1 : A — Chance Encounter... With Wicked Lord Shingan

He sighed, the weight of his umbrella feeling a little lighter. "Fine, 'Wicked Lord Shingan.' If the boundary is closed, is there a... detour? One that doesn't involve being consumed by the Void?"

A sudden gust of wind caught her umbrella, nearly turning it inside out. She stumbled, her cool exterior cracking for a split second as she scrambled to regain her footing. In that moment of vulnerability, Yuuta didn't see an omen of doom—he saw a girl who was just as lonely and imaginative as he used to be. 1 : A Chance Encounter... with Wicked Lord Shingan

The rain in the city didn’t just fall; it felt like a deliberate attempt by the heavens to dampen the very soul of the metropolis. Yuuta Togashi, huddled under a transparent convenience store umbrella, sighed as he navigated the neon-slicked sidewalks. He just wanted to get home, eat some instant ramen, and forget the embarrassing "Dark Flame Master" scribbles he’d found in his old middle school notebook earlier that day. Then, the world shifted. He sighed, the weight of his umbrella feeling

As Yuuta approached, the figure’s head snapped toward him. Her golden-yellow eye narrowed with a terrifying intensity. One that doesn't involve being consumed by the Void

She regained her composure, pulling her eyepatch snug. A small, triumphant smirk played on her lips. "Follow the ley lines three blocks west. But beware—the convenience store on the corner is a front for the Ethereal Bureau."

As he moved away, he heard her mutter something about "resonance" and "destiny." He didn't look back, but for the first time in months, he didn't feel like hiding his old notebooks. The world was a little more colorful with a Wicked Lord Shingan patrolling the bridges.

"Got it," Yuuta said, walking past her. "Thanks for the warning."