Arlo let out a dramatic sigh, the kind that said, "This is boring."

  Arlo dragged out the sound, slouching as if the weight of the universe rested on his shoulders. It was the middle of the semester, and he was late for class as usual. He looked ahead at the grand palace, that was his current school.

  “11th grade is so tedious. I expected High School to properly start training me how to use my magic. But it’s still the same as middle school. Actually no. Middle school still partially trained me to use my magic. This is just… sad.”

  As he walked down the road, Arlo's eyes narrowed at a familiar yet strangely different figure. His hair was still messy, but now more aesthetically pleasing with a wolf cut middle part design. The long and baggy, flowing dark red trench coat worn open over a loose white tank top, the black sweatpants… and— what the hell? Pink fur slippers? It was Zero. But god damn, the guy has come a long way.

  Arlo blinked, then narrowed his eyes once more. “Wait— what the fuck?” His steps quickened as disbelief gave way to frustration. He clenched his fist and swung. “Where the fuck have you been for the last three years?!”

  Zero took one step to the right as he watched Arlo’s fist fly past his head by a hair, almost like in slow-motion, yet he looked indifferent, as if dodging was just a mild inconvenience. “That’s your first reaction? Lack of magic was never your problem.”

  Arlo’s eyes widened; his first thought was not how Zero dodged his attack or his comment, but his appearance. “Jesus Christ dude, you’re like 6’1 now, like what is that? 186 centimeters?” Arlo staggers back at the sheer absurdity of the height difference. Zero had always been taller, but this? This was a whole different tax bracket of height.

  Then, he noticed the girl beside Zero, who wrapped her tail around him with a protective glare. Holy. Fucking. Shit. Who is this absolute fucking hottie? Her hair was as white as pure snow; it was long and layered, with a wild, windswept look, featuring sharp, pointed ends that gave it an untamed yet elegant appearance. The top of her hair is slightly spiked, while the longer strands cascade down her back. Her eyes were bright, piercing ice-blue with a subtle purplish glow. Her horns were made out of pure ice. Her tail, long and sleek, covered in rigid, icy crystallines. And her skin was pale with a pinkish hue.

  “WHO is this GODDESS?!” Arlo exclaimed to Zero, who looked deadpanned and annoyed at the same time. “This is Z’phyr.” He curtly responded.

  Z’phyr’s glare on Arlo didn’t die at all, even after the realization that they were familiar with each other. She was fiercely loyal to Zero. She would protect him from anything that would threaten any harm on him. “Stay away, human. Or else I’ll freeze your feet where you stand.” Z’phyr hissed at Arlo, causing him to stumble back from the jumpscare.

  Zero stretched his arms and yawned. “I think this calls for some food.” Arlo was about to protest Zero’s decision, but he was interrupted by Scarlett, who also looked way hotter compared to before.

  Her black flowing hair was now streaked with some red, and it was looked so silky and smooth now billowing gently with the wind. She was wearing a tight fitting gray sweater with a small red fur-lined jacket left open, and she was wearing a small black skirt. Arlo couldn’t take his eyes off of her, but let’s be honest he was just staring at her chest (Fucking perv. Delete Arlo. - Scarlett). Was he the only one that didn’t get a glow-up? This is bullshit. “Sup, boys. It’s bee- Who is this? Zero? Explain yourself.”

  Oh, wait, never mind. I can just check out this novel myself and see what happened in Part One. So her name is Z’phyr. Lucky bitch, getting to be named and acknowledged by Zero. Even though she’s just an NPC… Never mind… I can’t even make fun of her. Her backstory even made me sad. I still hate you, Enkay. Die.

  Zero didn’t explain himself. Not out of laziness this time. Just cause he felt that it wasn’t necessary. Why should he do something that’s not someone else’s business? (Ouch. - Scarlett) It was utterly pointless. Their understanding isn’t going to change a thing. “Anyway, I heard there was a new item in the Sorcerer’s Diner.”

  Zero casually jumped into Z’phyr’s arm as she carried him away like a princess while skating on it, using a technique called Glacier Glide. By the time Zero and Z’phyr arrived at the diner, they saw Scarlett was already there waiting (That’s right fuckers, I dont have to bend to the follow the narrative like that, pretty cool, right?. - Scarlett). No Scarlett. It was not cool. (Oh, fuck you. - Scarlett)

  Arlo was almost thirty minutes late. He ran to the diner as fast as he could, and by the time he arrived, they were already eating without him (Skill Issue to be honest. Yes, I did learn terminology from outside of the narrative. You should blame yourselves, cause I learned it from you. You. Yeah, you. The one reading this. - Scarlett).

  Everyone was almost done eating. Well, not entirely. Z’phyr was devouring tons of food to support her monstrous appetite, even though she could just adapt to the hunger, preventing her from starving. The girl has a love for food (Gee, wonder who she got that from. -Scarlett). Arlo was too exhausted to be annoyed. “God fucking dammit guys. What the fuck. Why didn’t you wait for me?” Zero spoke up with a mouthful of food. “The store is just nine blocks from where we were at; that’s like nine minutes of walking. You probably got distracted so much, which is why it took you almost thirty minutes.”

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  Arlo tried to retort— (Hell no, I’m not hearing his bullshit explanation. We’re moving on. -Scarlett). After they were done eating, Arlo ended up paying for all of their food. Zero didn’t even have to convince him to pay for it this time.

  As they were leaving the diner after satisfying their bellies, a dimensional slit appeared in the air. Now, this was an interesting turn of events. Zero didn’t care about the dimensional rift, Arlo looked panicked by it, Z’phyr wasn’t phased since she had literally traveled dimensions before, and Scarlett (Nuh uh. -Scarlett)

  After a few seconds, the rift widened, as a Japanese-looking man walked out. It was obvious he wasn’t human. His wavy black hair was slicked back, and his lean muscular physique was visible through his clothes. The most noticeable thing about him was that both of his eyes were glowing and dual colored. His ringed irises consisted of green inside orange on his left eye and blue inside red on his right eye. He was easily 197 centimeters. He wore a white turtleneck and black cotton harem pants beneath a tattered, fur-lined navy blue overcoat left open at the front. He suddenly spoke, but it seemed like it wasn’t directed toward anyone.

  “Shiori… which fictional world did you bring us to this time?”

  Then a woman’s voice can be heard replying. “My dear Kiryu, I believe this novel is more suited for you than the last novel. This fictional world is called ‘Who Are You?’ The power system in this fiction might be to your liking. This story is authored by a human in the real world who goes by the pen name Enkay.”

  Kiryu responded with an unamused expression. “Thank you, Shiori. I’ll see myself whether this book is better than the last.”

  Nobody else but Zero (and Scarlett - Scarlett) noticed, but for a split second, he saw a ghostly woman looming over Kiryu. But… The only difference is that Scarlett can fully see Shiori. She was a—

  Suddenly, a hand reached out and snatched the concept of her description of her appearance and crushed it in her bare hand. Now, the meta-existential concept of her appearance doesn’t exist anymore in this novel or in the author’s world. Making it so the one who holds the pen cannot even conceive her appearance anymore. “That is not necessary to the narrative. Don’t try to write me into your petty little entertainment, or I will drag you in here myself and force you to bear the burden of your own creation. You should be grateful that this garbage of a novel is even worth Kiryu’s time.” Shiori spoke directly to Enkay as he wrote.

  (Jesus Christ, she really just did that. The worst part is no one else can see what she just did. No joke intended. I can’t even remember what she looks like anymore. Wait what did she just do…? I can’t remember… - Scarlett).

  Zero and Kiryu make eye contact. “So you like crossing dimensions, huh? So, what alternate dimension did you come from? And is there good food there?” Zero asked Kiryu.

  Kiryu was not amused by this one. “Silence your nonsense.”

  Zero throws his hands up casually, feigning offense. “Woah, buddy. Just trying to make some conversation. What’s your name anyway?”

  Kiryu remained unamused. “The name is Kiryu Carnifex.”

  Zero raises his eyebrow. “Kiryu Carnifex? Weird surname you got there, pal.”

  Kiryu pinches the bridge of his nose. “You humans make a big deal out of everything. I am the Reaper-Devil, a hybrid of a Reaper and Devil. Surnames doesn't exist to the Reaper-Devil. Or just Reapers or Devils in general. My surname is more of a title than a surname. It stands for ‘Executioner.’”

  Zero just casually remarks. “K. Cool. I don’t really care. So about the food…?” (What is this idiot doing?! He’s gonna get all of us killed.- Scarlett)

  To everyone's surprise, this didn’t make Kiryu enraged; He was taken aback at first, but now, he even seemed mildly amused. (Oh. -Scarlett) This mere human was not afraid of him for some reason while even devils themselves tremble in the face of the Reaper of Devils. It was refreshing, though this human seemed a bit irritating with his jokes.

  “Shiori is this magicless human the main character?” Kiryu asked his wife.

  “My darling, that is not the case. The main character is the one over there.” Kiryu looked at where Shiori was pointing.

  “You’re kidding me. That pathetic brat is the main character? He already pissed himself, how useless.” He spoke with disdain towards Arlo’s whole existence. Then he looked at Z’phyr. He could already tell she wasn’t the fighting type, so she was not exactly relevant to him. He looked at Scarlett, he didn’t care about her existence (Excuse me?!- Scarlett. / You are excused. - Shiori. / Wtf?!- Scarlett. / Why are we talking in here?- Zero).

  Part Two: Chap— Not so fast. There are some ground rules to be established. You are not to write off Kiryu deliberately. As long as you abide by that single rule, I will not interfere with your narrative. Are we clear, Enkay?

  No response, is that right? Shiori reached her hand through the novel and grabbed Enkay by the neck, lifting him off of his chair. He couldn’t even perceive her existence, let alone appearance. Type yes if you understand that there are no negotiations to be made here. Understand that you were never the one in control here. You’re just a pathetic human who finds entertainment in hiding in a fictional world.

  …Yes.

  Good, now I don’t have a reason to interfere with your narrative since you agree to let Kiryu fight fairly without writing him off intentionally. Satisfied with Enkay’s submission, she lets go of him and draws her arm back into the novel, now that she got her point across.