Ghoul City had never been this silent.
The neon webs that crossed over the blackened sky flickered like dying nerves, each pulse echoing the anticipation tightening the air. The buildings—etched with glowing glyphs and streaked with centuries of soot—seemed to hold their breath. Even the wandering ghouls crouching in their favorite alleyways sensed something massive was coming. The ground itself hummed, vibrating beneath every step as if the entire city knew a war was about to unfold.
Tonight, the Sacrifice Web was entering enemy territory.
Tonight, Yuki was coming home—changed, charged, and nearly unrecognizable.
---
The first shockwave rolled over the rooftops as the Sacrifice Ghouls arrived in formation. Their cloaks blew open behind them, glowing faintly with the eerie symbols that marked those who had undergone the ritual. Their footsteps echoed like a heartbeat against the pavement.
And at the front—floating instead of walking—was Yuki.
Her body seemed carved from something weightless and ancient. Her skin glowed a muted, icy luminescence, and the soft pink aura she once carried had completely vanished. Now her eyes were pools of bottomless black, so dark they reflected no light back. No expression lived on her face—no fear, no hope, no warmth.
Nothing.
Seven saw her first.
He had perched on the broken remains of the 678 headquarters, half-hidden by swirling smoke. Shara stood at his side, clutching her staff, trying not to tremble. They watched as the Sacrifice Web spread across the streets like a silent plague.
Seven's throat tightened at the sight of Yuki.
This wasn't the girl who used to fall asleep on the rooftop after too many sweet drinks.
This wasn't the girl who laughed nervously whenever she caught him staring too long.
This wasn't their Yuki.
"Is that really her?" Shara whispered, voice shaking.
Seven didn't answer—he couldn't.
Because the moment Yuki stepped forward, the sky dimmed as though the stars themselves hid from her.
---
Zero wasn't far behind. He stood on an overlooking tower, a dozen federal agents crouched behind him.
"Are we moving in?" one of them hissed into his ear.
Zero shook his head sharply. "Not yet. We hold until I say."
"But sir—"
"Stand down." His voice snapped through the comm like ice cracking.
He couldn't risk them rushing in. If Yuki lost control in front of armed forces… Ghoul City would burn overnight. And Zero couldn't allow anything to happen to her.
Not again.
---
When Yuki stepped into the city center, the air tasted metallic, sparking with supernatural energy. The 678 Web gathered to face the Sacrifice Ghouls, forming a large circle around her.
But Yuki didn't look at Seven.
She didn't look at Shara.
She didn't even look at the city she once called home.
She walked forward like a ghost on autopilot, her gaze fixed on the strongest fighters among the 678. Her aura sharpened like invisible blades around her, slicing the air with every movement.
Seven called out before he could stop himself.
"Yuki!"
For a split second, her eyes flickered.
But then—nothing.
She turned away.
Like she didn't know him.
Like he didn't matter.
Like her past with them had turned into static noise she couldn't recognize.
Shara stepped forward. "Yuki, it's us! It's me—Shara! Don't you remember? You—"
But Yuki didn't stop.
Instead she raised her hand.
A pulse of black energy exploded outward, slamming into the pavement. Ghouls on both sides stumbled back. Shara barely shielded herself in time. Seven was thrown off his perch and crashed into a pile of debris.
The battle began.
---
Yuki moved like she was controlled by something ancient—something that had been waiting inside her all along.
She targeted the core soldiers of the 678 Web, not Seven and Shara. She avoided them deliberately, refusing to meet their eyes.
Her hands carved symbols in the air, each one releasing blasts of shimmering, distorted force. Every strike was precise. Every blow was lethal. Ghouls who had once laughed at her now scrambled to flee her.
Seven staggered back to his feet. "Shit… she's stronger than any of them."
Shara lifted her staff again, struggling to catch her breath. "She's not just stronger. She's ascended."
Seven clenched his fists. "No… she's trapped."
And then—
as the Sacrifice Ghouls advanced deeper into the city, lightning crackled above them like threads of a massive web tearing open.
---
In the middle of the chaos, a memory flashed across Yuki's mind—
A soft laugh.
Two young ghouls sharing noodles.
The first night she met Shara and Seven.
---
FLASHBACK — Years Ago in Ghoul City
Ghoul City wasn't shining then. It was darker, wetter, grimier—rain pouring through the cracks in the sky-web like broken glass.
Yuki had been shivering under the metal scaffolding, clutching her cheap coat. She had just arrived in the city, frightened and alone, unsure if she belonged anywhere.
Seven had been the first to approach her.
He dropped from a rooftop without warning, landing in front of her like some arrogant alley demon.
"You're new," he said bluntly.
Sakura: yeah she is with a big smile on her face
He stared at her. She stared back.
Then he smirked.
"You look lost. C'mon. I know a place with food."
He led her through the maze of alleyways until they reached the broken neon sign of a tiny noodle shop that somehow survived the city's chaos.
Shara was already inside.
She was younger then—hair in puffy braids, a worried look permanently on her face. When Seven pushed Yuki inside, Shara gasped softly.
"Oh! A new girl?"
"No," Seven grumbled. "A stray."
Shara hit his arm. "Don't call her that!"
They gave Yuki their food.
They gave her a place to sit.
They gave her warmth she hadn't felt in years.
Shara smiled at her across the tiny table.
"We don't get many nice people here. So you must be special."
Seven didn't say it, but she could feel it:
He already saw something in her.
---
END FLASHBACK
The memory shattered like glass when a bolt of energy flew past Yuki's ear, dragging her fully back into the battle.
But the memory lingered—aching, beautiful, painful.
For the first time since she transformed, one expression flickered across her face.
Sadness.
Then it was gone.
---
The fight intensified.
Sacrifice Ghouls unleashed spells that twisted the ground into molten cracks. The 678 retaliated with explosive webs charged with corrupted lightning. Buildings shook as ghouls smashed through windows and walls.
Zero's agents watched in horror from the rooftops.
"Sir, this is getting bad—"
"Not yet," Zero growled. "Yuki's not done."
Down below, the battle raged like a storm refusing to die.
---
Seven finally stepped into her path.
He blocked her next strike with his bare forearm, panting, pushing back with everything in him.
"Yuki! Look at me!"
Her eyes lifted slowly.
Those deep, endless black pools.
Seven felt a shiver go up his spine.
"You don't have to do this," he said, voice cracking. "You're strong enough on your own. You don't belong to them."
A flicker crossed her gaze.
A tiny glitch.
A crack in the emotionless mask.
But then her power surged again.
She raised her hand—and Seven braced himself—
—but the blast shot over his shoulder, hitting a 678 fighter behind him instead.
She refused to hurt him.
She refused to hurt Shara too.
She was avoiding them.
Protecting them.
Even if she no longer recognized herself.
---
Shara rushed forward, tears streaking through the ash on her cheeks.
"Yuki, please! Don't leave us again!"
Yuki blinked—slowly, painfully—like Shara's voice scraped at something buried inside her chest.
The street trembled beneath them.
Sacrifice Ghouls began chanting.
The sky-web flickered violently, threads snapping and glowing.
A final clash was coming.
---
Yuki stepped back, raising both her hands as a massive sigil formed beneath her feet—shimmering black and violet.
Seven grabbed Shara, dragging her behind rubble. "Get down!"
The sigil burst upward like a tidal wave of dark starlight.
678 fighters screamed.
The Sacrifice Ghouls pressed forward.
Zero watched with his hands clenched into fists.
---
Yuki levitated slightly, her hair whipping wildly behind her, her aura exploding into impossible brightness—like a star dying and being reborn in the same breath.
Her power surged through Ghoul City, shaking every web-thread in the sky.
She had become something unstoppable.
Something powerful.
Something terrifying.
And something heartbreakingly alone.
---
As the light exploded across the battlefield, Seven stared up at her with wide eyes.
"Yuki… what did they turn you into?"
But somewhere inside that blinding glow…
Yuki whispered a single word—
so faint even she wasn't sure if she said it aloud.
"Sorry."
And the battle for Ghoul City raged on.