The moment they arrived, the world felt wrong in a very specific way.
Not broken.
Not destroyed.
Just rewritten.
Tokyo Colony 1 stretched out ahead of them like a city pretending it was normal.
Buildings stood, but not correctly.
Silence lingered in places where noise should have existed.
Yuji exhaled slowly.
"…So this is the Culling Games."
Megumi nodded.
"…We're in."
Takeru stepped forward first.
"…Registration initiating."
A faint shimmer appeared in front of him.
Then—
it arrived.
Kogane Interface — Takeru's HUD
A small, floating creature hovered in front of him.
White.
Winged.
A skull-shaped head with soft, expressive movement.
And a tiny heart-shaped tail swaying behind it like it had a personality it didn't bother hiding.
It blinked up at him.
Bright.
Happy.
"Welcome, player Takeru."
Takeru froze for half a second.
Then—
his expression softened.
"…Awwww."
Yuji turned his head slightly.
"…You're doing it again."
Megumi sighed immediately.
"…Focus."
But Takeru had already stepped closer.
The Kogane tilted slightly in the air.
"…You are now registered in the Culling Games. Points will be tracked individually."
Takeru nodded slowly.
"…You are efficient."
The Kogane spun once.
"…Thank you!"
Takeru leaned in slightly.
"…Look at the lil guy."
The heart-shaped tail flicked.
"…I am Kogane. I manage your game interface, rules, and communication with the Game Master."
Takeru nodded again.
"…Cute."
Yuji covered his face slightly.
"…This is not the time for this."
Megumi stepped forward.
"…We need information."
Kogane immediately shifted tone.
"…Current rule set active. Players must accumulate 100 points to propose or add a new rule."
Silence.
Yuji blinked.
"…One hundred?"
Megumi frowned.
"…That's high."
Takeru straightened slightly.
"…Understood."
Kogane continued.
"…Points are gained through eliminating other participants or fulfilling special conditions within the colony."
Choso spoke quietly.
"…So killing is incentivized."
Kogane bobbed.
"…Correct."
Yuji clenched his fist slightly.
"…Of course it is."
Megumi looked forward into the colony.
"…Then we move carefully."
Takeru glanced at his Kogane again.
It hovered patiently, tail still heart-shaped, still gently swaying.
He exhaled.
"…We proceed."
Then, softer—
"…Stay safe, lil guy."
Kogane blinked.
"…I will continue to assist you."
Yuji sighed.
"…We're really doing this."
Megumi stepped forward.
"…Yes."
Choso followed.
"…For my brothers."
Takeru turned toward the colony streets.
The smile was gone now—but not the focus.
"…Objective: survive, gain points, locate Tsumiki."
The group moved forward into Tokyo Colony 1.
And somewhere deep inside the game—
the rules were already waiting to break them.