The land that had lost its seasons was cruelly cold. For months now, the world had been trapped in a severe frost, unable to cross the threshold of spring. People said the order of the seasons had gone awry because the 'Plum Blossom' and the 'Bush Warbler,' who were supposed to wake this year's spring, could not find each other. In the center of a winter that felt eternal, Shuichi Saihara stood alone in the falling snow. Pure white snowflakes settled atop his cool black hair. A pure and chilly fragrance wafted faintly only around his body. Shuichi was a 'Plum Blossom Hain' who had to bloom alone in this desolate winter land. However, no matter how nobly he burst his red buds, the warmth to melt the world did not come. It was because there was no 'bird' to find him—no true song to break the frozen world.

As Shuichi let out a shallow sigh, his white breath scattered into the air. If no one came like this, he would wither away alone in this cold solitude. It was at that moment, just as he was about to slowly close his eyes against the crushing loneliness. Rustle—. Breaking the thin-ice silence, the bare branches above his head shook lightly. Landing on the snow-covered branch was a strange boy who had flown in on the wind without making a sound.

A clear voice full of mischief echoed through the air. As Shuichi looked up in surprise, his eyes met Kokichi Oma's, who was perched precariously on a branch with his purple hair fluttering. Behind the boy, the phantom of a spirit bird with purple feathers—a Bush Warbler—shimmered and rose like a heat haze.