The morning sun filtered through the windows of the school corridor, dust motes drifting lazily through the pale light.
Haruyuki shuffled along with his classmates, half-asleep, his body present but his mind still lagging behind. Yesterday's victory lingered in fragments
his Duel Avatar standing tall, the roar of the crowd, the spike of adrenaline that had left his limbs trembling long after the match ended.
It still didn't feel real.
He rubbed at the back of his neck, trying to shake off the lingering haze, when a soft voice called out behind him.
"Haru-ku… ah, I mean, Arita-kun."
He turned.
Kuroyukihime stood a few steps away, her uniform immaculate as always, black hair catching the light as if it absorbed it rather than reflected it.
Her expression was calm, composed
yet there was something gentler in her gaze than usual.
Around them, the corridor buzzed with life. Lockers slammed, students laughed, distant traffic bled in through open windows.
But from Haruyuki's perspective, everything froze.
She walked toward him.
Each step felt deliberate.
Measured.
She stopped directly in front of him, close enough that he could see his own faint reflection in her dark eyes.
"You've done well, Haruyuki-kun."
His breath hitched.
For a heartbeat, she hesitated.
Then just barely she reached out and placed her fingers against the sleeve of his uniform.
The touch was light.
Fleeting.
Yet it burned through him like a spark.
Haruyuki froze completely.
His lungs forgot how to work.
His thoughts scattered as if struck by static. The world blurred at the edges, sounds dulling into nothing.
Kuroyukihime leaned in slightly, her voice lowered so only he could hear.
"From now on… walk beside me."
Her hand withdrew at once, as if she had never touched him at all. In an instant, she was composed again.
His Senpai, The Black king, Black Lotus.
Straightening, she met his gaze one last time.
"You havent disappointed me… Haruyuki kun."
Then she turned and walked away, her steps calm, unhurried, her presence receding like a shadow returning to its rightful place.
Only then did the world rush back in.
Whispers erupted around him.
"Did you see that?"
"They were way too close."
"Wait… did she just say his first name?"
Haruyuki remained rooted to the floor, face burning, heart pounding so loudly he was sure everyone could hear it.
A classmate nudged him with an elbow, laughing.
"Hey, you okay?"
"Dude," another snorted, "you look like you just saw a ghost."
Haruyuki managed a weak grin."Y-Yeah. Totally fine."
Inside, his mind was screaming.
Trust? Walk beside her?
He drifted through his morning classes on autopilot.
The words on the board meant nothing. The teachers' voices blurred together.
Every heartbeat dragged the memory back into focus the warmth at his sleeve, her quiet voice, the weight of those words.
As he got home After school
His legs itched with restless energy, as if standing still might cause him to shatter.
He slipped on his shoes, synced his Neurolinker, and headed out for his usual late-afternoon jog.
The city smelled of summer heat and freshly cut grass.
He breathed deeply, trying to steady himself.
It was just a reward.
A thank you.
Nothing more.
Still, something felt… off.
His Neurolinker flashed briefly in his vision.
[Heart Rate: 152 — Emotional Disturbance Detected]
"Stop calling it that," he muttered under his breath.
He ran.
The world blurred around him, passersby, streetlights, reflections in glass stretching into streaks of color.
He tried to outrun his thoughts, but the memory clung stubbornly to him.
Walk beside me.
Footsteps echoed behind him.
The street narrowed as he reached the shortcut home, a shaded alley that cut between two brick buildings.
Haruyuki slowed instinctively, scanning the shadows as he'd learned to do.
Too late.
A sharp crack exploded across his back.
Pain flared white-hot as a bat slammed into him.
He staggered forward, crashing to one knee, stars bursting behind his eyes.
His lungs burned. His head rang.
A figure stepped out of the shadows.
"Found you."
Haruyuki's throat went dry.
Ariya.
But not the smug, confident bully he remembered.
This version was disheveled, eyes sunken, expression twisted with rage and something far more fragile underneath.
He gripped a battered bat, knuckles white.
"I've been watching you," Ariya spat.
"Every day. Every damn day since everything went bad."
Haruyuki tried to crawl back, but pain flared along his ribs.
"A-Ariya… why?"
"You took everything from me," Ariya snapped, voice cracking.
"My pride. My place. My life."
Six more figures stepped out from the darkness behind him.
Bats. Chains. Rusted pipes glinted under the streetlight.
"So now," Ariya continued, "you fight for it all."
Fear flooded Haruyuki's veins not the sharp clarity of Burst combat, but raw, human panic.
He tapped the side of his Neurolinker.
[Video Recording — ON]
A red indicator blinked quietly in his vision.
"We don't have to do this," Haruyuki said, forcing his voice steady. "You can walk away."
Ariya laughed a harsh, broken sound.
"Walk away? I got disowned. Thrown out. Everyone left me."His eyes burned.
"And you? You get everything."
"Getting fit. Getting confident."He sneered.
"Getting noticed by that senpai."
"Freak like you deserves nothing."
The alley seemed to close in around him.
[Adrenal Response Detected — Combat Readiness Rising]
His muscles coiled despite the fear.
The system recognized danger.
He assessed automatically.
• Opponents: 7• Weapons: bats, chains, pipes• No armor. No backup.
Haruyuki swallowed.
"I won't fight back," he said quietly. "Not unless you make me."
"Big words," Ariya sneered.
The gang advanced.
Chains rattled. A bat scraped against brick.
Time stretched thin.
Haruyuki closed his eyes.
Then opened them.
"If you want to fight," he said, calm settling over him, "then fight fair."
Ariya's sneer twisted into fury.
"Fair? Life was never fair, fatass!"
He raised his bat.
Above them, the streetlight flickered then flared to life, illuminating the alley, the weapons, the faces.
The recorder blinked red.
Haruyuki exhaled slowly.
"Then," he said, steady as steel,"let's begin."
[Emergency Adrenal Trigger — Standby]
And the alley fell silent.