Chapter 1 – Bloody
The corridor stretched on forever, lined with identical white walls and black-painted doors. Fluorescent lights buzzed above, flickering weakly like they were ready to die out.
Kaoru Aven stood frozen in front of one of those doors, 345A.
His hand hovered just above the handle, trembling.
It felt like touching it would change everything.
"Hufff…"
His shaky breath echoed in the still hallway. Brown hair, neatly combed into a comma style, framed his pale face. His dark eyes reflected the cold light above, unsteady and clouded with fatigue. The blue blazer of his school uniform looked too heavy on him, his bag sliding from his shoulder.
With effort, he pressed down on the handle.
Click…
The door opened.
His eyes widened. His breath caught in his throat. On the floor beside the bed lay the body of his dad, sprawled awkwardly in a pool of dark red. Blood soaked the sheets, splattered against the walls, and spread across the wooden floor like a grotesque painting.
The room, once modest but tidy, looked as if a storm had passed through. A picture frame hung crookedly, its glass scattered across the carpet. A half-torn painting dangled from the wall, plaster cracked beneath it. The wardrobe yawned open, clothes spilling out in chaos. Drawers gaped wide, contents littering the floor. A desk lay overturned, its lamp shattered into cruel glittering shards.
The stench of iron filled his lungs.
"No… no, this can't—Dad!"
Aven stumbled inside. His knees buckled as he covered his mouth, a raw cry breaking past his hands. Tears blurred his vision. He collapsed beside the body, too afraid to touch, too broken to look away.
Then something caught his eye.
Beside his dad's hand, written in trembling strokes of blood, there was a message.
Aven, remember my advice.
His body trembled violently. Memories slammed into him like thunder.
He was small again, curled in his dad's lap. A calm voice, soft yet insistent, echoed in his ears.
"Aven… if I'm gone one day, remember this. Go to your grandfather's house. In the basement, there's a green wardrobe. Push it aside, then open the door behind it."
"Dad, stop saying things like that! You won't leave me!"
"Son. Just remember. One day, those words will matter."
"…Fine. I'll remember. But you'd better keep your promise!"
The memory dissolved, leaving behind silence. Silence, and blood.
"No… no, no, no!"
Aven frantically wiped at the message, as if erasing the words could erase reality itself. His hands shook as he fumbled for his phone.
"Hello? Police—please, please come! My dad… he's… he's—"
Minutes blurred into sirens. Blue and red lights flashed against the apartment walls. Officers stormed inside, their sharp eyes weighing every corner.
They questioned him, suspicion heavy in their gazes. For a brief moment, Aven felt it—the cold edge of being seen not as a victim, but as the killer.
But the CCTV footage proved otherwise. It showed what he already knew: he had just arrived.
The police carried the body away.
Outside, a crowd gathered. Whispers buzzed in the night, thick with curiosity and pity.
Through the noise, someone pushed forward. She nearly stumbled in her haste, breaking through the wall of strangers.
A girl.
Her long silver-gray hair shimmered faintly under the streetlights, spilling across her shoulders. Her pale skin glowed against the night, her eyes gray tinted with violet sharp, cold, but trembling. A thin ornament held part of her hair back, though loose strands framed her stricken face.
"Mayane…" Aven's voice cracked as he saw her push through the crowd.
Her wide, trembling eyes locked onto him. "What happened to Dad?!"
Aven's lips parted, but no sound came out. His gaze dropped to the ground. "…He's gone."
"No!"
Her scream tore through the air. Kaoru Mayane, his younger sister, collapsed against him, her silver-gray hair falling like a veil as she buried her face in his chest. Tears streamed down her pale cheeks, soaking into his blazer.
Aven wrapped his arms around her, holding her tight. His own body shook, but he forced himself to stay upright.
"It's not true… tell me it's not true!" Mayane sobbed, her voice raw with desperation.
"I'm sorry," he whispered, his throat tight. "I'm so sorry."
The siblings clung to each other as the crowd around them fell into a hush. Neighbors who had come to watch now looked on in silence, their whispers drowned by the raw grief of two children left behind.
The next day, gray skies wept with them.
At the cemetery, a fresh grave stood among countless others, its mound of earth soaked dark by the pouring rain. Two figures stood before it, clad in black, a single umbrella straining against the storm.
Mayane's hands clutched the handle, trembling so hard the umbrella quivered with her. Her tears mixed with the rain until her sobs were little more than gasps.
Aven stood beside her, silent. His face was pale, unreadable, but his hunched shoulders betrayed the weight he carried. The rain plastered his hair to his forehead and stained the black of his clothes, but he didn't flinch.
No relatives came. No one else stood by the grave.
It was only them.
Only Aven and Mayane.
When the storm finally broke, they lingered a little longer before turning away.
That night, the apartment felt emptier than ever. The small living room was cloaked in shadows, the faint light from a single bulb casting long, tired lines across the walls.
Aven sat stiffly on the couch. His voice, when it finally came, was low and hollow.
"Mayane… I've made a decision."
Her swollen eyes lifted toward him. "What decision?"
"I'm dropping out of school."
She froze. "…What did you say?"
"I'll find work," Aven continued. "As soon as possible. Someone has to pay the bills, and I'll make sure you stay in school. You'll go to college, no matter what."
The words landed like a blow. Mayane shot to her feet, her chair scraping harshly against the floor.
"No! Absolutely not! You can't just throw your future away for me!" Her voice cracked, but she pressed on, shouting through her tears. "You're almost graduating, Aven! You can't!"
"What choice do I have?!" His voice rose louder than he meant, echoing in the small room. His fists trembled at his sides. "We don't have anyone else. No relatives, no help. Just us. And I won't let you suffer because of me."
Her vision blurred with fresh tears. "If you quit, then everything Dad wanted for us, everything he worked for, will be wasted! Do you think he'd want that?!"
Aven's jaw clenched. He turned his face away, unable to meet her gaze. "…He's not here anymore."
The silence that followed was unbearable, thick with anger and grief.
Finally, Mayane's voice broke it. Softer now, but weighed down by sorrow. "…If you're really going to do this… then promise me one thing."
He blinked, startled. "What is it?"
"Promise me you won't give up on yourself. Even if you work, even if you sacrifice everything… don't lose who you are."
Aven's throat tightened. For a moment, he almost laughed, but the sound died before it reached his lips. Instead, he gave her a small, bitter smile. "…I promise."
The two of them sat together in the dim light, shadows stretching long across the walls. With nothing left but each other, they clung to the fragile thread that bound them: family, loss, and a promise neither knew if they could keep.