Hidden Soul

1.2 | Return

The kid who tried to beat up Mei was instantly blown through a multitude of walls until they landed outside the school perimeters. The new person who appeared in John's body retracted their hand, then looked at the rest of the students, including those who came.

"Did you try to take on her?" the boy asked, without averting his gaze from the other kids. They shook their heads, and ran away. Mei stood there in fear, but the boy said, "Don't worry. I'm not going to harm you. I'm still John, just..."

As the phones and cameras started to capture the scenery, the boy noticed that he blew off Mei's beanie in the process, revealing her cat ears. He picked it up from the floor, and put it on her, saying, "You dropped this."

A scream was heard from behind the crowd, and in an instant, the boy created a rope out of thin air and slammed the floor in the direction of the scream with it, forcing the crowd to part ways. They revealed a boy being hit by numerous elder boys, and the new boy said, "Good fucking grief. Reminds me of years ago. 7 years ago, to be more precise."

He teleported to the nearest one and slammed him straight towards the ground with a kick, making the others fall backwards. The boy being bullied was none other than Alfredo, the orange-haired kid. The former stretched his hand towards him, and the latter grasped it, helping himself up.

"Who actually are you, John?" Alfredo asked, seeing his appearance entirely changed.

"Who... am I? It's been a long time since I've been asked that question." the boy said. "The last thing I remember before everything cut out was Jin-Suk blasting me into oblivion."

"Jin-Suk? Wait, Mu-Jin's real identity?"

"Is it?"

The boy's expression darkened, and he said, "I remember a few extra details from that. Thanks, Alfredo."

One of the boys tried to attempt a sneak attack on him, only to be blasted with every ability that existed in the Old Ages. He was sent flying into the ceiling, before falling down onto the floor, breaking his left leg.

"What's going on here?"

Everyone turned and saw Johnson, making his way to the center. The sight of the new boy made him widen his eyes, and the boy said, "It's been a while, Johnson. I'm glad you survived."

"K-Keith?"

The crowd gasped upon hearing his name. "You're not really John, are you?" Mei asked, approaching.

"Don't worry about me being John or not. What matters is that I am John, just a former version of him."

"So, uh... I don't know how to think about this."

"Neither can I, and neither can Johnson, nor everyone here."

"I didn't know you survived, either. Mu-Jin really dealt a huge blow to your head, huh?" Johnson asked, excited at the thought of seeing an old friend again.

"Y... Yeah..."

Keith collapsed and got back to being John, having exhausted all his energy. He smiled, although he had to return to the clinic just minutes after he got out.

"Can you still talk while in this state?" Johnson asked, helping Mei carry him.

"Yeah, although it's a bit tiring."

"Alright. Take some rest. Although, was that Legend Power or was it actually you?"

"My true self."

"I see."

The two of them laid John on the bed, and Johnson left the room while Mei stayed.

"You shouldn't exert yourself too much." she said.