The last thing Jin expected on a sweltering afternoon in Shibuya was to watch his best friend collapse, screaming, after tapping a mysterious snake emblem on his phone. But when Jin opens the same app in desperation, he awakens into a world that looks like Shibuya—yet is utterly empty. No people. No sound. And on his wrist, a snake biting its own tail, impossible to remove.
A status screen appears before his eyes: *Player Name: Kanzaki Jin. Ranking: 1,847th. Ability: Delay Collector.* A power s
Darwin's Game: Beyond the Game Over - A hand at the sickbed, the mastermind's voice — Chapter 1: The Curtain Rises
Morning light filtered through the gaps in the rubble.
The collapsed multi-tenant building on Dogenzaka — the remains of Mutual Building. After Kanehira Hideaki's annihilation, the area was eerily quiet. Concrete dust drifted slowly through the shafts of light.
Kanzaki Jin sat on the debris, still holding Rain's cold hand. The wound in her stomach was covered by a membrane of water that Sui had desperately formed. The bleeding had stopped. But her face was white as paper. Her breathing was shallow, and occasionally a thin wheeze leaked from the back of her throat.
" Rain... can you hear me?"
No response.
Jin wrapped both hands around her small hand. Her fingertips were cold as ice.
(If only I'd noticed sooner.)
The same words repeated over and over in his head. The moment Kanehira's clone sliced open Rain's stomach. The moment she apologized — "I'm sorry, Jin-kun." All of it was still lodged in Jin's chest like a blade.
" Jin, can you stand?"
Jin turned toward the voice. Sudou Kaname was standing there. His face, too, was thick with exhaustion. The fingertips of his right hand trembled slightly — from overusing the Fire God's Hammer. Even so, Kaname's voice was calm.
" Yeah... but we need to move Rain. It's dangerous to stay here."
Jin stood and hoisted Rain onto his back. Her weight was astonishingly light. A middle school girl. That lightness tightened around Jin's chest.
" Kanehira's men might still be around. We'll cut through Dogenzaka and head back to the base in Udagawacho. Ryuuji, take point."
" Got it. I'll use my lie detector to scan for presences along the way. ...That said, if they're hiding silently in the shadows, I won't get a read."
Ryuuji pulled his skull mask back on. His trusty machine gun hung at his back. His brown hair had gone pale with dust.
" Um... I'll stay by Rain-san's side. I'll keep the water membrane on her..."
Sui shuffled nervously to Jin's side. Her water-tinted black hair was in twin tails, the ties further askew from the earlier battle. Her large amber eyes wavered with anxiety.
" Thank you, Sui. Thanks to you, Rain survived."
When Jin said that, Sui looked down and gave a small nod.
" No... I'm not good at fighting... but stopping bleeding, at least..."
" That's enough. Your Bottomless Water Jar isn't only good for combat. It's the power to keep lives tethered."
At Kaname's words, Sui's eyes grew faintly moist.
The four of them left the ruined building behind.
The streets of Dogenzaka were wrapped in the dim half-light before dawn. The streetlamps illuminated the dust, making it look like white mist. In the distance, he thought he heard something like sirens, but it might have been his imagination. In this game space, the sounds of reality didn't reach.
" ...Hey, Jin."
Kaname, walking ahead, spoke without turning around.
" What is it, Kaname-san?"
" Do you remember what Kanehira said at the end?"
Jin, feeling the warmth of Rain on his back, recalled that moment.
The words Kanehira left as he vanished. *Your battle has only just begun.* And the mysterious voice that only Kaname had heard. *Well done, Sunset Ravens. But your battle has only just begun.*
" Yeah. The mastermind, right. ...The one whose voice only you heard, Kaname-san."
" Yeah. That wasn't a reaction to my ability. It wasn't a direct communication from the management either. Something... else entirely."
Jin could see Kaname's back tense with strain.
" Shinodzuka falling unconscious, getting caught up in this game — it might all be part of that bastard's plan."
Jin's feet nearly stopped.
Shinodzuka.
His best friend since middle school. That day they'd arranged to meet in Shibuya. The email with the snake mark that arrived on his phone. Shinodzuka collapsing in agony. To save him, Jin had opened that email without hesitation.
That was the beginning of everything.
" ...I'm going to save Shinodzuka."
Jin spoke quietly.
" I will save him. No matter who the enemy is."
Kaname turned slightly and looked at Jin's face.
" ...Yeah. I couldn't protect Shinodzuka either. So this time, for sure."
A heavy silence passed between them.
Sui, looking up at Rain on Jin's back, murmured softly.
" I hope Rain-san gets better soon..."
By the time they reached the Ravens' Room in the Udagawacho building, the sky was beginning to pale.
When they opened the third-floor door, stale air rushed out. It was because the windows had been shut tight. A former warehouse space with six sleeping bags lined up. On the whiteboard, the tactical map from the Kanehira fight still remained, unerased.
Jin laid Rain in the farthest sleeping bag. Sui immediately re-formed the water membrane. A pale blue light spilled from her palms, gently enveloping Rain's wound.
" There... for now, the bleeding's stopped. But the wound is deep, so... honestly, proper medical care would..."
Sui's voice was trembling.
" There are no hospitals in this game space. We'll have to make do with the basic medical supplies from the supply points. ...Rain is strong. She'll pull through."
Kaname said that and placed a hand on Rain's forehead.
" ...She has a fever. Sui, sorry, but stay by Rain for a while. Your ability is the best medicine we have."
" Y-yes... I'll do my best..."
Sui knelt formally at Rain's bedside. Her amber eyes fixed steadily on Rain's face.
Jin stood frozen in place.
(I couldn't do anything.)
Delay Collection. The ability to delay the time of anything he touched by a few seconds. In the Kanehira fight, he'd created openings for his allies' attacks to land. But he couldn't protect Rain. Just a few seconds before she was cut down. If only he'd moved faster then.
" Jin, you rest too. You're pushing yourself way too hard."
" ...No, I'm fine. More importantly, Kaname-san — didn't you overuse the Fire God's Hammer?"
" Don't worry about me. ...Anyway, Ryuuji, that thing."
Kaname called out to Ryuuji, who was removing his gear in the corner of the room.
Ryuuji took off his skull mask and ran a hand through his brown hair. His face showed fatigue — and a faint excitement.
" Yeah, this. I recovered it from Kanehira's office before the place collapsed. ...A data terminal."
Ryuuji pulled a thin, tablet-like terminal from his jacket's inner pocket. The screen was packed with dense lines of text.
" A data terminal... Kanehira's?"
" Yeah. That bastard was swapping clones all over the place. So before the real one vanished, I secured what was in his office. ...And I skimmed through the contents."
Ryuuji turned the terminal screen toward Jin and Kaname.
" The insurance subscriber list for Kanehira Mutual. And one encrypted file. ...The filename contains the word 'SHINOZUKA.'"
Jin's heart lurched.
" Shinodzuka...?! Really?!"
Jin snatched the terminal from Ryuuji's hand and peered at the screen.
Sure enough, there it was.
An encrypted file. In its name, the string "SHINOZUKA."
" ...But I can't open it. The encryption method isn't standard. Rain's World Function might be able to analyze it, but..."
Ryuuji glanced at the sleeping Rain.
" My lie detector doesn't work on electronic data. ...Besides, this encryption is close to the management's system format. The decryption key is probably... only held by the mastermind behind Kanehira."
Jin gripped the terminal. His fingers turned white with force.
(We finally found a lead on Shinodzuka.)
(And the key is only with the mastermind...?)
" ...Damn it."
Jin bit his lip. The taste of iron spread through his mouth.
" Jin, calm down. ...This is progress. Shinodzuka's name was in Kanehira's data. That means Kanehira knew about Shinodzuka. And there's a mastermind behind him. ...The path we need to follow is clear."
Kaname placed a hand on Jin's shoulder.
" ...Yeah, I know. ...But Kaname-san. This file could be a trap. To lure us to the mastermind."
" That's possible too. So we handle it carefully. ...Listen, everyone. Starting today, we raise the entire clan's alert level. The mastermind could make a move at any time."
Kaname's voice echoed through the room.
Sui's shoulders gave a startled jump.
" ...Can I be useful? Fighting scares me... but I want to help everyone..."
In that instant, the color of Sui's eyes went thin and sharp.
" Quit whining. We've got no choice but to do this, do we?"
The other Sui surfaced. Her tone shifted completely.
" I'll protect the Rain girl. You lot go find this mastermind, and fast. ...You're not a bunch of useless deadweight, are you?"
Ryuuji gave a wry smile.
" Dark Sui's as merciless as ever. ...Well, she's not wrong. I'll organize the intel I got from Kanehira's men too. There's a chance the mastermind is controlling multiple rankers."
" Multiple rankers...? You mean it's not just Kanehira?"
" Yeah. Kanehira was just one pawn. ...There are traces that the bastard's insurance union wasn't just exploiting its subscribers — it was funneling the collected points somewhere. That somewhere leads to the mastermind."
Jin set the terminal on the table and let out a deep breath.
(Shinodzuka. What in the world did you get caught up in, and where?)
Shinodzuka's smiling face surfaced in Jin's mind.
*If anything happens, I'll protect you, Jin.*
That day, on the way home from Shibuya. The words Shinodzuka had said with a laugh.
*It's the other way around,* Jin had shot back. But somewhere in his heart, he'd believed those words.
Now it was his turn to protect.
Jin clenched his fist.
Dawn broke, and the room grew bright.
Jin never left Rain's side. The water membrane Sui had made reflected the morning light, glowing faintly. Rain's color looked slightly better than it had during the night.
(Please. Wake up.)
Jin held Rain's hand.
Her fingers were still cold. But he felt like a little warmth had returned, more than during the night.
" ...Jin... kun..."
A faint voice.
Jin's head snapped up.
Rain's eyelids slowly opened. Her faded green eyes gazed vaguely at Jin.
" Rain! You're awake!"
" ...Yeah... You went and did something reckless again, didn't you..."
Rain smiled faintly.
" ...The reckless one was you. ...I'm sorry, Rain. If I'd moved faster..."
Jin's voice trembled.
" ...No. If I'd moved faster... I wouldn't have made you carry me..."
Rain slowly shook her head.
" ...I'm a runner. I specialize in escaping. ...But I decided... running all the time isn't good enough. ...So, Jin-kun. Don't carry it all alone..."
Rain's hand weakly squeezed back against Jin's.
" ...I'll fight too. ...Together with everyone..."
Tears spilled from Jin's eyes.
" ...Yeah. ...I understand. ...So get better fast. ...Without your World Function, nothing can start."
" ...Okay... I'll sleep a little..."
Rain's eyelids closed again.
But her face was more peaceful than before.
Still holding Rain's hand, Jin looked up at the ceiling.
(Don't carry it all alone, huh.)
Rain's words seeped slowly into Jin's chest.
I'm not alone.
There's Kaname, there's Ryuuji, there's Sui, there's Rain.
I have comrades.
" ...Thank you, Rain."
Jin murmured softly.
The next morning.
Everyone gathered in the Ravens' Room.
Rain was still asleep. But her breathing was stable. Thanks to Sui maintaining the water membrane all night. The front Sui sat by Rain's side, face utterly exhausted, but still there.
" Everyone, listen up."
Kaname stood before the whiteboard.
" We defeated Kanehira. But there's a mastermind behind him. The words Kanehira left at the end, and the voice only I heard. ...That was a declaration of war against this clan."
Kaname's voice was quiet but powerful.
" The data terminal Ryuuji recovered contained an encrypted file with Shinodzuka's name. Only the mastermind holds the decryption key. ...In other words, to save Shinodzuka, we have no choice but to corner the mastermind."
Jin looked around at everyone's faces.
Ryuuji listened with arms crossed, expression serious. Sui, in her front personality, stared down anxiously. R
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