The underground arena was a cage of shadows and blood, lit only by flickering neon and the jeers of a bloodthirsty crowd. Kazuki Takahashi's breath came ragged, his body battered but his spirit unbroken. Once a promising MMA fighter, now a NEET drifting through life, he had taken this fight out of desperation — a last chance to claw back some meaning, some respect.
But betrayal was a cruel teacher.
His own team had sold him out, slipping a dirty punch when the referee's eyes were elsewhere. The world blurred, pain exploding behind his eyes as he crumpled to the cold concrete floor. The last thing he saw was the sneer of the man who'd stabbed him in the back.
Then, nothing.
...................
Kazuki's senses returned in a strange, weightless way. The world was no longer harsh and human — it was sharp, fragmented, and vast. He looked down at himself and saw feathers, black and glossy, wings folded tight against his body. He was a crow.
Above him, the city sprawled like a living beast — the rooftops of Suzuran, the infamous "School of Crows," pulsed with violence and unspoken wars. Below, factions clashed, alliances formed and shattered in the blink of an eye. The air was thick with tension, the scent of sweat and blood mixing with the cold wind.
A voice echoed inside his mind, calm and mechanical.
"System activated. User: Kazuki Takahashi. Current form: Crow. Mission: Observe before you become. Learn before you rise."
Kazuki blinked, or rather, his crow eyes adjusted to the world. The System interface shimmered before him, a translucent panel filled with cryptic commands and stats.
"Fight, and become more than you ever were."
He flapped his wings, soaring higher, watching as Genji Takiya, the rising storm of Suzuran, squared off against Serizawa's loyalists. The battles were brutal, raw — a dance of fists, blood, and broken pride.
Kazuki's mind raced. This world was violent, unforgiving, and yet… it was a battlefield he could master.
Three days as a crow — three days to learn the rules of this savage game.
Then, he would rise again.
As the sun dipped below the horizon on the third day, Kazuki felt a strange pull. The feathers melted away, replaced by flesh and bone. He gasped, human breath filling his lungs for the first time in what felt like an eternity.
He was no longer a spectator.
He was a player.
The System chimed once more.
"Template unlocked: Rindaman. Passive Skill: Unshaken Will. Active Skill: One Strike Suppression. Growth path initiated."
Kazuki's fists clenched. The road ahead would be brutal. The School of Crows was a nest of vipers, and he was about to become the fiercest among them.
The game had begun.