Hunters venture into the ruins of a long-dead civilization at the request of corporate city-states that profit from its debris. Hidden within the decay are potent artifacts of ancient technology, surpassing anything the corporations can create. For a select few successful hunters, the quest for these relics is a path to immense wealth. For the majority, it is a quick route to death by mutant bioweapons and robotic sentinels. And for those stuck at the bottom of society, it is the only escape. Akira is uneducated, underfed, and unprotected—just another homeless kid in the sprawling slums between the walls of Kugamayama City and the deadly wastelands surrounding it. Relic hunting offers his only hope of clawing his way to a better life outside the slums. But his first, desperate foray into the ruins threatens to end his brief life—until he meets a mysterious, incorporeal woman named Alpha.