Aventris University’s first day…
Near the gate, Ren Fujimiya stands perfectly still… a light breeze passes by—whooshh… his eyes fixed on the campus, as if silently analyzing every building, every corner.
His feet don’t move at all… only a faint twitch of his fingers… the tension is unmistakable.
Ren takes a slow breath… sighh… straightens his neck slightly… “Let’s go.”
Then… faint footsteps behind him… tap… tap… stop.
A familiar voice drops right next to his ear, carrying a teasing lilt…
“What’s wrong, my assistant… feeling nervous?”
Ren turns sharply — swooshh!
His eyes widen just a bit… standing before him is Yeamori Arisa, a soft smile on her lips, her head slightly tilted.
“You… Yeamori? You’re here?”
“Yeah, I’m here… is that a problem?” She steps forward… calm, confident.
Ren’s shoulders ease a little… exhale… “You scored better than me… so why are you here?”
Yeamori’s smile softens even more… her hair sways gently in the breeze… “I liked this college… that’s why.”
For a split second, doubt flickers in Ren’s eyes… he keeps looking at her… thinking to himself— All my friends went to better universities… did she come here just for me…?
Maybe only Yeamori knows the answer…
After a moment of silence, Yeamori leans in… her face a little closer… “What’s wrong? Aren’t you happy that I’m with you?”
Ren quickly shakes his head… no-no… “No, it’s not like that… I’m really happy you’re with me.”
A satisfied smile forms on Yeamori’s lips… “Then let’s go… time to start.”
The two walk forward together… their footsteps begin to sync… tap… tap… tap… They pass through the gate… a new journey begins.
Evening time…
Ren walks alone along the footpath… the streetlights are already on… tap… tap… tap… the rhythm of his steps echoes through the quiet night.
Reaching the building, he climbs the stairs… thud… thud… thud… He stops in front of the door… turns the key… click… creaaak…
The moment he steps inside, his gaze lands straight on the dining table… A figure is already seated… slowly turning toward him…
“Hiii, Ren.”
Ren slips off his coat, a bit surprised… “You’re here today?”
“Yeah, I’m here… is that a problem?”
“You can come… it’s your house too, Masaki.”
Masaki casually points at the box on the table… tap… A wide smile spreads across his face…
“Look, I brought sushi for you… come on, let’s eat together.”
Ren’s eyes instantly light up — spark!
“Whoaah! Sushi! Today’s fatigue is totally gone… thanks, bro!”
He quickly pulls out a chair and drops into it — scrape… plop!
The two serve their plates… the soft clink of chopsticks… tick… tick… “Munch… chew…” the silence is comfortable.
After eating, Masaki leans forward slightly… elbows on the table… “How was your first day at university?”
“It was fine… I only have one friend with me…”
Masaki raises his hand, cutting him off — halt.
Ren reacts with just his eyes… internally— Here we go again… let’s see what nonsense guess he makes this time…
Masaki grabs his chin, pretending to think… hmm… rub… rub… “Only one friend… that means your female friend… Yeamori Arisa. Right?”
Ren freezes… a second of silence… thump!
“How did—?!” a shockwave runs through his mind.
Masaki gives a slight grin… “What’s wrong? Did I guess wrong?”
Ren lowers his gaze… accepting defeat… “You got it right… it’s Yeamori.”
Masaki smiles to himself… Hio’s information finally came in handy…
Ren, in a serious tone, staring at the table, speaks… “I’ve been training too… for that promise I made to you.”
Masaki looks at him… calm pride in his eyes… “Yeah, I know… you’ll give it your best. As your big brother… all the best.” Thumbs up… slight nod.
A few hours later…
Parking lot… the night has grown deeper… Masaki opens the door of his black car — clack…
Just as he’s about to close it, his eyes catch a shadow standing at a distance… He gives it a brief side glance… ignores it… takes his seat and starts the engine — vroomm…
The car pulls onto the road… but behind him, a black van follows silently…
Up ahead… a figure stands in the middle of the road… perfectly still… the wind sways his coat… A hand slowly rises… a revolver glints under the streetlight… click… target locked.
Masaki grips the steering wheel, a faint smirk forming… “So… you’ve finally come out after all these years.”
The next second— BANG!!
The bullet hits the tire directly — Screeeeeechhh!!
The car loses control… skidding onto the footpath… CRASH!!
BAAMM!!
Metal twists… glass shatters… the car flips into the air… then slams hard onto the ground…
Dust… smoke… silence…
The shadow figure slowly steps forward… a cold, dangerous smile on his lips… He leans slightly… whispering…
“Perfect.”
Mini flashback… The instant the tire is hit… the steering jerks — skrrrtt… Masaki’s grip tightens… his eyes razor-sharp… he yanks the car back under control, stabilizing it just an inch before the footpath… His gaze locks directly onto that shadow… the air itself seems to freeze… tension on the verge of snapping.
Flashback end.
Present — the car door bursts open — thud!
Masaki rips off the seatbelt with a sharp pull… click!
Then kicks the door wide and steps out — BAM!
The moment he lands… the black van screeches to a halt behind him — screech… Doors swing open… thak… thak… thak… Several men step out… guns raised — click… click… All aimed straight at Masaki.
The air turns heavy… the silence, dangerous.
Then the main figure gives a slight hand signal… “We’re just here to meet… lower your guns. Let’s settle this with a street fight.”
A sharp spark flashes in Masaki’s eyes… a slight curve on his lips… “This is your chance… Rokura Hayashi.”
Hayashi smiles slowly… shoulders relaxing… “Haha… I know, Masaki. I came here to challenge you.”
One of their men standing behind thinks to himself… heartbeat racing — thump… thump… Masaki Fujimiya… a name in the underworld… and they’re challenging him?
Hayashi sir… what are you doing…?
Without turning back, Hayashi signals with just his fingers… Four men step forward — step… step… step…
Masaki takes a deep breath… inhale… slow exhale… His fists tighten… muscles coiling…
First attack—
One guy throws a straight punch — whooshh!
Masaki takes a slight side step… clean dodge… And instantly drives a full-power punch into the guy behind him — THUD!!
The man is sent flying… whoop!
crashing down at a distance — crash…
The remaining three freeze for a second… shock.
Masaki tilts his neck… a small nod… “Come.”
Second wave — all three rush at once — dhad dhad dhad!
Then it begins—the flow—
Punch — dodge — kick
Kick — pivot — elbow
Step — counter — slam
Every move in rhythm… tap… whooshh… thud!
Masaki’s body moves like perfect choreography… precise… ruthless…
A kick to one’s ribs — crack!
A punch to another’s face — thump!
The third gets grabbed and slammed to the ground — BAAM!
A few seconds… that’s all it takes.
All three… on the ground… still.
Masaki stands straight… breaths slightly heavy — haah… haah… But his eyes remain calm… dominant… as if nothing even happened.
Hayashi, standing near the van, watches everything… completely still… Then slowly steps forward — tap… tap…
The echo of his steps… the night grows even quieter.
Now they stand face to face… distance closing… tension at its peak.
Masaki takes his stance… Hayashi folds his sleeves… rustle…
One moment… just the wind — whoooosh…
Clash!
Both move at the same time—lightning speed — SWOOSH!!
Punches tear through the air…
A split second— Masaki’s right hook connects — THUD!!
Hayashi’s head snaps to the side… one step back… dust rises… But he regains his balance instantly.
Masaki smirks… “Come on… try again.”
Hayashi cracks his neck — crack… crack… Eyes sharp… grin dangerous… “Of course.”
Second clash — even faster — WHOOSH WHOOSH!!
Their movements blur… Punch… dodge… counter… step…
A precise opening— Hayashi breaks through the guard… and lands a sharp jab — TAP-THUD!
Masaki’s cheek gets hit… a faint vibration in the air… He pauses for a second… then touches his jaw…
Expression unchanged… but a flicker of respect appears in his eyes.
Hayashi lets out a light chuckle… “What’s wrong? Didn’t see that?”
The air turns heavy again…
And then—
From a distance, sirens… weeoo… weeoo… Police.
Both react at the same time… eyes flick.
From somewhere above— phisshh… a smoke bomb drops down… POOF!!
white smoke engulfs everything…
Vision blurs… chaos…
Hayashi turns away… walking toward the van… “We’ll meet again.”
He steps into the van — thak!
“Let’s go.”
The van’s engine roars — vroomm… and disappears into the darkness.
The smoke slowly clears… Masaki stands alone… a faint smile on his lips…
“Challenge… accepted.”
—Chapter 1 end—
Author’s Note Thank you for stepping into this new phase of the story.
The journey has only just begun, and things are about to get much more intense from here.
New chapters will be released every Sunday at 7:00 PM (evening).
Two chapters will drop together each week.
Stay with me on this journey.❤️