The city pulsed like a living thing beneath Akira's feet. Neon lights flickered erratically, and streets twisted into impossible angles, bending toward her as if the world itself acknowledged her power. Every step she took left a ripple in reality, a subtle echo of the blood she had consumed.
Akira's hands shook. Memories—fragments not her own—raced through her mind: the fear of the first man she fed on, the desperation of the shadow-beast, flashes of unknown lives that had nothing to do with her. Each surge of power came with a price. She was losing control.
"Focus," Rin's voice cut through the chaos, calm yet edged with tension. She appeared from a warped street like a glitch in the matrix itself. "If you can't control it… the city will tear you apart before anyone else can."
Akira clenched her fists. She had to master this. Otherwise, the blood-leveling that gave her power could just as easily consume her. She tested her abilities, reaching out to manipulate the warped streets. They obeyed—folding, bending, stretching—but each ripple felt unstable, unpredictable.
A faint glow appeared in her peripheral vision—a civilian trapped in a collapsing alley. Panic-stricken, they stumbled blindly toward the distortion. Akira's instincts screamed: help or harvest? The hunger in her veins surged, whispering, Drink. Feed. Level up.
She made a split-second choice. With a burst of speed, she carried the civilian clear of the twisting debris. But the act had consequences: the city reacted violently. Buildings shivered and cracked, neon signs shattered, and shadows moved independently of their sources. The glitch was spreading.
Rin's eyes narrowed. "That's just the beginning. The more power you take, the more the world fights back. You'll learn—painfully—that leveling up isn't just about strength. It's about control. Or you'll lose everything."
Akira's chest heaved, her red eyes glowing brighter than ever. Somewhere in the distance, a low rumble echoed—a warning, or perhaps an invitation. Another presence had noticed the chaos she was creating. And whatever it was, it was coming closer.
Level Up: Blood Infusion – Rank 4
The surge hit her suddenly. Not just strength, but something deeper—a perception shift, a warping of time around her. Every heartbeat echoed like a drum in a canyon of fractured reality. And then, in the flicker of neon light, she saw it: a shadowy figure moving through the glitches, watching, waiting, unafraid of her now.
Akira Kurohime grinned. The game was just beginning.
Cliffhanger: Her powers are destabilizing both her mind and the city itself—and a mysterious figure approaches, drawn to the chaos she's creating.