“Master, may I fight Sen?” Kyuuko stated.

  “Didn’t you hear the Master? Sen, in his current condition, is not able to fight!” Amaki yelled at her sister.

  The Master said, “Kyuuko, do you really want to test Sen’s ability to fight?”

  Kyuuko widened her eyes with excitement. “YES!” she said loudly.

  “Just remember, Sen has not yet awakened, and he could still hurt you,” the Master said.

  Glowing with determination, Kyuuko said she would not be hurt.

  “Go on, Kyuuko. Let yourself loose and test Sen’s abilities.”

  Kyuuko, faster than the speed of light, rushed to Sen’s location.

  “Was it really a good idea for Kyuuko to fight Sen?” Amaki asked.

  “Testing Sen is part of my plan. Testing Sen is how I know that Sen is ready for what’s about to come,” the Great Master said.

  “I understand,” Amaki replied.

  Amaki’s passive ability activated. “Don’t think I don’t see you there, intruder.”

  “Oh? Looks like I was found,” the mysterious being from behind the wall said.

  The Master instantly recognized the mysterious man, long before Amaki saw him using her ability.

  “If it isn’t the legendary hedgehog!” the Master’s tone changed to a dramatic, deep one.

  “Hmph. You are also a hedgehog type. You’re me, but different,” the mysterious man said.

  “So what brings you here?” the Master spoke.

  “I come here to stop you from killing your Sen from your universe,” said the mysterious man. “If Sen were to die, it would mean he’s a failure.”

  “Sen would be of no use to me,” the Master said.

  Amaki then recognized the mysterious man.

  The year was 7,687—the year of the universal catastrophe, also known as the Kyuusen War. Only Amaki knew this name, because her Master told her the real name years after they met. The name the people of the universe called it was the War of Light and Dark, not knowing what was truly going on or who was fighting. The Master was in this battle against the mysterious man, and he revealed his greatest secret: both the mysterious man and the Master were Kyuusen. Name-wise, “Hero Hedgehog”—both shared this name, for both were similar. All Kyuusen are the same, but each tries to be different from the other.

  “If you two are going to fight, then fight somewhere else!” Amaki yelled.

  Both agreed.

  “Space Creation,” both Kyuusens chanted—and bam, a spatial dimension was created, and both went in. In this dimension, a Kyuusen can release great power without destroying it. The dimension is created by Kyuusen energy, so it can withstand anything.

  Both went in, and Master Kyuusen left Amaki in charge for a little while to keep an eye on Sen and Kyuuko.

  Kyuusen don’t really have names, so they just give themselves names. Hero Hedgehog was named Hazo, and the Master’s name was Rei.

  Rei let out a sigh of relief and changed his heavy, deep tone to a happy one.

  “Feels good to let loose once in a while, right, Hazo?” said Rei.

  “Good grief,” sighed Hazo. “I invited you here so we can have a little chat, ya know?” Rei said.

  “This better be good. You know you shouldn’t waste my time,” said Hazo. “Also, why do you hide this side of you? You even put your hair down—you’re not even the evil type.”

  “You see, Hazo, I am King of my little empire here, and I am the King that strikes fear into others. The funny thing is that no one has ever heard of me—‘King Rei.’ But when someone or something enters this place and makes it to the throne, they are greeted with my ominous presence, and the greatest fear strikes them. I ask, ‘Do you wish to challenge me, King Rei?’ And that’s the reason I put my hair down like I do,” explained Rei.

  Rei decided it would be better to talk somewhere inside the subspace. He created two comfy chairs and a big house with a grand wooden table. Both sat, and Rei then said, “Now then, let’s talk about the ongoing rise of the Zorros and the first move of the Sokatsu.”

  Meanwhile, Amaki decided to look at what Kyuuko was up to, and she was shocked by what she witnessed. Kyuuko teleported back.

  “What happened, Kyuuko?!” Amaki yelled.

  “There wasn’t a scratch on him!” Kyuuko yelled in fear.

  Amaki looked back to see if the battle was recorded.

  Five minutes before the battle began:

  “Seeeeeeeeeeen!” Kyuuko yelled as she landed a blow—but it was caught.

  This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Sen still did not know what was going on. Not knowing how to fight, it was like instinct—he caught an attack that was 400 times the speed of light, a hit strong enough to destroy 200 galaxies.

  Kyuuko backed off and said, “So you’re Sen!”

  Sen was confused and didn’t know what to say, so he stayed silent.

  Kyuuko then launched another attack. “Multi-Cat Punch!”

  Sen stood still and took no damage.

  Kyuuko unleashed more attacks. “Kitten Rush!” “Cat Dimensional Slash!”

  Kyuuko started to grin, knowing that Sen was truly strong. She yelled, “Sen! You are a worthy opponent. I will take you seriously now!”

  “I call this attack—Kitty Cannon!”

  The biggest blast Sen had ever seen—his first—appeared before his eyes. The blast was a direct hit. All surrounding planets, stars, and galaxies were destroyed. The range was around 4 Xios light-years, or around 9 trillion to the 9 trillion power of light-years. Kyuusen later had to fix the mess.

  Kyuuko was left paralyzed with confusion, fear, and excitement, knowing her most powerful attack had no impact on Sen.

  “How strong is this guy? Can I even win? I gotta get out of here!” Kyuuko said to herself.

  Poof. She left the battle and returned to base.

  Kyuuko returned to base to see Amaki in shock.

  “What happened out there?!” Amaki asked.

  Kyuuko explained everything.

  Sen, still standing after the battle, had a strange feeling and fell from space to the planet below, crashing to the ground. He landed in a field of grass and flowers. Sen was knocked out after lying in the grass and slept for a few days.

  Sen awoke to the soft breeze of the grassland. As usual, Sen learned what life was—animals and plants everywhere. He sat up, but out of nowhere his eye burst. Sen, not knowing what pain felt like, was shocked to see blood on his hands for the first time—his own blood. At that moment, Sen blacked out.

  He awoke in his consciousness. There were spirit-like people.

  “Sen,” the spirits said. “It seems you have used too much of your own power.”

  Sen looked around and saw many of them.

  “It’s too early for you to know the truth. You must find something called the Hamazak.”

  “Your power will grow more and more. You will realize this power. Since you made it here, we shall give you your first increase in power. Let us give you your eye back.”

  Sen received his eye back—but this eye wasn’t like any other. By gaining it, he passed the spirits’ test. This was the first and last test, for if he were to visit the spirits again, it would be because he accomplished something to trigger them.

  Sen woke up. Standing in front of him was a girl. She wore a pretty dress with a flower in her hair, and she instantly knew he wasn’t from planet Makumos.

  “You’re not from here, are you?” the girl said.

  Sen realized the blood was gone, stood up, and spoke. “No.”

  The girl thought Sen must have come to planet Makumos to sign up for the most well-known tournament on the planet. The winner would rise to a galaxy tournament and gain either a super-rare item of great power or a visit to the Grand Shinosa, where a being can gain any power they want. This doesn’t stop bad beings from trying to obtain great power.

  Rumors spread about the Hamazak being the prize that year. The Hamazak was an item so rare and powerful that it might have been created by the Great Kami himself. The prize is protected by an angel, and if any villain or Zorros try to steal it, they will never break through the holy barrier placed upon it.

  Since it was rumored that the Hamazak was the prize, every strong being arrived on the planets hosting the tournament.

  “You must be here for the Great Glax—a giant tournament for a grand prize! You must have heard about the Hamazak, right?” the girl said.

  She took Sen by the hand and brought him to the Glax Arena, where many fighters waited in line to sign up.

  Meanwhile, in a bar:

  “Brother, what if they figure out we are part of the So—” said a girl in a cloak.

  “Silence, sister of mine,” a cloaked man said. “If you speak the name, everyone will figure it out. Do not fear—we shall take the Hamazak. Now let’s head over to the Glax Arena to sign up. I hope you remember our plan.”

  “Yes, I do, brother,” the sister replied.

  “Ladies and gentlemen! Boys and girls! It’s me, your favorite announcer! Everyone should know the deal by now, but if you’re new and signing up today, I’ll start from the beginning!

  The rules are simple: if you’re knocked off the ring, you’re out! It’s three rounds—if you get kicked from the platform twice, you’re out of the tournament. Knockout finishes are worth two points. If you die… it’s worth three points—but the great barrier surrounding the arena will bring you back to life.

  After we have a winner, we’ll send you to the galaxy arena! As for powers, to make things balanced, any type of time manipulation is forbidden, but time-skipping is valid, as it’s similar to speed!”

  The announcer continued, and at the end everyone cheered.

  “See y’all in the tournament!!”

  The crowd cheered louder.

  Outside the arena, in the long line, stood the girl and Sen, waiting.

  “You haven’t told me your name yet. What’s your name? Oh—wait, I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Hanna, Hanna the 7th Superior, user of Light Magic.”

  Sen widened his eyes. He realized this wasn’t an ordinary girl—she was joining the tournament too.

  Sen had to think of a power to represent himself. He didn’t know what powers he had or how to use them. Then it snapped—he remembered his eye.

  “I am Sen,” he said. “Sen of the Red Magnus.”

  Hanna had no idea what Magnus was, and neither did Sen. He only knew that was the name of the eye the spirits gave him.

  Both entered and signed up.

  “You have six months to train,” the person at the desk said.

  “Got it,” Hanna replied. “Sen, I would like to train on my own. You should too. I say this because we might end up facing each other.”

  Sen understood, and both went their separate ways.

  But Sen, being Sen, had no idea how to train—or what training even meant.

  The first thing Sen did was train his mind. He read every book in the Makuxo Library. From there, he learned everything the planet had to offer: its history and much more. Sen could now think better.

  Sen tried to use magic—he failed.

  So he trained his mind more. For three months straight, he stood still on top of a mountain, concentrating. From there, he dedicated three months to strength and stamina training.

  On the last day, Sen fought a few monsters that appeared at night. As he went to fight them, he entered the spirit place again. Once more, they told him he had grown, and his other eye was replaced with the Magnus. The spirits then gave him the answer on how to use it.

  “Your eyes can—”

  Sen nodded and returned to the moment he was about to fight the monsters. He stopped and walked away.

  With a serious face, he headed toward the arena—it was almost time.

  The monsters were confused.

  Seconds after Sen turned away, he smiled for the first time. The monsters died instantly without being touched.

  What was Sen’s ability? What were those eyes?

  All the animals awoke. All beings rose and looked at the moon. On farms, animals screeched and scattered. Clouds rolled in. Thunder and lightning arrived.

  Kyuusen smiled and said, “It’s about time, Sen. HAHAHAHAH! You’ve done it! Now to see what path you take. Our paths will cross sooner than I expected. Lucky for you, I promised myself to never use foresight.”

  The wind howled. Birds screeched. It was as if a demon had been summoned.

  Sen made it to the arena.

  Sen’s adventure is only just beginning.

  With Sen now realizing his ability, where will he go? What troubles lie ahead? Sen’s greatest adventure hasn’t started yet.

  Prepare for Sen’s Tournament Arc.