"Talented humans are no longer human. They are the enemies of humanity. The following are past incidents they caused."
The first enemy of humanity appeared one year.
It destroyed a city, slaughtering as many people as possible.
But it was neither an alien nor a monster--
simply a human, awakened by a paranormal talent.
Soon after, children with these talents slowly began to infest cities all over the world.
These humans with magic-like powers were immune to humanity's laws and code of ethics.
Drastic incidents only escalated.
As a conciliatory measure,
nations launched a countermeasure to use the Talented as military
and established a police force of Talenteds.
However, this cooperative measure ended in failure.
Some used their talents for personal gain.
Others plotted revolution
to seize power from the scientists who treated them like lab rats.
After five years of bloodshed, humanity won the war.
And as the decades changed, nations and their people's way of thinking also changed.
Today, nations openly accept the existence of the Talented,
keeping them consolidated and isolated in so-called national "training academies."
The youngsters in these academies train daily
to fight the enemies of humanity.
Or... at least that's what most people believe.
Nana Hiiragi.
Covertly kill the enemies of humanity nesting on that island.
This mission is top secret. If you fail, you will be punished accordingly.
Do you accept?
If the island's secret is exposed and the Talented collude against us,
our nation, and the world with it, will fall.
The Talentless will be ruled by the Talented.
In other words, humanity will end. Can you kill them all?
Can you kill them all...?
Hey, Nana.
Episode 2: Time Traveler
Hey, Moguo.
Have you seen Nanao?
After all that posturing about being our leader, he has the nerve to ditch?
You know, I'm kinda surprised he turned out to be so badass.
Do you think something happened to him?
I can't do it, I just can't do it!
Oh, you'll be fine.
Get a move-on, Michiru.
For waterfront battles,
But I can't!
you need this training! Take it seriously!
This pond is deep, you--
Sorry, man!
I can't swim, you know! Jeez!
Child's play. Why must we train like this, sir?
Why'd you have to go freeze the pond? When will this all melt?
In three to four days, I suppose.
This pond is supposedly five meters deep.
And yet, he defied the laws of physics, freezing it solid.
So much for training.
It's not necessary, sir.
Did you not see my display?
The enemies of humanity are mere worms in the face of my talent!
In other words, it is the Talented who are a threat.
Son of a--!
It's like giving tanks to a toddlers.
Anyone who attains superpowers without any efforts will always become arrogant.
Give a man a gun, and he'll want to shoot it.
If we let immature humans with immature psyches have superpowers,
will the world survive?
For peace...
The Committee was right about them.
Hiiragi, can you break this up?
Oh, sure thing!
So that humanity may have peace,
I have to kill them all.
Hey, Seiya Kori!
Do you have the power to freeze anything?
Certainly.
Like, could you freeze this desk?
Easily.
So, could you freeze me if you wanted?
If that is your wish, fair maiden,
then I could freeze you in a coffin, preserving your beauty for all eternity!
That was a lie.
Lying makes people nervous. This anxiety often manifests through movement.
Then why didn't you just freeze Moguo directly the other day?
W-Well, because I...
Because that wouldn't be fair.
His tell is easy to read.
So I can assume he doesn't have the power to freeze people.
By the way, do you suppose Nakajima is ill?
Absent the day after he becomes our leader. Wouldn't you say that disqualifies him?
The class still thinks Nakajima is taking a sick day.
I must strike before things escalate.
Say that again! I dare ya!
--Nanao's the leader? --Whoa, easy there.
Yeah, no...
A bloodbath since breakfast with this lot.
I'm your boss, ya frickin' beta!
Who's the leader?
Who even cares?
Sh-Shibusawa...
Moguo, you know what my talent is, right?
Y-You screwed with...time again?
You already know there are two types of people I hate:
Slow eaters and loud eaters.
Y-Yeah, I know.
Because you're a stwong, bwave boy!
So glad you understand, my friend.
He messed with time?
Rumor has it, he has the talent to stop time.
Speaking of bosses, what happened to Nakajima?
Beats me.
I don't want to admit it, but he might be the most powerful student here.
"Yohei Shibusawa Potential kill count: 800k+"
Yohei Shibusawa Potential kill count: 800k+
Shibusawa, having a nice lunch?
Don't mind if I join you!
Nana Hiiragi, I dislike dining near loud eaters.
Well, you're a pretty loud eater yourself.
What do you want?
Well! I'm just fangirling because I hear you're the strongest kid here!
I'm the strongest? Please.
I'm bullied just as hard as Nakajima.
You saw that jerk almost throw me into the pond this morning.
Ooh! Pickles!
May I have one?
Uh... What did you just...?
That was my talent.
I can stop time.
Please, don't tell anyone.
But, "stopping time" isn't exactly what your talent is. Right?
I'm a blabbermouth, you know.
Is it okay if I reveal the true extent of your talent to everyone?
You're right. My talent isn't stopping time.
All I can do is return to the past.
I can go back in time and change the course of events.
You're the first person to see through me.
So I guess it's true. You really can read minds.
Yay! I got it right!
A bit contrived, but it checks out.
I clearly saw the cup of water fall off the table.
But look at his clothes and the floor.
Not a drop of water on them.
If Shibusawa's talent were to stop time and move freely during the time-freeze,
it's doubtful that he could scoop up all the fallen water out of midair.
Additionally, when Shibusawa stopped time in class,
he could have punched Moguo,
but there was no reason for him to straighten the other kid's tie.
In other words, Shibusawa didn't stop time. He traveled to the moment before the cup fell.
He stopped the cup from falling and created a new timeline where the cup didn't fall.
With Moguo, he traveled to the moment before Moguo punched his lackey,
and he punched Moguo instead.
I am impressed with you, Nana Hiiragi!
We are kindred spirits, you and I.
Let us rebuild this unfair world together!
The world is rotten with poverty and prejudice.
However, with my talent to change the past,
I have the power to exorcise the evils from this world!
But if you made one wrong move, wouldn't you mess up our future?
But I never mess up.
Because I can change the past,
I am the true and only champion of justice for this world.
Ooh, that makes sense.
This guy's not just super-talented... He's super-deluded.
I hate people who leave behind even a single grain of rice. Take note!
I'll keep that in mind.
What an annoying turn of events.
If he were to travel back in time and witness certain actions I've taken...
Could you use your talent to investigate Nakajima's disappearance?
Aren't you...?
Don't worry. I don't gossip about other people's talents.
Even if you blew my cover, I'd still be out of everyone's league.
Nakajima's disappearance, you say? Isn't he just taking a sick day?
He didn't contact the school.
Maybe because he's asleep with a fever?
A likely story, seeing as how he never came home last night.
Nakajima's room is next to mine.
The walls are thin, but I didn't hear a peep from next door.
When he wasn't in class, I went to the dorms and knocked on his door... but there was no answer.
You're Hiiragi, right?
You and Nakajima seemed to really hit it off.
Yes.
And yesterday, you two went off somewhere together. Right?
Yes.
Where did you go?
And what did you do?
Answer me.
You might be the last person who saw Nakajima.
Well, let me think.
I just congratulated him for becoming our leader.
And how did he act?
Normally, of course.
It was like, his worries were over?
He was excited to fight the enemies of humanity.
After that, did you two walk back to the dorms together?
Is he trying to get me to slip up?
Or is he using his talent to dig up the truth?
Umm, Onodera?
Call me Kyoya.
Oh, and you can call me Nana.
So, uh, why have you been caressing my hair?
Sorry, but I just have to touch it.
My little sister has pigtails, too.
You "have to"...?
Wait, sister?
Whatever it may be, I just have to grab it by the tail.
He's gone full Sherlock.
Uh, so, you're thinking something happened to Nakajima, right?
Well, he is missing.
I need to take control of the narrative.
W-Wait a minute, do you think he's, like, an enemy of humanity?
I do recall such a rumor floating around.
Yeah, I heard the enemy is plotting to crush us before we hone our talents.
I even heard that
they've already infiltrated our ranks, disguised as humans.
Disguised as humans...
What's wrong, Hiiragi?
W-Well...
Kyoya... No... that's crazy...
What is it?
I just... heard a strange voice.
I can hear people's inner-voices.
What're you playing at?
Kyoya.
I wondered why you were absent this morning... I guess you really care about Nakajima.
Even though you were so standoffish from day one.
It's not like that.
I'm just curious, after all the hype yesterday about him being leader.
Is that really all?
Any clues from reading his mind?
Why do you suddenly care so much?
I was just trying to make friends.
Do you suspect he might be the enemy in disguise?
I might be mistaken.
But I heard an unfamiliar voice from his mind and it scared me.
I guess we'll have to be vigilant around him.
Okay, that should get Snoops off my tail for a while.
But I'm sure you have a personal interest in what happened to Nakajima.
I do.
Then let's look into it.
You'll really help me?
Yes.
A friend of yours is a friend of mine.
Let's look for him together.
Cool!
I'm going to check out the past.
How did it go?
Kyoya's right. Nakajima didn't return to the dorms last night.
Are you okay?
Time traveling exhausts you, doesn't it?
Yeah. And I used to be weak, so I worked out to gain stamina.
He must have other limitations.
Otherwise, he would have already unmasked me as Nakajima's murderer.
Do you meditate to travel to the same location in the past?
Yeah.
Which means, I can't kill him in a way in which he could fight back.
He could just travel back to the past and kill me there.
How far back in time can you travel?
About a day at the most.
The farther I go back, the more fatigued I get.
If I go back more than 12 hours, I sometimes vomit when I get back to the present.
But why?
Why wasn't he able to follow Nakajima's every move when he went to the past?
I'll go check again.
Someone saw me last time.
Someone saw him?
How did it go this time?
Hiiragi.
You and Nakajima went to the cliffs after school yesterday, right?
What about it?
Nothing.
I'm going to go follow you both.
Nakajima and I went to the ocean to celebrate, then we parted ways.
Yeah, but Nakajima didn't return to the dorm after that.
This's bad.
Hiiragi, you can read people's minds, right?
It comes and goes.
Maybe that's why you spotted me.
If someone in the past sees you, you're zapped back to the future?
Yeah, if our eyes meet and they fully register me, I can't stay.
I guess that means you can't change the past so easily.
But still... I'm in danger.
Why don't we pick this up tomorrow?
No.
No matter how hard I try, 24 hours is my limit.
The longer we wait, the further we'll be from the truth.
But, Shibusawa!
I must do what I can for justice.
Besides, aren't you worried about Nakajima?
For all your smiling, you must be shaking with fear inside.
By the way, do you remember what time it was when you went to the cliffs?
What's wrong?
Did something happen there that you don't want me to see?
I think it was around six PM.
I'm not doing this out of suspicion of you.
Oh, I know that!
Go ahead back to the past!
See you.
I just have to trust my past-self.
Did you see anything?
I saw that... you two really are close.
You were holding hands.
Then right after that...
...you noticed me.
Our eyes met, and here I am.
I was hiding in those bushes over there.
Oh dear, oh dear.
He's right.
My memories just got overwritten.
At that moment, all my senses were hyper-focused.
I noticed him,
made sure that he was gone,
then I killed Nakajima.
I have a mission.
If I slip up and let anyone witness my crusade in action,
I won't be able to survive in this nest of monsters.
But I was a little relieved.
Please forgive me for doubting you.
No worries!
The new kid actually being an enemy of humanity is a pretty believable setting.
Though I'm reluctant to do so, let's call it a day.
Sure. Thanks for all your help.
You're a true friend.
Why did you keep that from me?!
I'm so sorry!
I wasn't sure I could trust you!
Well, guess that makes two of us.
It was over there!
That's where Nakajima was attacked by an enemy of humanity!
What happened here?
After we held hands at the cliffs,
the enemy chased us into this forest.
And then,
the enemy ate Nakajima...
...leaving nothing behind.
I was so scared I couldn't fight back.
But... you can change the past!
So can't you save Nakajima?
In the past, right where you're standing, Nakajima is being eaten alive.
Can you call out and warn us so that we can change the past?
We're running out of time!
We need you!
Understood.
I'll do what I can.
Thank you so much!
I'll be right back
with Nakajima in tow.
At this time last night, the pond was unfrozen.
Shibusawa can't swim.
And on top of that, he's out of breath whenever he time travels.
He surely drowned to death.
But no one noticed his submerged body.
And the pond froze over him, just as it did this morning.
Next episode: 'Talented vs. Talentless'
Talented vs. Talentless