You have listened to the stories once told, and now it is my turn to speak. Yet, all I find within me is a heavy silence, and letters slipping through my fingers like dust in the wind. Each time I begin, darkness engulfs me, as if the tale is not worth telling, as if the voice that escapes my lips has no place in this bleak world.
.
.
I opened my eyes to the darkness of the room, stirred by the unsettling rhythm of my heartbeat—like something was tightening around my chest, making it hard to breathe. The air was heavy, and every sound—even the silence of the night—pressed against my head like an unbearable noise. I tried to move my arm, but a heavy numbness paralyzed it. A familiar feeling, but now more intense, more suffocating.
I turned to my side and saw her there, sleeping peacefully, while my arm lay trapped beneath her weight.
Anger crept into my chest like a cold poison—not just because of the numb arm, but because of her… because of everything. I wanted to yank my arm free, to break away, to breathe. But I remained stuck—in the numbness, in the anger, and in this night that just wouldn't end.
I slowly pulled my arm out from under her. The numbness wasn't just in my limbs—it was in my soul too. I couldn't bear to look at her face—the face I once loved so deeply, the face in which I used to see all the beauty the world had to offer… And now? Now all I see is a reflection of the heavy disappointment that clings to me like a shadow that won't let go.
I rose from the bed in silence, my steps heavy, as if torn between staying and running away. I walked to the bathroom and closed the door behind me, as if trying to separate myself from this reality, from that bed, from her. I looked at my face in the mirror—but I didn't recognize the person staring back at me.
A cold shiver crept into my limbs, starting from my fingertips and spreading like an electric current through my body. My chest tightened further, as if an iron cage was clamping down on it, stealing the air from my lungs. I placed my hand on the sink, gripping its edges tightly, but the floor beneath me felt like it was swaying—as if I were caught in a bottomless spiral.
I looked into the mirror… but I didn't see my face. I saw someone else, a stranger, with eyes wide in terror and skin pale like wax. My heart was pounding—fast, erratic—as if it were trying to escape my chest, or warn of an imminent collapse. I tried to breathe deeply, but each inhale was shallow, and every exhale felt like choking.
I ran a trembling hand over my face, but it felt numb, just like my arm had earlier. I felt like I was losing control, like my body no longer belonged to me—that I was trapped inside something I couldn't understand. I staggered backward, nearly falling, and my back hit the door. I wanted to scream, but my voice got stuck in my throat, as if even the air had abandoned me.
As I staggered, gasping like someone drowning in an endless void, a sudden, sharp sound cut through the silence—so piercing it felt like it split the air in two. I turned quickly, my heartbeat spiking, and saw a small device trembling on the cold bathroom tiles.
A breathing aid.
I stared at it, stunned. I was certain I had put it away in the cabinet long ago—out of sight, out of need. And yet, here it was now.
I slowly knelt down, reaching out with trembling fingers, and picked it up. I pressed the button.
A soft, steady hum emerged, like air itself had come back to life through it. I placed the mask over my face and drew in the first breath… then another. The air was cold, steady, seeping into my lungs like it was extinguishing a hidden fire that had been burning me from the inside.
My heart still raced, but bit by bit, it began to settle into a steadier rhythm. My hands kept trembling, but the grip on the device grew firmer.
I closed my eyes, inhaled deeply—as if clinging to this last thread tying me to reality. I felt something heavy lift from me. Not completely—but just enough to let me breathe without fearing I might lose that breath at any moment.
I stayed seated on the bathroom floor, leaning against the door, until everything had mostly calmed down. I wasn't okay—but I wasn't on the verge of collapsing anymore either. I checked the time on my phone—4:45 AM. That hour when the world is usually asleep, except for me.
I stood up slowly, tucked the device back into the drawer where it belonged, then splashed cold water on my face, trying to wash away the remnants of the night before. I stared at the mirror for another moment… then stepped out of the bathroom.
I wasn't in a good mood, but I tried to push through it. I walked to the kitchen, opened the fridge quickly, and grabbed something simple—maybe a slice of bread with a bit of cheese. I didn't really feel like eating, but I needed to put something in my stomach. I had to get through the day.
I sat at the table and ate the bite quickly, but it didn't do much—if anything, it only added to the strange sensation in my gut. That dizziness in my head was building again, like the ground beneath me wasn't quite solid. At times, it felt like I was slipping back into a dream I couldn't wake up from.
I couldn't stay in the apartment any longer. I checked the time—it was still 5:30 AM. I didn't want to face the day with more thoughts swirling in my head, so I shut my bag and rose from the table, heading toward the door.
My steps were slow and heavy as I left the apartment behind. The air outside was cold, and the city was still wrapped in silence before the world began to move. No one was around—not even a bird in the sky. Everything felt eerily quiet.
I got in the car, but the strange feeling didn't leave me. There was something different inside me today. Maybe it was the dizziness getting worse, or maybe it was the anxiety quietly weaving its way into my bones. I closed my eyes for a moment and took a deep breath, but even that didn't bring me peace.
I walked into the office feeling nothing but the pounding headache pressing against my skull. There was no energy driving me—just my body moving on autopilot. Still, I forced myself to stand upright and take my place at my desk. Before I could sit down, I looked up slightly—and my eyes landed on our supervisor, Kojima.
He was flipping through some papers, and with a brief motion, signaled for me to come in. I sat down without saying a word, focusing instead on the buzzing noise screaming inside my head.
"Ren, there's a new case that needs your attention," Kojima said, slowly lifting his gaze.
I tried to pull myself together, but the pain in my head was too much. Kojima continued:"This time, it's an incident in one of the remote areas. There will be bodies… different kinds of bodies."
I closed my eyes for a moment and tried to breathe slowly. More demons? That was what I expected. Something new. Something worse. It wasn't what I wanted to face today—but there was no way out of it.
And then Kojima added one more sentence—one that made my stomach twist.
"I want you to take a trainee with you."
It felt like someone had just hit me in the head with a hammer. A trainee? Today? In my condition?! I couldn't hide the irritation on my face, but I didn't argue. I knew too well that arguing with Kojima wouldn't lead anywhere. I knew what would happen if I refused. One way or another, I had to get on with the mission.
"Who's the trainee?" I asked, my voice low—unsure if I had any energy left or was just speaking on instinct.
"You'll meet him soon," Kojima replied, his eyes never really lifting from the papers in front of him.
When I stepped out of the office, someone was already waiting in the hallway. He looked to be in his twenties, wearing a formal uniform—but clearly not experienced enough for the kind of work we did. I looked at him wearily, but didn't say a word. I just walked toward him.
"This is the trainee, Ren," came Kojima's voice from behind me."His name is Hiro. He'll be accompanying you today."
Hiro. A plain name. And he didn't seem nervous or tense the way I had expected. Maybe he was excited about this new opportunity. But I wasn't in the mood to share his enthusiasm. It was obvious he hadn't yet seen mutilated corpses or furious demons—and that's exactly what was waiting for me today.
"You're Ren Takayama, right?" Hiro asked cautiously, keeping in step with me. His eyes were full of anticipation, like he was waiting for a signal to begin the mission.
I didn't answer right away. I just glanced at him over my shoulder and kept walking. There wasn't time for introductions.
I had no choice but to take Hiro with me, but my chest was heavy with unease. I was going to be responsible for someone who had no idea what this job truly meant. I didn't know how a trainee could possibly deal with the brutality and violence we faced every single day.
Despite everything, I kept driving. The sky was veiled in darkness, and the roads grew narrower as I made my way to the designated site. The remote area we were headed to felt like a silent hell—shrouded in thick fog and tangled trees, as if the place itself was alive.
We arrived at the scene of the incident and parked the car in a shadowed corner where a few other government vehicles were already stopped. We stepped out together. Hiro, the trainee, didn't show a flicker of concern, while a heavy weight pressed on my chest.
In the dark, the air itself felt wrong. The bodies lay scattered, disfigured in ways that defied reason, some with faces twisted grotesquely, others swollen as if they had endured agonies beyond comprehension. This wasn't just murder—it was something far worse, something that whispered of ancient darkness.
The faces haunted me. Some were crushed in places, their jaws splintered under immense force. Eyes—pale, bulging—stared from some of the corpses, unblinking, as though death had not severed their gaze. Their frozen stares were the kind of stare that followed you, relentless and empty.
Blood had dried, but its remnants remained on the ground, staining the earth, as though the bodies were tethered to this cursed place, forever.
The bodies were marked by torment. Some had deep gashes, their wounds a clear sign of something... unnatural. Something that had played with them before leaving them to die.
I spoke to Hiro, my voice low and cold. "Stay behind me. Don't stray. Understand?"
He nodded without a word, the air between us thick with unspoken tension.
One of the officers, who had been present from the start, approached me. His voice was laced with grim resolve."Ren, this wasn't just another incident. This... this was pure savagery. According to the initial police report, the victims were found here, after disappearing for three days. There's no question now—it wasn't a human attack. But what we found is something far more twisted."
I looked at the bodies, my eyes narrowing, then asked quietly, "What did they do to them?"
The officer's voice dropped even lower, as if speaking louder would invite the very thing that had killed them. "Witnesses say the victims appeared in the city suddenly. Their behavior... it wasn't human. They acted like they were under the sway of something. And when we started digging deeper, we uncovered something worse—ancient pacts, Ren. With demons. The kind of pacts that shouldn't exist anymore. And blood rituals, rituals that defy reason... and that leave their mark."
I glanced at the ground, the bloodstains reflecting the dim light. "What do you mean, 'dying over and over'?"
The officer took a long, slow breath, his voice shaking slightly. "The victims... they weren't just dead. They were decaying, rapidly. As if they were dying again and again, their bodies reliving their death with every second."
My gaze hardened, my voice barely above a whisper, "It's more than just demons, then. Something worse... Something ancient."
We all stood in silence, staring at the bodies once again, the weight of it pressing down on us. The stillness felt unnatural—like we were in a place where the living were mere visitors. And the dead... had a story they wouldn't let us escape from.
While we approached the bodies, everything felt unnervingly still, terrifying in its silence, as though death itself was watching us from the shadows. I could hear the pounding of my heart unnaturally in my ears, but I tried to focus on the task at hand. The air was thick, each step I took felt like I was sinking deeper into a swamp of terror. But I wasn't about to retreat. I wouldn't let doubts or anxiety control the course of this mission.
Then, suddenly, amidst the lethal stillness, something unexpected happened.
There was a strange rustling sound, as if something was moving between the bodies, and then... one of the corpses moved.
Its shattered hand stretched out, fingers twitching unnaturally, as if it were trying to wake from death. Its eyes were bulging, lifeless, but something in those eyes made me realize the horrific truth. The demon was still inside.
In an instant, that body, which had been lying on the ground, rose with alarming speed, its limbs pulsing with a life that shouldn't have existed. A shiver ran through my body, and my eyes were ready to assess the situation in a split second. I wasn't going to leave anything to chance.
"Ren!" Hiro's voice came, filled with fear, his eyes wide as he stared at the moving corpse.
But I wasn't afraid.
I reached calmly for the gun on my belt and fired without hesitation. Ruthlessly.
The shot was sharp and powerful, as if the world had stopped for a moment. The bullet pierced the corpse's head, sending coagulated blood flying into the air, but the body didn't fall immediately. There was something else in its eye, something evil, that made it cling to life until the very last moment. But I wouldn't give it a chance. I fired again, this time into its heart, and finally, the body collapsed, lifeless.
The silence that followed was heavy, as if everything had frozen for an instant.
But from the corners, behind my shoulder, Hiro was breathing rapidly, his hands shaking as he stared at the corpse that had fallen to the ground. His eyes were filled with terror, more frightened than I had ever seen him.
"W-what was that?" Hiro whispered in a trembling voice. "How... how is this possible?"
I breathed steadily, slightly disturbed by the sudden movement, but trained to handle these situations. Fear was something I couldn't afford to indulge in.
"There's no time for questions." I said coldly, pulling my gun back and securing it to my belt. "But if you can't handle this kind of work, you're in the wrong place."
The air was saturated with the smell of rotting blood and death, but that wasn't new to me. The corpse that had moved moments ago was now still again, but I kept my eyes fixed on it until I was completely sure it wouldn't rise again.
As for Hiro, he was still standing in place, stiff, his breaths fast and uneven, his right hand trembling as he tried to process what had just happened. He seemed like he was trying to say something, but the words failed him. His eyes were wide, staring at the corpse as though it could come back to life at any moment.
I placed my hand firmly on his shoulder, enough to snap him back to reality. "If you're going to stand there like that, you won't last long in this job."
Detective Sato was there, kneeling next to one of the other corpses, examining it with focus. He turned toward me when he sensed my approach and pointed to strange marks carved into the skin of one of the victims.
"Ren, this isn't just random murder," he said quietly, as if the words themselves were heavy on him. "Look at these marks on the body."
I lowered myself slightly and examined the marks on the victim. There were symbols etched into the skin, twisted and intertwined as if they had been burned directly into the flesh. These weren't ordinary signs of torture. These were sigils.
"This isn't just a murder. This is part of a ritual," I said, lifting my gaze to Sato, then to the other bodies scattered around us.
After we finished examining the bodies, Sato led us to a small room at the end of the hallway. Its door was half open, as if whoever had been there had left in a hurry. A strange smell filled the air—not just the scent of blood and death, but something else... something resembling burnt wood and decaying flesh.
I felt a movement behind me and turned to find Hiro slowly stepping toward the door, his curiosity evident in his eyes, even though fear still dominated him.
"Stop," I said firmly, and he turned to me, looking confused. "Don't approach."
"But..." he hesitated for a moment, then glanced toward the room. "There could be evidence..."
"And there's also danger you don't understand," I said, locking eyes with him, trying to make him grasp the gravity of the situation without elaborating too much. "These things aren't just statues and old papers. A single mistake could be fatal."
His expression tightened with unease, but he took a step back. Good. The last thing I needed right now was a reckless trainee tampering with something he didn't understand.
I gestured to Sato, the expert on demonic crimes, and he nodded, following me into the room.
As soon as we crossed the threshold, I felt the room itself pulse with an eerie energy. The light was dim, but enough to see the walls covered with meticulously carved symbols, some still bleeding black ink-like fluid. This wasn't just any ritual... it had been active until recently.
On the floor, there was a summoning circle drawn in congealed blood, with animal skulls arranged in a ritualistic fashion in its center. Around it, black candles had been extinguished, and old papers were scattered, written in a demonic language I hadn't seen in years.
Sato took a deep breath and spoke in a low voice, "Ren... this isn't just an ordinary demonic summoning. These symbols point to something much older than the 'demons of the night.'"
A knot formed in my stomach. "So we're not dealing with a bunch of amateurs?"
Sato nodded slowly. "No. Whoever did this knew exactly what they were doing... and they were in contact with something very dangerous."
I looked back at the symbols, then at the skulls... There was something deeply wrong here. As if the room itself was watching us.
"We need a full report on these rituals," I said coldly, then glanced toward the door, where Hiro was still standing, watching from a distance, tense.
I was watching the symbols on the walls, trying to decipher their complexities, when I stepped forward without thinking, into the bloodstained circle.
The moment my foot touched the marked lines, I felt a strange pulse vibrate through my body. It was as if the earth itself had trembled beneath my feet. The air grew heavier, and the whole room seemed to transform into a living entity, watching me.
Then...
A sharp blow to my head.
I didn't see what hit me, there was no warning. Just a piercing pain that exploded in my skull, as if something massive had fallen from nowhere. I staggered back a step, maybe two, before feeling my body lose balance, but I didn't fall.
And then the voices began.
Whispers... faint at first, as if coming from the void, but they quickly grew louder, more intense, until they became a tangled cacophony of screams.
Amid the chaos that filled my head, amidst the voices that didn't belong to this world, I suddenly felt a strong hand gripping my shoulder.
The touch was steady, real... something that pulled me back to this place, to the present.
"Ren!" Sato's voice came, low but firm, as if he was trying to pull me out of the depths of a deep sea. "What happened to you?"
I opened my eyes—I hadn't even realized I had closed them—and looked at him. His face was tense, his eyes filled with concern, but he wasn't scared, not like I was.
I took a slow breath, trying to regain my focus. The voices began to fade, but their trace remained embedded in my mind.
I looked toward the circle I had stood in… Something about the symbols seemed different now, as if they had become clearer, or perhaps... more alive.
I slowly stepped back, ignoring the dizziness that hit my head, gently pushing Sato's hand off my shoulder.
"I'm fine," I said, my voice calmer than I expected.
In the corridors of the Silver Shadows building, where fear hides behind a facade of false calm...
Three people stood in a dark corner, their voices quiet, as if even uttering her name could summon something they weren't ready to face.
"Do you think she'll accept it calmly?" asked the man with gray hair, his eyes narrowing cautiously as he watched the heavy metal door in front of them.
"Don't be ridiculous," the woman with glasses replied with a faint mocking tone, though her anxiety was evident. "You know how she's been since her sister's death... everyone here is walking on eggshells around her."
"Isn't she entitled to be angry?" said the large man in the long coat, his voice low. "Her sister was brutally killed... we barely dared to investigate any further than she allowed."
"Anger is one thing... What she might do is another," the gray-haired man murmured softly. "Alyssa isn't just an ordinary person... If she decides to seek vengeance, there will be no turning back."
A heavy silence fell between them, none of them daring to break it until they finally reached her office door. They exchanged tense glances, as if each of them expected something unexpected to happen.
Then, the large man slowly pushed the door open... and they entered.
Inside, Alyssa was sitting calmly, but her calmness was anything but comforting.
Everyone could feel the room was colder than usual, or perhaps it was just the inner fear they carried.
Alyssa didn't immediately raise her gaze, but they could see how tightly her grip was clenched around the pen she was holding. A bad sign.
Finally, she spoke in a voice that was calm... far too calm.
"Tell me."
There was no room for hesitation.
As they entered, Alyssa didn't immediately turn her head. She remained focused on her advanced screens, her fingers tapping slowly on the metal desk's surface. The faint blue light from the digital data reflected off her long blonde hair, making her appear as if she were a technological ghost, living among numbers and information.
Then, suddenly, she stood up.
She moved slowly, as if she hadn't heard them enter... or perhaps she deliberately ignored them. Finally, she turned towards them, her cold eyes glinting with an unsettling gleam.
"Okay, what was that guy's name again? Oh... Ryo? Yuki... hmmm..." she said, tilting her head slightly, as though trying to remember the name of an insignificant person she'd met once.
"Do you mean Ren?" the woman with glasses asked cautiously. "That man... the Ash Demon's kin? Didn't the administration tell us to leave this to—"
A metallic scream tore through the air.
Before she could finish her sentence, Alyssa's sword descended at lightning speed, embedding itself into the table just millimeters from the girl's head.
Everyone froze in place. Even the girl with glasses, who had been trying to maintain her composure, felt her breath quicken just slightly.
Alyssa didn't smile... but she didn't appear angry either. She simply stared at them coldly, her tone dropping, making the atmosphere in the room even heavier.
"What did the administration do to prevent my sister's death?" she whispered, but her words carried enough weight to crush any response.
No one dared to speak.
"What did they do?" she continued, her voice growing even quieter... which made it even more terrifying. "Ah... right. Nothing."
She took a deep breath, then—just as suddenly as her fury had flared up—she returned to her cheerful demeanor.
She pulled the sword from the table and smiled at them, a wide grin as if she hadn't just been about to sever someone's head moments ago.
"Anyway! Enough talk about boring things. I have a plan!" she said, turning towards the door.
The three exchanged worried glances, but they had no choice but to follow her.
"Come on, come on, don't be late!" Alyssa said cheerfully, opening the door, then looking back at them over her shoulder, her smile widening uncomfortably.
"We have work to do."
Alyssa stopped in front of a massive metal door, sliding her access card through the scanner. The door slowly opened, revealing a vast arsenal of advanced equipment and combat suits neatly arranged along the walls.
"Alright, you idiots! Time to put on something more... suitable," she said with a wide grin, stepping into the room.
The other three quickly began selecting their suits, while Alyssa made her way to a private corner where hers was waiting.
Her suit was a sleek, black, form-fitting outfit made of bullet-resistant fibers, enhanced with modern technology to boost speed and agility. Over it, she wore a white leather jacket with light armor plating, adding a touch of elegance to her deadly combat readiness.
But the most striking feature of her outfit was the helmet.
A glossy black helmet with a sleek design, equipped with digital lenses that displayed vital data right in front of her eyes. It was fully covered, reflective, concealing her features entirely. But what stood out the most? Long rabbit ears extended from the top, connected to sensor devices that detected vibrations in the surrounding environment.
"What do you think?" she asked, quickly turning her head to show off the shine of her helmet.
"Rabbit ears?" the large man raised an eyebrow.
"Oh, you like it, don't you?" she said cheerfully, then lifted her new sword that had been resting on the ground beside her.
This wasn't just any sword.
"What the hell...?" one of them muttered when they saw its intricate design.
The sword was crafted from a black metal mixed with nanomaterials, its edges glowing faintly with a blue hue whenever she moved it. When combat mode was activated, it emitted a sharp energy field capable of slicing through the toughest of armor.
Alyssa waved the sword lightly, and everyone heard a soft "whoosh" as it sliced through the air.
"Oh, this is better than I expected," she whispered to herself before turning to them. "Alright, you lazy bums! Are you done or do I have to drag you out of here myself? We've got a mission to blow some heads off!"
The others stared at her for a moment, then sighed and began preparing to leave.
This was just the beginning… and hell was waiting for them.