Tokyo, three days after the gate incident.
The sky was overcast, and the wind carried the damp scent of winter—like a whisper of an approaching calamity. Kaido sat on a narrow balcony outside the temporary guild outpost, staring blankly at the crowded street below. The coffee in front of him had long gone cold, untouched. His eyes fixed on nothing.
Every night, he saw her face—Yume—being swallowed by the gate. He screamed, ran, reached out... but she vanished before his hand could touch her. The vision repeated, exactly the same each time, with the same helplessness.
"Kaido!"
A familiar voice pulled him out of the spiral.
It was Aiko. She stood at the door, her hair damp from the light rain, her face a blend of worry and reproach.
"You didn't sleep again, did you?"
He didn't answer. He simply nodded and turned his face toward the clouds.
"Did you see them today?" he asked finally.
"Yes… They held a small memorial. Ryoji spoke, but… it was clear he didn't believe Yume was truly gone."
"Neither do I."
He said it quietly, then stood up. He looked at his sister and gently ruffled her hair.
"Are you still afraid of me?"
Aiko looked at him sharply, then gave a faint smile.
"Afraid? No. But sometimes… I don't recognize you."
Kaido turned away, replying bitterly, "Maybe because I'm no longer the same."
---
Black Thorn Order Headquarters – High Council Room
The chamber was soaked in shadows, despite the soft lighting. Five faces sat around the round table—representing the five major guilds. In the center, a screen displayed the map of the Shibuya Gate.
"So..." said Daichi Kuroda, head of the Vermilion Creed, his voice deep and heavy. "You're telling me the boy survived the gate… and formed a Pact?"
Ryu Hayashi, leader of the Black Thorn Order, nodded slowly.
"More than that. The Seal—the one all of us carry—responded to him."
Kaori Mizuki murmured, "No one has awakened a Pact in twenty years."
Emi Fujimoto, arms crossed, added, "This shifts the balance. If it's confirmed that he carries the Bloodbound Pact… we may have to reevaluate everything."
Takashi Inoue's voice was barely more than a whisper. "I suggest we observe him… not eliminate him. Not yet."
Ryu nodded again.
"Agreed. Send a C-rank scout team. Make it seem routine. We watch how he behaves… without waking the beast, if it sleeps."
---
Inside the Gate
It was unlike any C-rank gate.
The air was thick—heavy with the scent of iron and ash. The trees were twisted, the ground covered in a dense fog that concealed its depth, and the sky was a dull gray, as if light itself had died.
Kaido felt something familiar—the same pressure he'd felt in Shibuya's gate. But it was purer now. Sharper.
Their team was five strong: Kaido, Minato, Ryoji, and two unnamed Hunters. They advanced carefully, senses alert.
"Something's off," Ryoji muttered, scanning the misty forest.
"Yeah…" Kaido replied. "Where are the monsters? Not a single creature yet."
"Maybe they're scared of you," Minato said with a smirk, though his voice wavered slightly.
Minutes passed like lead. Then the mist parted.
Before them stood a beast—towering, grotesque, and far beyond the expected rank. It had cracked gray skin, three heads, and swirling red eyes.
"This isn't C-rank!" one Hunter shouted, drawing his spear.
The monster lunged—fast, unrelenting. Chaos erupted in a burst of steel, screams, and shadow.
Kaido dashed in, dagger drawn. His body moved faster than ever. He could see the beast's motions before they happened, like something inside him was guiding his every step.
Then—
The mark on his wrist pulsed.
And the light exploded.
---
Time froze. Kaido saw himself—from the outside.
His eyes blazed, shadows poured from his skin. Something stirred within him—not blood alone, but something ancient, something deeper, something hungry.
He heard whispers in a language he didn't understand.
Then he was behind the beast. His blade sank deep into its neck.
The creature let out a strangled cry—half agony, half... peace?
The team stared at him, stunned.
"What… did you do?" Minato murmured. His voice wasn't hostile now—just shaken.
Kaido didn't answer.
He was staring at the mark on his wrist, which was now dimming.
Then he noticed something.
In the beast's chest, between layers of flesh, there was a dark metallic shard—glowing crimson. He reached for it and pulled.
It was circular, engraved with the same sigil he bore…
…but inverted.
---
On the way back to the gate, no one spoke. The silence was heavy, as if each of them sensed something was wrong—something deeper than a failed mission.
And just before stepping through the portal, Kaido heard it again. A whisper, faint but clear:
"The more you kill, the closer you come… and the closer you come, the more you bleed."
They emerged into daylight and fresh air.
But Kaido felt no relief.
He felt like something inside him had cracked…
…and would never be whole again.