Part 0: Back Then, As I Remember
Since the new star appeared, everything changed—for the worse.
A new tribe emerged, wielding weapons far stronger than anything we'd ever seen. They called themselves "The Graceful Brotherhood." Their symbol? A black star.
The Brotherhood was dangerous—terrifyingly so. They evolved relentlessly, crafting unnatural weapons that defied logic. Destruction followed in their wake. Enemies fell before them like leaves in a storm; no one could stand against their might.
Their devastation reached my family, too. They killed everyone I loved, leaving only my brother and me alive.
Afterward, we wandered from place to place, surviving as best we could. We worked odd jobs—a mechanic here, a merchant there—but eventually, we ended up homeless.
One pitch-black night, my brother vanished without a trace—no clues, no explanation—just gone. I was left alone in the ruined, rusted streets of what was once our world. My relationship with him had never been perfect, but losing him didn't hit me as hard as it should have. Maybe I was numb from everything else.
Then, one day, a man approached me. He wore a black suit, a black hat, and dark glasses that hid his eyes. His hair was stark white, almost glowing against the shadows around him.
He offered me help—and a deal.
"The Brotherhood," he said, "has discovered a way to transfer power through human blood and nerves. But I know how to control it."
He gave me two options: die at the hands of the Brotherhood or go with him and obey his every command.
I chose my life—my dear, fragile life.
Part 1: A New Life…
"It's the first day for Shin. Everybody, go ahead and welcome our newcomer."
"Everybody here are children aged around 14 to 19—the same age as you, Shin. Isn't that cool?"
Shin replied with a calm voice, "Yes, it is—cool."
The man in the suit looked at Shin dead in the eye but quickly shifted his expression. "Oh, Shin, you don't look happy. I'll make you happy by telling you my name. It's Kanata. You have to be happy now."
Suddenly, Shin smiled at everyone.
"What is happening? I can't control my face—I can't stop smiling!"
As soon as Shin stopped smiling, he ran to a mirror to check his reflection. Fear and confusion covered his small face.
One of the kids approached him. "Are you okay, Shin?"
But Shin pushed the child away forcefully. "GET AWAY FROM ME!" he shouted in anger.
He turned back toward Kanata, anger flying through him. "What did you do to me? What happened to my face? Why did I smile like that?"
Kanata slapped Shin across the face—so fast that Shin barely noticed the movement. Before he could react, he fell to the ground, dazed.
"What… happened?" Shin muttered before passing out.
In an utterly dark room, the only thing shining was Kanata's silver hair.
"GET ME OUT OF HERE!!!! BASTARD!" Shin shouted with rage at Kanata's face. Kanata stayed calm and said, "You know what you did, right?"
"I did nothing," Shin said while looking at Kanata. But Kanata answered with a surprising reply: "You killed the child there. With your forceful push, you ended his life."
Shin screamed with anger. "Liar! I didn't do anything!"
"Wanna see it then, NARNIA?! Get me the corpse of the boy."
A girl entered the cell holding the boy's dead body. She looked at Shin with a very angry look—one filled with deep hatred. She placed the body in the room and left without saying a word.
"Here it is, Shin."
Shin looked at the boy's body. He tried to touch his skin. "It's very cold. He is very cold and dead." The shock was too heavy for Shin to process. He screamed and tried to attack Kanata, but Kanata dodged it easily and delivered a punch, knocking Shin down to the ground. "What was that? It's very fast—it's astonishing."
But unlike the other time, Shin barely stood up on his legs. His eyes started to swell, turning a bloody red color.
He tried to attack Kanata again, but Kanata dodged it easily. The punch Shin attempted to land made him lose his balance, and he fell face-first to the ground. He muttered, "I am sorry."
Shin woke up on a comfy bed. His clothes were gone, except for his pants, and he was covered with bandages. He looked around. There was a boy wearing long glasses and another with a strong physique.
He tried to act like he was still sleeping, but one of them came over and shouted in his face, "YOU MOTHERFUCKER, I KNOW THAT YOU WOKE UP!"
The boy with glasses asked him to stay calm. "Calm down. He is very injured."
"He deserves it. He is a fucking killer."
"He is, but we have to give him a little bit of sympathy. If you were in his place, you wouldn't like someone to treat you that way, would you?"
The tall boy looked down at the ground and shook his head in silence.
"You get it then. Great," said the boy with glasses. He looked at Shin and smiled. "How are you, Shin? Sorry for not introducing myself. I am Tarlo, and the tall dumb guy over there is my friend. He is called Marky."
"This dumbass calling me dumb, piece of shit," muttered Marky to himself.
Shin answered while slowly moving his head toward them. "If it's about my health, then I'm fine. But if it's about me, then please get out of here."
The boy with glasses looked at Shin with a firm expression. He grabbed Shin by the neck. "You fucking dumbass, we will not leave you here alone. We aren't dumb like you think we are."
He held Shin's neck so tight that Shin started to suffocate. Shin tried to push him away, but he was too weak and injured to fight back. His face started to turn blue until Marky pushed Tarlo away. "You were going to kill him, Tarlo. Leave him. We need him alive. Kanata ordered us to keep him, not kill him."