The darkness hummed.
It wasn't the silence of sleep or the endless void of death—it was something restless, alive, vibrating with static. Rin Kaizuka floated in it, half-conscious, every nerve prickling as though invisible threads were tugging at his skin. When his eyes finally snapped open, the world above him seared bright.
He sucked in a breath.
The ceiling was not a ceiling at all. Instead, a canopy of shifting neon panels stretched overhead, bleeding color into the skyless void. Symbols scrolled across the lights—fractured letters and numbers glitching in and out of existence. A thousand advertisements whispered nonsense slogans, overlapping until they became meaningless noise.
Rin pushed himself upright. His palms pressed against cold metal, etched with pulsing lines like veins of circuitry. He was on a rooftop, or something like it, but the building groaned faintly beneath his weight, as if alive.
Memory hit him like a hammer.
The truck. Yui's scream. The rush of headlights. His own voice, telling her to run.
His chest constricted. He clutched the fabric of his shirt, half-expecting to find blood, shattered ribs, something to prove it had happened. But there was nothing. His body felt whole—better than whole, stronger, as if the constant ache of exhaustion he had carried in life had been stripped away.
"Yui…" he whispered, the name cracking.
No answer.
Only the sound of the city.
And it was no city he had ever known.
From the rooftop, Rin could see endless towers rising into the broken sky, their walls alive with neon rivers of color. Bridges of light connected them, carrying crowds of shadowy figures whose footsteps echoed like static. Down below, in the streets, signs blinked violently, and markets spilled into alleys where traders shouted in languages he half-understood. The air smelled of ozone and burnt copper.
He staggered to the edge, staring down. His stomach dropped.
Far beneath, the streets churned with people—or not people. Their bodies flickered, outlines unstable, as if they were data fighting to hold shape. Some carried weapons carved of glowing steel, others wore masks etched with circuitry. The atmosphere pulsed with hostility, with hunger.
"What the hell is this place…"
"You're awake."
The voice came from behind. Calm, steady.
Rin spun. His muscles tensed instinctively, but the figure who stepped forward didn't move to attack. He was tall, broad-shouldered, hair damp as though he'd walked through rain that no longer existed here. A heavy chain was wrapped around his arm, coiled like a serpent. His eyes—sharp, unwavering—studied Rin carefully.
"You almost didn't make it," the man said. "Another second, and the Neon Fangs would've torn you apart."
Neon… what? Rin's throat dried. "Who the hell are you?"
"Kaito Renji," the man replied simply. "And you're Rin Kaizuka."
Rin froze. "How do you—"
"Word travels fast here. Fresh spawn always draw attention." Kaito crouched slightly, his voice dropping lower. "Listen. You're not in the world you know anymore. This is Neon City. The Afterlife, if you want to call it that. Everyone here has already died."
The words hung heavy, electric.
Rin's pulse hammered. He took a step back. "That's insane. This isn't—this can't be real. I…" His breath faltered. Yui's face, pale and screaming, flashed in his mind. His sacrifice. His death.
It made sense, didn't it?
Kaito didn't press, didn't mock. He only watched. Then his gaze shifted past Rin, and he tilted his chin. "She's here."
Rin turned.
A girl approached, her steps light despite the strange surface beneath her. She looked younger than Kaito—sixteen, maybe. Her hair shimmered faintly under the neon glow, and her eyes carried a warmth that felt out of place in this fractured city. She knelt beside Rin without hesitation, her hand brushing his arm.
"You're safe now," she said softly. "I'm Miyu."
Rin blinked. Her touch carried warmth, real warmth, and for a moment it disarmed him.
"I…" He struggled for words. "What is this place? Why am I here?"
Miyu's smile was sad, but unwavering. "Because you died. And now, like the rest of us, you have to fight to keep existing."
Rin's stomach turned. The words were too calm, too casual. He shoved her hand away, forcing himself to his feet. "No. I didn't die. I can't have—"
"You did," Kaito cut in, voice firm. "And denial will get you killed again, faster than anything else. Look down there."
Rin hesitated, but followed Kaito's gesture.
Below, a group of figures stormed through the street, weapons flashing. They cornered someone—a trembling man who looked barely older than Rin. He begged, screamed, but the hunters struck anyway. Blades of light cut through him, and his body shattered into glowing fragments that rained like broken glass. The attackers scooped the fragments up greedily, their laughter echoing.
Rin's blood ran cold. "What… what was that?"
"Soul fragments," Miyu said quietly. "Currency here. Power. Without them, you can't heal, you can't grow stronger. You fade. That man… he was already weak. Easy prey."
Rin's stomach twisted violently. He stepped back, shaking his head. "So that's it? Kill or be killed?"
Kaito's gaze hardened. "That's the rule of Neon City. Survive, or disappear."
Rin's fists clenched. His instincts screamed to run, to hide. But Yui's face haunted him, burning in the back of his skull. If he was dead… what about her? Was she alone now, sick, scared, waiting for him?
"I have to go back," Rin muttered. "I can't stay here. My sister—"
"There's no going back," Kaito interrupted, not cruel but certain. "Not unless you find the way. And even then…" He let the chain slide across his arm with a faint metallic rasp. "No one's ever done it."
Rin's chest constricted.
No way back. No Yui.
The ground shook faintly. Shouts rose from below.
Miyu's expression shifted, eyes widening. She grabbed Rin's wrist. "We have to move. Now."
Rin's head snapped toward the street.
Figures were climbing, scaling the side of the tower with impossible agility. Their eyes glowed crimson, their bodies draped in jagged leather, weapons flickering with unstable neon. The hunters from before—the ones Kaito had fought off.
"The Neon Fangs," Kaito muttered. His voice carried no fear, only grim recognition. He swung the chain loose, the heavy links clattering against the rooftop. "They want you."
Rin staggered back. "Me? Why?"
"Because you're fresh," Miyu said, pulling him toward the far side. "New souls always attract them. They'll tear you apart and sell your fragments."
Panic surged. His body screamed to run, but his legs felt rooted. The hunters crested the edge of the roof, grinning with predatory hunger.
"There he is," one hissed, pointing a jagged blade at Rin. "The Glitch."
Glitch? Rin's throat tightened. He didn't even know what that meant.
Kaito stepped forward, chain coiling around his arm like a shield. "You'll have to get through me."
The gang laughed, circling. Their weapons hummed, sparks raining onto the rooftop.
Rin's chest heaved. His heart thundered so loudly he could barely hear the rest.
This wasn't real. It couldn't be. He wasn't a fighter. He wasn't like Kaito, or Miyu. He was just a kid who'd worked night shifts, who'd carried his sister's bag through the rain.
But if he did nothing—he would die again.
Worse. He would be erased.
His breath caught, and something deep in his chest cracked. The world around him flickered, for just an instant. The neon towers wavered like unstable code. The rooftop rippled under his feet, distorting.
The gang paused, their eyes narrowing.
"What was that…?"
Rin stared at his hands. They glitched, his fingers splitting into afterimages before snapping back together. The air around him warped, space bending like broken glass.
Miyu's eyes widened. "You… you have Resonance."
Rin's pulse spiked. He didn't know what Resonance was. He didn't care. All he knew was the hunters were coming closer, and if he didn't move—he was finished.
The rooftop rippled again. Instinct took over.
Rin lunged forward—only to vanish in a burst of static, reappearing a few feet to the side. His own breath caught in his throat.
Teleportation. Or something close.
The gang snarled, shifting their weapons.
Kaito's chain snapped tight, shielding Rin. "Looks like you're not as helpless as you thought."
Miyu's hand pressed to Rin's shoulder, warmth anchoring him even as fear clawed at his chest. "Listen to me. You can survive this. But you have to choose it. Right now."
Rin's gaze flicked between them—the predators circling, the allies who'd pulled him from death, the neon city that seemed alive and hungry. His chest burned with the weight of Yui's absence.
If this was the Afterlife… then maybe the only way forward was through it.
His jaw tightened. His fists clenched.
"I'll fight," he said, voice raw but steady.
The hunters roared, charging.
The rooftop shattered into chaos.