The chair wobbled with a small clatter. The classroom air was the same as always—vague and heavy. Lunch break had ended and fifth-period chemistry was already underway, yet no one noticed me. The teacher at the podium, the kid in the next seat, every single classmate—they all acted as if I'd never existed in the first place. Outside the window, gray school buildings and a gray sky. Clouds hung low and heavy, looking ready to burst into rain at any moment. [whispers]"…Again. No one sees me." Only my own voice sounded strangely vivid in my ears. Jin Kurosawa. Seventeen years old. 172 centimeters tall, 54 kilograms. Not something I like to admit myself, but I have a slender build. My hair is black and left to grow out, my bangs always hanging over my eyes. My irises are a pale gray. The way they seem to glow faintly in the dark, almost like luminous paint, has always been a complex of mine. My uniform is the standard high school look—a white dress shirt and black slacks. Though, after countless washes, it's a bit worn out. I'm always hunched over, always flinching. Ever since I was a kid, I've been the kind of child who's "hard to find." During hide-and-seek, no one would notice me until the very end. Even if I raised my hand during lunch, I'd get passed over. I'd be forgotten for class duties, my test papers wouldn't get returned. There was even a time when I was the only one missing from the class photo in the graduation album. Of course, it's not like I'm being bullied. I'm not being ignored, either. My presence is just… thin. Even when a teacher calls on me, another student starts answering before I can finish. When I walk down the hallway, I bump into people, but they just glance around with a "Huh?" and never look at my face. I've seriously wondered if I might actually be invisible. But that's not it. I show up in mirrors. I can touch myself. I feel pain, too. I'm just, purely and simply, "hard for other people to notice." That's all. [whispers]"Today was just another day, same as always." Doodling in my chemistry notebook, I let out a small sigh. Even when I go home, it's common for my mother to forget I exist and make one portion too few for dinner. My father's away on a solo assignment in Tokyo and hasn't come back in over half a year. What does it even mean to be me, forgotten even by my own family? That was when it happened. At the edge of my vision, the world warped. The scenery beyond the window glass twisted into a mess of gray noise. Like TV static—that kind of *bzzzt* feeling. No heat, no cold, no sound. The air suddenly thinned, and I couldn't breathe. (Huh?) Before I could understand what was happening, my body was sucked forward. A floating sensation, like my stomach was lifting. Falling. Endlessly, endlessly. The gray noise enveloped my entire body. My eyes, my ears, my nose—I felt nothing. I couldn't even tell which direction I was facing. [scared]"Ah… aah…" I tried to force out a voice, but the inside of my mouth felt gritty, and I couldn't speak properly. Am I going to die? The moment that thought crossed my mind, the scenery—suddenly, it returned. *Thud.* I landed hard on my back against the ground. Pain shot through my whole body, and I rolled over, choking for air. The cold feel of asphalt pressed against my cheek. When I opened my eyes, there was a blue sky. It had been cloudy just moments ago, but here, there wasn't a single cloud. "…Huh?" Slowly, I pushed myself upright. I was in a city I didn't recognize. English signs I'd never seen before, wide roads, a fast-food place across the street. The people walking by were blond, or Black, and some looked Asian, but they were all foreigners. The smell of the air was different. Kind of greasy, mixed with car exhaust. [surprised]"Where the hell am I…?" Of course. There's no way Japanese would get through here. I stood up and looked around. I was standing right in the middle of the road. The people passing by—none of them noticed me. No one bumped into me, but no one met my eyes, either. Exactly the same as it had been back in Japan. (Even in another world, I'm still invisible, huh.) My heart clenched tight. Loneliness and terror welled up, slowly and steadily. I had no idea where this was. No idea how to get back. My English was limited to middle-school-level vocabulary, and my wallet held nothing but a thousand-yen bill and some coins. That was when the ground shook. No, not just the ground. The very air was trembling. *GOOOOOOONG!* An explosion roared from directly above, and I instinctively crouched down. I looked up. There was a person in the sky. No, that's not right. Two shadows were colliding at insane speeds. A figure in a blue-and-yellow costume, and a massive gray monster. It had four arms and six eyes. Spiky protrusions grew from its back, and its mouth stretched wide across its face like a gash. (What the hell is that?) The monster swung its arm. That alone blew away the fourth floor of the building across the street. Shards of glass and concrete rained down like a storm. People on the street started screaming and scrambling to flee. Car horns, shrieks, the roar of crumbling structures. In a single instant, a peaceful city had become a battlefield. My legs locked up. I couldn't move. The monster's arm swept sideways, slamming into a city bus. The bus flipped over. The windows shattered, and I could hear the screams of passengers from inside. (I have to help.) My body tried to move on its own. But what could I do? There's no way I could stop a monster like that. No way I could save anyone. Even so, I couldn't just leave it. I forced my trembling legs to move and approached the overturned bus. Blood was spreading across the ground, and the acrid smell of scorched metal stung my nose. Through the bus window, I saw a girl's hand. A small hand. She looked like she was in the lower grades of elementary school. I grabbed the window frame and pulled with all my might. But it didn't budge. "Dammit… move…!" I put my strength into it once more. That was when it happened. The monster's roar came from right behind me. Before I could even turn around, a gigantic arm filled my vision— (I'm dead.) The moment I thought that, gray noise erupted from my body. *BZZZZZZZZZZT.* That gray, like TV static, enveloped my entire body. My vision was dyed monochrome, and sound grew distant. All sensation faded, and a strange feeling washed over me, as if I was ceasing to be myself. The monster's arm passed right through me. It had definitely been swung down with me as the target, yet the attack sliced through empty air, as if I wasn't even there. The monster tilted its head, glancing around restlessly. A look of confusion surfaced on its face. (This thing… can't see me?) No, that's not it. It had definitely recognized me right up until the moment it attacked. And yet, now it had completely lost sight of me. I collapsed on the spot. The gray noise slowly faded away. I looked at my hands—they had returned to their normal skin color. My heart was pounding furiously. I couldn't breathe properly. I had no idea what had just happened. But one thing was certain: I had survived. The battle was still going on. The hero in the blue-and-yellow costume drove a knee strike into the monster's face. A shockwave burst outward, and the monster's head crumpled with a sickening crunch. Yellow blood sprayed out, soaking into the asphalt. With a dying scream, the monster collapsed and never moved again. Silence. Amidst the swirling smoke and dust, the hero was breathing heavily, his shoulders heaving. His costume was stained with blood and mud, the blue color barely recognizable anymore. The hero slowly turned to face me. From beneath the helmet, the face of a young man peered out. Neatly trimmed black hair, blue eyes that looked strong-willed. He was probably around 179 centimeters tall. His toned physique was exactly like a hero from an American comic book. He looked straight at me, a surprised expression on his face. "…Hey, you." It was English, but I somehow understood what he meant. He stepped lightly over the rubble and stood before me. (This guy notices me.) It was the first time. The first time since coming to this other world that someone had seen me. No, even back in Japan, maybe no one had ever met my eyes this clearly before. "[serious]What are you doing here? Are you hurt?" His voice was stern, but beneath it, there was a hint of concern. With a trembling voice, I squeezed out my halting English. "[scared]I'm just… a passerby." "A passerby? In a dangerous place like this?" He furrowed his brow and shook his head. "[worried]You're a normal human, right? Why are you here?" I couldn't answer. How was I supposed to explain? There's no way anyone would believe a story about how I was suddenly flung from a Japanese high school to America, got caught up in a fight between a monster and a hero, and survived thanks to some power I don't even understand myself. "[serious]Alright, I won't pry. But the paramedics will be here soon. You should get checked out too." Saying that, he gave my shoulder a light pat. The warmth of that hand nearly brought me to tears. I never imagined that being touched by someone, being worried about, could make me this happy. I learned later that he was a hero called "Invincible." His real name was Mark Greyson. His father was apparently Omni-Man, the strongest hero on Earth. After confirming that the paramedics had arrived, he looked at my face one more time and said: "[gentle]Glad you're okay. See you." With just that, he soared up into the sky. He shrank into the distance in an instant and vanished from sight. I sat there amidst the rubble, unable to move for a while. (This is the world of *Invincible*.) I was sure of it. I knew that American comic. A friend in Japan had been obsessed with overseas comics and forced me to read it. In this world, superheroes actually exist. A secret government agency called the "GDA" monitors the heroes, and the strongest hero team, the "Guardians of the Globe," protects the Earth. But that's not all. From here on, even more terrifying things are going to happen in this world. Mark's father, Omni-Man, will betray everyone. He's an advance agent sent to conquer Earth, and he'll annihilate the members of the Guardians. And that's not all—hundreds of heroes, countless innocent people, are going to lose their lives. I know the original story. But what am I supposed to do? I don't have the power to fight. I don't have the power to protect anyone. Even against that monster just now, I couldn't do a thing. (Am I just going to watch… and end as nothing more than that?) Frustrated at my own powerlessness, I bit my lip. That was when it happened. At the edge of my vision, something moved. From the shadow of the rubble, a man stood watching. He was middle-aged. Dressed in a suit, with old scars on his face. With cold eyes, he stared intently at me. That gaze unmistakably recognized me. I felt a chill run down my spine. (Who is that…?) The man said nothing. He simply observed me. As if he was trying to assess my worth. I couldn't move from that spot. It was a strange feeling—a mix of fear and a faint sense of anticipation. This man might know about my "Gray Out." That's what I thought. But before I could call out to him, the paramedics rushed over. The man disappeared into the crowd, just like that. As I was lifted onto a stretcher, I looked up at the blue sky. This isn't my original world. I don't even know how to get back. From now on, I have to survive in this dangerous, insane world. (But still.) I have that "recognition" that hero gave me. (Someone saw me. Just that alone makes me feel like I can keep going.) Thinking that, tears spilled over, strangely enough. The gray noise wasn't manifesting anymore, but deep in my chest, there was a faint w