In the late-night student dormitory building, only two lights remained lit, casting a gloom as dark as a blackened sky.
Kazama Rei sat on the edge of his bed, holding a talisman that was faintly glowing in his left hand. The talisman was casting twisted shadows on the wall.
A soft sound came from the doorway.
Shirogane Byaku appeared in the doorway, his black robe trailing on the floor and his silver hair glinting coldly in the dim light.
"Kazama Rei."
His voice was flat, yet it sliced through Rei's chest like a blade.
'Byaku-senpai?'
Rei rose slightly, but the oppressive weight made him feel as though he were sitting in icy water.
Byaku walked to the window with his back to Rei. Moonlight cast a cold, steel-like glow over his profile.
'Do you think you're the first to possess those eyes?'
Rei froze.
'Those eyes?'
Beneath his left eye, the faintly glowing runic pattern seemed to echo the question.
White Crow slowly turned, his gaze piercing Li's heart. 'The last one died horribly.'
Those four words sliced through Li's chest like a dagger, leaving him gasping for breath.
A fleeting image flashed through his mind: a young man with eyes like Li's, surrounded by a flicker of spirit light before being consumed by a black mist.
"H-how did he die?" Li's voice trembled slightly.
Byaku didn't answer directly, merely tapping his finger lightly on the tabletop.
In an instant, fragmented memory scenes appeared before Li's eyes:
A lonely youth screaming in an abandoned classroom.
Black fissures erupting from the floor and devouring the surrounding light.
A blurred figure, as if watching him, yet not belonging to this world.
Rei's pupils contracted sharply.
"Is... is this an illusion?" "
Byaku gave a cold laugh, his voice low, as if emanating from his very bones.
'This is a warning. Your appearance here is no coincidence.
This disturbance in the seal, your selection — it is no accident.'
Chaos swirled in Li's mind.
He recalled the pain of his first day of enrolment, the midnight lockdown and his first 'trial'. Were those memories truly his own?
'Do you mean my memories might have been rewritten?' Li's voice was barely above a whisper.
Byaku nodded slightly, his gaze as sharp as a blade. "In this world, what you see and remember cannot be trusted. Especially for those who possess the 'Eye of Judgment'."
Rei felt as if a sledgehammer had struck his chest.
The burning contract rune on his left hand seemed to sense his inner turmoil, its light trembling faintly.
'Then... can I truly trust myself?'
Rei asked softly.
Byaku didn't answer directly, only saying:
'You must. Otherwise, the rift will devour you, just as it devoured the last one.'
Rei's heart clenched violently.
The last one... How had the last one died? How could he bear the same fate?
'I don't want to repeat their mistakes.' Li gritted his teeth, a flicker of resolve flashing in his eyes.
Byaku stepped closer, his voice low and almost inaudible:
"Remember, Kazama Li. The Eye of Judgment isn't just power. It's a responsibility and a curse. What you see may not be reality. Your memories, your choices — all of these could be manipulated.'
Rei clenched his left hand. The faint glow of the runes pulsed like a heartbeat.
"I understand."
Byaku retreated into the darkness, vanishing like a shadow and leaving only a whisper:
'Next time, you'll see more clearly the direction you're being led and who's pulling the strings behind the scenes.'
Rei crouched beside the bed, his mind churning with unease and dread.
Past memories, present judgement and an unknown future were all tangled together, forming a heavy burden that pressed on his chest.
Moonlight streamed through the window and fell upon the runes.
The faint glow pulsed, as if to remind him that no matter how dark the path ahead, the responsibility was already bound to his soul.
There was no turning back.