Chapter 01

Tadashi’s eyes snapped open. A ceiling. White, textured, with the faint stain of an old water leak in the corner. His ceiling.

He sat up abruptly, his breath catching in his throat. His heart pounded against his ribs. Wasn’t I just… dead?

His fingers curled into his shirt, pressing against his chest. No bullet wound. No pain. Just his steady heartbeat.

“It must’ve been a dream,” he muttered, rubbing his temples.

“A really messed-up dream.”

But as he glanced around, unease crept over him. His desk was in the right place. His books, his chair, the posters on the wall—everything looked like it should. But it felt wrong. It was like walking into a replica of his life, almost perfect, yet slightly distorted.

His phone lay on the bedside table. The time read 6:45 AM. He turned on the screen. No missed calls, no messages. But the date was missing. Just a blank space where it should have been.

A chill crawled down his spine.

“No way… Did I really… die?”

But the thought was too ridiculous to accept. Tadashi shook his head, grabbed his school bag, and decided to push the unease aside.

“Hah… I need some fresh air. Maybe I just need a walk.”

The streets outside were exactly as he remembered them. Tall buildings, electronic billboards flashing with colourful advertisements, the distant chatter of pedestrians. But something gnawed at him—a subtle, almost imperceptible shift in the atmosphere.

The Akasaka district. His usual route to school. His usual convenience store. He walked inside and headed straight for the snack aisle, reaching for his usual pack of mochi. But when he looked at the shelf, his stomach sank.

“Sold out? That never happens.”

Sighing, he grabbed a bag of potato chips instead, flipping it over to check the price.

And then he froze.

100 Kuro.

“Kuro? What the hell is Kuro?”

He blinked, staring at the numbers. Maybe it was a printing error? He rubbed his eyes, but the label didn’t change. He turned toward the counter. An older store clerk was restocking shelves nearby. Tadashi approached cautiously.

“Excuse me, sir, but… I think there’s a mistake on this price tag. Shouldn’t it say Yen?”

The man gave him a confused look.

“Yen? What’s that?”

Tadashi’s blood ran cold.

“Huh? What do you mean, ‘What’s Yen’? The Japanese currency!”

The clerk’s brow furrowed, and he shook his head.

“Kid, I don’t know what game you’re playing, but if you’re not buying anything, don’t waste my time.”

Tadashi took a slow step back. His fingers clenched the bag of chips.

This wasn’t Tokyo. It looked like Tokyo, but it wasn’t.

Something was very, very wrong.

Tadashi leaves the shop with so many questions unanswered, feeling lost and confused, he starts mumbling.

“For starters, WHAT’S KURO?! AND HOW DOES THAT GUY NOT KNOW YEN?!” Tadashi wondered as he walked towards school.

“Anyway, better hurry up before I get late,” Tadashi increasing his pace, rushes to school but suddenly, slows down.

“Forget it… no one’s gonna care if I’m late anyway,” Tadashi concludes as he walks toward the building with a sour face filling the air around him with darkness.

By the time he reached the campus, Tadashi’s pulse was racing. He kept glancing at the signs around him, at the people passing by. Every little difference stood out now—the way people spoke, the tiny details in their uniforms, the unfamiliar news headlines flashing on digital screens.

“This… this isn’t my world.”

But before he could process it, two men in security uniforms stopped him at the university entrance.

“Hey, kid. We haven’t seen you before. Where’s your student ID?”

Tadashi blinked. Security? There had never been guards at the school gates before.

“S-Student ID?”

He patted his pockets, searching desperately, until his fingers brushed against something unfamiliar. A plastic card. He pulled it out and stared.

It had his face, his name, but the design was wrong. The logo was different. The ID looked newer, almost futuristic. And the expiration date—

It was from a year that didn’t exist.

One of the guards took it, squinting at it before nodding.

“Looks real. Alright, you’re good. Get to class.”

Tadashi took back the ID with numb fingers.

“What the hell is going on…?”

Tadashi entered the campus, feeling a mix of excitement and anxiety. The university, with its sleek, modern buildings and bustling campus, could have been straight out of an anime. The hallways were adorned with vibrant digital screens displaying class schedules and campus news, and the students, dressed in casual yet stylish attire, moved with the energy and enthusiasm of a thriving metropolis.

As the lesson begins, the teacher starts checking for attendance.

“Masuko, Shiori, Izumi…Ta-Tadashi? never heard that name before,” the teacher starts scanning the class.

“Looks like we have a new student in class,” the teacher announces.

“Huh…a new student, I wonder who it is?” Tadashi wonders as he looks at his surroundings.

“You there, please stand and introduce yourself!” the teacher points her finger towards the boy expecting a response.

“What…me…?” Tadashi stands up with shock and begins to introduce himself.

“F-for those who don’t know, I’m Tadashi Murata, and I’m from Tokyo, nice to meet you all!” Tadashi sits down as the class buzzes with gossip and rumours.

“Tokyo…I’ve never heard of it…is it a place for the poor…ew, look at his hair…so disgusting…I bet he’s from the slumps…lol,” voices at the background begin to stab Tadashi as the rumours begin to spread.

“I thought something was off…but this is just my regular, everyday life,” Tadashi starts to conclude, feeling a sense of relief from these past events.

A few hours passed by and school comes to an end. Tadashi begins to walk home and passes through a dark and isolated alley. A group of 5 men start approaching him.

“Hey kid, drop everything down and put your hands on your head!” a man with a black hoddie commands.

The group starts to pull out their weapons, and all they could hear was a sigh.

“…looks like death came to pick me up,” Tadashi thinks.

“Listen, I don’t have anything so can you please make this fast,” Tadashi replies.

“hooo~, so you think you’re in some kind of movie huh…c’mon guys, let’s show him who’s boss!” the man in the middle suggests.

As soon as Tadashi prepares for a beating, he feels something piercing through his chest.

“Huh…am I being stabbed” the boy thinks as he begins to fall.

“WHAT THE…I THOUGHT WE WERE SUPPOSE TO BEAT HIM, NOT KILL HIM…CRAP WE’RE GOING TO JAIL!” the men begin to argue and panic witnessing the boy bleeding out.

“LET’S RUN FOR IT!” the man in the middle suggests.

As Tadashi loses consciousness, he glares at the men dashing away.

“Is this really the end?” the boy thinks as he draws his last breath.