At the encouragement of childhood friend Kida Masaomi, Ryugamine Mikado leaves his hometown to attend Raira Academy in Ikebukuro, Tokyo. On the day he arrives in Tokyo, full of excitement, he witnesses the “Headless Rider”, an urban legend of a phantom motorcyclist, riding away in a black motorcycle at high speed. Revolving around Mikado, Kida, the students at Raira Academy, and the colorful personalities of bodyguard Heiwajima Shizuo and informant Orihara Izaya, this is a fantasy violence drama set in Ikebukuro.