Korir Hiroto ran.
His lungs burned. His legs screamed. His mind was still trying to process what the hell was happening.
But there was no time.
Zero was ahead of him, moving like he had done this a thousand times before. His silver hair flickered under the moonlight, his body twisting and weaving through the narrow alleyways like he was made of liquid.
Korir stumbled on the uneven ground, nearly falling.
A sharp whistle cut through the night air.
"That sound again..."
Behind them, the hunters followed.
Dark figures in the distance—silent, fast, relentless.
Zero cursed under his breath. "Tch. They're closing in."
Korir barely had time to react before Zero suddenly grabbed his collar and yanked him sideways—
CRASH.
They burst through a wooden door, slamming into a darkened room. Dust filled the air as Zero kicked over a stack of crates, blocking the entrance.
"Up. Now." Zero pointed at a staircase spiraling upward.
Korir didn't question it. He ran.
Each step groaned beneath their weight as they rushed up the stairs. Footsteps thudded behind them—faster. Closer.
A sharp CRACK rang out. The door downstairs shattered open.
Zero spun, his hand darting inside his coat. A knife flashed.
"Wait, when did he—"
With a single expert flick, Zero hurled the blade into the darkness.
A sharp grunt echoed. Someone had been hit.
Korir barely had time to be shocked before Zero shoved him forward.
"No time to admire me, rookie—JUMP!"
Jump?
Korir barely had time to process what he was seeing—the stairs led directly to a shattered window, beyond which lay only the vast, empty night.
No way.
Zero didn't hesitate.
With a powerful leap, he soared through the broken window, twisting in midair like a phantom dancer.
Korir's brain screamed at him to stop. His body disagreed.
The world slowed.
For a moment, he saw everything.
The moonlight reflecting off shards of broken glass.
The alleyway below, too far down.
Zero's silhouette flipping effortlessly forward.
And behind him—
A shadow burst through the window.
A hunter.
Masked. Fast. Silent.
Korir barely had time to react before the figure lunged at him midair, a blade flashing toward his throat.
Time… twisted.
For just a moment, the attacker's movements froze.
Korir felt it. That strange pull.
A whisper in his bones.
He didn't know what he was doing, only that something inside him took over.
He shifted—not to the side, not backward, but… somewhere else.
The next moment, he was below the attacker.
Falling faster.
The hunter's blade missed entirely.
And then—
A hand grabbed his wrist.
"Gotcha!"
Zero.
Somehow, he had landed already—perched on a rusted fire escape like it was solid ground.
And now, he was yanking Korir toward safety.
Korir hit the metal platform hard, his breath knocked out of him. His pulse was a storm.
"What… was that?" he gasped.
Zero gave him a quick, sharp grin. "You tell me. You just skipped time, didn't you?"
Korir swallowed hard. He didn't have an answer.
But the hunters weren't done.
A figure landed on the rooftop above them.
The hunter was taller than the others, their black coat billowing as they stepped forward. They didn't rush like the others. They didn't need to.
And then—
They raised a hand.
Korir saw it too late.
A harpoon-like projectile shot toward them.
Zero's eyes flashed.
"Tch."
He moved so fast Korir barely saw it.
One moment, he was beside him—the next, he was gone.
A silver gleam split the air.
The projectile—cut in two.
Zero landed in front of Korir, blade gleaming.
The hunter tilted their head, as if mildly impressed. Then, without a word—they stepped forward.
Korir felt it.
The shift in the air. The tension tightening like a noose.
Zero clicked his tongue. "Rookie. I need you to do something for me."
Korir forced himself to swallow. "W-what?"
Zero didn't take his eyes off the hunter. His fingers twitched around his knife.
"Try not to die."
And then, like a phantom in the moonlight, he lunged forward.