✦ Act 1 — The One Who Watches ✦
Zekai stood inside a brightly lit convenience store, staring blankly at the shelves. Clutched in his hand were the daily living expenses his grandfather Marcus had given him. He was quietly debating his breakfast options.
"What can I do? If I still had my job, I could've bought something way better than this."
Zekai Krystan lived without direction.
If something happens to someone… what does it have to do with me?
Marcus often told him the same thing.
"Do you know what your name means, Zekai? It means The One Who Watches the World."
Zekai always found that amusing. Because it was true.
He had always been a spectator. Watching was easy. Acting meant consequences.
He avoided both. But somewhere deep inside, a thought kept surfacing.
'Doing nothing isn't the same as staying safe.'
It just meant letting the world decide for him.
'You don't choose the outcome… you just live with it.'
Zekai didn't like that part.
After a brief pause, he let out a low sigh.
"Morning ramyeon should be enough. And a couple of rice balls for later."
It was a meager meal, but it was sufficient.
He grabbed the food and walked toward the checkout counter. His gaze drifted lazily across the store aisles out of pure habit.
Thump!
Suddenly, a small figure collided violently into his waist.
A little girl crashed into him.
She stumbled backward and crashed hard onto the floor.
"Ouch—!"
Zekai immediately looked down. "Hey... sorry, I didn't see you."
But before he could even extend a hand, the girl scrambled back to her feet. There was no crying, no hesitation—as if the painful fall meant absolutely nothing to her. She sprinted past him without a backward glance.
"Mommy! Where's the chocolate?"
Zekai blinked, stunned. "...Kids these days." He didn't waste any more thought on it and continued to the counter.
Standing behind the cash register was Aron Lexi, a nineteen-year-old part-timer. Aron was the type of person who apologized automatically, even when he had done nothing wrong. He was far too kind for his own good.
'The world loved using people like Aron until there was nothing left.'
Zekai dropped the items onto the counter. The moment Aron recognized him, his exhausted face brightened instantly.
"M-Mr. Zekai! Morning—ah, sorry, good morning."
"...Morning."
Aron's fingers moved like a blur, scanning the barcodes with practiced speed. "I haven't seen Marcus Grandpa lately. Is he doing okay?"
"Hm. He went to Sanctum Grace (Holy Capital) for some kind of performance."
"Oh, I see." Aron glanced at the digital monitor. "That will be sixteen credits."
Zekai shoved his hand into his right pocket.
Nothing.
Frowning, he checked his left pocket. His fingers brushed against a strange, unfamiliar object.
He pulled it out. It was a sleek, black-and-red tarot card box.
'What is this? I've never seen this box.'
Without thinking, he set it down on the counter.
Ripples.
The surface of a nearby glass of water began to tremble.
Zekai's eyes instantly locked onto it. The water was vibrating violently inside the glass. He quickly scanned the interior of the store.
'An earthquake?'
'No, that's impossible.'
Every single shelf and hanging sign was dead still. Only the water continued to ripple unnaturally. Not enough to spill. Not enough to notice. Just enough… to be wrong.
An ominous tightness gripped Zekai's chest.
"...Huh."
He reached deeper into his pocket, searching frantically. His hand brushed against something larger, but it wasn't his wallet.
He was completely broke.
'Damn it... seriously? Where the hell did the money go?'
His stomach sinks because he literally needed that money.
He looked up at Aron, a tense, awkward expression crossing his face. "Aron—"
Before he could finish the sentence, Aron already understood the situation. Without a single trace of hesitation, the kid pulled his own employee card, swiped it across the scanner, and paid the balance himself.
He bagged the food and handed it over with a bright smile.
"Ah, it's okay. Just pay me back later."
Zekai froze for a second. "...Thanks."
Aron scratched the back of his neck awkwardly and laughed.
"It's really not a big deal."
"Take care of yourself! Make sure you eat on time!" Aron called out cheerfully.
Zekai gave a sharp nod and walked out into the chilly morning.
✦ Act 2 — Watchers ✦
The moment the crisp, cold air hit his face, a realization suddenly clicked in Zekai's mind.
He looked down at his own sleeves.
"This... isn't my coat."
It belonged to Marcus. Their jackets looked identical, meaning he must have grabbed the wrong one in the morning rush.
Bzzz.
His phone vibrated violently in his palm. A breaking news notification popped up on his screen.
He tapped it, and a popular V-Tube news broadcast immediately filled the display.
"—We are continuing our live coverage from the Linoria district."
"Authorities have just confirmed six more brutal homicides overnight."
"Astonishingly, every single victim has been identified as a convicted criminal with a severe record."
Behind the panicked reporter, a massive police evidence board was shown. Dozens of victim photos were interconnected by a chaotic web of red strings. But at the absolute center of the board was a terrifying mark—a single, massive letter drawn across the files.
'H'
"With these latest discoveries, the confirmed death toll has officially reached one thousand and twenty-two victims!"
One thousand and twenty-two.
Zekai stared.
No serial killer should be capable of numbers like that.
He locked the phone screen and approached a busy pedestrian crossing.
That was when his eyes caught something bizarre.
A group of men stood clustered on the street corner. They were all wearing identical black trench coats and dark sunglasses, completely isolated from the crowd. They weren't speaking a word to one another.
Instead, they were staring intently up at the sky.
Then, simultaneously, they looked down at their wrists. Then right back up at the empty sky.
'What the hell is wrong with these people…?'
A cold sensation crawled up the back of his neck.
'...No, something is off.'
'Why are they so obsessed with the sky?'
He watched them like a hawk.
The men repeated the exact same synchronized movement. Then, one of them muttered in a low, chilling whisper:
"Countdown started."
"Be ready."
Zekai's gaze snapped to their wrists. A strange, eerie orange light was pulsing violently from the faces of their watches.
His pupils dilated.
Zekai almost laughed at the absurdity.
Meteor strike?
Terrorist attack?
Then the thought hit him.
Ordinary people ran from danger.
These men were waiting for it.
The pedestrian light snapped to green. The massive crowd began surging forward across the asphalt. Zekai moved along with the flow of bodies, but his eyes remained glued to the strange men.
Suddenly, he realized there were more of them. On the opposite side of the road, another group in black coats was performing the exact same ritual.
"...What a bunch of fools."
✦ Act 3 — Black & Red ✦
He turned his head back and quickened his pace. But halfway across the intersection—
"Mr. Zekai! Wait up!"
Zekai whirled around.
Aron was sprinting through the crowd toward him, breathlessly holding up the black-and-red tarot box. "You forgot this back at the store!"
Before Zekai could even open his mouth to reply, his phone erupted into a loud ringtone.
[Incoming Call: Marcus Grandpa]
'Why the hell is he calling me right now?' Zekai thought, hitting the accept button.
But at that exact microsecond—a careless pedestrian slammed hard into his shoulder. The force of the impact sharply twisted Zekai's upper body.
The phone slipped from his fingers, tumbling through the air.
At the same time, a heavy object dislodged from the deep pocket of Marcus's coat and plummeted toward the ground.
Clack.
A black stone cube hit the dark asphalt.
Aron froze mid-stride, his eyes widening.
His gaze locked onto the stone cube. He couldn't look away.
On the surface of the black stone cube, a thin, crimson line began to glow, resembling a fresh crack filled with dripping blood.
[Tick.]
A faint, mechanical sound echoed.
But in that exact split second—it felt as though the entire world had been forcefully paused by a massive, unseen hand.
Zekai's breath hitched in his throat.
The air felt… wrong. Like something had just begun.
✦ End of Chapter 1 — The One Who Watches the World ✦