I was Thrown into an Unfamiliar Manga

After we finished the watermelon-splitting, we kept playing on the beach for another three or four hours before deciding it was time to start heading back.

Not only was checkout time at the inn approaching, but if we stayed too long, we risked missing our bus home.
“Ah! That was so much fun!”
Rika stretched her arms out as she spoke, her skin noticeably tanned after two days of nonstop beach fun.

“We really went all out.”
“Would be nice if we could come again next year.”
“But by then we’ll all be third-years.”

“Even if we’re busy studying for exams, taking a single day off should be fine, right?”
Chatting idly like that, we walked to the bus stop with bags that felt much lighter than when we’d arrived.
As someone who grew up in Korea, experiencing something like this while attending a Japanese high school still felt novel.

The summer breaks I remembered from Korean high school were barely one or two weeks long, with nothing but extra classes at school.
“Ah, the bus is here.”
After waiting around ten minutes at the stop, a bus to the express terminal pulled up.

We got on, stowed our bags, and took seats in the very back, where we continued our leftover conversations.
Our bus reached the terminal at around 2 PM.
Before boarding our ride back to Tokyo, we had a late lunch at a nearby restaurant and then got on the bus we’d reserved in advance.

Just moments before, everyone had been bursting with energy, but the instant we sat down, one by one, they all started dozing off.
The last two to stay awake were Sasha and me, but soon even she let out a quiet yawn and fell asleep.
Seeing that, I figured there was no point staying up by myself, so I closed my eyes to nap until we reached Tokyo.

***
The express bus arrived at the Shinjuku terminal about an hour later.
We’d only just been here yesterday, but it felt like we were coming back after ages.
“Huaaah~ So, is this where we all split up?”

Satoru let out a jaw-breaking yawn as he asked, and we exchanged glances.
It was only 4 PM, so we technically could hang out more.
But the class rep, who had led the trip, raised her hand high and said,

“Sorry, but I’ve got something to do this evening, so I can’t.”
“Oh yeah? What about the rest of you?”
“Everyone still looks a bit worn out. Maybe we should call it here? We can always hang out again anytime.”

Everyone nodded at Yaguchi’s suggestion.
It had been well over 24 hours since we’d left home.
Honestly, we were at the point where home-cooked food was starting to sound really good.
“Well, guess this is where we part. Good work, everyone.”

With that, the class rep waved and walked off first.
Sasha and Karen apparently had people picking them up.
Satoru said he’d head home on his own, so that left me, Ryuji, Rika, and Yaguchi to catch the subway from Shinjuku Station.

There were empty seats, so we naturally ended up sitting in a row. Then, the foreign ghost hovering beside Ryuji turned to me and spoke.
“Kim Yu-seong. There’s something I wish to ask you. Could you spare a moment once the girls have left?”
I glanced at Ryuji beside me.

He gave a small nod.
Looks like they’d already talked about this.
And since it was obvious I could see the ghost too, there wasn’t much point trying to avoid the conversation.

Best to face it head-on.
I texted Ryuji on messenger: [Got it.]
Ryuji opened his phone, checked the message, then slid it back into his bag.

***
“See you, Ryu-chan! I’ll text you tonight!”
Rika got off one stop after us, waving as we parted ways in the train.

Yaguchi, who lived in the same neighborhood, went the opposite direction at the station, so that left just me and Ryuji walking home together.
As we strolled side-by-side, Ryuji kept stealing glances at me, and once we turned into a quiet side street, he asked,
“When did you start seeing Mahes?”

“…Mahes?”
“Oh, that’s his name.”
Ryuji gestured at the ghost floating beside him.

When our eyes met, Mahes gave a casual little wave.
Figuring there was no reason to hide it anymore, I answered honestly.
“Ever since I touched that cat-shaped ornament at your place.”

“I see… So the goddess Bastet guided you.”
“Goddess Bastet?”
I stared at the ghost, confused.

Ryuji quickly jumped in to explain.
“Oh, Mahes is Egyptian. I met him while traveling there, and he ended up following me back to Japan.”
Huh. Cultural differences, I guess.

As I looked at Mahes with fresh eyes, I brought up what he’d said earlier about wanting to ask me something.
Mahes crossed his arms and began.
“I am a Pharaoh of ancient Egypt. In my era, the title of Pharaoh also meant ‘the strongest warrior.’ In short, I was Egypt’s strongest.”

“…And?”
“As the strongest warrior, I became Pharaoh and gained unmatched authority. But I was disappointed that no one remained who could rival me. So I asked my closest friend and most trusted subordinate, the high priest: ‘How long must I wait before someone appears who could stand against me?’ And his answer was, ‘Five thousand years.’”
“Five thousand years?”

So this ghost in front of me was from… around 3000 BCE?
That’s not just old—that’s fossil level.
“Before I died, I had the priest make arrangements. That if someone strong enough to challenge me appeared in the future, I would be resurrected to meet them.”

The more he spoke, the more over-the-top the story became. I looked at Ryuji.
“…What exactly did you bring back from Egypt?”
“This is the first time I’m hearing this too.”

Oblivious to our reactions, Mahes continued reciting his life story.
“Endless years passed. You cannot imagine it—there is nothing in the underworld that could be called stimulation.”
Underworld? So heaven and hell exist in this world?

Honestly, I was more curious about that than his backstory.
“After 5,000 years, I finally encountered Ryuji. Perhaps the priest foresaw it.”
His story just kept going, so I decided to interrupt before it spiraled further.

“So now that you’ve resurrected after five thousand years, what do you want?”
Mahes let out a quiet laugh.
“Obviously, battle—against burning-blooded warriors. I was once a frog trapped in the well of Egypt. But now, the world is filled with strong fighters, and I can finally meet them. This is the world I dreamed of.”

After declaring that, Mahes turned his eyes to me.
“Kim Yu-seong, you are no ordinary person. To accumulate that much Tut-Ra, you must’ve trained rigorously from childhood. I want you to tell me—about the other side of this world, and the truly strong who live in it.”
I looked at Ryuji standing beside him.

“Sorry for asking out of nowhere, Yu-seong. But if you know anything, could you help? He won’t let it go until he gets an answer.”
I hesitated for a bit.
From what I could tell, Ryuji knew nothing about the hidden side of this world.

I wasn’t exactly an expert either, but compared to them, I definitely knew more.
Still… was it okay for me to reveal that kind of information?
I couldn’t help but worry I’d stir up trouble.

Then, suddenly, an idea came to me.
I cleared my throat and said,
“Sorry, Ryuji. I don’t really know much either, so there’s not much I can tell you. But… I do know someone who might.”

“Who?”
“Here, go to this place.”
I pulled a business card from my wallet.

The café manager gave it to me back when I visited the place where Fuma-senpai worked.
Good thing I didn’t throw it away.
“‘Machi☆Asobi Café’?”

“Just say you came on Kim Yu-seong’s recommendation. That’ll be enough.”
“Thank you. I am in your ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ debt.”
“You don’t have to be so formal about it. It’s not a big deal.”

I held Mahes back as he bowed his head in gratitude, quietly smirking to myself.
If I don’t want to answer something—I can just push the problem onto someone else.
Right after, Ryuji bowed too.

“Thanks, Yu-seong. For going along with him.”
“No problem. You’ve got it rough, too.”
I patted his shoulder and said goodbye as we reached my house.

“See you next time.”
“See you, Yu-seong!”
After waving them off, I dropped by the shop on the first floor.

“I’m home.”
My mom, who had been wiping tables, looked up and smiled.
“Did you have fun?”

I gave her a big thumbs-up.
“Of course.”
“You must be tired. Go rest upstairs.”

“Okay. I’ll see you at dinner.”
After greeting my dad briefly in the kitchen, I hauled my bags upstairs.
Ding!

Just as I was unpacking and tossing yesterday’s clothes into the laundry machine, I heard a notification and checked my phone.
[Kim Yu-seong, you haven’t forgotten your promise with the President, have you?]
“…Ah.”

Right. I’d promised to go on that trip with the Student Council too.
Totally slipped my mind.