SEASON-1
Kageshiki Trainee Report
Total Trainees: 200
Disqualified Due to Injury: 45
Disqualified Due to Death: 60
Remaining Candidates: 95
The air was thick with a kind of tension that only came when darkness ruled. The city had a feel to it tonight—heavy, like it knew something bad was coming. Wind snaked through the alleys, whispering warnings that no one dared to listen to.
Reika Kagetsu sat on a rusted bench, hands limp at her sides. The streetlight above flickered, its weak glow barely holding back the abyss of night. The world felt like it was falling apart, and she was just waiting for it to swallow her whole.
Her name had meant something once. Kagetsu Reika. But now? It was just another empty sound in a city that didn't care. A city that was already dead to her. She had long forgotten the life she once had, drowned out by memories that faded like smoke.
"Stay inside after dark. Never go out. If you leave, you'll die."
Her father's voice, echoing through her mind. Those words—now they felt like a prophecy.
But it didn't matter anymore.
And then... she heard it.
A voice.
"How lucky…" it purred, amused, like it had already won. "A human, all alone at night."
Reika's spine stiffened. She spun.
There, standing in the shadows, was a figure. Tall. Still. Beautiful—too beautiful. His face was the kind of beauty that didn't belong in the world, sharp features, perfect skin, dark hair that framed his face like a nightmare come to life.
The smile on his lips stretched too wide. Too knowing.
Her hand shot to the knife at her waist. Useless.
The air grew heavy, suffocating.
Bones cracked. Flesh shifted.
And then—wings.
Black. Jagged. Twisted. They stretched out behind him like the limbs of something ancient, something hungry.
A Shikiban.
Reika froze, her body locked in place, heart hammering in her chest. She couldn't move. Couldn't scream. Couldn't even breathe.
Shikiban had come from the shadows over two thousand years ago. At first, they were mistaken for angels—beautiful, perfect beings. Humanity's greatest mistake.
Under that beauty was hunger.
Shikiban feasted on humans. They could blend in, eat human food, but it weakened them. Starvation made them stronger. They couldn't be killed easily—not even by the military. Humanity had feared them for centuries. But they were also a mystery. Some said the academy trained people to kill them. Others whispered that it turned those chosen into monsters.
And now, one stood in front of her.
The creature lunged.
A flash. Silver. Blinding.
A clean slash, so fast the air hummed.
The Shikiban's arm fell to the ground with a sickening thud. Black blood sprayed into the night.
Another strike. Fast. Brutal.
Its head hit the ground and dissolved into ash before it even had time to fall.
Silence.
Reika's body shook, her heartbeat ringing in her ears like a drum.
And then—he was there.
The boy.
Standing amidst the aftermath like he'd always belonged there. His eyes locked onto hers—cold. Sharp. Calculating.
"Kagetsu Reika," he said, voice flat, like he knew everything.
Her heart skipped. How did he know her name?
Before she could ask, he extended his hand.
A black envelope.
It shimmered unnaturally, as though it were alive.
"Take it," he said. "Open it when you're ready."
Reika's hand trembled as she reached for it. The moment her fingers touched it, a pulse of energy shot through her, like the envelope had teeth.
Inside was a single sentence:
Kagetsu Reika, You are summoned to Tenshiko Academy. The choice is yours. But once you step inside, you will never be the same.
The words hit her like a physical blow. She'd heard whispers about Tenshiko Academy—rumors of the trials. And now, she was one of them.
A notification flashed in the corner of her vision. One she'd seen all too often.
Trainee Status: Active
Survival Rate: 47.5%
The city didn't care. It never did.
Every breath was a gamble.
Even death? It had lost its meaning.
She almost welcomed it.
But the night... had other plans.