───Asleep as if dead, or dead as if asleep.
The fall was swift, akin to plunging into hell with an irresistible force.
A crash as if gradually ascending to heaven. Warm memories, cold impulses – everything was gone.
Only this emptiness remained.
Swaying back and forth, like a boat thrown into the sea.
Help me! Help me!
The screams were shouted exhaustively. Desperate cries in front of the raging sea───black waves, black skies, black death. A hole opened on the bottom of the boat, dragging it into the sea.
Can't breathe.
Nothing can be seen.
Nothing can be heard.
Guruguru, shi ~yurururu──guru. No matter how hard she flailed her arms, she just splashed the texture of the water in vain.
"You are left with nothing. Because you are an empty shell, filled with
nothing."
A whisper from the depths of that girl's heart. In her inner thoughts.
Perhaps because she can't remember anything, she is dying like this.
A cold hand caught the girl's right foot, strongly dragging her into the deep sea.
Die, die, die, die, die, die, die. Live, live, live, live, live, live, live.
Everything is empty.
There is nobody. Sinking, sinking, sinking. The girl was sinking into the dark space without end. Painful, painful, empty, scary, painful ...lonely.
Suddenly, the girl opened her eyes.
At the bottom of this deep black sea, there was a faint glow.
Forgetting the fear of drowning and forgetting the pain of drowning, the girl swam towards that radiance.
How much pain and suffering can be forgotten by going towards it?
The girl was a little bit surprised at herself.
"Hurry, hurry, hurry. I'll never touch it if I don't grab this radiance now."
Like this, the girl inspired herself. She grasped it with trembling hands. It was weak, but surely still shining.
Indeed, she should not be permitted; a radiance that did not belong to herself.
If sleeping is to die, then waking is to live. To live is to think.
A girl was pondering over such an issue.
"──────Ahh."
That was the connection to this world. She slowly supported her upper body while stretching a lot.
But the girl's sleepiness has not dissipated, so she slowly lies down once again.
"Na──────"
A sound only permitted while dozing off. Rather than cute, it was a very strange cry.
But somehow, due to it sounding similar to the cry of a cat, she wanted to make another sound, but then she noticed something important.
"...Where is this?"
After opening her eyes, the girl's eyes fell into a panic. After getting up, her mind suffered from a shock.
No, rather than a shock, it would be better to say that it was like an empty shell.
A lack of knowledge, a complete lack of understanding of where she was now.
"...Who am I?"
In the first place, she didn't even know who she was. Shoes worn well, clothes worn well, glasses not worn. There was a chest.
Only these things were known. For the time being, she could understand that she was a woman.
She was wearing white clothes and could barely understand anything. Otherwise, nothing was known; nothing could be remembered.
In fact, there was an air of indifference to this matter.
The unnamed girl, who remembered what she just said, laughed at the ridiculous notion.
─And then.
"I just laugh and laugh, but ah, I wonder what I should do?"
The unnamed girl twisted her neck, clutching her head with her hand while trying to remember about herself…
Just like the feeling of being surrounded by a thick fog.
Or that is to say, memories and other important things about herself have been completely plundered away.
The girl turned to look at her surroundings. It resembled a specially customised and refined back alleyway.
No, there should be some stains and dirt in a normal alleyway. This place didn't have even a speck of dust.
From this inconceivable sight, this girl was unable to calm down.
Being surrounded by these pure white walls in every direction made it feel more like being a prisoner in custody.
"Anyway, let's go ask someone."
Even if she tried to keep thinking, it would be pointless. She would be unable to solve this issue here. In that case, there was no choice but to move onwards.
She took a step forward.
Leaving behind the alleyway and walking outside.
"───"
She was at a loss for words for a while. It couldn't be helped with this unfamiliar city landscape.
However, even though there was not even a single pedestrian present, it was not something that could be described with "nothing".
An uninhabited street, with a street light flickering and a store opened. However, the key element of people cannot be seen.
Not even; a stray cat was present.
"Is there anyone here?"
The girl stood and shouted loudly in the middle of the road.
But there was no reply. "Hello! Hello! Hello!"
There was no voice.
There was no sound.
There were no people.
Had time stopped, or has humanity been brought to ruin?
While enduring the anxiety beginning to spread, the unnamed girl continued to walk.
When it became no longer just enough to walk, she began to run.
"Someone──! Anyone──!"
Even after running until completely out of breath, nobody was there. The only thing alive on this street was herself──a dizzying spell.
Although there were no memories, her common sense was screaming that something was "unusual".
There must be no humans on this street.
This was quite strange; this ought to be quite strange.
"What to do? A dream? Is this a dream?"
She lost her balance and collapsed.
Even though she was lying in the middle of the road, there was not a single person who found fault in this.
The unnamed girl struggled to resist the urge to laugh.
Once she began to laugh, it felt that it would continue on until she died.
The girl prayed for this to be definitely a dream. Since it was a dream, there was nobody on this street.
Since it was a dream, it was normal to have no memories.
Once waken up, this nothingness will disappear.
She would return to her daily life──despite not having any memory of what everyday life was like.
The collapsed girl looked towards the sky──getting up at last upon seeing a towering building.
"...If looked at this from above..."
If gazed upon from the tallest building, she should be able to see a panoramic view of the town.
The girl rushed to the tallest building next to her, climbing up the stairs in a panic.
It's fine; it's just an illusion. The circumstances of no one being here were simply by chance.
Perhaps there was no one here because of a nearby festival. This building as well happened to just have no one here.
From the rooftop, everything would be understood immediately.
The location of people present would be clear. Out of breath. Rapid heartbeats.
Because of falling down earlier, there was quite a bit of pain coming from her shin.
Since there was pain, this was certainly not a dream.
She panted while running to the top of the building.
After opening the door, there seemed to be something resembling a coffee shop or outdoor café, with stylish chairs and tables placed on the open terrace.
... There wasn't a single person. "But...!"
Grabbing the railing and gazing at the scenery unfolding before her eyes, she fell into despair. Nobody was here.
Unbelievably, in this vast town, any creature other than herself did not exist.
Her heart was in disarray.
From this reality, perhaps it was impossible to leave forever…?
Katan, a sound coming from other than herself resounded.
Turning around to look back. The girl may have called this bad luck.
However, at this time, it was a miracle in and of itself for her.
"... Is someone here?"
A black zipless windbreaker floating in the wind, brilliant black hair, sharp facial features, and a masculine identity.
Rather, they were neither masculine nor too thin.
It was just the right figure for him. The young male, that is.
The girl in awe of this sight did not notice this abnormality.
Normally, people standing so gracefully on top of a chimney should not exist.
However, his calmness can undoubtedly enable people to automatically ignore said anomalies.
Ah, how pitiful of a backdrop this blue sky served for him.
The girl surely thought so. The one that best matched her tastes must be a
dark night with a faint amount of moonlight.
"...Excuse."
"...Excuse me!!"
Shortly after that greeting, a bang sound resounded. A strong wind pressure struck her ear.
"?"
As the girl stared blankly and tilted her head, their lines of sight intersected. Her eyes blinked.
"My apologies."
A calm voice resounded. After opening her eyes, she saw that the boy in the dark clothes descended down from the chimney and landed onto the ground in front of her eyes.
Soon after, the girl noticed how truly unusual he was.
─That marking.
A crimson red marking was engraved around his neck, which spread to the right side of his neck.
However, such markings didn't look out of place, not with him.
Then, the male in black spoke with a shallow smile. "Inadvertently, I fired a shot."
Fired a shot?
The girl tilted her head in confusion.
Looking closely, from the index finger of the right hand of the male, she could see visible white mist, which was undoubtedly smoke, emanating from said place.
Looking back, the coffee table had been crushed.
"You shot at me…!?"
The girl's back fell limp.
However, the male in black spoke with a knowing grin.
"...Yes, but you're still alive. Aren't you?"
Hearing that, the girl asked with a stunned look. "...What are you, a demon?"
"If you say it like that, then I'm a demon, no?"
The demon snorted and smiled. Indeed, that smile did not radiate any warmth.
"No, I think it is an angel for me."
Faced with the girl's words, the demon narrowed his eyes. But the girl continued on.
"…I don't have a name. I am just empty. What is your name?"
"…My name is Ikari."
The boy in black, as if giving a supplication, said that name.
"...My name is Tokisaki Ikari. Pleased to meet you, unknown."