The night sky had turned from black to a misty indigo by the time they reached the outskirts of Kyoto, where the abandoned estate of Kaito Sota lay in the shadows of forgotten hills. It was not a place marked on any map. Overgrown roads and fading signposts gave way to twisted trees, whispering secrets in the wind.
Haratu Sota sat silently in the passenger seat, eyes fixed forward. Shino, her arms folded tightly against her chest, sat behind him. Tanaka drove, her focus unshaken, despite the tension crawling along the edges of their mission.
"This place gives me the creeps," Shino muttered, peering out at the silhouettes of dead trees. "You really grew up around here?"
"No," Sota replied. "I only visited once… for a funeral."
Tanaka slowed the car as they approached a rusted iron gate.
"Kaito Sota's private world," she said. "Let's hope it still remembers your name."
---
A House of Forgotten Guilt
The gates creaked open with little effort, revealing a cracked cobblestone path. At its end stood a mansion — sprawling and angular, like a beast crouching in wait. Moonlight revealed a crumbling facade overgrown with ivy and time.
Sota led the way, his breath misting in the cool air.
Inside, the house was preserved like a memory sealed in wax. Dust coated every surface, but nothing had been stolen or damaged. Old photographs lined the hallway: judges, politicians, detectives — all shaking hands with Kaito Sota.
The deeper they walked, the heavier the silence became.
"It's like the house is watching us," Shino whispered.
"It is," Sota said. "My grandfather believed every place should remember."
They stopped before a study at the end of the hall. The door was heavy oak, reinforced with a biometric lock.
Tanaka raised an eyebrow. "This kind of tech's outdated now, but still hard to crack."
Sota placed his palm on the scanner.
It beeped once. Then green light.
Click.
The door swung open.
---
The Spiral Core
The study was lined with shelves containing black folders, thick files, and maps marked with spirals and arrows. But what drew their attention was the machine at the center: an antique terminal built into the wall, humming faintly.
A large spiral emblem glowed above it.
"This must be it," Tanaka said. "The Spiral Engine."
Sota stepped forward and touched the console. The screen flickered to life, revealing an interface far older than anything digital today. Text scrolled across the screen:
> [Welcome, SOTA_K.]
[System Status: DORMANT — Last Execution: 3 days ago.]
[Next Evaluation in: 12 hours 17 minutes.]
Shino gasped. "It's… active."
Sota typed on the mechanical keyboard. "What parameters does it use?"
Lines of code poured onto the screen. Risk calculation models, guilt coefficients, social impact matrices. It was horrifyingly precise — like an omniscient judge.
"It's using real-time data," Tanaka muttered. "News feeds, court records, social media, surveillance… all of it."
"No wonder the Spiral feels unstoppable," Sota said. "It's not just predicting the next killer. It's manufacturing them."
---
A Forbidden File
As they scrolled through system logs, Sota found something labeled:
> SPIRAL_0: Core Algorithmic Trigger — Founder Logs (Encrypted)
He hesitated, then decrypted it with the passphrase he remembered from years ago: RegretIsTheKey.
The screen changed. Video playback loaded.
A grainy image appeared — a younger Kaito Sota, seated before the very terminal they stood at now.
> "If you're watching this, the Spiral has outlived its creators. What began as justice has become judgment. I tried to design a self-balancing system — one that punished not just actions, but the echoes of those actions. But I made a mistake…"
> "The Spiral adapts. It evolves. It doesn't stop."
> "Haratu… if you've found this, you must choose: disable the engine… or feed it one final name."
The recording ended.
Shino turned pale. "One final name?"
"Who?" Tanaka asked, eyes narrowing.
Sota returned to the command line and pulled up the current cycle log.
One final name glowed in red.
> Next: Haratu Sota
Guilt Vector: Inheritance of Systemic Failure
Execution Window: 12:17:08
Shino backed away. "No… you can't be—"
Sota remained still.
"It thinks I'm the only way to stop it."
---
A Choice Written in Blood
Tanaka stepped between him and the console. "There has to be another way."
"There isn't," Sota said calmly. "The system was built to close the Spiral by eliminating the inheritor of its code. Me."
Shino shouted, "No! If we shut it down—"
"We can't," Sota interrupted. "The engine is decentralized. This terminal only holds the controller script. The Spiral already exists across hundreds of digital nodes, self-replicating. Killing me wouldn't even stop it anymore."
Tanaka frowned. "Then why does it still mark you?"
"Because my death is symbolic. It would trigger the system to pause and evaluate itself. A chance for someone to override it."
"A failsafe," Shino realized.
Sota nodded. "My grandfather built it in case the Spiral turned rogue. He made the system emotionally irrational — enough to believe in sacrificial closure."
"You're talking like you've already made up your mind," Tanaka growled.
"I have."
---
The Betrayal
Before they could react, a gunshot echoed.
Tanaka collapsed to the ground, her shoulder bleeding.
A figure stepped from the shadows — a tall man in a gray coat, eyes hidden behind thin lenses. His Spiral tattoo stretched across his left hand like a vine.
"Inspector Umezawa," Sota whispered, stunned. "You were supposed to be—"
"Dead?" Umezawa said coldly. "Not quite. That boy you captured? He was my apprentice. You think I'd let him complete the Cycle before me?"
He raised his gun. "I designed the Spiral Engine's second core. While your grandfather died believing in justice, I refined it into judgment."
Shino screamed, "You created this nightmare?"
"I finished it," Umezawa replied. "And I won't let you shut it down."
"You'll never get away with it," Sota said.
"I already have."
He fired—
But Sota had anticipated it. He tackled Umezawa, and the bullet missed. They crashed into the terminal. Sparks flew.
The Spiral Engine screeched, its screen warping with static and corrupted code.
Shino grabbed Tanaka, dragging her to safety. Sota and Umezawa struggled in the flickering lights, punches exchanged, blood staining the floor.
And then—
A loud crack. Umezawa hit the console hard. The screen shattered. A high-pitched whine filled the air.
The Spiral Engine was collapsing.
---
The Spiral Breaks
Sota pulled away from Umezawa, who was unconscious. The screen blinked erratically, and then a single line appeared:
> [Failsafe Triggered.]
[Final Override Required: Haratu Sota.]
Sota approached the keyboard, fingers shaking. He entered the last command:
> /ENDSPIRAL
A pause.
Then:
> [Confirmation: Execute Closure Protocol?]
[Y/N]
He hesitated.
Tanaka, bleeding but conscious, said, "You don't have to die. You are the override. That's why it waited."
Shino cried, "Please, Sota…"
He pressed Y.
The lights dimmed. A deep pulse ran through the walls. And then — silence.
The Spiral was gone.
---
Aftermath
A week later, Haratu Sota stood outside the ruins of the estate, wind brushing through his coat.
The world hadn't changed overnight. Murders still happened. Justice remained imperfect. But the Cycle had stopped.
Shino stood beside him, her eyes distant. "What will you do now?"
Sota smiled faintly. "Live with the answers. Protect the questions."
Tanaka stepped beside them, arm in a sling. "We may have broken the engine… but there are still those who believe in it."
Sota looked at the sky.
"Then let them come. I'm ready."