August 18, 2023 | 11:45 PM
Unknown Location
A single screen glowed in the dark room. Lines of code flashed across it before disappearing into nothingness, erased as quickly as they appeared.
The figure leaned back in their chair, watching the battle unfold.
Raito Kurogane believed he was the god of this game.
Hoshino Renji thought he was the detective closing in on the truth.
Yume Sazanami acted as the unpredictable wildcard.
But none of them knew the real rules.
The figure smirked and tapped a single key.
One simple command.
Delete.
And just like that, another name vanished from existence.
This wasn't Raito's work.
This was something beyond him.
A force he hadn't even considered.
---
August 19, 2023 | 8:15 AM
Tokyo Metropolitan Police Headquarters
Renji hadn't slept. He sat at his desk, staring at the black screen of his laptop. The moment he had tried to access Raito Kurogane's file again, the entire system had crashed.
This wasn't just Raito covering his tracks.
This was something else.
Someone else.
His thoughts were interrupted by a knock. Yume strolled in, holding two cups of coffee.
"You look like hell," she muttered, setting one cup in front of him.
Renji sighed, rubbing his temples. "It's worse than we thought."
She sat on the edge of his desk. "Let me guess. The file's gone."
"Not just gone," Renji said, looking up at her. "The entire system crashed."
Yume's smirk faltered. "That's… not normal."
Renji nodded. "Which means we're not just dealing with Raito. Someone else is in this game."
Yume sipped her coffee, thinking. "A fourth player?"
Renji exhaled sharply. "And they might be more dangerous than Raito."
A tense silence followed. Then, Yume pulled out her phone and tapped the screen a few times.
"Let's test something," she said, handing the phone to Renji.
He glanced at the screen. It was an encrypted database search. Yume had bypassed the police system and pulled up Raito's profile.
Renji felt a wave of relief. "So it's not completely gone."
"Not yet," Yume said, her eyes dark.
Renji scrolled through the file. Age, occupation, family history—everything was there. But then, he noticed something.
A single line at the bottom of the screen.
[FILE MODIFIED: AUGUST 19, 2023 | 2:14 AM]
Renji's stomach dropped. "This was changed a few hours ago."
Yume frowned. "By who?"
Renji's grip tightened on the phone. "That's what we need to find out."
---
August 19, 2023 | 9:30 AM
Raito Kurogane's Apartment
Raito sat on his bed, staring at his notebook.
Something was wrong.
He had rewritten names before. Dozens. Hundreds. But now, something had changed.
He couldn't access his own records.
His past, his identity—everything was locked.
He hadn't erased himself.
So who had?
For the first time since he had discovered his power, Raito felt a creeping sense of unease.
Someone was playing with his reality.
He picked up his pen, flipping open the notebook.
And then—he froze.
His own name was written on the page.
But he hadn't written it.
Three words were scrawled beneath it in sharp, deliberate strokes:
"You are not God."
Raito's heartbeat thundered in his chest.
Whoever did this… they were mocking him.
Challenging him.
Declaring war.
Raito clenched his jaw, gripping his pen so tightly his knuckles turned white.
He had thought he was the mastermind. The one rewriting fate.
But now, for the first time—someone else had rewritten his.
And he would not allow it.
---
August 19, 2023 | 10:00 AM
Unknown Location
The figure watched as Raito read their message.
Their smirk widened.
Let the real game begin.