1 Prologue

Inside a dome with a ceiling taller than anything else, a total of 37 people are gathered. Ranging from kids to elderly men, they all have different variations. Looking around, shifting their eyes onto the gazes of each other, the lack of familiarity was obvious; everyone was a stranger to another and no relationships were yet to be formed. As of now, no one has an ally at the unknown battlefield which was surrounded by the shade of dark blue.

At a certain circular pattern on the floor, one young man stood up straight with no knowledge of what had happened or what is currently occurring in front of him. Wearing an ordinary high school uniform, he was the 16-year-old Hiragashi Shiro - a boy who lives at the center of Japan. Right now, there is only one question that was on his head...

( Just what is happening...? ) The question was obvious. He was sure that all of the people that were standing at the dome together with him has the exact same question on their heads. And so his guess was right...

[ Mm... It seems that we're in a huge predicament... Reading what you all are thinking, I can say that no one here knows what exactly is going on. ] Looking at his side, Shiro found a guy wearing a business suit, the kind you would wear in an official meeting. The charismatic voice came from him, and with it, he was able to gather everyone's attention. Of course, with all eyes staring at him, questions and responses are aught to arrive.

[ How are you exactly sure about that? ] From afar, another male with a military attire questions the sudden murmur of the man. His build was large, and out of all the people that were gathered, he has one of the most intimidating presence. With crossed arms, he shows dominance over the others. He doesn't have any weapons on him, but his looks alone are enough to scare off the others.

[ Fufu... It's easy actually; if you're smart enough that is. ] Confident, he replies, to which the military man only laughs at.

[ Hahaha! You're ridiculing a man who has fought many wars, young man. Though I may look like some brute, I'm smart enough to gather these medals on my chest. ] He said as he points his chests upwards to show the many medals that were accumulated on it. Everyone was shocked as they count all of it. It wouldn't be a surprise if he would reveal that he was a very renowned soldier of his own country. But though what he had shown was nothing, the business guy just brushed him off.

[ Hmph... I didn't mean to offend you in any way... I was only stating the facts. Your achievements are of a different matter; let's talk about our current situation. ] With a short pause, the man spoke, turning his head then to the closes person to him in the room: Shiro.

[ My name is Vincent, a psychologist and a doctor in Europe; it's a pleasure to meet you. ] The introduction was for everyone to hear, however, it was certainly directed towards Shiro. So, with a stutter, he fixes himself and replies.

[ M-My name is Hiragashi Shiro! I'm a highschooler student from Japan. It's a pleasure to meet you too! ] Meeting such a formal person from a different country, he couldn't help but panic. He just doesn't know how he would present himself.

[ From Japan, is it? A country that's far from mine... As I guess, we really are in an odd situation... ] He murmurs to himself, but the crowd was definitely able to hear since the place they were in was so enclosed. Then, as if he was able to figure something out, he struts towards the center of the room and spoke loud enough for everyone to hear...

[ It's been a while since we all have gathered here... All this time, I was just observing the physical appearance of everyone, guessing from which part of the world you are all from. Shiro has proven my theory that we are all from different parts of the world... Which makes our situation stranger than it already is considering... ] pausing, he took a glance at all eyes in the room. Then, he continues... [ Considering that we can all understand each other... ]

Just then, a commotion from the crowd started.

[ Wait... You're talking in my language, right? ]

[ No! You were talking in mine! ]

Voices were heard as everyone had suddenly realized the fact Vincent has just stated. Even Shiro was shocked as he heard it. Looking around, he could definitely see people of different races - people from different parts of the world. Yet... He could understand all of them speaking in perfect Japanese, which is already rare for one foreigner to accomplish.

What the hell is going on? The question was repeated on everyone's mind. However, it didn't take it too long before it was replaced with a different topic that came from another person in the crowd.

[ Tsk! This is just stupid... Why are we arguing about the fact that we could all understand each other!? ] Everyone turned quiet as they all look at the figure to which the voice came from. With a bald head and a face full of tattoos, he looked terrifying as a single person could get. But it was not his looks that terrified everyone in the room, it was the clothes he was wearing. Wearing an orange inmate suit, he was a criminal out in the open.

[ Are you all stupid? Can't you see what the real problem here is? ] He asks the question, to which Vincent immediately responds.

[ Which is? ]

[ That we're in this place. ] That was all the answer he got. Everyone was expecting the inmate to say something stupid, but he definitely didn't. Though everyone was a little hesitant, they still made small nods as they understood what he meant. Everyone was still wary of him, but as of now, none has treated him with hostility. Even the military guy was just calmly observing his appearance without really doing anything.

Embarrassed, Vincent nodded. He believes that he always needs to think out of the box, but that turned him to look away from the most important question to ask, which the inmate has easily beat him into.

[ You're right... There are more concerns... But we should talk about them later... Right now, what's important is for us to know how we got here in the first place. ]

[ Un, that's right, we'll talk about how we can get away from here while we're on it too. ] The Military person replies, to which everyone nodded in agreement.

[ Then, we should first introduce ourselves. ]

***

With a flash of blinding light, an entity suddenly appeared in the middle of the enclosed dome. Floating above Vincent was a circle of light; yellow and bright as it illuminates all that was in the room, creating dark shadows as it did so. After a few seconds, the light slowly dimmed out, turning then into the figure of a person.

Everyone in the room gasps at the supernatural transformation of the light. Slowly turning into the appearance of a beautiful woman, it slowly descends in the middle of the dome. Vincent, who was the closes to the Goddess of an entity that was revealed wasn't even able to blink for a time as he focuses his stare at it. Just like everyone in the room, he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

[ I'm very sorry if I was late. ] Suddenly, the Goddess spoke. Her appearance was easy to explain - she was the most beautiful - it was that simple. However, she covers most of her skin with the white robe she was wearing, so no one could really justify just how more beautiful she could get. May that be the case, still, every single person in the room would agree that she was the most alluring woman they have ever seen. None would argue.

[ It was my intention to explain to you the situation you were put into, but I wanted all of you to know each other first. ] With the voice that wouldn't shy of her appearance, she continues.

[ Well then, since you all now know each other, I would finally explain... But first... ] Saying so, she turns towards Vincent.

[ Thank you, young man... You have accomplished what I have expected of you. ] With a smile, she compliments him. On the sight of her beauty, Vincent wasn't able to do anything; not to move a muscle nor speak a word. However, after a few seconds of being paralyzed, he was able to respond, by nodding hesitantly and stuttering his tongue for words.

[ I... ]