Mike climbed the stairway, moving toward the upper floor where Aki was. He had called her repeatedly—each call cut off before it could connect.
The stairwell was dimly lit. Flickering lights buzzed weakly overhead. Blood stains smeared the concrete walls, dark and drying. Dead guards lay scattered across the steps behind him—some missing heads, some missing limbs—but every single one of them was dead.
As Mike continued upward, a shadowy figure appeared behind him.
The lights flickered.
Mike felt it.
He turned abruptly, bat lifting slightly—but there was nothing. Only the empty stairwell and the low hum of failing lights. Confusion crossed his eyes, brief and sharp, but he didn't stop. He didn't have time.
Something was wrong. Aki wasn't answering
He climbed faster.
The metal bat dragged along the stairs, each step producing a dull metallic thud, echoing through the narrow stairway as he ascended.
After a few more steps, Mike reached a door. He moved his hand toward the knob.
"Is my hand shaking… Am I afraid? No—no way that can happen," Mike thought as he twisted the knob, his hand trembling slightly.
The door creaked open.
A barely visible corridor revealed itself. The only source of light was the flickering tube lights on the ceiling, buzzing weakly. The walls were painted red, the floor stained darker with blood. Bodies lay scattered randomly across the corridor.
But what shocked Mike wasn't the carnage.
It was Aki.
She sat on the floor near a corner, her whole body trembling as if she had seen a ghost. Sweat soaked her skin, her breath uneven and shallow.
Mike rushed to her and crouched to her level, his voice filled with concern.
"Hey… are you okay, Aki? What happened?"
Her reply came fast and broken, drenched in fear.
"Brother, let's go—let's run. W–we can't beat him. Look at w–what he did. He didn't even spare his allies. He's a m–monster."
Confusion crossed Mike's face as he tried to calm her.
"It's okay. Whoever is here, I'll handle it. Don't worry—I'm here now. Don't cry like a baby. Stand up. After this, we'll go to your favorite restaurant."
He gently ran a hand through her hair.
Slowly, both of them stood up.
As Mike tried to lighten the situation for Aki, he suddenly felt it.
A presence.
Not strong…. but wild, feral, like an animal watching from the dark.
Both Aki and Mike turned toward the door he had entered through.
A shadowy figure stood there, barely visible under the flickering light. The tube light above buzzed erratically, cutting the silhouette in and out of existence.
Aki panicked. She pointed at the figure, her words rushing out broken and uneven.
"I–it's him, brother… it's him."
Tears rolled down her cheeks as she continued, her voice cracking.
"We can't survive. We will die here."
Mike pulled her into a one-armed hug, his face turning cold and serious. He raised his bat and pointed it toward the figure,as if challenging him.
But in an instant his expression shifted from dangerous to shocking.
The shadow was gone.
The lights suddenly came fully alive.
Beside Mike and Aki stood the figure…
A teenager.
He wore an all-black, high-collared jacket that almost covered his lower jaw, black cargo pants, and slippers. His hair was tied into a small ponytail. Deep dark circles carved his eyes, which felt completely lifeless—empty of emotion.
He was The Ghost.
In his hand rested a chokuto, its presence alone feeling like death waiting to be released from its scabbard.
As Mike was still processing what had just happened, the front half of his bat slides smoothly to the floor, landing with a metallic thud.
The cut was too fast—too precise—to even be felt.
Mike gritted his teeth as rage crawled through him. His eyes narrowed.
He spun around, grabbed the teenager by the neck, and slammed him into the wall with inhuman force. Cracks spidered outward instantly. Before the teenager could steady himself, a fist shot toward his face.
The impact sent a shockwave.
The wall exploded outward, debris flying as the teenager was hurled out of the building, Crashing him down on the roads,dust clouds filled the air.
"This is the consequence when you try to scare my sister!" Mike yelled.
Aki, seeing her brother standing strong,felt her confidence slowly return. She wiped her tears and stepped to the edge of the broken wall, shouting down.
"You can't beat us! My brother will kill you!"
But from the road below, there was no response.
Only drifting dust.
As if the teenager had vanished into the dust clouds.
The wind slowly carried the dust away, revealing the teenager.
Unharmed.
Unscratched.
He was already in his combat stance.
His body leaned slightly forward, knees bent, posture low and predatory. The position itself screamed death.
Mike recognized it instantly.
His eyes widened in pure terror.
Click.
SHING!
The chokuto moved diagonally, its motion blurring into nothingness. In a single swing, the building where Mike and Aki stood was cleanly cut in half. For a fraction of a second, the structure stood frozen—then collapsed violently, crashing to the ground as concrete and steel screamed apart.
Dust and debris swallowed the place where the building stood a moment ago.
Somehow—by instinct, by luck, or sheer will—Mike and Aki had saved themselves from the slice.
Now they stood on the road opposite the teenager, both breathing heavily. Their chests rose and fell sharply, sweat mixing with dust on their skin.
"What a monster… no human should be able to do this," Mike muttered to himself, his voice low and shaken.
As Mike and Aki steadied their breath, they understood one thing clearly.
They had never fought something like him.
But there was no escape left.
It was no longer about winning.
It was do or die.