Soulbound: The Shinigami's Oath
In an era where every person is safeguarded by their personal Shinigami — and primal soul reapers that patrol the Earth — Kaito Ryūzaki, an enigmatic and penitent Shinigami, has stayed solitary for centuries, declining to form a master bond. Nurtured by the failure to save his first master, a girl named Hikari, Kaito promised he would form no bond again. But after he meets Emiko Fujimura, a young woman whose life teeters on the edge of a blade, Kaito is shanghaied into another deal.
Emiko’s close call echoes the tragedy of Kaito’s past, and he is determined to save her from a fate he couldn’t prevent. But in a world where eliminating a Shinigami and their master can endow you with incredible power, Kaito’s choice lands both him and Emiko in the sights of competing Shinigami and their masters. Struggling for survival, Kaito will fight the demons of his past and the threat of betrayal around every corner, while Emiko will discover the secret to her link to the Shinigami world.
Sworn to the cause and pursued by adversaries, Kaito and Emiko must endure tests beyond their wildest nightmares to win their place as the most feared Shinigami and greatest master–apprentice pair, or see their bond destroyed by the world’s endless thirst for power.