Twelve Years Later
"Oi! Freak. You talking to your imaginary friend again?"
The dirt hurt more than the fist.
Yuki didn't flinch when they hit him anymore. He learned that the bruises fade quicker if you don't fight back. But the words? They always stuck like splinters in his chest.
"What's wrong with you, huh?"
"Is he praying? What a weirdo."
"He's cursed. They say the forest spat him out."
Smack.
He hit the orphanage wall and slumped down. Blood trickled from his lip, but his eyes didn't water. Instead, he turned slightly and looked to his left, where nothing should've been.
Nothing—to everyone else.
But to Yuki?
A beautiful woman hovered just beside him, ethereal, elegant, unreal. Her white kimono fluttered without wind, and her pitch-black hair flowed like ink in water. Her eyes were purple like storm clouds.
She crouched beside him, gently brushing imaginary dust off his shoulder.
"You should have dodged that one, little flame," she said.
Yuki smiled faintly. "Didn't feel like it today."
"Mm." She touched his bruised cheek. Her fingers were like warmth made solid. "Still hurts, even when you pretend it doesn't."
"...I know."
A beat of silence passed.
Yuki looked up at the orange afternoon sky through the iron bars of the orphanage's courtyard.
"Why do they hate me so much?"
Ame no Kuro didn't answer immediately. Instead, she sat beside him, letting her transparent form fade slightly so she blended with the world. Only Yuki could see her. Only he could hear the way her voice sounded like ancient music.
"Because they can't see me."
Yuki blinked.
"People hate what they can't understand. And they fear what they can't see. You're both, Yuki."
He didn't reply. He just sat there, bruised and breathing. The silence between them wasn't uncomfortable. It never was.
Ame no Kuro looked at him with unreadable eyes.
"You're almost thirteen now. That means the first seal is nearly broken."
Yuki tilted his head. "Seal?"
She smiled faintly. "Forget I said anything."
He frowned. "You always say weird stuff like that."
"Do I?" she said with mock innocence. "Perhaps I'm just your imaginary friend."
He stared at her.
She winked.
Suddenly, a rock flew toward him—fast.
Yuki didn't move.
But it stopped mid-air—just inches from his forehead—and crushed itself into dust, as if caught in invisible fingers.
Across the yard, the boy who threw it paled, eyes wide.
Ame no Kuro stood now, hair floating slightly. Her form shimmered with energy.
"I warned him once," she whispered.
Yuki grabbed her sleeve. "Kuro. Don't."
She looked down at him. Her power crackled for a moment longer… then fizzled out.
"You're too kind," she muttered.
"No. I'm just not strong enough to protect you if you get found out."
That made her pause. And smile.
"You're wrong, little flame," she said softly. "It's you who's being protected. But not for long."
Later That Night
The orphanage was asleep.
But Yuki wasn't.
He sat by the window in the dark, watching the forest far beyond the city lights.
"I want to get stronger," he whispered.
Ame no Kuro appeared beside him, arms crossed. "Do you?"
"I want to protect myself. And you."
A pause.
She tilted her head. "You might not like what it takes."
"I don't care. I'm tired of being weak. I'm tired of pretending nothing's wrong when everything is."
She smiled gently. Then, with a flick of her fingers, the air shimmered. A blue glyph appeared before Yuki's eyes.
A message.
[ACCESS GRANTED: INITIATING ASCENSION PROTOCOL]
[Welcome, Realmbreaker Candidate]
[Your Trial Begins Now.]
Yuki blinked. "Wait—what's this?!"
Kuro stepped back, fading into the shadows.
"You asked for strength, Yuki."
"Let's see if you're worthy of it."
End of Chapter 1