The soft hum of the city seeped through the cracked windows of Hana's apartment as she and Kaito sat in silence, the Soul Ledger resting on the table between them. Its presence loomed larger than before, the leather binding seeming to pulse with energy under the dim light. Hana's fingers hovered over its cover, as if touching it too long might burn her.

"You still haven't told me everything about that thing," Kaito finally said, breaking the tension. His voice was low, wary.

Hana sighed, folding her arms on the table. "I don’t know everything yet. But what I do know is enough to change everything."

Kaito leaned back in his chair, arms crossed, his expression one of cautious disbelief. "You sound like you’re about to make a deal with the devil. You sure this is the path you want to go down? There’s no turning back once you start."

Hana met his gaze, her eyes flickering with both fear and determination. "I don’t want to use it recklessly, but I need to know how far it can go—what it can really do."

Kaito exhaled slowly, nodding toward the Ledger. "So, what exactly *can* it do? Is it just names? Fates? Or something worse?"

Hana hesitated before opening the Soul Ledger again. As she flipped through the pages, the strange, shifting script once again seemed to make more sense, as if the book itself were allowing her to understand it piece by piece.

"I’ve only been able to decipher some of it so far," she began. "The first rule is simple. When you write someone’s name in this book, something will happen to them. Their fate will change—but how, exactly, depends on what I write. It’s not just about death or injury. It’s subtler than that."

Kaito frowned, leaning forward. "Subtle? How?"

Hana’s eyes flickered to the page where she’d stopped. Her voice dropped as she read aloud: *"To change a person's fate, their full name must be written clearly in the Ledger. The alteration will occur, but the effect is unpredictable. The outcome may not align with the user’s intent."*

She looked up at Kaito, her expression grim. "In other words, even if I think I’m helping someone or stopping someone, the Ledger might twist that into something else. There are consequences I can’t foresee."

Kaito rubbed his chin, his skepticism deepening. "So you're saying if you write the name of, say, a corrupt politician and hope he gets exposed, something completely unexpected could happen instead? Like, he could become more powerful, or his enemies could take the fall instead?"

Hana nodded, her grip tightening on the edge of the book. "Exactly. That’s why I can’t afford to use this without thinking it through. One wrong move, and I could make things worse."

Kaito sat in silence, his mind turning over the implications. He finally leaned forward, his elbows resting on the table. "Have you... used it yet?"

Hana’s hesitation gave him the answer. She glanced away, her jaw tightening. "I used it once. To test it."

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Kaito’s eyes widened, his voice sharp. "Who? What did you write?"

She met his gaze, her voice a low whisper. "It was a small thing. I wrote the name of a man who harassed a woman on the train yesterday. He’s the kind of guy who gets away with everything—money, power, influence. I didn’t want him to die or anything drastic, just… I wanted him to face consequences."

Kaito raised an eyebrow. "And? What happened?"

Hana took a deep breath. "I wrote that he would lose his position. I thought maybe he’d get fired or disgraced somehow. But instead, this morning, I saw a report that his entire company’s stock crashed overnight. He wasn’t just fired—his business was ruined. Everyone working there lost their jobs, not just him."

The room fell into a heavy silence, the weight of her words sinking in. Kaito's expression hardened as he processed the unintended collateral damage.

"Hana," he said slowly, "you can't play god with this thing. If one name leads to that much chaos, imagine what happens when you start going after bigger targets. The politicians, the powerful elites—do you really think you can control what happens next?"

Hana’s hands trembled slightly as she closed the Ledger. "I know. That’s why I need to be careful. But I can’t walk away from it either. It’s the only tool I have to fight them. They’ve taken everything from me, Kaito—my family, my future. I have to do something."

Kaito's voice softened, a rare glimpse of concern cutting through his usual sarcasm. "I get that, Hana. Believe me, I do. But this isn’t the way. Not if you’re going to cause more harm than good. What happens when the ripple effect of your choices swallows up innocent people? How far are you willing to go?"

Hana’s gaze hardened, her anger simmering just beneath the surface. "I’m not trying to hurt anyone. But those people in power, the ones who destroyed my family—they’re the ones hurting everyone else. If I can stop them, even if it’s messy, it’s still worth it."

Kaito sighed, leaning back again. "I don’t know. You’re risking a lot here, Hana. I’m with you, but you’ve gotta promise me you won’t rush into this. No names until we know exactly what we’re dealing with."

She nodded, though the fire in her eyes hadn’t dimmed. "I’ll be careful. But we don’t have time to waste. Every day we wait, they get stronger. I’ll do my research, learn the Ledger’s rules, but we need to act soon."

---

Days passed, and Hana poured over the Soul Ledger, studying its cryptic script, trying to decode more of its rules. The more she read, the clearer the risks became.

*Rule 2: If a name is written incorrectly, the intended effect will fail, but an unexpected event will still occur.*

Hana shivered as she read the words aloud. The book was full of traps. One slip, one error in a name, and chaos could still follow.

Kaito glanced at her from across the room, his eyes narrowing. "Another rule?"

She nodded, setting the book down. "It says that if I mess up someone’s name, the effect I want won’t happen—but something else will. It’s like the Ledger doesn’t care if you’re precise or not. It just *wants* to change things."

Kaito frowned. "That makes it even worse. It’s like the damn thing is feeding off the chaos. How do you even know when you’re using it right?"

"I don’t," Hana admitted, running her fingers through her hair in frustration. "That’s the problem. But I can’t afford to walk away from it now."

Kaito shook his head, his tone stern. "Hana, this is dangerous. You have the power to destroy lives without even meaning to. Maybe it’s time to reconsider."

Hana’s eyes blazed with resolve. "No. I’ve spent too long watching from the sidelines. I need to take action. And I’ll take responsibility for the consequences, whatever they are."

Kaito fell silent, his lips pressed into a thin line. He knew Hana well enough to understand that once her mind was set, there was no turning back.

"Alright," he said quietly. "But we do this smart. We figure out the safest way to use that thing without causing more damage. Agreed?"

Hana gave a small nod, though the weight of the Ledger still hung over her like a shadow.

The game had begun, and with each name written in the Ledger, the stakes would only grow higher. But for Hana, there was no going back—not now. Not when justice was finally within her reach.