Chapter 7: Six Months Earlier

Mayu took a deep breath.

— It all started six months ago...

Akira watched her, arms crossed, waiting for her to continue.

— I started seeing things. Fragments of the future. At first, they were just insignificant details: a cup falling, a bird passing by at a certain hour... nothing important.

She clenched her fists.

— Then one day, I saw the death of a man.

Akira raised an eyebrow.

— Which man?

— A politician. His face was familiar; I had seen him on the news. In my vision, he was alone in his office... and suddenly, someone stabbed him in the back.

She shivered at the memory of the images etched in her mind.

— Three days later, it happened. Exactly as I had seen.

A heavy silence hung between them.

Akira remained impassive, but a glimmer of interest crossed his gaze.

— Did you try to tell anyone?

Mayu shook her head.

— I wanted to warn the police, but... who would believe me? I was just a high school girl claiming to "see the future."

She paused, her gaze hardening.

— And then they started watching me.

Akira tilted his head slightly.

— Who?

— I don't know. But wherever I went, there was always someone... dark-suited men, a black car parked in front of my house for too long.

She bit her lip.

— I realized they were waiting for something.

— And then?

Mayu hesitated. Then she said, in a lower voice:

— Then I had another vision.

Akira tensed slightly.

— Which one?

She looked up at him, her blue eyes burning with a troubling intensity.

— My own death.

A heavy silence settled.

Akira didn't look away.

— Did you see how?

— No. Just... a feeling. A sense of fear, of pain. And an absolute certainty: I was going to die.

She took a deep breath before adding:

— Shortly after, I saw another image: you.

Akira's eyes narrowed slightly.

— Me?

She nodded slowly.

— I knew you would come to kill me.

Akira didn't respond immediately. His gaze stayed locked with hers, trying to gauge if she was lying.

But he knew she wasn't.

She was telling the truth.

— And now? he finally asked. Do you still see your death?

She shook her head.

— No. Since I met you... the future has changed.

A shiver ran through Akira.

Mayu swallowed, then pointed a finger at the dagger he had retrieved.

— That symbol... I've seen it before.

Akira looked down at the weapon. The black lotus engraved on the blade seemed to almost glow under the streetlight.

— Where? he asked in a cold voice.

— In my visions.

She moved slightly closer, almost whispering:

— That group... is connected to all of this. And I believe they don't just want to kill me.

Her gaze darkened.

— They want to capture me.

Mayu hesitated, then added in a low voice:

— In my last vision, I saw... a white room.

Akira squinted.

— A white room?

— Yes. Walls without windows. Blinding fluorescents. Machines everywhere... and me, strapped to a table.

She swallowed hard.

— There were people in lab coats, and someone was speaking. A deep voice. I couldn't see his face, but... he said I was "the key."

Akira felt a slight chill run down his spine.

— Key to what?

Mayu shook her head.

— I don't know.

She bit her lip, then locked her gaze with his.

— But I'm certain of one thing: if those people capture me, I will never get out of that place.