Mist clung to the valley for three days straight after Mei Aisaka's return. People in the nearby town of Tsukiyama said the fog smelled faintly of burnt paper and sea salt. Children claimed they saw faces in the clouds at dusk — faces that stared longer than they should have.Mei lived quietly at first. Her parents believed her story about a camping accident that took her friends' lives. The police accepted it too, after little evidence surfaced. But each night, she dreamed of the mansion again — its corridors uncoiling endlessly, the sound of bone dice rolling in the dark. Every dawn, she woke with ash under her nails.The morning the first black envelope arrived for her, she didn't open it. She burned it instead — or tried to. The seal hissed in the fire like wet wood, and the ashes reformed on the table, immaculate once more. This time, her name was written underneath the sender's."Host confirmed."The voices began whispering after midnight. They didn't come from outside but from inside the walls — threads of murmurs speaking ancient syllables. When she followed the sound to her mirror, her reflection blinked half a second later. The glass fogged, and then words appeared across it:"The Game awaits new players. Prepare."Mei tried to destroy the mirror, but her hand froze inches from it. Something unseen pressed her wrist down gently, almost kindly.She stopped fighting. "What do you want?" she asked in a trembling whisper.The reflection smiled — a small, sorrowful tilt. "Not what. Who."That night, five envelopes appeared in Tsukiyama, each sealed with the crimson symbol.The Five New PlayersThey were strangers.Haruto, a medical student chasing his late brother's shadow.
Mina, an influencer desperate to film something truly "uncensored."
Daichi, a taxi driver whose debt collectors had begun circling his home.
Sora and Rin, twins, inseparable and unpredictable — or so people thought.Each received the same message:"You have been chosen to participate in The Game of the Dead. Win, and your wish shall be granted."Haruto dismissed it as spam until midnight, when his brother's voice whispered from his phone — though his brother had been dead three years. The message was simple: "Come to the mountain. You can save me this time."Mina treated it like a viral challenge, filming her unboxing video. When she opened the envelope, frost spread across her table. The footage went dark for twenty seconds and came back with a whisper: "Five."Daichi received his letter in the backseat of his cab. The customer had vanished when he turned around — only the envelope remained where she sat.The twins discovered theirs in the mailbox, each addressed to the other's name. "Let's play," Rin said. For once, Sora didn't smile.The Return to the MountainBy the next evening, all five had followed strange coincidences — vanishing road signs, flickering navigation screens, and a collective dream of an old torii gate. When their paths met at the mountain's base, fog poured down like an inverted waterfall.The mansion stood waiting, but different.The eaves shone wetly with ink. Lanterns burned with blue fire. And by the torii, someone waited — a girl in a pale kimono, black hair pinned with bone clasps. Her eyes shimmered like candle smoke.Mei Aisaka bowed.
"Welcome, players," she said solemnly.
Her smile was almost human.Mina whispered, still clutching her camera. "You're Mei… The missing girl?"Mei nodded once. "I am the Host. The Game continues."Haruto stepped forward, voice unsteady. "Where are my friends? What is this place?""The Game chooses. The Game remembers," Mei replied. "Enter, and truth will reveal itself."The torii groaned open. As they crossed, the world behind them blurred and folded — roads, trees, and sky dissolving into mist.The First Level — The Hanging GardenInside, the mansion had grown. Stone arches rose where wood once stood, and the smell of incense had deepened into rot. The first trial awaited them in a garden suspended between two realities — clouds below, crimson moons above. Bamboo bridges stretched in impossible directions."The path shifts when unlit," Mei said from the balcony. Candlelight danced around her hands. "You must carry flame to reach the shrine beyond."Rin grabbed a candle first. "Looks easy enough."But each step she took left footprints of blood that didn't belong to her. As they progressed, the bridges shivered under invisible movement. Shadows crawled below, pale and many-armed.Sora winced. "Something's walking beneath us.""Don't look down," Haruto warned.Daichi's candle flickered. A gust of whispering wind brushed the group — phrases forming from nowhere: "Walk carefully. The forgotten fall."The first scream came when Mina turned her camera toward the abyss. Faces looked back — hundreds, floating weightless, whispering her name. "Delete me… delete me…" Cold hands erupted from the railing and pulled her in, camera still recording. Her last footage caught the candle snuffing out, followed by a soft, echoing splash.The bridge stilled. In the air, glowing script appeared:"Four remain."Sora took Mina's dropped candle. Her hand shook. "How far does it go?""The shrine lies at the heart," Mei's voice echoed faintly from above. "Only those who carry the flame of truth will find it."Haruto's RevelationHalfway across, Haruto stopped. A shadow walked beside him, matching his steps — the silhouette of his dead brother."You came," the shadow whispered. "Will you fail me again?"He froze. The others turned to see him trembling. "He's not real," Sora urged. "Keep moving!"The figure stepped closer. "Save me this time, Haruto. Say my name."When Haruto finally uttered it, the bridge twisted violently, rearranging itself. He fell to his knees but kept the candle upright. The flame flared — white, pure.In that instant, part of the fog lifted. A shrine door shimmered in the distance."You've remembered truth," said Mei's voice. "You are safe… for now.""Safe?" Daichi spat. "One's dead!""The Game spares no one," Mei replied calmly. "Only the worthy proceed."They reached the shrine moments later — three trembling humans and one flickering flame.The Second Level — Feast of NamesWithin the shrine, a long table awaited, covered in scrolls tied with red string. The air carried the thick scent of parchment and dried roots."Each scroll bears your true name," Mei explained, appearing beside them silently. "Read yours, and you remain yourself. Read another's… and your identity will be lost."Daichi scowled. "What's the point of this sick puzzle?""To know who you are," Mei said simply. "Or to serve the one who does."Rin reached first. Her scroll pulsated faintly, whispering her favorite childhood song. Without hesitation, she untied it. As the string fell away, her expression changed — confusion, then horror."This isn't my handwriting," she gasped. "This—this isn't my name."Behind her, Sora's scroll burned to ash, unread."Two cannot share the same soul," Mei said softly. "Balance must return."Rin collapsed, her body dissolving into fine silver dust. Only her voice lingered, echoing faintly: "I just wanted to know which of us was real…"The writing on the wall bled anew."Three remain."Daichi punched the table. "I'm done! I'm leaving!"Mei looked at him sadly. "You can't. The mansion feeds on your steps. Stay still, and it will consume you whole."Outside, thunder cracked — but there was no sky, only rippling mist. Somewhere below, the faint rattle of dice sounded again.Haruto's ChoiceHaruto finally faced Mei. "You were one of us. Why continue this? Why kill?""I don't control it," she whispered, turning her palm upward. The skin was translucent now, veins glowing like ink trails. "The Host keeps the Game alive. If I stop, all I've taken will vanish — including me.""Then die!" Daichi shouted.Mei looked at him. "Would you trade your wish to end mine?"Daichi froze. His debts, his daughter's medicine, his broken promises — all flickered before him. "I… just want one chance to fix it.""Then play," she murmured. "The third level awaits."She raised her hand. The room split apart, scrolls unraveling into smoke. The players fell through darkness as whispers gathered: "The Forgotten City."Haruto's candle extinguished as he screamed her name — not Mei's, but Riku's.Ending — The Circle TightensWhen Daichi awoke, they stood in what looked like a ruined marketplace under a red moon. Statues lined the streets — faces frozen mid-prayer.At the far end stood Mei. Around her neck, a strand of bone dice glowed faintly."The Game feeds," she said softly. "And soon, one of you will inherit the role."She closed her eyes. The wind carried hundreds of faint whispers."Two remain," it said.