The Return to Kurohane
The train rattled along the coastal tracks, its wheels screeching against the rusted rails as Renji Kisaragi stared out at the ocean. The waters stretched endlessly, dark and churning, swallowing the last light of the setting sun.
He had been gone for almost three years, yet Kurohane hadn't changed. The jagged cliffs, the ever-present mist hanging over the shoreline, and the eerie quiet of the town all remained the same. Like time had stopped.
Renji tapped his fingers against his phone, rereading the message from his father.
> Shun is dead. Come home.
That was all. No explanation. No details. Just a cold, emotionless command.
Renji clenched his jaw. Typical Kaoru Kisaragi. The man never had a way with words, even when it came to announcing something as devastating as the death of his eldest son.
Shun.
Renji shut his eyes, trying to push down the rising tide of memories. His older brother, the one who never followed the rules. Who always seemed to be running from something, even before he vanished from their lives a year ago. And now—he was dead?
The train shuddered as it slowed down, pulling into Kurohane Station. The moment the doors hissed open, Renji was hit with the heavy scent of the sea—salt, rust, and something faintly metallic. It made his stomach turn.
He stepped onto the platform, gripping the strap of his duffel bag. The station was empty. No station attendant. No passengers. Just flickering lights and rows of abandoned benches.
A single spiral pattern had been scratched into the floor near the exit.
Renji frowned, stepping over it.
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The Unchanged Town
The walk home felt surreal. The roads were exactly as he remembered—too quiet, too empty. The town had always been small, but there should have been some signs of life.
Yet, there were no children playing in the streets. No cars rolling past. No distant chatter from old shopkeepers.
As he passed the old clock tower in the town square, he noticed something strange.
The hands of the clock weren't moving.
They were frozen at 11:59.
Renji stopped, staring up at it. A chill crept down his spine.
Hadn't he read somewhere that Shun's body was found right under this tower?
"Still standing there like an idiot, huh?"
Renji turned sharply. A girl leaned against the stone railing, arms crossed.
Aoi Tsukimura.
She looked exactly the same—short, dark blue hair that barely reached her shoulders, sharp amber eyes that always seemed to be looking through him.
"I was wondering when you'd show up."
Renji exhaled through his nose. "Didn't think you'd still be in this dead-end town."
Aoi smirked, but her eyes flickered with something else—something unreadable. "Someone's gotta keep an eye on things."
He frowned. "What's that supposed to mean?"
She didn't answer. Instead, she glanced up at the frozen clock.
"You shouldn't be here, Renji."
Her voice was quieter now. Almost pleading.
Renji tensed. "What the hell are you talking about?"
"Just…" Aoi hesitated, then shook her head. "Be careful."
She turned and walked off before he could press further.
Renji clenched his fists.
What the hell is going on?
---
A Mother's Warning
The Kisaragi house was exactly as he remembered—cold, gray, suffocating.
As he stepped inside, the silence pressed down on him. His father was nowhere to be seen. Not that he expected a warm welcome.
Instead, he made his way to the second floor—to the room where his mother had been locked away for years.
Rika Kisaragi had once been a beautiful woman. Now, she was a ghost of herself—pale skin stretched over fragile bones, long unkempt hair covering half her face. She sat in the corner of the dimly lit room, rocking slightly.
"Mom…" Renji swallowed. "It's me. I'm home."
For a long moment, she didn't react. Then, slowly, she lifted her head.
Her lips parted. "Renji?"
His throat tightened. "Yeah."
Her eyes darted to the door, then to the window. She gripped his arm suddenly, fingers like claws.
"You have to leave," she whispered.
Renji stiffened. "Mom—"
"They're watching." Her voice trembled. "The spirals. They see everything."
A shiver ran down his spine. "What are you talking about?"
She let go, eyes unfocused. "The gate… it opens… and then… time... it—"
She froze mid-sentence.
Renji's blood ran cold.
His mother wasn't blinking. Wasn't breathing.
Her mouth remained slightly open, frozen in place.
"Mom?"
No response.
He shook her shoulders. "Mom—what's wrong?"
Then, as if nothing had happened, she exhaled sharply and her body relaxed.
Renji staggered back, heart hammering.
His mother blinked slowly, then looked at him as if she had just noticed him for the first time.
"…Renji?" she murmured.
Renji's stomach twisted.
She didn't remember the last few seconds.
He stumbled out of the room, breathing heavily. Something was very wrong with this town.
---
The First Glimpse of the Spiral
That night, Renji lay in bed, staring at the ceiling.
Shun was dead. The town was empty. The clock tower was broken.
And his mother—what the hell happened to her?
He sat up, running a hand through his hair. He needed air.
Slipping out of the house, he walked toward the town square. The streets were just as empty, the silence suffocating.
He glanced up at the clock tower.
The hands were still stuck at 11:59.
Then, from the corner of his eye—he saw movement.
A shadow twisted at the edge of his vision.
Renji turned sharply, scanning the area.
Nothing.
Just the stone pavement, the empty benches.
Then he saw it.
A single spiral pattern carved into the clock tower's base.
It hadn't been there before.
As he stepped closer, something shifted.
His reflection in the tower's glass—it wasn't moving like him.
His reflection was staring at him.
A chill ran down his spine. He took a step back. The reflection tilted its head—but he hadn't moved.
Then, slowly, it smiled.
A twisted, unnatural grin.
Renji's breath caught in his throat.
Then—a hand landed on his shoulder.
He whirled around—but there was no one there.
His heart pounded. He turned back to the reflection—but now, it was normal.
The spiral carving was gone.
Renji swallowed hard.
He had a feeling. A horrible, sinking feeling.
Something in Kurohane had just noticed him.
And it wouldn't let him leave.
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End of Chapter 1
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To Be Continue