— Somewhere, sometime in the future —

"So, here we finally stand, face to face," says a voice that drips with malice. "Yes, I told you that day would come," replies another, their voice clear and gentle. "Oh," the evil voice begins again, "you say a lot of things when you've got nothing better to do. Hard to know what to take seriously and what not to," he finishes with a spiteful grin. "Yes, you might be right about that! Maybe I do say a lot of things — maybe I don't always follow through — but here's the thing: when something truly matters to me, I never lie," the other replies. "Oh, spare me your tedious prattle. I know you and your nature well enough by now. Say whatever you like!" the malicious figure snaps, sharp with fury. The person with the clear voice speaks again: "Well, if you say so. Either way, we're here today to settle things once and for all." The dark figure simply smiles. "Oh, so you actually came here to fight me? And here I thought you'd come to beg for forgiveness." "Stop with the jokes already! Even now, in a situation like this, nothing matters to you!" the other fires back, voice loud and dead serious. "Well then — come on. Show me what you've got," is the only reply. Both prepare themselves for a fight unlike any that has ever come before. As they charge toward each other, they cry out in the exact same tone:

— "You are the one who is going die here today!" —

— But before we get to that chapter, let us jump back a few years in the story, to a place where everything is peaceful —

"Man, nothing's going on today," Yoru mutters. He is the main character of this story. He is nineteen years old, six foot two, and has brown hair. We'll get to know his personality more thoroughly a little later. "Well, what exactly were you expecting to happen today? Did you think something exciting was just going to fall out of the sky?" replies Megan. Megan is Yoru's best friend. He's about five foot nine, has dark brown — almost black — hair, and is also nineteen. Some people say he's a strange guy, but that's no problem at all for Yoru — it's precisely what he values about him. Normal people tend to bore him, and besides, you can have far more interesting conversations with someone who's a little out of the ordinary. "Yeah, who knows — maybe a plane'll crash right in front of us while we watch live," Yoru says with a slight smile. Megan gives him a skeptical look. "Right. I seriously doubt that's going to happen in a place like this," he replies dryly.

The two guys are relaxing by a small stream near Yoru's house. Yoru turns a little red at the absurdity of what he just said. "Yeah, I know. I just wanted to imagine something to lift the mood a bit," he admits.

Megan starts his next sentence in an understanding tone. "Well, I get what you mean, but I don't think—" Just as he's about to finish, the two friends spot a massive rock blazing across the sky. Yoru's eyes go wide with excitement. "A meteorite! A meteorite!" he shouts. Megan, for his part, is completely thrown. "What the—?" Overjoyed, Yoru leaps into the air, practically celebrating himself: "Ha! See? I told you! I told you something big was going to happen! I haven't had this much action in so long, I—"

        —Yoru wakes up in his bed—

He's fully dressed and lying on top of his covers. "Man, that kind of dream again. They keep showing up more and more lately," he yawns, already bored. "Ugh, I wish I could've kept sleeping without waking up. Things were just getting interesting. I mean, it's been a long time since I had that much fun." He stares up at the ceiling.

-- Now we have a moment to look at who Yoru actually is. He lives with his mother and her boyfriend in a shared house, though most of the time he's on his own when it comes to meeting new people. He tends to be isolated and doesn't particularly enjoy talking. Yes, his best friend Megan is real — but Megan hasn't lived nearby in years. The place in Yoru's dream was also his old home, where he'd lived back when he was still in school — which he finished three years ago. --

Yoru is more than a little annoyed with the situation. "Man, what am I even supposed to do now? The day isn't even half over and there's already nothing happening." He looks around his room and spots his gaming console. "I could play something, I guess — but what's the point? I'd end up feeling just as lousy as I do right now." His gaze drifts further and lands on the chair and drawing supplies spread across his desk. "I could draw for a bit? I always used to love it. But no — I end up hating everything I draw anyway, so why bother..." He keeps trying to think of something — anything — he could do, but nothing comes. Finally, he makes up his mind. "Well, if it keeps going like this, I might as well just go outside and think about my life for a bit. Looks like I was out there before anyway, even if I can't remember it. Maybe I just slept too much. Either way — maybe some fresh air will give my brain a little fuel. At least, I hope so." He climbs off the bed and heads downstairs. "Good thing I'm still fully dressed. No time wasted hunting for clothes."

Just as he's about to head outside, he notices the house is completely empty. "Huh? Where's my mom? Where would she be at this hour without telling me? That's weird — she always lets me know."

-- ***End of Chapter 1*** --

... "Hm? Where's my mom? Where would she be at this hour without telling me?" he wonders, standing still for a moment. "That's weird — she always lets me know." Then he shrugs. "Well, maybe she just had somewhere to be and didn't have time to say anything. I guess that's one possibility."

Bundled up in warm clothes, Yoru heads to the edge of the property to take a short walk. "Okay so... where am I even supposed to go? There's nothing special anywhere in this town. Everything here is so bleak and monotonous."

Yoru lives in a small village full of industrial buildings. But those don't interest him; he prefers to enjoy the quiet places. "Well, I could take a walk in the woods... again. I've just already been there at least a thousand times. But hey, I've got nothing to lose, so..."

With that mindset, he makes his way to the woods, which are only a few hundred meters from his house. Once inside, he starts turning things over in his mind. "Maybe I should think about where I want to apply for work sometime in the next few days or weeks. If I just stay home, my mom will probably get upset. But I have absolutely no idea what I want to do. What if I can't find anything and end up getting kicked out? What if every place I apply to rejects me? What if I find something I hate and get stuck there forever? What if —"

>> Self-doubt << — suddenly a voice cuts through his thoughts.

"Huh? Who was that? Who said that?"

Yoru looks around trying to find the source, but he can't see anyone. "Oh great, now I'm hearing voices too... in the middle of the woods, where there's nobody but me. That's actually kind of unsettling..." With an uneasy feeling, Yoru continues through the forest — but luckily he's quickly distracted by the sounds of the animals and the birds singing.

A while later, he steps back out of the woods. "Finally made it out. I never would've thought a little fresh air could sort my thoughts out this well. It's like the wind carried all the problems away with it... well, that's how it felt, at least."

-- And so Yoru continues on his way home. --

Just as he's about to turn onto a narrow path, a boy calls out to him. "Hey, you!"

Yoru just looks at him, confused. "Yeah, I'm talking to you! I know this is coming out of nowhere, but I just saw you wandering around here on your own. And I thought to myself, 'Hey, maybe you should go talk to that guy!'" the stranger continues cheerfully. Yoru's expression goes serious. "Hm? Me? Could you maybe tell me who I'm even speaking to?" "Uh, yeah, of course! My name is Sero! I moved here not too long ago, so I'm alone most of the time... That's why I came up to you — to maybe build a friendship, you know?" he answers with a smile. Sero holds out a piece of paper.

Yoru is irritated and confused: "Hey, what are you doing?"

"Oh, that... it's just my number, in case you ever..." "I don't need any friends," Yoru cuts him off in an ice-cold tone, and walks away. Sero lets out a quiet sigh and continues on his way as well.

Back home, Yoru notices his mother still isn't there. "Oh — looks like she's still not back. Well, I guess I'll have to stay on my own a little longer." He goes upstairs to his room, changes into comfortable clothes, and lies down on his bed. He picks up the piece of paper Sero gave him and crumples it. "Friends... sure... What do I need friends for? In the end they only disappoint you and leave you alone anyway." For a while Yoru lets his thoughts drift, until different ones suddenly surface. "Why am I always so serious? A few years ago I actually used to enjoy being around other people. Now I'm just... like this. Maybe I should give the other guy a cha..."

>> More hate << — the same voice cuts through again, the one he already heard in the woods.

Yoru jumps out of bed. "There it is again!" He looks around the room in alarm. "Again... there's nothing here. That voice — where did it come from?" He searches the room for a while longer, then finally gives up. "Maybe it's just because I slept too much today and my brain is still half asleep or something like that." He slowly settles down. "Well, it's already pretty late, so there's no point in staying up any longer — even if I slept a few hours ago already. But I just can't help it, I'm so tired." Yoru sets the crumpled piece of paper on a small shelf beside his bed. "Well... maybe I'll still need this thing tomorrow." Exhausted, Yoru falls asleep within minutes.

-- And just like that another day in his life ends. But before we continue here, let's jump to another place, not far from Yoru's house... --

"Did you meet him?" asks a mysterious voice.

-- Chapter 2 End --

"Did you meet him?" asks a mysterious voice. "Well, if you mean 'meet' in the proper sense — no, but I did see him in a strange sort of way," replies the voice of a young man. Both figures stand facing each other in a dark room, but the poor lighting makes it impossible to make out their faces.

"And? Did you notice anything unusual about him?" the first mysterious person asks in a serious tone. After this question, silence settles for a moment. The second person considers how best to phrase their answer.

"Well, I can't say with complete certainty," he finally begins. "But I sensed something like a strange aura around him — something like an 'evil' aura, to be precise. I'm not sure how else to describe it."

"That's more than enough. Just as I suspected... I just hope things don't spiral out of control from here," the first person interrupts, their tone thoughtful but deeply serious. Silence falls again for a moment. Both look at each other. About ten seconds pass before they continue: "I want you to keep observing him — to make sure everything stays under control."

"I figured you'd say that. Which is why I've already made a few preparations to stay as close to him as possible, so I can keep an eye on things," the second person replies with a sly smile.

"This is not a game — I hope you understand that. This could get quite dangerous, so cut the jokes," the first person says, their patience beginning to wear thin.

"Alright, fine. But by now you should know me well enough to know that I always complete my missions with perfection," the second person replies, serious now.

"Well, perhaps you're right. I suppose I was just thinking about the worst-case scenario," the first person concedes. The two of them hold each other's gaze for a moment longer, until the second person decides to head for the exit.

"I think things are clear enough now. I'll make sure nothing goes wrong, and I'll keep you posted." He leaves the building, a faint smile on his face as he thinks through his next steps: This guy... I just hope things go smoothly with him. His silhouette slowly fades into the dark expanse of the night.

— But let's fast-forward a little. Today's date is March 15, 2021 —

After a long but restless night, Yoru wakes up. "Wait — it's already 1:26 PM? How did I sleep that long?" he grumbles, staring at his phone. This is another one of Yoru's traits: with no job to get up for, he has no internal clock to rely on. There are days he sleeps far longer than he realizes.

"Well, most of the day is already gone again — and, no surprise, I have absolutely no idea what to do with myself today."

He gets up, takes a long hot shower, puts on fresh clothes, and finally eats his breakfast — or rather, in this case, his lunch. That's Yoru's daily routine. While he's eating, he runs into his mother in the living room, and a question immediately springs to mind: "Where were you yesterday?"

His mother looks at him, confused. "I told you I wouldn't be back until late."

Yoru is more than puzzled. "No — I don't think you did."

"Yes, I did. I even asked if you wanted me to bring you anything, but you just ignored me and walked out," she says. "Anyway, I have to get going — I have an appointment, like I told you last week. Call me if anything comes up."

They say their goodbyes, his mother gets in the car and drives off. Yoru stands there, lost in thought. "What did she mean? I never saw her yesterday. How could she have told me?" But then his thoughts drift in another direction. "Well... maybe she's just misremembering. I don't know."

Once he's done eating, Yoru puts his dishes in the sink and heads upstairs to his room. "Another day, another question: what am I supposed to do now?" He sits down on his bed and glances around the room — until his eyes land on the piece of paper Sero gave him yesterday. "Right... that thing's still here..."

He picks up the small slip of paper and slowly uncrumples it, his thoughts beginning to circle. "Hm — I was actually going to throw this away, but maybe I really should..."

>> Just leave it alone. You'll never find any friends. << - the familiar, sinister voice cuts in.

-- Chapter 3 end --