Chapter 1: Midnight Lurkers
The school day had ended, but the halls of Shinmizu High were far from empty. The flickering hallway lights cast long shadows, stretching across the silent corridors. Near the third-floor biology lab, a gang of students prowled like predators in search of prey.
At the head of the group stood Tatsumi Matsutani, leader of the Midnight Lurkers. Small, but fierce, her delicate frame was a contradiction to the raw intensity in her eyes. Her reputation preceded her—both students and teachers watched her from afar, their expressions tinged with disappointment and unease, as if they knew something others did not.
"Tch. Another damn boring day," Tatsumi muttered, her hands buried in her jacket pockets. "We need to find some entertainment."
Her gang of twelve—brash, rowdy, and feared—nodded in agreement. They weren't just any delinquents; they were some of the strongest high schoolers in the city. To them, fear and chaos were just another after-school activity.
Then, they saw him.
A lone figure, tall and imposing, wandered the hallway ahead. Ketsuki Onizawa—the school’s infamous weirdo. He was known not for violence, but for his detached, indifferent attitude. No one could get under his skin, no insult fazed him. He was just there, existing in a world apart from everyone else.
Tatsumi smirked. "Oh look, it’s the freak. Let’s see if we can get a reaction out of him."
The gang surrounded him like a pack of wolves. One of them shoved his shoulder, another spat insults. But Ketsuki? He didn’t even blink. His hands remained in his pockets as he continued scanning the hallway, looking around as if searching for something.
This pissed them off.
Tatsumi stepped forward, cracking her knuckles. "Oi, bastard. You ignoring me?"
Silence.
Her fist flew forward, slamming into his gut.
Ketsuki barely flinched, but a faint furrow crossed his brow. That actually hurt. His eyes narrowed slightly as he sniffed the air.
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Something was off.
Without hesitation, he reached into his pocket, pulled out a small dagger, and sliced a thin cut across his palm. Before the gang could react, he moved with unsettling speed, smearing his blood across each of them—except for Tatsumi.
"What the hell?!" One of the delinquents recoiled in disgust. "What’s wrong with you?!"
Ketsuki ignored them. Instead, he backed away, pressing himself against the wall at the far end of the corridor, watching them with eerie calm.
Then, the walls twisted.
A dark-red claw—long, jagged, and grotesquely thin—shot out from the biology lab wall, grabbing one of the delinquents before he could even scream.
A sickening crack.
His body crumpled like a broken doll.
From the wall emerged a monster—a towering, skeletal beast covered in thin, wiry hair. Its twisted, fang-filled mouth curled into a horrific smile, and its glowing yellow eyes gleamed with hunger.
A Level 3 Stray.
The gang screamed.
The monster lunged, slicing through flesh like paper, tearing them apart. Blood sprayed across the floor as their screams echoed through the empty hallway.
Tatsumi froze. Horror gripped her like a vice. Her friends—her gang—were being slaughtered like insects.
She turned toward Ketsuki.
He watched it all unfold with the same blank expression.
No fear. No shock. No urgency. Just bored indifference.
Tatsumi’s breath hitched. "Y-you—you're just standing there?!"
The monster’s claw rose, preparing to bring it down on her.
Ketsuki let out a long yawn.
"Damn. That was brutal. Big whoop."
In a single fluid motion, he pulled out two daggers—one orange-yellow, one bluish-black. Apollo and Artemis.
The monster swiped down.
Ketsuki vanished.
A flash of steel.
The creature’s claw was gone. Severed cleanly.
Ketsuki landed softly, spinning Apollo in his fingers before stabbing it deep into the monster’s chest. A spark ignited. The beast’s body convulsed as flames erupted from the inside, consuming it from within.
It screeched. Thrashed. And then—
Silence.
The burnt corpse collapsed.
Tatsumi trembled on the ground, her breathing ragged. The weight of what had just happened crushed her. Her gang was gone. Her hands shook violently. Tears streamed down her face.
Ketsuki, meanwhile, casually knelt by the corpse, digging through the charred remains with disinterest.
He pulled out a small, glowing crystal-like orb.
"There you are. Essence."
Tatsumi’s body gave out. The last thing she saw before blacking out was Ketsuki sighing as he wiped the blood off his hands.
“Ugh… What a pain.”
She felt herself being lifted, cradled like she weighed nothing.
Then—
Darkness.