Chapter 1: Contrast

001

I remember when I was a child.
I would look out of our residence at the sea.
I always found it so fascinating.
The smell of the sea.
The bright blue sky.
The way the waves would rise so high just to crash down.
Whether they be big or small.
Whether the tide be up or down.
Whether they be still or chaotic.
I would always watch them in my free time—of which I didn’t have much.
It may have been because I was jealous of them, I was almost always busy, but they had all that time to themselves.
They had all the free time they could ever wish for.
Now when I look back on those times, it reminds me—well…
Of me.
Specifically the way they start off small, grow up, and end with a dramatic crash…
Although, my life wasn’t exactly as majestic.
But there’s one thing that always happens with waves.
They come back, just to start all over again.

002

These were some of the first things that flashed through my mind—along with much more—as I found myself conscious.
I woke up to find myself, not in my bed or the couch—I wasn’t even in my house.
Many more thoughts, mainly questions, flooded my head as I sat up wearily.
Where am I?
What happened?
What’s that smell?
But most important of all…
I thought I had died.
I shook my head and tried to relax.
I was in a grassy field.
The grass felt and smelt real.
My ears were a bit clogged from something or other, but I shook my head some more and they unclogged pretty quickly.
I looked to the sky.
It was currently night time.
I looked to the stars.
There were no constellations that I recognised, so I couldn’t figure out where I was from that alone.
I didn’t really know many constellations in the first place, but it was worth a shot.
As I continued to look at the sky, I felt somewhat tranquil.
It was strange, I should be panicking about my situation, shouldn’t I?
There were no animals nearby, not even a single bird.
Which, on one hand, is lucky.
I’m allergic to most animals which have fur.
Specifically dogs.
Cats too, but less so.
I held my hand out to the sky.
That was when I heard a voice from behind me.
I accidentally let out a small high pitched noise in response.
I sat up instantly and looked to where the voice came from.
Standing over me was a girl with a messy, yet happy aura.
She had mid-length bright, purple hair.
Staring into me were two piercing, yet pretty yellow eyes.
She lent out a hand to help me up.
I grabbed on and pulled myself up.
“My name’s Kyoki!” She exclaimed with a grin. “Your name’s Minami, isn’t it?” She tilted her head.
“Huh? Wait, slow down, h—how do you know my name?”
She chuckled. “Don’t worry about it! You seem like a fun one.” She pulled my hand and started to wander. “We have somewhere we need to go.”
I was told not to trust strangers, but for some reason, I felt at peace when I was with her.
I was still holding her hand.
I didn’t pull back.
If anything, I gripped tighter.
She was wearing what looked like a tan school uniform.
It was unlike anything I had ever seen before in terms of school uniforms.
No buttons, just a sweater.
It had what seemed to look like writing scattered across it.
The sweater itself was a very plain, brownish colour, and the writing was only slightly darker.
Were they Kanji?
If they were, I wasn’t able to make them out as they were overlapping.
The sleeves were cuffed, but one of them was rolled up slightly more.
Below the rolled up cuff was a decently fancy digital watch.
I couldn’t see much of the details from where I was standing, but what I could see was what looked to be a timer counting down.
It read 4:37:20, then 4:37:19, and so on.
“Whatcha looking at?” Kyoki smiled.
“You startled me a bit! I was just looking at your clothes.”
“Pretty neat isn’t it?” She tugged at her sweater. “I designed it myself!” She grinned.
So it wasn’t a school uniform?
This whole time she was leading me through the grass plain.
There were rocks here and there, along with some hills.
I looked back once we reached the peak of a hill.
It was like a crater.
All of the hills sloped down to where I had just woken up.
We began to make our way down the hill, as where we had been went out of view.
We weren’t moving very fast, just a casual stroll.
I didn’t know where we were going, but I trusted Kyoki.
I don’t know why I trust this stranger so much.
It just feels natural.
“Oh hey! Look at that!” Kyoki pointed down and in front of us.
It was an offering box.
It looked like it was begging.
It clearly hadn’t been attended to in a long time—practically eroding at this point.
It was sat atop a rock, with what seemed like the remains of a fully melted candle along with it.
“Do you have anything on you to donate?” Kyoki dug into her pocket.
“Um…” The large pocket on the front of my hoodie was strangely empty considering how much it can hold.
Kyoki dropped a five yen coin into the box.
I dug deeper, even checking the small chest pocket on my shirt.
Aha!
The only thing in there was a five yen coin.
Perfect!
Well…
Now the pocket is empty too.
The offering box is ten yen richer.
I smiled as we waved it goodbye.

003

Before not too long we reached an area of dense forest.
I was weary, but Kyoki led me in.
She followed a path through the forest.
A path clearly made by people traversing it.
It makes you wonder how these paths form.
Were there enough people choosing this exact path for some reason or another before it was made clear?
Maybe it was made over years and years of one person with a routine.
Where does the path lead?
What’s so important that it leads to?
Possibly the offering box?
Are we starting at the end?
Where is the beginning?
Is this Kyoki’s path?
Is she taking me to her home?
She let go of my hand before descending a ladder leading down a cliff to a lower part of the forest.
I hadn’t realised we had been holding hands that whole time.
It just sort of became the norm.
My hand feels lonely now…
Either way, I followed her down.
She didn’t reoffer to hold my hand.
It’s alright.
This forest feels…
Peaceful.
Tranquil.
Familiar even.
The humidity is dense, completely in contrast to the field where I just was.
I thought I could see a stream up ahead.
As we got closer I smiled.
My eyesight seems to be as good as ever.
“This way this way!”
Kyoki gracefully hopped around some foliage and across some stones sticking out of the water.
Oh.
I don’t think I can do that.
“C’mon Minami! This is nothing!”
…
I don’t want to get wet.
I just unclogged my ears.
I doubt I’ll have a change of clothes anywhere nearby either…
Oh well…
I clenched my teeth and wobbled across the stones, making it to the other side as Kyoki cheered.
“Yippee~!” She grabbed me by the hand once more and began to run with me flailing behind her like a helium balloon on the back of a speeding car. “We’re almost there! Just a little longer!”
I didn’t really want to leave the forest just yet.
I made a mental note to remember where it was.
There wasn't really much point at the moment, as it wasn't too far from anywhere I had been.
Just in case.

004

After a little more stumbling, we emerged from the forest.
I rubbed my eyes as a harsh clash of colours—especially when compared to the dullish forest—flooded my eyes.
There was a smooth, tiled floor.
Each tile looked to be about a metre squared.
They were chequered with a harsh bright pink, and a pitch black.
They really just looked like they melded with the floor of the forest, emerging from beneath the grass, as if they were always there.
“Ah, you’re back Kyoki! You found her too! That’s great!” There was a man sitting atop a throne, high up on a pillar. How did he get up there? “There are only a few left before we can properly start the game!”
He wore a mask, covering his entire face, and was high up on that pillar, yet I could hear him perfectly clear.
Did he say start the game?
We’re going to play a game?
I wanted to ask the man, but his presence was far too overwhelming.
He was wearing a jumble of mix-and-match clothes, as if you randomised every clothing option in your character customiser.
He has a circular white—maybe grey—mask hiding his face, however there was a dripping pink smiling face painted on it.
If it was meant to come off as friendly it’s not working…
There were brown belts wrapping around his head, holding the mask in place.
He had shaggy purple hair, with one notable strand sticking up from under one of the belts.
Among other things, he wore an orange scarf, cyan skirt, blue gloves and bandages.
He did have fairly normal looking sneakers though.
Everything below his clothes was a pitch black void.
Like a skinsuit of some kind, but completely dark.
Despite looking like the result of a decades old lost and found bin, his aura felt familiar.
Was he actually following an old fashion trend I had since forgotten about?
I poked Kyoki’s side with my elbow, “Who is that guy?” She glanced up at him.
“His name’s Tokumei.”
Tokumei? “Is that an alias or something?”
Kyoki held her finger on her chin. “That would make sense.”
Did she really just accept his name as Tokumei?
That’s possibly one of the clearest aliases, just behind Yamada Tarou and Nanashi-no Gonbee.
Aside from Tokumei, there seemed to be a total of eight people here.
Me, Kyoki, two kids, one with a duck on their shirt and another with a big witch-like hat, an old man who looked straight out of western noir crossover movie, a girl who looked about my age with brown hair and a big red bow, and a pair of two boys with similar messy hair.
One of the boys had blond hair, the other…
It was pure white.
Sure, I’m aware people can be albino, but that wasn’t all.
He didn’t have an aura either…
Usually things stand out by existing in a place where other things don't.
This was the opposite.
Standing out by not existing, in a place where other things do.
Is the lack of something considered a thing on its own?
No, that doesn't make sense.
I don't want to be thinking about philosophy so soon after I've woken up.
I’ve never, never met someone lacking an aura.
For the first time since I arrived here, I felt scared.
I took a step towards this auraless boy.
I need to know why he doesn’t have an aura.
Before I could take my second step, Kyoki pulled me back.
“Hey look! There’s two more coming from the forest!” She pointed at these two, teenage looking boys.
Just after I went and counted everyone too…
Ten people now.
Surely ten is enough to start a game, right?
Tokumei paid them no note.
One boy had orange hair, one lime.
I know it's possible to have naturally orange hair—although I’ve never seen one in person—but lime seemed a bit excessive.
They both had similar suits—they were slightly different but I’m not the most well versed with suits—but very different auras.
The orange haired boy had a bowtie and a threatening aura.
He seemed to be leading an argument between the two.
The lime haired boy had a regular tie and a bit of a sad aura.
He seemed to be taking in the other boy's words and only refuting at the appropriate times.
What were they arguing about?
I couldn’t make them out from here, but it didn’t seem to be physical.
Not yet at least.
They seemed like a pair to keep my eyes on.

005

Of the now total ten auras, I felt one getting closer.
It was the kid with the witch-like hat.
Out from behind them stepped the kid with the duck shirt.
Do kids have weaker auras or something?
Why could I only feel one?
The kid tugged on the rim of my hoodie.
The hat they wore covered their entire face from above.
They looked up to me and mumbled.
“Do you know where my sister went?” They were shaking.
…
Of course, these kids would have even less of an idea of what’s going on than I do.
The weight of the situation hit me like a truck.
Their grip tightened.
“I—I was just with her! But now I’m in this strange place, and she isn’t here…” Tears started to well up in their eyes.
The duck shirt kid was staring at their feet, solemnly.
Not knowing what to do, I looked over to Kyoki.
She bent down to their level, I copied.
Now that we were at eye level and I could see their faces more clearly.
“Could you start off by telling us your names?” Kyoki asked. “My name is Kyoki!”
The witch hat kid began, “My name… Is Souka…” They let go of my hoodie.
The kid in the duck shirt stayed silent.
“Hello Souka,” I didn’t want to scare them away, but keeping yourself composed in a situation like this would be hard for anyone. “I’m not sure where your sister went, but I’m sure she isn’t too far from here. It might just take some looking.” I said, looking deeply into Souka’s eyes.
Souka had bright pink eyes, almost like gemstones. They also had very pale skin.
If I had to guess, it would be because of the giant hat acting as a parasol and blocking the sun.
They also had a matching dark cloak which was clearly far too big for them.
They had an absolutely massive backpack on too, It had to be over half the size of the kid themself.
I could only wish to have the shoulder strength to carry that around.
Although it was possibly filled with helium, to make walking around much lighter.
What am I thinking?
They must have noticed me staring at them because they locked their eyes to the floor, and began fidgeting profusely.
“Hey Souka,” Kyoki said calmly, “why don’t you stick around with us for a little bit? There’s something that I want to show you a bit later.” She winked, stuck out her tongue and touched Souka’s nose with her finger.
Souka let out a small giggle.
I don’t think Kyoki would be lying considering how confidently she said it—although she could just be good at improv.
I wanted to ask what this thing Kyoki wanted to show Souka was, but I don’t think me doing so would be to either of our benefit.
We both stood back upright, Souka seemed to be a little more relaxed.
Whatever power Kyoki had to be able to make kids relax in an instant like that, I wanted a piece of.
Despite having minimal answers for the whereabouts of their sister, I felt accomplished.
I felt like it was my duty to protect Souka and find their sister along the way.
Souka looked up at me and in my eyes, I smiled.
They took a step back.
Did I do something wrong?
The kid with the duck shirt held their arm out in front of Souka, “W—We have to go…” and they ran off, over to the girl with the brown hair.
What was that about?
I looked over at Kyoki.
“Awh, looks like you scared them off. Well, I guess it was better that you did, otherwise they both would’ve been dead within a minute.”

Chapter 1 End.