In 2049, Tokyo's suburbs are ruled by an AI autonomous surveillance network—a perfect city where crimes and accidents are 'collected' before they happen. But those who slip through the cracks of this net form an underground organization called Anomaly. They survive by eating money and information through the gaps in surveillance.
Rei Mishiba is an ordinary high school senior. On his way home after failing a job interview, he accidentally witnesses a bloody turf war between semi-gangsters. Their
Synthetic Sound Runway - The Rending Pursuer — Kai Solvent, Exposure of the Key
Before dawn.
The old Tabata freight station's siding tracks. On the rusted rails, a black vintage sedan sat quietly.
Rei had fallen into a shallow sleep in the passenger seat.
His shoulders were stiff. His neck ached. Even so, his exhausted body craved sleep.
His right hand, gripping the key, was sweaty inside his pocket.
That's when it happened.
—Footsteps.
Rei's eyes snapped open.
(Just now...)
He held his breath. He strained his ears.
He could hear it.
The sound of feet striking wooden sleepers. A steady rhythm. Human footsteps.
"Nokutaan."
Rei called in a hushed voice.
The radio crackled—a short burst of static.
"I know. Stay quiet."
A synthetic voice. A voice stitched together from the city's noise. Curt as always, and somehow irritated.
Rei sat up.
The seat leather creaked.
"Go back to sleep."
"Like I can sleep."
Rei shot back in a whisper.
Outside was still dark.
The eastern sky was just beginning to pale.
The footsteps drew closer.
Rei looked through the windshield.
The abandoned station platform. A half-collapsed roof. Tracks overgrown with weeds. Beyond them, he saw a figure.
A man.
Blond hair. He was holding down his spiky hair with one hand.
Young. Looked about the same age as Rei.
An iron pipe in his right hand. Zip ties in his left.
(An Anomaly's...)
Rei's throat made a thin, whistling sound.
"That's him."
"You know him?"
"Kai Solvent. Bottom rung of the Anomaly's field operatives. One of the pursuers who moves on Eve Crow's orders."
Rei looked at Kai.
The blond boy walked with rough steps across the sleepers, heading straight toward them.
Green eyes. Sharp. Narrowed like he was glaring at prey.
Freckles on his cheeks. The knuckles of his right hand were red and swollen.
A scar on his left ear.
(This guy is...)
Rei's fingertips trembled.
Kai stopped.
About ten meters from the black sedan Rei was in.
"—Found you."
His voice rang out.
Young. But rough.
Hoisting the iron pipe onto his shoulder, Kai grinned.
"You're Sanshiba Rei, right. Just a lucky brat who got away—you've been running around a lot, haven't you."
Rei couldn't speak.
(What do I do)
His mind went blank.
"Get out. We'll talk after."
Kai took a step forward.
The tip of the iron pipe scraped the ground. A nasty grating sound.
"Hand over what you took from the deal site. It's not something a guy like you should be carrying."
Cold sweat ran down Rei's back.
(He means the key)
Inside his pocket, the USB key felt hot.
"...W-what are you talking about?"
Rei's voice was so small and hoarse it surprised even himself.
"Don't play dumb."
Kai broke into a run.
He closed the distance in one burst.
Rei tried to open the door. But his body wouldn't move.
Fear tangled around his legs.
That's when.
—Honk, honk, honk!
The horn blared.
Intermittent. Short. Sharp.
"Move! Run!"
The synthetic voice shouted.
At the same time, violent noise poured from the radio.
A harsh zzzzzzzzt of static.
Analog electrical noise, meant to jam the Grid's surveillance units.
Rei flung the door open as if propelled and rolled outside.
"Run! The siding tunnel!"
Rei ran.
His breath ran short. His heart thrashed.
Behind him, Kai's footsteps gave chase.
"Wait, you bastard!"
The sound of the iron pipe cutting air.
Rei didn't look back. He sprinted into the abandoned station grounds.
Weaving through platform pillars. Slipping between rusted freight shelves.
"There you are!"
Kai's iron pipe slammed into a freight shelf.
Claaang!
The metallic sound echoed through the abandoned station.
The shelf crumpled. Stacked empty cans scattered across the floor.
(This guy, he's really...)
Rei gritted his teeth.
His legs nearly tangled. Even so, he ran.
"Run! Faster!"
He couldn't hear the voice. But Nokutaan's noise echoed from deep in the siding, as if showing Rei the way out.
Rei slid into the space beneath the platform.
The smell of damp earth. Darkness.
Kai's footsteps passed overhead.
"Where'd you go!"
Kai's angry shout.
Rei held his breath.
(Don't get found)
(If I'm found, it's over)
His heart was too loud.
Kai's footsteps slowly came back.
"Come out. Hiding's useless. You're on the Grid's tracking list. There's no way you'll escape."
The voice was close.
Rei crawled through the space beneath the platform.
The smell of dirt and oil. His fingertips touched cold steel.
"—Huh?"
Kai stopped.
Rei froze.
(Shit)
"There you are."
Kai crouched down.
His green eyes peered into the darkness beneath the platform.
"Found you, rat."
Kai's hand reached in.
Rei reflexively kicked it.
"Guh."
Kai recoiled slightly.
In that gap, Rei rolled out from under the platform.
"You're fast at running, at least!"
Kai swung the iron pipe.
Rei dove through a gap in a shutter.
An old freight warehouse.
Dusty air. Faint morning light leaked through a broken window.
Rei ran toward the back of the warehouse.
"Wait up!"
Kai chased after him.
The iron pipe struck the warehouse wall.
Clang, clang, clang!
The metallic sound rang right behind his head.
Rei burst out through the warehouse's back exit.
The siding tunnel entrance.
Nokutaan's noise resonated strongly from there.
(There)
Rei ran.
His lungs hurt. His legs were heavy.
But he couldn't stop.
"Why are you running so much! If you just stayed still, you wouldn't have to get hurt!"
Kai's voice pressed from behind.
Rei didn't answer.
He had no time to answer.
Ten meters to the tunnel entrance.
Five meters.
"—Like hell I'll let you!"
Kai leaped.
Kai's hand reached for Rei's back.
His fingertips grabbed the hem of Rei's hoodie.
"Got you!"
Rei's body was yanked backward.
(No—)
That instant.
—Vroooom!
An engine roar.
The black sedan burst out from the tunnel entrance.
Headlights sliced through the darkness.
"Whoa!"
Kai instinctively let go.
Rei collapsed to the ground.
Nokutaan slid between Rei and Kai.
"Get in!"
Rei scrambled into the open door.
"You piece of shit car!"
Kai raised the iron pipe.
But Nokutaan shot forward.
The tires bit the ground. Dust flew.
Kai's iron pipe cut through empty air.
"Wait, damn you!"
Kai gave chase.
Nokutaan accelerated without care.
"Seatbelt!"
Rei fastened his seatbelt with trembling hands.
The car raced through the abandoned station grounds and plunged into the old tunnel.
Darkness.
Only the headlights illuminated the old tunnel walls.
"Is he following?"
Rei asked, out of breath.
"For now. But that guy's persistent."
The radio voice crackled—zzzt, zzzt—unsteady.
"Did you notice his radio."
"Radio?"
"During the chase, the radio on Kai's hip activated. Automatic transmission. Your location, and the fact that you have the key, went out to the Anomaly's upper command."
The blood drained from Rei's face.
"...That means."
"The whole organization moves. That kid Kai is just the bottom rung. What comes next is far more troublesome."
Rei took the USB key from his pocket.
Aged metal. A small lump that fit in his palm.
(Because of this...)
Rei gripped the key.
"Don't hand that over."
The synthetic voice said quietly.
"Don't make me say it again. That thing—you keep it. Don't give it to anyone."
"...Why do you go that far?"
Rei looked at the radio panel.
"Do you know what this key is?"
The radio fell silent.
A few seconds.
"I don't."
A short answer.
"You don't know, but you're telling me not to hand it over?"
Rei's voice grew a little rough.
"I'm telling you because I don't know. That thing is something you should carry. That much, I understand."
Rei went quiet.
The car exited the old tunnel and emerged onto an abandoned road in the suburbs.
The sky was beginning to pale.
"...Hey, Nokutaan."
"What."
"Why do you protect me?"
Rei said, leaning against the passenger window.
"Because I picked you up. Because I ended up looking after you. Do I need any other reason?"
"That's not a reason."
Rei gave a dry laugh.
"It doesn't need to be a reason. I decided it. That's all."
The synthetic voice said flatly.
Rei looked outside the window.
Abandoned factories. Weeds. Broken signs.
They were moving farther and farther from the city.
"...I don't know anything about you."
"You don't need to know."
"You always say that—you don't need to know."
"You don't need to know. You just need to stay alive."
Rei felt something warm spread slowly in his chest.
(Just stay alive, huh)
It was the first time anyone had said that to him.
"...Thank you."
Rei said quietly.
The radio crackled—zzzt.
"Don't need thanks. More importantly, the radio frequency is strange. I'm detecting pursuer communications. Changing course."
The car suddenly turned left.
A narrow farm road. Tall weeds grew thick on both sides.
"Is he still following?"
"Can't tell about Kai. But the Anomaly's people have already started moving. Your photo is starting to circulate on the tracking list. Check it on your smart device."
Rei took out his smart device.
He tapped the screen.
—There it was.
Rei's photo. His school ID photo. Name. Age.
The words "Primordial Key Holder."
(Primordial Key...)
Rei gripped the key.
"So this is called the Primordial Key."
"Yeah. An encryption key for exception handling, embedded in the Grid's precognition detection algorithm. A trump card that can temporarily stop the surveillance network."
Rei gasped.
"And I'm carrying something like that..."
"That's what I told you. Don't give it to anyone. You keep it."
Rei put the key in his chest pocket.
His heart was still racing.
"Why is that Kai guy so desperate?"
Rei murmured.
"Fear of Eve Crow. That kid is afraid of failure. If he fails, there's no telling what Eve will do to him."
"Eve Crow..."
"The Anomaly's current representative. Nineteen years old. A troublesome woman who corners people with a smile. Kai was picked up by her. He moves exactly as ordered."
Rei remembered Kai's face.
Blond hair. Green eyes. Freckles on his cheeks.
He'd been shouting. But his eyes weren't smiling.
(Is he cornered too?)
Rei bit his lip.
"...He's the same as me."
"What is."
"He's running too. From that Eve woman. Just like I'm running from the Anomaly."
The radio fell silent.
"...Maybe so."
The synthetic voice said quietly.
The car arrived at an abandoned tunnel in the suburbs.
An old road tunnel. The entrance was covered in weeds, pitch black inside.
"We'll hide here until dawn. The Grid's surveillance units and the Anomaly's pursuers can't easily reach this far."
Nokutaan moved deeper into the tunnel.
The engine cut.
Silence.
Rei hugged his knees in the passenger seat.
"...You said we'd leave here within three days."
"Yeah. Three days. Any longer is too dangerous."
"Where are we going?"
"North. We'll pick regions with thin Grid surveillance and keep moving. We'll figure out the destination when we get there."
Rei looked at the smart device screen.
His own photo. Primordial Key Holder.
(I'm not just an ordinary high schooler anymore)
Rei exhaled deeply.
"...Hey, Nokutaan."
"What."
"I'll trust you."
Rei said quietly.
"I still don't know why you protect me. I don't know your true identity, your purpose, nothing. But you protected me. For now, that's enough."
The radio fell silent.
A long silence.
"...Are you an idiot. Don't trust people so easily. Someday you'll get hurt."
"I don't want to hear that from you."
Rei gave a small laugh.
"Besides, you're not a person. You're a car."
"Shut up. Quiet."
The radio crackled—zzzt.
Rei laughed.
From the bottom of his heart, just a little.
(I don't care who you are)
(If you'll protect me)
(I'll survive)
Rei took the key from his chest pocket and stared at it.
An aged USB key.
(This is the trump card that stops the surveillance network)
(I'm carrying something like this)
Rei gripped the key.
"...Nokutaan."
"What."
"Do you think that Kai guy will come again?"
The radio spat static for a few seconds.
"He'll come. He's ordered by Eve. If he fails, he's finished. So he'll definitely chase you."
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