The city skyline glimmered with the glow of neon lights, each building a towering monument to humanity's defiance against the night. Streetlights painted the rain-slicked pavement in streaks of white and gold, and the distant hum of late-night traffic mixed with the murmur of voices spilling from open shopfronts. The air, thick with the faint smell of gasoline and rain-soaked concrete, clung to Mitsuki Shirogane like an unseen weight.
But he had returned to school, his body a hollow shell of the person he used to be. The buzz of student chatter, the rustling of papers, and the clinking of chairs against tile were all background noise to him. He didn't feel alive anymore. He walked through the halls of Shirogane Academy like a ghost, unnoticed by most, except for the occasional glance of curiosity from passing students.
He was tall, with messy black hair that often fell into his face, covering the sapphire-blue eyes that once held a fire of ambition and drive. His school uniform—a black blazer adorned with the silver crest of his family—hung on him like a shroud. He had always been proud of the Shirogane name, but today, it felt like a burden. His pale skin caught the faint glow of the fluorescent lights as he passed, the deep circles under his eyes betraying his sleepless nights.
As Mitsuki sat down in his seat, the world around him seemed distant. His thoughts wandered back to the night his life had shattered. The fire. His parents. The demon. The strange man who had appeared from the smoke... Yami. He didn't even know why he remembered the name. The whole night had felt like a fever dream, but the loss was real. He could still feel the burn of his mother's last words, the weight of her hand slipping from his cheek, the crushing finality of it all.
A group of students entered the classroom, their loud chatter pulling him from his thoughts. They were a group of bullies, led by Ryuu, a notorious troublemaker who had never quite gotten over Mitsuki's quiet, unassuming nature.
"Hey, look who's back," Ryuu said with a smirk, his voice dripping with sarcasm. The others snickered, sensing an opportunity to torment the lonely, brooding boy who had once been the pride of the school. Mitsuki tried to ignore them, staring blankly at the desk in front of him, but the group wasn't about to let him off that easily.
"You're still alive, huh?" Ryuu taunted, slamming his palm on Mitsuki's desk. "Thought you'd be burned to a crisp by now, like your precious mansion."
Mitsuki's heart tightened, but he said nothing. His fingers curled into fists under the desk, nails digging into his palms. He wanted to lash out, to fight back, but the exhaustion inside him made it impossible to move. His mind, too, felt like it had been scorched by the events of the past week. The weight of grief and anger had made him mute.
"What's the matter, Shirogane?" Ryuu continued, leaning in closer. "Lost your tongue? Too busy crying over your parents? You know, maybe I should give you a reason to really cry."
Ryuu shoved Mitsuki's shoulder with force, and the others laughed. Mitsuki's body tensed, but his eyes stayed fixed ahead, as if he had become impervious to their words. He refused to show them the pain they were causing. He wouldn't give them the satisfaction.
But Ryuu wasn't finished. "What's the matter? Too weak to even stand up for yourself anymore?" He sneered, grabbing Mitsuki by the collar and yanking him out of his seat. The classroom fell silent as Ryuu dragged him to the front.
Mitsuki barely resisted. His body felt like it was made of lead, and his mind was a fog. He was already somewhere else, back in the wreckage of his family's home, hearing the echoes of his mother's final breath.
"Didn't anyone teach you not to ignore people, Shirogane?" Ryuu growled, his fist winding back to strike.
That was when it happened.
Something inside Mitsuki snapped. His vision blurred with rage, but something else stirred within him—a memory, a dark power awakening deep within his chest. His hands shot up, grabbing Ryuu's wrist mid-strike, and with a sharp motion, he twisted Ryuu's arm behind his back. The bully yelped in pain, but Mitsuki's grip didn't loosen. The class stared in shock as Mitsuki shoved Ryuu against the wall, his breathing ragged, the force of his action surprising even himself.
"Enough!" Mitsuki's voice was hoarse, but it carried the weight of something far darker than what they had anticipated.
Ryuu struggled against him, but Mitsuki's grip was unyielding. The others tried to intervene, but Mitsuki was beyond caring. His mind was flooded with a surge of emotion—the loss of his family, the anger at the world that had taken everything from him, and the overwhelming desire to make someone pay.
The bullies froze, sensing the danger in the air. Mitsuki's eyes—once calm and distant—flared with fury. But it wasn't just anger. It was something darker. Something dangerous.
Suddenly, the window beside him shattered.
A figure leaped through the glass, landing with the grace of a predator. Mitsuki's heart skipped a beat as he recognized the silver eyes, the gaunt, almost ethereal features of the man who had appeared that night—the one who had saved him from the demon.
Yami.
The classroom gasped as the tall figure straightened, his silver eyes locked onto Mitsuki. His lips parted, though the expression on his face was unreadable. "Mitsuki," Yami's voice was quiet, almost imperceptible amidst the tension in the room.
For a moment, Mitsuki forgot about everything—the bullies, the pain, even the memories of his family's destruction. Yami's presence was overwhelming, like a cold, heavy storm descending into the chaos of his life.
Yami's gaze shifted to the group of bullies. His eyes narrowed, and the temperature in the room seemed to drop. "Let him go," Yami said, his voice low, though it carried an undeniable authority.
Ryuu and the others stiffened, instinctively shrinking away from the strange figure. They had no idea who he was, but the air around Yami seemed to ripple with power.
Mitsuki's grip on Ryuu loosened, his fingers trembling as the haze of anger began to fade. He took a step back, his breath shaky. He could feel the weight of the world on his shoulders, but the presence of this strange man, Yami, seemed to anchor him. It was as if, for the first time in days, he could breathe.
The bullies hesitated for a moment, glancing at each other as though deciding whether to challenge the imposing figure in front of them.
But Yami's gaze never left them. His eyes gleamed, and the room grew colder still.
With a single flick of his wrist, Yami sent Ryuu crashing into the back wall with a terrifying force. The sound of Ryuu's body slamming into the plaster was sickening. The bullies scattered, their bravado shattered, and they scrambled to the door, leaving Mitsuki alone with the man who had changed the course of his fate.
The silence that followed felt deafening.
Yami's eyes returned to Mitsuki, his expression unreadable. "You're not alone anymore," he said quietly.
Mitsuki opened his mouth, but no words came. He wanted to ask so many things—who was Yami? Why had he helped him? What did he want from him? But his throat tightened, and the questions remained unspoken.
Yami didn't wait for an answer. "We need to talk," he said. "Now."
And with that, he turned and walked toward the window, as if the destruction of glass and the chaotic events of the moment meant nothing at all. Mitsuki hesitated for a moment, the echoes of his classmates' fear still ringing in his ears, but the pull to follow was too strong.
For the first time since the fire, Mitsuki felt like something had shifted. A new chapter was beginning, though he couldn't possibly know where it would lead.
As he followed Yami out of the classroom, he realized one thing: nothing would ever be the same again.