It was the heart of the world.
Outside of that giant continent, the ocean was filled with islands. Hundreds of them. Thousands, if you counted the tiny ones. None of these islands were bigger than one hundredth of the size of the main continent. Most were only a few kilometers wide, sometimes less. They were scattered like stepping stones, and each island was no more than a few kilometers away from the next.
That made travel simple for boats and aircraft. You never had to cross a huge empty ocean stretch without seeing land soon.
On the giant continent in the middle, there were four major cities.
West City.
North City.
South City.
East City.
Each one was super futuristic. White buildings. Blue windows. Tall glass towers. Clean roads. Floating signs. Trains that moved silently. Drones delivering packages. Cars that hovered above the streets, guided by glowing lanes in the air.
It was the kind of world that rebuilt fast. It was the kind of world that believed tech could solve anything.
Ren lived in West City.
It was the biggest of the four, and the most advanced. If something new was invented, it usually showed up in West City first. People there walked fast, talked fast, and acted like nothing could shake them.
Then ten Doors appeared in the sky.
And one of them opened above West City's park.
And Vareth walked out like the world belonged to him.
Three days passed.
Three days wasn't long, but West City moved like a machine. Crews worked all night. Repair drones swarmed broken streets. Buildings that got wrecked were replaced with new panels, new glass, and fresh steel frames. By day three, most of the damage looked like it never happened.
It was almost creepy.
Ren stood on the roof of the warehouse where he trained, staring at the skyline.
It looked normal again.
But the Door still hovered above the park.
Open.
Dark inside.
Silent.
Ren, a 16-year-old boy with messy black hair, dark brown eyes, and a lean athletic build, clenched his jaw. His bruises were fading, but he still felt weak when he remembered how Vareth hit him.
Footsteps crunched behind him.
Kaito Tanaka climbed onto the roof and sat beside Ren. Kaito was a 16-year-old boy with spiky blond hair, sharp blue eyes, and a broader build than Ren. He had a fresh bandage over his cheek.
"They rebuilt the tower he cut," Kaito said, sounding annoyed. "Like it was nothing."
Ren nodded. "That's West City."
Kaito looked up at the Door. "Doesn't matter how fast they rebuild if he comes back and does it again."
Ren didn't answer.
Because he knew the truth.
Vareth wasn't destroying the city to win.
He was walking around like he was bored.
Like he was waiting.
A soft landing sound came from behind them.
Mika Hoshino stepped onto the roof without a word. She was a 16-year-old girl with short black hair, calm gray eyes, and a serious expression that almost never changed. Even now, she looked like she was thinking ten moves ahead.
"You both look tired," Mika said.
Kaito scoffed. "No kidding."
Ren asked, "Any new sightings?"
Mika nodded once. "He was seen on one of the outer islands."
Ren's stomach tightened. "Near the continent?"
"About two islands out," Mika said. "He's moving."
Kaito rubbed his face. "Why islands?"
Mika stared at the horizon. "Because he wants to see the whole planet."
Ren stood up. "We should go."
Kaito shot up too. "Finally."
Mika didn't move. "Not to fight."
Ren paused. "Then why?"
"To watch," Mika said. "To learn his habits. To learn what he wants. If we rush him again, we get crushed again."
Kaito frowned. "We're wasting time."
Mika looked at him. "No. We're using time correctly."
Ren exhaled slowly.
Time was the problem now. One year total. Ten rulers. And they had already opened the first Door early. If they spent too long getting bullied, they'd lose the planet without even reaching Door Ten.
Still, Mika was right. Blind attacks weren't training. They were suicide.
Ren nodded. "Fine. We track him."
They left West City quietly.
Not flying straight up. Not making flashy trails. They moved low above the ocean, fast enough to cross the gaps between islands in minutes.
The world looked different from above.
The giant continent behind them was a flat stretch of green and gray with glowing cities.
Ahead was the island chain. Smaller lands surrounded by ocean. Some islands had towns. Some had forests. Some were just rock.
They reached the island where Vareth was last seen.
It was a calm place, not like West City. A coastal town. Simple buildings. A small harbor. Fishing boats docked in neat lines. Windmills turning slowly on a hill.
Ren landed on a rocky cliff outside town.
Kaito and Mika landed beside him.
They didn't speak right away.
They focused their senses.
Ren closed his eyes.
At first, he felt nothing.
Then he felt it.
A presence that didn't feel like ki, but still felt like pressure. Like standing near a storm that hadn't started yet.
Ren opened his eyes. "He's here."
Mika nodded. "Yes."
They moved closer, staying hidden among trees and rocks.
When they reached the edge of town, they saw him.
Vareth stood in the middle of a market street.
He looked the same as before. Tall. Lean and muscular. Dark gray skin that looked almost metallic. Long silver hair flowing down his back like it didn't care about wind. White eyes with no pupils, calm and empty.
People were frozen around him.
Not screaming. Not running.
They were staring like they didn't understand if he was real.
Vareth picked up a piece of fruit from a stand. He turned it slowly in his hand like it was a strange object. Then he put it back down carefully.
He wasn't smashing anything.
He wasn't yelling.
He wasn't attacking.
He was just… looking.
A fisherman stepped forward.
The fisherman was an adult man with sun-dark skin, a thick beard, and a blue jacket. His hands shook, but he still forced himself to speak.
"What are you?" the fisherman asked.
Vareth looked at him.
The whole street went silent.
"I am a ruler," Vareth said calmly.
The fisherman swallowed. "Are you here to kill us?"
Vareth stared for a moment, like he was honestly considering the question.
"No," he said.
The fisherman blinked. "Then why are you here?"
Vareth's gaze drifted upward, toward the sky, like he could see the Door even from here.
"You opened the first Door," he said. "So I walk your world."
The fisherman's voice cracked. "We didn't mean to."
Vareth tilted his head. "Meaning doesn't matter."
Ren's fists tightened.
Kaito's breathing grew heavier, like he wanted to jump out and fight anyway.
Mika put a hand out slightly, stopping him without looking.
Vareth stepped closer to the fisherman.
The fisherman flinched, but didn't run.
Vareth stared down at the man's face.
"You fear me," Vareth said.
The fisherman nodded, shaking. "Yeah."
Vareth looked almost disappointed.
"Fear makes weak bodies," he said. "Weak bodies make weak worlds."
Ren's stomach twisted.
Vareth wasn't just testing strength. He was judging the planet.
The fisherman forced himself to speak again. "If you're not killing us… what do you want?"
Vareth looked past him, at the town, the sea, the sky.
"I want to see if Earth deserves time," Vareth said.
Ren froze.
Kaito whispered, barely moving his lips, "What does that mean?"
Mika whispered back, "It means he might decide to speed things up."
Ren felt cold.
Because the rules said one year.
But Vareth didn't look like someone who cared about rules.
He looked like someone who followed them only when he felt like it.
Vareth stepped back from the fisherman.
He looked toward the ocean, then toward the distant continent.
Then he spoke again, louder, so the whole street heard.
"Grow," Vareth said. "Or drown."
Then he lifted off the ground.
No wind burst. No shockwave. Just smooth motion.
He rose into the air, silver hair trailing behind him.
He glanced toward Ren's hiding spot for half a second.
Not directly.
But Ren felt it anyway.
Like Vareth knew they were there.
Then Vareth flew away over the ocean, heading toward the main continent.
Ren stepped out from behind the rocks, jaw clenched.
Kaito followed, shaking with anger. "He looked at us. He knew."
Mika's eyes stayed locked on the horizon. "Yes."
Ren's hands trembled.
Not from fear this time.
From pressure.
From time.
From the fact that the enemy wasn't just waiting anymore.
He was moving.
Ren stared toward the direction Vareth flew.
"If he reaches one of the four cities," Ren said quietly, "everything changes."
Kaito nodded. "Then we can't let him."
Mika looked at both of them. "Then we train smarter. We don't just swing harder."
Ren swallowed. "And we beat him soon."
Mika nodded once. "Soon."
They lifted off, flying back toward West City.
The ocean stretched beneath them like it didn't care.
The islands passed below like stepping stones.
And ahead, the futuristic skyline waited, pretending everything was normal.
Ren knew it wasn't.
The Door was open.
A ruler was free.
And the world's time was bleeding away, day by day.