The sunset had been disappearing for seven days.

Nobody seemed to notice.

At least, nobody except Ren Kaito.

Every evening, Ren climbed the stairs to the roof of his apartment building, sat beside the rusted water tank, and watched the western sky.

Seven days ago, the sunset had lasted twenty minutes.

The next day, twelve.

Then eight.

Then five.

Yesterday, it had lasted only thirty seconds.

Tonight, there was no sunset at all.

The sky simply changed from blue to gray.

Ren stared at it through the window of his small bedroom.

“No…”

He grabbed his sketchbook.

For years, drawing had been the easiest way for him to understand things he couldn’t explain.

He drew what he saw.

People.

Buildings.

Clouds.

Dreams.

Memories.

But sometimes, his drawings showed things before they happened.

He had never told anyone.

Not even Sora.

Especially not Sora.

Ren opened to a fresh page.

His pencil touched the paper.

He began drawing the sunset.

A huge orange sun.

Purple clouds.

Birds flying over the distant city.

And a girl standing on a rooftop.

Ren stopped.

He hadn’t intended to draw her.

He stared at the girl.

Long silver hair.

A white dress.

A tiny golden star beneath her left eye.

She was standing with her back toward him.

In her hand was something strange.

A small glass bottle.

Inside the bottle was a glowing piece of sunlight.

Ren whispered:

“Who are you?”

The girl in the drawing slowly turned around.

Ren dropped the pencil.

Her eyes were open.

She was looking directly at him.

That was impossible.

Drawings didn’t move.

Ren leaned closer.

The girl’s lips moved.

Two words appeared beneath her feet.

FIND ME.

Ren’s heart began pounding.

He blinked.

The words disappeared.

The girl disappeared too.

Only the sunset remained.

Ren stared at the page.

Then someone knocked on his bedroom door.

“Ren!”

He nearly jumped out of his chair.

Sora’s voice.

“Are you alive in there?”

Ren quickly closed the sketchbook.

“Yeah!”

“Open the door.”

“Why?”

“Because I brought food.”

Ren opened the door.

Sora Vale stood there holding two bags of noodles.

Her black hair was tied into a messy ponytail.

She wore a yellow hoodie covered with tiny stars.

She looked at Ren.

Then at the sketchbook.

Then back at Ren.

“You’re hiding something.”

“No.”

“You’re terrible at lying.”

“I know.”

She walked inside.

“Come on. Eat.”

Ren followed her to the small kitchen.

Sora placed the food on the table.

Then she looked through the window.

“The sky looks weird.”

Ren sat down.

“It has looked weird all week.”

Sora opened her noodles.

“You’ve noticed too?”

Ren looked at her.

“You noticed?”

“Of course.”

She pulled out a strange camera.

It looked like an ordinary old film camera, except its lens glowed faintly blue.

“I’ve been taking pictures.”

Ren stared.

“Why?”

“Because something is wrong with the sunsets.”

She placed the camera on the table.

“Look.”

Sora developed one of the photographs.

The image slowly appeared.

It showed the city skyline.

But there was something strange.

A girl stood on a rooftop in the distance.

Silver hair.

White dress.

Golden star beneath her eye.

Ren’s stomach dropped.

“That girl…”

Sora looked at him.

“You know her?”

“No.”

“Then why do you look terrified?”

Ren didn’t answer.

Sora placed the photograph beside him.

“I’ve seen her every evening.”

Ren looked at the photograph.

“Where?”

“Different places.”

She showed him another.

The girl stood beside a train station.

Another.

She stood in the middle of a crowded street.

Another.

She stood on top of a bridge.

Always alone.

Always facing the camera.

Always holding the same glass bottle.

Ren whispered:

“Who is she?”

Sora shook her head.

“I was hoping you knew.”

Suddenly, every light in the apartment turned off.

The refrigerator stopped.

The clock stopped.

The city outside went completely dark.

Sora stood.

“Power outage?”

Ren looked out the window.

Every building was dark.

But one place remained illuminated.

The old clock tower in the center of the city.

Its giant clock showed:

6:13 PM

The second hand wasn’t moving.

Then the clock tower rang.

Once.

DONG.

Twice.

DONG.

Three times.

Sora whispered:

“That’s not normal.”

The clock struck thirteen times.

Then a beam of golden light shot from the top of the tower.

It crossed the sky.

And landed directly on Ren’s apartment building.

His sketchbook began glowing.

Ren stepped backward.

“What is happening?”

The sketchbook opened by itself.

Pages flipped rapidly.

Drawings flew through the room.

Portraits.

Cities.

Mountains.

Strange creatures.

Until the pages stopped.

The drawing of the silver-haired girl appeared.

She was no longer standing on the rooftop.

She was standing beside Ren.

The drawing changed.

The girl lifted her hand.

A single sentence appeared.

COME TO THE CLOCK TOWER.

Sora stared.

“Okay.”

Ren looked at her.

“Okay?”

She grabbed her camera.

“We’re going.”

“You’re not scared?”

“Absolutely terrified.”

She smiled.

“Let’s go.”

---

The streets were empty.

No cars.

No people.

No lights.

The entire city looked abandoned.

Ren and Sora ran toward the clock tower.

As they crossed the central square, Ren noticed something strange.

Every digital screen showed the same time.

6:13 PM.

Phones.

Billboards.

Traffic signals.

Store clocks.

Everything had stopped.

Then Ren noticed the people.

They were standing inside the shops.

Hundreds of them.

Completely motionless.

Sora slowed down.

“Ren…”

“I see them.”

A woman stood beside a bakery counter.

A child held a balloon.

A man stood halfway across the road.

None of them moved.

None of them blinked.

Ren walked toward a little boy.

“Are you okay?”

The boy didn’t respond.

Ren waved his hand in front of the boy’s face.

Nothing.

Then the boy whispered:

“Where is tomorrow?”

Ren stepped backward.

The boy repeated:

“Where is tomorrow?”

Suddenly every frozen person spoke.

“Where is tomorrow?”

Sora grabbed Ren’s hand.

“Run.”

They ran.

Behind them, hundreds of voices echoed through the empty streets.

“Where is tomorrow?”

---

They reached the clock tower.

The doors were open.

Inside was complete darkness.

Sora turned on her camera.

The lens produced a faint blue light.

“Stay close.”

Ren nodded.

They entered.

The door slammed shut behind them.

A staircase spiraled upward.

They climbed.

One floor.

Two.

Three.

The higher they went, the colder it became.

At the top, they found a huge circular room.

The clock mechanism filled the walls.

Golden gears turned silently.

At the center stood the girl from Ren’s drawings.

Silver hair.

White dress.

Golden star beneath her eye.

The glass bottle hung from her hand.

Ren stopped.

“You’re real.”

The girl smiled.

“I’ve always been real.”

Sora raised her camera.

“Who are you?”

The girl looked at her.

“Aiko.”

Ren stepped closer.

“You sent me the message.”

“Yes.”

“Why?”

Aiko looked at his sketchbook.

“Because you can see what everyone else has forgotten.”

Ren frowned.

“I don’t understand.”

“You will.”

She raised the glass bottle.

Inside it, the tiny piece of sunlight flickered.

“This is the last sunset.”

Ren stared.

“What?”

“The final sunset the world will ever see.”

Sora looked horrified.

“Why?”

Aiko looked toward the clock.

“Because someone stole the rest.”

“Who?”

Aiko’s expression darkened.

“The Crimson King.”

A deep sound came from below.

BOOM.

The entire tower shook.

Ren looked down.

“What was that?”

Aiko’s eyes widened.

“He found us.”

The clock mechanism suddenly stopped.

Every gear froze.

Then a black crack appeared across the giant clock face.

Darkness poured through it.

A voice echoed through the tower.

“Give me the girl.”

Aiko stepped behind Ren.

Sora raised her camera.

“Who are you?”

The voice laughed.

“You don’t need to know.”

The tower windows shattered.

Black creatures flew inside.

They looked like birds made from smoke.

Their eyes glowed red.

Sora screamed.

“What are those?”

“Nightmares,” Aiko whispered.

The creatures attacked.

Ren raised his hands instinctively.

Nothing happened.

Aiko grabbed his wrist.

“Draw.”

“What?”

“Draw!”

Ren pulled out his pencil.

He opened his sketchbook.

His hand moved faster than his mind.

He drew a sword.

The moment the final line appeared—

FLASH!

The drawing came alive.

A glowing blue sword fell from the page into his hands.

Ren stared.

“I did that?”

Aiko smiled.

“You finally remembered.”

A nightmare lunged.

Ren swung the sword.

SLASH!

Blue light cut through the creature.

It exploded into black smoke.

Sora stared.

“Since when can you do that?”

Ren looked at the sword.

“I don’t know!”

More creatures attacked.

Sora raised her camera.

CLICK!

A blue flash exploded from the lens.

Three nightmares froze in midair.

Ren destroyed them.

Aiko lifted her bottle.

Golden light filled the room.

The remaining creatures screamed and disappeared.

Silence returned.

Then—

CLAP.

Someone applauded.

Slowly.

From the shadows.

A tall man stepped into the room.

Black coat.

Red eyes.

Silver crown.

His face was young.

Too young.

He smiled.

“Well done.”

Aiko stepped backward.

“Crimson King.”

The man bowed.

“Princess Aiko.”

Ren looked at her.

“Princess?”

Aiko said nothing.

The Crimson King looked at Ren.

“So this is the artist.”

Ren tightened his grip on the sword.

“Stay away from her.”

The King laughed.

“You don’t even know what she is.”

Ren stepped forward.

“I don’t care.”

The King smiled.

“You will.”

He raised one hand.

The entire clock tower began shaking.

The glass bottle in Aiko’s hand cracked.

A tiny ray of sunlight escaped.

The King looked at it.

“Give me the sunset.”

Aiko shook her head.

“No.”

“Then I’ll take it.”

Dark energy filled the room.

Aiko grabbed Ren’s hand.

“Jump!”

“What?”

She pulled him toward the broken window.

Sora followed.

All three jumped.

Ren screamed.

They fell from the clock tower.

Wind rushed around them.

The city blurred below.

Then Aiko opened her hand.

Golden light exploded.

A giant pair of glowing wings appeared behind her.

She caught both Ren and Sora.

They flew above the city.

Ren stared at her in shock.

“You have wings?”

Aiko smiled.

“Sometimes.”

Behind them, the clock tower exploded.

The Crimson King’s voice echoed across the sky.

“Run if you want.”

The city below began turning black.

“The last sunset belongs to me.”

Aiko looked at Ren.

Her expression was suddenly serious.

“We have seven days.”

“Seven days for what?”

She pointed toward the horizon.

For the first time in a week, a tiny golden line appeared beneath the clouds.

The last sunset.

Aiko whispered:

“To save tomorrow.”

Ren looked at her.

Then at Sora.

Then at the dying sunlight.

And somewhere deep inside his heart, something awakened.

A symbol appeared on his palm.

A golden star.

But beneath it was something else.

A tiny black crown.

Aiko saw it.

Her face turned pale.

“Ren…”

“What?”

She whispered:

“You’re not the person I thought you were.”

The sky suddenly cracked open.

And something enormous looked down at them from beyond the clouds.

TO BE CONTINUED