Don't forget to read the first part if you haven't!
The next day, at her funeral, the young Kirisaki starts feeling watched, a feeling he'll repeatedly come across in this chapter. Additionally, we're introduced to two of his teachers, the brutish PE teacher, Sakurai, and his compassionate homeroom teacher, Kyouko.
Following the funeral, one of the children, Taino, attempts to re-confirm the veracity of Satoru-kun's rumor, which is accepted by Atsuko, strangely enough. But they decide to do so later, at which point Kirisaki returns home and we learn of his father, Doumei Kirisaki, a man who seems more aware of the situation than he would likely be. He warns Suimei to not play around with rumors, which causes Suimei to leave the house in awkwardness.
He returns to the park, the chosen meeting spot, a little too early, but that gave the chance to meet again with his teachers. Those two were rumored to be in a relationship, which appeared possible until he angered Sakurai, causing him to wind up a punch, but it didn't hit its mark, as Kyouko went in between them. This completely changed her demeanor, running away in fear of him, at which point he follows in tow.
That was a pretty long summary, but it's important to remember all of this, as it'll become relevant in the future. And now, let's continue where we left off, shall we?
I sat on a park bench, waiting for their arrival. The events of a while ago... I still haven't completely understood them... The more I look back, the more... I don't understand.
"Kirisaki-kun!"
"A-Atsuko..." She had a smile on her face.
She looks a little tired... but I'm sure she's just forcing himself to smile. "I'm... glad to see you're doing well."
"...I can't be sad... forever..."
"...Yeah..."
"Oooi! Sorry, I'm late." Taino finally showed up.
"...So, what are we going to do?"
"......"
The more the three of us tried not to think about it, the more our eyes focused on the phone booth. Suddenly, Taino opened his mouth.
"Want to try... again? Let's check... if Satoru-kun... is real..."
"......" Atsuko went quiet.
"...Hum...Well, I'll do it." Satoru-kun is nothing more than a lie. I was so confident that I took it upon myself to make the call.
I entered the phone booth and placed the receiver to my ear, then Taino pushed some buttons.
I intentionally looked around the inside of the phone box, finding many leaflets stuck to the glass.
Flyers filled with obscenities, disreputable financial pamphlets... all sorts of leaflets are cluttering up the place.
...It connected! ...
"...Hello..."
I threw a fleeting glance at Taino and he was looking at me with a delighted face... I've got a bad feeling about this...
.........I receive no reply from the other side of the phone. Dad's words come back to my mind.
Don't approach... Satoru-kun...
"...S-Satoru-kun, Satoru-kun... Please come... Satoru-kun... Satoru-kun..."
"........"
Is this what Miku meant by "didn't say anything"? If so, I... In an instant, a chill runs through my body.
What nonsense!
I'm now convinced of Satoru-kun's existence, which I had denied a while ago, all of a sudden... In fact, I'm even hoping for some kind of answer...
My head is definitely in a mess.
[White flash]
"...What's wrong, Kirisaki..." Taino is looking at me with a mysterious expression.
"........"
I myself don't know what's happening... Or what will happen in the future... I have no idea.
"......" What seems to be the sound of a ventilation fan is heard over the phone. This is the same as what Miku said.
"...I...am...Sato...ru......Don't...look...at...me...Don...t...look..." Suddenly, a robotic voice comes from the receiver.
This seems like an {answering machine} message. But a message like this... What the hell is this...?
"I...am...Sato...ru...Don't...look..."
The mechanized voice repeats the same thing in a steady rhythm. I listen to the voice, dumbfounded. What is this...?
My eyes follow the {flyers} in the phone booth without understanding why. I guess I'm looking for something to reassure me, I think. My eyes catch sight of a certain leaflet in the phone booth.
Among the flyers filled with obscenities and disreputable financial pamphlets... There is...
A flyer with "Don't look at Satoru-kun" written on it...!?
"Huh? This is..."
The flyer reads, "Don't look at Satoru-kun... 03-XXXX-XXXX"
The phone number is written in neat handwriting, but the sentence "Don't look at Satoru-kun" seems to have been added by someone else.
Is this... some kind of prank?
Almost at the same time, a scream rang out in my ears.
"DON'T LOOK---!!!"
...What is...this...? I can't make heads or tails of anything...
The only thing I understand is... That scream was from a female voice...
"......" [Line is cut]
"What's up? Hey, Kirisaki!" Taino seems really happy...
"I can't... hear anything..."
"Eh? You can't hear anything? But that's impossible... Satoru-kun... didn't say anything?"
"Yeah."
"Except for... some kind of answering machine message thing..."
I ended up looking over at Atsuko, and she looks pale for some reason...
When I looked at Taino, he looked pale as well. Taino seems to be seriously afraid of Satoru-kun.
"The fact he didn't say anything means..."
"...What?"
"It's the same as Miku... Kirisaki... You..."
"Don't overreact. Besides, I..."
I heard a strange voicemail message. I don't know what it was or what it meant, but... I heard Satoru-kun's (?) voice.
But somehow I feel funny for hanging onto that. A moment ago I didn't believe in rumors at all... and now I can't believe I'm at the mercy of those same rumors.
If I don't have more confidence in my own opinions and intentions, I'll be swallowed up by rumors. With this in mind, I incidentally surveyed the phone booth and saw...
"Huh? By the way, this... did you bring it here?" Placed atop the phone book was the {contact list} of our class.
"No, I didn't. I certainly did bring a print of the contact list that night, but... that's not mine."
"Well... Then why is this here?"
Written in there were my classmates' names, phone numbers... and then there are some unfamiliar names next to the ones I know.
Roughly half of the students have a name I don't recognize next to them.
"There's a lot of stuff on there."
"Yeah, next to the students' name, there are other names... And it seems to be only the first names."
"What are you guys talking about?" Atsuko poked her head inside the booth. I showed her the list.
"It's the class contact list, but... I wonder how it got all the way here..."
"........"
"Atsuko? Is something wrong?"
"No... It's nothing..."
"Are you okay? You're looking a little pale."
"Yes, I'm fine... Don't worry about me."
"That's good, but... Oh, yeah, I should ask Taino about this, too..."
"About what?"
"Satoru-kun's phone number. You're always pushing the buttons for us, right?"
"Oh, Satoru-kun's phone number is 03-XXXX-XXXX."
The phone number Taino mentioned was the same as the one on the flyer. I'm sure that was the number I called earlier...
Furthermore, I recognize this phone number. Whose phone number was this...?
Anyway, the fact remains that a real phone number is being used. That means...
This Phone Number Is...
The number on the flyer is...
>A match for Satoru-kun's number.
>Not Satoru-kun's number.
Probably a match, but we couldn't see it, lmao.
>A match for Satoru-kun's number.
The number on the flyer matches the number that is said to be Satoru-kun's phone number. Which means...
>All calls to Satoru-kun are routed to this number.
>Calls to Satoru-kun are not routed to this number.
Yes??
>All calls to Satoru-kun are routed to this number.
All calls to Satoru-kun are routed to this number. In other words, the calls connect to a specific place.
If you call this person...
>They won't think it's a prank call.
>They will think it's a prank call.
Good question, but since they put up a flyer, maybe they want people to call?
>They won't think it's a prank call.
They won't think it's a prank call... Some of the callers might ask for serious life advice...
However, the owner of this phone number must get annoyed by the frequent calls.
That means...
>They made the answering machine message as a countermeasure? (Conclusion)
>The answering machine message is what they really think. (Conclusion)
What does the second one mean? I'm way too curious to choose the other.
>The answering machine message is what they really think.
This is what they really think! In other words, they meant exactly what they said...
Or, to put it more bluntly, this probably was an anti-prank measure invented by the phone number's owner.
Speaking of... Long ago, I think I heard an urban legend about a phone call like this.
As I recall, I heard it from Taino as well.
Uhm... I think it was an urban legend about a certain famous doll. I don't remember the details...
The owner might have gotten the idea from there...
...Or I'm overthinking things.
But, well, I think I've reached a rough conclusion at least.
"Hey, Taino. Like I said, Satoru-kun is a lie, isn't it?"
"What!? That's... wrong!"
"...Nah...The message I heard was..."
"...Probably an answering machine message."
"So what?"
"Look at this flyer." Taino fixedly stared at the leaflet.
"This matches Satoru-kun's phone number, doesn't it? In that case, this was just a {prank call}. What we're doing is just a prank."
"That must be wrong!"
"Because of that, the owner of this phone number probably made the message as a countermeasure against prank calls, don't you think?"
"........"
"When you think about it, it's perfectly normal, isn't it?"
"But... Why do so much work for that?"
"Eh?"
"If they don't like prank calls, why not change their phone number, talk to their phone company, or just do something about it? They've got a lot of free time to make such a weird message."
"Surely... there must be some other intention behind it!"
"There is, huh... Even if you say that..."
"I'll bet you a {chocolate bar}!"
"...Sigh..." Why is Taino so stubborn? I understand his passion, but I'm fed up with it.
"There must be some reason for it!"
"...Sigh." I threw a glance in Atsuko's direction.
She looked like she wanted to say something. Has she been hiding something for all this time?
"Hey, Atsuko... Is something wrong?"
"......Nn? Uhm... It's nothing."
"You've been acting strangely since a while a-......" It's just like that time. That... uncomfortable gaze is fixed on me again...
Does it come from the bushes again... or... even closer?
At any rate, I'm certain that a gaze is staring at us from somewhere. Its owner... is still unknown, but...
The sun is already beginning to set. The park is becoming less and less crowded. "...Again... that gaze..."
"...What are you talking about?"
"...No, it's nothing. Atsuko...shouldn't we be going home soon?"
"...Um... Yeah... Ah!" Atsuko's surprised face looked at the outside of the park.
I looked in that same direction and saw my dad. I couldn't see him clearly against the sun, but he seemed to be holding a file in his hand.
It's probably from his job... Come to think of it, I've never heard any details about what kind of work my dad does.
I should try following him later...
"Um, I'll be going home now..."
"Eh? What's this all of the sudden?"
"Ah... Sorry. I just remembered some things I needed to do."
"...Really... Well... We, too..."
"Seriously, I'm sorry. See you."
"Ah, Kirisaki-kun..."
"What's wrong, Atsuko?"
"...No, nothing."
"Is that so? Well, that's fine."
"Okay, we'll be going home, too."
"...Yeah. Alright..."
I might be able to see my dad at work. Thinking of this, my steps naturally quickened.
"Huh? This place is..." I tried to look around from the shadows of the pillars so I wouldn't be seen, but for some reason, I found my father in front of Miku's house.
My dad is talking to someone on the front porch, but... I can't see him or what he's talking about from here... What do I do... Should I move closer?
"Suimei! Come out!"
"Eh?"
"I know you've been following me! Come out!"
Had he found me out for all this time...? I stumbled my way to my father.
"Excuse us... This is my son, Suimei."
"Hello..."
"Oh... If it isn't Kirisaki-kun..."
"Suimei, could you call your friends, too?"
"Huh?"
"You two, come out as well!" Dad shouted towards a telephone pole. Atsuko and Taino appeared from behind it.
"Atsuko... and Taino, too..."
"You've followed me too, huh..."
"Sorry..."
"You all should return home. This is grown-up business."
"Dad, why are you at Miku's house? And... I'd like to know what your job is."
"Not possible."
"...Kirisaki's father, I want to know, too. I can smell something fun."
"This isn't a game... Do you understand?"
"I don't! I can't just walk away after getting a whiff of the occult... That would be too cruel."
"......"
"Dad, why...?"
"...Fine. But, don't get in the way of my job... Especially you, Taino, alright?"
"Of course! I'd never be a hindrance... Right, Kirisaki!"
"Yeah, I won't be a nuisance."
"......"
"Well then... Let's go inside and discuss the details. Is that alright?"
"Yes, of course." Seeing my dad at work... was a fresh sensation.
We were shown into the parlor. The door to the next room was left open. There we could see an altar on which Miku's ashes and portrait were placed.
I feel as if I have been brought back to reality again. Everything that had happened up until now had been done to forget Miku's death... that was my intention...
I agreed to call Satoru-kun again because I wanted to reassure Atsuko. Because, presently, the culprit still hasn't been caught...
Atsuko is probably afraid of the image of the invisible culprit called Satoru-kun... That's what I believe. It's too painful for Atsuko.
"So... When did Miku's body disappear?" My dad abruptly spoke.
"........."
For a moment, I didn't understand what my dad said... Miku's body disappeared? Is he saying that Miku isn't inside the funeral urn? No way...
"It was after the memorial service..." Miku's mother began to speak slowly.
"I opened the lid of the coffin to get a glimpse of her face..."
"And the body was already gone?"
"Yes... It wasn't there..."
"Was there ever a moment when the coffin... no, Miku's body was left alone?"
"U-Uhm... Let's see... It was only for a few minutes, but... After the memorial service, when we had a meal with just the relatives..."
"I see..."
"The family took turns looking at the body... but there was one moment when everyone left the ceremony..." What the hell are they saying?
Miku's body disappeared...? Are they saying someone stole it? But, what does that mean...?
Dad continues to talk with Miku's mother. But to my ears, it sounded as if they were talking somewhere far away. I must have been confused by the overwhelming affair.
But the fact that Miku's body is missing is more than that... it's an unthinkable event to my common sense...
"I see... Thank you." Apparently, Dad's conversation was over.
"There, let's go home, Suimei."
"Ah, OK..."
In the end, what kind of work is Dad doing? I never got a good answer to that question. Is he working on some kind of investigation?
I was somewhat annoyed that I could only guess that much. Perhaps "disappointed" is a better word than "annoyed", though...
"Taino-kun, I'm going to ask you to keep quiet about what you just heard."
"Yes! Understood!" Taino was smiling.
"Kirisaki~, your dad has a really cool job... I'm jealous!"
"Eh? ...Alright..."
"You've been thinking for a while, Suimei."
"Huh? No... It's just that a little too many things have happened, and I'm a bit confused..."
"Are you thinking about Satoru-kun?"
"Eh? No... I mean, that's..."
"This guy called it a prank call." Taino told my dad sulkingly.
"...You called... Satoru-kun...?"
That Taino! Saying unnecessary things...
"I told you, didn't I? To take care... around Satoru-kun."
"...I'm sorry..."
"I knew it! Satoru-kun is the real deal!"
"Well, I wouldn't call it that..."
"But, it was just a normal answering machine message. Calling it real... there's no way."
"Hm, I see... By the way..."
"What?"
"The "Satoru-kun" rumor spreading through your school... What type of rumor is it?"
"That's, well..."
"Satoru-kun tells the future!... It's that type of rumor...to put it simply."
Suddenly, Atsuko replied. Taino's mouth was blankly agape.
"Atsuko-chan... What method is used to make the call?"
"Um, it's... you call Satoru-kun's phone number..."
"I see... the outline is the same, huh..."
"There are other types of Satoru-kun!?" Taino said, seeming somewhat excited.
"...Either way, you guys shouldn't carelessly approach Satoru-kun. Got it?"
"...Yes..."
"Then, take care and go home."
"Yes, understood!" It looks like Taino completely admires my dad.
"Kirisaki-kun, see you..." Some kind of dark cloud hung over Atsuko's voice.
But, even though I was concerned about her, I could only see her leaving figure off...
"Hey, Dad..."
"What is it, Suimei?"
"Why are you {investigating} the whereabouts of Miku's body?"
"...Because that's part of my job."
"...Your job...?"
"Yes, your dad specializes in cases the regular police can't handle."
"......"
"Investigating and resolving strange cases written down in files like these is my job."
"I... see..."
[The file's the same as the one at the beginning of the chapter, the name on it is "Kirisaki, Doumei".]
Dad placed the file he was holding on top of the table. The front cover had "Unofficial Case" written on it...
"Dad, do you think Satoru-kun is real?"
"...The missing case of Miku's body... I do think there's a connection between the two."
"...Missing?"
"Yes, it went missing." I wonder why he used that term? If a corpse vanished, you'd normally use disappearance...
Dad's manner of speaking makes it sound like Miku's body vanished by itself.
My head's getting confused again... It's too much new information.
I---
⬢ >Ask about my father's work.
>Ask about the current case.
>Go to sleep since I'm so confused...
I'm confused as well, honestly, but let's ask more.
>Ask about my father's work.
"Hey, Dad. Your job... What's it like?"
"Hm? What's the matter, asking that all of the sudden...?"
"No... I'm just a little curious..."
"......"
"T-that file... Is it related to your job?"
"......"
Dad wordlessly opened the file with his hand. I unintentionally looked towards it and saw a ton of unknown names lined up inside.
There were ages written beside the names ... most of them were between 10 and 15 years old ... from elementary school to junior high school. And... the list of names included...
In bold letters, it says, "List of Satoru-kun Related Missing Persons"... And, as a matter of course, the name "Miku Harada" was written on it.
I vacantly stared at it, then I ended up meeting with my dad's gaze. I felt as if I had done something bad, so I cast down my eyes without thinking.
"...Possibly..." Dad slowly began to speak.
"Miku-chan's missing case... is deeply connected with the "Satoru-kun" urban legend..."
"......"
"The disappearance cases connected to this urban legend have been occurring one after the other in recent years. It's safe to assume that... she's one of them too..."
"...Really?"
"You and your friends aren't unrelated as well, might I add."
"Eh?"
"Did you not play with calling Satoru-kun?"
"W-we did..."
"You guys aren't safe yet..."
"......"
"You didn't think it was anything dangerous, didn't you, Suimei?"
"Y-yes... I didn't think of anything like that."
"That's why it's tricky... Especially with urban legends, like this one, that have become so customary."
"......"
"Well, Dad's going to protect you guys. So don't worry."
[Ring ring ring]
Mom called me over to where the phone was. Apparently, Taino called for me.
"...Hello..."
"Ah, Kirisaki? It's me, Taino..."
"Is something wrong?"
"No... Want to look for a reason?"
"What?"
"I mean, the reason for Miku going missing."
Going missing... To think even Taino is using those words. I wish I had better listened to the conversation Dad had at Miku's house.
"Hey, did you hear me?"
"Nh, yeah... I heard you."
" 'I heard you', not! I'll say it again, so listen up, we're meeting at the park!"
"Eh? The park?"
"Atsuko's already here. So come on, Kirisaki!"
"...Atsuko's already there...?"
"Yeah, we're waiting in the park, so you absolutely gotta come!"
After saying that, Taino one-sidedly ended the call. Atsuko's... there, huh...? I wonder if she's okay...
Recently, Atsuko's lack of words has become my single worry. Like she can't say what she wants to say... She has that air around her now...
At any rate, I guess I have no choice but to go to the park.
"Suimei."
"Huh?" Suddenly, my dad stopped me.
"...Be careful with Satoru-kun."
"...Okay..." Once Dad finished speaking, his form vanished back into the living room.
"First of all, I gotta go to the park..."
The sky was gradually growing darker. The cicada's cries echoed through the quiet park.
A park without human presence... For some reason, that seems really creepy...
I headed to our meeting place, the vicinity of the phone box, and I could see Atsuko's figure already there. She was inside the phone box, making a call to someone.
Who could she be calling? "Atsuko!" My voice caused Atsuko's body to tremble with a jump.
"Ah, Kirisaki-kun..."
"Who were you calling?"
"Um, home, because, well, I'll be late..."
"...Is that so?"
"...That's all..." Atsuko's eyes had a certain vacant feeling to them. They seem to be looking at me and somewhere far away.
"Yo! We're all here~!" A carefree voice sounded from behind me. Looking back, I saw Taino standing there.
"You guys came early, hm?" Taino was holding some sheets of paper in his hand.
One was the class emergency contact list... The other was the printed copy of that list, which we found in the phone box the other day.
"Okay, Kirisaki. Here." I received those two papers from Taino.
I---
>Ask Taino, "What's... this?"
⬢ >Rip apart the prints, "These papers are meaningless."
>Say, "Other than this, can you tell me any new info?"
Let's be a little roundabout.
>Say, "Other than this, can you tell me any new info?"
"Other than this, can you tell me any new info?"
"...Why this all of the sudden, Kirisaki?"
"You've stocked up on them again, right? Urban legends and stuff."
"Well... I mean, yeah... Want to hear them?"
"Mh-hm."
"Well... then, I'll do a little presentation of the info related to this park..."
"Please."
In truth, I wasn't really interested in the urban legends.
However, because I have become aware, albeit vaguely, of the significance of these two prints... Perhaps I wanted to postpone the conclusion for a bit.
A smile was all over Taino's face as he began to speak. "So... I identified various stories of statues walking in parks. Almost all of them say the statues move at night..."
"For example, that boy's statue in Kyoto's Maruyama Park... That Hiroshi-kun statue in Yokohama's park... Ah, that's right, related to Hiroshi-kun's statue, there's also Shibuya's Takeshi-kun statue..."
"Wow~. I didn't know there were that many." Atsuko was listening with a keenly interested look on her face.
"It's because there are a ton of bronze statues built in parks. For what reason, I don't know..."
"I see... Anything else?"
"Let me think... Not any related to parks."
"What are they about?"
"You know the traffic sign with the exclamation mark?"
"Yeah, that's the yellow one, right?"
"That one, yeah, it actually represents a different kind of danger..."
"...A different kind of danger, huh."
"They say this includes psychic phenomena and hauntings."
"...What do you mean?"
"Those signs are installed in places where ghosts appear."
"That's not a given, is it? I thought you said it was one possibility."
"Well... You could say that."
"Then, that's the end of it..."
"Kirisaki! You distracted me by making me talk about unrelated stuff! That's terrible!"
"Sorry, sorry."
"Look! This isn't the time to talk about that..."
"Yeah... That's right... Let's go back to the prints."
"Yes, yes! Let's talk about the prints!"
"Okay. Let's move on..."
"Yes! Let's move on!"
"These prints, where did you get them?"
"Ah, I swiped them from the phone box the other day. I thought they could be important."
"I see... And about these names, what are they about?"
"Those? Finding that out is one of our goals today!"
"...Really?"
"Yep, really. There's gotta be something in there!"
[Quick flash of the bloodshot eyes, screen turns red]
Right then... Again... It's that gaze...
[Another flash of the eyes]
The gaze I always feel in this park... It seems to be coming from the bushes again...
[A third flash of the eyes]
Who the hell could be watching me... In order to answer that, I begin to walk towards the shrubs...
"Kirisaki! That reminds me!"
Taino called to me, and I stopped moving. "Hey, Kirisaki and Atsuko too, can we go to the woods for a bit?"
"Why?"
[Wide shot of a path, a sign reading "Children's Woods" appears for a few seconds before it pans out.]
The "woods" Taino talked about was a grove in one of the corners of the park.
This is a popular spot where children come to catch rhinoceros beetles in the summer.
However, we didn't come to catch beetles this evening. "Why did we come to the woods?"
"Just be quiet and follow me!"
Taino walked off into the woods by himself, not even looking at us as we stood there in a daze. I guess I'll just have to follow him now...
I stuff the prints in my pocket and go after Taino together with Atsuko.
"Fufufu... It's getting pretty dark, isn't it... So I thought we'd start with a test of courage."
"Oy, this isn't investigating Miku's case!"
"That'll come next!" This damn occult otaku...
The depths of the forest are completely covered in darkness. We couldn't even see the trees a few meters ahead. But we continued on our way.
Since we've come this far, we have no choice but to follow Taino...
As we move deeper into the forest, the surroundings gradually become darker and darker. Dense trees blocked out the sunlight. Atsuko tightly squeezed the hem of my shirt.
Brushing aside the dangling branches as they rustled, Taino moved onward.
"Hey, Taino! Wait for us!"
"Stop following me and stay here!"
"I said wait!" With a flap, a bird taking residence in the woods took flight. My heart skipped a beat in response to that sound.
Taino quickly took off. I can't see anything but his silhouette anymore.
Atsuko looked anxious and tightened her grip on the hem of my shirt.
Taino... or more precisely, Taino's silhouette... became smaller and smaller... and then... vanished.
Wait, he vanished? We followed after him in a panic.
[Black screen]
Small tree branches blocked the way in front of us. We wade through them with both hands as we headed toward the spot where Taino disappeared.
I'm out of breath. Is this from lack of exercise? Or is my heart pounding from anxiety about what is about to happen? I don't know.
This area is surely where Taino vanished.
The setting sun shining through the trees dyed a large tree deep red. Right under that tree... I suddenly heard a voice.
"...Kirisaki~~! Look out!"
"Eh? Ta-Taino?"
"Look down~, down~~~!"
"Ah, h-here?"
There was a gaping hole about two meters in diameter. Was this... the remains of an old well or something? And that is where Taino fell in.
"Kirisaki~, do you have some kind of rope or something? I'd like it if you pulled me out of here!"
"Alright...! Wait a minute..."
I rip off a vine wrapped around a large tree nearby. I pull it with both hands to check its strength. ...It seems to be okay.
"Hey, Taino~! Let's try this for now!"
"What~~~? I can't hear you..."
"I said! I'm going to lower this vine now, so... try holding on to it!"
"O-okay~!"
I smoothly lower the vine. It barely... reaches the bottom of the well. It must not be that deep a well.
"Alright! Climbing up~!" This vine is sturdier than I thought.
Taino grabbed onto it and somehow managed to reach out to the edge of the well with both hands.
"Phew... I'm saved."
"You know, you're getting too ahead of yourself."
"...I'm sorry...I got a little carried away."
"Well, it's fine, isn't it? You're safe and sound, after all." Atsuko patched up the dejected Taino.
"That's right! Well then... Let's go, Kirisaki!" He easily gets back on his feet, and Taino walked away by himself again... He doesn't learn anything, this guy.
[Taino's sprite quickly darkens to a silhouette]
It didn't take long before Taino became a silhouette once again. In no time at all, Taino was out of sight... Honestly... He's probably going to fall down again.
For now, we should follow after Taino. If we leave him alone, who knows what'll happen to him?
Then... Taino, silhouetted in the dusk, stopped walking...
And, right above him... There was another...
Silhouette.
What is... that, I wonder... It looks like a person hanging from some kind of rope...
Taino wasn't moving from that spot. What the hell am I seeing?
"UWAAAAAHH!!!!"
Taino's shriek reverberated throughout the forest.
We hurriedly rushed to him. What could have happened?
"Taino!"
"Uwaaahh... Kirisaki, Kirisaki!"
It was a somewhat open space. There was one large tree growing right in the center...
And on it...
[Screen flashes red]
Miku's corpse hung upside down.
"KYAA--------!!!!!!"
"A-Atsuko... Are you okay!?"
"Ah, ah...!!"
The setting sun shines through the trees. Miku's body, illuminated in red, is... dressed the same way as at the time of her death...
She's wearing the same clothes she wore on the day of the incident. And, the pendant dangling loosely from her chest also seems familiar.
[Screen goes black for a long while]
The area was in an uproar. The police arrived and took Miku's body out of the woods. Miku's mother also showed up.
As we were the first to find her body, the police asked us about the situation. It was brief, but Atsuko was in total shock.
Miku's body was stolen and then found in a forest... Thinking about this... I came to one possibility. That being...
...All of this began with that bet.
Whether or not Satoru-kun is real... Taino, alone and isolated, and Miku, who made the phone call to ascertain that...
Taino was definitely confident. Confident in us being able to talk with Satoru-kun no matter what.
However, Miku's line... "He didn't say anything..." That was enough to crush his honor.
From then on, Taino accompanied us on every occasion. He entered the woods despite saying we were going to look into what happened to Miku, and there we found her body...
That seemed way too good to be true...
Come to think of it, when I was about to walk toward the owner of the gaze I felt, it was Taino who stopped me. Perhaps he was an {accomplice}.
"Hey, Taino. You're... not hiding something, are you?"
"Eh? What?"
"No... It's nothing."
This guy isn't the type of person who can cunningly lie... That reaction now seemed natural. Even if I assume that Taino is the culprit, one question would still remain.
How did he steal Miku's body? On the day of the memorial service, Taino was accompanying us...
His alibi at that time was properly established.
However, after we went our separate parts... That is to say, when the opportunity to steal Miku's body made itself clear... What was he doing? That I don't know.
What was Taino doing in the hours between our parting on the road and our meeting in the park? Did he have a motive to {steal Miku's body}?
Taino's Motive
Reflecting on Taino's words and actions, he...
>Seriously believes in Satoru-kun.
>Doesn't regard Satoru-kun highly.
Quiz time, were you paying attention?
>Seriously believes in Satoru-kun.
He firmly believes that Satoru-kun is the real deal. And... considering the events that happened on that day, the day Miku was murdered...
By some chance, could his argument with Miku be his motive...?
>That's probably unrelated.
>That could be one of his reasons.
I hope that wasn't a reason.
>That's probably unrelated.
That's surely irrelevant... It would be horrible if people were killed because of mere arguments.
But, I'm talking about Taino. His devotion to the occult is out of the ordinary.
So, let's assume that argument was part of his motive...
In that case, perhaps the underlying cause is...
>His confidence in Satoru-kun's existence.
>His skepticism towards Satoru-kun.
They didn't need to push us this hard to the right answer.
>His confidence in Satoru-kun's existence.
He's confident that Satoru-kun exists... Because of that, Taino...
>Wanted everyone to acknowledge it. (Conclusion)
>Wanted everyone to think that, too. (Conclusion)
Both could be true, but let's go with the less severe one.
>Wanted everyone to acknowledge it.
He wanted everyone to acknowledge Satoru-kun as a real thing.
It may be a really childish thought, but if Taino's blind belief in Satoru-kun dominated his life, then Miku destroyed it in an instant...
He may have thought to take retaliatory measures. Those being... Miku's murder...
...The most painful conclusion...
But, what about Taino's alibi? Besides, wouldn't it be difficult for someone like Taino to carry Miku's body...?
Come to think of it...
The gaze I've always felt in this park, I'm not sensing it at all now. Did the police gathering here make them run away?
"Hey, Kirisaki-kun..." Atsuko spoke to me, looking pale in the face. "I have something I want to say..."
"Huh?"
"I want to say something... no matter what..."
"...Okay...But first, let's get away from this place."
"Mm-hm..."
"Then, is over there fine?"
"Yeah..."
Let's stop here. Bit sudden, yes, but like last time, best place I could find. What will happen next? Well, we'll find out quite a bit, in particular, what Satoru-kun's aim is, and meet a character that'll be very familiar to us.
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