Yuki tiredly walked towards his home
The physical strain of the day was finally catching up to him. In his arms, the girl felt like a ghost—light, cold, and dangerously still.
He didn't go to his own door. Instead, he stopped at the landlady's door. He kicked the base of the door twice, his hands too busy holding the child to knock.
"Koshaku! Koshaku-san, open up! It's an emergency!" Yuki called out to his landlady.
A series of heavy locks clicked, and the door swung open. The landlady's niece stood there, wearing an oversized hoodie and holding a rolling pin like a weapon. Her eyes were sharp with irritation, but it vanished the moment she saw the blood on Yuki's sleeves and the pale face of the girl in his arms. Hana Koshaku, she was a beauty just like Seri, but she was an ordinary human. Her brown hair was packed into a ponytail that reached her mid back while her brown eyes stared fiercely at Yuki.
"Kinatarou-kun? What on earth—" She stopped, her voice dropping an octave as she saw the girl's matted hair and the raw bruises on her limbs. "Is she alive?"
"Barely," Yuki panted. "I found her in an alley. I can fight, Koshaku-san, but I don't know the first thing about fixing... this. Please."
Hana didn't hesitate. She threw the rolling pin onto the couch and stepped aside. "Get her on the kitchen table. Now. Wash your hands and grab the high-grade antiseptic from the cabinet under the sink."
The kitchen light was harsh, revealing the true extent of the girl's injuries. As Hana gently cut away the blood-soaked nightgown with surgical scissors, the room grew cold. It wasn't just the alley fight; there were old, circular scars and injection marks on her thighs.
"These aren't just accidents, Yuki," Hana whispered, her hands trembling as she dabbed at a deep gash on the girl's shoulder. "Someone was using her as a pincushion."
Yuki watched, feeling a cocktail of rage and helplessness. "She won't speak. She just shakes her head. I think... I think she's an orphan. Or worse."
Hana paused, her eyes landing on the back of the girl's neck as she turned her slightly to clean a graze. She pushed the long black hair aside, revealing the glowing, pulsating barcode.
Hana's voice was small, her fingers trembling as they hovered over the glowing mark. "Yuki... what is this? It's warm. It's vibrating under my fingers."
"It's an 'Asset Tag,'" Kira's voice chirped from the discarded bag, sounding unusually grim. "That specific frequency belongs to the Crimson Hawks—a specialized Research and Development unit within the Zenith Vanguard."
Hana looked up, her face pale. She was shocked about the talking bag but decided to ignore it. "The Vanguard? You mean the 'Humanity's Shield' guys? The ones on the news with the drones and the hero clubs?"
"The very same," Yuki replied, his jaw tightening. "People see the Vanguard as a league of celebrity heroes, but beneath the live broadcasts and the shiny uniforms, they are a massive regulatory agency. They don't just fight villains; they 'manage' Kizo biology. And the Crimson Hawks... they're the ones who do the dirty work in the labs."
"Analysis complete," Kira hummed, a blue light flickering from the bag's lens. "This child is what the Hawks call a 'Biological Resource.' Her blood possesses a rare 'Null-Factor' gene. If refined, it can temporarily paralyze the Kizo-cells of any user it touches. To the Vanguard, she isn't a girl—she's the ultimate weapon against kizo users. They've been harvesting her like livestock."
Yuki looked at the silent girl, a cold fury settling in his chest. "My brother Satoshi might be the face of the Vanguard's #1 Club, but the Hawks are the rot in the foundation. If they're using Zenith tech to track her, it means the 'Heroes' are the ones we're running from."
"They're coming for her, aren't they?" Hana asked.
"Can you disable the tracker?" Yuki asked, his tone serious and firm.
"I'm a multi-billion dollar AI system... Of course I can."
Hana looked closely at the child. In one evening her boring life just became chaotic, because of this girl and the handsome glasses wearing idiot next to her. She was thankful that she got to help a child.
Hana rubbed the girl's head with care. "We'll call you Luna. Because you're quiet and pale, and you found your way to us in the dark. Don't worry, Luna. We're not letting go."
Luna's eyes, previously empty voids, finally flickered. She looked at Hana, then at Yuki, and for the first time, a single tear tracked through the dried blood on her cheek.
The next morning Yuki had taken Luna to his own apartment. Hana had left an hour ago, grumbling about a math test and leaving Yuki with a stack of medical supplies and strict instructions on how to change Luna's bandages.
Yuki looked at the silent girl sitting on his futon. She was wearing one of his oversized t-shirts, which swallowed her small frame. She didn't move; she just stared at the dust motes dancing in the sunlight. Yuki had to skip school for the day just to take care of her, Hana's aunt, the landlady was on a trip out of town so Yuki couldn't just leave Luna alone at Hana's place.
"Okay, Luna," Yuki said, putting on a bright, exaggerated smile. "Since we're both 'skipping' today, I thought we could have some fun. How about a card game? Or I can show you some cool tricks with my phone?"
Luna didn't blink. Her expression remained as cold as a winter morning.
Yuki didn't give up. He spent the afternoon trying to be a one-man circus. He made shadow puppets on the wall, told ridiculous stories about his brother Satoshi's "heroic" failures, and even tried to juggle three oranges (he dropped two immediately).
It was only when he accidentally tripped over an orange and landed flat on his face that he heard it—a tiny, microscopic puff of air. He looked up. Luna's hand was over her mouth, and for a fleeting second, her eyes weren't empty.
"Was that... a laugh?" Yuki grinned, sitting up. "I'll take it. One-zero, in my favor."
Luna didn't smile, but she didn't look away either. Slowly, she leaned forward and pointed at the oranges. She wanted to try.
Meanwhile, at Kyorin High, the atmosphere was thick with rumors. Renjiro was walking through the halls with his chest puffed out, surrounded by a group of students.
"See?" Renjiro bragged, loud enough for half the corridor to hear. "The Kinatarou couldn't even make it to first period. My flames yesterday must have cooked his core. He's probably at home nursing his pride after losing to a real Paragon."
Seri Kyorin walked past him, her eyes cold enough to freeze his orange aura. She didn't say a word, but her heart was hammering. Yuki isn't the type to skip because of a loss, she thought. He's exhausted, or something is wrong.
She couldn't focus on a single lecture. As soon as the final bell rang, she bypassed her waiting limousine and headed straight toward the residential district.
Back at the apartment, Yuki heard a knock on his door. He opened it and saw Hana standing outside still wearing her uniform and holding a bag of groceries.
"How's Luna?" She asked barging straight into the apartment and settling down next to Luna.
"I'm going to cook something." Hana informed.
"Here?"
"Yes you idiot." She said while tying an apron over her uniform.
"I'll help."
Unknowning to both of them, Seri Kyorin would be there any moment.