The wind was stronger up here.

Ren stood at the edge of the rooftop, hands in his pockets, staring at the endless cityscape of Academy City. The lights stretched in every direction, glowing like tiny stars trapped below the sky. Buildings, streets, distant highways—all of it felt so far away, yet right beneath his feet.

He exhaled.

Level 3.

That's all he was. That's all he'd ever be. At least, that's what the researchers told him.

"Your ability has stabilized. Given current data, we estimate further growth is unlikely."

Translation? This is your limit.

His fingers twitched. Gravity. That was his power. He could push, pull, crush—move objects like a force of nature. But no matter what he tried, no matter how hard he trained… he couldn't lift himself.

He was like an anchor—able to pull the world around him but never float himself.

Ren closed his eyes, letting the night air wash over him. Maybe they were right. Maybe he was just—

Then something slammed into his shoulder.

Ren stumbled, heart lurching as a small figure nearly tumbled off the roof's edge.

A shadow.

A weightless figure.

Before his brain could fully register what was happening—

Someone dropped right past him.

"—The hell?!"

Someone fell from the sky...?

His instincts kicked in. Without thinking, he lunged forward, grabbed a wrist, and yanked—

For a brief second, everything froze.

His pulse pounded in his ears. His grip was tight around her wrist, holding her weight effortlessly in place. She dangled off the rooftop, her cloak billowing, moonlight casting a soft glow over her pale skin.

And then—

She laughed.

Not the hysterical, panicked kind. Not the "I just saw my life flash before my eyes" kind.

No. It was breezy. Carefree. Like she had just tripped over a sidewalk crack.

"Oh. You caught me!"

Ren blinked. Stared.

"...What."

She flashed him a grin. "That was fast. Reflexes and power control? Not bad, not bad."

"...What."

"Though, uh, if you don't mind—mind pulling me up?"

Ren didn't move right away. He was still stuck processing the fact that this girl—who he had never seen before—had dropped off a building with all the urgency of someone stepping off a sidewalk.

But finally, he sighed, bracing himself as he pulled her up in one smooth motion.

She landed lightly on the rooftop, dusted off her cloak, then beamed at him. "Thanks! Would've been a pain climbing back up."

Ren stared. "Climbing back—You—What—" He ran a hand down his face. "Are you an idiot?"

She pouted. "Hey, rude."

"You jumped."

"Mhm."

"Off a building."

"Mhm."

"And you're acting like I just stopped you from dropping your ice cream."

She giggled. "Well, yeah. If you hadn't caught me, it would've been a real hassle getting back up."

Ren opened his mouth. Closed it. Opened it again.

"...You're insane."

"Mm. Debatable!" She plopped down, sitting cross-legged on the rooftop like she owned the place. "But what about you?"

Ren narrowed his eyes. "What about me?"

She gestured vaguely at him. She rocked on her heels, hands behind her back. "You've been standing up here all night, staring at the city." She tilted her head. "Were you thinking about falling too?"

He scoffed. "And if I do?"

"Then you should spill~"

"Pass."

She gasped. "You wound me."

"Pretty sure you just dropped off a sky and didn't even flinch. You'll survive."

She grinned. "Still. You do look kinda sad, y'know?"

Ren didn't answer right away. Instead, he shifted his gaze back to the city.

"Why do you care, it's not like we're friends or something"

"Oh boy" she smirked "you're thinking it that way? Alright then, you just saved my life so I owe you an ear"

"Just shut up and go away" he gave her annoyed look.

"Believe me...I do wanna, but leaving a young depressed child like you on rooftop alone doesn't feel right."

Ren didn't answer right away, instead he turned his gaze back to the city "...Ever felt like you're stuck?"

She blinked. "Huh?"

He leaned back, resting his hands behind him.

"I Feel like I'm stuck in the mud, y'know? No matter what I do, I just sink deeper."

The girl tilted her head, as if turning the words over in her mind.

"Should I just sit here and let it swallow me?"

She was quiet for a second. "No. You spread your weight, move slow, find something solid to hold onto. Life's the same way—you gotta stop panicking and look for steady ground."

he muttered, "Easier said than done." But her words struck something in his chest.

"Yeah, but drowning in mud just 'cause it's hard to get out? That's on you."

"What if you're on your limits?"

"She smiled. "sometimes, limits are only real because we believe in them."

Ren didn't respond.

Because, for some reason, he felt like this girl—this weird, reckless girl—wasn't just throwing out random words.

She actually meant them.

And that unsettled him.

She suddenly held out her hands. "Hey. Trust me for a second."

Ren eyed her warily. "...Why?"

"Because I wanna prove a point~"

Before he could argue, she grabbed his wrists—

—and jumped off the building.

They plummeted.

The wind roared past his ears. His stomach lurched. Instinctively, he started shifting his gravitational field—

But then he realized.

They weren't falling.

Or rather—they weren't falling the way they should.

They were floating.

The girl's cloak billowed as she hovered effortlessly in midair, grinning at him.

Ren's breath caught. "What—"

She chuckled. "Told you. I wasn't gonna die from a fall like that."

Ren swallowed, staring at her, his brain piecing things together. The unnatural paleness. The inhuman crimson eyes. The way she moved—like gravity didn't apply to her at all.

"...What are you?" he asked slowly.

She smiled—fangs glinting under the moonlight.

"A vampire."