We’re all sitting around the kitchen table now, and the scene looks like something out of a weird fever dream. There’s a bunch of beers spread out across the table—thankfully, we’re all nineteen except Abel, who’s still a year younger, so it’s not totally illegal. Well, except for the fact that we’re sitting across from a cyberpunk red panda, sipping beer like it’s just another Thursday night.

I lean back in my chair, arms crossed, watching the scene unfold. Everyone else seems to be going with the flow—except me, of course. I’m still not entirely convinced I’m not hallucinating.

Jiho takes a sip of his beer, his eyes locked on the panda as it lifts its bottle, grinning like it’s already had one too many. “Cheers!” the panda says with a little slur, clinking its bottle against Abel’s. Isak follows suit, laughing at the absurdity of the situation, while I just sit there, beer untouched in front of me.

Finally, I can’t take it anymore. “Okay, hold on,” I say, cutting through the awkward silence. “Who… or what are you?”

The panda, still grinning, puts down his bottle, and leans back in his chair with a little hiccup. “The name’s Akari Kanemoto,” he says proudly, giving us a little salute with two fingers. “And, I’m a Multiversal Traveller.”

I blink. “Right. A Multiversal Traveller. Of course.”

Isak snorts, raising an eyebrow. “Okay, I have to ask… are we all high right now? Because I swear a red panda just told us he’s a Multiversal Traveller while sipping a beer.”

Abel, being the responsible one, shakes his head and leans forward. “Nah, we’re not high. I’ve been sober since I got back from the gym. This is… real, apparently.”

Akari leans forward, his red and blue eyes flicking between us. “Look, I get it. This isn’t your average Wednesday night, okay? But I’m here because you four…” He gestures vaguely toward us, the beer bottle swinging dangerously in his paw. “You’re all about to go on an adventure. And guess what? I’m the one who’s gonna take you there.”

We all sit there, staring at him—er, it—waiting for more. Jiho’s eyebrows are practically disappearing into his hairline, and Isak looks like he’s holding back a laugh, but no one says a word. We’re just waiting, because what do you even say to something like that?

“Okay,” I finally say, rubbing the bridge of my nose. “So, you’re telling us we’re going on some kind of multiverse adventure with a cyberpunk red panda who drinks beer?”

Akari grins wider, lifting his bottle again. “Exactly! You’re catching on, Haru!”

I sigh, leaning back in my chair. Yep, this is definitely the day our lives took a turn for the weird.

Akari sits up a little straighter, his grin still plastered across his furry face like he’s about to sell us a used car. “Alright, I get it. You’re just a bunch of regular humans here, nothing particularly special at all. But…” He leans forward, waving his bottle around like he’s about to drop some life-changing wisdom. “Somewhere else, in another universe, you could be gods. You could have harems, be kings, save the innocent, be heroes. Maybe even live forever, if you play your cards right.”

Isak leans back, his arms crossed, still clearly skeptical. “So, what? We just step through some magic door and become, what? Kings of Fantasyland?”

Akari’s grin widens. “Well, it could be a fantasy world. Elves, dragons, giants, the whole shebang. Or maybe it’s a sci-fi world with technology that makes this one look like child’s play. The possibilities are endless, boys. Endless.”

Jiho snorts, glancing over at Abel. “Are you sure he’s not just a midget in a costume, man?”

Abel, clearly a little irritated by that comment, shoots Jiho a look. “No, he’s not. Look, when we first met, he didn’t just show up at my door. He came through a portal. Like, a real portal. It was quick, just a glimpse, but I saw it. It was like stepping out of a tube or something.”

I raise an eyebrow. “And how much pre-workout did you take today, Abel?”

Abel sighs, leaning forward with a serious expression. “I’m telling you the truth, Haru. You’ve gotta trust me on this.”

I glance at Akari, then back to Abel. “Alright, fine. But I’ve got two questions for the furball. First, what’s in it for you? And second, how does this all work?”

Akari takes another swig from his bottle before pointing a clawed finger at me. “Good questions, Haru. I’ll answer the second one first. See, I’ve got this nifty piece of tech. It allows us to access a train network that runs across the multiverse. Hop on the train, and boom—you’re off to any world you want. Fantasy, sci-fi, superhero—take your pick.”

Isak, who’s been rubbing his temples like he’s getting the headache of a lifetime, lets out a low groan. “A multiverse train? This is getting more unbelievable by the second.”

Akari chuckles, clearly enjoying our reactions. “I get it. It’s a lot to take in. But hey, it’s the truth.”

I’m about to press him more, but I remember my first question. “And the first part? What’s in it for you? Why are you bringing us along for this?”

Akari’s grin falters just a bit. He sets his bottle down and leans forward, his tone getting a little more serious. “Well, here’s the thing. There are… let’s say, some less-than-friendly folks out there who aren’t exactly happy with me. They’re after me. And I need a little distraction. You guys, well, you’d be perfect for that. Keep ‘em busy for a little while, while I handle my business.”

The room goes dead quiet. I can feel everyone’s tension rising, including my own. We’re not exactly fans of being someone’s decoy in some interdimensional chase. I glance around the table. Jiho’s already biting his lip, and even Isak looks concerned.

Akari quickly raises his hands, seeing our reactions. “Wait, wait, don’t worry! They’re after me. Not you. They won’t bother you guys unless you’re, like, actively getting in their way. They don’t like unnecessary trouble. I swear on my life—you’ll be safe.”

I tap my fingers on the table, still processing all of this. A train that takes us across the multiverse? Crazy, but maybe. Getting involved in someone’s dangerous business? That’s a whole other level of risk. But the idea of travelling to other worlds—fantasy, sci-fi, heroes? That’s hard to ignore.

Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.

I glance around at the others. Abel looks conflicted but calm. Jiho’s still fidgeting, unsure. Isak’s holding his head, trying to wrap his brain around the whole thing.

I take a deep breath and lean forward. “Alright, Akari. We get to pick where we go. Categories, worlds, whatever—you let us decide. That’s the only way we even consider this.”

Akari’s grin returns, wide and eager. “Deal. You pick the destinations. I just drive the train.”

I nod. “Good. Now, we need some time to talk about this. Privately.”

Akari stands up, stretching. “Sure, sure. Take your time. I’ll just… crash in one of your rooms for a bit. Let me know when you’ve made your decision.” And with that, he saunters off to one of the bedrooms, leaving the four of us sitting there, still trying to process everything that just happened.

As soon as the door closes behind him, I look around at my brothers. “Alright, what the hell do we do now?”

The second Akari closes the door to one of our rooms, it’s like a collective breath is released at the table. I lean back, rubbing the back of my neck, while Abel crosses his arms and Jiho just stares at his now-empty beer can, spinning it on the table like it’ll reveal all the answers.

Isak, of course, is the first to break the silence. “Okay, let’s just… say we do this. I mean, we get to go on some kind of multiverse adventure, right? I’m talking harems, castles, swords, dragons. Elves, man! Imagine it. I’d have elf chicks all over me.”

I groan. “Of course that’s where your mind goes first.”

Abel shoots him a look, half-amused, half-serious. “Seriously, Isak? You’re thinking about that instead of the fact that we could, I don’t know, die?”

Jiho leans forward, tapping his fingers on the table. “He’s right, though. I mean, who are we really leaving behind? We’re not exactly swimming in deep friendships or family ties. Our lives aren’t… well, they’re not much here. It’s just work, the same old routine.”

I nod, thinking it through. “Yeah, no one's going to miss us. Parents? Nah. We’ve been adopted, what, three times collectively? Not like we’re abandoning anyone.”

Isak, undeterred, looks even more excited. “Right, so we could be kings! Or heroes! Think about it. I mean, if we land in some fantasy world, we could have abilities, powers. You’ve seen the anime, Haru—you know how this goes.”

Jiho perks up, finally snapping out of his sad breakup cloud. “Yeah, like in Sword Art Online, Mushoku Tensei or Re:Zero. Maybe not the last one but still…

We could be those guys. Fight monsters, be the chosen ones. Dude, we’d be living every nerd’s dream.”

I raise an eyebrow at Jiho. “Don’t even try to act like you’d be the hero, man. You’d probably end up being the sidekick in the background, crying over your ex while I handle the plot.”

Jiho throws a chip at me, but he’s laughing now. “Okay, okay, fair. But seriously, Haru—this is our chance to be more than just some random nobodies working dead-end jobs.”

Abel, who’s been surprisingly quiet, finally speaks up. “Yeah, but what if this isn’t all fun and games? What if we get stuck somewhere we don’t like? Or worse, what if we run into those ‘unfavorable’ people Akari mentioned?”

I sigh, running a hand over my face. “Look, there’s obviously risk involved. It’s not like we’re walking into some perfect world. But let’s be real: we don’t have much going on here. Abel, your gym routine’s impressive and all, but are we really going to just stick around here forever? Stock shelves? Live paycheck to paycheck?”

Isak, already halfway convinced, chimes in. “Haru’s right. This place? It’s boring. We’re literally sitting here debating if we want to leave behind a life where we do nothing but eat, work, and play games. We can actually live out those games. Imagine landing in a sci-fi world where we have tech we can’t even comprehend. It’s worth a shot.”

Jiho nods, finally on board. “And let’s be honest, none of us have anyone we’re leaving behind. We’ve got each other. That’s enough. We make the rules.”

Abel leans back, considering it. “Yeah, I guess you’re right. No one’s going to come knocking on our door asking why we’re gone. No commitments. No ties.”

I look around at them. My brothers—by adoption, sure, but in every way that matters. “So, we’re doing this? No more boring life, no more being stuck in the same routine?”

Isak raises his beer bottle. “I’m in. Let’s live it up.”

Jiho clinks his own can against Isak’s. “I mean, we might as well. I’m done crying over the same old crap.”

Abel looks between us, then grins. “Alright, fine. But if we die because of this, it’s on all of you.”

I snort. “Fair enough. But, hey—worst-case scenario, we end up with a few cool scars, right?”

With a final collective sigh, we all glance toward the closed bedroom door where Akari’s waiting.

“Guess it’s time to see where this crazy train takes us,” I say, standing up.

Abel looks at me, shaking his head with a grin. “You were always gonna say yes, weren’t you?”

“Yeah, probably,” I admit with a smirk. “Now, let’s go see if our fuzzy friend is ready to send us on the adventure of a lifetime.”

We all exchange a look, a mix of nervousness and excitement hanging in the air. With a collective deep breath, Abel calls out, “Akari, you can come back in now!”

The door swings open, and Akari stumbles back into the kitchen, looking even more tipsy than before. His red and blue eyes gleam with that mischievous sparkle, and the beer bottle in his paw is dangerously close to being empty. He wobbles over to the table, pulling out a chair and flopping into it with all the grace of someone who’s had a bit too much.

“So,” he slurs, swaying slightly, “what’s the verdict?”

“We’re in,” I say simply, leaning forward. “We’ll go with you.”

Akari grins wide, slapping the table with his paw. “Excellent! You won’t regret it!” Then, as if remembering something very important, he frowns slightly. “But, uh… you guys got any food? I’m starving.”

Isak, always quick on the uptake, grabs a nearby bag of sweets and chucks it at Akari. The bag sails across the table, and Akari barely catches it, his reflexes slow but still intact.

He squints at the bag, turning it over in his paw like it’s some alien artifact. “Uh… what are these?”

“Sweets,” Jiho says, grinning. “Try ‘em. You’ll like it.”

Akari looks unsure but tears open the bag, popping one of the candies into his mouth. He chews thoughtfully for a moment before his eyes light up. “Whoa! These are… amazing!” He quickly downs another, completely absorbed in the flavor.

“Yeah, they’re pretty good,” I say, chuckling at the sight of him scarfing down the sweets. “You might want to pace yourself, though.”

Akari looks up, still chewing, and wipes his mouth with the back of his paw. “Nah, you guys should enjoy these sweets while you still can. Might not get much of this kinda stuff where we’re going.”

That statement makes us pause. We exchange glances, and then, without another word, everyone starts reaching for the sweets, grabbing handfuls and stuffing them in their mouths like it’s our last meal on Earth. And maybe it is, in a way.

After a few minutes of indulging in what might be our last taste of normalcy, Akari clears his throat, getting our attention again. He leans forward, a serious expression on his face despite the slight sway in his posture. “Alright, there’s just one more thing we need to settle before we go.”

We all look at him expectantly, waiting.

“What kind of place do you want to go to?”