Part one hundred forty eight — Goku

　Dinner had settled into its usual comfortable chaos — Ace critiquing his own meal with total seriousness, Ivy pouring drinks with quiet efficiency, Elaine watching Kai over her own wine with the specific fondness of someone who'd long since stopped being surprised by anything he said or did.

　He was several bites into something Ace had actually praised, for once, when a name slipped out entirely without permission.

　"Goku," Kai muttered, contentedly, to nobody at all.

　Eris tilted her head toward him.

　"Who's that?"

　"Who's what?"

　"You just said Goku."

Wait, did I actually say that out loud?

　"Oh," Kai said, genuine surprise crossing his face. "I guess anime doesn't exist in this world."

　"What's anime?" Eris asked.

　The entire table went quiet in the particular way rooms go quiet when everyone's simultaneously confused by the same word.

　"Right," Kai said, laughing at himself a little. "I forget you all don't actually know."

　"We do not," Enzo confirmed, entirely unbothered.

　Nyxara watched him with the exact expression of someone observing a lost puppy, delighted and faintly concerned in equal measure.

　Seli quietly helped her portion out her own food.

　Ace remained perfectly still, listening.

　Elaine simply kept watching, curious.

　The elf elder and his family, Sophia, even Selwyn — all of them, waiting.

　"Where do I even start with this," Kai said, mostly to himself.

"Begin from where you were reincarnated into this world," Null-Subconsciousness offered.

Fair. Might as well.

　"So," Kai said, "I'm not actually from this world. I was reincarnated here."

　The entire room went silent.

　Everyone froze mid-motion.

　Enzo's spoon actually slipped from his fingers.

　Elaine choked so badly on her own wine that she had to wipe her chin.

　"Wait — what?" Elaine managed.

　"I was reincarnated," Kai repeated, rubbing the back of his head, embarrassed despite himself.

　"I knew that already," Nyxara said, entirely unbothered.

　"Same here," Enzo said. "Wasn't fully certain, though. Suspected."

　The elf elder nodded slowly.

　"That explains why this world's laws never seem to properly apply to you. It was obvious, looking back."

　"I knew too," Ivy said. "I was simply waiting for you to bring it up yourself."

　"Hold on," Kai said, genuinely thrown by how casually everyone was receiving this. "What?"

　"Did you think you were the only one ever brought to this world?" Eris asked, gentle. "You're just — different. You were reincarnated. Others have been summoned instead."

　"Summoned," Kai repeated.

　He stared around the table.

　"I am so confused right now. Can someone please explain this properly?"

　"What we're trying to say," Ivy said, patient, "is that there are others the world's own laws don't fully apply to. Summoned individuals are given extraordinary power — like the legendary hero, Nao Shimizu."

　"That's a Japanese name," Kai said, slow.

　"Ruler of both the Eastern and Northern Empires, if I recall correctly," Nyxara confirmed.

　"You should avoid her, if at all possible," Enzo said, entirely serious.

　"But she's Japanese," Kai said. "Same as me. Same world, probably."

　"Do you know the previous Demon Lord?" Nyxara asked. "Before Belial took the seat?"

　"How would I know that?"

　"Nao Shimizu killed him," she said, simple. "Took over both his domain and the Eastern Empire herself. Created what's now the Northern Empire out of it."

　"The Shimizu Empire of Frost," Elaine added, "and the Shimizu Empire of Dawn. Together, the Shimizu August."

　"You're kidding me," Kai said. "Both of them. Japanese names."

　"Even the two True Dragons who love bragging about their own strength wouldn't dare face her," Nyxara said.

　"Between you two," Kai asked, genuinely curious now, "who'd win?"

　Nyxara actually thought about it.

　Properly.

　For a long moment.

　"Not sure, honestly. Not until it actually happened."

A primordial demon who's also a Demon Lord isn't even confident she'd win against a human.

That's — that says everything, doesn't it.

　"Wait," Kai said, a thought catching up to him. "Humans are supposed to be the weakest race, aren't they? How'd she kill a Demon Lord?"

　"Don't underestimate humans, Lord Kai," Eris said, dry.

Guess Mom's information was outdated, then.

"Your mother wasn't wrong," Null-Subconsciousness said, quiet. "What she told you was true, once — before the current God of Creation held the seat."

　"That god needs to retire," Kai muttered. "Clearly doesn't know what he's doing."

"Agreed."

　The elf elder spoke up next.

　"There's another one, too. A girl, also from another world."

　"The vampire," Elaine said.

　"Ah, yes," Enzo said. "Last of her kind, if memory serves."

　"Rumor says she wiped out her entire race herself," Eris added.

　"The Dragon of the West did that," Nyxara corrected. "She only finished off whoever survived."

　"The Sea Dragon?" Enzo asked, confused.

　"No, the West one," Nyxara said. "What was her name again?"

　"Corri Vanessa," Ivy supplied.

　"She killed her own people?" Kai asked. "Was she summoned too?"

　"Reincarnated," Ivy said. "That's actually how we suspected you were reincarnated as well, before you told us — her power never matched anything native to this world either."

　"Four curses on her, I believe," Nyxara said. "Or was it five? And a skill called Absolute Rebirth — the reason the hero in Teorema's had such trouble finishing her off, apparently."

　"How does that work?" Kai asked.

　"Even if her core or soul were destroyed, erased entirely from existence — the skill activates automatically, brings her back stronger than before."

　"Teorema's hero has an ultimate attack called Judgment, capable of erasing anything it touches permanently. Doesn't work on her. Something about being reincarnated makes her immune to it."

　"That's an absurd skill to have," Kai said, genuinely impressed despite the tragedy underneath it.

　"The leader of the Onmyō Order was reincarnated or was he summoned?" Ivy added. "Kazuhiko Ono."

　"Interesting," Kai said.