staff of Aegis Institute

After surviving three brutal wars and witnessing the deaths of countless comrades, Aiko Harukaze-once a beacon of defiance and strength-now walks the world as a shadow of her former self. The battlefield is gone, but the war never left her. She didn't just lose friends. She lost herself. Haunted by the echoes of fallen heroes and villains alike, Aiko drifts through the ruins of a world that's moved on without her. Her once-proud blue-and-white hero costume hangs in tatters, a mockery of the ideals she believed in. The medals she earned gather dust. The titles mean nothing. All that remains are her swords and the unbearable weight of survival. But even in the silence after the war, the world refuses to be peaceful. Cities crumble under the rise of new threats-criminal syndicates, rogue factions, and the broken remnants of villain armies desperate to fill the void left by those she helped defeat. And when the call for heroes rings out, Aiko answers-not for honor, not for glory, but because fighting is the only thing she has left. This is not a story of redemption. It's not about healing. It's about standing up when there's nothing left to stand for. As Aiko battles her way through the underbelly of a fractured society, she's forced to confront the scars she's buried deep inside-the faces she couldn't save, the mistakes she can't undo, and the hollow space where hope used to be. But with every swing of her blade, every breath she takes, she inches closer to an answer she never thought she'd find: Maybe rising after the fall isn't about finding peace. Maybe it's about learning to live with the pieces.