8:11 AM the following morning.
Brasserie Viron Shibuya. Tokyo.
"Mmmm... Truly cinematic."
A piping-hot bite of steak melted across the palate of Kuroda Kiyotaka—the same palate that never tired of proclaiming things "truly cinematic."
A new day. Another day in Shibuya. The place Kuroda would soon bid farewell to, having said his temporary goodbye to Tokugawa-sensei (WHITE BEAR) just yesterday.
So this morning, he'd decided to treat himself to a cinematic breakfast at Brasserie Viron Shibuya, for maximum cinematic effect. A parting gesture to this bustling, crowded city he was about to leave behind.
Kuroda had promptly ordered the steak frites and coffee—proper French style.
"Su Tjttt…" Kuroda took a delicate sip of coffee.
Glug glug glug. Then he drained the entire cup in a single gulp. And here's the important part—this was his sixth cup. How his body would process this much caffeine this early in the morning was anyone's guess. A true coffee annihilator. A hard habit to break.
The café wasn't too crowded this morning. Just a few patrons, some of them foreigners. Probably because he'd come early. Which made sense—he had to be at Tokyo Station by 9:00 to catch his train to Nozawa Onsen. Yes, Nozawa Onsen. By all accounts, Kuroda should have been heading straight to Osaka to enroll. But no. He'd requested time off to go on a retreat instead, even though today wasn't a holiday or any special occasion. He simply wanted to soothe his cinema-obsessed soul. The artist's soul that had been with him since childhood.
He hadn't been born into a family with any artistic tradition. But love and burning passion alone had propelled him onto the path of a key animator at MAPPA Studio—one of the most elite anime production studios in the world. He was also an alumnus of Tokyo University of the Arts. People called him a genius, but in truth, he was just a man with a love so fervent it bordered on fanaticism. A man who followed his heart straight to the great love of his life.
Kuroda's plan was this: after he won the All-Block Tournament for the seventh consecutive time and ranked up, and after he graduated from the academy in Osaka, he would return to work at MAPPA. He'd already worked there for four years before circumstances forced him to become an Esper. He'd go back by the end of this year.
That was one of the privileges Espers enjoyed in this society. MAPPA had long ago signed an agreement with him. Meaning he could return to work whenever he pleased; they'd always welcome him back with open arms. Especially someone like Kuroda Kiyotaka. A mad genius.
"Ah, crap! I'm gonna be late!" Kuroda glanced at his watch in a panic, as if his heart were about to burst. He'd gotten too carried away with the coffee. Speaking of which... he'd just downed thirteen cups in rapid succession. Like it was water.
The waiter shot Kuroda a look of mingled concern and sheer terror. His hand hovered near the phone, ready to call an ambulance at any moment, having just watched a customer polish off thirteen cups of black coffee without breaking a sweat.
"Haha." Kuroda quickly hailed a taxi to Tokyo Station. He wondered if he'd make it in time. Yet somehow, his face still carried that insufferable smirk. He'd probably look at his own reflection and say, "TRULY CINEMATIC."
---
"Abunai desu kara, kiiroi sen no uchi gawa made osagari kudasai." The station announcement echoed through the bustling, crowded space. But for someone like Kuroda, or anyone who lived here, it was just another ordinary sound in an ordinary day.
At the Shinkansen platform, the atmosphere was lively yet impeccably orderly. The clear notes of the Hassha Melody chimed, signaling departure. The moment he stepped into the Green Car of the Hokuriku Shinkansen, the clamor of the outside world vanished completely. The spacious leather seat embraced his body.
Once aboard, everything became eerily quiet. Well, he was traveling first class. His trip to Nozawa Onsen wasn't just for leisure—he also intended to investigate the rumors whispered among locals and tourists alike. Rumors of a mummy-like specter haunting this world-class resort, a veritable paradise of hot springs.
The thought sent a thrill through Kuroda—the prospect of an encounter with something that might be neither human nor ghost. He was going there purely for his own insane brand of cinema.
"...Mummy specter or whatever. I'm coming for you. HAHAHA." He muttered to himself in the plush silence of the premium cabin, like a child giddy with excitement at the prospect of a treasure hunt. Though, for Kuroda... "giddy" might not be quite the right word.
"The next station is... Iiyama."
The English announcement rang out, soft as a gentle reminder.
Kuroda Kiyotaka stepped off at Iiyama Station, where the crisp, cool air of the highlands rushed into his lungs, strangely invigorating. The glossy black car from Nozawa Onsen Hotel was already waiting at the station exit.
The car wound its way up narrow, twisting slopes, carrying him deeper into the ancient village. And there it was—the Nozawa Onsen Hotel, an imposing structure rising amidst the ethereal steam of the hot springs.
When the door to his Suite swung open, he was greeted by the breathtaking vista of layered mountain peaks through a vast window. A steaming cup of tea, a fresh yukata fragrant with new fabric, and the gentle trickle of water from the private open-air Onsen bath awaited him.
The journey had ended, but the true retreat was only just beginning.
And a fateful encounter—one that would determine the destiny of this mad young man—lay ahead.
"Ohh... TRULY... UTTERLY CINEMATIC."
---
Somewhere at Tokyo Supernatural Academy.
5:17 PM.
A quiet corner of a hallway at Tokyo Supernatural Academy.
"Huhhhh?! Kuroda transferred schools?!!"
A piercing shriek echoed, loud enough to puncture the eardrums of anyone within a ten-meter radius. WHITE BEAR (Tokugawa) winced, holding his phone away from his ear. The voice on the other end was unmistakable.
"For real... You're not joking, are you, Tokugawa?"
"Keep your voice down, ZEBRA... I thought he'd already reported to you by now."
There was a beat of silence on the other end, followed by a cackling laugh. "Nope, haven't heard a thing! Is that really true? So sudden. That kid just can't let anyone have a moment's peace, can he?"
Tokugawa tilted his head, his silver hair trembling with suspicion. "What do you mean? He didn't show up this morning? Don't mess with me, ZEBRA. This isn't funny."
Tokugawa's tone dropped, an invisible pressure beginning to seep through the hallway.
"Ah... ah, now I remember! He texted this morning asking for time off to go on a retreat. Said he'd officially enroll next week."
"Time off? A retreat?" Tokugawa muttered. A tangled web of questions began knotting in his mind like a messy bowl of Soba noodles.
The instincts of a man who had lived for centuries suddenly flared to life. A nameless unease began clawing at his chest. He knew worrying about a Rear Guard-ranked prodigy like DYNAMITE was redundant, but something here felt genuinely wrong.
"Where did he go? Do you know where he went, ZEBRA?"
"Hahahah... You worry about him too much, WHITE BEAR!" Zebra snickered over the line. "Worrying like that is practically an insult to DYNAMITE's abilities. Have you forgotten he's the only one who ever dared to graffiti the Principal's robes?"
"Well..." Tokugawa exhaled, trying to reassure himself. It was true that Kuroda was incredibly strong, and a genius taking a breather before enrollment was perfectly normal. Until Zebra dropped the next sentence, like a gunshot right beside his ear:
"He said he was going on a retreat to Nozawa Onsen."
Snap.
The world around Tokugawa seemed to shatter. A chill of sheer horror shot down his spine, piercing straight through his brain.
Zebra prattled on, his voice trembling with excitement. "Lucky guy! I wanna go too. Yeah, I really wanna gooooo!"
"You... what did you just say? Nozawa Onsen?" Tokugawa's voice had gone flat.
"Yeah, so what... Wait, you want to go too? Alright, when we're both free, we can..."
"You've got to be... kidding me!"
Tokugawa cut him off with an icy tone. Knowing Kuroda's twisted personality, he hadn't gone there to soak in hot water. He'd gone there to chase the deadly "Cinema" from the rumors.
Rumors of a mummy specter that had surfaced about three years ago.
Disappearances. Incidents dismissed as accidents. Even deaths. Locals, tourists, foreigners—all had fallen victim. Countless investigations by police and even powerful Espers had been launched. But all of them had vanished.
Or been found "Boiled Alive."
Or simply found unconscious with scorched lungs. Not a single investigation or reckless exploration of that snowy mountain region had ever returned safely. Though, of course, not every single case ended in tragedy.
Some said it was just accidents. And it was true—Nozawa Onsen had numerous dangerously hot springs and pools that could reach hundreds of degrees. People could indeed suffer fatal accidents. But others insisted it was a curse, a specter at Nozawa Onsen wrapped head to toe in bandages, drifting through the misty haze of the deadly white snow.
Even if it was just a rumor, the fact remained that some victims were literally boiled alive. Boiled like chickens. Some bore stab wounds, slash marks. Most had been stripped of their belongings. This was clearly the work of a human. Possibly an unidentified criminal. And if a human truly was responsible... then that person had to be a monster. Perhaps even on par with a Rear Guard-ranked Esper, or stronger. Yet this hadn't made Nozawa more frightening. If anything, curiosity had drawn even larger crowds of tourists over the past three years.
WHITE BEAR's instincts were screaming at him. Kuroda was in danger—an alarm blaring like a nuclear red alert.
That damned brat. Why did he have to be so recklessly curious?
"ZEBRA. I'm going to Nozawa Onsen. Immediately." Tokugawa's voice was steely, leaving no room for argument.
"What? You actually wanna go? No fair! Take me with you!"
"No. I'll go alone. And listen carefully—I'm not going there for a vacation."
Click.
Tokugawa hung up decisively. He stood motionless by the hallway window. Though Tokyo was in the midst of a warm spring, he suddenly felt an icy wind cut through his back, as if the deathly mist from distant Nagano was already creeping toward his feet, waiting to swallow his reckless student whole.