Episode 3 – The First Encounter

Akihiro Kuroda had faced assassins, blood wars, and rival gangs, yet nothing unnerved him as much as what he saw that morning.

There she was. Aiyumi.

The girl from his dreams, now sitting in his classroom as though she had always belonged there. Her presence was so ordinary, so human, and yet he felt the same overwhelming energy from the dream. She sat quietly, her white ribbon tied neatly in her hair, her gaze fixed on the teacher.

Akihiro’s smirk faltered for the first time in school. The usual whispers from girls around him—“He’s so handsome”, “I wish he’d look at me”—faded into meaningless noise. All he saw was Aiyumi.

He slid into his seat, eyes never leaving her. His heartbeat, something he thought had stopped centuries ago, thudded in his chest. Why is she here? How is this even possible?

During break, Akihiro leaned back in his chair, pretending to scroll through his phone, but his crimson eyes kept flickering toward her. Every detail—her delicate hands flipping the pages of a book, the way she tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear—felt painfully real. Not a dream. Not an illusion.

Finally, he decided. He had to speak to her.

He rose from his chair, the air around him shifting as classmates watched. Akihiro rarely approached anyone—people usually came to him. His reputation as the untouchable playboy made his sudden interest in a quiet new girl all the more shocking.

He walked toward her desk, his shoes clicking against the polished floor. Aiyumi looked up, her calm eyes meeting his. For a second, Akihiro forgot his practiced charm, forgot his carefully constructed mask.

“You,” he said softly, almost to himself.

Her lips curved into a faint smile, the same one from the dream. “I was wondering how long it would take you.”

The words struck him like lightning. She knew.

Akihiro leaned in, lowering his voice so no one else could hear. “Who are you really?”

She tilted her head. “Didn’t I already tell you? My name is Aiyumi.”

“That’s not what I mean.” His eyes glowed faintly red, a dangerous spark flashing through them. “You were in my dream. More than once. That’s not possible.”

Instead of fear, she gave him a steady look. “And yet, here I am.”

For the first time in centuries, Akihiro felt himself losing control—not to bloodlust, not to rage, but to something far more unsettling: curiosity.

Before he could press her further, the classroom door burst open. A messenger from his father’s mafia network stood outside, pale and shaking. Akihiro cursed inwardly. He wasn’t supposed to be disturbed here.The man bowed slightly. “Young master… it’s urgent.”

Akihiro’s jaw clenched. His two worlds—school and mafia—were colliding again. He turned back to Aiyumi, his voice low and dangerous.

“This isn’t over.”

Aiyumi simply smiled, her calmness unshaken. “I know.”

As he left the room, a thought gnawed at him.

If she wasn’t just a dream, then who—or what—was Aiyumi?

To be continued…

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