VEINS OF FATE
Light Novel – Volume 1
Chapter 1: The Red Mark
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Blood carries life.
Blood carries memory.
And for some…
blood carries fate.
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Rain fell without mercy.
It soaked the narrow alley, washed the walls clean, and swallowed every sound the city tried to make. Neon lights flickered far away, blurred by water and distance, as if the world itself was unsure whether it wanted to exist tonight.
Ketsuro Aoi stood alone.
Sixteen years old.
Shaking.
Bleeding.
His right hand trembled uncontrollably, crimson drops falling from his palm and disappearing into the rain-soaked ground. The pain wasn't sharp anymore—it was dull, constant, like something gnawing at him from the inside.
His breathing was uneven.
Too fast.
Too loud.
Why… again?
He clenched his fist, teeth grinding together.
> I didn't choose this mark…
So why does it get to choose how I die?
The thought echoed in his mind, heavy and bitter.
A strange heat spread across his chest.
Ketsuro froze.
Slowly—far too slowly—his gaze dropped to his heart.
Beneath his soaked clothes, a thin crimson line appeared under his skin. It pulsed faintly, like a living thing. Like a heartbeat that didn't belong to him.
Boom…
His chest tightened.
Boom…
The mark glowed brighter.
Then—
The world broke.
Rain stopped falling.
No—
it froze.
Droplets hung suspended in midair, glittering like shattered glass. The sound of the city vanished, replaced by a deep, overwhelming thump.
A heartbeat.
His heartbeat.
Ketsuro's eyes widened.
> What…?
Time— slowed?
His body felt light. Wrong. As if reality had lost its grip on him.
Footsteps echoed.
From the shadows at the end of the alley, three figures emerged.
Masked.
Silent.
Their movements were unnatural, deliberate. As they stepped closer, faint artificial red veins glowed beneath the skin of their arms, pulsing violently—almost hungrily.
One of them tilted his head.
"That's him," the man said.
"The heart-marked one."
Ketsuro's breath caught in his throat.
They know.
One of the men lunged forward, blade flashing.
The knife moved toward his chest.
Too fast—
No.
Too slow.
Instinct took over.
Ketsuro twisted his body, barely avoiding the blade. The movement felt effortless, as if the world itself had made space for him.
Pain exploded in his chest.
The crimson mark burned.
Time snapped back.
Rain crashed down.
Sound returned violently.
Ketsuro collapsed to his knees.
"—gh!"
He coughed violently, warm liquid spilling from his mouth. Blood hit the ground, darker than the rain.
The masked men stepped back.
"He used it already?" one of them muttered.
Sirens wailed in the distance.
The men cursed under their breath and melted back into the shadows, disappearing as if they had never existed.
The alley was silent again.
Ketsuro struggled to breathe, vision blurring.
Then—
Footsteps.
Soft. Calm.
A girl stood before him, holding an umbrella.
Her name was Miyu Kisaragi.
Her expression was composed, almost distant. Rain slid off the umbrella as if it respected her presence. Her left eye glowed faintly red, watching him with unsettling clarity.
"You used your power for the first time," she said quietly.
Ketsuro looked up, stunned.
"You… knew?"
Miyu turned her gaze toward the dark sky.
"Now they know too."
She stepped closer, her voice lowering.
"People with marks like yours…"
"…don't live long."
Her eyes met his.
"Especially those marked near the heart."
The crimson line on Ketsuro's chest pulsed once more.
Loud.
Heavy.
> If my life is the price…
then I'll decide how it's spent.
The rain continued to fall.
And fate had already begun to move.
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End of Chapter 1
VEINS OF FATE
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