"Hey, wake up! Come on, wake up, hurry up and wake up!"
A woman's voice broke the silence, forcing Kazuki to open his eyes, still heavy with sleep. He groaned softly, trying to understand what was happening. His half-closed eyes slowly opened wide as he realized someone was standing in front of him.
"Huh, who are you anyway?" he asked in a hoarse voice, still not fully conscious.
"Amira! How could you forget your own classmate's name?" the woman replied in an annoyed tone, her hands clenched at her waist.
*Amira...* Kazuki nodded slightly to himself. *I remember, she is indeed my classmate. But I rarely talk to my classmates, so it's natural that I don't really remember their names.*
"So, what's up, Amira?" he asked again, while rubbing his still-heavy eyes.
They almost never talked, so it was rather strange that she suddenly woke him up.
"What? Are you seriously asking that? Can't you see our surroundings?" Amira shouted in a desperate tone, her hand pointing around them.
Kazuki frowned, then slowly looked around. His still blurry eyes began to focus, and he was startled.
"Uhh, huh? Where is this? Wasn't I sleeping in the classroom? How did I suddenly get here?"
They were now in the middle of a vast forest, surrounded by tall trees that soared into the sky. The atmosphere around them felt strange and eerie. Cold air gripped his skin, making him shiver.
"Huh, you're only realizing this now?" asked Amira, her face full of concern.
"Well, of course, I just woke up," Kazuki replied while standing, trying to understand the situation that was happening.
Suddenly, a rustling sound from the bushes made both of them tense. Kazuki was immediately alert, his eyes staring at the source of the sound.
"Hah!"
From behind the bushes emerged a giant snake with a large, scaly body. What made it more frightening was the presence of horns on top of the snake's head.
Amira immediately hid behind Kazuki, her hands gripping Kazuki's arm tightly.
"Wow, is this a snake with a new style? How can a snake have horns on its head? Isn't that kind of funny?" said Kazuki while smiling.
"Hey, this is no time for jokes, you know! Look, you're making it red!" Yukina shouted, her face pale with fear.
"Can snakes even understand human language?"
"Hey, that's not important! Now it's really angry now!" Amira shouted.
The giant snake was indeed getting angry. Its glowing red eyes stared sharply at them. Without warning, the snake attacked, its large body darting quickly toward Kazuki and Amira.
*Hoho, it seems I have to use my power now, huh,* Kazuki thought to himself. *Even though I want to live as an ordinary human, but what can I do, right?*
He exhaled softly, then raised his hand toward the snake. Suddenly, something strange happened. The giant snake suddenly stopped in the middle of its attack, then began to bite its own body. In an instant, the snake fell to the ground, no longer moving.
Amira was wide-eyed, her eyes staring at Kazuki with confusion.
"What... what just happened?" she asked, her voice trembling.
Kazuki then turned to Amira.
"Ah, that was just a coincidence. Maybe it was exhausted," he answered casually, trying to avoid further questions.
"What do you mean it was exhausted! That makes absolutely no sense, you know!"
"Well, you don't have to believe me if you don't want to," he replied with a flat expression.
"Uhh..." Amira face clearly didn't believe Kazuki's words, but she didn't continue questioning that.
"So... what should we do now?" she asked, her eyes still staring at the now motionless giant snake.
Kazuki nodded, then looked around them again.
"First, we need to find out where we are. Second, we need to find a way out of this forest," he answered calmly.
Amira nodded slowly, although her face still looked anxious.