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Shinrei Tantei Yakumo Another Files - The Dead’s Wish - file 01

Shinrei Tantei Yakumo novel translation

Another Files - The Dead’s Wish

file 01 - sightings at the theatre

Moonlight shone across the sky—

With its reddish hue, the semicircle moon stood out amidst the nighttime sky. Lines of clouds formed on its surroundings, giving it the impression of a human eye.

Hirose Umi walked towards the auditorium, her body trembling against gusts of dry wind as she carried a cardboard box filled with costumes.

The campus festival was approaching soon, and the theatre circle Umi was in would be performing a stage play at the auditorium.

All this time they had only been rehearsing using the cramped clubroom, but starting the day after tomorrow, they would begin the dress rehearsal at the auditorium where their actual performance would take place.

She was excited to rehearse just like how the real performance would play out. However, as they were running short of time and manpower to transport all the costumes, props, and other items, they had to do it that day until late into the night.

“Ugh, why didn’t they just have the first years do this kind of thing?” complained Eriko, who walked alongside Umi.

“There’s no helping it. We don’t have enough people,” scolded Umi.

Even so, Eriko’s displeasure didn’t subside. “In that case, Tomoko should’ve helped out as well. Not to mention that she’s a first year student. She’s getting cocky just because she landed the female lead role.”

“I’ll listen to your complaints once our work here is done.”

“Umi, you’re fine about the whole thing?”

“About what?”

“Well, isn’t it odd?”

“What are you referring to, exactly?”

“To me, you should have gotten that lead role.”

“No. It was Chairperson Kurokawa-san who decided upon that...”

“That’s where the problem is.”

“Why?” Umi asked, although she already knew.

“Those two are dating, right? It’s possible she was given the lead role because of their relationship.”

“Kurokawa-san isn’t the type of person that would let his personal life interfere with his work...” said Umi with a smile, fully aware that her words came out awkwardly.

Nevertheless, a stage play wasn’t performed solely by the lead role. She knew that all the roles that make up a performance each have an important part to play.

Even so, Tomoko, who was chosen as the lead role, was the lover of Kurokawa, the producer behind this entire performance. So, a part of her couldn’t help but feel suspicious.

And she hated the part of her that felt that way.

“Anyway, let’s carry the items quickly,” said Umi with a sigh whilst stepping into the auditorium.

They went past the main entrance and walked further inside. A narrow corridor lit by bluish-white fluorescent light extended ahead of them.

Umi momentarily held her breath.

For some reason, she had always found the auditorium corridor to be mildly terrifying. Aside from the lack of lighting that made the corridor dim, a musty smell seemed to have been ingrained here.

Despite that, she couldn’t just stand staring into space at this kind of place. Slowly, she walked across the corridor.

“Also, why did they even go out of their way to choose this ill-boding manuscript?” blurted Eriko as she followed Umi.

“Ill-boding?” Umi asked back as she slowed down her pace to match with Eriko’s.

“You should’ve heard, right? About the cursed manuscript—”

“Ahh...” Umi faintly responded.

At this campus festival, they were going to perform a play called The Tower of Judgement. It was said that the manuscript had been written by a member of the theatre circle about ten years ago.

It told the love-hate story of a man and a woman adapted from Shakespeare’s Hamlet.

If that were only the case, no one would pay it any mind; the trouble began in the story behind the script.

The person who had written the script was called Suzuki, and he had died before he had ever managed to see his work being performed. At the time, lighting equipment had fallen and hit his head when the theatre circle had been doing their dress rehearsal at the auditorium.

In the end, that performance had been cancelled.

Since then, there had been a few attempts to perform the script, but various problems had always emerged, such as the lead role getting injured or the stage being damaged, and so no one had successfully performed it to this day.

That was why, The Tower of Judgement was dubbed a cursed manuscript among the theatre circle members.

“Even though they didn’t have to use a cursed manuscript from ten years ago…” said Eriko, pouting.

“But the manuscript is good.”

Umi’s opinion was genuine.

Upon reading the manuscript for the first time, the hairs on her body stood up at how touching the work had been.

Her first impression on the work had been the reason why she had wanted the lead role. And perhaps that had made her feel a little jealous towards Tomoko.

Umi sighed. After placing the box on the floor, she turned the handle of the metal door at the end of the corridor.

With a clack, the door opened.

Behind the door was the backstage; pitch darkness enveloped the area.

She flicked the switch at the wall. But for some reason, the lights didn’t turn on.

Thanks to Eriko saying strange things earlier, she had an ominous feeling.

Well, there was no use in worrying about such minor details. She merely came here to place the box backstage. The light from the corridor should be enough.

“Aah!”

Eriko suddenly screamed and dropped her box.

“What’s wrong?”

“Didn’t you hear that?”

“Hear what?”

“A voice—”

“Eh?”

“A man’s voice, he said, ‘I’m going to kill’...” said Eriko with a stiff expression.

Umi listened intently. She could hear the groaning sound of the air vents, but that was all.

“Are you sure you didn’t mishear?”

“No. I really did hear it. Seriously.”

Umi thought her friend was joking at first, but Eriko’s expression was too serious for that.

“But—” said Umi before her voice was drowned by a scream coming from Eriko.

Eriko fell sitting down, trembling, and turned to Umi with a horrified look.

“What is it?”

“Just now…I saw it...”

“What did you see?”

“A man, o-over there…” Eriko pointed towards the inner part of the backstage area.

With fear, Umi hesitantly turned around. There was no one there. It was not possible for anyone to be there. Eriko was probably just nervous.

“There’s nothing,” said Umi, trying to sound cheerful.

But Eriko refused to listen.

“I’m sure there was someone...”

“There isn’t.”

“Don’t tell me…this is the curse of that manuscript.”

“There’s no way.”

“I can’t take it anymore!”

Eriko covered both of her ears with her hands and refused to budge as her body became stiff.

Like this, it was difficult to force her to come along. Umi had no choice but to go back and forth to carry Eriko’s share of boxes as well.

“Wait here for a while, okay?” said Umi to Eriko, before carrying the box inside.

As Umi carried the box further in, there was a thud.

At that moment, the backstage became enshrouded in complete darkness. The metal door was closed, so the light from the corridor could no longer enter.

Perhaps Eriko was actually trying to scare her.

“Eriko! Stop joking, hey!” Umi yelled, but there was no response from Eriko.

“Hey! Stop it already!”

Umi placed the box where she stood and began feeling around for the door handle.

Unfortunately, the intense darkness left her struggling to find it.

“Eriko! Open up!” She called with all her strength, but as expected, there was no answer.

Out of fear, tears began to flow from Umi’s eyes. This was going overboard for a prank.

“I’m serious, please, stop it...” she pleaded as she heard the sound of something being dropped.

Her shoulders shook, startled.

The noise didn’t come from the direction of the door. It clearly came from the direction of the stage.

A man, o-over there…

Eriko’s words earlier flashed through her mind.

She didn’t want to look. No. Even though she didn’t want to, as if pulled by an unstoppable force, her face turned towards the stage.

Over there was—

A black figure.

At first she thought it might be Eriko, but it wasn’t. The face couldn’t be seen clearly, but judging by the build, there was no mistaking that it had to be the figure of a man.

“W-what on earth...”

Umi stepped backwards.

As she did, her foot tripped on something and she fell sitting in place.

Upon lifting her face as she held back the pain, Umi’s breath suddenly choked.

The black figure had already been right in front of her eyes for an unknown amount of time. A pair of blood red eyes stared directly at Umi.

Umi screamed, and she lost consciousness soon after.

After her class had ended, Ozawa Haruka briskly walked past the back of building B.

A dry gust of wind caressed her cheek. As it was the middle of autumn, she felt the air getting colder, yet pleasant.

With the campus festival approaching soon, tents were starting to be propped up and each of the clubs were starting their own preparations.

Haruka, too, was going to perform in her orchestra circle’s recital and was supposed to be in the rehearsal now, but today she had asked to skip.

There was a problem that she had to settle.

Haruka arrived in front of the two-storey prefabricated building, before opening the clubroom door at the very end of the first floor. A door with a plate that read <Movie Research Circle> stood ahead of her.

“Hey.”

Inside the room was a table and a few chairs, as well as a fridge and a sleeping bag. Rather than a clubroom, the place gave more of the impression of someone’s personal room.

The Movie Research Circle was in fact nothing more than a name, and a university student—quite literally—lived here.

Said student submitted the bare minimum documents to the student affairs office and squatted here, turning this room into his private living quarters.

“Oh, it’s you—” spoke the owner of the room—Saitou Yakumo—sitting on his chair devoid of energy.

As usual, he was dressed minimally with a white shirt and jeans. He had a well-defined face, but his hair was messy and gave off a sloppy impression.

Also, while he was concealing it with a black contact lens, Yakumo’s left eye was actually a bright shade of red.

That wasn’t all. His red eye had the ability to see the spirits of the dead.

With that ability, he had managed to solve various spiritual cases.

Haruka too had met Yakumo through a spiritual case. Back then, Yakumo had not only uncovered the reason why the spirit had lingered in this world, he had even revealed an undiscovered murder case.

Since then, Haruka had gotten involved in a number of cases with Yakumo.

“What kind of response was that? Even though I took the time to visit,” said Haruka.

Yakumo lifted his head slightly. “Did I ever ask you to visit? If you don’t like it, please leave.”

With his long, slender finger, Yakumo pointed at the door.

His manner of speech was irritating, but if she were to be offended by trivial things like this, Haruka wouldn’t have been able to get along with Yakumo up to this point.

Laughing bitterly, Haruka sat on a chair across from said man.

After a moment of pause, Haruka popped a question, “Hey, Yakumo-kun, are you interested in stage plays?”

That instant, Yakumo threw a disgusted look towards Haruka.

“I’ll tell you ahead of time, I refuse to handle it,” said Yakumo in an immediate rejection.

“I haven’t said anything...”

“I already knew without you having to say anything. Most likely a friend of yours from the theatre circle saw a ghost in the auditorium or something, and you’ve come to ask me for help, right?”

Haruka had long since known that Yakumo had a sharp mind. Even so, this prediction of his was way too spot on.

“Why did you think so?”

Regardless, Haruka still asked.

“You’re a simpleton, an overly simplistic one. You should be aware of that about yourself.”

“Yes, I may be a simpleton…but that doesn’t answer my question,” Haruka protested.

Yakumo let out a sigh of disbelief and said, “The reason was easy enough. Whenever you wanted to ask for some help, you’d enter the room by greeting ‘Hey’ whilst putting on an innocent look.”

“Is that so?” Haruka faintly mumbled, not that she didn’t realise that fact.

“Then, how did you know that a friend of mine from the theatre circle saw a ghost at the auditorium?”

It may have been obvious that she had been looking for help on something, but how could Yakumo have guessed it so accurately?

“Even a monkey would have known such a thing.”

“Monkey…?”

“Like this. Out of nowhere, you started a conversation on stage plays. Knowing you, I don’t think you’d be interested in watching stage plays. That’s why I deduced that there had to be a friend of yours from the theatre circle that had asked for help.”

Spelled out that way, perhaps the conversation topic really had been abrupt.

“How did you know that it was in the auditorium?”

“During campus festivals, all stage plays are performed at the auditorium, right? I figured it was about time that they started the dress rehearsals, so based on the timing, they saw a ghost at the auditorium…something like that.”

Yakumo’s logical explanation left Haruka no room to deny it.

She wasn’t sure whether she was supposed to be impressed, but if Yakumo had figured out that much, this conversation should be fast and straightforward.

“You’re right. Umi, who’s in the same seminar as me, said that she saw a ghost in the auditorium two days ago. And she said that ever since, strange events had occurred in the auditorium…If it goes on, it might interfere with the performance, so I wanted you to help her,” pleaded Haruka.

Yakumo glanced at her in rejection. “I refuse.”

“Please!” Haruka put her hands together and leaned her body forward.

“Don’t put your ugly face any closer than that.”

Why does it have to be my face that gets commented on.

“Like this, I’m a woman too, you know?”

“So what?”

“So what..? You don’t feel that your words towards me are rude?”

“I wouldn’t have said it if I felt so,” said Yakumo blatantly.

Haruka’s mood turned glum. However, she couldn’t back down just from it.

“Anyway, I want you to help.”

“Go ask someone else.”

“It can’t be anyone else but Yakumo-kun. Please—”

Haruka bowed her head deeply.

“That’s why, I already said that I refuse.”

“Why…? Even though I’ve already accepted her request…”

“That’s precisely why I called you a troublemaker. You make promises easily without thinking them through.”

“But I can’t just let her be.”

“Just dump that self-sacrificial mentality into the trash can.”

Yakumo swayed his hand as if swatting away a fly.

Seeing his attitude, Haruka exclaimed, “Oh, right.”

“It’s not much, but there’s a reward this time. Since if this goes on, Umi won’t be able to join the performance,” she said, and Yakumo lifted his left eyebrow.

When she finally thought that Yakumo had bought her story, her hope soon vanished.

“So, you picked up some trouble because you were blinded by money?”

Yakumo threw a cold gaze at Haruka.

“It’s not like that.”

“But you just said that there was a reward involved. Turns out you’re pretty calculative yourself.”

“Isn’t it you that’s aaaalways interested in money!?” said Haruka in an angry, high-pitched tone.

Yakumo had treated her as if she were a slave for money.

“Don’t get worked up.”

“I’m not worked up. I won’t ask for your help anymore. Thanks.”

Haruka stood up whilst slamming both of her hands on the table before walking towards the door.

She felt bad for having to take back her promise with her friend, but since Yakumo had no intention of helping, there was nothing she could do.

Haruka desperately wanted to do something. But alas, Haruka couldn’t see the spirits of the dead the way Yakumo did.

Whilst she had gotten carried away by her emotion and said she would never ask Yakumo’s help anymore, it was true that Haruka couldn’t do anything by herself.

“So, how much was the reward?”

Reacting towards Yakumo’s voice, Haruka turned.

Whether he had gotten blinded by the reward or he had pitied Haruka, it seemed that Yakumo was finally willing to get involved.

Together with Yakumo, Haruka went to the auditorium.

As she walked, a question emerged in her mind.

“Hey, Yakumo-kun,” she called.

Yakumo briefly replied, “What?”

“Don’t you think this case is a little strange?”

Before they had left the Movie Research Circle clubroom, she had explained the outline of the case to Yakumo.

According to Umi—the person in need of assistance—the spiritual phenomenon had been caused by a cursed manuscript.

Umi was deeply concerned that if they insisted on performing it at this state, somebody would become a victim.

“What’s strange about it?”

“Well…I’ve never heard of a manuscript being cursed...” said Haruka.

Yakumo immediately did an exaggerated sigh, purposefully so that Haruka would see.

“You knew that the story was suspicious, yet you easily agreed to help anyway?”

“I didn’t say that. I’m just curious if such cases really existed,” emphasised Haruka.

“Hm,” Yakumo hummed whilst touching his sharp chin. “not that there was never any.”

“Eh?”

“If I’m not wrong, it used to be called tsukumogami.”

“Tsukumogami?” Haruka heard about the term before, but not the details.

“A god or a spirit that occupies an object.”

“So, this time there’s a ghost possessing a manuscript—”

“Your stupidity really is beyond saving,” said Yakumo interrupting Haruka’s sentence.

She didn’t recall saying something so strange to warrant being called stupid.

“Well, because you said something like that.”

“That’s why I said you’re stupid. I merely said such cases did exist. I never said that it applies to this case.”

Yakumo was right.

If they were to assume things without knowing anything, they would easily miss the truth behind the case. Yakumo often said that.

However, Haruka couldn’t easily agree.

“That’s true, but people have been able to attribute their experiences to it. Apparently all this time, whenever they tried to perform the manuscript, all sorts of misfortune occurred...”

“Have you confirmed it?”

“Eh?”

“I’m asking whether you’ve confirmed when the manuscript was attempted to be performed, and what incidents actually happened?”

“About that...”

“You wouldn’t be able to see the truth if you swallowed the rumours. Besides, such kinds of rumours must have been exaggerated over time.”

Precisely.

Haruka’s argument was completely annihilated. When it came to conversations, she just couldn’t win against Yakumo. As she walked lethargically, the auditorium came into sight before she knew it.

“This auditorium was used during the university entrance ceremony, right?” said Haruka as she jogged her memory.

The university entrance ceremony had been held at the auditorium. Haruka recalled being tense as she participated in the ceremony; enthusiasm mixed with anxiety had been wallowing within her at the time.

“I think so, yes,” nodded Yakumo.

Now that she thought about it, Yakumo must have been in the same auditorium to attend the university entrance ceremony. Perhaps they had even crossed paths.

Haruka felt giddy at the thought for some reason.

But now was not the time to daydream. There was something else that caught her attention.

“Did you see any ghosts during the entrance ceremony?”

“No,” Yakumo shook his head.

“So there aren’t any ghosts in the auditorium?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo ruffled his already tousled hair as he yawned. “I never said that.”

“But...”

“Perhaps the ghost only appeared after the entrance ceremony. Also, ghosts don’t always stay in the same place.”

“Ah, is that so…”

Yakumo was right.

There were many possibilities. While he hadn’t seen a ghost in the auditorium during the university entrance ceremony, they couldn’t immediately conclude that there weren’t any ghosts there.

“Besides, I didn’t attend the university entrance ceremony,” added Yakumo.

“Eh? Why?”

“Obviously because it’s troublesome.”

As she had imagined that they had come across each other at that time, Haruka felt disappointed.

Well, Yakumo had always been like this. He went by his own flow and disliked things that were inefficient or unnecessary. Even when it came to studying, he merely attended class as needed and required in order to pass, and went about as he pleased the rest of the time.

While Haruka was lost in thought, they had soon reached the front of the auditorium.

“Haruka—”

A student ran to approach Haruka.

It was Umi. She had a well-defined and elegant face profile; fitting for a theatre circle member.

“Sorry, I’m a little late.”

“No problem.”

“Ah, this is Saitou Yakumo. He’s knowledgeable about supernatural things—” said Haruka to introduce.

Yakumo nodded lightly. “Hello.”

He gave off a friendlier impression than usual. Was it because he was blinded by the reward, or because Umi was pretty?

After introducing themselves, Umi politely bowed her head. “I’ll leave it to you.”

Umi’s anxiousness only further emphasised her usual charm. Almost as if she awakened other people’s inclination to protect her.

Haruka’s thoughts ended up wandering further to unrelated things: if only she could genuinely show her vulnerable sides like this, perhaps her distance with Yakumo could grow closer—

“So, where did the ghost appear?” said Yakumo, casually bringing up the main topic at hand.

“Over here.”

Umi led the two of them. Together, Haruka and Yakumo stepped foot into the auditorium.

In the entrance hall of the auditorium, a number of students were busy going about as they rushed for event preparations.

“Umi-chan—” called a male student wearing a tracksuit whilst waving his hand.

“Nagami-san,” replied Umi with a little smile.

“You look unwell, are you alright?” asked the student as he observed Umi’s face.

“Yes. I’m fine.”

“Don’t tell me you’re still anxious because of that thing?”

“No, it’s not like that…”

“If you have any troubles, I’m always here to listen. No need to hesitate to tell me about it,” said the student, patting Umi’s shoulder before walking away.

“Who was that?” asked Haruka as she watched his back leave.

“Nagami-san. He plays the role of my lover in this performance,” answered Umi.

“What did he mean by that thing?”

From their conversation earlier, that point had made Haruka curious.

“Nothing important. A while ago, there was a time when I felt like someone had been following me and I told him about it…”

Umi’s face turned sour.

Regardless of the actual details of the situation, it seemed that Umi regretted telling the matter to Nagami.

Perhaps it had something to do with the case. Haruka turned towards Yakumo. However, Yakumo didn’t seem to care and went back to asking, “So, where was it?”

“It’s this way.”

Umi ushered them over to the beginning of a corridor.

“Over there—” she said weakly as she pointed towards the corridor that extended straight ahead.

The corridor expanded along the side of the hall. Due to the lack of windows, the atmosphere inside the corridor appeared dimly lit even during daytime.

“You saw the ghost in this corridor?” asked Haruka.

Umi shook her head. “See the metal door at the end of this corridor?” said Umi pointing at the opposite end of the corridor.

As Umi had mentioned, Haruka could see a grey metal door at the end of the gloomy corridor.

“Yes.”

“Behind that door is the backstage area…I saw it there…”

Not only did the tone of her voice rise, her fragile looking shoulders trembled slightly. She must have been recalling the night when the incident had happened.

The feel of her unwillingness to walk across that corridor was clearly displayed.

“In that case, quickly lead us there,” Yakumo said straightforwardly.

Umi immediately jumped and blurted, “Eh? No…I…”

Umi’s head hung listlessly.

“Are you alright?” asked Haruka, glancing at Umi’s face who shook her head weakly.

Umi also played a role in this performance as a significant supporting cast. Once the performance began, she would have no choice but to enter the backstage area. In her current state, she wouldn’t be able to stand on the stage.

“Good grief...” mumbled Yakumo who then walked into the corridor, discarding the idea of Umi ushering the two of them.

After saying “Wait a moment, okay?” to Umi, Haruka chased Yakumo’s back.

The walls of the corridor were filthy and atop of being narrow, very little light shone in, resulting in a terrifying atmosphere.

“This feels creepy,” said Haruka.

Yakumo snorted. “You feel that way because you knew a ghost had appeared.”

“But, doesn’t this corridor feel a little too dark?”

“Corridors in auditoriums and halls are mostly like this, aren’t they,” said Yakumo nonchalantly. He then walked across the corridor with no hesitation.

Putting it that way, perhaps it was true. Corridors of halls or auditoriums that Haruka had gone through during her orchestra club’s recitals in the past had mostly been similar to this one.

Firming her resolve, Haruka continued going after Yakumo’s back.

“It’s here, huh—”

Yakumo halted his steps in front of the metal door at the end of the corridor.

The grey covered door appeared heavy; perhaps it also had a soundproof purpose.

As Yakumo casually reached the door handle, Haruka spoke, “Wait a minute.”

“Why?” said Yakumo with a blatantly annoyed expression.

“Is it really alright?”

“What is?”

“Because…the ghost appeared behind this door, right?”

Perhaps the ghost would suddenly jump out as soon as the door was open.

“So then what?”

“Eh?”

“How can I possibly live if I get surprised each time I see a ghost,” said Yakumo as he narrowed his eyes.

“That’s true…”

Yakumo’s red left eye was always capable of seeing ghosts. Haruka recalled, Yakumo once said that ghosts exist everywhere.

To Yakumo, ghosts weren’t anything particularly special nor surprising, rather something that always were.

“Besides, we won’t find anything out just by standing here,” said Yakumo as he yawned lazily, before opening the door just like that.

Haruka glanced at the backstage area past Yakumo’s back.

A dark space akin to a large, gaping void stood ahead. Cardboard boxes, a podium, chairs, and various items were scattered messily all over the place.

Yakumo stepped into the area, casting his gaze into the surroundings.

“Do you see anything?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo narrowed his eyes. “No—”

“So there aren’t any ghosts?”

“Yes, for now—”

Yakumo had said earlier that ghosts didn’t always stay in the same place. Hence, it was too early to decide whether the spiritual phenomenon Umi had experienced had been genuine or not.

While Haruka was lost in thought, Yakumo walked towards the stage.

“Ah, wait for me.”

Haruka hurriedly followed suit.

Right now, the stage was illuminated by lights, and a number of students appeared to be arranging the appearance of the stage.

As he briefly glanced across their work, Yakumo nonchalantly walked towards the opposite wing of the stage.

“Hey, Yakumo-kun,” called Haruka.

Yakumo stopped mid-walk and turned around. “What?”

“What do you mean, what? You’ll get scolded if you carelessly walk onto the stage.”

“They seem fine with it, though?” Yakumo shrugged, before looking at the direction of the students doing their work.

Haruka turned to their direction as well. They appeared to be in the middle of building a tower-like structure.

She didn’t know what kind of story was going to be performed, so she could only imagine how this tower structure would come into play. Even so, the tower appeared to be built sturdy enough to be climbed.

“What are you two doing over there?” A sudden voice directed at her made Haruka jolt.

She turned to see a man standing there. The man had a tall figure with a green jumpsuit on. He was so skinny that his cheekbones appeared prominent, with facial hair growing around his mouth.

“No, I...”

“Sorry, we’re just looking around for a bit,” Yakumo answered effortlessly in place of Haruka’s stuttered words. Yakumo’s ability to adapt to the situation never failed to impress Haruka.

Even though he hated socialising most of the time—

“Sorry, you’re going to interfere with our work, so please step aside,” said the man.

So we got scolded, after all.

“Sorry, we’ll step aside soon...” said Yakumo before hopping down the stage. However, he suddenly turned his heel and called towards the man in the jumpsuit. “Um...”

“What?”

“Did anything strange happen whilst you guys are working here?”

Hearing Yakumo’s question, Haruka then understood.

If there had been a ghost that had appeared at the backstage area, perhaps the man in the jumpsuit had seen something as he had been working here.

“Anything strange?” the man tilted his head, answering Yakumo’s question with another question.

“Yes. Ghost sightings, for example?” asked Yakumo as he gave a judging look.

“Ahh, that? The story that Hirose has been exaggerating about lately?” said the man, scowling.

“Yes, do you know something about it?”

“Something what?”

“Have you seen any ghosts yourself?” said Yakumo.

The man burst into laughter. “Never. Hirose was probably just exhausted.”

“Was the rehearsal tough?”

“That was one of the factors…but she must have been unable to accept it...” the man narrowed his eyes as he stared into the distance.

“Unable to accept what?”

“Sorry, please ask someone else,” he replied harshly before returning to resume his work.

As they went past the audience seats and exited towards the entrance hall through the back door, they saw Umi sitting on a sofa with her head hung.

“Umi,” called Haruka, and Umi lifted her face.

Her face looked terrible.

“How was it?” asked Umi in a whimper.

Unfortunately, Haruka couldn’t give an answer. She turned towards Yakumo for help.

“Right now, there are no ghosts in the backstage area,” said Yakumo sincerely.

Umi’s expression instantly turned glum.

“I really did see it...” said Umi through rough breaths.

“I know. I’m not saying you were lying,” said Yakumo whilst ruffling his hair in annoyance.

“But…”

“I’m only saying there is currently none. Ghosts are typically bound to the place where they died or places with memories attached to them. But not always for certain. Sometimes they move places due to certain reasons.”

“Is that so?”

“Well, it’s just one possibility…”

“In that case…what should I do…?” Umi asked Yakumo, filled with anticipation.

“It’s alright, please try to calm yourself down,” said Haruka as she sat beside Umi and reached for her shoulder.

Through the palm of her hand, she could feel that Umi’s frail shoulder was trembling.

“There’s no way I can calm down. After all, I have to rehearse at that place after this...”

Haruka now understood that was why Umi had been impatient.

She had to go backstage for the rehearsal. So long as this case wasn’t over yet, Umi wouldn’t be able to stand on the stage.

“Yakumo-kun, isn’t there anything you can do?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo lightly clicked his tongue. “Easy for you to say.”

“Like this, she’s really scared...”

“I know. But there’s nothing I can do as we don’t know the situation.”

Yakumo’s argument was right.

Despite that, Haruka couldn’t leave Umi in such a state. As she emphasised that fact, Yakumo sighed in disbelief.

“I’ll do what I can. But before that, there are a few things I’d like to confirm,” said Yakumo, staring straight at Umi.

Umi held her breath, before saying in confusion, “About what?”

“Firstly, I’d like to borrow the manuscript,” said Yakumo.

Umi took out a manuscript in a blue cover from her bag and handed it towards Yakumo.

Yakumo accepted it and flipped through its pages.

“Could there be something hidden within the manuscript?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo threw a disgusted look. “Don’t make me repeat the same thing over and over again.”

“Eh?”

“You always see past the truth because you easily jump to conclusions. Remember, we’re in the stage of gathering as much information as we can in order to grasp the situation.”

Yakumo’s words made Haruka reflect on herself a little.

Yakumo’s manner of speech may be irritating, but he was right. Haruka realised she had been desperate to be able to do something soon, so she had ended up asking something pointless.

“Sorry.” Haruka obediently apologised.

Yakumo’s eyes widened. “Looks like it’s going to snow tomorrow.”

“Why?”

They might be in the middle of fall season, but it was still too early for snow.

“Since you apologised so obediently,” Yakumo casually added.

Just how stubborn did you think I was?

Haruka wanted to protest, but she stopped herself. If she were to retaliate recklessly, who knew just how much worse Yakumo’s response would be.

“Besides that, there’s one more thing—” said Yakumo, lifting his index finger.

“What?”

“What about the other one?”

“Eh?”

“There was another person with you when you experienced the spiritual phenomenon, right? I’d like to hear their story as well,” explained Yakumo.

Haruka agreed. “That’s right.”

When Umi had witnessed the spiritual phenomenon, apparently one more person had been with her.

They might be able to gather more information by hearing their story as well.

Haruka turned to see Umi’s face on the verge of tears.

“About that…I couldn’t reach her,” said Umi with a trembling voice.

“How so?” asked Haruka.

“Apparently she hasn’t been coming into campus…so I tried to call her, but she never answered…”

Haruka felt an ill premonition.

Something might have happened to that person.

“Yakumo-kun—” called Haruka.

Yakumo nodded firmly. “Could you tell me her name and address?” asked Yakumo.

Umi then gave Eriko’s name and address whilst double checking from the contact list in her phone.

Once he had collected all that information, Yakumo stepped away from them for a while and began calling someone from his phone.

“Don’t tell me, something happened to Eriko?” asked Umi with a hopeless gaze.

“That’s...”

They couldn’t comment anything about that for the time being.

Hence, right now Yakumo was in the middle of doing something to confirm.

“What should I do?”

Umi covered her face with both of her hands.

“It’s alright,” said Haruka.

Even so, she didn’t say so with any basis whatsoever. They were merely empty soothing words. Haruka knew she should have said something wiser, but nothing came to her mind.

Moments later, Yakumo who had finished the call returned to where Haruka and Umi had been.

“Yakumo-kun,” called Harula.

Yakumo lightly nodded. “I asked Gotou-san to do a house welfare check on that woman named Eriko.”

“Is that so…”

Gotou was a police detective and a close acquaintance of Yakumo, and together they had solved countless cases. Naturally, he also knew about Yakumo’s red left eye and its ability to see spirits of the dead.

Either way, everything would be fine should they trust Eriko into Gotou’s hands.

“So then, what now?” asked Haruka, turning Yakumo’s face sour.

They still hadn’t gotten a good picture of the situation.

Frankly, they might have already hit a dead end.

“Dress rehearsal’s about to begin!” called a student that appeared to be part of the committee staff.

The students who had been gathered at the entrance hall began pouring into the auditorium.

Umi got up as well, but her body froze, unable to walk to the same direction. She had to be terrified of going to the backstage area.

“I understand your feelings, but it’s best if you participate in the dress rehearsal,” said Yakumo.

“B-but...”

Umi bit her lower lip.

“At least, as far as I could tell earlier, there weren't any ghosts backstage,” Yakumo narrowed his eyes.

“There weren’t...”

“Yes. So, there shouldn’t be anything that could have been caused by ghosts.”

“R-really?”

Umi was still in disbelief.

Haruka knew that feeling well. No matter how many times other people said ‘it’s alright’, the horror felt after having witnessed a ghost wouldn’t simply disappear.

“We’ll be watching close by as well. So if anything happens, we’ll come to assist you right away,” said Yakumo in a dependable tone.

Despite that, Umi remained uncertain.

“Hirose! What are you doing?” shouted a harsh sounding voice.

They turned to see a man standing at the door that connected to the auditorium.

The man had a square shaped face with a prominent jawline, whilst his shoulder length hair was tied up. He had a sharp gaze, and gave off the impression of a sensitive person.

“That’s Kurokawa-san, he’s the director of this performance,” whispered Umi.

Even Haruka recognized that man. Kurokawa, chairperson of the theatre circle and the director of this stage play.

According to Umi’s story, he and Tomoko—who became the lead role—were lovers.

“You’re the only one left, Hirose. Don’t fall behind.”

With large strides, Kurokawa approached to pressure Umi.

The tone of his voice was merciless, as if filled with hostility, that it made Haruka suspicious that he might have harboured some resentment towards Umi.

“S-sorry...”

“Quickly go get prepared now!”

Kurokawa pushed Umi’s back.

Umi was still terrified, but she was ushered into the auditorium.

He may be the circle chairperson, but that was going too far.

Haruka wanted to tell Kurokawa that, but Yakumo stopped her.

Yakumo then stood in front of Kurokawa and presented a formal smile.

“Excuse me. We would like to watch the rehearsal for a while. Would that be alright?”

Hearing Yakumo’s words, Kurokawa made a blatantly displeased expression.

“Why?”

“The truth is, I’m a writer for the humanities magazine published by the campus. This time, I’d like to cover the theatre circle’s performance—” said Yakumo, face plastered with a fabricated smile.

Haruka was amazed by how he could lie so smoothly like that.

“Even if you say that…the air of the rehearsal wouldn’t be good with an outsider present. Besides, I would like for our performance to be witnessed only by those who can appreciate it. I’d be troubled if the article takes an undesired direction.”

“Rest assured. We won’t interfere with the rehearsal, and before it gets published, I’ll have you run through the article for approval. If you don’t like the contents, feel free to reject it.”

In the end, Kurokawa finally gave in to Yakumo’s pressure and nodded.

“What an arrogant person,” blurted Haruka as they watched Kurokawa’s back enter the auditorium.

“It’s because he has the personality of a genius,” said Yakumo as he held back a yawn.

That reaction—

“Don’t tell me you knew him?”

“I’ve heard the rumours before. He had a great passion, but because of his personality, he invited a lot of antipathy.”

“Is that so…”

“Anyway, let’s go.”

Yakumo walked towards the auditorium entrance.

“Would it be alright?” asked Haruka towards Yakumo’s back.

“We’ve gotten permission.”

“Not that. About Umi.”

As Haruka mentioned that name, Yakumo stopped and stared into the ceiling.

“Maybe.”

“Maybe…? How irresponsible…”

“Don’t complain. For the time being, most likely this case was only her misunderstanding.”

“Misunderstanding?”

“Yes. I’ve yet to see the ghost she mentioned. Furthermore, there wasn’t any particular spiritual related incident.”

“Well, that’s true...”

“With this being the case, it’s best that we assume she merely overreacted.”

Haruka understood what Yakumo was trying to say.

Umi was the only person terrified of the ghost’s presence. On top of that, despite having gone to the backstage area where the apparent sighting had been, Yakumo hadn’t seen any spirits there.

However, if that were the case, something else was off.

“Then, why are you still here?”

Knowing Yakumo, he normally would’ve left if he couldn’t verify the spiritual phenomena.

“Because I’m getting rewarded. So I’ll put in the amount of effort that I’m paid for,” answered Yakumo who then entered the auditorium.

Is that really the case?

Haruka couldn’t help but think that Yakumo must have sensed something.

Haruka sat on the audience seat at the centre of the auditorium. Yakumo was next to her, sitting comfortably as he read through the script with a serious expression.

On the stage, the theatre circle members were preparing to rehearse the play all the way from start to finish.

Normally, outsiders with no business to be there like Haruka and Yakumo would have been asked to leave, but Kurokawa as the circle chairperson and director of the performance had given his permission.

Despite that, it was hard to say that they had permission as they had lied their way to one.

Haruka felt uncomfortable thinking about it.

“Did you find anything?” asked Haruka after she had waited for Yakumo to finish reading the script.

“None,” answered Yakumo briefly, before placing the script on an adjacent seat and putting his hands behind his head.

“Is that so...”

Haruka let out a small sigh. She felt rather disappointed as she had hoped they would discover something from reading the script.

“This script is well written,” muttered Yakumo.

“What’s the story like?”

“The story was based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet, with a woman as the protagonist and a modern setting.”

“Hamlet? Is that the one where the protagonist kills his wife out of suspicion?” said Haruka.

Yakumo hung his head, sighing as if trying to say how pathetic Haruka was. “That’s Othello.”

Haruka’s face heated up out of embarrassment from being corrected by Yakumo.

She shouldn’t have pretended to know better.

“Hamlet is the story of revenge against the protagonist’s uncle who murdered his father, took away his mother, and seized the throne.”

“Oh, that one.” Haruka finally remembered after hearing Yakumo’s explanation.

She didn’t know the details, but that was probably more or less how the story went.

“The beginning of the story follows Hamlet, but in the middle, it transitions into an original story.”

“I see.”

“Enough talking now,” said Yakumo as he turned towards the stage.

Kurokawa, who had been instructing the performers on stage, had returned to the audience seat.

The performers were now on standby backstage. At the same time, the lighting turned dim.

At last, the dress rehearsal was about to begin.

Haruka observed the stage with a tense expression.

Moments after the light had dimmed, a spotlight was cast onto the centre of the stage, illuminating the figure of a woman.

She must be Tomoko, who played the lead role.

The play began with an extended monologue by her.

Tomoko may have been a first year student, but her delivery of lines was crisp. She gave a strong performance and her presence felt spectacular.

Haruka was being drawn further into the play’s universe.

Once Tomoko’s monologue was over, the spotlight was changed to stage-wide lighting.

Umi emerged from the stage wing and talked to Tomoko. Perhaps due to the spiritual phenomenon she had experienced, Umi’s facial expression appeared awful, and her lines weren’t delivered well.

Suddenly, the stage turned pitch black.

The lights seemed to have gone out.

“Lighting team, what are you doing?”

“Quickly turn it back on.”

Sounds could be heard from multiple directions.

However, the lights still didn’t return.

As Haruka began to think that there had been technical issues with the equipment, there was a loud thud of something falling down that shook the audience seats.

At first she thought there could have been an earthquake, but the situation was off.

“This is bad…” mumbled Yakumo who slowly stood up.

“Why?”

Without answering Haruka, Yakumo rapidly walked towards the stage.

Whilst unaware of the situation, Haruka followed suit.

She tripped several times as it was dark, but she finally arrived in front of the stage.

What happened?

As Haruka thought that way, the stage lights returned.

She reflexively held her breath at the sight in front of her.

Umi’s body froze on stage, her eyes cast on the tower set that had collapsed.

It appeared that she had barely avoided getting crushed.

Haruka was momentarily relieved, but her thoughts quickly shifted.

Tomoko should have been where the tower had fallen.

Hesitating, Haruka slowly turned to see a human hand sticking out from underneath the fallen set. Perhaps it was Tomoko’s.

“Call an ambulance immediately!” Yakumo urged Haruka.

“Ah, y-yes.”

With trembling hands, Haruka took out her phone before pressing the numbers one-one-nine.

“So it’s true, this manuscript really is cursed…”

Overlapping with the sound of dialling tone, Umi’s heartbreaking cry reached Haruka’s ears.

The situation had become serious.

Sitting on a sofa at the auditorium entrance hall, Haruka let out a long sigh, hands supporting her head.

Everything had gone well at first when she had been asked for help by Umi—a friend from the same seminar—until she had come to this auditorium with Yakumo to confirm the identity of the ghost that Umi supposedly had seen.

During the investigation, they had been watching the rehearsal of the theatre circle that Umi was in. However, in the middle of the rehearsal, there had been an accident.

The lights had suddenly gone out and a stage set had collapsed.

Umi had been unscathed, but Tomoko who played the lead role had gotten crushed by the set and had to be brought to the hospital in an ambulance.

A commotion ensued within the members of the theatre circle.

“Things are getting complicated, huh...”

Haruka reacted to the voice, lifting her head to find Yakumo standing in front of her.

With a serious expression, Yakumo ruffled his already messy hair.

“How did it get like this?” Haruka asked Yakumo hopelessly.

Before the rehearsal had begun, they had examined the stage and Yakumo had confirmed there hadn’t been any ghosts there. Despite that, an accident had happened.

“Beats me. I don’t know either,” answered Yakumo, expressionless as usual.

Indeed, Yakumo didn’t like drawing conclusions without sufficient proof at hand; but he had to have some thoughts about this incident. Even so, Haruka couldn’t fully accept Yakumo’s answer just now.

“Did you see anything when the lights were out?” asked Haruka to Yakumo.

Though currently concealed with a black contact lens, Yakumo’s left eye was actually red. And that wasn’t all; with that left eye he could also see the spirits of the dead—in other words, ghosts.

Haruka may be unable to, but Yakumo might have seen something others hadn’t.

“Nothing...” said Yakumo as he shrugged.

Haruka felt a brief pause before he had answered.

“You saw something, didn’t you?”

“I told you, I didn’t see anything.”

“But, if it was a ghost’s doing, surely you’d see something, right?” pressed Haruka.

Yakumo shook his head in disbelief. ”You missed an important detail from the beginning by having that line of thought.”

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly as I said. You need to be more attentive and look at your surroundings.”

“I’m looking, though.”

“Don’t you see that there’s a grain of rice stuck on your cheek?” said Yakumo whilst pointing at his own cheek.

Eh? No way!

Haruka immediately felt around her right cheek. Yet there wasn’t any rice grain or the like stuck there. She examined her left cheek as well and couldn’t feel anything.

“Is there really a rice grain on my face?”

“No. I lied.”

“What?”

Haruka thought about throwing all sorts of words at him, but she stopped herself.

She was certain Yakumo would have retaliated tenfold if she did.

Rather than that, Yakumo hadn’t answered her question.

“You—”

Interrupting Haruka’s words, two men approached them.

They were Detective Kazutoshi Gotou and Detective Ishii Yuutarou, members of the Unsolved Cases Special Investigations Division.

“Hey!” called Gotou as he casually waved.

He had a square shaped face, with a large build akin to a bear’s, and a hardened appearance. However, he had a strong sense of justice and a rather old-fashioned way of thinking.

“H-Haruka-chan!”

Skipping steps, Ishii ran towards Haruka.

He wore silver framed glasses and a cleanly pressed suit, giving the impression of an intellectual. Even so, striking a conversation with him would reveal his actually cheerful and friendly nature.

“You brat. You got involved in something troublesome yet again,” grumbled Gotou.

“Just so you know, I didn’t do anything. I got involved against my own will,” replied Yakumo, mixed with a sigh.

“Your conduct is terrible on most days, so it turned out this way.”

“A detective who often sleeps during work hours doesn't get to comment about my day-to-day conduct.”

“What did you say?”

“Being short-tempered like that is a sign that you’re a narrow-hearted person.”

“I’m going to kill you!”

“Ishii-san, please arrest this blockhead on the basis of criminal intimidation.”

“Hah? Try me if you can!”

Ishii hurriedly stopped Gotou, who looked like he was about to beat up Yakumo.

“Let go of me!”

Gotou landed a punch on top of Ishii’s head.

While he had endured the brunt of Gotou’s temper many times, Ishii still looked pitiful.

“Anyway, how is Tomoko’s condition?” asked Yakumo in a carefree tone.

“We heard from the hospital earlier. Her back was bruised and the bone on her left leg was fractured, but her life isn’t in any danger,” explained Ishii in place of Gotou, whose anger hadn’t subsided.

“Thank goodness—” Haruka patted her chest out of relief.

“It’s too early to be relieved. This isn’t over,” said Yakumo with a serious expression.

He was right.

They have yet to determine the reason why things had turned out this way.

“Could it be because the manuscript really is cursed after all?” Haruka blurted spontaneously.

“A cursed manuscript? What’s that?” interrupted Gotou.

Yakumo must have not explained anything to Gotou and Ishii. Even at this point, he didn’t have any intention to do so.

In the end, Haruka had to explain all the details thus far.

Her friend from the same seminar, Umi, had confided to Haruka about the ghost she had seen at the backstage area.

Next, she also elaborated in depth about how the stage play performed by the theatre circle this time around had been a manuscript from ten years back with a history behind it.

“I-in other words, this case might have something to do with that cursed manuscript…?” said Ishii with a trembling voice after Haruka had finished telling her story.

“Yes.”

“Eeek!” Ishii jumped, letting out a weird noise.

Gotou yelled, “Shut up!” and slapped his head.

“Don’t tell me, that person named Eriko whose house you’ve requested to look into had something to do with all this?” asked Gotou with a serious tone.

“Yes,” Haruka promptly answered.

When Umi had seen the ghost, Eriko had been with her. As Eriko had been uncontactable, Yakumo had requested Gotou and Ishii to look into her.

“Say that from the beginning. I had no idea,” protested Gotou.

However, Yakumo simply put on an indifferent expression, pretending to be clueless. In the end, Haruka had to be the one to apologise. “Sorry.”

“So, how was it?” said Yakumo, yawning.

“What is?” Gotou asked back.

“I meant about that person named Eriko. From the flow of conversation, you should have known, you know.”

Gotou didn’t like that attitude of Yakumo. He clicked his tongue before instructing Ishii by waving his chin.

“We went to her house…but she wasn’t there,” said Ishii, adjusting the position of his glasses with the tip of his finger.

“Not there?” asked Yakumo with a suspicious look.

“Yes. According to her older sister who was at home at that time, Eriko had suddenly collapsed and had been brought to the hospital.”

Hearing Ishii’s explanation, Haruka’s back shivered.

“How is her condition?”

“She’s in a coma, but the cause isn’t known.”

“Is that so—” muttered Yakumo, placing his index finger on his forehead and began thinking.

All this time, Yakumo had been able to solve all sorts of cases not solely because of his ability to see spirits of the dead through his red left eye.

His remarkable ability to think and sharp analytical skills had been an important factor.

Everyone there waited for what Yakumo was about to say next. Yet Yakumo didn’t say a word and walked towards the door leading to the auditorium.

“Oi! Where are you going?” asked Gotou.

Yakumo slowly turned. “Examining the fallen set,” he replied as if it was the most natural thing.

“Huh?”

“Don’t just stand there, come over here quickly,” ordered Yakumo as he opened the auditorium door and went inside.

“That brat…” said Gotou with a disgusted face.

Haruka felt the same. Yakumo had always given a half-baked explanation if he hadn’t been certain of himself yet.

There were many things they wanted to say, but they could only rely on Yakumo in this situation.

Haruka exchanged glances with Gotou and Ishii, before they all followed Yakumo into the auditorium.

As Haruka, Gotou, and Ishii entered the auditorium, Yakumo had already gone up the stage. He was crouching as he examined the collapsed set with a serious gaze.

The three of them travelled across the corridor and followed Yakumo onto the stage.

“Did you find anything?” asked Gotou.

Yakumo showed a displeased look on his face.

“You could never progress because you’re always having people do things in your stead like that,” said Yakumo as he stood back up.

“You bastard! Looking for a fight?”

Gotou was riled up and furious, but Yakumo didn’t flinch.

“Oh my. I merely stated the fact.”

“You’re messing with me?”

“No. I’m making a fool out of you.”

“What did you say?!”

Ishii quickly stopped his superior who was about to hit Yakumo. As a result, Ishii ended up becoming Gotou’s punching bag—the same flow as earlier.

Despite the dire situation, Haruka instinctively laughed.

“You’re so laid back even though things are like this,” commented Yakumo immediately.

For Haruka, it was Yakumo that appeared laid back to her. But there was no use in her pointing that out, as Yakumo would never have acknowledged it.

Rather than that—

“Did you find anything now?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo made an exaggerated face of annoyance. “Seriously. Gotou and you are just the same. Why are you both this stupid?”

“What’s with th—”

“That’s why I told you already, right!”

A shout reverberated throughout the auditorium, interrupting Haruka’s sentence.

All of them turned towards the source of the voice to see a man in a green jumpsuit furious around the backstage area.

He was the person who had built the collapsed stage set.

In front of him, two students stood whilst hanging their heads.

“What’s all this commotion?” said Gotou in a prompt response as he approached the three of them together with Ishii.

Their faces were filled with suspicion. Even so, as Gotou and Ishii showed them their officer badges, their expression froze.

Perhaps there was something going on.

Yakumo turned to Haruka, nodding, before he walked towards Gotou. Haruka followed after him.

“So tell me, what’s going on?” asked Gotou.

The three men didn’t answer. Yet they didn’t seem like they had any intention to escape either, so they must at least have some intention to respond.

“Were you the ones responsible for building the set?” asked Gotou, and all three people nodded in unison. Next, Gotou asked for their names.

The man in the green jumpsuit was a third year student named Iida. The other two were second year students named Miyazawa and Abe.

“Then, what were the three of you on about?” asked Gotou again.

Miyazawa and Abe stood awkwardly, dropping their gaze to their feet.

“They forgot about the counterweight,” said Iida with a cursing tone.

“Counterweight?” asked Ishii as he took out his notepad.

“Yes. I’ve instructed them to place a counterweight on the bottom of the set so that it wouldn’t collapse, but…” said Iida who then glared at Miyazawa and Abe.

“We’ve already placed it…” said Miyazawa in a murmur.

“If it were placed, there was no way the set would have fallen. After all, there was no counterweight to be found where the set had fallen!” Iida yelled until his face turned red.

“There, there,” said Ishii, calming Iida who appeared as if he was about to devour Miyazawa and Abe.

“In other words, the set collapsed because the counterweight that was supposed to be at the bottom was missing?” asked Gotou.

Iida nodded.

“So it was the two of you that were assigned to place that counterweight from the start?” interrupted Yakumo, speaking out as well.

“Yes,” Miyazawa nodded.

“You said earlier that you’ve already placed the counterweight, are you certain about that?”

Miyazawa nodded again, “Yes.”

“I’ve told you already that the counterweight wasn’t there!” yelled Iida in anger as they didn’t believe him.

“Could you please be quiet for a second?” Yakumo glared at Iida.

Defeated by the pressure, Iida finally went silent whilst looking displeased.

After a moment of pause, Yakumo threw the same question at the other second year student, Abe. “You. Did you recall placing the counterweight?”

After glancing at Iida and Miyazawa back and forth, Abe answered with a humming voice, “I feel like we did place it. But also maybe not...”

He chose a middle ground between Iida and Miyazawa.

“Alright. Thank you very much—” Yakumo stopped asking questions.

Gotou requested for each of their phone numbers as he stated that he may need to question them again at a later time, before dismissing them for the time being.

“Then this was an accident,” said Gotou with a sigh once the three of them had left.

“That’s true. Once backup arrives and the location is investigated, this case is over,” said Ishii in agreement.

Haruka too was certain upon hearing their statements earlier. The spiritual phenomenon Umi had experienced had led her to believe that the fall of the set had also been a spiritual phenomenon, but she might have been mistaken based on those statements.

“Was this purely an accident?” said Yakumo, the only person who expressed doubt.

“What do you mean?” asked Haruka immediately.

“I meant as I said. Before the set collapsed, the lighting had some issues, right?”

“Yes.”

As Yakumo had said, the lights had suddenly gone out, and the set had collapsed afterwards.

“Somehow the lighting ran into some issues, and then somehow the set also collapsed right at that time—isn’t it too great to be a coincidence?”

“Perhaps it was so,” said Haruka.

Yakumo snorted. “I have a hunch that someone’s behind all this—” he said, narrowing his eyes slightly.

“Someone behind this? What are you saying?” asked Gotou.

“We’ll confirm that for certain now,” said Yakumo, a thin smile forming on his face.

“Sorry, I feel like I ended up getting you guys involved.”

As they walked at the entrance hall, Haruka apologised to Ishii who was next to her.

Yakumo had said that he had wanted to look into something and had left with Gotou. Because of that, together with Ishii, Haruka had been requested to ask around those who had been involved.

She felt dissatisfied. Why couldn’t Yakumo at least explain a few things to her?

But Yakumo had always been like this. Haruka had been asked countless times by Yakumo to gather information whilst kept in the dark.

“No problem at all. Even if for just a little, I’m glad to be of help to you, Haruka-chan!”

Ishii energetically gave a salute.

“Thank you,” said Haruka sincerely. If Ishii—who was a policeman—was here, she could gather information more smoothly.

“So, who should we be asking first?” asked Ishii.

The question made Haruka feel troubled. She never thought about any such order.

“Right…Let’s just start with whoever’s closest in proximity,” answered Haruka as she observed her surroundings.

She found one person she recognized.

The student who played the role of Umi’s lover in this performance. If she wasn’t mistaken, his name was Nagami.

He was sitting on a sofa at the entrance hall with his head hung.

Haruka ran towards Nagami and greeted him “Sorry, excuse me.”

“Ah, you are…” said Nagami after he turned to see Haruka’s face.

“I’m Ozawa, Umi’s friend. This is Ishii-san from Setamachi precinct police.” said Haruka.

Nagami’s face hardened. “P-Police…?”

Nagami appeared cautious.

“Don’t worry. We just want to confirm something,” said Ishii with a smile, and Nagami’s expression relaxed.

At times like this, instead of Gotou, Ishii’s friendly impression could make his conversation partner let their guard down.

“Confirm what?”

“Where were you when the set collapsed?” asked Ishii.

“I was on standby in the backstage area.”

“Was there anyone else besides you?”

“I think there were quite a number of people.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. It may not be visible, but there were many actors on standby and plenty of staff who were occupied backstage.”

“I see…”

Ishii nodded as if impressed.

Nagami was right. Whilst out of view from the audience seat, many things were happening behind the scenes or backstage during a performance.

“Was it an accident?”

This time Nagami asked a question.

“No, we have yet to confirm it…” said Ishii dodging the question, but Nagami appeared dissatisfied, leaning his body forwards.

“If it wasn’t an accident, this incident might have something to do with him,” implied Nagami.

“Him?” Haruka tilted her head.

Nagami expanded his nose boastfully. “Umi-chan was being followed by someone.”

As he mentioned that, Haruka was reminded that Umi had indeed said so.

Umi didn’t make a big deal out of it, so Haruka merely listened and forgot about it.

“Do you have any idea who was following her?” asked Ishii.

Nagami shook his head. “No, but since Umi seemed really troubled by it, I got concerned and offered to listen to her worries. That’s why, I think that man was behind this case, there’s no mistaking it,” said Nagami eagerly.

While his accusatory and roundabout way of speech felt odd, this topic couldn’t easily be ignored.

“But…Umi said she saw a ghost…”

“Hence I’m saying the real identity of that ghost must have been a stalker. Umi was scared. But she only told me about it—”

“Oh...” Haruka’s response was vague.

Just how long have Nagami been mentioning Umi’s name so familiarly?

“I think I can protect Umi,” muttered Nagami.

A manly thing to say, but Haruka sensed something was off.

Nagami must have been confident that he’s doing the right thing, but he didn’t think of the other person’s feelings. After all, when they had come across Nagami, Umi had tried to avoid him.

Perhaps this was merely her own suspicion.

Nevertheless, Nagami was the one who felt like a stalker to Haruka.

As they entered the auditorium, Haruka found Kurokawa and Umi conversing in the audience seat.

“Sorry, could I have a moment of your time?” greeted Haruka, and both of them turned at the same time.

Kurokawa’s expression was glum, as if holding back his anger. On the other hand, Umi’s brows were lowered, her eyes glassy with tears.

“Umi…” said Haruka, and Umi ran away, escaping that place.

“Are you the chairperson of the circle? Could we ask you a few questions?”

Before Haruka could chase Umi, Ishii had already begun speaking to Kurokawa. Because of that, she had no choice but to stay put.

Maybe this could be their chance to ask Kurokawa why Umi was crying.

“What questions?” asked Kurokawa in an angered tone.

“We would like to confirm a few things about the collapsed stage set,” said Ishii as he adjusted his silver framed glasses with the tip of his finger.

“Sure thing. But please be quick. I need to rethink a lot of arrangements,” said Kurokawa blatantly.

That way of speaking—

“You…don’t intend to cancel this performance?” asked Haruka.

Kurokawa nodded as if it was natural. “Of course. I have to substitute the role, as well as rearrange the stage set,” said Kurokawa calmly.

Still, Haruka couldn’t understand it. “Tomoko-san was injured, you know?”

“I know. That’s why I’m contemplating on who can take her place.”

Well, that was true, but that wasn’t what Haruka was wondering about.

“Aren’t you worried?” asked Haruka.

Kurokawa frowned.

“Worried about what?”

“About what? Tomoko-san, of course. Isn’t she your lover?”

“Don’t get me wrong.”

“Eh?”

“Of course I’m worried.”

“In that case, wouldn’t it be better for you to go visit her right now…”

“Even without you telling me, I’m planning to go there later. But right now, it’s more important to find someone to substitute her role,” said Kurokawa firmly.

“B-but...”

“Me and Tomoko’s relationship isn’t like what you’re thinking.”

“What do you mean?”

“I don’t want to explain. You probably wouldn’t understand either.”

As Kurokawa had said, Haruka felt she wouldn’t be able to accept it even when explained. Their way of thinking was too different.

Haruka was certain she wouldn’t be able to communicate with that man any further than this.

Kurokawa had a remarkable passion for stage play. But as a result, it felt like he was putting everything else aside.

“We would like to ask a few things regarding the collapsed set accident…” Ishii repeated his question when Haruka had run out of words to say to Kurokawa.

“That’s why I said, please hurry. The conversation didn’t progress because of unnecessary things,” said Kurokawa, glaring at Haruka.

It was true that they had deviated from the main topic because of Haruka’s interruption, but she had hoped Kurokawa could reflect on his words a little bit.

Unlike the harsh insults that Haruka often received from Yakumo, hatred could actually be felt from the words that came out of Kurokawa.

Ishii cleared his throat and said, “We heard from Iida-san earlier, apparently the set had collapsed because the counterweight that was supposed to be placed at the bottom had been missing…”

“It seems so.”

“Is there anything else that you know of?”

“Not really? Because Iida said so, I think that was the case,” said Kurokawa apathetically.

“Do you really have no idea?”

“What do you mean?”

Even towards Ishii, Kurokawa emanated a sharp gaze with no mercy.

“Did something strange happen, perhaps?”

“No…Well, someone once wrote on social media that Tomoko should be withdrawn from the lead role, but that was about it.”

“Do such things happen frequently?”

“Anybody could have the tendency to think that they would do a better job than someone else, right?”

His statement—don’t tell me Umi wrote that? No, Umi wouldn’t do something like that.

“Well, maybe you’re right. Is there anything else?” said Ishii.

“Anything else?”

“A ghost sighting, for example?”

As Ishii mentioned that, Kurokawa sighed in disbelief.

“The one that Hirose had been blabbering about how she and her friend apparently had seen?”

“Yes.”

“Don’t tell me that the police are suspecting this to be the work of a ghost?” said Kurokawa challengingly.

“No, it’s not like that…but, how do I say this...We are looking into all sorts of possibilities, so...”

Seeing Ishii scrambling for words, Kurokawa snorted.

“She’s always making a fuss about ghosts, she’ll never be able to fully deliver her role.”

Rather than towards Haruka and Ishii, Kurokawa’s words felt as if they were directed at Umi.

“You’re referring to Umi?” asked Haruka.

Kurokawa laughed bitterly.

“She may have talent, but Hirose has always acted whilst being concerned about her surroundings. If she keeps that up, she’ll never be able to land a lead role. Especially not for this one.”

Unlike earlier, Kurokawa’s words just now didn’t feel as sharp.

I wonder why I feel that way?

Before Haruka could find the answer, Kurokawa said, “That’s enough, right?” and ended the conversation.

Returning to the entrance hall, Haruka saw Umi’s figure sitting on a sofa.

She was spacing out, staring into emptiness.

“Ishii-san, please wait for a moment,” said Haruka before running towards Umi.

“Umi,” she called.

The person being called slowly turned her head. As Haruka had suspected, Umi’s eyes were red. She had cried back in the auditorium after all.

“Are you alright?” asked Haruka.

Umi smiled clumsily. “Yes.”

“What happened earlier?” Haruka sat next to Umi.

“No...” Umi dropped her gaze to her feet.

She may have talent, but Hirose has always acted whilst being concerned about her surroundings.

Kurokawa’s words flashed in Haruka’s mind.

Why was that the only sentence that didn’t feel as sharp? Haruka still didn’t have the answer.

“Did something happen with the director?” asked Haruka.

Umi shook her head until her hair swayed along. “It was nothing. I simply couldn’t meet his expectations…”

Umi’s voice trembled slightly.

“Isn’t that the director’s duty?”

“It’s not like that. It all boils down to my own feelings...”

“You’re still concerned about the ghost?”

“Well, that too...but, that wasn’t the only thing Kurokawa-san had said.”

“What do you mean?”

Haruka’s question made the corners of Umi’s lips droop.

“The truth is, I wanted the lead role.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. But in the end, Tomoko was chosen...”

Umi covered her face with both of her hands.

“...”

“The protagonist of the story this time is a tough woman. Kurokawa had repeatedly said that I had to be strong-willed. However, I always worry about my surroundings and tend to be reluctant as a result.”

“Even so, if you were to practise diligently…”

“That’s not it,” Umi shook her head.

“No?”

“It wasn’t just about acting. I’ve always been that way. Even when I like someone, if I know that a friend of mine likes the same person, I would withdraw. I dislike conflict and I can’t stand seeing someone else suffer because of my selfishness…”

“I see...”

“That weakness of mine comes through even when I act…that’s why Kurokawa gave the lead role to Tomoko...”

Haruka felt she could understand as she shared a similar trait with Umi. She prioritised how others around her would react and would keep her opinions to herself.

She also understood how she had turned into such a person.

“In the end, we all wish to make ourselves look good...” said Haruka unknowingly.

“Eh?” Umi lifted her face in surprise.

“Sorry. I wasn’t talking about you. After listening to your story, I thought I too have a similar side to myself…” said Haruka in a whimper.

“...”

The look on Umi’s face was as if asking for Haruka to continue.

“In my case, rather than disliking conflict or being unable to stand making others suffer, I’m more concerned about how others perceive me.”

Even as she talked, Haruka felt her chest beginning to burn as if she was picking on her own scars.

However, those were her honest feelings.

While it sounded like it was a good thing to say that she acted whilst being considerate of her surroundings, she cared far too much about people’s opinion of her.

“I feel like I’m the same…” said Umi, forming a faint smile.

“The same?”

“Yes. I realised it after listening to you. I suppose I’m always worried about how people see me.”

“Umi...”

“I know Kurokawa-san had expectations for me. Yet in my desperation to meet that expectation, I ended up being too focused on not failing. That wasn’t what was necessary for the role this time, but I couldn’t understand it.”

“So that’s how it was.”

“Perhaps Kurokawa-san had seen through that part of me, so he didn’t entrust the lead role to me…My feelings are much better now. Thank you,” said Umi as she stood up.

Amazing. All this time, Umi emanated a weak aura that made others want to protect her, but now all of that was gone without a trace.

“I knew it, I do want to play that role after all,” muttered Umi.

“In that case, why don’t you ask Kurokawa-san one more time?” said Haruka enthusiastically.

She knew it wasn’t an appropriate thing to say whilst Tomoko was injured.

Even so, she had a feeling that Umi’s hope would vanish if she were to give up here.

“But, how do I bring it up at a time like this...”

“Kurokawa-san must have been waiting for you to ask for that role,” said Haruka.

She didn’t say that without any basis whatsoever.

Haruka began to suspect that Kurokawa’s words back then that didn’t feel as sharp had in fact been because Kurokawa had expectations toward Umi.

“Haruka...”

Before Umi could finish her sentence, Haruka’s phone rang at a poor timing.

She wanted to ignore it at first, but the person calling was Yakumo. There might have been new developments in the case.

Haruka said to Umi, “Sorry, give me a moment,” before moving a few distance away to answer the call.

“Hello?”

<Tell me what you’ve found out so far,> said Yakumo once Haruka had picked up the call.

Even if asked to explain what she knew, it was honestly difficult. They had yet to be able to clarify anything.

Haruka had no choice but to elaborate what she had obtained one after another to Yakumo.

<I see. I understand the big picture now,> said Yakumo after Haruka had finished her story.

It was as if he already knew everything.

“What did you understand?”

Yakumo evaded Haruka’s question as usual.

Haruka thought about asking again, but scrapped the idea.

Even if pressed for answers, Yakumo would refuse to talk about it.

Rather—

“What are we going to do after this?”

<I’d like to request your help on something.>

However she thought about it, Haruka felt an ominous premonition from Yakumo’s request—

“Regarding Tomoko’s substitute, Ozawa Haruka will be playing the lead role—”

Kurokawa announced the fact amidst the meeting conducted in the entrance hall, attended by the entire cast and staff involved.

Predictably, sounds of surprise could be heard from all directions.

As the performance inched closer in just a few more days, she who wasn’t even a circle member was somehow chosen to be the lead role.

They must be displeased. And more importantly, they had to be riddled with anxiety.

Haruka glanced towards Umi, standing with her head hung. Just how did Umi feel upon hearing that?

Haruka desperately wanted to talk to her, but right now she couldn’t.

“Is it going to be alright, entrusting the job to an amateur?”

Unable to withstand the situation, the person who spoke up was the person who played the role of Umi’s lover: Nagami.

“She’s not an amateur. She’s an actress who’s part of an agency and has already undergone acting courses,” said Kurokawa smoothly.

“Acting isn’t a one person job, you know.”

“I know that even without you saying it. That’s why we’ll start the rehearsal now,” said Kurokawa with disregard.

“Will she be able to memorise the lines?” Nagami retaliated once more. He was still sceptical.

Despite that, he had a solid argument. There were only a few more days before the performance was going to be held. Memorising the lead role’s lines for a two hour long performance was no easy task.

“For today it can’t be helped that you have to rehearse while carrying the script, but on the day of the performance I expect you to have memorised everything. You can do it, right?” asked Kurokawa.

Haruka answered, “Y-yes.”

“Can she really do it? It’s not funny if she ends up withdrawing halfway through.”

“Enough with your comments! She hasn’t even tried yet!” roared Kurokawa before Nagami finally shut his mouth.

“In that case, let’s start with the greetings…” ushered Kurokawa once the air had calmed down.

Haruka stepped forward hesitantly.

All the glares directed at her hurt. She wanted to escape so badly—unable to bear the position she was at. Yet, she couldn’t run away.

“U-um, that…I-I’ll be in your care...”

She was so tense that she stuttered and her words didn’t come out properly.

Majority of the people there laughed bitterly.

Haruka felt as if her face was spewing fire, but she hung in there.

It was obvious that she had no acting experience and there was no way she had been part of an agency. She had never received any acting courses either.

Despite that, Haruka now stood here and was given the lead role.

There was in fact a reason behind all of this.

Yakumo had requested her to do so and she had no choice but to oblige for the sake of resolving the case.

Even so, Haruka didn’t understand how having her become the lead role could contribute to the resolution of this case.

With orders from Kurokawa, the rehearsal was soon to begin and everyone began their preparation.

“You just have to stand in the middle of the stage and read the lines from the script,” Kurokawa said to Haruka, before leaving to go to the audience seat.

At this point, Haruka couldn’t simply stand still. She then walked towards the backstage area to standby.

The gazes of the cast members and staff there felt incredibly painful.

It was understandable. She had come out of nowhere and taken the lead role. Surely not a single person there was able to accept that fact.

Even Umi gazed intently at Haruka from afar.

The staff was busy going all over the place, while the actors stretched whilst doing vocal exercises.

Haruka was the only person not knowing what to do, standing by herself amidst the dimly lit space.

Not long after, Kurokawa’s voice could be heard shouting from the audience seat, “Now, let’s start the rehearsal. Starting from the first scene.”

Haruka suppressed the wavering in her heart. She walked into the dark stage, script on hand, and stood at the designated spot.

As if having predicted the timing, the spotlight shone above her.

Haruka narrowed her eyes, blinded by the light.

Her legs grew stiff at the thought of having to act amidst this spectacle.

“Your lines!” Kurokawa yelled from the audience seat as Haruka wasn’t saying a thing.

Right. She needed to read her lines.

However, as she glanced at the script, her vision went pitch black.

Commotion could be heard from many places.

“Hey! The lights are out again!” yelled Kurokawa.

Even back then, the lights had gone out at first. What followed had been a loud thud, before the set had collapsed onto Tomoko.

Don’t tell me—

As she had that thought, she had already heard a creaking sound.

Haruka focused her eyes. Despite being in darkness, she could see the stage set falling in her direction.

I have to run! she thought, but her body froze and refused to budge.

No good. I’m going to get crushed.

Someone grabbed Haruka’s arm, yanking it away by force before pulling her into an embrace.

BAM!

Accompanied by a loud thud, the set fell right before Haruka’s eyes.

Apparently she was safe because someone had pulled her arm away.

But, who did?

As if answering Haruka’s question, the lights that had been out then returned.

The first thing Haruka saw was Yakumo’s face.

“Yakumo-kun—”

“Looks like you were unharmed,” said Yakumo, forming a little smile.

“Yes. But, how come...” Haruka said in a trembling voice.

If the set had collapsed twice, then this was no longer a mere accident, but a deliberate act of someone.

“Gotou-san will catch the perpetrator soon enough,” said Yakumo, right as yelling came from backstage.

What followed was the sound of Gotou’s deafening voice, “DON’T YOU DARE RUN AWAY! STOP RESISTING!”

Brawling noises could then be heard.

“What’s happening?” asked Haruka.

That instant, a man jumped out of the backstage area and climbed onto the stage.

He was the man in the green jumpsuit, Iida.

“Don’t think that you can escape!”

Gotou and Ishii ran out to chase him.

Iida tried to run towards the opposite stage wing, but Yakumo casually stuck out his foot, making the man fall down hard. Gotou then ambushed him from above and handcuffed his hands behind his back.

“What’s actually going on?” asked Haruka in confusion.

Haruka wasn’t the only one in bewilderment. Umi, Nagami, other members of the cast, even members of the staff came surrounding the stage.

“Exactly what you’re seeing,” mumbled Yakumo, who then threw a sharp glare at Iida.

“I don’t understand at all. Explain properly!” urged Haruka.

Yakumo ruffled his bedhead hair with an annoyed expression before opening his mouth. “The culprit who made the set collapse was him,” he said, pointing at Iida who was being held by Gotou.

“Stop saying such nonsense! What did I even do?” yelled Iida, twisting his body.

“Be quiet,” snapped Gotou, and Iida went silent as he got intimidated by the pressure.

“How could he be the culprit?”

Haruka couldn’t understand.

Besides, the cause of the set’s collapse earlier had been due to Miyazawa and Abe forgetting to place the counterweight.

“Simple enough. Because he was the only person who could have done it,”

Haruka wasn’t following the meaning behind Yakumo’s words. “What are you saying?”

“When I saw the set being erected at the stage for the first time, the counterweight had been there.”

“Eh?”

“I’ve already confirmed there had been a counterweight on the bottom of the set that collapsed.”

Haruka hadn’t paid any attention to that at all, while Yakumo had taken a closer look at it.

But, if that were the case—

“After the set had collapsed, the counterweight wasn’t there, right?”

That was what they had said.

“That’s right. In other words, someone had relocated it afterwards.”

“And that someone was Iida-san?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo nodded.

“He scolded his juniors and claimed that they had forgotten to place the counterweight. But as I said, most likely the counterweight had been moved later. Having that in mind made his behaviour become suspicious. Hence I set up a trap.”

“Don’t tell me that trap is…” said Haruka, and Yakumo nodded firmly.

Haruka had stood on this stage whilst bearing the weight of the “lead role” all because Yakumo had instructed her to do so.

He must have already requested Kurokawa’s cooperation ahead of time via phone call.

Otherwise, it would be impossible for Haruka to be assigned the lead role.

“Yes. But because there was no evidence, I had arranged such that he would attempt the same thing again.”

“You’re saying that you guys were making him attack me on purpose?”

“More or less so,” said Yakumo calmly.

Perhaps even Gotou and Ishii had secretly known about Yakumo’s plan as they had been on standby to catch Iida.

Haruka wished she had been warned in advance if she had to be put in danger like this.

“But, why would Iida-san attack me?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo narrowed his eyes.

“Because you’re the lead role.”

Iida gritted his teeth, whether out of anger or frustration.

“Wait a moment. Why would I be attacked because I was the lead role?” asked Haruka.

“To be more precise, he wanted a certain woman to be the lead role in this stage play.”

“What do you mean?”

“Recall again the social media post Kurokawa had mentioned,” explained Yakumo, resulting in Haruka turning towards Kurokawa.

Kurokawa stood there expressionlessly, so Haruka couldn’t tell what the man was thinking.

When questioning Kurokawa earlier, he had mentioned that someone had written a threatening post in social media about how Tomoko should be withdrawn from the lead role.

“So, the person who wrote that was Iida-san?”

“Correct. He wanted Umi-san to play the lead role. Regardless, Kurokawa-san didn’t adhere to his wishes. That’s why he made the set collapse to injure Tomoko-san, so that Umi would replace her to play the lead role.”

“Why would he do something like that...?”

“Someone’s been stalking Umi-san, right?”

“Ah…”

Haruka didn’t know the full details, but Nagami had said so.

“That stalker was none other than him,” said Yakumo pointing at Iida.

“Stop messing around! I’m not a stalker! I’m merely watching over Umi!” yelled Iida.

“Eh?”

Umi stepped backwards slightly.

“Umi has talent! I’m certain she’ll become a great actress! That’s why I have to protect her! BUT THAT BASTARD KUROKAWA GOT HIS FEELINGS INVOLVED AND CHOSE THAT BRAT TOMOKO TO PLAY THE LEAD ROLE! NOT TO MENTION HE LET AN AMATEUR STAND ON THE STAGE, HOW RIDICULOUS!” growled Iida with all his might.

It appeared that Iida had really fallen for Umi not just as an actress, but also as a woman.

Unfortunately, due to his deep and unreasonable love, he couldn’t accept the role assignment Kurokawa had done.

So that Umi could become the lead role, he had injured Tomoko by collapsing the set on purpose. He thought it would certainly make Umi become the lead role. Yet unexpectedly, Haruka had come into the picture.

Because of that, apparently he had tried to use the same method to endanger Haruka.

“I said be quiet,” said Gotou as he pressed Iida’s head against the floor to silence him.

“But could the set really fall just from having the counterweight missing?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo shook his head. “No. That’s why he had waited backstage for the right timing to push the set into collapse.”

“I see...but why would he use the same method twice?”

He should have known that he’d get found out if he repeated the same method.

“That was the key to the case.”

“What do you mean?”

“As you were suddenly chosen as a substitute, he panicked. He didn’t have the time to come up with a different method.”

Yakumo’s explanation made Haruka understand.

That was the reason Yakumo had rushed to carry out this trick. If not, they wouldn’t have been able to gain evidence of Iida’s wrongdoing.

Iida had walked right into the trap that Yakumo had set up.

“You should’ve used a different method to express your love,” said Yakumo while slowly approaching Iida.

“Shut up! It’s all Kurokawa’s fault! Assigning roles while getting his feelings involved! Umi’s ability actually exceeds Tomoko’s!”

“I know that without you telling me,” Kurokawa spoke up, interrupting Iida’s allegations against him.

“W-what?”

Iida had a surprised look on his face.

“Did you really think that Kurokawa-san had assigned the roles in this play with his feelings involved?“ asked Yakumo.

“Of course!” roared Iida.

“You really don’t understand, do you.”

“What?”

“Kurokawa-san had intended to make Umi-san the lead role from the start.”

“Eh?” blurted Haruka spontaneously.

Even Umi who had been watching from afar showed a face of disbelief.

“Kurokawa-san has been waiting for Umi-san to firm her resolve and step forward to ask for the lead role without worrying about the people around her. This lead role required that sort of confidence.”

“Wha…?”

Iida’s eyes widened in shock.

Haruka turned towards Kurokawa. The man’s face remained expressionless. Wonder what that director could be thinking of.

Nevertheless, Haruka felt Yakumo’s words were right. The reason had been the look in Kurokawa’s eyes when he had spoken of how Umi had talent.

As Yakumo had said, Kurokawa had put out his hope and waited for Umi to take action.

“Liar. Because...he had chosen his own lover for it...” said Iida in resistance.

“You still don’t understand? In the end, Kurokawa-san wanted Umi-san to be the lead role. That was why he asked his lover to become the substitute until Umi-san is ready to play the part.”

Ah, so that was how it was.

If it had been his lover, he’d be able to explain the truth beforehand. Hence he had asked for Tomoko’s help.

“If that were the case, why didn’t he just say so from the start?” said Iida, still in denial, though his voice was shaking.

“It would have been meaningless if he did, right?”

“What?”

“Besides, Kurokawa-san had been giving feedback to Umi-san about her shortcomings the whole time. Yet she still hadn’t changed. Since words wouldn’t work, Kurokawa-san took a risk and chose a harsher method.”

“Why would he go that far…?” Iida said in confusion.

“Simply put, it’s already his nature as a director,”

“His nature?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo ruffled his hair into a further mess with an annoyed expression.

“If he were to come across an unpolished gem right before his eyes, he’d do anything to make it shine—if he wasn’t such a person, he wouldn’t be able to become a director.”

“I see,” said Haruka in agreement.

Any director would try their best to develop a talent that was right before their eyes.

The same thing would apply in the field of music or sports.

His actions may have invited many misunderstandings, but Kurokawa was an enthusiastic director with a strong sense of ideology.

Perhaps Umi had realised it too.

Because of that, even when she had been treated coldly and scolded often, Umi had never once criticised nor retaliated against Kurokawa’s harsh words.

“If you truly cared about Umi-san, you shouldn't have been thinking about getting rid of others, and instead do it in a respectable way like Kurokawa-san,” said Yakumo.

Iida gave up and laid down listlessly.

After he had finished his explanation, Yakumo slowly walked to approach Umi.

“You’ve heard it now, right?” he said.

Umi nodded, “Yes—”

“Everything from here on is up to you.”

“I already have that intention,” said Umi firmly. She then stepped down from the stage and stood in front of Kurokawa, who was in the audience seat.

Her expression was tough—unlike usual—as if she was holding back her shortcomings thus far.

“Kurokawa-san. Please. Let me play the lead role this time!” bowed Umi as she pleaded.

Umi didn’t merely want the lead role only after hearing the truth that Yakumo had revealed. Even prior to that, there had been a change in Umi’s heart.

The very proof was the difference between Umi now compared to how she was before—weak and could only rely on other people.

“If you want to do it, do it in earnest. We don’t have much time,” answered Kurokawa in a firm, yet warm tone.

He must have also felt the change within Umi.

With this, it’s all over, thought Haruka.

However, she was suddenly reminded of the main issue at hand.

“So, the spiritual phenomenon that Umi saw...”

“It had nothing to do with this case,” said Yakumo straightforwardly.

“So Umi was mistaken about what she saw?”

“I never said that. There actually was a ghost backstage.”

“But, when you were there, you didn’t see it, right?” asked Haruka.

Yakumo grimaced. “You still don’t understand?”

“I don’t, that’s why I asked.”

“The ghost went on to possess that woman named Eriko-san.”

“How do you know that?”

Yakumo threw a cold gaze at Haruka’s expression of surprise.

“Are you a fool? Gotou-san and I just now went to confirm that.”

So that was how it was.

Even so, Yakumo had in fact left without so much of an explanation. If he had wanted to check on Eriko’s condition, he could’ve said so…

“Then, what about that ghost possessing Eriko-san?”

“The ghost has gone away from her body.”

“Thank goodness...”

“Right now, he is right there,” said Yakumo as he pointed at a spot in the audience seat.

Haruka couldn’t see anything. But Yakumo must have been able to see a ghost there.

“Would it be alright?” Haruka asked hesitantly.

He might have let go of Eriko’s body, but someone else might end up witnessing another spiritual phenomenon if he was still lingering in the area.

“He has no ill intentions.”

“Really?”

“Yes. The identity of that ghost is none other that the scriptwriter of this play, the author of The Tower of Judgement.”

“So that’s how it is…”

The student who had died from an accident without having the chance to see the script he had written come into life on stage—

“Kurokawa-san, there’s a message for you,” said Yakumo, suddenly turning towards Kurokawa.

“A message?” Kurokawa’s face turned suspicious.

“Yes. He said that he wanted to change the dialogue on the sixth line of the last page of the script into: ‘Why did you not try to live on?’” said Yakumo.

Kurokawa quickly grabbed the manuscript and stared at it with a serious expression.

Moments later, he clapped his hands as if he understood something and began writing something down on the script with a red pen.

“Don’t tell me, the reason why the ghost has been lingering was...” said Haruka.

Yakumo nodded. “Yes. There was a dialogue in the script that he wanted to correct.”

“Is that so...”

That had been the reason why spiritual phenomena had repeatedly occurred whenever they were about to perform The Tower of Judgement. He didn’t harbour any resentment towards anyone. He was merely still expressing enthusiasm towards his work even after his death.

Gotou and Ishii then helped Iida stand up, before dragging him away.

“With this, everything is really over.”

“Let’s go.”

Haruka had only just felt relief when Yakumo was quickly about to leave.

“We might as well watch the rehearsal, don’t we?”

“It would be a waste to watch it now,” mumbled Yakumo as he walked away.

Yakumo was right. Many things may have happened, but perhaps it was better for her to wait and witness the final outcome of this work.

Haruka then walked following Yakumo’s footsteps.

#shinrei tantei yakumo #psychic detective yakumo #shinrei tantei yakumo translation #psychic detective yakumo translation #saitou yakumo #yakumo saitou #manabu kaminaga

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suzuran777 · 8 months

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Lamento Beyond the Void Expiatio Chapter 6

I recently started re-reading the Lamento novel and noticed some chapters haven't been translated yet, so I decided to post my own translations. Please be aware that my native language isn't English and because this chapter is pretty long (...it's about 80 pages, by far the longest chapter) I might have missed some details or made some mistakes. I really enjoyed reading the novel, so I hope this will be useful for others too!

This novel shows the story from Rai's perspective, written by Tomoko Kanemaki, so it's a bit different from the game. Please check out the previous chapters translated by FrillyFujoshi! And thank you Milky for proofreading chapter 6, 7, 8 and the epilogue.

[Prologue] [Part 1] [Part 2] [Part 3] [Part 4] [Part 5] [Part 6] [Part 7] [Part 8] [Epilogue] [Glossary]

Caput 6

Rai didn’t get much sleep that night. Konoe's breathing had calmed down considerably and when Rai touched his forehead, he noticed the fever had also subsided. Was what Bardo told him true?

Rai noticed his own body was a bit sweaty and still smelled like blood, so he left the room and went outside. Usually, these inns had a bathing place behind the building, Konoe also used it yesterday. He felt a little relieved after noticing Bardo was not at the reception desk. Outside, the air felt nice. He could feel the breeze of early winter. After taking a deep breath, Rai walked to the back of the inn.

He passed by the place where him and Froud fought last night. There were no traces of blood anymore, the soil had absorbed it and it was longer visible. As long as it remained uncorrupted by the Void, the spilled blood would not cause any harm

Rai looked at the small hut behind the building and noticed a small spring. It seemed like this was the bathing spot. He stripped off his clothes and bathed in the water. It was pleasantly cold.

"Is it true that beings from the old world were not good at bathing themselves?" he asked himself.

He suddenly noticed the blood underneath his fingernails. It had always been that way after a fight, but today it made him feel especially uncomfortable.

He poured the water on his body and shook his head to splash the water away. He couldn’t stop thinking about what had happened last night. After wiping his body and putting his clothes back on, Rai decided to not return to the inn and started walking into the city.

The city had a calm atmosphere in the early morning and Rai did not see many other cats. This was possibly because it was still mating season, so many cats were still in heat and stayed indoors.

Rai quickly entered the back alley and headed for a tavern. He sipped his alcohol in his usual corner and stared off blankly into space. Drinking alcohol in the morning would be unbelievable for anyone who lived a normal life, but for those who enjoyed a drink in the morning, this tavern was a popular spot.

Whenever Rai was alone, he couldn't really remember how he normally spent most of his time. Or maybe it's because he didn't want to think about useless things like that. He lived a life of gathering information and catching prey in the forest. If his past self could see him right now, he would surely laugh at himself for wasting his time like this.

After spending some time there, Rai left the tavern and bought some dried Kuim fruits from a street vendor. Konoe had a fever last night, so he thought it would be better to properly feed him.

When Rai returned to the inn, he noticed Konoe's bed was empty. His fever had subsided, so he must have gone somewhere else. Rai started cleaning his sword. The blood-stained sword’s blade got damaged during last night’s fight.

Rai started getting an uneasy feeling about the situation, fearing Konoe would not return to him. He sheathed his sword and sighed. He reminded himself that Konoe was just his Sanga, there was no need for him to stay with Rai all the time. However, in this kind of situation, it seemed right to instinctively assume that something bad had happened. At the same time, he didn’t want to look for him. He had no idea where Konoe could even be in the first place. He sighed and tried to stop thinking about it.

Rai was mad at himself. It was almost like he was being swayed by Konoe. But it made sense after all, if he lost Konoe he would also lose a precious Sanga.

"That must be why…" Rai muttered to himself.

Konoe… would probably be back soon. His bad premonition was nothing more than an irrational fear. Rai closed his eyes. By the time he woke up, Konoe would probably be back.

"..."

He was woken up by a strange dream. While holding his hand over his right eye, Rai took a deep breath and exhaled. He could hear the sound of laughter ringing in his ears, unsure if it was his own or someone else’s. In his dream everything was red, and he was covered in blood. He could feel a strange, dark desire building up in his chest. He couldn't let go, he had to kill...

Rai put his hand on his forehead and looked down, his heart beating loudly. It was an unpleasant sound. The dark feeling he felt in his chest was slowly spreading through his whole body, consuming the body like some kind of disease. It started driving Rai insane, when did he become like this? He let out a big sigh and looked at the bed next to him. After all, Konoe had not returned.

"…shit"

It was unpleasant, everything was unpleasant. It was the exact opposite how he felt last night when he was grooming Konoe. Rai got up and opened the window, letting in the cool winter breeze. The sky was covered by a thick layer of clouds, the light only peeking through the cracks. It was depressingly dim. Rai wondered why he couldn't sleep and decided to leave the room. At that moment, the door of the room opened slightly, revealing a shadowy figure standing by the door. Rai's tail puffed up. He had no idea how long this figure had been standing here.

Rai reached for his sword, but the shadow took a step toward him. Seeing the figure emerge, Rai suddenly stopped moving. It was Konoe. He couldn't see his face because he was wearing a hood, but it was definitely Konoe who stood there silently. Rai did not have any intentions of asking him anything, after all, it had nothing to do with him.

"Tomorrow, we will go to Lake Kagami."

Rai said while he started walking toward the door. However, Konoe walked over to Rai's side and grabbed his hand while looking down.

"What?"

Konoe didn't answer.

Just when he thought something was wrong, he noticed a faint smile on Konoe's face which was previously hidden by the hood.

This guy... By the time he had realized it, it was already too late. Konoe jumped at him. No, was this cat really Konoe? With a loud sound, Rai was pushed down onto his bed. Konoe climbed on top of him and pressed him down with a strangely strong force. Konoe's hood came off and his expression seemed strange, almost artificial. His ears were black, and his expression was cold as the night. Was this some kind of curse, or was the cat in front of him not Konoe at all? He seemed very different than usual.

"Who are you?" Rai asked him cautiously.

He felt like he had sensed this atmosphere somewhere before. Part of him already knew who this cat in front of him was.

A smile appeared on Konoe’s lips.

"You already know, right?"

"Leaks, huh..?"

Leaks laughed at Rai’s response.

"Did you enjoy your peaceful time here during the Dark Winter Festival?”

"What do you mean?" Rai responded.

"Well, what do you think I mean?”

Rai tried to reflexively hit him, but his suppressed body was too weak to even raise an arm.

"The time is near, darkness is beginning to set in. So, for the last time, I want you to hear my wish".

"Do you want to help this person? Your precious Sanga?"

Rai swallowed his words involuntarily, hesitating what to reply. It was almost like Leaks, who was smiling at him, could read his mind.

"Is that body Konoe’s?” Rai asked.

Leaks nodded without changing his expression, still smiling.

"Oh yes, does it look like a different person to you?”

"The color of these ears…”

The black ears trembled slightly, as if they were answering his question.

"Don't forget. The power of the devils resides within me. And the power of darkness is growing. Something like this is easy for me... Look at this".

Leaks peeled back his gauntlet and held his arm in front of Rai, revealing a black mark on his body. Again, Rai’s body was pushed down.

"Do you believe me? Now let me ask you again. Do you want to help this person?".

This question now had a much heavier meaning than before. One wrong move and he could end Konoe's life. Rai focused his gaze on Leaks.

"What do you want?" Rai asked.

"Are you ready accept it?" Leaks smiled.

"It depends on your request." Rai answered.

Rai could see a mysterious light in Leaks’s eyes.

"Alright. There's only one thing I want from you. It's easy. The real you inside of you... I want that."

Rai's right eye ached, there was only one thing that came to mind.

"Are you aware of it? The shadow within you, the most loyal to your instincts. Pure darkness is the source of my power."

"…do not be silly."

"In that case, let Konoe stay like this. Should I let him kill himself?”

With a smile on his face, Leaks unsheathed his sword and pressed it against his neck.

"Right now, Konoe's heart is asleep. If his body dies, he will never wake up again. He will die without even being aware of his own death, but maybe he will be happier that way. Now what will you do?”

If Rai refused, the blade would cut through Konoe's neck without hesitation. He glared at Leaks, whose expression suddenly became more serious.

Suddenly, he got closer to Rai and pressed their lips together. After just the slightest touch, he moved away and a disturbing smile appeared on his face. Before Rai could ask for an explanation, he started talking again.

"This might be the last time. Have you ever wondered what Konoe thinks of you?"

"...what are you talking about? Don't play around."

Rai bit the lip Leaks had just touched.

"It's just like I said, this is Konoe's subconscious wish."

"...a wish?"

"That's right. You are becoming a special person to Konoe."

Just for a moment, Rai's heart trembled, but it turned into anger almost immediately after.

"If you're going to mislead me, why don't you make up a better lie?"

"Eh. Are you saying it's a lie?"

"Bullshit!"

It felt like such a stupid lie, he couldn't believe such a thing was Konoe's wish.

"…oh my." With a sigh, Leaks stood up and he grabbed his knife again, once again pressing it against his neck.

"Now that's the end of this joke, let me hear your answer."

Rai stared at Leaks in silence for a while. To save Konoe, he would have to destroy himself, but... Rai slowly opened his mouth.

"Stop."

"Do you accept it?" Leaks asked him, still pressing the sword against his neck.

"Do whatever you want." Rai replied.

Leaks’s eyes narrowed, as if he was trying to look inside of Rai's head.

"When the darkness is fully awakened, your soul will be devoured and completely annihilated, it's the same as death. Are you prepared?"

"Shut up."

"...interesting."

After Leaks lowered the sword that had been pressed against his neck, he laughed so hard it made his body tremble. It was like he couldn't help it and thought it was funny from the bottom of his heart.

"It's really interesting. Are you sacrificing yourself for the sake of just one individual? Is he really that important? Do you want to be praised that badly?"

"Shut up!" Rai shouted, interrupting him.

"What is so important?"

However, it was true that disappearing for this reason would be meaningless. It was not like Konoe was the only important person in this world. If he lost Konoe, surely he could find another Sanga. There was no need to be this obsessed with Konoe and to sacrifice his own life for him.

Rai knew that, but why did he feel so confused and accepted Leak's proposal?

"...kukuku, that is fine."

Leaks laughed and touched Rai’s face with his hand. Reflexively, Rai's body shook. His fingertips touched his eyepatch and traced it in a circular motion. This was a humiliating loss to Leaks, without even putting up a fight. Rai clenched his teeth.

With a triumphant smile, Leaks looked at Rai, his fingers touched his eyelid and stroked his eyelashes. Rai felt an intense pain, like his eye was on fire. He tried to push the hand away from him, but he couldn't. Before long, he felt a strong sensation, as if his eyeball was being sucked up by some kind of force.

Rai stopped breathing for a moment, while his body trembled. Leaks was smiling at him. He could hear the sound of water evaporating and a dark fog appeared in front of him. The fog came from his right eye. A sharp pain ran through his head and spread throughout his whole body.

"Ah...ha..."

He had trouble breathing, it was painful.

"Amazing... Your darkness flowed into me."

Leaks said while smiling. His pupils had a strange vertical appearance.

Pain dominated his body. He could not see the expression of Leaks’s face, the fog blurring his vision, but he could hear him laugh. The black fog thickened. Deep inside of his eye, Rai could feel the black fog moving around.

A moment later, Leaks finally removed his hand. At the same time, the pain slowly started receding. Rai took a deep breath and opened his tightly closed eyes. Leaks slowly clenched his hand, trying to confirm something. The black fog that was enveloping the room cleared, as if it was being sucked into his hand.

"Kukukuku..."

The air was tense and the only thing that could be heard was Leaks’s eerie laugh. He glanced at Rai and walked over to the window.

"Wait!"

By the time Rai got out of bed, Leaks had already thrown himself out of the window.

A white face dyed in moonlight looked back at him. He recognized the color of that flame.

"Shit." Rai muttered.

Not only could he not help Konoe, but he himself was now also at Leak's mercy.

"Leaks was here~? You should have told me."

Rai raised his face when he heard a carefree voice. It was Froud, who was floating in the darkness outside of the window.

"What do you want."

Rai replied to him, both Leaks and Froud were equally obnoxious.

"Don’t you want to chase after me?"

Froud smiled. Normally Rai would definitely do that, but right now, his body felt too weak.

"Then I’ll do something that makes you want to chase after me~."

"Wait..."

"Follow me, shironeko chan~."

Froud, who had already left, didn't turn around to look at Rai, but Rai knew he had to follow him. Leaks was not the only one targeting Konoe's body, those devils were also aiming for Konoe. However, the pain paralyzed his body. He knew he had to go, unsure why he made a deal with Leaks. He had to protect Konoe, but why? Because he was his Sanga? After grabbing his sword and coat, Rai jumped out of the window.

It was surprisingly easy to find where Konoe and Froud were. He saw corpses scattered in the streets, arms bent in impossible directions. Writhing bodies, he didn't think any other person have done this. He followed the trail or corpses. The road seemed to lead to the river where he kissed Konoe for the first time. While running through the woods, he noticed two figures in the distance, one was floating. The floating one was probably Froud and the other one was Konoe. He wondered if this was Leaks or the real Konoe. What would have happened if he had not followed Froud?

Konoe suddenly turned around and grabbed Rai's arm. Rai pulled Konoe's arm and stood between him and Froud.

"What did you do to him?"

"I didn't do anything, I just thought I should take him home~."

Froud smiled. Rai glared at him, knowing that blaming Froud would not solve anything. It was quiet for a moment, he could only hear the sound of the river in the distance. Rai thought that it was no use staying there any longer. He turned to Konoe and pulled his arm again.

"Eh?" Konoe raised his voice as if he didn't understand anything.

Rai didn't know what to say, so he continued walking. He didn't feel like looking back at Froud.

It was not that far from the inn, Rai continued walking while holding Konoe's arm. After returning to their room, Rai finally let go of his arm. He could hear Konoe breathing a sigh of relief behind him. After watching Konoe wrap himself in a blanket without removing any of his clothes and equipment, Rai sat down on his own bed. He didn't know what to say to Konoe, who seemed like he did not want to speak to him.

Should he talk about Leaks or any other topic, or should he be blamed for his own selfish actions? Should he take care of Konoe, who was most likely feeling exhausted how. He did not know what to do. Rai searched his bag, there should be some dried Kuim fruits that he bought during the daytime when Konoe disappeared. He took it out of his bag and approached Konoe's bed. Konoe was not sleeping. When Rai touched his blanket, Konoe's body started shaking. Rai hesitated, unsure what he should say. Konoe remained silent.

"...hey"

Rai said quietly, but Konoe did not respond.

Was he rejecting Rai? He put the Kuim fruit next to his bed. Rai was tempted to ask him what was going on, but it seemed impossible to get an answer. If Konoe didn't want to reply, it couldn't be helped, and they would stay in this room feeling awkward. Rai left the room and went outside for some fresh air. For a moment he wondered where he should go, as he was still concerned about leaving Konoe alone after what had happened.

The air outside was slowly getting colder as winter approached, it would probably start snowing soon. Reluctantly Rai climbed on top of the roof. Come to think of it, he had not seen Asato for a while and wondered if he was still in the next room. Perhaps he already left a long time ago.

Even with the illumination of the moonlight, it was difficult to see anything. He realized that they enjoyed the festival here only three days ago. No, it had not even been that long since he met Konoe in the first place. The sky slowly started changing colors. Rai stared at the sky, watching as the colors changed from dark purple to red. He started feeling a little cold.

Rai thought that Konoe ignoring him shouldn’t be a problem, because in the end, Konoe was just his Sanga. Rai could take care of his own problems, that is why he wanted to go to Lake Kagami.

Rai stood up and jumped off the roof. When he returned to his room, Konoe was still in bed, wrapped in a blanket. Rai assumed he was exhausted and that it could not be helped. It was not like Konoe still had a fever, so Rai decided to open the window.

"...um."

Rai turned around after hearing a hoarse, faint voice behind him.

"Please don't open the window. And... "

Konoe, still wrapped in the blanket, muttered something.

"Also, yesterday a lot of things happened... and the Kuim fruit... um, no..."

Rai approached Konoe's bed, while Konoe was still trying to find the right words. Konoe was still wearing his hood so Rai could only see his eyes peeking out of the blanket.

"Where were you, the day before yesterday?" Rai asked.

After a while, he replied.

"I went to the lake."

"Lake?"

"To Lake Kagami."

Rai looked at Konoe, who had a grim expression on his face. He sighed before asking him another question.

"Why did you go there?"

Konoe didn't answer. Involuntarily, Rai sighed again.

"It doesn't matter to me where you go and what you do, I have no intention of interfering. But I told you before to not do anything reckless."

Konoe completely turned his gaze away from Rai.

"It’s not a big deal, don't worry about it. "

"...are you kidding me?"

Rai grabbed the blanket, what else was he hiding?

"Brave words for someone who’s hiding under his blanket like this."

Rai pulled the blanket off Konoe.

"Don't...!"

Konoe's ears and tail were black. Rai stared at Konoe, who was now timidly staring at Rai.

"Are you not surprised?"

"I already knew." Rai exhaled softly and continued speaking.

"When Leak took over your body, he showed it to me himself. I wanted to think it was all just a part of my usual nightmares."

"Leaks…"

Konoe finally got up, his black ears drooping down.

"When my body was hijacked by Leaks, what did I do to you?"

Konoe asked, clenching his hands tightly while looking down. Rai hesitated for a moment as to whether he should tell the truth, but he quickly came to a conclusion. Rai decided that it was his problem now, there was no need to tell Konoe.

"...you weren't yourself at that time. It's no use worrying about it."

"...what did I do?"

"You haven't done anything. Forget about it."

"But..."

"You’re persistent"

Rai stared at Konoe.

"If you have time to look back at the past, it's better to worry about the future instead. Do you have time to worry about such nonsense? Think about the reason why Leaks attacked you directly. His power is stronger than before. This was his final warning."

Rai thought that they didn’t have time to think about this too much.

"Final warning..."

"He said the time is near, and the dark forces are getting stronger. If that's what he says, then we need to stop him. Perhaps Leak’s real target isn't you."

"…what does that mean?" Konoe asked.

"Maybe he's planning to destroy this world."

Konoe’s expression became serious after hearing this.

"When he talked to me, I couldn’t see him, but I could hear his voice in my head."

Even though it sounded absurd, both of them did not want to laugh it off as nonsense. Konoe continued talking.

"...when I talked to Leaks yesterday."

"Did you talk to Leaks?" Rai asked.

Konoe's movement suddenly stopped.

"Hey!"

Konoe suddenly raised his head after hearing Rai's voice.

"What's wrong?"

"No, I was trying to remember. Leaks mentioned the song of two moons. Everything will be devoured by darkness and this world will come to an end." Konoe replied, as if he was talking about some kind of strange spell.

"What is that?" Rai replied.

"Leaks told me. It was him who casted the curses again, not the devils."

"Ah, so that's what he told you…"

Konoe removed his gauntlet and looked at the marks on his arm. Rai wondered if the term "cursed darkness" Leaks used really referred to the curse placed on Konoe, or something much bigger. Darkness resided in Rai's own body as well. Consumed by cursed darkness... what did it mean? Would their spirits be destroyed? Would their bodies disappear? Either way, it meant that they would die.

"Does that mean the end is near? Has the time come when the two moons will overlap?" Rai asked.

"Even if that's the case, we don't know when it will happen. However, the prediction that the world will be destroyed might not be wrong."

Konoe gave him a sad smile.

"...then, you don't have to go out of your way to help me anymore. I told you to kill me if I'm ever in your way.”

Rai folded his arms. He wondered if there was a special reason why Leaks targeted Konoe.

"I don't know, let me think about the whole situation."

"Even though Leaks was reckless, he didn't inflict any fatal wounds. Is this just a twisted magician's bad joke... Did you do anything?"

"Me..?" Konoe asked.

"Did anything else happen?"

"Um…"

Konoe looked down while he was thinking. After a little while he thought of something.

"Ah…the ring. "

"Ring?"

"It's Leak's ring, I picked it up when I went to Lake Kagami, and then..."

Rai narrowed his eyes and looked at Konoe.

"Is that how he took control of your body?"

Konoe’s tail was hanging down between his legs, almost seeming embarrassed.

"No matter how you look at it, that was probably a trap. It is pointless to go back to the lake now.”

However, Rai thought that he should have gone anyway, to settle the fight with that monster.

"But I want to go" Konoe answered.

"Why?"

Konoe looked at Rai and answered.

"...because I was worried about you."

Rai felt slightly shaken by Konoe's eyes staring directly at him.

"I wanted to know what you were seeking for, but I thought that you wouldn't tell me even if I asked. That is why I went to Lake Kagami by myself."

Rai looked at Konoe.

"Why do you want to know something like that?"

"I don't know but..." Konoe looked around the room.

"Did you ever think of saving me?"

Konoe gasped after hearing Rai's words.

"Such a thing..."

"I don't care, don't interfere."

Konoe looked down and clenched his hands. Rai let out an exaggerated sigh.

"It's unreasonable."

Konoe glanced at him without replying.

"You are an idiot, a helpless stupid cat. If it wasn't for your Sanga abilities, I would have probably left you in the forest. But even then, you would probably come back to me. That's why... " Rai looked out of the window.

"Even if I told you not to come, you would probably follow me anyway. Am I wrong?" Rai asked.

He picked up his equipment and headed for the door. Before heading out, he turned around.

"I'm going to Lake Kagami now, don't follow me."

Rai slammed the door shut. He listened and heard sounds from the other side of the door. After confirming Konoe was indeed following him, he headed to the lake.

"Your body…" Rai asked without looking back at Konoe.

"Body?"

"Are there any side effects from the curse?"

"Not for now at least." Konoe replied while jumping over the tree roots.

Looking at him moving without any problems, Rai felt relieved. Then, when Rai started to rush ahead to see if it would be okay to move faster, Konoe started talking to him.

"The Kuim fruit, you put it next to my bed yesterday right?"

"I just left it there because it was in the way."

"It was delicious" Konoe happily told him.

"Huh" Rai replied before rushing ahead.

The road to the lake did not have any big obstacles. The forest had a kind of damp smell, and slowly they started getting closer to the lake. Lake Kagami. The surface of the water reflected the surrounding scenery clearly like a mirror, which is what the lake got its name from. Konoe approached the shore of the lake and gently dipped his fingers into the water. Not sure what Konoe was doing, Rai walked over to his side to observe him. The surface of the lake seemed hard, as if it were frozen. His eyes and ears told him that it was definitely water, but it seemed like something else.

"Is it frozen?"

"…I don’t know what to say. It’s water, but it’s hard."

"Can we walk on it?" Konoe looked up and Rai nodded.

"Let's go"

Rai stepped on it without hesitation. He could hear the sound of tree branches moving in the distance. It was a strange lake. The sound of water could be heard underneath them, but their feet didn’t sink into the water. They soon reached the opposite shore. Where was the cave?

After a while Konoe also arrived.

"Is it really here...?"

Did Konoe feel the same way? Rai began to explore the area. Suddenly he heard a sound coming from the rock wall. He noticed a white light had emitted from the rim of the lake, beneath Konoe's feet. The light faded slowly, leaving behind a lasting impression. Suddenly there was a big hole in the rock wall.

"What did you just do?"

"...I just read this..."

Konoe stared at the edge of the lake below his feet. As he approached Konoe, Rai saw letters swaying with the waves. It seemed to be some kind of magic trick.

"How did I solve this?" Konoe asked.

"Because you are a Sanga, spells can only be used by those who have the power to sing."

Konoe looked at him strangely. Konoe really didn't seem to know anything about Sanga. The hole in the wall gave off an eerie feeling.

"Sacrifices selected by the village where the prostitute lived, were regularly brought to this cave, as an offering for the monster." Rai explained.

"The monster appeared at midnight on the sixth day of the week and ate the sacrificed cats, deep inside of the cave. Many regretful souls wander here. Souls seized with hatred who have no concept of time." Rai continued talking.

He was worried if Konoe was too sensitive to deal with this.

"Stay there" Rai told him while entering the cave.

"...no. Besides, it's not that bad." Konoe replied.

"Have it your way" Rai muttered before he started walking into the cave.

Konoe followed him. The inside of the cave was filled with humid air, it felt very unpleasant. The darkness of the depths of the caves seemed to be endless. For a moment, Rai’s body felt very hot, as if it was being set on fire. He clutched his chest. Breathing was painful. He couldn’t stand it and crouched down for a moment. Konoe approached him.

"… hey?"

"...I just got a little dizzy. Nothing..."

Rai had trouble breathing and his chest hurt. He couldn’t breathe.

"It’s not ‘nothing’, if you're not feeling well..."

Konoe took a deep breath. His gaze stopped at Rai’s chest and his eyes widened in astonishment. He brushed away Rai's arm, which was holding his own chest, and looked at his skin.

"Hey, what happened…?”

Following Konoe's frozen gaze, Rai took a deep breath. Dark marks were visible on his chest. It was Leaks's curse, the same that appeared on Konoe’s body.

"..Why"

Konoe let go of Rai's collar and stepped back.

"Why... wasn't I the only one..."

"...calm down." While enduring the pain, Rai called out to Konoe.

"Leaks, is it his fault... why, why!" Konoe shouted.

"Calm down!" Rai yelled.

Konoe was trembling.

"Don't be upset. I still don't know if this is the same curse as yours."

Rai was out of breath. His vision became blurry. He tried to stand up, but his legs were weak. After regaining his composure, Konoe rushed over to Rai and put his arm under him to support him.

"...let me go."

He couldn't imagine walking together with someone like this. However, Konoe firmly held onto his body.

"I'll let you go when we get back to the inn."

"Just let me go. It's not a big deal."

"Stop being stubborn, it is a big deal if you’re feeling this unwell."

Konoe's words made sense, but Rai was not convinced.

"I don't want you to tell me that."

Rai sighed while his vision flickered, he wondered if he had a fever. Other than the pain in his chest, not being able to move his body felt unpleasant.

"I don't want you to tell me that either. Anyway, we’re going back now." Konoe replied.

"No. Are you going to waste our time?"

"Shut up… What are you saying at a time like this? Look, you already said I won’t listen to you so this time I also won’t. We can return to the cave some other time, let’s go now.”

Rai knew Konoe wouldn’t listen to him, and with the current condition of his body, listening to him seemed to be the correct answer.

"Stupid cat…"

"Whatever!"

Konoe muttered. When Rai thought about giving up, his whole body felt like it was losing its strength. But no, it wasn't like he was completely powerless. Rai started slowly walking, as if he was being dragged out of the cave by Konoe. The light outside was dazzling.

"The magic trick". Rai mentioned.

"Put a spell on it to seal the entrance, just in case. Let's read the secret message again."

Konoe walked to the edge of the lake while supporting Rai’s body and recited the letters that swayed on the surface of the water. The cave entrance was once again sealed. The two of them took their time to cross the lake and returned to the forest path. Rai’s whole body was hot. The pain in his chest seemed to be pressing on his lungs, making it hard to breathe. He stared at Konoe who was still by his side. It never occurred to him that he could walk with almost all of his weight resting on Konoe. Rai moved forward while enduring the pain. By the time they arrived at the inn, the sky had turned dark.

He did not want to be seen by his fellow bounty hunters as he walked through the streets of Ransen with someone supporting him, but his legs were too weak.

"What is it?"

When Rai and Konoe entered the inn, Bardo turned his gaze to Rai and stood up.

"Don’t approach me.”

Rai answered and glared at Bardo. He didn't want Bardo's help.

"Did you get hurt? I'll help you."

Konoe shook his head when he heard Bardo's question.

"Sorry"

Rai was relieved that Konoe understood what he wanted and headed straight for the stairs. There were many things he wanted to think about, but his hot body made everything bothersome. It was still mating season too.

He entered the room and, with Konoe's help, reached his bed. Konoe began to remove Rai's coat and equipment, Rai didn't feel like resisting. The pain and fever seemed to be getting worse and worse.

"Look”.

Konoe brought water from a barrel to his mouth in a small bowl. Rai licks it a little.

"Is it painful?"

"...it will heal after getting some rest."

Rai answered and closed his eyes. Realistically, he didn’t know if he would get better with just a little rest. However, he intended to start moving as soon as his body felt better.

Konoe, who had been sitting next to Rai, suddenly stood up.

"I'll leave this here. Be careful not to spill it."

Konoe placed the wooden bowl on the shelf and started walking towards the door.

"Where are you going?" Rai asked.

"Just going out for a little bit"

"Wait..." Rai grabbed Konoe's arm.

"Are you going to do something crazy by yourself again?

"Don't be foolish." Konoe replied.

"You’re unreliable. "

Konoe sighed.

"Just believe me. "

Rai felt overwhelmed, probably because his body was weak.

"I know you'll get in trouble when I'm not here. So, believe me."

When Konoe isn't here... After saying those words, Rai lowered his head. What did it mean to believe in someone? He didn’t know. Did he feel uncomfortable when Konoe wasn't there? He didn’t remember saying anything like that. He only mentioned that he was a precious Sanga.

"...I don't know what will happen.. but have it your way."

"You're quite worried, aren't you?"

"Because you do dangerous things."

When Rai answered indignantly, Konoe covered him with a blanket.

"Anyway, I want to find out something. I'm leaving now."

Rai saw Konoe putting on his hood before he left the room. It was so hot, his body felt like it was on fire. Occasionally, a sharp pain ran through his chest. Had Konoe also experienced all this suffering?

The marks that appeared on his body were very similar to Konoe's. Just as Rai intuitively felt that Konoe and he were suffering from the same curse. Konoe must have travelled to the lake to learn more about the curse. That cat won't listen even once. No matter how dangerous it was.

The fever made Rai unusually thirsty. The bowl of water that Konoe had left behind was already empty. Just when he was about to get up to get water from the barrel, there was a knock on the door. Bardo was standing in front of his door. At a time like this, his face was not exactly the one Rai wanted to see the most. It was the same when he was grooming himself the other day.

"How are you feeling?"

Rai turned his back to Bardo.

"What are you here for?"

"I came to see how things are going."

"Get out."

"You’re so cold" Bardo replied while entering the room.

"What is this? Did you put anything in here, it's empty." Bardo looked at the water bowl.

He then tried touching Rai’s forehead. Rai immediately groaned. Retracting his hand, Bardo shrugged his shoulders.

"You have a fever. Don't you want water?"

"...get out."

"I can't believe you're acting like this. You caught a cold once when you were just a kid too, wasn't that enough? "

Rai didn't care about his old stories.

"Get out"

"Damn, who does this stubbornness resemble?" Bardo muttered in shock.

"I don't want you to say that... ugh..."

Out of breath and coughing, his chest tightened. Painful.

"Hey, what are you doing? Don't overdo it." Bardo reached out to touch Rai's ear.

"...annoying, don't touch..."

"Let me check your temperature, I'll bring you some medicine."

He reflexively turned his face away. By doing so, Bardo's fingertip hit his eyepatch.

"...you." Bardo looked at Rai in surprise.

"What happened to your eye?"

After hearing those words, Rai touched his eyepatch with his hand. As soon as he touched it, his hands felt numb. His right eye also felt hot, he didn't notice it at first because of his chest pain.

"That eye injury, it's not recent. Isn't it better to take the eyepatch off?"

"Shut up. Get out."

Bardo was staring at Rai with a serious expression, but before long he slowly turned around.

"If something happens, please tell me."

Bardo left the room. In the silent room, Rai could feel the darkness deep inside of him pulsating. With every heartbeat, he could feel a dark shadow blurring his vision. The darkness, the darkness of his heart. The existence of his other self was screaming behind his right eye. Ever since Leaks used Konoe’s body to touch his right eye, he felt like he was slowly going mad. Rai wondered that when this day comes, would he be able to stop himself. No, he had to be strong. Even if fate was already decided, this would be his body until he did what he had to do. He couldn’t get hurt, when this is all over, then he would…

The sound of the door opening snapped Rai back to reality. He felt like he was drifting back and forth between this side of the world and the world of his dreams. When he opened his eyes, Konoe had already returned. Konoe noticed Rai's gaze and turned around.

"Did I wake you up? Sorry."

"No. I was not sleeping."

The pain was a bit less bad than when he arrived at the inn.

"How are you?"

Konoe asked, but there was something Rai wanted to ask Konoe more than that.

"Where have you been? The sorcerer?"

He couldn't think of a cat that knew about curses other than that sorcerer.

Konoe nodded.

"What did he tell you?"

"…that it must be the same curse as mine. " Konoe stuttered.

"...he thought it might be because we’re Sanga and Touga."

"...really."

Perhaps the sorcerer also told him what the bond between Sanga and Touga really meant.

"And also, the story of the song of the two moons also seems to be real."

"When will it happen?"

"I don't know, he said it would happen soon."

"How do we prevent it?" Rai asked.

"I don't know either."

"...It doesn’t seem like we have many options left."

Rai let out a small sigh and looked up at the ceiling.

"It's true that Leaks is up to something, but we can’t do anything right now. We have no choice but to wait for the other party to contact us."

Konoe lowered his head.

“If he gets in our way, we could try to kill him immediately, but let’s let him live for now. Leaks should contact us again. Wait for that time."

Rai replied. Leaks remained an overwhelming force. He wasn't sure if they could handle it. Is it because of the fever that he felt this anxiety he wouldn’t normally feel?

Konoe grabbed some water and tried to give it to Rai.

"…are you thirsty?”

Rai silently looked at Konoe, stood up and grabbed the bowl. He took a sip of water and then drank it all. The sound of Rai scooping the water with his tongue echoed in the quiet room.

He noticed Konoe was staring at him and stopped drinking.

"What?"

"Eh... no."

Konoe's eyes fluttered. Rai let out a small sigh and sat on the bed, wrapping his thick tail loosely around his body. He wrapped himself in a blanket and Konoe closed the window. Silence fell. Rai could only hear the sound of them breathing.

"...are you still awake?"

Konoe whispered.

"Um... a song"

When he heard the word 'song', Rai rolled over in bed and stared at Konoe.

"...what?"

"Should I sing?"

He didn't really understand why Konoe said that. But if he could listen to Konoe's song, the white light could probably ease some of his pain.

"Sorry"

Rai didn’t know what Konoe apologized for, but Konoe already tried to crawl back in bed. Rai stopped him. He wasn’t sure how to tell him that he wanted to listen to his song, so they were just staring at each other in the darkness.

"...sleep."

Rai turned around in bed. As he wondered if there was a bond between them, the mark on his chest hurt. His right eye also hurt more than before. Rai tried to abandon these thoughts. He knew that if he slept he would have nightmares. But right now, it was important to give his body some rest. He slowly drifted to sleep.

"..."

Rai slept better because of the fever, even though he did have a nightmare, he didn’t remember the details. The sluggishness remained, but the fever seemed to have gone down. Rai got up, Konoe still seemed to be asleep.

As he opened the window, cool air flowed into the room, illuminated by light of the Moon of Light.

His right eye still felt slightly hot, but since he could move again he figured it would be okay. Sitting on his bed, Rai looked at his chest. The black mark was still there. Rai thought that the burning sensation yesterday could also still be a result of the mating season. Thinking about it, his own scent had also changed.

Konoe finally woke up. Rai told him to get ready quickly.

"How are you?"

"Do I look like I’m doing badly?"

Rai answered while putting on his coat. Konoe got out of bed after some stretching.

"Where are you going?" Konoe asked while drinking water from the barrel.

What do you mean, you know right? Rai answered with a slight astonishment.

"The cave in Lake Kagami of course."

Yesterday, because of the curse, they could only go halfway. There must be something in there.

"About Leaks and the curse, shouldn’t we tell the devils? "

Konoe asked while getting ready. Rai couldn’t trust the devils.

"You don't have to tell them."

It wasn’t just Froud, generally he just had no idea what those devils were thinking.

"And don’t let Bardo and Asato know. "

"Are we going to move on our own from now on?”

In response to his question, Rai crossed his arms and looked at Konoe.

"Are you dissatisfied?"

"That's not it…"

"We'll know when Leaks moves. No need to let others know."

Konoe seemed to care about Asato and Bardo and considered them friends. However, moving with fewer people was definitely less dangerous. Rai told Konoe, who was silently thinking about something.

"Let’s leave soon."

Rai left the room with Konoe who had also finished getting dressed. When he went down the stairs and entered the waiting room, all four devils were present. Bardo was also there.

Rai walked to the front door, ignoring the others.

"Hey, these two cats over there. Hold on."

"What?"

When he turned around, Verg was glaring at him. The other devils were also looking at him.

"I have something to ask you. Come over here."

"I have urgent business right now, maybe later." Rai replied.

"Okay... come here quickly."

He shouldn’t have listened to them, Rai turned around and tried to go outside.

"I told you to come here!"

A roar could be heard in the distance, and the air was tense. Konoe looked at them anxiously. They were probably already aware something had happened to both of them yesterday. As Rai was trying to figure out what to do, he heard someone else’s voice.

"Hey, please wait a minute."

Everyone looked at the reception. The person who this voice belonged to was Bardo. He crossed his arms and looked at them.

"I won't argue with you, but if you fight each other in a place like this, it will scare the customers and they’ll run away. If you want to do that, do it in the dining room."

After saying that, he pointed towards the dining room.

"Ah? How could a tabby cat give me orders..."

"Don't waste your time arguing. It’s better to listen to him."

Razel scolded, Verg, who expressed his frustration.

"...heh"

"Let's stop, even if we quarrel, it won’t change anything."

"Wow. Damn, the Devil of Grief is always right."

"...discussing what’s right and wrong, I hate that sort of thing about you."

"Oh, so that means there is something you like about me too, right?"

Froud, who was unusually quiet, tapped Kaltz on the shoulder as if he was trying to interrupt Verg and Kaltz’s argument. The demons reluctantly headed to the dining room. Froud looked at Konoe and Rai. They didn't know what happened between Konoe and Froud that night Leaks took over Konoe’s body.

"Yo!"

Rai and Konoe looked at each other.

"That person…!"

"I guess the others haven't heard anything from him yet about the curse. If we make a fuss, we'll be the suspicious ones." He whispered.

"Do you want to talk to them...?"

"Let’s go, it’s already too late to back out now."

Rai gently pushed Konoe's back as they headed for the dining room. Bardo was also there, only Asato was missing. Rai looked around the dining room and heard a strange noise coming from the window. He saw Asato outside, upside down. Konoe rushed over and opened the window, letting Asato enter the room. They were all set now.

"Hey kid"

Verg suddenly grabbed Konoe's arm. He didn't even have time to stop him.

"Let's talk..!"

Verg then hugged Konoe from behind and ripped off the coat he used to hide his ears and tail.

"As expected"

Konoe's black ears and tail were exposed.

"I was thinking about it the other day, but I don’t remember you having that ear and tail color."

Bardo and Asato raised their eyebrows anxiously.

"…why, Konoe…"

While being watched by them, Konoe escaped from Verg's arms and turns his face away.

"You got a mark on your arm too, right? Is Leaks using our powers without our permission"

"A mark?"

Bardo tilted his head after hearing Verg’s words.

"Would you like me to explain?"

Froud looked at Konoe. Then, his gaze slowly shifted to Rai.

"Hey?"

Rai made eye contact with Froud for a moment, and immediately turned his face to Konoe. Konoe stared back at him. He shook his tail and nodded. Konoe lifted his head, trying to choose the right words to explain what happened. He started with the story about how Leaks took over his body. Rai thought he was going to mention Rai’s curse too, but Konoe paused and looked at Rai. After that, Rai took over Konoe’s story.

"Similar marks appeared on my body."

The demons all looked at Rai. They seemed a bit surprised that he was also cursed.

"Heh...this."

"Your ears and tails don't seem to have changed, so it’s only that mark?"

The demons stared at Rai again.

"I'm sure you all know about the folklore curse, but I always thought it was some kind of superstitious fairy tale." Bardo murmured to himself.

For some reason, Asato looked frustrated and turned away from them.

"And if I understood it correctly ...does that mean the world will end?"

"Does that mean that Leaks’s power is getting stronger?"

Konoe asked the devils.

"...did any of you know?"

"Originally, Leaks was not able to use our powers, yet we could sense that he had used it on you."

"In the end Leaks is still a different being that us, even if he could temporarily take away our own powers, being able to use it would be almost impossible. If he can do that now, it means Leaks is finally serious. "

Froud nodded to affirm the words of Kaltz and Razel. Rai stayed quiet even though he knew Froud was already aware that Leaks cursed him. However, right now it was not the time to blame Froud for anything.

"I have a vague idea where Leaks could be."

Kaltz said.

"Before, no matter how much we searched, we couldn't sense his presence. Now it's different. We can sense him, but we don’t know his precise location yet. We’ll know when his powers get stronger."

Kaltz continued. All devils could feel his presence in some way.

"It means the end is near."

Razel crossed his arms.

"If that's the case, it doesn't matter what else you do. Find out where Leaks is and build up your strength to defeat him."

Verg wrapped his arm around himself and grinned.

"What would happen if they couldn’t find him before ‘The Last Hour’.”

Konoe asked. Froud, who was leaning against the wall, laughed at Konoe's question.

"He’ll find you for the very last time. "

"How do you know that?"

"Intuition. The devil's intuition."

Froud calmly answered Konoe, who asked him a question in a hurry. Konoe stared at Froud.

"Now that we’ve discussed this, let's combine our strengths." Other demons followed suit.

"We have to prepare ourselves. See you soon."

Before he left, Froud smiled and waved at them. Konoe stared at the sky after he disappeared, as if he could hear the sound of him grinding his teeth.

Rai picked up Konoe's coat, which was stripped off by Verg and covered Konoe’s head with it.

"..."

Deprived of his sight, Konoe panicked.

"Let's go out. Get dressed quickly."

"Ah... "

Looking back at Konoe's expression, Rai could no longer sense any anger. Bardo called out to Konoe who was putting on his coat.

Rai sighed, and when he left the dining room, he leaned against the wall and waited for Konoe. He turned his gaze back to the dining room and saw Konoe talking to Asato. It felt like he had been waiting there for an eternity while the two of them talked about something. Finally, Konoe started walking towards him.

"What were you two talking about?"

"...aren't you being a bit mean now? Were you worried about me?"

"Nonsense."

Rai ignored Konoe and headed for the front door. Like yesterday, Rai and Konoe planned to go to Lake Kagami. The air was very cold and both of them did not say a word to each other.

They walked through the forest again and across the lake. Konoe still seemed uneasy about walking across it. They stopped in front of the rock wall and Konoe read the spell on the surface of the lake. Just like last time, the letters and the rock wall started glowing.

Rai didn't know what triggered the hot sensation in his body last time they came here. He glared into the darkness of the cave and then decided to enter.

"Let's go."

When he turned around, Konoe quietly nodded. It was the same as yesterday, the humidity was unpleasant. They proceeded cautiously. Rai remembered it vividly, when he lost his right eye, but he couldn’t remember this cave. It must have happened somewhere else.

He knew from the sound of his footsteps that Konoe suddenly started walking fast even though Rai wasn’t that far ahead of him. Feeling suspicious, just before turning around, he stopped walking. Konoe bumped into Rai and also stopped.

"...whoa!"

"What are you doing?"

Konoe looked at him.

"...no, um, I'm walking fast because I thought I'd be in trouble if I got lost."

Rai did walk a bit fast, but Konoe's behavior was a little strange. Maybe he was too wary of his surroundings. Rai sighed.

"It's not that far, the cave isn’t that big."

Deep inside a dark cave they found white bones. Beside it was a single sword that pierced the ground. Rai could feel the heat in his right eye. His body shivered, bringing back some old memories.

"...what's wrong?"

Konoe asked him, noticing that Rai was acting strangely. Rai answered while staring at his sword.

"...this, it's my sword."

"…huh?"

"...that's my sword."

Konoe looked anxiously at him. Rai felt as if the darkness was slowly engulfing him. His right eye was hot and painful, and his vision blurred again. It was that monster. It was here and he had to kill it. If the monster was defeated, he should finally be able to feel warmth again.

That monster was standing right next to him. Rai suddenly attacked Konoe.

"...ah,..ngh...!"

Rai’s eyes were dark while he pushed Konoe down. He smiled and the silver reflection of his blade could be seen in the depths of his blue eyes. He pushed Konoe to the ground and bit into the flesh of his neck.

"Ah…!"

It tasted like iron. Konoe kicked him in the stomach, but Rai grabbed him with his other arm. However, one of Konoe's free arms hit Rai. Konoe pushed Rai’s head away from him, removing the teeth that were digging into his flesh. He struggled to escape from him as his elbow was hammered into Konoe’s chin. But when he tried to get up, Rai suddenly grabbed Konoe's tail.

"...ah!"

Konoe twisted his upper body and struggled to shake off Rai. However, as soon as Rai let go of Konoe's tail, he attacked Konoe again and smashed his body to the ground. Konoe coughed.

"Let me go!"

The sword hit Konoe's struggling arm. Konoe stopped moving.

Rai noticed his prey stopped moving and he bit his neck again. Sweet. Warm. Rai smiled softly. Suddenly, he heard a song.

It was a song he had never heard before. What is this song? What was he doing?

At the same time as the sound of the song faded, he returned to his senses. In front of him he saw a cat called Konoe, who was about to lose consciousness.

"...hey!"

Konoe opened his eyes. Then he raised his hand. Rai tried to dodge it first and then slowly stood up. Konoe groaned softly.

"...are you back to normal...?"

Without answering Konoe's question, Rai furrowed his brow and lowered his gaze to his feet, looking at his own abandoned sword. What happened? Rai asked himself. Staring at this sword, he remembered that monster. Then he felt pain in his right eye.

He had no recollection of what happened after that. He didn’t know what he was doing before that moment when he heard the song. Konoe had a bite wound on his neck. He must have been bitten by Rai. Did he lose his mind yet, to even attack those who are not his enemies?

His right eye was thumping with his aching heartbeat.

"...are you okay now?" Konoe anxiously asked.

He couldn’t look straight at Konoe's face. There was only one thing he could say.

"...go back."

If he stayed with Rai while he was like this, he was afraid he would hurt him again sooner or later.

"…huh?" Konoe asked.

"Return to the town”.

"What?"

"...return to the town and find another Touga right away."

Replacing a Sanga would be hard, but finding a replacement Touga should not be too difficult.

"What are you saying?"

Rai ignored Konoe's question and started walking towards the lake.

"Wait a minute! I don't understand what you mean, what are you saying all of a sudden!"

Konoe approached him and grabbed his arm. But Rai couldn't look back.

"What is wrong? Explain it to me...!"

"It’s impossible." Rai muttered.

"What do you mean…!"

"You know why!" Rai shouted while he turned around.

"My time is up. If I stay by your side like this then..."

Rai closed his eyes. Konoe didn’t know. He would lose his sanity and kill Konoe.

"...you are a precious Sanga, you shouldn’t have to risk being killed by me."

That moment, a fist hit Rai’s cheek. He could have avoided it, but he didn’t. He looked at Konoe.

"You're truly an idiot, aren't you? You’re an idiot cat!"

Konoe yelled. Rai could gradually sense the taste of iron in his mouth. It was blood, but it didn’t taste as sweet as it usually did, unpleasant and metallic.

"Don't be silly, what you’re saying is selfish!" Konoe shouted.

Rai stared blankly at Konoe, who was trembling and shouting at him.

"A precious Sanga?! You're the one who said you would help me, are you going to throw me away like that!? Besides, what would happen to me afterwards!? What should I do... !"

Konoe clenched his fist while desperately looking for the right words.

"You've never asked me for my opinions, what I think or anything like that!"

Rai couldn't see the expression on Konoe’s face, but he could see that his shoulders were trembling.

"I haven’t been your Sanga for a very long time, but until now I’ve stayed by your side all this time. There’s no way I can be paired with another Touga now…"

Konoe suddenly said calmly.

"...even if I wouldn’t be able to recognize who are anymore?" Rai asked quietly.

Konoe looked at him, as Rai continued talking.

"If I lose my mind, I will not hesitate to attack you. There is no reason to be on my side knowing that you will be killed." Rai said.

he didn’t want to kill him, his Sanga.

"I’m telling you not to decide these things on your own...! There's no reason to do that. You said I was your precious Sanga, then you are my precious Touga… "

"If I paired up with anyone other than you, I would not be able to sing. I have no intention of singing if it’s not for you."

Rai thought that Konoe's words were painful, but he wasn’t sure why.

"…why?" Rai asked.

Konoe shook his head.

"If you don't understand it, just like how you only think of me as a precious Sanga, that's fine."

Rai couldn’t move after hearing Konoe’s words and quietly stared at him. He didn’t know what to do and why his chest hurt so much.

"...and then, when you lose your mind and don't understand anything anymore… then…"

Konoe looked straight at Rai, who didn’t say anything, and then continued his words.

"When that happens, I will kill you. "

Rai stared blankly at Konoe. Konoe wouldn’t listen to anything he said, that’s something he learned a long time ago. He wondered if Konoe would be able to deal with him and his darkness, but if he said he would do it, Rai knew that he would really do it.

"You're really stupid. I've never seen a stupid cat like you before."

"...both of us are."

For some reason, Konoe sniffled.

"I'm sure you and I are both stupid cats that can't be touched by anyone else, just right for a pair." Rai replied.

Konoe laughed shyly at Rai's words, their gazes overlapping.

Rai took Konoe's hand and pressed his palm against his chest. Would this heartbeat reach Konoe?

"Here" Rai told him.

"If darkness consumes me and I lose my mind, pierce through here."

Konoe's fingers touched his chest.

"Understood."

Seeing Konoe’s nod, he felt a warm feeling in his chest. Rai gently shook his tail.

"...I believe in you. You are my Sanga."

Konoe who was a bit surprised by his reaction, laughed.

"…of course."

Rai nodded and smiled at him.

By the time they crossed Lake Kagami, passed through the forest, and returned to the inn, the sky was already dyed red. On their way to the inn, they ate some dried nuts and then they returned to their room. When the Moon of Light sank into the horizon and the Moon of Darkness rose from the east, they crawled into their beds.

Rai had trouble sleeping that night. Wanting some fresh air, he got up from his bed and stared at the bed next to him. Konoe was apparently already asleep. Rai got dressed and left the room. He went to the back of the inn again, not with a particular purpose in mind, he was just there to calm his nerves. The city was completely quiet, and the wind was so cold, it felt like it was going to cut his skin. However, Rai thought it was comfortable.

He walked up to a tree in the alley and leaned against its trunk. He closed his eyes and listened to his own heartbeat. Was it a real heartbeat, or was it the darkness pulsating inside of him? He felt like he had two hearts underneath this cursed, bruised skin. This body was already eroded by darkness, but he didn’t feel confused or bad about it anymore. Konoe told him that he would take care of it. Rai felt a sense of freedom.

Perhaps he had put a heavy burden on Konoe, but Rai felt so relieved when Konoe told him that he would kill him if anything happened. It calmed him down. Rai wondered if something about him would change soon, or perhaps, some things changed already, something inside of him. He took another deep breath.

"There's nothing left you can do."

Suddenly, he heard a voice. Rai placed his hand on the hilt of his sword. The bushes overhead swayed violently, revealing an upside-down face. White skin could be seen floating in the darkness. It was Froud.

"Hey, did I startle you? I'm sorry~."

"I've warned you many times, but what do you think? I think you finally started experiencing it. The raw feeling that makes you lose your mind. Did you feel it?"

Froud said while smiling at Rai.

"… you!"

Rai glared at Froud.

"Fufu, I'm looking forward to it. I know everything, everything! Do you know why?"

Froud happily spread his arms out.

"Because I'm watching you all the time."

Froud laughed.

"The more you stir it up, the more delicious it becomes. The same kind of soul as me.”

Froud talked as if he was quoting the lines of a theater play. Rai could feel a strong green wind touching his face. When the wind died down, Froud's figure melted into the darkness and disappeared.

Rai drew out his sword to clear the night air, as if he tried to cut away his own anger. He could now clearly understand Froud's words, which he had previously only rejected. There was no time left.

He knew that Froud was aware of his ‘other self’, but why did he want to see that side of him so badly? A chill ran down his spine. He couldn’t get that smile and the sound of his whispers out of his head. His right eye hurt and his vision became blurry.

"…ugh. Damn it. "

Rai touched his eyepatch. He wanted to gouge it all out, all the pain, all this hatred. The black heart in his chest pumped hot, tainted blood through his body. Rai gritted his teeth. The curse he felt in his chest and the pain that ached in his right eye were the same, both incredibly dark.

#lamento #lamento beyond the void #lamento expiatio #expiatio #nitro+chiral #nitro chiral #blvn #translation

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