Shinrei Tantei Yakumo – ANOTHER FILES - Volume 2 - Chapter 1

ANOTHER FILES – THE COFFIN OF PRAYER
file 01: the cursed spring (TRANSLATION NOTES)

-

1

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Sachiko ran –

With only the moonlight as her aid, she made her way through the dark, thick trees and grass, pushing away branches and panting as she ran frantically.

Just earlier she had seen the back of the man running in front of her, but now, she could not find him anywhere.

It seemed like she had completely be left behind.

She didn’t even know where she was running towards now.

Still, she couldn’t stop. If her feet stopped, she would be caught at once.

– I shouldn’t have come here.

Along with her strong regret, the spring she had seen earlier formed a vivid image in her mind. A spring on high ground, surrounded by the forest.

– Let’s watch the meteor shower.

She couldn’t remember exactly who had said it, but Sachiko herself had thought that a photo of the meteor shower reflected on the surface of the spring would have been beautiful.

And then they had gone to that spring.

At first it had been fun. Everyone had been excited when somebody had said, as they were waiting for the meteor shower –

‘I hear something.’

When Sachiko strained her eyes, she did hear something.

She hadn’t known what it was at first. It sounded like the branches rustling and the sound of insects.

'Do you know the legend about this spring?’

Sachiko started talking about the legend she had heard before about this spring. She had meant it as a joke.

She could still hear the sound as she talked. It got louder and louder, and then finally, somebody said –

'This is a song.’

Those words made everything turn cold.

Sachiko held her breath and looked around.

There was nobody here besides them, and yet she could hear it. Sachiko could no longer hear anything besides the song.

Sachiko suddenly felt something and looked towards the spring. Then, she saw something bubbling up from the spring, which reflected the moon on its surface.

As the water rushed up, a black shadow appeared.

A woman –

There was panic. Sachiko couldn’t remember exactly what happened. She ran, screaming.

The singing voice came down from the sky.

The voice which echoed uncannily through Sachiko’s head made her tremble.

'Stop it already! What is this!?’ screamed Sachiko.

However, the song continued to echo in her ears regardless.

I need to get out of her right now – despite that urgent thought, Sachiko tripped on a tree root and fell forward.

She used the tree trunk as support to stand up, but then a shocking pain ran through her ankle. It seemed she had twisted it when she fell.

As if to mock Sachiko for that, the song followed her.

'Stop!’

Sachiko covered her ears with her hands and shut her eyes tightly as she screamed as loud as she could. Then, the wind rose up, as if her scream had caused it, and made the branches rustle loudly.

Sachiko was shaking, but she soon noticed something strange and opened her eyes.

The singing voice she had heard up until now had suddenly stopped. When she took her hands off her ears, she couldn’t hear the song.

In the silence, Sachiko heaved a sigh of relief.

What on earth had that song been? Maybe it had been an auditory hallucination – no, that couldn’t be it. She wasn’t the only one who heard it.

Sachiko suddenly felt a presence behind her.

The man who had left her had come back – that was what she thought at first, but if that was the case, why wasn’t he calling out to her?

Drip, drip, drip –

There was the sound of dripping water.

Gooseflesh came up over Sachiko’s whole body in her anxiety and confusion.

– I’m scared. I don’t want to look.

Even though she thought that, her neck slowly turned backwards, contrary to her will.

It was so shocking that Sachiko couldn’t even scream.

Standing behind her was a woman, completely soaked –

She was so pale she didn’t look alive. Water dripped from her sharp chin.

Drip, drip –

Her wet hand reached straight in front of her.

– I need to run.

Even though Sachiko thought that, she was caught by the woman’s eyes, which were as dark as caves, and Sachiko couldn’t even move a finger.

The wet hand completely snatched away Sachiko’s consciousness –

-

2

-

Gotou Kazutoshi leant back on the chair and lit a cigarette –

'I’m bored…’ he grumbled, blowing out smoke.

The Unsolved Cases Special Investigations Room that Gotou was stationed at was under the jurisdiction of Criminal Affairs. Though it had a splendid name, the main work was to organise files for cases that had been left unsolved and to assist in cases when there weren’t enough people. It was just a do-nothing job.

'Then please help.’

Through the smoke, Gotou saw Ishii Yuutarou lift his head up from the pile of documents.

He wore a slender suit and silver-framed glasses that made him look intelligent. At first glance, he looked like a capable man, but that was completely false.

Ishii was always hesitant and panicked when it came to the crunch, so he couldn’t do anything. That was the type of guy he was.

'I can’t do boring work like organising files.’

Gotou looked away.

'Organising documents is a splendid job. Why do you dislike it so much?’

Unusually, Ishii talked back.

Why – the answer was just that Gotou didn’t like it.

It irritated him to think about difficult problems and do detailed work. There was no reason for it. That was just his personality.

But saying that aloud would get on Gotou’s nerves.

'I don’t dislike it. I just don’t want to do it.’

'That’s the same thing. In the first place…’

'Shut up.’

Gotou hit Ishii’s head.

Ishii’s lip curled in what looked like dissatisfaction, but he didn’t say anything else.

When did Gotou turn into this –

When he joined the police, he had been burning with justice. He had felt like he’d become a hero.

However, he soon found out the truth.

Police weren’t allies of justice. The bad guys did whatever they wanted, and the good citizens that the police were supposed to protect became victims.

Even while knowing that, there were laws, rules, and society – within these walls, Gotou couldn’t do anything.

The recent stalker case was a good example.

Even though Gotou knew it was likely they’d commit a crime, he still couldn’t do anything. All anyone could do was report it. If nothing happened, the police couldn’t act.

These days kept piling up, rubbing away at Gotou’s spirit.

If he couldn’t save anyone, what were the police for anyway?

– Going on feeling won’t solve anything.

A man who had been Gotou’s coworker before had said that. The complete opposite of Gotou, he followed the rules and acted on his thoughts – an unpleasant guy.

Even though Gotou could remember his name, he just couldn’t remember his face. Maybe because he hadn’t ever looked at him properly because he just hadn’t liked him.

The door opened, interrupting Gotou’s thoughts.

Miyagawa Hideya, the chief of the detectives, came into the room.

Though he had a small frame, his bald head and sharp, glinting eyes made him seem more like a gangster than a detective.

He had been on the scene for a long time. When Gotou was a novice detective, Miyagawa had worked him hard.

Miyagawa was also a man who went more on feeling than on thought.

'Chief Miyagawa, good morning.’

Ishii stood up and bowed in his stupidly polite way.

'My, my. What’s the revered chief of the detectives doing on this remote island?’ said Gotou sarcastically.

'You look like you have a lot of free time, as always,’ replied Miyagawa in the same manner.

'We’re busy, even though we look like this,’ said Gotou jokingly, which made Miyagawa snort.

'There’s something I want to ask you guys to do,’ said Miyagawa in a wry tone after walking up to Gotou’s side.

If it was a request for Gotou and Ishii in their do-nothing jobs, it had to be troublesome.

'Please ask elsewhere.’

Gotou pressed his finished cigarette in the ashtray and looked away.

'I want to do that too. This isn’t even police work in the first place.’

Miyagawa took one of Gotou’s cigarettes without asking and lit it. Gotou had heard that he’d given up smoking, but he seemed really annoyed.

'Then you can just refuse, right?’

Gotou waved his hand, like he was chasing away a fly.

'No can do. There are circumstances on my side of things too.’

Miyagawa sighed, blowing out white smoke.

He looked tired.

'What do you mean by circumstances?’

'Request from an old police guy.’

'I don’t know what idiot made the request, but you can just ignore somebody who’s left the force already.’

'You know that I can’t do that.’

It was just as Miyagawa said.

The police organization was built on a strict up-down relationship. The influence of that wasn’t limited to those who were currently working. It stuck with you your whole life.

'What’s the request?’

'The police vet has a grandkid who’s gonna be in uni. The request’s related to that kid…’

'A shoplifter?’

A police retiree might ask them to clear the record.

'There’d be no problem if that was it. We could just get pull them in.’

'Wouldn’t there be pressure?’

'Like I care. If there’s an arrest at this stage, there’d have to be pressure.’

Miyagawa wasn’t acting tough. He probably meant it. Miyagawa was that sort of guy – that was why he could be trusted.

'Then what is it?’

'That grandkid got a murder notice.’

'A murder notice!?’

Ishii, who had been listening silently, stood up, eyes sparkling. Even though he was useless, he always got excited about cases.

'Is it all right to leave such an important request to us?’

That bothered Gotou.

If there was a murder notice, the police should respond to it diligently.

It wasn’t something for a useless department with only two people to take care of.

'The problem is the obsessive person in question…’ Miyagawa said wryly, pressing his finished cigarette into the ashtray.

Gotou waited for Miyagawa to continue. Ishii was holding his breath too. However, Miyagawa didn’t speak no matter how long they waited.

'Who on earth is it?’ asked Gotou, who had run out of patience.

Miyagawa’s face twitched.

'An evil spirit, apparently.’

'Wha?’

It was so unexpected that all Gotou could do was cock his head.

'Of all things, an evil spirit…’

Gotou had had a hand in many cases that dealt with spirits. He had even been given the nonsensical nickname 'Psychic Detective’.

'To be honest, it sounds suspicious,’ said Miyagawa.

'You don’t believe it?’

'It’s got to be someone’s prank. Even though we could just leave it alone, it’s been made into such a big thing… That said, I can’t just refuse it, but there’d be a huge protest if I put Criminal Affairs on this.’

'So you’re saying it’s OK to push it over to us?’

'Because I can trust you. I don’t have anyone else I can ask.’

To be honest, Gotou was going to immediately refuse, but now that Miyagawa said that, there was no way he could.

'I get it. We’ve got the time anyway. We’ll at least go hear them out.’

'Sorry. Thanks for this.’

Miyagawa bowed from his waist.

'Please stop acting unlike yourself. So where should we go?’

When Gotou asked that, Miyagawa handed him a memo with an address and a name. After he took it, he grabbed his jacket and stood up.

'Ishii, we’re going.’

Gotou started walking briskly, but when he turned around in the corridor, he didn’t see Ishii following him.

– He’s spacing out again.

'Ishii!’ yelled Gotou, which made Ishii run out of the room.

He fell –

-

3

-

Ozawa Haruka went towards the prefabricated building behind Building B.

She was going to meet Saitou Yakumo.

She had met him last autumn – it had begun when Haruka had gone to consult him because her friend had been possessed by a ghost.

Her first impression of him was the worst. He was rude and hard to approach. Was it really OK for her to leave things to him? That had been what she felt at first.

However, Yakumo hadn’t only saved Haruka’s possessed friend. He had also revealed a murder that had been in the dark.

Since then, Haruka had experienced a number of cases, and her impression of Yakumo had changed greatly. It could even be said that it was the complete opposite of what it had been at first.

Though Yakumo normally hid it with a black contact lens, he had a red left eye.

That red eye could see the spirits of the dead – that is, ghosts.

Because of that unique ability, Yakumo had suffered a great deal more than other people.

He was afraid of being hurt and didn’t like to hurt others, so he purposefully lived a solitary life.

Even though he was kinder than anyone –

Haruka soon reached the prefabricated building she was heading for. It had two floors, each with ten rooms.

The university lent it out to clubs and circles for activities.

Haruka stood in front of the Movie Research Circle room at the very end of the first floor.

The truth was, the Movie Research Circle didn’t exist. Yakumo had filed some random documents with the university’s student affairs office and used this room as his own – he literally lived here.

'Hey!’ said Haruka, opening the door.

Yakumo, the owner of the room, looked at Haruka with incredibly sleepy eyes.

He had smooth, pale skin and a sharp nose. Though he had terrible bed head, it strangely went well together.

Haruka was going to sit in her usual seat, but unusually, there was a guest.

Since the guest was facing away from Haruka, she couldn’t see his face. He was a tall man, wearing a lab coat.

'A guest? Let’s continue this next time.’

The man slowly stood up and turned towards Haruka.

He was probably in his early thirties. He had a sensitive, androgynous face. There was a lolly stick in his mouth.

I feel like I’ve seen him before –

While Haruka thought about it, the man left the room.

'It looks like I got in the way,’ said Haruka, regretting her bad timing.

Since it was Yakumo, Haruka was sure he’d say something like 'You did’ or 'Read the atmosphere’, but he gave an unexpected response.

'It’s fine. The game is decided.’

Yakumo sighed, chin in his hands.

– What game?

Before Haruka asked, she spotted a chessboard on the table. It looked like Yakumo had been playing chess with the man from earlier.

'Who won?’ asked Haruka.

Yakumo looked bitter.

'I was about to lose in twelve turns.’

It was unusual for Yakumo to acknowledge his defeat so readily.

Haruka took another look at the chessboard. Though she didn’t know the rules well, from looking at the positions of the white and black pieces on the board, it didn’t seem like a situation which would beckon a complete loss.

'Isn’t it too early to give up?’ asked Haruka.

Yakumo shook his head.

'Unfortunately, there’s no way for me to win this way.’

'Is that how it is?’

'That’s how it is,’ murmured Yakumo. Then, he pushed one of the pieces on the board over with his finger.

Haruka didn’t really understand, but if Yakumo was saying that, it was probably true.

'By the way, I feel like I’ve seen that person before, but who is he?’

'Professor Mikoshiba.’

'Ah!’

Haruka remembered now that Yakumo said his name.

Haruka was in the arts and humanities faculty, so she hadn’t directly met him, but she had heard the rumours.

A young maths associate professor. He was tall with a mysterious air, so people called him the 'Lab Coat Prince’. She’d heard that there were female students who fancied him.

'But why were you playing chess with Professor Mikoshiba, Yakumo-kun?’

'I major in mathematics. Didn’t you know?’

'I didn’t.’

– I didn’t know.

Even though Haruka had thought she knew Yakumo better than everyone, she had unexpected gaps in information about his personal life.

'Well anyway, that’s how it is. We play chess sometimes.’

'I see… So what are the records?’

'Zero wins, zero losses, seventeen draws.’

'So you’re an even match?’

'No. He’s just playing with me. If Professor Mikoshiba were serious, it’d be like taking candy from a baby for him.’

Yakumo put his hands up in surrender.

'Is he that great?’

'His specs here are different from mine.’

Yakumo tapped his head with his finger. If Yakumo was saying this much, Professor Mikoshiba had to be pretty amazing.

'So what trouble do you have today?’

After a pause, Yakumo stifled a yawn and spoke.

It made sense for Yakumo to think that way. It was true that Haruka had always visited Yakumo when she had trouble. However, it wasn’t that common now.

'Nothing, really,’ Haruka said casually.

Yakumo furrowed his brows.

'Do you have a lot of free time?’

'Even though I look like this, I’m busy too.’

'Then can’t you just leave now?’

'It’s fine for me to stick around, isn’t it?’

Haruka opened the refrigerator in the corner of the room and took chocolate out.

'When did you put that in there?’ asked Yakumo, sounding dissatisfied.

'When I came last time.’

'Why are you so…’

'Want some?’

Haruka interrupted Yakumo’s grumbling and held out the box of chocolates.

It looked like Yakumo wanted to say something, but perhaps he lost to the temptation, as he reached for a chocolate and tossed it into his mouth.

Though it wasn’t something Haruka should be saying herself, she felt like she had become better at dealing with Yakumo than before.

Just as she sat opposite Yakumo, there was a knock on the door.

'Come in!’ replied Haruka.

'This isn’t your room,’ complained Yakumo.

Haruka thought about rebutting, but the door opened before she could.

A young man stood there. He was tall, but his round face made him seem friendly and cute.

'I apologise for coming so suddenly. Is Saitou Yakumo-san here?’ said the young man in a slightly high-pitched and gentle voice.

'What is your request?’

Yakumo turned an evaluating gaze towards the young man.

'Are you him? My name is Utsugi Kento. I’m a second-year law student.’

'I asked about your request.’

Yakumo’s eyes narrowed.

It was a pointed statement, but it wasn’t that Yakumo had any special dislike for the young man named Kento. He was like this to everyone.

Haruka thought that the young man would be discouraged, but he just laughed quietly and said, 'Ah, that’s right.’

'To put it directly, my friend, er… seems to have been possessed by a ghost… Aizawa, an upperclassman recommended me here.’

'Ah!’

Haruka spoke up without thinking.

To be frank, Aizawa had been the one who introduced Haruka to Yakumo too. That said, Aizawa hadn’t met Yakumo before, and didn’t know about his unique ability either.

He just exaggerated rumours and made them sound true – that was the sort of person he was.

'Do you know him?’

'Yes, we’re in the same circle,’ replied Haruka with a wry smile.

'Is that so? Er… Would you listen to my story?’

Kento looked at Yakumo.

– What will you do?

Haruka looked at Yakumo too. Yakumo crossed his arms and looked down, like he was thinking.

'The main fee is twenty five thousand yen. Actual expenses are separate.’

Yakumo put a smile on his face like a shady salesman.

It looked like he planned on taking it, but perhaps he was just planning on making up some appropriate lies and tricking Kento out of his money.

When Haruka thought that, her heart started beating strangely –

-

4

-

'We’ve arrived,’ said Ishii to Gotou in the passenger seat after parking the car on the side of the road.

There was no response. When Ishii looked towards Gotou, he saw him lying back on the seat and sleeping with his mouth wide open.

'Detective Gotou, please wake up. We’ve arrived.’

When Ishii shook Gotou’s shoulder, he finally opened his eyes.

'Shut up. I know.’

Gotou hit Ishii on the head.

It was an unreasonable scolding, but Ishii’s sad personality made it impossible for him to complain.

'Man…’ grumbled Gotou as he got off the car. Ishii followed him.

It had become much colder recently. Ishii had his shoulders hunched as he looked up at the large house that was their destination.

The house itself was probably at least two hundred tsubo in size. The grounds were large as well, surrounded by a tall fence.

It was quite a splendid home. Somebody who had a house like this in the city had to have a lot of money.

'It’s impossible to be killed by a ghost anyway.’

Gotou spat in front of the gates.

It was an action inappropriate for a current police officer, but Ishii’s sad character also did not have the courage to warn Gotou.

'You can’t say it’s completely impossible,’ said Ishii.

Gotou glared at him. As usual, it had incredibly pressure.

'You know this too. Ghosts are clusters of the thoughts of the dead and don’t have any physical effect. That’s why they can’t kill.’

Gotou’s words just now was the theory of a young man named Saitou Yakumo, who had the unique ability to see the spirits of the dead.

Ishii wasn’t saying that the theory was wrong. He himself had experienced how true it was through a number of incidents.

However –

'In the previous case, a person possessed by a ghost killed someone,’ said Ishii, pain still in his chest.

'Ah, that,’ murmured Gotou.

Ghosts that had no physical influence couldn’t kill directly, but they could possess someone and use their body to kill.

That case had proved it.

'You saying it’s the same as that case?’ said Gotou bitterly.

'No, since we don’t know the details yet. I can’t say anything. However, that is why I think it is premature to say that something is impossible at the current stage.’

'Pre – what?’

'Premature.’

'Matcher?’

'Ah, er… yes.’

– It’s frustrating how I can’t deny it.

'So we have to think of all the possibilities.’

'Yes.’

Though Gotou had got the word wrong, Ishii’s meaning had got through, so it was fine.

'No helping it. First, let’s just take a look.’

'That’s right,’ replied Ishii. Then, he pressed the intercom button.

After a while, a woman’s hoarse voice replied <Yes>.

'I’m Ishii, from the Setamachi precinct.’

Ishii put his face close to the intercom and gave his name.

<E-er, sorry. Right now is… Aahh!>

The intercom cut off.

– What was that?

Ishii and Gotou looked at each other.

That had been a scream just now. Something serious had to be happening. Though Ishii thought that, they couldn’t just break in.

Crack!

The sound of glass cracking from inside the house interrupted Ishii’s thoughts.

'Let’s go!’

Right after saying that, Gotou started running. Ishii hurriedly went after him.

Gotou opened the entrance door and rushed in, but Ishii stopped.

– Can we really go in like this?

Last year, society had been making a fuss about privacy. If they weren’t careful, the press would beat them for this.

And yet, when anything big happened, people clamoured for quick responses.

Whatever they chose, there was a problem. It was a tough world – that was what Ishii was thinking when he heard fighting from inside.

Then, he heard Gotou yell out, 'You bastard!’ –

Ishii couldn’t stop any longer. However, after all those excuses, the truth was that he was just afraid.

'You can do it, Ishii Yuutarou.’

Ishii reprimanded himself. Then, he opened the door and rushed in.

'Takatoshi, calm down!’

A middle-aged woman cried out in fear from a room that was just by the entrance.

– What on earth is happening?

When Ishii peered in, he was shocked.

Gotou and a young man were fighting in the middle of the room.

'Calm down, you idiot.’

Though Gotou was trying to hold the young man down, the young man twisted his body about in a furious struggle.

It was like two beasts were fighting.

'Let go! At this rate, I’m going to be killed!’ wailed the young man with a ghastly expression on his face.

'Ishii! What are you doing? Help out!’ shouted Gotou.

Even if Gotou told him to help, Ishii wasn’t used to this sort of thing. He wasn’t sure what he should do.

'Er… Um…’

Perhaps Gotou had given up on help from Ishii when he saw him hesitating there, as he just made a clicking noise with his tongue and pushed the young man to the floor.

The young man finally became quiet.

'J-just as expected, Detective Gotou!’

When Ishii ran up in excitement, Gotou’s fist came down on his head.

'If you’re also a detective, act like one.’

'I-I apologise…’

-

5

-

Haruka, sitting next to Yakumo, looked once more at Kento, who sat opposite them.

Perhaps because of his round eyes, he looked very young. In contrast though, he seemed reserved and calm – somewhat sophisticated.

'Your friend was possessed – correct?’ said Yakumo after letting out a bit of a sigh.

Kento nodded and then began to speak.

'Do you know about the little spring to the west of the city?’

'Yes, though I haven’t been…’ replied Yakumo.

Haruka had also heard that there was spring there, but she hadn’t gone herself.

'It’s called Kagami Spring[1].’

'It’s the first I’ve heard of it.’

'It’s named that because the water’s surface is reflective, like a mirror. There’s a rumour about that place.’

Kento looked up at Yakumo.

'A rumour?’

'Yes. You can see ghosts at Kagami Spring – and that’s not all. If you look into Kagami Spring at night, your true self will be reflected back to you.’

'Your true self?’

Haruka cocked her head.

She didn’t really get it. Of course the person reflected in the water would be your true self. It would be creepy if something else appeared there.

'Yes. Your true self that you don’t want anybody to know about, hidden away in your heart.’

– I see. So you can see to the bottom of your heart.

'If that’s the case, I’d like to take a look.’

'It would be better not to.’

Kento shook his head.

'Why?’

'The people who’ve seen their true selves are killed by a curse within a week – that’s what people say.’

The words Kento said with a serious face made Haruka hold her breath.

'Is that true?’

When Haruka said that in shock, Yakumo shook his head with a sigh.

'When are you going to fix that airhead nature of yours?’

Fix? Haruka had never even thought of herself as an airhead.

'Did I say something strange?’

'Being unaware of it yourself is fatal.’

Yakumo let out an ostentatious sigh.

Haruka thought about objecting, but when she saw Kento with his brows furrowed in concern, she decided to keep quiet.

'And then?’ Yakumo urged.

Kento started once more.

'Yesterday, I went with my friends to Kagami Spring.’

'Why did you go there?’

Yakumo’s tone was harder now.

From Yakumo’s perspective, it would be unbelievable to go for fun to a place where spiritual phenomena were said to occur.

If trouble occurred after going there, it was just deserts.

'Stargazing. We wanted to see the meteor shower. The location is perfect for viewing the night sky. We were thinking of taking photos of the meteor shower reflected on the water’s surface too.’

Kento’s explanation made Yakumo’s expression soften slightly.

'Is that so?’

'I didn’t believe in the rumours about Kagami Spring. But when we were waiting for the meteor shower, we heard singing from somewhere – ’

Kento put his right hand to his ear.

It was like he could still hear it now.

'Singing – you say?’

'Yes. I couldn’t hear what song it was. I don’t know if it was a man or a woman singing. The sound was in a peculiar range.’

'It’s possible it wasn’t a song.’

'No, it was definitely a song,’ Kento said confidently.

'And then?’ Yakumo urged.

'Then, something started coming out of the spring.’

'Something – what was it?’

'A person. A drenched woman crawled out from the spring.’

Kento wasp robably remembering the fear from then. His expression was stiff, and his voice was shaking slightly.

'Did you see her face?’

'We were a bit away from the spring, so I didn’t see it clearly… but she was definitely a woman.’

'I see.’

Yakumo put a hand on his chin as his gaze wandered, like he was thinking.

'We ran away in fear. We were in a panic. I could still hear the song then – but I managed to get to a main road,’ said Kento, much more quickly than before.

That made his words seem incredibly urgent, conveying his fear to Haruka.

'But I didn’t notice.’

Kento looked down at his feet and bit his lower lip.

'What didn’t you notice?’

When Haruka asked that, Kento covered his face with both hands.

'The girl who was with me… I had been so focused on running that I didn’t notice her…’

Kento probably blamed himself.

However, Haruka felt there was no helping it. Only Yakumo would be able to stay calm after encountering a ghost.

Furthermore, this wasn’t the time to be hunched over with regret. The problem was –

'Excuse me… What happened to that girl?’

'I was afraid, but I went back. I saw her collapsed in the forest. Though she was breathing, she was unconscious… I called an ambulance…’

'Is that so?’

Though he might have run away once, Haruka didn’t think that Kento’s decision afterwards was wrong.

'But – she’s been strange ever since then.’

'What exactly do you mean by strange?’

When Yakumo asked that, Kento slowly lifted his head.

Perhaps he was exhausted, because his face seemed to be shadowed.

'She’s been singing thi whole time – ’

Kento’s words echoed through the small room.

-

6

-

'So what happened?’ said Gotou, sitting on the sofa and looking at the middle-aged woman and young man sitting opposite him.

The woman was Tozuka Yukiko. She was the daughter of the retired police officer.

The young man was her son, Takatoshi. He was a sophomore at Meisei University.

Yukiko seemed exhausted, perhaps because of the fuss earlier. In contrast, though Takatoshi had become quiet after Gotou thrust him to the floor, he was fidgeting restlessly.

'Er…’

Yukiko looked away, like she found it hard to speak.

It felt like she didn’t know where to start. Gotou felt the same way. There were a number of things he wanted to ask, but because of the fuss, he wasn’t sure where to begin.

'Excuse me… I heard that an evil spirit was threatening you…’

Ishii, sitting beside Gotou, was the one who broke the silence.

It felt like it’d be better to ignore the incident for now and start asking from there.

'Talk about the spiritual phenomenon you experienced.’

Gotou looked at Takatoshi.

That instant, Takatoshi’s expression changed. He looked weak, to the point that nobody would think he was the same man who had been thrashing about earlier.

'Please save me… At this rate, I’ll be cursed to death…’

Takatoshi put his hands out, pleading.

Next to him Yukiko looked obviously displeased.

'Tell me in detail. If you don’t, I can’t do anything,’ urged Gotou.

'I… The other day, I went to Kagami Spring with my friends. It’s called the Spring of Truth…’

'Kagami Spring?’

'It’s on a hill to the west of the city.’

Gotou didn’t know about the spring, but he knew there was a hill to the west of the city. He had a general idea of where it was.

'There’s a legend about that place… If you look in at night, your true self will be reflected there. The people who see that will be cursed to death within a week – ’

'What did you say!?’

Ishii stood up in shock, which was too much.

Only Ishii would so easily believe a story that was as shady as this one. Gotou hit Ishii’s head to tell him to shut up.

'So did you see it?’ asked Gotou.

Takatoshi nodded.

'I… was so afraid…’

Takatoshi covered his face with trembling hands.

Gotou didn’t really get it. Of course you say yourself when you looked at water. The reflection had to be your true self.

When Gotou said that, Takatoshi vehemently denied it.

'That’s not it! The reflection there… was a woman, covered in blood…’

Gotou and Ishii looked at each other unconsciously after hearing Takatoshi’s explanation.

If that were true, Gotou understood where Takatoshi was afraid. But –

'Didn’t you just see wrong?’

Or it was some sort of optical illusion.

'That was definitely what I say. Ever since then, I’ve been hearing a strange voice.’

'A strange voice?’

'Somebody whispering in my ear. I’ll kill you – that’s what the voice says. When I get in the bath, when I’m sleeping in my room – I hear it everywhere, like I’m being followed – ’

After saying that all in one breath, Takatoshi took heaving breaths with his shoulders.

He looked incredibly agitated. From that response, Gotou didn’t think he was lying.

'It’s fine. You just misheard,’ Yukiko said kindly, rubbing Takatoshi’s back.

However, Takatoshi shook her away.

'No! I didn’t mishear! I’m going to die, like the legend says!’

'If you didn’t mishear, it’s just somebody’s prank,’ said Yukiko.

It looked like Yukiko doubted that anything was actually happening to Takatoshi. At the same time, Gotou realised why her retired father had asked the police for help.

He probably thought this was someone’s prank and wanted the culprit to be found.

'I don’t care if you don’t believe me! That person will save me!’

Takatoshi tried to leave the room in his anger.

'Wait.’

Yukiko grabbed Takatoshi’s arms and tired to pull him back. Takatoshi fought back –

This was just what happened before.

'Calm down a bit!’ yelled Gotou, standing up.

Takatoshi’s and Yukiko’s eyes went wide in shock and both sat down on the sofa, losing to Gotou’s pressure.

'I’ll properly look into whether what’s happening to you is a proper spiritual phenomenon or somebody’s prank.’

Gotou sat on the sofa again as well.

If he got Yakumo to help, he’d be able to determine whether what was happening to Takatoshi was the work of a ghost or a living person.

Yakumo would probably complain, but that was the fastest method. More importantly –

'Who do you mean by “that person”?’ asked Gotou, leaning forward.

Just now, Takatoshi had said that that person would save him. That meant there was somebody else involved in this case.

'The priest at the church…’ said Takatoshi in a voice that sounded like it could disappear at any moment.

'A priest?’ said Ishii.

'There’s a Protestant church near here. The priest there…’

'Ah, then he’s a pastor,’ interrupted Ishii.

'They’re both the same right?’

When Gotou said that, Ishii pushed up his silver-framed glasses with his finger in a showy manner.

'It isn’t the same. It’d be like calling a temple’s monk a Shinto priest.’

Ishii’s proud manner irritated Gotou, but they wouldn’t get anywhere if he complained now.

'So what about that pastor?’

'He can exorcise evil spirits… so that person would be able to save me,’ said Takatoshi, sounding desperate.

'So he’s an exorcist,’ said Ishii with sparkling eyes.

'Exercise – what?’

'An exorcist. In Christianity, there is a role that exists solely for cleansing evil spirits.’

'Sounds fake.’

'It isn’t fake. It was in that film, right?’

Gotou knew what film Ishii was talking about. The one about a girl possessed by an evil spirit running around.

But that was just a movie. Ishii’s reasoning made it sound like something in a movie was reality.

If that was the case, exorcists wouldn’t be the only things that were real. They’d have to say aliens and monsters were real as well.

'Takatoshi, you can’t believe in that. It has to be fraud. That person must be the one making the strange things happen…’

'I’m saying that’s not it!’

Takatoshi drowned out Yukiko’s reprimand with an angry yell.

Though Takatoshi denied it, Yukiko’s words made sense.

Gotou had a strong dislike for people who said they could cleanse evil spirits. He’d dealt with people like that before, but not only had they all be fakes, they had been cunning and troublesome.

Well, thinking about things now wouldn’t get anything started.

'I guess we’ll go meet that pastor…’ muttered Gotou.

If it went well, they’d get that pastor and solve all the problems at once.

-

7

-

'I’ve just returned.’

Hijikata Makoto went into the culture department room of Hokutou Newspaper.

The editor-in-chief in the back waved. It seemed that all the other reporters were out, so only the editor-in-chief was left.

Makoto put her bag down and sat in her own seat.

The exhaustion had piled up. She had been gathering information since last night on a potter since last night. Since the potter had been busy firing the ceramics, Makoto had had to go late at night and finally returned now.

She wanted to go home and lie on her bed, but she wanted to organise the photographs and recordings now.

She couldn’t sleep if there was stuff left to do. That was her personality.

After logging in to the computer, the business phone on her desk rang. Makoto immediately picked up the racier.

'Hello, this is the Hokutou Newspaper culture department.’

Though Makoto answered the phone, there was no response.

They hadn’t hung up. It wasp robably from a mobile phone. Makoto could hear the sound of the street and faint breathing.

She thought that it might be bad reception, but it was strange.

– Is this a prank?

This wasn’t limited to newspaper companies. If a phone number was public, calls like these were everyday occurrences.

However, civilian information was absolutely necessary for their work, so they couldn’t ignore it.

'Hello, who might be calling?’

Makoto spoke up again.

Still, there was no answer. She was about to hang up and took the receiver away from her ear, when she heard a hoarse voice say <Excuse me…>.

'Yes?’

Makoto put her ear on the receiver again.

But there was silence again –

She thought about just hanging up, but she couldn’t. Something like a sixth sense told her that this phone call was very important.

'I’m Hijikata from the culture department. Would you tell me your name?’

Makoto spoke in as gentle a voice as she could.

Silence –

However, there was a faint change in the breathing.

Makoto looked at the business phone monitor. It was an unknown caller. The number wasn’t displayed.

'What is your request? If you’d be fine with me, please tell me,’ said Makoto patiently.

After some rustling on the other side of the pone, a man’s voice said <I…>.

Though the tone of the voice was dark, the voice itself seemed fairly young. Makoto wrote 'Man in his twenties?’ on a memo pad.

'What is it?’

<I… Er…>

It appeared he still wasn’t sure whether to speak.

'Please calm yourself down and speak.’

<Would you believe… what I have to say…>

Perhaps he was nervous, as his voice was shaking.

It would be easy to say 'I will’ here, but Makoto couldn’t say something irresponsible in her situation.

She was a reporter. She was determined to make decisions without bias.

That said, she wanted to know what this man had to say.

'If you won’t tell me, there’s nothing for me to believe.’

After Makoto said that, there was a worrying pause for a moment.

<The police didn’t believe me…>

'Were you involved in an incident?’

<I… saw…>

There was a small groan from the other side of the phone.

'What did you see?’

<That spring.>

'A spring?’ repeated Makoto as she took a map out from the drawer and spread it out on the desk.

<A spring on the west side of town.>

'The west?’ asked Makoto as she looked at the map.

<Yes. On top of a hill.>

Now that he said it, Makoto felt like there was a hill to the west of the city, but had there been a spring there?

She searched the map as she thought.

– There.

There was a very small spring on the map. Though there was no name there, this was probably it.

'What did you say at that spring?’ asked Makoto as she put a checkmark in red at the spring.

<Will you really believe me?>

The man repeated himself.

Why was he so concerned about whether Makoto believed him or not? Perhaps it had something to do with what he had seen.

'Please tell me first. Otherwise, I can’t make any decisions.’

Makoto was careful not to sound accusatory.

<At that spring…>

Either the man’s voice had become quiet or there was some reception problem, as Makoto couldn’t hear the rest of his words.

'I’m sorry. I couldn’t hear you, so could you please repeat yourself?’

<A… cor… pse…>

'What did you say?’

<There’s a corpse at that spring – >

The man sounded irritated as he said that.

'Eh?’

Makoto repeated herself without thinking.

Corpses weren’t light things. Was it true?

<As I thought, you don’t believe me.>

The man’s tone changed completely.

It looked like he had determined that Makoto’s surprise was doubt.

Makoto tried to explain that that wasn’t the case, but he hung up before she could.

With a sigh, she put the receiver back down.

'What was that?’ asked the editor-in-chief.

Makoto thought about explaining in detail about the strange call, but she decided not to. There was no way to determine anything with so little information.

'I think it was a prank,’ replied Makoto, which made the editor-in-chief instantly lose interest.

However, Makoto still felt something was wrong as she stared vacantly at the map –

-

8

-

Gotou put his mobile away in his jacket pocket with a click of his tongue.

He had been trying to call Yakumo since earlier, but it seemed like Yakumo’s phone had run out of battery, since Gotou’s call wouldn’t connect.

He could never been contacted when it mattered. He really was an unpleasant guy.

'How was it?’ asked Ishii from the driver’s seat, as he handled the wheel.

'Can’t you tell from looking?’ replied Gotou curtly. He leant back into the passenger seat.

'Er… What should we do?’ asked Ishii as he stopped the car.

'What?’

'We’ve arrived,’ said Ishii, sounding like he thought it was very unfortunate.

Gotou saw a church outside the window.

It had white walls with a triangular roof. There were stained glass windows. It seemed very much like a church.

Maybe it had been erected recently or renovated, since it didn’t seem old.

There was a tower in the centre with a bell. The cross on top of the roof glittered brightly in the sunlight.

'There’s nothing to it. All we can do is go, right?’

Gotou tried to get off the car, but Ishii grabbed his arm. Ishii looked like he might cry at any moment.

'Er… I think that going with just the two of us is…’

Gotou could understand Ishii’s misgivings.

They had met a number of people who called themselves exorcists in the past. Every time, Gotou and Ishii had been trifled with and fallen completely into their traps.

They weren’t able to see through their fraud.

But Yakumo was different. His red left eye that could see the spirits of the dead – when that confronted the people who called themselves exorcists, it was an impressive advantage.

That wasn’t all. Yakumo himself had an exceptional mind for insight and analysis. It was a strong weapon.

Confronting an exorcist without Yakumo was the same as going into enemy territory unarmed, but they couldn’t just retreat because Yakumo wasn’t here.

'Stop whining. Let’s go.’

Gotou hit Ishii’s head and then got off the car.

Ishii, though reluctant, also got off the car.

Gotou slowly walked forward to the church door.

It was mysterious how the building up close had a solemn, overpowering feeling to it.

Maybe the awe of the people looking at it was reflected back.

'Sorry to bother.’

Gotou pushed open the decorated door and wet inside.

There was an arched ceiling with wooden beams supporting it. In the centre, there was a path covered in red carpet, with pews on both sides.

On the left side, there was a podium and an organ. There was an altar in the front and a tabernacle.

By the wall, there was a statue of Christ on the cross.

Why do they revere such a cruel statue – Gotou, who wasn’t a Christian, could not understand at all.

Gotou turned around and saw Ishii still loitering at the door.

'Hurry up!’ yelled Gotou, which made Ishii jolt and come in hesitantly.

Gotou looked around the church again.

Nobody was inside. It was so quiet it was frightening.

'It looks like no one’s here. Let’s head back,’ suggested Ishii quickly.

There was a limit to how cowardly someone could be.

'Don’t run away.’

Gotou grabbed Ishii’s arm.

'No, but… er…’

Ishii looked around anxiously.

It was strange how Ishii couldn’t do anything because he was too afraid when he had to face the bizarre, even though he was so interested in it.

'Get it together.’

Gotou slapped Ishii’s back.

Ishii jumped up, but he still seemed afraid. 'Let’s head back.’

'Stop that already…’

Just as Gotou lifted his fist, there was the sound of a door opening.

Gotou saw a man in black worship clothes come out from the door behind the altar.

He was probably in his late thirties. His face was so thin that his cheeks were hollow. His face was so pale it was practically blue. He had a tall nose with thick eyebrows. In contrast, his eyes were so narrow they looked like they were closed.

– I’ve seen him before.

So Gotou thought, but he couldn’t remember who he was. While Gotou went through his memories irritatedly, the man in worship clothes smiled gently.

'Is something the matter?’

His voice was ringing and unique.

– I know this voice too.

Gotou’s memories were clamouring within his head. No, this wasn’t the time to be thinking about that.

'I’m Gotou of the Setamachi precinct. A man named Tozuka Takatoshi comes here, right? I want to talk about that.’

Gotou showed his police ID, which made the man in worship clothes instantly change expression.

It wasn’t the scorn or fear of a criminal. He had an open smile, like he had met again with an old food.

'gotou – Gotou Kazuhiko-san, right?’

The man in worship clothes spoke in a friendly manner.

This response – and he even knew his name. Gotou really did know this man in worship clothes, but he still couldn’t remember.

'It makes sense for you not to remember with me in these clothes.’

The man spread his arms and looked down at his own clothes.

From the way he talked, they probably weren’t just acquaintances.

Gotou would have pretended to remember and tried to find out from the conversation, but with this situation, he couldn’t do anything careless.

This could be a trick by the exorcist too.

'Detective Gotou, is he an acquaintance of yours?’ Ishii asked quietly.

Gotou didn’t reply. He looked straight at the man in worship clothes.

'Who are you?’

Finally, Gotou said that.

Maybe Gotou was nervous, as the inside of his mouth was dry.

'It’s me. Kirino Kouichi – don’t you remember?’ said the man in worship clothes.

With that, the remains of the smouldering memories within Gotou welled up at once. At the same time, he felt a hot anger boil up.

Kirino Kouichi – his memories of this man always came with anger and irritation.

– I hated him.

Gotou tried to stop the emotions that had unwillingly welled up, but he clenched his fists anyway.

'Um…’

'Shut up.’

Gotou interrupted Ishii.

To be honest, he still couldn’t believe it. The face did look similar. The voice matched the one of the man in his memories. But still, Gotou couldn’t accept it.

The Kirino Gotou knew wasn’t the sort of guy who would smile at others, and he hadn’t been friendly with Gotou either.

Like water and oil, they just hadn’t got along. They had hated each other.

And if this really was Kirino, what the hell was he doing here? Gotou didn’t understand.

'Kirino. Is it really you?’ said Gotou, who couldn’t believe it. No, didn’t want to believe it.

Kirino nodded.

'I understand why you didn’t recognize me, since I’m a bit thinner now.’

Kirino shrugged.

That was right. His body type was completely different. The Kirino Gotou knew was about one size bigger than the man in front of him.

And the man had had cold eyes, like he was looking down on everyone.

'That’s a lie. You’re not Kirino.’

'You still don’t believe me? You remember this, right?’

Kirino pointed above his left eyebrow.

There was a scar about three centimeters long. When Gotou saw that, he felt like he had been stabbed in the chest.

'Kirino…’ said Gotou painfully.

There was no way he could forget. Gotou had been the one who gave him that injury.

He had a bad feeling in his chest.

'For certain reasons, I’m a pastor at this church now.’

Kirino smiled pleasantly.

'Don’t screw around!’ yelled Gotou angrily.

Pastor? What the hell. Kirino didn’t have the qualifications.

The reason was that Kirino – had killed someone. Gotou couldn’t accept that a man like that could be a carefree pastor.

'Why are you so angry?’

'What are you plotting by doing this, you bastard?’

Gotou grabbed Kirino by the collar.

'You don’t change,’ said Kirino gently, which didn’t match the situation.

His eyes seemed somewhat sad.

'Detective Gotou, who on earth is this person?’ asked Ishii, eyes darting about.

'He’s an ex-cop!’

Gotou thrust Kirino away.

Kirino staged backwards, but he was still smiling gently. He wasn’t angry or shocked.

'I-is that true?’ said Ishii in surprise.

'Yeah.’

Kirino Kouichi had been a cop. And, though it was just for a short time, Gotou had been his partner –

-

9

-

'Hey, are you going to take that request?’ asked Haruka to Yakumo, who was walking beside her.

Kento had requested that Yakumo save the woman named Sachiko, who had been possessed by a ghost, but Yakumo hadn’t said clearly whether he would accept the request.

'I haven’t decided,’ Yakumo said curtly.

'Aren’t you going to see her because you want to accept it?’

Right now, they were going to meet Sachiko, who was in the hospital according to Kento.

'I just said now that I haven’t decided.’

Yakumo seemed to be in an unusually bad mood.

'Do you doubt what Kento-san said?’

'No, his story was consistent. I think it’s probably true.’

'Then – ’

You should save her – is what Haruka tried to say, but Yakumo stopped, interrupting her words.

'It’s because what he said was true that I can’t accept this easily.’

'Eh?’

'Unfortunately, all I can do is see. I can’t cleanse a spirit by chanting.’

'Oh.’

Yakumo always said this.

Ghosts were like clusters of the emotions of the dead, and chanting wouldn’t do anything. Even if it did, it would be like forcing them out with violence – that was what Yakumo thought.

That was why Yakumo searched for the reason why the spirits of the dead were wandering and solved that cause.

'In short, if it’s true, I can’t guarantee that I can solve it – that’s how it is.’

Haruka felt like Yakumo’s words had a sad echo to them.

Yakumo had said this before. That he was irritated with himself, because all he could do was see –

He It was because Ykaumo was irritated with his bystander existence that he never said anything unless he was certain.

It was proof of how seriously he faced cases.

Haruka knew this, but she felt herself incredibly pathetic for not being able to sense Yakumo’s feelings.

'Sorry…’

Haruka bowed her head.

Yakumo frowned, looking troubled for some reason.

'It’s not like you need to apologise.’

'But…’

'It’s creepy, so don’t do any more.’

'Wai…’

Yakumo always ruined everything by talking.

Though Haruka was irritated, she went after Yakumo, who had started walking again.

Why was it? His back seemed somewhat lonely.

Soon, they reached the hospital at the station. They dealt with the procedures for meeting at the reception, took the elevator to the fourth floor and headed for the hospital room.

After knocking, they opened the sliding door to the hospital room.

It was a room for four, but three beds were empty. A woman slept in the bed at the very end.

Apparently, there had been people in the other beds until yesterday, but since Sachiko kept singing no matter how they told her to stop, the patients had asked to change rooms, thinking Sachiko creepy.

The nurse at reception had told Yakumo that. Even though he was so blunt normally, changing his attitude completely depending on the situation was one of Yakumo’s skills.

Haruka and Yakumo walked up to Sachiko’s bed.

It looked like she was sleeping now. Sachiko’s eyes were closed as she breathed quietly. The IV drip attached to her arm looked like it hurt.

According to the doctor, it was autonomic ataxia. From the medical point of view, that was probably all they could see.

Yakumo put his index to his brow and looked down at Sachiko with a hard expression.

This response – Haruka could only see Sachiko on the bed, but Yakumo definitely saw something else.

'How is she?’ asked Haruka.

Yakumo sighed.

'She has certainly been possessed by a spirit of the dead – ’

After hearing Yakumo’s words, she felt energy course through her.

Now that she knew there was a spirit possessing Sachiko, she looked strangely different.

'What sort of person?’

'A woman. She’s probably around our age. But that’s when she died…’

'I see…’

A woman who lost her life at about the same age as they were now –

What on earth had happened? Haruka thought about the life of a woman she didn’t know. However, doing that wouldn’t help her understand anything.

Sachiko’s eyelids slowly opened, like she had sensed them.

Sachiko’s lifeless eyes stared at them blankly.

It sounded like she was having trouble breathing.

This always happened, but Haruka didn’t know what to do at times like this. Though she wasn’t Yakumo, she felt irritated at how she couldn’t do anything.

At the same time, she felt like she heard something.

– What are you saying?

Haruka tried to put her face closer, but Yakumo immediately grabbed her shoulder.

'Don’t make me keep saying this. Don’t just get closer without thinking.’

'Sorry.’

All Haruka could do was apologise honestly.

It was just as Yakumo said. She didn’t know what personality the ghost possessing Sachiko had. If she got closer without thinking now, she might be the one getting possessed.

Similar cases had happened in the past.

'Who are you?’

After a long silence, Yakumo asked that in a whisper.

Sachiko’s mouth moved more clearly than earlier.

Her voice slowly became louder.

'Ne… ah… ma…’

That wasn’t an answer to the question. Just a sequence of words Haruka didn’t understand.

'Why are you possessing this woman?’

Yakumo tried asking another question, but there was no response. Sachiko kept repeating the words, like a chant.

’… Go… to…’

When Haruka listened to the weak voice, she noticed something. Though it was faint, there was pitch and rhythm. In short –

'Is this a song?’

Haruka looked at Yakumo, who sighed.

'It seems so.’

'I wonder what song it is…’

'Who knows. You know more about music than me, right?’

That was true. Haruka had learnt piano since she was young, and she had been in the brass band since middle school. Even after entering university, she was in the orchestra circle.

She knew about music, but to be honest, with so little, she couldn’t tell what song it was.

'Ne… ah… to…’

While Haruka thought, Sachiko continued to sing.

If they knew what song it was, they might be able to find out how to save Sachiko. But how –

'Ah!’

Haruka thought of something.

She took out her mobile and started recording a video. This way, even if she didn’t know now, she could check afterwards.

After recording for about thirty seconds, Yakumo turned around. 'Let’s go.’

'Eh? But we don’t know anything yet, right?’

Yakumo ran a hand through his hair as he turned around.

'Staying here any longer won’t solve anything.’

'Why not?’

'She isn’t pleading anything. She’s just singing – ’

Haruka had met many possessed people up until now, but almost all of them had been filled with an intense hatred and had some sort of unfinished business.

The spirit possessing Sachiko probably wasn’t like that.

'Why is she singing?’

'I can’t do anything without understanding that reason.’

'How will you understand it?’

'It wouldn’t be any trouble if I could understand it easily…’

After saying that, Yakumo briskly left the hospital room.

###'So… oh… gu…’

The song was still going.

Haruka hesitated for a moment, but then she went after Yakumo, putting Sachiko’s singing behind her.

-

10

-

Gotou, sitting in the pews, glared at Kirino, who stood at the podium.

Kirino wasn’t disturbed. He stood calmly. The Kirino in Gotou’s memory definitely didn’t match up with the man in front of him.

Gotou first met Kirino about eight years ago –

Miyagawa had been looking out for Gotou until then as his partner, but then Gotou was paired up with Kirino.
M

'My name is Kirino Kouichi. It’s nice to meet you.’

When Gotou saw Kirino bow politely from the waist, he had thought that Kirino was the picture of earnestness.

Kirino was younger than Gotou, and there was the difference between graduating from university and from high school, and Gotou had had more years of experience, but still, they were at the same level in their career.

Maybe Gotou had been biased, but he didn’t like Kirino, who was an intelligent type, from the very beginning.

'Well, let’s just get this done.’

When Gotou said that, Kirino looked dubious.

'What do you mean by just?’

'What?’

'You appear to often break the rules. Is that the result of just getting things done?’

Kirino had spoken in a flat tone.

It was true that Gotou had broken the rules often ever since then, but it wasn’t like he tried to break them.

Sometimes, there were things that had to be done, even if it meant breaking the rules. The work of the police wasn’t to protect the rules. It was to protect the safety of the citizens – that’s what Gotou remembered saying.

In response, Kirino had said something incredibly cold.

'You think the same way the criminals do,’ Kirino said coldly.

'Who are you calling a criminal? And criminals are people too!’ yelled Gotou.

Kirino looked back at him coldly.

'Please don’t put me together with trash who disturb order.’

Kirino said his practically discriminatory words with no expression and no feeling.

Gotou had had hated Kirino from the bottom of his heart ever since that moment. He didn’t try to understand people’s feelings – he was the one who was trash.

So why would Kirino –

'Why are you doing something like this?’ said Gotou aggressively.

'What do you mean by something like this?’

'Why is a man who used to be a detective working as a pastor?’

Cops changed jobs too, but Gotou had never heard of one who’d become a pastor. It just didn’t match.

'I’ve always been Protestant, and I graduated with a religion degree from university. Rather, it’s more surprising that I ended up as a police officer.’

Kirino’s smile seemed incredibly amused.

Come to think of it, Gotou had asked Kirino in the past why he’d become a police fficer after graduating from university with a religion degree.

What did Kirino say then? Gotou thought about it, but for some reason, he couldn’t remember.

'Excuse e… Can you really exorcise spirits?’

Ishii was the one who interrupted.

Maybe it was because Gotou had been confused, but he had completely forgotten that Ishii was sitting beside him. He had even forgotten his original goal after meeting Kirino again.

'Exorcise spirits?’

Kirino cocked his head.

It felt like he was showing that attitude on purpose.

'You call yourself an exorcist, right?’

Gotou glared at Kirino.

'Exorcist? What are you saying?’

Kirino spread his hands wide as he acted like he didn’t know what they were talking about.

Maybe Kirino didn’t mean it, but that felt like a challenge to Gotou.

'Don’t play dumb!’

Gotou stood up in his anger.

'Exorcists and pastors are completely different.’

'You’re tricking people out of their money by saying you’re exorcising demons and evil spirits, right!?’

'Who is?’

'Stop screwing around!’

Gotou tried to grab Kirino, but Ishii stopped him in a panic.

'Please calm down. First, let’s hear what he has to say.’

Gotou didn’t like being told what to do by Ishii, but it was true that he might have let his emotions get ahead of him.

The pastor was Kirino – that fact had made that much of an impact on Gotou.

Anyway, doing this wouldn’t get them anywhere. He might have to listen to Kirino calmly, like Ishii said.

Gotou took a deep breath and sat back down. Then, he signaled at Ishii with his chin.

In response, Ishii hesitantly explained the reason they had come here to Kirino.

'I see – so that’s what it was. Now I understand,’ said Kirino with a gentle smile.

'What do you understand?’

When Gotou glared at Kirino, he sighed.

'You’re really the same as always. When you lose your calm, you lose sight of things.’

'I don’t need your concern!’

Gotou felt painfully how difficult it was to do his work when it was somebody he knew.

'First, I need to clear a misunderstanding.’

'Do it then.’

'It is true that I gave advice regarding an evil spirit to the young man named Tozuka Takatoshi. Furthermore, I also said I would exorcise the spirit possessing him.’

'Then it’s not a misunderstanding!’

Gotou stood up again.

The explanation just now was just a repeat of what they’d said.

'Please listen properly until the end.’

Kirino smiled wryly, seeming exasperated.

It made Gotou irritated, since he felt like he was being treated like a child, but he gulped down his feelings.

'I gave advice to Tozuka-kun and said I would solve it, but I had another goal.’

'What was it?’

'In the first place, I don’t believe in ghosts, evil spirits included.’

'You don’t believe in them?’

All Gotou could do was cock his head.

'But the Devil exists, according to Christianity,’ interrupted Ishii, who had been quiet up until now.

– He really bites down on strange things, as usual.

'The Devil and ghosts are completely different. Furthermore, I don’t believe that the Devil exists either.’

'Eh? But then…’

Ishii’s brow furrowed. He looked troubled.

Gotou felt the same way. Was it all right for a church’s pastor to deny the Devil’s existence so readily?

'What I believe in isn’t the miracle of Christ. That doesn’t mean I am denying the Bible’s teachings. The things written in the Bible are very important for people to live by.’

'So you don’t believe in God, but you agree with the teachings – is that how it is?’ said Gotou, feeling confused.

'Well, something like that. It might be unexpected, but now that science has advanced so much, the number of pastors who think like me are not few in number. Though of course we don’t say it aloud.’

Kirino spoke so readily that Gotou and Ishii shared a look.

However, maybe Kirino was right.

God made the world in seven days – there was something wrong with people who actually believed stories like that.

'Furthermore, there was the role of an exorcist in Catholic churches in the past – ’

Ishii had said the same thing at Takatoshi’s house.

'Like in that movie.’

'Though that movie caused many misunderstandings, it isn’t an exaggeration,’ Kirino said quietly.

'What do you want to say?’

'It’s true that there used to be the role of an exorcist in the church, but the real goal was to urge people of other faiths to convert.’

'Not exorcising spirits?’

'Correct. Though this is not a good way to put it, they called the gods of other religions the Devil and convinced people to convert – that was the meaning of exorcist.’

'Is that so…’

For some reason, Ishii’s shoulders slumped in disappointment.

In any case, the conversation was off topic. The first question was elsewhere.

'Why did you say you’d exorcise the spirit possessing Tozuka if you don’t believe in ghosts? Did you really just want to trick him out of his money?’

'That’s not it. Like I said earlier, I don’t believe in ghosts. Accordingly, I think Tozuka-kun’s case isn’t a spiritual phenomenon either.’

'Then what is it?’

'Optical and auditory illusions from thinking too much,’ Kirino declared firmly.

'So not the work of an evil spirit?’ asked Ishii.

'Correct. However, that wouldn’t convince Takatoshi-kun, so I decided to put on an act…’

Gotou understood what Kirino was trying to do now.

'So you were going to say you exorcised the evil spirit and make him calm down.’

Kirino nodded.

Yakumo had done the same thing a number of times in the past. Gotou didn’t like it, since it was like he was tricking the person, but it was true that it was effective.

'Doing something so confusing…’

Gotou sank into the pews.

– Why am I relieved?

Gotou was confused by his own emotions.

Gotou hated Kirino. It wasn’t just once or twice that he’d thought about hitting him.

That said, most of that was just Gotou’s emotions exploding on their own, while Kirino had just let that slide.

That attitude had just made Gotou more irritated.

But still, Gotou wouldn’t have liked to here that his old partner was a fake exorcist.

No, maybe I –

Gotou shook the thought away from his head.

'So you really didn’t plan on tricking him?’

Gotou looked at Kirino again.

'Of course not. I don’t lie. You know that well, right?’

Kirino’s eyes were clear as they looked straight back at Gotou. When Gotou and Kirino had argued when they were both on the force, Kirino’s eyes had often looked like this.

He’d been a disagreeable guy, and his perspective had been completely different from Gotou’s, but Kirino never lied. That was true.

'I get it,’ said Gotou, which made Kirino smile.

'You’re the same as always.’

'You being sarcastic?’

'No, I just felt envious.’

Kirino smiled, seeming embarrassed.

'That’s called sarcasm,’ said Gotou with a click of his tongue.

'That part of you hasn’t changed either.’

As Kirino said that, he narrowed his eyes, like he was looking back fondly on the past.

Kirino hadn’t been the type to be nostalgic, and he would never say he was envious of Gotou, even as a lie.

Kirino had been a person of reason and thought.

– What the hell happened?

Gotou still had questions, but he decided to leave it here for the day.

'Anyway, we’ll leave for today.’

Gotou stood up. He was about to leave the church when Kirino called out to him.

'What?’

'If you’re concerned, how about coming here tomorrow?’

After hearing the unexpected invitation, Gotou and Ishii shared a look.

Maybe Kirino wanted to prove he had no ill intentions by getting Gotou to come again.

'I’ll think about it – ’

After saying that, Gotou put the church behind him.

-

11

-

Haruka followed Yakumo through the forest –

She weaved through the trees. It was terribly difficult to walk, as the ground was muddy and covered with fallen leaves.

The trees were thick, and the place felt a bit creepy.

After leaving the hospital, Yakumo hadn’t said where he was going, but after coming so far, Haruka could guess where they were headed.

The spring where the incident occurred – they were going to Kagami Spring.

'Here…’

After walking for a while, Yakumo stopped.

Haruka looked past him and saw the spring, just as she had thought.

Its circumference was probably about one hundred metres. In the very middle, a large rock stood out, like a symbol.

To Haruka, it looked like a gravestone.

There was no wind, and the water was calm – it sparkled, just like a mirror.

'This is Kagami Spring…’

'Yeah.’

Haruka had thought that the spring would be frightening, but it was beautiful and made her think of nature. Haruka wouldn’t have thought there was a curse.

Yakumo ran a hand through his hair. Then, he crouched to look at the spring.

'Wait, is that OK?’

There was a legend that people who saw their true reflections here would be cursed to death. If Yakumo wasn’t careful –

'You’re believing in a superstition like that again?’ said Yakumo in exasperation as he put a hand into the spring.

'That’s not it, but…’

Haruka knew in here head that it was just a rumour, but that didn’t mean she wasn’t afraid. Her thoughts and feelings were always separate.

And there was Sachiko. Putting aside whether the spring reflected the truth or not, something had definitely happened here.

'What’s your true self supposed to be anyway?’ said Yakumo as he stood up, wiping his wet hand on his jeans.

His eyes seemed to left off a sharp glint.

'That’s…’

Haruka couldn’t think of an answer right away.

'Whose truth is it supposed to be?’

'What do you mean?’

'Is an objective perspective that only links facts together the truth? If that’s the case, the reflection here will be just like that of a mirror – a simple reflection.’

There seemed to be a shadow in Yakumo’s eyes.

Haruka didn’t understand exactly what he meant, but she could understand the gist of it.

'Maybe it’s what’s at the bottom of somebody’s heart, which they haven’t noticed themselves – ’

Haruka said what came to mind.

'That’s just the unconscious mind.’

'Isn’t that the true self?’

'No.’

An immediate answer.

'Why not?’

'In the first place, people have many faces to them. All of them are true, but at the same time, they aren’t – ’

Yakumo spoke in a strong tone as he stared at the spring.

– What on earth can he see there?

Haruka walked up to Yakumo, but her view didn’t change.

A gust of wind blew, making Haruka feel like her warmth had been snatched away from her.

'You don’t understand anything.’

Yakumo shook his head and then slowly walked around the spring.

'What?’ asked Haruka, chasing after Yakumo.

'If that woman named Sachiko we met at the hospital was possessed by a ghost here, there won’t be a ghost here any longer.’

Come to think of it, he was right. The ghost that had been here was now in Sachiko’s body.

When Haruka understood that, a question came to her.

'Then why did you come here?’

'Did you follow me without understanding anything?’ said Yakumo in exasperation.

'Well, you didn’t tell me.’

'Honestly… Let’s change the way you’re thinking.’

Yakumo stopped and ran a hand through his hair.

'What do you mean?’

'If a ghost was here, that meant somebody died here – or the person who died has special feelings for this place.’

'Ah, I see…’

Haruka finally understood.

In short, Yakumo was trying to find hints of that.

Yakumo started walking around the spring again.

After reaching about halfway, he stopped and turned away from the spring.

Since they were on elevated ground, they could see the town from here.

Though normally it felt busy and disorganized, looking down at it like this, it was strange how beautiful it looked.

Perhaps that was how life was.

If you would just stop stopp during your busy and rushed daily life to turn around, perhaps it would glitter beautifully –

'Why do you think she keeps singing…’ said Yakumo suddenly in a murmur.

Sachiko’s singing flashed back in Haruka’s mind.

The singing, that continued in a whisper –

Though this was just Haruka’s impression, it had been completely different from the possessions that she had witnessed before. It didn’t come from strong emotions like anger or hatred.

That said, there didn’t seem to be any unfinished business either.

That was why –

'I don’t know.’

'If we don’t understand that, we cannot stop her from wandering.’

Yakumo’s theory was that ghosts were clusters of the emotions of the dead.

In order to get spirits to stop possessing somebody, sutras and chants wouldn’t do anything – they had to find the reason the ghost was wandering and solve it. That was how Yakumo did it.

That meant he had no way to do anything without knowing why the ghost kept singing.

Haruka didn’t know the reason. Just –

'To me, that song soundeds very kind.’

When Haruka said that, Yakumo smiled slightly.

'That’s like you.’

'Eh?’

'You become emotionally involved right away and sympathise.’

'Yeah, yeah, I’m always…’

Unfortunately, she couldn’t deny it.

'To me, that song sounded different.’

'What did it sound like?’

'Hm – if I had to compare it to something…’

'Hello.’

Another voice interrupted Yakumo’s.

When Haruka turned to look, she saw somebody she knew standing there –

-

12

-

The strange call that came to the newspaper company wouldn’t leave Makoto’s head, so she decided to go to the spring that had been mentioned.

– Why would someone make a call like that?

– What did he mean by corpse?

She contemplated those questions as she walked through the forest to the spring.

Soon, she reached an open area and found the spring.

She hadn’t heard of it before, so she had imagined that it would be terribly wild, but when she actually saw it, that impression left her immediately.

The light of the sun made the water sparkle and seem almost divine.

She could hear the faint sound of people talking. When she looked that way, she saw what looked like a coupe walking around the spring.

She knew them. It was Yakumo and Haruka.

Makoto had met them because of a certain case. It made her shiver to remember it even now, because she had been possessed during it.

At the time, Yakumo, with his red left eye, had saved Makoto. They had met up again multiple times ever since them, each helping the other out.

If the two of them were here, that meant –

Makoto went up to the two of them and said, 'Hello.’

'Makoto-san!’

Haruka’s eyes went wide in surprise.

It was strange how Haruka looked cute even with that expression on her face.

As usual, Makoto couldn’t tell what Yakumo was thinking. He said 'Hi’ with a shrug.

'Are you on a date today?’

Makoto could easily imagine that Haruka and Yakumo’s relationship hadn’t advanced, but she asked anyway, since she felt like teasing them.

’T-t-that’s not it,’ said Haruka with her face completely well.

Haruka wasn’t pretending to be innocent – this was how she was. If only I had a pure heart like this too – Makoto was envious.

'I don’t have so much free time that I would go on a date with her,’ said Yakumo expressionlessly.

Either he was good at hiding his feelings or actually didn’t feel anything at all. Makoto couldn’t tell. It was probably because Haruka couldn’t tell either that their relationship hadn’t advanced.

'What’s with the way you said that?’

'I’m just stating facts.’

'It’s not like I…’

Though Yakumo and Haruka continued their amusing conversation, that wasn’t what Makoto was here for. Makoto interrupted with an 'Excuse me’.

'Yakumo-kun, if you’re here, does that mean there’s some problem with spirits?’ asked Makoto, sending Yakumo a searching look.

'Yes. Ah, but this time it wasn’t from me.’

Haruka was the one who replied.

She emphasized that it wasn’t trouble from her. She probably didn’t like how Yakumo always called her a troublemaker.

'Why are you here, Makoto-san?’

Yakumo’s eyes narrowed slightly.

Yakumo had terrifying sharp instincts. He must have figured out why Makoto was here.

‘Actually – ’

Makoto told Yakumo and Haruka about the strange call that had come this morning.

After she finished speaking, Yakumo said quietly, 'I see…’

'Hey, Yakumo-kun. Don’t you think it’s related?’ said Haruka, sounding a bit agitated.

'A woman was possessed by a ghost at this spring,’ Yakumo said disinterestedly after nodding.

– So I was right.

'If what the caller said this morning was true, that would match up,’ said Makoto, which made Yakumo frown.

'It’s too early to say.’

'Why?’

'The caller might not have been speaking the truth. Perhaps it just matches with the current spiritual phenomenon by coincidence.’

Yakumo spoke very seriously.

It was like Yakumo, who hated going ahead with preconceptions.

'But isn’t it too much to be a coincidence?’ interrupted Haruka.

'Coincidences like this a possible. To look at it differently, maybe the caller knew that this area is a ghost spot and made up the story about the corpse.’

After hearing Yakumo’s logical explanation, Haruka seemed disappointed. 'I see…’

'Furthermore – ’

Yakumo put the matter aside and continued.

'The corpse mentioned by the caller might not be the corpse of the ghost.’

'That’s true,’ agreed Makoto.

Yakumo always looked at all the possibilites.

'In any case, it would be unwise to completely take in the words of a man we don’t know anything about.’

The words could have sounded harsh, but from Yakumo, Makoto could strangely accept them easily.

That said, she couldn’t ignore the call. When Makoto told Yakumo that, he nodded. 'I agree.’

'So, Haruka-chan, Yakumo-kun, what trouble is it this time?’

They had said it might be related to the call. She wanted to know how it could be related.

'Actually…’

Haruka politely explained what had happened.

The spiritual phenomenon at the spring. The woman who had been possessed ever since, who had kept singing ever since.

Just as they said, it could be related to the call.

'Hey, what are you going to do next?’

Haruka pulled Yakumo’s sleeve.

'I need to investigate this spring,’ said Yakumo, raising an eyebrow.

That would probably be the fastest method, but there was a big problem.

'It would be rather difficult to search this spring with this number of people.’

There was also the season.

Though it wasn’t the middle of winter, the water was considerably cold. It wouldn’t be completely unbearable, but it would still be unbearable.

'It’s simple.’

As Yakumo said that, he pulled out his mobile.

'Eh?’

'At times like this, we need the power of the country, right?’ said Yakumo with a smirk. Then, he started to make a call. He probably intended on getting Gotou and Ishii.

Gotou and Ishii had it tough, being pulled around all the time. Makoto had a wry smile on her face when she suddenly sensed a gaze.

– Who is that?

She immediately glanced about and saw a shadow which seemed to be looking this way from the trees.

'Is something the matter?’ asked Haruka anxiously.

'It looks like somebody’s there,’ Makoto murmured.

Haruka looked, but she didn’t seem to see anything, as she started to walk forward, as if to check.

Makoto hurriedly stopped her by grabbing her arm.

'Wait. They might run if they notice. I’ll walk over casually to check.’

After saying that quietly, Makoto started walking along the cliff, as if she was heading back.

She paused at a distance from the trees and could see the shadow more clearly.

It was a young man. In the dark, he had big, round eyes. There was an injury on the right side of his forehead.

– Maybe…

The man in the trees could be the person who called the newspaper this morning. Makoto had no proof. It was just her gut.

However, now that she thought that, she felt like it had to be it.

'There is definitely somebody there…’ murmured Haruka, who seemed to have confirmed it as well.

The question was what to do next. Though they were closer, they were still over ten metres away. Should they approach normally – no, if they did, it was likely he would run away.

While Makoto was thinking, the man turned around and started walking back through the forest.

They was no more time to think.

'Wait!’ yelled Makoto, who started to run.

The man froze for a moment.

'You’re the one who called today, right?’ said Makoto. Then, the man dashed off. Makoto went right after him.

She ran frantically after the man through the forest.

However, it was dark and hard to see, and the trees were in the way. She couldn’t move the way she wanted.

The man was getting further and further away.

'Please wait!’ yelled Makoto, just as she slipped and fell backwards.

She got up right afterwards and looked up, but the man had already disappeared into the darkness –

-

13

-

'Sorry to bother.’

Gotou opened the door with vigour and walked in with Ishii.

It was the room at the very end of the ground floor of a prefabricated building behind Building B at Meisei University. It was the clubroom for the Movie Research Circle.

'If you know that you’re a bother, please leave.’

Yakumo, the owner of the room, had his usual stony face on as he sat in his chair.

'You’re the one who called me here!’

Though Gotou could just ignore it, he became seriously angry.

Ishii felt half-exasperated by this exchange, which happened every time, but he still intervened. As expected, Gotou hit his head and calmed down.

'Gotou-san, Ishii-san, would you like tea?’

Haruka was the one who spoke up. She was smiling from the corner of the room.

'H-Haruka-chan!’ Ishii said, happy that he had unexpectedly been able to see Haruka.

She had an angel’s smile, as usual. If that smile of Haruka’s could be Ishii’s, he felt like he could die.

'Don’t smile like that.’

Gotou’s fist fell.

Ishii just barely managed not to bite his tongue.

'Gotou-san, I had a bit of a request – ’

Yakumo brought up the topic at hand in a serious tone once he saw Gotou and Ishii sit down.

'I’ve got a request too,’ replied Gotou.

Haruka took bottles of tea out of the refrigerator and placed them in front of Gotou and Ishii. Then, she sat next to Yakumo.

Somehow, it was like Ishii and Gotou had come to visit the house of a pair of newlyweds.

– No, stop that.

Yakumo and Haruka getting together – that was completely impermissible.

'What is it?’ asked Yakumo, putting his chin on his hands. He had no way of knowing what was inside Ishii’s mind.

'We’ve got involved in a case that’s related to spirits… Ishii.’

Gotou signalled at him with his chin.

It looked like Gotou had no intention of explaining himself. Ishii wasn’t good at speaking either, but if he protested, the fist would come flying again.

He reluctantly started explaining in detail, starting from the spiritual phenomenon that had occurred to Tozuka Takatoshi to how a pastor from a church, after hearing his story, had said he would exorcise the spirit to pacify him.

When he started to say that the pastor, Kirino, was an ex-cop and had been partnered with Gotou, Gotou’s fist had come down, with these words: 'Don’t say anything unnecessary.’

'Could that spring be the one on the hill?’ said Haruka immediately after Ishii finished explaining.

'Yes, it seems so.’

Haruka’s eyes went wide in surprise.

'The case Yakumo-kun is working on right now concerns that spring too.’

'Yakumo! That true?’

Gotou leant forward.

'Please don’t put your unpleasant face any closer to mine.’

Yakumo leant back, looking obviously displeased.

'You!’

Gotou let out his anger again, even though he could have just ignored it.

Ishii understood how he felt, but Gotou wouldn’t be able to stand it if he responded to everything Yakumo said.

'Detective Gotou, more importantly, let’s hear what Yakumo-shi has to say.’

Ishii tried to pacify Gotou and then turned his gaze towards Yakumo.

Ishii was sure that Yakumo would explain, but Yakumo looked towards Haruka and stayed silent.

'Honestly,’ said Haruka with an unsatisfied sigh.

Ishii could painfully understand those feelings, since he had experienced the same thing just earlier.

'Actually, yesterday, a young man called Utsugi Kento consulted Yakumo about a spiritual phenomenon. According to him – ’

Haruka explained how they went to see a female student who had been possessed by a spirit and kept singing. Furthermore, Makoto had gone to the spring because of a strange phone call.

'In short, what we are looking for is the same as the case Yakumo-shi is involved in,’ said Ishii in surprise.

'It seems that way,’ replied Yakumo as he stifled a yawn.

He seemed incredibly uninterested, but Ishii knew that was just an attitude he was putting on.

It was frustrating, but Yakumo could do more than see the spirits of the dead. He had an exceptional mind and had led many cases to the truth.

He must have already developed several theories in his head.

'Yakumo, what do you think?’ asked Gotou with a sharp expression.

'Your question is so abstract that there is no way for me to answer,’ Yakumo said bluntly.

'I’m talking about that. That…’

Gotou fumbled for words.

He probably couldn’t organise his mind to find what to being asking about first.

'Er… is that pastor named Kirino-san trustworthy?’ asked Ishii in Gotou’s stead.

'I believe Gotou-san would be more apt to give an opinion on that than I.’

Yakumo glanced at Gotou.

It looked like Gotou couldn’t think of an answer right away. He kept silent with a wry expression on his face.

'The Kirino I know was a disagreeable guy, but he wouldn’t lie lightly,’ said Gotou wryly after a short silence.

'Well, from what I hear, it doesn’t seem like Kirino-san plans to trick anyone.’

Yakumo put his chin in his hand.

That might be the case – so Ishii thought as well.

If Kirino wanted to trick Takatoshi, he wouldn’t have said he didn’t believe in ghosts, and he wouldn’t have tried to get the police to come watch the exorcism.

But then the problem was –

'Is Tozuka Takatoshi-san really possessed by a ghost?’ said Ishii anxiously.

If Takatoshi really was possessed by a ghost, Kirino’s actions would be completely useless, and if he wasn’t careful, he might make the situation worse by angering the spirit.

'I can’t say anything about what I haven’t seen,’ said Yakumo as he rubbed his eyes sleepily.

That was true. He had no way to determine that from the conversation they had just had.

'But… Sachiko-san’s possessed by a ghost, right? Then wouldn’t that mean nothing’s possessing the person named Tozuka-san?’ asked Haruka.

'There may be more than one wandering spirit,’ said Yakumo as he ran a hand through his hair.

His casual words gave Ishii a chill.

'In short, it’s possible that Tozuka-san’s possessed too?’ said Ishii.

Yakumo nodded.

'Then let’s check,’ said Gotou, crossing his arms.

Yakumo raised his left eyebrow. It seemed like he didn’t like Gotou’s commanding tone.

'What are you supposed to say when asking somebody for something?’

His tone was inflammatory.

'Don’t screw with me! You said you had a request earlier too, right?’

'You remembered?’ said Yakumo nonchalantly.

'Then this is give and take.’

'Well, I guess,’ said Yakumo with a shrug.

He was cunning as usual. If Yakumo became a fraudster, he would probably be incredibly good at it.

'Then what is your request, Yakumo-shi?’ asked Ishii.

Yakumo smirked meaningfully.

Ishii and Gotou exchanged gazes.

Ishii had a bad feeling for some reason –

-

14

-

Takatoshi sat on top of the bed –

The window curtains were closed so he couldn’t see outside, but it was probably night already.

'Urgh.’

Takatoshi groaned, curled up in a ball.

He was afraid of the night.

He always heard that voice at night –

Though the lights were on, he knew very well from experience that it was useless.

He glanced at the clock.

It was just past nine. He thought about pulling up the blanket and going to sleep, but he was even more afraid of that.

Even if he slept, he would still hear that voice.

Yukiko, his mother, was sure that his experience was just a prank. His father didn’t even seem interested.

The detectives who came today also seemed a bit dubious.

It made sense, now that Takatoshi thought about it. If he were in their position, he would probably not have believed such a stupid story either.

Only the pastor Kirino had listened to Takatoshi’s story seriously.

Takatoshi had no way of knowing whether Kirino could really exorcise spirits. He’d heard that most of the exorcists on television were fakes.

But that wasn’t a problem.

It was a problem of facing Takatoshi’s problem seriously or otherwise.

That was the most important thing to Takatoshi in this situation. To be honest, anybody would have been fine if they would understand him.

Takatoshi hadn’t just been suffering from fear, but also the loneliness of not being believed.

'Why only me…’ said Takatoshi, half in tears.

He shouldn’t have gone there, but it was too late to regret now.

What he saw at Kagami Spring flashed back in his mind.

A chill ran down his spine and Takatoshi let out a yell, shaking his head to clear the image away.

However, no matter how he tried, what he saw there wouldn’t leave his mind.

It followed Takatoshi everywhere.

When he looked into the spring, half as a joke, what he saw there wasn’t his own face, but something else. It was a woman’s face.

Blood flowing down her head, she looked back at Takatoshi with hatred –

Takatoshi knew that woman’s face. That was why he was so afraid.

There was a loud ringing noise in Takatoshi’s ears.

He looked up, startled.

– The omen.

It was a sign that he would soon hear the voice. Takatoshi knew it was useless, but he put his hands over his ears.

<I won’t forgive you – >

A voice full of sadness – no, hatred – reached Takatoshi’s ears.

'Stop! Stop! Stop! I don’t have anything to do wiht it!’

Takatoshi kept yelling, but the voice shook Takatoshi’s eardrums regardless.

<I’ll kill you. I’ll kill you brutally.>

'Ahhh!’ screamed Takatoshi.

– I’m at my limit.

He couldn’t stand any more of this. Before Takatoshi noticed, he had run out of the room.

-

15

-

'Man, because of Yakumo, I’m getting told off left and right.’

Gotou leant back in his chair and lit his cigarette.

Gotou hadn’t stopped complaining since he returned to the Unsolved Cases Special Investigations room. Ishii just kept giving unclear 'Ah’s in response.

He understood how Gotou felt.

Yakumo had asked for a large-scale investigation of Kagami Spring on the hill to the west of the city in exchange for helping.

– A corpse may be sleeping there.

That was what Yakumo had said. Ishii himself thought it was likely.

In the cases he’d experienced, there were many that had corpses where ghosts appeared.

However, to investigate that spring, they would need many people, and they needed divers to search in the water too.

Gotou had gone to negotiate, but his reason had been vague. Saying that there were ghosts wouldn’t work on the police.

'So how are things on your end?’ asked Gotou as he glared at the documents.

Ishii had went back through old documents to check whether there had been deaths there in the past, perhaps from suicides or accidents. However –

'Currently, I don’t have nay information…’

He had checked back fifteen years, but there were no records of murders, suicides or accidents that had caused deaths at Kagami Spring.

'Did you check properly?’

'Of course.’

Ishii had looked through everything. He could say confidently that he hadn’t missed anything.

All they could do now was bet on the investigation of the spring. If a corpse was found there, that would be the true nature of the ghost.

However, what would they do if they didn’t find a corpse?

Though they hadn’t confirmed whether the spirit possessing Takatoshi was a real one, the woman named Sachiko had been possessed at the spring.

– Where did that ghost come from, and why was it there?

Ishii’s head was a mess from all the questions.

'Are you listening!?’

Gotou’s fist brought Ishii back to reality.

'Yes’

To be honest, Ishii had stopped listening halfway.

Gotou clicked his tongue in exasperation and then spoke again.

'What do you think?’

'What about?’

'About the case.’

'Even if you call it a case – to be honest, at this stage, nothing has occurred that requires the involvement of the police.’

Gotou’s eyes went wide in surprise upon hearing Ishii’s words.

Even if Gotou looked like that, it was the truth. There was no proof that Takatoshi’s case was a prank, and Yakumo hadn’t taken a look at him yet, so they had no proof that there was a ghost possessing him.

Kirino wasn’t asking for money either, so it wasn’t fraud.

For the call that came to Makoto, they didn’t have the corpse.

They could do nothing with this. It was a bit vague. And there was another thing Ishii had his mind on.

'Detective Gotou.’

'What?’

'Kirino-san was your old partner, right?’

'Yeah.’

'What sort of person was he?’ Ishii asked hesitantly.

Of course, Ishii wanted to know about Kirino to understand the situation, but he was also interested personally in Gotou’s past.

He thought he knew Gotou’s personality well now, but he knew practically nothing about his past.

He felt like Kirino would unravel that.

'He was a man with cold eyes…’ said Gotou, looking at nothing.

'Cold eyes?’

'Yeah. Eyes that looked like he suspected everything in the world.’

'A bit like Yakumo-shi then.’

'Don’t put them together. They’re completely different,’ said Gotou with a harsh look.

'I-I apologise…’

Though Ishii apologized, his thoughts hadn’t changed.

Yakumo still had cold eyes sometimes, like he was rejecting everything in the world.

'Anyway, the guy was always high-handed in investigations and questionings. Said that all criminals were trash.’

'That is a bit of a twisted view.’

'Not just a bit. Physical evidence was everything to him. He had no interest in anything except what would incriminate the culprit. He didn’t care about why cases occurred,’ said Gotou with a click of his tongue.

'That's…’

'I investigated an assault case with him once. A guy who worked at a company was cut with a knife on the way home.’

'Was it a random attack?’

'No. The suspect that came up was the victim’s subordinate. The guy’s fingerprints were on the knife and there was a witness saying the subordinate was the culprit.’

As Gotou spoke, he took out another cigarette.

'Was the subordinate not actually the culprit?’

'Nah, that man did it. But that’s not the problem. Why’d he stab his boss – that’s the question. If we don’t know that, you can’t say we’ve solved the case.’

Gotou crushed the cigarette in his hand without lighting it.

'That’s true.’

Perhaps it was just as Gotou said.

It was important to find out who the culprit was. However, at the same time, it was necessary to make clear why the incident had occurred.

'I couldn’t accept Kirino’s way of doing things, and we had a fight in front of the suspect. Kirino even said that criminals weren’t people…’

Gotou smashed his fist into the table.

Perpetrators and victims were both people. Their emotions were reflected in cases. If police ignored that during investigations, they would lose sight of the truth, and even if the case was finished on paper, it wasn’t solved in the real meaning of the word.

While Ishii understood Gotou’s anger, he still felt something was off.

'I don’t think Kirino-san is that sort of person.’

Though Ishii didn’t know what sort of person Kirino was in the past, he didn’t think he was a cold person now.

Furthermore, if Kirino had that sort of thinking in the past, like Gotou said, Ishii didn’t understand why Kirino had quit the police to become a pastor.

'Neither do I,’ said Gotou, looking faraway.

Ishii had thought that knowing the past would help him understand the present, but he was just more confused.

Just as Ishii let out a sigh, Gotou’s mobile rang from atop the table.

'Who is it?’

As usual, Gotou answered the call without looking at the display.

A call with this timing – it was probably Yakumo, which meant that the usual fruitless exchange would start.

That was what Ishii thought, but Gotou’s face became grimmer in a flash.

'What the hell do you mean by that? No, that's… I got it. Wait. I’ll be right there.’

Gotou ended the call and stood up.

'What is it?’ asked Ishii.

Gotou glared at him.

'Tozuka’s mother called.’

'What did she call for?’

Since the call had come with this timing, it made Ishii strangely suspicious.

'Seems like the brat ran out of the house saying he couldn’t bear it any more.’

'Again?’

'Can’t ignore it, right?’ said Gotou with a click of his tongue.

Well, that was true. Everything was confusing right now, but the original request was to find out what was happening to Takatoshi.

'But even if we’re to look for him, where…’

Gotou hit Ishii’s head.

'Ow.’

'You never learn. There’s only one place to go, right?’

'Ah – ’

Finally, Ishii understood as well.

If Tozuka had run out of his house because he was afraid of the spirit, he would definitely go to Kirino, the pastor.

'Anyway, let’s go.’

Gotou left the room with wide strides.

Ishii hurriedly ran after him, but his feet tangled and he fell –

-

16

-

'Sorry to bother.’

Gotou opened the door to the church.

Though it was late at night, the lights were on. It had a different illusive air to it.

Ishii clung to Gotou, like he was afraid of something.

Gotou pushed Ishii away and continued to walk.

'So you really came.’

The man in front of the altar slowly turned around to face them.

It was Kirino, in his priest’s robes.

'I want to ask you something.’

After Gotou said that, Kirino smiled at him gently.

There was definitely something off. The Kirino in Gotou’s memories had always been expressionless, as if he had been wearing a steel mask.

'I understand. You want to ask about Tozuka-kun, don’t you? He’s there.’

Kirino pointed at the centre of the pews.

There was a man there curled up while shivering. It was Takatoshi.

'I will exorcise the spirit possessing him now – ’ declared Kirino.

'Ehh!’ Ishii’s shock was unnecessarily dramatic.

'You serious?’ Gotou asked quietly after walking up to Kirino in front of the altar.

After Kirino looked at Takatoshi, he looked at Gotou once more.

'That is the only way. If he stays like this, he’ll lose his mind.’

'But what if he’s not just imagining things?’

Gotou looked at Takatoshi.

Kirino thought that Takatoshi was imagining the spiritual phenomena, but a ghost could really be possessing Takatoshi. And there was still the possibility that it was somebody’s prank.

If that was the case, the situation wouldn’t be fixed even if Kirino did something here.

'It’s just an act – even if it doesn’t work, there won’t be any harm.’

'That’s true, but…’

Though Kirino was calling what he was doing an exorcism, it was actually close to counselling.

Even if it failed, the situation would just continue. There wouldn’t be any harm.

'Now, please don’t be so stiff.’

Kirino patted Gotou’s shoulder.

'But…’

'It’s fine. I won’t do anything to cause trouble.’

'That’s not what I’m talking about.’

'Then what is it?’

Even though Kirino asked that, Gotou couldn’t properly explain the feeling in his chest.

It was just a feeling.

Something terrible was going to happen after this – he had that anxiety.

'It’s fine. Please believe me.’

Then, Kirino walked up to Takatoshi.

– Believe him? Ha.

Even when they were partnered, Gotou and Kirino hadn’t had any trust between them.

Like similar magnetic poles, they never approached each other, each keeping their own views. Gotou had never thought that Kirino would say something like 'Please believe me’.

'What will we do?’ asked Ishii after walking up to Gotou.

Gotou looked towards the pews and saw Takatoshi clinging to Kirino while saying something.

There was nothing to do. There was nothing the police could do in this situation.

'All we can do is wait.’

With determination, Gotou sat down at the front of the pews and crossed his arms.

After saying that, his anxiety flew away, and he felt like his heart had calmed down.

'The exorcism will be conducted in the waiting room in the back. Please wait here.’

After saying that, Kirino and Takatoshi went through te door behind the podium.

After the door closed, it opened once more and Kirino stuck his head out.

'Gotou-san, once this is over, do you want to go have a drink? There are a lot of things I want to talk to you about.’

Kirino gave him a friendly smile.

'Drinking with you will just make the beer taste bad,’ Gotou said caustically, but he also wanted to ask what had changed Kirino these past few years.

'I see. Please don’t worry about it then.’

With a wry smile, Kirino closed the door.

'Is it really OK?’

Ishii looked anxious as he adjusted his glasses with his finger.

'Who knows,’ Gotou replied vaguely, looking up at the ceiling.

Kirino changed – he felt that, but maybe the current Kirino was the real one, and the Kirino Gotou knew had been the fake.

That thought suddenly came to his mind.

Kirino had been an excelling detective. Gotou had to admit that.

In good ways and bad, Kirino’s perspective was completely the opposite of Gotou’s.

Because of that, they always fought, but had Gotou ever asked what Kirino truly felt even once?

– I didn’t.

Kirino must have had his own beliefs and justice, but gotou had never tried to see that – he’d always just rejected it.

Maybe drinking together wouldn’t be a bad idea.

Just as Gotou was smiling self-derisively, there was the sound of something falling with a thump.

He stood up reflexively and shared a look with Ishii.

– Did something happen?

While thinking that, there was a loud crack – like something had snapped.

<Stop! W-what are you doing!?>

Gotou heard Kirino’s voice from the other side of the door. Something was definitely happening.

Gotou ran forward and tried to open the door.

However, it was locked and wouldn’t open.

'Kirino! What happened? Oi! Open up!’ Gotou yelled frantically as he knocked on the door.

He heard a beastly howl through the door –

<I’ll kill youuuu!>

It was a low, hoarse voice.

Gotou slammed his body against the door, but the door was rather sturdy and Gotou bounced back.

<Stop it! Stop!>

Kirino was screaming.

’D-Detective Gotou…’ Ishii said, seeming shaken.

<Gahhh!>

Gotou heard Kirino shriek from through the door. Then, like all the noise had been an illusion, it was silent.

'Kirino! Oi, Kirino! Respond!’

Gotou yelled at the door, but there was no response.

– You’re kidding me, right?

Gotou shook away the anxiety spreading through his heart. He picked up the podium beside him and threw it at the door.

Crack – the door was crushed.

'You’re in the way!’

Gotou kicked the door that had warped with all his strength.

When Gotou saw the room in front of him, he was lost for words.

Kirino was collapsed on the floor. A large amount of blood was flowing out from his neck, dyeing the floor red.

'Oi! Kirino! Get a hold of yourself!’

Gotou ran up to Kirino and spoke to him, but there was no response, as if Kirino was a doll.

– You’ve got to be kidding me!

'Oi! What are you doing!? Get a hold of yourself!’

As Gotou yelled, he checked Kirino’s breath. He wasn’t breathing. He checked his pulse too, but there was no response either.

Kirino just looked up into space with cloudy eyes.

Ishii took out his mobile and made a call. Probably for an ambulance.

'Don’t die! Ishii, stop the blood!’

Gotou yelled at Ishii, who had finished his call. Though he hesitated for a moment, Ishii applied his handkerchief to Kirino’s neck.

Gotou did CPR.

'Listen up! Don’t die! Nobody’s going to die on my watch!’

Gotou continued frantically while wiping the sweat from his forehead, but no matter what he did, Kirino’s body didn’t move at all.

Gotou was running out of energy.

– Kirino’s dead.

That fact was spreading through Gotou’s heart.

'Damn it… Why….’

As he said that, Gotou slammed the floor with his fists.

– You empathise too much.

He heard Kirino’s voice in his ear. It was probably from his memories.

Kirino was always like that. Looking at Gotou with cold eyes as Gotou let his emotions boil over.

But now that Gotou thought about it, maybe it was because Kirino had been there that Gotou had been able to keep going without betraying his beliefs.

'Detective Gotou!’

Ishii’s yell brought Gotou back to reality.

Then, he saw Takatoshi shaking in a corner of the room. Blood was splattered all over his face.

That wasn’t all. His shaking hand gripped a knife covered in blood.

A hot anger welled up within Gotou, taking over his whole body.

'Was it you?’ asked Gotou.

Takatoshi furrowed his brows, looking dazed.

'N-no… What is this…’

Takatoshi threw the knife to the ground and tried to run.

Something snapped within Gotou.

'Did you do it, you bastard!?’ shouted Gotou. He thrust Takatoshi to the floor, straddled him and punched him in the face.

’D-Detective Gotou! P-please stop it!’

Ishii tried to get between them to stop Gotou, but still Gotou’s anger wasn’t settled. He just swung his fists recklessly and yelled.

-

NOTES:

[1] The spring’s name is Kagami Yuusen (鏡湧泉) in Japanese. Kagami means mirror, while yuusen means gushing spring. It seems to have been made up by Kaminaga-sensei.

ANOTHER FILES THE COFFIN OF PRAYERfile 01: the cursed spring TRANSLATION NOTES-1-Sachiko ran With only the moonlight as her aid, she made her way through the dark, thick trees and grass, pushing away branches and panting as she ran frantically.Just earlier she had seen the back of the man running in front of her, but now, she could not find him anywhere.It seemed like she had completely be left behind.She didn't even know where she was running towards now.Still, she couldn't stop. If her feet stopped, she would be caught at once. I shouldn't have come here.Along with her strong regret, the spring she had seen earlier formed a vivid image in her mind. A spring on high ground, surrounded by the forest. Let's watch the meteor shower.She couldn't remember exactly who had said it, but Sachiko herself had thought that a photo of the meteor shower reflected on the surface of the spring would have been beautiful.And then they had gone to that spring.At first it had been fun. Everyone had been excited when somebody had said, as they were waiting for the meteor shower I hear something.'When Sachiko strained her eyes, she did hear something.She hadn't known what it was at first. It sounded like the branches rustling and the sound of insects.'Do you know the legend about this spring?'Sachiko started talking about the legend she had heard before about this spring. She had meant it as a joke.She could still hear the sound as she talked. It got louder and louder, and then finally, somebody said 'This is a song.'Those words made everything turn cold.Sachiko held her breath and looked around.There was nobody here besides them, and yet she could hear it. Sachiko could no longer hear anything besides the song.Sachiko suddenly felt something and looked towards the spring. Then, she saw something bubbling up from the spring, which reflected the moon on its surface.As the water rushed up, a black shadow appeared.A woman There was panic. Sachiko couldn't remember exactly what happened. She ran, screaming.The singing voice came down from the sky.The voice which echoed uncannily through Sachiko's head made her tremble.'Stop it already! What is this!?' screamed Sachiko.However, the song continued to echo in her ears regardless.I need to get out of her right now despite that urgent thought, Sachiko tripped on a tree root and fell forward.She used the tree trunk as support to stand up, but then a shocking pain ran through her ankle. It seemed she had twisted it when she fell.As if to mock Sachiko for that, the song followed her.'Stop!'Sachiko covered her ears with her hands and shut her eyes tightly as she screamed as loud as she could. Then, the wind rose up, as if her scream had caused it, and made the branches rustle loudly.Sachiko was shaking, but she soon noticed something strange and opened her eyes.The singing voice she had heard up until now had suddenly stopped. When she took her hands off her ears, she couldn't hear the song.In the silence, Sachiko heaved a sigh of relief.What on earth had that song been? Maybe it had been an auditory hallucination no, that couldn't be it. She wasn't the only one who heard it.Sachiko suddenly felt a presence behind her.The man who had left her had come back that was what she thought at first, but if that was the case, why wasn't he calling out to her?Drip, drip, drip There was the sound of dripping water.Gooseflesh came up over Sachiko's whole body in her anxiety and confusion. I'm scared. I don't want to look.Even though she thought that, her neck slowly turned backwards, contrary to her will.It was so shocking that Sachiko couldn't even scream.Standing behind her was a woman, completely soaked She was so pale she didn't look alive. Water dripped from her sharp chin.Drip, drip Her wet hand reached straight in front of her. I need to run.Even though Sachiko thought that, she was caught by the woman's eyes, which were as dark as caves, and Sachiko couldn't even move a finger.The wet hand completely snatched away Sachiko's consciousness -2-Gotou Kazutoshi leant back on the chair and lit a cigarette 'I'm bored' he grumbled, blowing out smoke.The Unsolved Cases Special Investigations Room that Gotou was stationed at was under the jurisdiction of Criminal Affairs. Though it had a splendid name, the main work was to organise files for cases that had been left unsolved and to assist in cases when there weren't enough people. It was just a do-nothing job.'Then please help.'Through the smoke, Gotou saw Ishii Yuutarou lift his head up from the pile of documents.He wore a slender suit and silver-framed glasses that made him look intelligent. At first glance, he looked like a capable man, but that was completely false.Ishii was always hesitant and panicked when it came to the crunch, so he couldn't do anything. That was the type of guy he was.'I can't do boring work like organising files.'Gotou looked away.'Organising documents is a splendid job. Why do you dislike it so much?'Unusually, Ishii talked back.Why the answer was just that Gotou didn't like it.It irritated him to think about difficult problems and do detailed work. There was no reason for it. That was just his personality.But saying that aloud would get on Gotou's nerves.'I don't dislike it. I just don't want to do it.''That's the same thing. In the first place''Shut up.'Gotou hit Ishii's head.Ishii's lip curled in what looked like dissatisfaction, but he didn't say anything else.When did Gotou turn into this When he joined the police, he had been burning with justice. He had felt like he'd become a hero.However, he soon found out the truth.Police weren't allies of justice. The bad guys did whatever they wanted, and the good citizens that the police were supposed to protect became victims.Even while knowing that, there were laws, rules, and society within these walls, Gotou couldn't do anything.The recent stalker case was a good example.Even though Gotou knew it was likely they'd commit a crime, he still couldn't do anything. All anyone could do was report it. If nothing happened, the police couldn't act.These days kept piling up, rubbing away at Gotou's spirit.If he couldn't save anyone, what were the police for anyway? Going on feeling won't solve anything.A man who had been Gotou's coworker before had said that. The complete opposite of Gotou, he followed the rules and acted on his thoughts an unpleasant guy.Even though Gotou could remember his name, he just couldn't remember his face. Maybe because he hadn't ever looked at him properly because he just hadn't liked him.The door opened, interrupting Gotou's thoughts.Miyagawa Hideya, the chief of the detectives, came into the room.Though he had a small frame, his bald head and sharp, glinting eyes made him seem more like a gangster than a detective.He had been on the scene for a long time. When Gotou was a novice detective, Miyagawa had worked him hard.Miyagawa was also a man who went more on feeling than on thought.'Chief Miyagawa, good morning.'Ishii stood up and bowed in his stupidly polite way.'My, my. What's the revered chief of the detectives doing on this remote island?' said Gotou sarcastically.'You look like you have a lot of free time, as always,' replied Miyagawa in the same manner.'We're busy, even though we look like this,' said Gotou jokingly, which made Miyagawa snort.'There's something I want to ask you guys to do,' said Miyagawa in a wry tone after walking up to Gotou's side.If it was a request for Gotou and Ishii in their do-nothing jobs, it had to be troublesome.'Please ask elsewhere.'Gotou pressed his finished cigarette in the ashtray and looked away.'I want to do that too. This isn't even police work in the first place.'Miyagawa took one of Gotou's cigarettes without asking and lit it. Gotou had heard that he'd given up smoking, but he seemed really annoyed.'Then you can just refuse, right?'Gotou waved his hand, like he was chasing away a fly.'No can do. There are circumstances on my side of things too.'Miyagawa sighed, blowing out white smoke.He looked tired.'What do you mean by circumstances?''Request from an old police guy.''I don't know what idiot made the request, but you can just ignore somebody who's left the force already.''You know that I can't do that.'It was just as Miyagawa said.The police organization was built on a strict up-down relationship. The influence of that wasn't limited to those who were currently working. It stuck with you your whole life.'What's the request?''The police vet has a grandkid who's gonna be in uni. The request's related to that kid''A shoplifter?'A police retiree might ask them to clear the record.'There'd be no problem if that was it. We could just get pull them in.''Wouldn't there be pressure?''Like I care. If there's an arrest at this stage, there'd have to be pressure.'Miyagawa wasn't acting tough. He probably meant it. Miyagawa was that sort of guy that was why he could be trusted.'Then what is it?''That grandkid got a murder notice.''A murder notice!?'Ishii, who had been listening silently, stood up, eyes sparkling. Even though he was useless, he always got excited about cases.'Is it all right to leave such an important request to us?'That bothered Gotou.If there was a murder notice, the police should respond to it diligently.It wasn't something for a useless department with only two people to take care of.'The problem is the obsessive person in question' Miyagawa said wryly, pressing his finished cigarette into the ashtray.Gotou waited for Miyagawa to continue. Ishii was holding his breath too. However, Miyagawa didn't speak no matter how long they waited.'Who on earth is it?' asked Gotou, who had run out of patience.Miyagawa's face twitched.'An evil spirit, apparently.''Wha?'It was so unexpected that all Gotou could do was cock his head.'Of all things, an evil spirit'Gotou had had a hand in many cases that dealt with spirits. He had even been given the nonsensical nickname 'Psychic Detective'.'To be honest, it sounds suspicious,' said Miyagawa.'You don't believe it?''It's got to be someone's prank. Even though we could just leave it alone, it's been made into such a big thing That said, I can't just refuse it, but there'd be a huge protest if I put Criminal Affairs on this.''So you're saying it's OK to push it over to us?''Because I can trust you. I don't have anyone else I can ask.'To be honest, Gotou was going to immediately refuse, but now that Miyagawa said that, there was no way he could.'I get it. We've got the time anyway. We'll at least go hear them out.''Sorry. Thanks for this.'Miyagawa bowed from his waist.'Please stop acting unlike yourself. So where should we go?'When Gotou asked that, Miyagawa handed him a memo with an address and a name. After he took it, he grabbed his jacket and stood up.'Ishii, we're going.'Gotou started walking briskly, but when he turned around in the corridor, he didn't see Ishii following him. He's spacing out again.'Ishii!' yelled Gotou, which made Ishii run out of the room.He fell -3-Ozawa Haruka went towards the prefabricated building behind Building B.She was going to meet Saitou Yakumo.She had met him last autumn it had begun when Haruka had gone to consult him because her friend had been possessed by a ghost.Her first impression of him was the worst. He was rude and hard to approach. Was it really OK for her to leave things to him? That had been what she felt at first.However, Yakumo hadn't only saved Haruka's possessed friend. He had also revealed a murder that had been in the dark.Since then, Haruka had experienced a number of cases, and her impression of Yakumo had changed greatly. It could even be said that it was the complete opposite of what it had been at first.Though Yakumo normally hid it with a black contact lens, he had a red left eye.That red eye could see the spirits of the dead that is, ghosts.Because of that unique ability, Yakumo had suffered a great deal more than other people.He was afraid of being hurt and didn't like to hurt others, so he purposefully lived a solitary life.Even though he was kinder than anyone Haruka soon reached the prefabricated building she was heading for. It had two floors, each with ten rooms.The university lent it out to clubs and circles for activities.Haruka stood in front of the Movie Research Circle room at the very end of the first floor.The truth was, the Movie Research Circle didn't exist. Yakumo had filed some random documents with the university's student affairs office and used this room as his own he literally lived here.'Hey!' said Haruka, opening the door.Yakumo, the owner of the room, looked at Haruka with incredibly sleepy eyes.He had smooth, pale skin and a sharp nose. Though he had terrible bed head, it strangely went well together.Haruka was going to sit in her usual seat, but unusually, there was a guest.Since the guest was facing away from Haruka, she couldn't see his face. He was a tall man, wearing a lab coat.'A guest? Let's continue this next time.'The man slowly stood up and turned towards Haruka.He was probably in his early thirties. He had a sensitive, androgynous face. There was a lolly stick in his mouth.I feel like I've seen him before While Haruka thought about it, the man left the room.'It looks like I got in the way,' said Haruka, regretting her bad timing.Since it was Yakumo, Haruka was sure he'd say something like 'You did' or 'Read the atmosphere', but he gave an unexpected response.'It's fine. The game is decided.'Yakumo sighed, chin in his hands. What game?Before Haruka asked, she spotted a chessboard on the table. It looked like Yakumo had been playing chess with the man from earlier.'Who won?' asked Haruka.Yakumo looked bitter.'I was about to lose in twelve turns.'It was unusual for Yakumo to acknowledge his defeat so readily.Haruka took another look at the chessboard. Though she didn't know the rules well, from looking at the positions of the white and black pieces on the board, it didn't seem like a situation which would beckon a complete loss.'Isn't it too early to give up?' asked Haruka.Yakumo shook his head.'Unfortunately, there's no way for me to win this way.''Is that how it is?''That's how it is,' murmured Yakumo. Then, he pushed one of the pieces on the board over with his finger.Haruka didn't really understand, but if Yakumo was saying that, it was probably true.'By the way, I feel like I've seen that person before, but who is he?''Professor Mikoshiba.''Ah!'Haruka remembered now that Yakumo said his name.Haruka was in the arts and humanities faculty, so she hadn't directly met him, but she had heard the rumours.A young maths associate professor. He was tall with a mysterious air, so people called him the 'Lab Coat Prince'. She'd heard that there were female students who fancied him.'But why were you playing chess with Professor Mikoshiba, Yakumo-kun?''I major in mathematics. Didn't you know?''I didn't.' I didn't know.Even though Haruka had thought she knew Yakumo better than everyone, she had unexpected gaps in information about his personal life.'Well anyway, that's how it is. We play chess sometimes.''I see So what are the records?''Zero wins, zero losses, seventeen draws.''So you're an even match?''No. He's just playing with me. If Professor Mikoshiba were serious, it'd be like taking candy from a baby for him.'Yakumo put his hands up in surrender.'Is he that great?''His specs here are different from mine.'Yakumo tapped his head with his finger. If Yakumo was saying this much, Professor Mikoshiba had to be pretty amazing.'So what trouble do you have today?'After a pause, Yakumo stifled a yawn and spoke.It made sense for Yakumo to think that way. It was true that Haruka had always visited Yakumo when she had trouble. However, it wasn't that common now.'Nothing, really,' Haruka said casually.Yakumo furrowed his brows.'Do you have a lot of free time?''Even though I look like this, I'm busy too.''Then can't you just leave now?''It's fine for me to stick around, isn't it?'Haruka opened the refrigerator in the corner of the room and took chocolate out.'When did you put that in there?' asked Yakumo, sounding dissatisfied.'When I came last time.''Why are you so''Want some?'Haruka interrupted Yakumo's grumbling and held out the box of chocolates.It looked like Yakumo wanted to say something, but perhaps he lost to the temptation, as he reached for a chocolate and tossed it into his mouth.Though it wasn't something Haruka should be saying herself, she felt like she had become better at dealing with Yakumo than before.Just as she sat opposite Yakumo, there was a knock on the door.'Come in!' replied Haruka.'This isn't your room,' complained Yakumo.Haruka thought about rebutting, but the door opened before she could.A young man stood there. He was tall, but his round face made him seem friendly and cute.'I apologise for coming so suddenly. Is Saitou Yakumo-san here?' said the young man in a slightly high-pitched and gentle voice.'What is your request?'Yakumo turned an evaluating gaze towards the young man.'Are you him? My name is Utsugi Kento. I'm a second-year law student.''I asked about your request.'Yakumo's eyes narrowed.It was a pointed statement, but it wasn't that Yakumo had any special dislike for the young man named Kento. He was like this to everyone.Haruka thought that the young man would be discouraged, but he just laughed quietly and said, 'Ah, that's right.''To put it directly, my friend, er seems to have been possessed by a ghost Aizawa, an upperclassman recommended me here.''Ah!'Haruka spoke up without thinking.To be frank, Aizawa had been the one who introduced Haruka to Yakumo too. That said, Aizawa hadn't met Yakumo before, and didn't know about his unique ability either.He just exaggerated rumours and made them sound true that was the sort of person he was.'Do you know him?''Yes, we're in the same circle,' replied Haruka with a wry smile.'Is that so? Er Would you listen to my story?'Kento looked at Yakumo. What will you do?Haruka looked at Yakumo too. Yakumo crossed his arms and looked down, like he was thinking.'The main fee is twenty five thousand yen. Actual expenses are separate.'Yakumo put a smile on his face like a shady salesman.It looked like he planned on taking it, but perhaps he was just planning on making up some appropriate lies and tricking Kento out of his money.When Haruka thought that, her heart started beating strangely -4-'We've arrived,' said Ishii to Gotou in the passenger seat after parking the car on the side of the road.There was no response. When Ishii looked towards Gotou, he saw him lying back on the seat and sleeping with his mouth wide open.'Detective Gotou, please wake up. We've arrived.'When Ishii shook Gotou's shoulder, he finally opened his eyes.'Shut up. I know.'Gotou hit Ishii on the head.It was an unreasonable scolding, but Ishii's sad personality made it impossible for him to complain.'Man' grumbled Gotou as he got off the car. Ishii followed him.It had become much colder recently. Ishii had his shoulders hunched as he looked up at the large house that was their destination.The house itself was probably at least two hundred tsubo in size. The grounds were large as well, surrounded by a tall fence.It was quite a splendid home. Somebody who had a house like this in the city had to have a lot of money.'It's impossible to be killed by a ghost anyway.'Gotou spat in front of the gates.It was an action inappropriate for a current police officer, but Ishii's sad character also did not have the courage to warn Gotou.'You can't say it's completely impossible,' said Ishii.Gotou glared at him. As usual, it had incredibly pressure.'You know this too. Ghosts are clusters of the thoughts of the dead and don't have any physical effect. That's why they can't kill.'Gotou's words just now was the theory of a young man named Saitou Yakumo, who had the unique ability to see the spirits of the dead.Ishii wasn't saying that the theory was wrong. He himself had experienced how true it was through a number of incidents.However 'In the previous case, a person possessed by a ghost killed someone,' said Ishii, pain still in his chest.'Ah, that,' murmured Gotou.Ghosts that had no physical influence couldn't kill directly, but they could possess someone and use their body to kill.That case had proved it.'You saying it's the same as that case?' said Gotou bitterly.'No, since we don't know the details yet. I can't say anything. However, that is why I think it is premature to say that something is impossible at the current stage.''Pre what?''Premature.''Matcher?''Ah, er yes.' It's frustrating how I can't deny it.'So we have to think of all the possibilities.''Yes.'Though Gotou had got the word wrong, Ishii's meaning had got through, so it was fine.'No helping it. First, let's just take a look.''That's right,' replied Ishii. Then, he pressed the intercom button.After a while, a woman's hoarse voice replied Yes.'I'm Ishii, from the Setamachi precinct.'Ishii put his face close to the intercom and gave his name.E-er, sorry. Right now is Aahh!The intercom cut off. What was that?Ishii and Gotou looked at each other.That had been a scream just now. Something serious had to be happening. Though Ishii thought that, they couldn't just break in.Crack!The sound of glass cracking from inside the house interrupted Ishii's thoughts.'Let's go!'Right after saying that, Gotou started running. Ishii hurriedly went after him.Gotou opened the entrance door and rushed in, but Ishii stopped. Can we really go in like this?Last year, society had been making a fuss about privacy. If they weren't careful, the press would beat them for this.And yet, when anything big happened, people clamoured for quick responses.Whatever they chose, there was a problem. It was a tough world that was what Ishii was thinking when he heard fighting from inside.Then, he heard Gotou yell out, 'You bastard!' Ishii couldn't stop any longer. However, after all those excuses, the truth was that he was just afraid.'You can do it, Ishii Yuutarou.'Ishii reprimanded himself. Then, he opened the door and rushed in.'Takatoshi, calm down!'A middle-aged woman cried out in fear from a room that was just by the entrance. What on earth is happening?When Ishii peered in, he was shocked.Gotou and a young man were fighting in the middle of the room.'Calm down, you idiot.'Though Gotou was trying to hold the young man down, the young man twisted his body about in a furious struggle.It was like two beasts were fighting.'Let go! At this rate, I'm going to be killed!' wailed the young man with a ghastly expression on his face.'Ishii! What are you doing? Help out!' shouted Gotou.Even if Gotou told him to help, Ishii wasn't used to this sort of thing. He wasn't sure what he should do.'Er Um'Perhaps Gotou had given up on help from Ishii when he saw him hesitating there, as he just made a clicking noise with his tongue and pushed the young man to the floor.The young man finally became quiet.'J-just as expected, Detective Gotou!'When Ishii ran up in excitement, Gotou's fist came down on his head.'If you're also a detective, act like one.''I-I apologise'-5-Haruka, sitting next to Yakumo, looked once more at Kento, who sat opposite them.Perhaps because of his round eyes, he looked very young. In contrast though, he seemed reserved and calm somewhat sophisticated.'Your friend was possessed correct?' said Yakumo after letting out a bit of a sigh.Kento nodded and then began to speak.'Do you know about the little spring to the west of the city?''Yes, though I haven't been' replied Yakumo.Haruka had also heard that there was spring there, but she hadn't gone herself.'It's called Kagami Spring1.''It's the first I've heard of it.''It's named that because the water's surface is reflective, like a mirror. There's a rumour about that place.'Kento looked up at Yakumo.'A rumour?''Yes. You can see ghosts at Kagami Spring and that's not all. If you look into Kagami Spring at night, your true self will be reflected back to you.''Your true self?'Haruka cocked her head.She didn't really get it. Of course the person reflected in the water would be your true self. It would be creepy if something else appeared there.'Yes. Your true self that you don't want anybody to know about, hidden away in your heart.' I see. So you can see to the bottom of your heart.'If that's the case, I'd like to take a look.''It would be better not to.'Kento shook his head.'Why?''The people who've seen their true selves are killed by a curse within a week that's what people say.'The words Kento said with a serious face made Haruka hold her breath.'Is that true?'When Haruka said that in shock, Yakumo shook his head with a sigh.'When are you going to fix that airhead nature of yours?'Fix? Haruka had never even thought of herself as an airhead.'Did I say something strange?''Being unaware of it yourself is fatal.'Yakumo let out an ostentatious sigh.Haruka thought about objecting, but when she saw Kento with his brows furrowed in concern, she decided to keep quiet.'And then?' Yakumo urged.Kento started once more.'Yesterday, I went with my friends to Kagami Spring.''Why did you go there?'Yakumo's tone was harder now.From Yakumo's perspective, it would be unbelievable to go for fun to a place where spiritual phenomena were said to occur.If trouble occurred after going there, it was just deserts.'Stargazing. We wanted to see the meteor shower. The location is perfect for viewing the night sky. We were thinking of taking photos of the meteor shower reflected on the water's surface too.'Kento's explanation made Yakumo's expression soften slightly.'Is that so?''I didn't believe in the rumours about Kagami Spring. But when we were waiting for the meteor shower, we heard singing from somewhere 'Kento put his right hand to his ear.It was like he could still hear it now.'Singing you say?''Yes. I couldn't hear what song it was. I don't know if it was a man or a woman singing. The sound was in a peculiar range.''It's possible it wasn't a song.''No, it was definitely a song,' Kento said confidently.'And then?' Yakumo urged.'Then, something started coming out of the spring.''Something what was it?''A person. A drenched woman crawled out from the spring.'Kento wasp robably remembering the fear from then. His expression was stiff, and his voice was shaking slightly.'Did you see her face?''We were a bit away from the spring, so I didn't see it clearly but she was definitely a woman.''I see.'Yakumo put a hand on his chin as his gaze wandered, like he was thinking.'We ran away in fear. We were in a panic. I could still hear the song then but I managed to get to a main road,' said Kento, much more quickly than before.That made his words seem incredibly urgent, conveying his fear to Haruka.'But I didn't notice.'Kento looked down at his feet and bit his lower lip.'What didn't you notice?'When Haruka asked that, Kento covered his face with both hands.'The girl who was with me I had been so focused on running that I didn't notice her'Kento probably blamed himself.However, Haruka felt there was no helping it. Only Yakumo would be able to stay calm after encountering a ghost.Furthermore, this wasn't the time to be hunched over with regret. The problem was 'Excuse me What happened to that girl?''I was afraid, but I went back. I saw her collapsed in the forest. Though she was breathing, she was unconscious I called an ambulance''Is that so?'Though he might have run away once, Haruka didn't think that Kento's decision afterwards was wrong.'But she's been strange ever since then.''What exactly do you mean by strange?'When Yakumo asked that, Kento slowly lifted his head.Perhaps he was exhausted, because his face seemed to be shadowed.'She's been singing thi whole time 'Kento's words echoed through the small room.-6-'So what happened?' said Gotou, sitting on the sofa and looking at the middle-aged woman and young man sitting opposite him.The woman was Tozuka Yukiko. She was the daughter of the retired police officer.The young man was her son, Takatoshi. He was a sophomore at Meisei University.Yukiko seemed exhausted, perhaps because of the fuss earlier. In contrast, though Takatoshi had become quiet after Gotou thrust him to the floor, he was fidgeting restlessly.'Er'Yukiko looked away, like she found it hard to speak.It felt like she didn't know where to start. Gotou felt the same way. There were a number of things he wanted to ask, but because of the fuss, he wasn't sure where to begin.'Excuse me I heard that an evil spirit was threatening you'Ishii, sitting beside Gotou, was the one who broke the silence.It felt like it'd be better to ignore the incident for now and start asking from there.'Talk about the spiritual phenomenon you experienced.'Gotou looked at Takatoshi.That instant, Takatoshi's expression changed. He looked weak, to the point that nobody would think he was the same man who had been thrashing about earlier.'Please save me At this rate, I'll be cursed to death'Takatoshi put his hands out, pleading.Next to him Yukiko looked obviously displeased.'Tell me in detail. If you don't, I can't do anything,' urged Gotou.'I The other day, I went to Kagami Spring with my friends. It's called the Spring of Truth''Kagami Spring?''It's on a hill to the west of the city.'Gotou didn't know about the spring, but he knew there was a hill to the west of the city. He had a general idea of where it was.'There's a legend about that place If you look in at night, your true self will be reflected there. The people who see that will be cursed to death within a week ''What did you say!?'Ishii stood up in shock, which was too much.Only Ishii would so easily believe a story that was as shady as this one. Gotou hit Ishii's head to tell him to shut up.'So did you see it?' asked Gotou.Takatoshi nodded.'I was so afraid'Takatoshi covered his face with trembling hands.Gotou didn't really get it. Of course you say yourself when you looked at water. The reflection had to be your true self.When Gotou said that, Takatoshi vehemently denied it.'That's not it! The reflection there was a woman, covered in blood'Gotou and Ishii looked at each other unconsciously after hearing Takatoshi's explanation.If that were true, Gotou understood where Takatoshi was afraid. But 'Didn't you just see wrong?'Or it was some sort of optical illusion.'That was definitely what I say. Ever since then, I've been hearing a strange voice.''A strange voice?''Somebody whispering in my ear. I'll kill you that's what the voice says. When I get in the bath, when I'm sleeping in my room I hear it everywhere, like I'm being followed 'After saying that all in one breath, Takatoshi took heaving breaths with his shoulders.He looked incredibly agitated. From that response, Gotou didn't think he was lying.'It's fine. You just misheard,' Yukiko said kindly, rubbing Takatoshi's back.However, Takatoshi shook her away.'No! I didn't mishear! I'm going to die, like the legend says!''If you didn't mishear, it's just somebody's prank,' said Yukiko.It looked like Yukiko doubted that anything was actually happening to Takatoshi. At the same time, Gotou realised why her retired father had asked the police for help.He probably thought this was someone's prank and wanted the culprit to be found.'I don't care if you don't believe me! That person will save me!'Takatoshi tried to leave the room in his anger.'Wait.'Yukiko grabbed Takatoshi's arms and tired to pull him back. Takatoshi fought back This was just what happened before.'Calm down a bit!' yelled Gotou, standing up.Takatoshi's and Yukiko's eyes went wide in shock and both sat down on the sofa, losing to Gotou's pressure.'I'll properly look into whether what's happening to you is a proper spiritual phenomenon or somebody's prank.'Gotou sat on the sofa again as well.If he got Yakumo to help, he'd be able to determine whether what was happening to Takatoshi was the work of a ghost or a living person.Yakumo would probably complain, but that was the fastest method. More importantly 'Who do you mean by that person?' asked Gotou, leaning forward.Just now, Takatoshi had said that that person would save him. That meant there was somebody else involved in this case.'The priest at the church' said Takatoshi in a voice that sounded like it could disappear at any moment.'A priest?' said Ishii.'There's a Protestant church near here. The priest there''Ah, then he's a pastor,' interrupted Ishii.'They're both the same right?'When Gotou said that, Ishii pushed up his silver-framed glasses with his finger in a showy manner.'It isn't the same. It'd be like calling a temple's monk a Shinto priest.'Ishii's proud manner irritated Gotou, but they wouldn't get anywhere if he complained now.'So what about that pastor?''He can exorcise evil spirits so that person would be able to save me,' said Takatoshi, sounding desperate.'So he's an exorcist,' said Ishii with sparkling eyes.'Exercise what?''An exorcist. In Christianity, there is a role that exists solely for cleansing evil spirits.''Sounds fake.''It isn't fake. It was in that film, right?'Gotou knew what film Ishii was talking about. The one about a girl possessed by an evil spirit running around.But that was just a movie. Ishii's reasoning made it sound like something in a movie was reality.If that was the case, exorcists wouldn't be the only things that were real. They'd have to say aliens and monsters were real as well.'Takatoshi, you can't believe in that. It has to be fraud. That person must be the one making the strange things happen''I'm saying that's not it!'Takatoshi drowned out Yukiko's reprimand with an angry yell.Though Takatoshi denied it, Yukiko's words made sense.Gotou had a strong dislike for people who said they could cleanse evil spirits. He'd dealt with people like that before, but not only had they all be fakes, they had been cunning and troublesome.Well, thinking about things now wouldn't get anything started.'I guess we'll go meet that pastor' muttered Gotou.If it went well, they'd get that pastor and solve all the problems at once.-7-'I've just returned.'Hijikata Makoto went into the culture department room of Hokutou Newspaper.The editor-in-chief in the back waved. It seemed that all the other reporters were out, so only the editor-in-chief was left.Makoto put her bag down and sat in her own seat.The exhaustion had piled up. She had been gathering information since last night on a potter since last night. Since the potter had been busy firing the ceramics, Makoto had had to go late at night and finally returned now.She wanted to go home and lie on her bed, but she wanted to organise the photographs and recordings now.She couldn't sleep if there was stuff left to do. That was her personality.After logging in to the computer, the business phone on her desk rang. Makoto immediately picked up the racier.'Hello, this is the Hokutou Newspaper culture department.'Though Makoto answered the phone, there was no response.They hadn't hung up. It wasp robably from a mobile phone. Makoto could hear the sound of the street and faint breathing.She thought that it might be bad reception, but it was strange. Is this a prank?This wasn't limited to newspaper companies. If a phone number was public, calls like these were everyday occurrences.However, civilian information was absolutely necessary for their work, so they couldn't ignore it.'Hello, who might be calling?'Makoto spoke up again.Still, there was no answer. She was about to hang up and took the receiver away from her ear, when she heard a hoarse voice say Excuse me.'Yes?'Makoto put her ear on the receiver again.But there was silence again She thought about just hanging up, but she couldn't. Something like a sixth sense told her that this phone call was very important.'I'm Hijikata from the culture department. Would you tell me your name?'Makoto spoke in as gentle a voice as she could.Silence However, there was a faint change in the breathing.Makoto looked at the business phone monitor. It was an unknown caller. The number wasn't displayed.'What is your request? If you'd be fine with me, please tell me,' said Makoto patiently.After some rustling on the other side of the pone, a man's voice said I.Though the tone of the voice was dark, the voice itself seemed fairly young. Makoto wrote 'Man in his twenties?' on a memo pad.'What is it?'I ErIt appeared he still wasn't sure whether to speak.'Please calm yourself down and speak.'Would you believe what I have to sayPerhaps he was nervous, as his voice was shaking.It would be easy to say 'I will' here, but Makoto couldn't say something irresponsible in her situation.She was a reporter. She was determined to make decisions without bias.That said, she wanted to know what this man had to say.'If you won't tell me, there's nothing for me to believe.'After Makoto said that, there was a worrying pause for a moment.The police didn't believe me'Were you involved in an incident?'I sawThere was a small groan from the other side of the phone.'What did you see?'That spring.'A spring?' repeated Makoto as she took a map out from the drawer and spread it out on the desk.A spring on the west side of town.'The west?' asked Makoto as she looked at the map.Yes. On top of a hill.Now that he said it, Makoto felt like there was a hill to the west of the city, but had there been a spring there?She searched the map as she thought. There.There was a very small spring on the map. Though there was no name there, this was probably it.'What did you say at that spring?' asked Makoto as she put a checkmark in red at the spring.Will you really believe me?The man repeated himself.Why was he so concerned about whether Makoto believed him or not? Perhaps it had something to do with what he had seen.'Please tell me first. Otherwise, I can't make any decisions.'Makoto was careful not to sound accusatory.At that springEither the man's voice had become quiet or there was some reception problem, as Makoto couldn't hear the rest of his words.'I'm sorry. I couldn't hear you, so could you please repeat yourself?'A cor pse'What did you say?'There's a corpse at that spring The man sounded irritated as he said that.'Eh?'Makoto repeated herself without thinking.Corpses weren't light things. Was it true?As I thought, you don't believe me.The man's tone changed completely.It looked like he had determined that Makoto's surprise was doubt.Makoto tried to explain that that wasn't the case, but he hung up before she could.With a sigh, she put the receiver back down.'What was that?' asked the editor-in-chief.Makoto thought about explaining in detail about the strange call, but she decided not to. There was no way to determine anything with so little information.'I think it was a prank,' replied Makoto, which made the editor-in-chief instantly lose interest.However, Makoto still felt something was wrong as she stared vacantly at the map -8-Gotou put his mobile away in his jacket pocket with a click of his tongue.He had been trying to call Yakumo since earlier, but it seemed like Yakumo's phone had run out of battery, since Gotou's call wouldn't connect.He could never been contacted when it mattered. He really was an unpleasant guy.'How was it?' asked Ishii from the driver's seat, as he handled the wheel.'Can't you tell from looking?' replied Gotou curtly. He leant back into the passenger seat.'Er What should we do?' asked Ishii as he stopped the car.'What?''We've arrived,' said Ishii, sounding like he thought it was very unfortunate.Gotou saw a church outside the window.It had white walls with a triangular roof. There were stained glass windows. It seemed very much like a church.Maybe it had been erected recently or renovated, since it didn't seem old.There was a tower in the centre with a bell. The cross on top of the roof glittered brightly in the sunlight.'There's nothing to it. All we can do is go, right?'Gotou tried to get off the car, but Ishii grabbed his arm. Ishii looked like he might cry at any moment.'Er I think that going with just the two of us is'Gotou could understand Ishii's misgivings.They had met a number of people who called themselves exorcists in the past. Every time, Gotou and Ishii had been trifled with and fallen completely into their traps.They weren't able to see through their fraud.But Yakumo was different. His red left eye that could see the spirits of the dead when that confronted the people who called themselves exorcists, it was an impressive advantage.That wasn't all. Yakumo himself had an exceptional mind for insight and analysis. It was a strong weapon.Confronting an exorcist without Yakumo was the same as going into enemy territory unarmed, but they couldn't just retreat because Yakumo wasn't here.'Stop whining. Let's go.'Gotou hit Ishii's head and then got off the car.Ishii, though reluctant, also got off the car.Gotou slowly walked forward to the church door.It was mysterious how the building up close had a solemn, overpowering feeling to it.Maybe the awe of the people looking at it was reflected back.'Sorry to bother.'Gotou pushed open the decorated door and wet inside.There was an arched ceiling with wooden beams supporting it. In the centre, there was a path covered in red carpet, with pews on both sides.On the left side, there was a podium and an organ. There was an altar in the front and a tabernacle.By the wall, there was a statue of Christ on the cross.Why do they revere such a cruel statue Gotou, who wasn't a Christian, could not understand at all.Gotou turned around and saw Ishii still loitering at the door.'Hurry up!' yelled Gotou, which made Ishii jolt and come in hesitantly.Gotou looked around the church again.Nobody was inside. It was so quiet it was frightening.'It looks like no one's here. Let's head back,' suggested Ishii quickly.There was a limit to how cowardly someone could be.'Don't run away.'Gotou grabbed Ishii's arm.'No, but er'Ishii looked around anxiously.It was strange how Ishii couldn't do anything because he was too afraid when he had to face the bizarre, even though he was so interested in it.'Get it together.'Gotou slapped Ishii's back.Ishii jumped up, but he still seemed afraid. 'Let's head back.''Stop that already'Just as Gotou lifted his fist, there was the sound of a door opening.Gotou saw a man in black worship clothes come out from the door behind the altar.He was probably in his late thirties. His face was so thin that his cheeks were hollow. His face was so pale it was practically blue. He had a tall nose with thick eyebrows. In contrast, his eyes were so narrow they looked like they were closed. I've seen him before.So Gotou thought, but he couldn't remember who he was. While Gotou went through his memories irritatedly, the man in worship clothes smiled gently.'Is something the matter?'His voice was ringing and unique. I know this voice too.Gotou's memories were clamouring within his head. No, this wasn't the time to be thinking about that.'I'm Gotou of the Setamachi precinct. A man named Tozuka Takatoshi comes here, right? I want to talk about that.'Gotou showed his police ID, which made the man in worship clothes instantly change expression.It wasn't the scorn or fear of a criminal. He had an open smile, like he had met again with an old food.'gotou Gotou Kazuhiko-san, right?'The man in worship clothes spoke in a friendly manner.This response and he even knew his name. Gotou really did know this man in worship clothes, but he still couldn't remember.'It makes sense for you not to remember with me in these clothes.'The man spread his arms and looked down at his own clothes.From the way he talked, they probably weren't just acquaintances.Gotou would have pretended to remember and tried to find out from the conversation, but with this situation, he couldn't do anything careless.This could be a trick by the exorcist too.'Detective Gotou, is he an acquaintance of yours?' Ishii asked quietly.Gotou didn't reply. He looked straight at the man in worship clothes.'Who are you?'Finally, Gotou said that.Maybe Gotou was nervous, as the inside of his mouth was dry.'It's me. Kirino Kouichi don't you remember?' said the man in worship clothes.With that, the remains of the smouldering memories within Gotou welled up at once. At the same time, he felt a hot anger boil up.Kirino Kouichi his memories of this man always came with anger and irritation. I hated him.Gotou tried to stop the emotions that had unwillingly welled up, but he clenched his fists anyway.'Um''Shut up.'Gotou interrupted Ishii.To be honest, he still couldn't believe it. The face did look similar. The voice matched the one of the man in his memories. But still, Gotou couldn't accept it.The Kirino Gotou knew wasn't the sort of guy who would smile at others, and he hadn't been friendly with Gotou either.Like water and oil, they just hadn't got along. They had hated each other.And if this really was Kirino, what the hell was he doing here? Gotou didn't understand.'Kirino. Is it really you?' said Gotou, who couldn't believe it. No, didn't want to believe it.Kirino nodded.'I understand why you didn't recognize me, since I'm a bit thinner now.'Kirino shrugged.That was right. His body type was completely different. The Kirino Gotou knew was about one size bigger than the man in front of him.And the man had had cold eyes, like he was looking down on everyone.'That's a lie. You're not Kirino.''You still don't believe me? You remember this, right?'Kirino pointed above his left eyebrow.There was a scar about three centimeters long. When Gotou saw that, he felt like he had been stabbed in the chest.'Kirino' said Gotou painfully.There was no way he could forget. Gotou had been the one who gave him that injury.He had a bad feeling in his chest.'For certain reasons, I'm a pastor at this church now.'Kirino smiled pleasantly.'Don't screw around!' yelled Gotou angrily.Pastor? What the hell. Kirino didn't have the qualifications.The reason was that Kirino had killed someone. Gotou couldn't accept that a man like that could be a carefree pastor.'Why are you so angry?''What are you plotting by doing this, you bastard?'Gotou grabbed Kirino by the collar.'You don't change,' said Kirino gently, which didn't match the situation.His eyes seemed somewhat sad.'Detective Gotou, who on earth is this person?' asked Ishii, eyes darting about.'He's an ex-cop!'Gotou thrust Kirino away.Kirino staged backwards, but he was still smiling gently. He wasn't angry or shocked.'I-is that true?' said Ishii in surprise.'Yeah.'Kirino Kouichi had been a cop. And, though it was just for a short time, Gotou had been his partner -9-'Hey, are you going to take that request?' asked Haruka to Yakumo, who was walking beside her.Kento had requested that Yakumo save the woman named Sachiko, who had been possessed by a ghost, but Yakumo hadn't said clearly whether he would accept the request.'I haven't decided,' Yakumo said curtly.'Aren't you going to see her because you want to accept it?'Right now, they were going to meet Sachiko, who was in the hospital according to Kento.'I just said now that I haven't decided.'Yakumo seemed to be in an unusually bad mood.'Do you doubt what Kento-san said?''No, his story was consistent. I think it's probably true.''Then 'You should save her is what Haruka tried to say, but Yakumo stopped, interrupting her words.'It's because what he said was true that I can't accept this easily.''Eh?''Unfortunately, all I can do is see. I can't cleanse a spirit by chanting.''Oh.'Yakumo always said this.Ghosts were like clusters of the emotions of the dead, and chanting wouldn't do anything. Even if it did, it would be like forcing them out with violence that was what Yakumo thought.That was why Yakumo searched for the reason why the spirits of the dead were wandering and solved that cause.'In short, if it's true, I can't guarantee that I can solve it that's how it is.'Haruka felt like Yakumo's words had a sad echo to them.Yakumo had said this before. That he was irritated with himself, because all he could do was see He It was because Ykaumo was irritated with his bystander existence that he never said anything unless he was certain.It was proof of how seriously he faced cases.Haruka knew this, but she felt herself incredibly pathetic for not being able to sense Yakumo's feelings.'Sorry'Haruka bowed her head.Yakumo frowned, looking troubled for some reason.'It's not like you need to apologise.''But''It's creepy, so don't do any more.''Wai'Yakumo always ruined everything by talking.Though Haruka was irritated, she went after Yakumo, who had started walking again.Why was it? His back seemed somewhat lonely.Soon, they reached the hospital at the station. They dealt with the procedures for meeting at the reception, took the elevator to the fourth floor and headed for the hospital room.After knocking, they opened the sliding door to the hospital room.It was a room for four, but three beds were empty. A woman slept in the bed at the very end.Apparently, there had been people in the other beds until yesterday, but since Sachiko kept singing no matter how they told her to stop, the patients had asked to change rooms, thinking Sachiko creepy.The nurse at reception had told Yakumo that. Even though he was so blunt normally, changing his attitude completely depending on the situation was one of Yakumo's skills.Haruka and Yakumo walked up to Sachiko's bed.It looked like she was sleeping now. Sachiko's eyes were closed as she breathed quietly. The IV drip attached to her arm looked like it hurt.According to the doctor, it was autonomic ataxia. From the medical point of view, that was probably all they could see.Yakumo put his index to his brow and looked down at Sachiko with a hard expression.This response Haruka could only see Sachiko on the bed, but Yakumo definitely saw something else.'How is she?' asked Haruka.Yakumo sighed.'She has certainly been possessed by a spirit of the dead 'After hearing Yakumo's words, she felt energy course through her.Now that she knew there was a spirit possessing Sachiko, she looked strangely different.'What sort of person?''A woman. She's probably around our age. But that's when she died''I see'A woman who lost her life at about the same age as they were now What on earth had happened? Haruka thought about the life of a woman she didn't know. However, doing that wouldn't help her understand anything.Sachiko's eyelids slowly opened, like she had sensed them.Sachiko's lifeless eyes stared at them blankly.It sounded like she was having trouble breathing.This always happened, but Haruka didn't know what to do at times like this. Though she wasn't Yakumo, she felt irritated at how she couldn't do anything.At the same time, she felt like she heard something. What are you saying?Haruka tried to put her face closer, but Yakumo immediately grabbed her shoulder.'Don't make me keep saying this. Don't just get closer without thinking.''Sorry.'All Haruka could do was apologise honestly.It was just as Yakumo said. She didn't know what personality the ghost possessing Sachiko had. If she got closer without thinking now, she might be the one getting possessed.Similar cases had happened in the past.'Who are you?'After a long silence, Yakumo asked that in a whisper.Sachiko's mouth moved more clearly than earlier.Her voice slowly became louder.'Ne ah ma'That wasn't an answer to the question. Just a sequence of words Haruka didn't understand.'Why are you possessing this woman?'Yakumo tried asking another question, but there was no response. Sachiko kept repeating the words, like a chant.' Go to'When Haruka listened to the weak voice, she noticed something. Though it was faint, there was pitch and rhythm. In short 'Is this a song?'Haruka looked at Yakumo, who sighed.'It seems so.''I wonder what song it is''Who knows. You know more about music than me, right?'That was true. Haruka had learnt piano since she was young, and she had been in the brass band since middle school. Even after entering university, she was in the orchestra circle.She knew about music, but to be honest, with so little, she couldn't tell what song it was.'Ne ah to'While Haruka thought, Sachiko continued to sing.If they knew what song it was, they might be able to find out how to save Sachiko. But how 'Ah!'Haruka thought of something.She took out her mobile and started recording a video. This way, even if she didn't know now, she could check afterwards.After recording for about thirty seconds, Yakumo turned around. 'Let's go.''Eh? But we don't know anything yet, right?'Yakumo ran a hand through his hair as he turned around.'Staying here any longer won't solve anything.''Why not?''She isn't pleading anything. She's just singing 'Haruka had met many possessed people up until now, but almost all of them had been filled with an intense hatred and had some sort of unfinished business.The spirit possessing Sachiko probably wasn't like that.'Why is she singing?''I can't do anything without understanding that reason.''How will you understand it?''It wouldn't be any trouble if I could understand it easily'After saying that, Yakumo briskly left the hospital room.###'So oh gu'The song was still going.Haruka hesitated for a moment, but then she went after Yakumo, putting Sachiko's singing behind her.-10-Gotou, sitting in the pews, glared at Kirino, who stood at the podium.Kirino wasn't disturbed. He stood calmly. The Kirino in Gotou's memory definitely didn't match up with the man in front of him.Gotou first met Kirino about eight years ago Miyagawa had been looking out for Gotou until then as his partner, but then Gotou was paired up with Kirino.M'My name is Kirino Kouichi. It's nice to meet you.'When Gotou saw Kirino bow politely from the waist, he had thought that Kirino was the picture of earnestness.Kirino was younger than Gotou, and there was the difference between graduating from university and from high school, and Gotou had had more years of experience, but still, they were at the same level in their career.Maybe Gotou had been biased, but he didn't like Kirino, who was an intelligent type, from the very beginning.'Well, let's just get this done.'When Gotou said that, Kirino looked dubious.'What do you mean by just?''What?''You appear to often break the rules. Is that the result of just getting things done?'Kirino had spoken in a flat tone.It was true that Gotou had broken the rules often ever since then, but it wasn't like he tried to break them.Sometimes, there were things that had to be done, even if it meant breaking the rules. The work of the police wasn't to protect the rules. It was to protect the safety of the citizens that's what Gotou remembered saying.In response, Kirino had said something incredibly cold.'You think the same way the criminals do,' Kirino said coldly.'Who are you calling a criminal? And criminals are people too!' yelled Gotou.Kirino looked back at him coldly.'Please don't put me together with trash who disturb order.'Kirino said his practically discriminatory words with no expression and no feeling.Gotou had had hated Kirino from the bottom of his heart ever since that moment. He didn't try to understand people's feelings he was the one who was trash.So why would Kirino 'Why are you doing something like this?' said Gotou aggressively.'What do you mean by something like this?''Why is a man who used to be a detective working as a pastor?'Cops changed jobs too, but Gotou had never heard of one who'd become a pastor. It just didn't match.'I've always been Protestant, and I graduated with a religion degree from university. Rather, it's more surprising that I ended up as a police officer.'Kirino's smile seemed incredibly amused.Come to think of it, Gotou had asked Kirino in the past why he'd become a police fficer after graduating from university with a religion degree.What did Kirino say then? Gotou thought about it, but for some reason, he couldn't remember.'Excuse e Can you really exorcise spirits?'Ishii was the one who interrupted.Maybe it was because Gotou had been confused, but he had completely forgotten that Ishii was sitting beside him. He had even forgotten his original goal after meeting Kirino again.'Exorcise spirits?'Kirino cocked his head.It felt like he was showing that attitude on purpose.'You call yourself an exorcist, right?'Gotou glared at Kirino.'Exorcist? What are you saying?'Kirino spread his hands wide as he acted like he didn't know what they were talking about.Maybe Kirino didn't mean it, but that felt like a challenge to Gotou.'Don't play dumb!'Gotou stood up in his anger.'Exorcists and pastors are completely different.''You're tricking people out of their money by saying you're exorcising demons and evil spirits, right!?''Who is?''Stop screwing around!'Gotou tried to grab Kirino, but Ishii stopped him in a panic.'Please calm down. First, let's hear what he has to say.'Gotou didn't like being told what to do by Ishii, but it was true that he might have let his emotions get ahead of him.The pastor was Kirino that fact had made that much of an impact on Gotou.Anyway, doing this wouldn't get them anywhere. He might have to listen to Kirino calmly, like Ishii said.Gotou took a deep breath and sat back down. Then, he signaled at Ishii with his chin.In response, Ishii hesitantly explained the reason they had come here to Kirino.'I see so that's what it was. Now I understand,' said Kirino with a gentle smile.'What do you understand?'When Gotou glared at Kirino, he sighed.'You're really the same as always. When you lose your calm, you lose sight of things.''I don't need your concern!'Gotou felt painfully how difficult it was to do his work when it was somebody he knew.'First, I need to clear a misunderstanding.''Do it then.''It is true that I gave advice regarding an evil spirit to the young man named Tozuka Takatoshi. Furthermore, I also said I would exorcise the spirit possessing him.''Then it's not a misunderstanding!'Gotou stood up again.The explanation just now was just a repeat of what they'd said.'Please listen properly until the end.'Kirino smiled wryly, seeming exasperated.It made Gotou irritated, since he felt like he was being treated like a child, but he gulped down his feelings.'I gave advice to Tozuka-kun and said I would solve it, but I had another goal.''What was it?''In the first place, I don't believe in ghosts, evil spirits included.''You don't believe in them?'All Gotou could do was cock his head.'But the Devil exists, according to Christianity,' interrupted Ishii, who had been quiet up until now. He really bites down on strange things, as usual.'The Devil and ghosts are completely different. Furthermore, I don't believe that the Devil exists either.''Eh? But then'Ishii's brow furrowed. He looked troubled.Gotou felt the same way. Was it all right for a church's pastor to deny the Devil's existence so readily?'What I believe in isn't the miracle of Christ. That doesn't mean I am denying the Bible's teachings. The things written in the Bible are very important for people to live by.''So you don't believe in God, but you agree with the teachings is that how it is?' said Gotou, feeling confused.'Well, something like that. It might be unexpected, but now that science has advanced so much, the number of pastors who think like me are not few in number. Though of course we don't say it aloud.'Kirino spoke so readily that Gotou and Ishii shared a look.However, maybe Kirino was right.God made the world in seven days there was something wrong with people who actually believed stories like that.'Furthermore, there was the role of an exorcist in Catholic churches in the past 'Ishii had said the same thing at Takatoshi's house.'Like in that movie.''Though that movie caused many misunderstandings, it isn't an exaggeration,' Kirino said quietly.'What do you want to say?''It's true that there used to be the role of an exorcist in the church, but the real goal was to urge people of other faiths to convert.''Not exorcising spirits?''Correct. Though this is not a good way to put it, they called the gods of other religions the Devil and convinced people to convert that was the meaning of exorcist.''Is that so'For some reason, Ishii's shoulders slumped in disappointment.In any case, the conversation was off topic. The first question was elsewhere.'Why did you say you'd exorcise the spirit possessing Tozuka if you don't believe in ghosts? Did you really just want to trick him out of his money?''That's not it. Like I said earlier, I don't believe in ghosts. Accordingly, I think Tozuka-kun's case isn't a spiritual phenomenon either.''Then what is it?''Optical and auditory illusions from thinking too much,' Kirino declared firmly.'So not the work of an evil spirit?' asked Ishii.'Correct. However, that wouldn't convince Takatoshi-kun, so I decided to put on an act'Gotou understood what Kirino was trying to do now.'So you were going to say you exorcised the evil spirit and make him calm down.'Kirino nodded.Yakumo had done the same thing a number of times in the past. Gotou didn't like it, since it was like he was tricking the person, but it was true that it was effective.'Doing something so confusing'Gotou sank into the pews. Why am I relieved?Gotou was confused by his own emotions.Gotou hated Kirino. It wasn't just once or twice that he'd thought about hitting him.That said, most of that was just Gotou's emotions exploding on their own, while Kirino had just let that slide.That attitude had just made Gotou more irritated.But still, Gotou wouldn't have liked to here that his old partner was a fake exorcist.No, maybe I Gotou shook the thought away from his head.'So you really didn't plan on tricking him?'Gotou looked at Kirino again.'Of course not. I don't lie. You know that well, right?'Kirino's eyes were clear as they looked straight back at Gotou. When Gotou and Kirino had argued when they were both on the force, Kirino's eyes had often looked like this.He'd been a disagreeable guy, and his perspective had been completely different from Gotou's, but Kirino never lied. That was true.'I get it,' said Gotou, which made Kirino smile.'You're the same as always.''You being sarcastic?''No, I just felt envious.'Kirino smiled, seeming embarrassed.'That's called sarcasm,' said Gotou with a click of his tongue.'That part of you hasn't changed either.'As Kirino said that, he narrowed his eyes, like he was looking back fondly on the past.Kirino hadn't been the type to be nostalgic, and he would never say he was envious of Gotou, even as a lie.Kirino had been a person of reason and thought. What the hell happened?Gotou still had questions, but he decided to leave it here for the day.'Anyway, we'll leave for today.'Gotou stood up. He was about to leave the church when Kirino called out to him.'What?''If you're concerned, how about coming here tomorrow?'After hearing the unexpected invitation, Gotou and Ishii shared a look.Maybe Kirino wanted to prove he had no ill intentions by getting Gotou to come again.'I'll think about it 'After saying that, Gotou put the church behind him.-11-Haruka followed Yakumo through the forest She weaved through the trees. It was terribly difficult to walk, as the ground was muddy and covered with fallen leaves.The trees were thick, and the place felt a bit creepy.After leaving the hospital, Yakumo hadn't said where he was going, but after coming so far, Haruka could guess where they were headed.The spring where the incident occurred they were going to Kagami Spring.'Here'After walking for a while, Yakumo stopped.Haruka looked past him and saw the spring, just as she had thought.Its circumference was probably about one hundred metres. In the very middle, a large rock stood out, like a symbol.To Haruka, it looked like a gravestone.There was no wind, and the water was calm it sparkled, just like a mirror.'This is Kagami Spring''Yeah.'Haruka had thought that the spring would be frightening, but it was beautiful and made her think of nature. Haruka wouldn't have thought there was a curse.Yakumo ran a hand through his hair. Then, he crouched to look at the spring.'Wait, is that OK?'There was a legend that people who saw their true reflections here would be cursed to death. If Yakumo wasn't careful 'You're believing in a superstition like that again?' said Yakumo in exasperation as he put a hand into the spring.'That's not it, but'Haruka knew in here head that it was just a rumour, but that didn't mean she wasn't afraid. Her thoughts and feelings were always separate.And there was Sachiko. Putting aside whether the spring reflected the truth or not, something had definitely happened here.'What's your true self supposed to be anyway?' said Yakumo as he stood up, wiping his wet hand on his jeans.His eyes seemed to left off a sharp glint.'That's'Haruka couldn't think of an answer right away.'Whose truth is it supposed to be?''What do you mean?''Is an objective perspective that only links facts together the truth? If that's the case, the reflection here will be just like that of a mirror a simple reflection.'There seemed to be a shadow in Yakumo's eyes.Haruka didn't understand exactly what he meant, but she could understand the gist of it.'Maybe it's what's at the bottom of somebody's heart, which they haven't noticed themselves 'Haruka said what came to mind.'That's just the unconscious mind.''Isn't that the true self?''No.'An immediate answer.'Why not?''In the first place, people have many faces to them. All of them are true, but at the same time, they aren't 'Yakumo spoke in a strong tone as he stared at the spring. What on earth can he see there?Haruka walked up to Yakumo, but her view didn't change.A gust of wind blew, making Haruka feel like her warmth had been snatched away from her.'You don't understand anything.'Yakumo shook his head and then slowly walked around the spring.'What?' asked Haruka, chasing after Yakumo.'If that woman named Sachiko we met at the hospital was possessed by a ghost here, there won't be a ghost here any longer.'Come to think of it, he was right. The ghost that had been here was now in Sachiko's body.When Haruka understood that, a question came to her.'Then why did you come here?''Did you follow me without understanding anything?' said Yakumo in exasperation.'Well, you didn't tell me.''Honestly Let's change the way you're thinking.'Yakumo stopped and ran a hand through his hair.'What do you mean?''If a ghost was here, that meant somebody died here or the person who died has special feelings for this place.''Ah, I see'Haruka finally understood.In short, Yakumo was trying to find hints of that.Yakumo started walking around the spring again.After reaching about halfway, he stopped and turned away from the spring.Since they were on elevated ground, they could see the town from here.Though normally it felt busy and disorganized, looking down at it like this, it was strange how beautiful it looked.Perhaps that was how life was.If you would just stop stopp during your busy and rushed daily life to turn around, perhaps it would glitter beautifully 'Why do you think she keeps singing' said Yakumo suddenly in a murmur.Sachiko's singing flashed back in Haruka's mind.The singing, that continued in a whisper Though this was just Haruka's impression, it had been completely different from the possessions that she had witnessed before. It didn't come from strong emotions like anger or hatred.That said, there didn't seem to be any unfinished business either.That was why 'I don't know.''If we don't understand that, we cannot stop her from wandering.'Yakumo's theory was that ghosts were clusters of the emotions of the dead.In order to get spirits to stop possessing somebody, sutras and chants wouldn't do anything they had to find the reason the ghost was wandering and solve it. That was how Yakumo did it.That meant he had no way to do anything without knowing why the ghost kept singing.Haruka didn't know the reason. Just 'To me, that song soundeds very kind.'When Haruka said that, Yakumo smiled slightly.'That's like you.''Eh?''You become emotionally involved right away and sympathise.''Yeah, yeah, I'm always'Unfortunately, she couldn't deny it.'To me, that song sounded different.''What did it sound like?''Hm if I had to compare it to something''Hello.'Another voice interrupted Yakumo's.When Haruka turned to look, she saw somebody she knew standing there -12-The strange call that came to the newspaper company wouldn't leave Makoto's head, so she decided to go to the spring that had been mentioned. Why would someone make a call like that? What did he mean by corpse?She contemplated those questions as she walked through the forest to the spring.Soon, she reached an open area and found the spring.She hadn't heard of it before, so she had imagined that it would be terribly wild, but when she actually saw it, that impression left her immediately.The light of the sun made the water sparkle and seem almost divine.She could hear the faint sound of people talking. When she looked that way, she saw what looked like a coupe walking around the spring.She knew them. It was Yakumo and Haruka.Makoto had met them because of a certain case. It made her shiver to remember it even now, because she had been possessed during it.At the time, Yakumo, with his red left eye, had saved Makoto. They had met up again multiple times ever since them, each helping the other out.If the two of them were here, that meant Makoto went up to the two of them and said, 'Hello.''Makoto-san!'Haruka's eyes went wide in surprise.It was strange how Haruka looked cute even with that expression on her face.As usual, Makoto couldn't tell what Yakumo was thinking. He said 'Hi' with a shrug.'Are you on a date today?'Makoto could easily imagine that Haruka and Yakumo's relationship hadn't advanced, but she asked anyway, since she felt like teasing them.'T-t-that's not it,' said Haruka with her face completely well.Haruka wasn't pretending to be innocent this was how she was. If only I had a pure heart like this too Makoto was envious.'I don't have so much free time that I would go on a date with her,' said Yakumo expressionlessly.Either he was good at hiding his feelings or actually didn't feel anything at all. Makoto couldn't tell. It was probably because Haruka couldn't tell either that their relationship hadn't advanced.'What's with the way you said that?''I'm just stating facts.''It's not like I'Though Yakumo and Haruka continued their amusing conversation, that wasn't what Makoto was here for. Makoto interrupted with an 'Excuse me'.'Yakumo-kun, if you're here, does that mean there's some problem with spirits?' asked Makoto, sending Yakumo a searching look.'Yes. Ah, but this time it wasn't from me.'Haruka was the one who replied.She emphasized that it wasn't trouble from her. She probably didn't like how Yakumo always called her a troublemaker.'Why are you here, Makoto-san?'Yakumo's eyes narrowed slightly.Yakumo had terrifying sharp instincts. He must have figured out why Makoto was here.Actually 'Makoto told Yakumo and Haruka about the strange call that had come this morning.After she finished speaking, Yakumo said quietly, 'I see''Hey, Yakumo-kun. Don't you think it's related?' said Haruka, sounding a bit agitated.'A woman was possessed by a ghost at this spring,' Yakumo said disinterestedly after nodding. So I was right.'If what the caller said this morning was true, that would match up,' said Makoto, which made Yakumo frown.'It's too early to say.''Why?''The caller might not have been speaking the truth. Perhaps it just matches with the current spiritual phenomenon by coincidence.'Yakumo spoke very seriously.It was like Yakumo, who hated going ahead with preconceptions.'But isn't it too much to be a coincidence?' interrupted Haruka.'Coincidences like this a possible. To look at it differently, maybe the caller knew that this area is a ghost spot and made up the story about the corpse.'After hearing Yakumo's logical explanation, Haruka seemed disappointed. 'I see''Furthermore 'Yakumo put the matter aside and continued.'The corpse mentioned by the caller might not be the corpse of the ghost.''That's true,' agreed Makoto.Yakumo always looked at all the possibilites.'In any case, it would be unwise to completely take in the words of a man we don't know anything about.'The words could have sounded harsh, but from Yakumo, Makoto could strangely accept them easily.That said, she couldn't ignore the call. When Makoto told Yakumo that, he nodded. 'I agree.''So, Haruka-chan, Yakumo-kun, what trouble is it this time?'They had said it might be related to the call. She wanted to know how it could be related.'Actually'Haruka politely explained what had happened.The spiritual phenomenon at the spring. The woman who had been possessed ever since, who had kept singing ever since.Just as they said, it could be related to the call.'Hey, what are you going to do next?'Haruka pulled Yakumo's sleeve.'I need to investigate this spring,' said Yakumo, raising an eyebrow.That would probably be the fastest method, but there was a big problem.'It would be rather difficult to search this spring with this number of people.'There was also the season.Though it wasn't the middle of winter, the water was considerably cold. It wouldn't be completely unbearable, but it would still be unbearable.'It's simple.'As Yakumo said that, he pulled out his mobile.'Eh?''At times like this, we need the power of the country, right?' said Yakumo with a smirk. Then, he started to make a call. He probably intended on getting Gotou and Ishii.Gotou and Ishii had it tough, being pulled around all the time. Makoto had a wry smile on her face when she suddenly sensed a gaze. Who is that?She immediately glanced about and saw a shadow which seemed to be looking this way from the trees.'Is something the matter?' asked Haruka anxiously.'It looks like somebody's there,' Makoto murmured.Haruka looked, but she didn't seem to see anything, as she started to walk forward, as if to check.Makoto hurriedly stopped her by grabbing her arm.'Wait. They might run if they notice. I'll walk over casually to check.'After saying that quietly, Makoto started walking along the cliff, as if she was heading back.She paused at a distance from the trees and could see the shadow more clearly.It was a young man. In the dark, he had big, round eyes. There was an injury on the right side of his forehead. MaybeThe man in the trees could be the person who called the newspaper this morning. Makoto had no proof. It was just her gut.However, now that she thought that, she felt like it had to be it.'There is definitely somebody there' murmured Haruka, who seemed to have confirmed it as well.The question was what to do next. Though they were closer, they were still over ten metres away. Should they approach normally no, if they did, it was likely he would run away.While Makoto was thinking, the man turned around and started walking back through the forest.They was no more time to think.'Wait!' yelled Makoto, who started to run.The man froze for a moment.'You're the one who called today, right?' said Makoto. Then, the man dashed off. Makoto went right after him.She ran frantically after the man through the forest.However, it was dark and hard to see, and the trees were in the way. She couldn't move the way she wanted.The man was getting further and further away.'Please wait!' yelled Makoto, just as she slipped and fell backwards.She got up right afterwards and looked up, but the man had already disappeared into the darkness -13-'Sorry to bother.'Gotou opened the door with vigour and walked in with Ishii.It was the room at the very end of the ground floor of a prefabricated building behind Building B at Meisei University. It was the clubroom for the Movie Research Circle.'If you know that you're a bother, please leave.'Yakumo, the owner of the room, had his usual stony face on as he sat in his chair.'You're the one who called me here!'Though Gotou could just ignore it, he became seriously angry.Ishii felt half-exasperated by this exchange, which happened every time, but he still intervened. As expected, Gotou hit his head and calmed down.'Gotou-san, Ishii-san, would you like tea?'Haruka was the one who spoke up. She was smiling from the corner of the room.'H-Haruka-chan!' Ishii said, happy that he had unexpectedly been able to see Haruka.She had an angel's smile, as usual. If that smile of Haruka's could be Ishii's, he felt like he could die.'Don't smile like that.'Gotou's fist fell.Ishii just barely managed not to bite his tongue.'Gotou-san, I had a bit of a request 'Yakumo brought up the topic at hand in a serious tone once he saw Gotou and Ishii sit down.'I've got a request too,' replied Gotou.Haruka took bottles of tea out of the refrigerator and placed them in front of Gotou and Ishii. Then, she sat next to Yakumo.Somehow, it was like Ishii and Gotou had come to visit the house of a pair of newlyweds. No, stop that.Yakumo and Haruka getting together that was completely impermissible.'What is it?' asked Yakumo, putting his chin on his hands. He had no way of knowing what was inside Ishii's mind.'We've got involved in a case that's related to spirits Ishii.'Gotou signalled at him with his chin.It looked like Gotou had no intention of explaining himself. Ishii wasn't good at speaking either, but if he protested, the fist would come flying again.He reluctantly started explaining in detail, starting from the spiritual phenomenon that had occurred to Tozuka Takatoshi to how a pastor from a church, after hearing his story, had said he would exorcise the spirit to pacify him.When he started to say that the pastor, Kirino, was an ex-cop and had been partnered with Gotou, Gotou's fist had come down, with these words: 'Don't say anything unnecessary.''Could that spring be the one on the hill?' said Haruka immediately after Ishii finished explaining.'Yes, it seems so.'Haruka's eyes went wide in surprise.'The case Yakumo-kun is working on right now concerns that spring too.''Yakumo! That true?'Gotou leant forward.'Please don't put your unpleasant face any closer to mine.'Yakumo leant back, looking obviously displeased.'You!'Gotou let out his anger again, even though he could have just ignored it.Ishii understood how he felt, but Gotou wouldn't be able to stand it if he responded to everything Yakumo said.'Detective Gotou, more importantly, let's hear what Yakumo-shi has to say.'Ishii tried to pacify Gotou and then turned his gaze towards Yakumo.Ishii was sure that Yakumo would explain, but Yakumo looked towards Haruka and stayed silent.'Honestly,' said Haruka with an unsatisfied sigh.Ishii could painfully understand those feelings, since he had experienced the same thing just earlier.'Actually, yesterday, a young man called Utsugi Kento consulted Yakumo about a spiritual phenomenon. According to him 'Haruka explained how they went to see a female student who had been possessed by a spirit and kept singing. Furthermore, Makoto had gone to the spring because of a strange phone call.'In short, what we are looking for is the same as the case Yakumo-shi is involved in,' said Ishii in surprise.'It seems that way,' replied Yakumo as he stifled a yawn.He seemed incredibly uninterested, but Ishii knew that was just an attitude he was putting on.It was frustrating, but Yakumo could do more than see the spirits of the dead. He had an exceptional mind and had led many cases to the truth.He must have already developed several theories in his head.'Yakumo, what do you think?' asked Gotou with a sharp expression.'Your question is so abstract that there is no way for me to answer,' Yakumo said bluntly.'I'm talking about that. That'Gotou fumbled for words.He probably couldn't organise his mind to find what to being asking about first.'Er is that pastor named Kirino-san trustworthy?' asked Ishii in Gotou's stead.'I believe Gotou-san would be more apt to give an opinion on that than I.'Yakumo glanced at Gotou.It looked like Gotou couldn't think of an answer right away. He kept silent with a wry expression on his face.'The Kirino I know was a disagreeable guy, but he wouldn't lie lightly,' said Gotou wryly after a short silence.'Well, from what I hear, it doesn't seem like Kirino-san plans to trick anyone.'Yakumo put his chin in his hand.That might be the case so Ishii thought as well.If Kirino wanted to trick Takatoshi, he wouldn't have said he didn't believe in ghosts, and he wouldn't have tried to get the police to come watch the exorcism.But then the problem was 'Is Tozuka Takatoshi-san really possessed by a ghost?' said Ishii anxiously.If Takatoshi really was possessed by a ghost, Kirino's actions would be completely useless, and if he wasn't careful, he might make the situation worse by angering the spirit.'I can't say anything about what I haven't seen,' said Yakumo as he rubbed his eyes sleepily.That was true. He had no way to determine that from the conversation they had just had.'But Sachiko-san's possessed by a ghost, right? Then wouldn't that mean nothing's possessing the person named Tozuka-san?' asked Haruka.'There may be more than one wandering spirit,' said Yakumo as he ran a hand through his hair.His casual words gave Ishii a chill.'In short, it's possible that Tozuka-san's possessed too?' said Ishii.Yakumo nodded.'Then let's check,' said Gotou, crossing his arms.Yakumo raised his left eyebrow. It seemed like he didn't like Gotou's commanding tone.'What are you supposed to say when asking somebody for something?'His tone was inflammatory.'Don't screw with me! You said you had a request earlier too, right?''You remembered?' said Yakumo nonchalantly.'Then this is give and take.''Well, I guess,' said Yakumo with a shrug.He was cunning as usual. If Yakumo became a fraudster, he would probably be incredibly good at it.'Then what is your request, Yakumo-shi?' asked Ishii.Yakumo smirked meaningfully.Ishii and Gotou exchanged gazes.Ishii had a bad feeling for some reason -14-Takatoshi sat on top of the bed The window curtains were closed so he couldn't see outside, but it was probably night already.'Urgh.'Takatoshi groaned, curled up in a ball.He was afraid of the night.He always heard that voice at night Though the lights were on, he knew very well from experience that it was useless.He glanced at the clock.It was just past nine. He thought about pulling up the blanket and going to sleep, but he was even more afraid of that.Even if he slept, he would still hear that voice.Yukiko, his mother, was sure that his experience was just a prank. His father didn't even seem interested.The detectives who came today also seemed a bit dubious.It made sense, now that Takatoshi thought about it. If he were in their position, he would probably not have believed such a stupid story either.Only the pastor Kirino had listened to Takatoshi's story seriously.Takatoshi had no way of knowing whether Kirino could really exorcise spirits. He'd heard that most of the exorcists on television were fakes.But that wasn't a problem.It was a problem of facing Takatoshi's problem seriously or otherwise.That was the most important thing to Takatoshi in this situation. To be honest, anybody would have been fine if they would understand him.Takatoshi hadn't just been suffering from fear, but also the loneliness of not being believed.'Why only me' said Takatoshi, half in tears.He shouldn't have gone there, but it was too late to regret now.What he saw at Kagami Spring flashed back in his mind.A chill ran down his spine and Takatoshi let out a yell, shaking his head to clear the image away.However, no matter how he tried, what he saw there wouldn't leave his mind.It followed Takatoshi everywhere.When he looked into the spring, half as a joke, what he saw there wasn't his own face, but something else. It was a woman's face.Blood flowing down her head, she looked back at Takatoshi with hatred Takatoshi knew that woman's face. That was why he was so afraid.There was a loud ringing noise in Takatoshi's ears.He looked up, startled. The omen.It was a sign that he would soon hear the voice. Takatoshi knew it was useless, but he put his hands over his ears.I won't forgive you A voice full of sadness no, hatred reached Takatoshi's ears.'Stop! Stop! Stop! I don't have anything to do wiht it!'Takatoshi kept yelling, but the voice shook Takatoshi's eardrums regardless.I'll kill you. I'll kill you brutally.'Ahhh!' screamed Takatoshi. I'm at my limit.He couldn't stand any more of this. Before Takatoshi noticed, he had run out of the room.-15-'Man, because of Yakumo, I'm getting told off left and right.'Gotou leant back in his chair and lit his cigarette.Gotou hadn't stopped complaining since he returned to the Unsolved Cases Special Investigations room. Ishii just kept giving unclear 'Ah's in response.He understood how Gotou felt.Yakumo had asked for a large-scale investigation of Kagami Spring on the hill to the west of the city in exchange for helping. A corpse may be sleeping there.That was what Yakumo had said. Ishii himself thought it was likely.In the cases he'd experienced, there were many that had corpses where ghosts appeared.However, to investigate that spring, they would need many people, and they needed divers to search in the water too.Gotou had gone to negotiate, but his reason had been vague. Saying that there were ghosts wouldn't work on the police.'So how are things on your end?' asked Gotou as he glared at the documents.Ishii had went back through old documents to check whether there had been deaths there in the past, perhaps from suicides or accidents. However 'Currently, I don't have nay information'He had checked back fifteen years, but there were no records of murders, suicides or accidents that had caused deaths at Kagami Spring.'Did you check properly?''Of course.'Ishii had looked through everything. He could say confidently that he hadn't missed anything.All they could do now was bet on the investigation of the spring. If a corpse was found there, that would be the true nature of the ghost.However, what would they do if they didn't find a corpse?Though they hadn't confirmed whether the spirit possessing Takatoshi was a real one, the woman named Sachiko had been possessed at the spring. Where did that ghost come from, and why was it there?Ishii's head was a mess from all the questions.'Are you listening!?'Gotou's fist brought Ishii back to reality.'Yes'To be honest, Ishii had stopped listening halfway.Gotou clicked his tongue in exasperation and then spoke again.'What do you think?''What about?''About the case.''Even if you call it a case to be honest, at this stage, nothing has occurred that requires the involvement of the police.'Gotou's eyes went wide in surprise upon hearing Ishii's words.Even if Gotou looked like that, it was the truth. There was no proof that Takatoshi's case was a prank, and Yakumo hadn't taken a look at him yet, so they had no proof that there was a ghost possessing him.Kirino wasn't asking for money either, so it wasn't fraud.For the call that came to Makoto, they didn't have the corpse.They could do nothing with this. It was a bit vague. And there was another thing Ishii had his mind on.'Detective Gotou.''What?''Kirino-san was your old partner, right?''Yeah.''What sort of person was he?' Ishii asked hesitantly.Of course, Ishii wanted to know about Kirino to understand the situation, but he was also interested personally in Gotou's past.He thought he knew Gotou's personality well now, but he knew practically nothing about his past.He felt like Kirino would unravel that.'He was a man with cold eyes' said Gotou, looking at nothing.'Cold eyes?''Yeah. Eyes that looked like he suspected everything in the world.''A bit like Yakumo-shi then.''Don't put them together. They're completely different,' said Gotou with a harsh look.'I-I apologise'Though Ishii apologized, his thoughts hadn't changed.Yakumo still had cold eyes sometimes, like he was rejecting everything in the world.'Anyway, the guy was always high-handed in investigations and questionings. Said that all criminals were trash.''That is a bit of a twisted view.''Not just a bit. Physical evidence was everything to him. He had no interest in anything except what would incriminate the culprit. He didn't care about why cases occurred,' said Gotou with a click of his tongue.'That's''I investigated an assault case with him once. A guy who worked at a company was cut with a knife on the way home.''Was it a random attack?''No. The suspect that came up was the victim's subordinate. The guy's fingerprints were on the knife and there was a witness saying the subordinate was the culprit.'As Gotou spoke, he took out another cigarette.'Was the subordinate not actually the culprit?''Nah, that man did it. But that's not the problem. Why'd he stab his boss that's the question. If we don't know that, you can't say we've solved the case.'Gotou crushed the cigarette in his hand without lighting it.'That's true.'Perhaps it was just as Gotou said.It was important to find out who the culprit was. However, at the same time, it was necessary to make clear why the incident had occurred.'I couldn't accept Kirino's way of doing things, and we had a fight in front of the suspect. Kirino even said that criminals weren't people'Gotou smashed his fist into the table.Perpetrators and victims were both people. Their emotions were reflected in cases. If police ignored that during investigations, they would lose sight of the truth, and even if the case was finished on paper, it wasn't solved in the real meaning of the word.While Ishii understood Gotou's anger, he still felt something was off.'I don't think Kirino-san is that sort of person.'Though Ishii didn't know what sort of person Kirino was in the past, he didn't think he was a cold person now.Furthermore, if Kirino had that sort of thinking in the past, like Gotou said, Ishii didn't understand why Kirino had quit the police to become a pastor.'Neither do I,' said Gotou, looking faraway.Ishii had thought that knowing the past would help him understand the present, but he was just more confused.Just as Ishii let out a sigh, Gotou's mobile rang from atop the table.'Who is it?'As usual, Gotou answered the call without looking at the display.A call with this timing it was probably Yakumo, which meant that the usual fruitless exchange would start.That was what Ishii thought, but Gotou's face became grimmer in a flash.'What the hell do you mean by that? No, that's I got it. Wait. I'll be right there.'Gotou ended the call and stood up.'What is it?' asked Ishii.Gotou glared at him.'Tozuka's mother called.''What did she call for?'Since the call had come with this timing, it made Ishii strangely suspicious.'Seems like the brat ran out of the house saying he couldn't bear it any more.''Again?''Can't ignore it, right?' said Gotou with a click of his tongue.Well, that was true. Everything was confusing right now, but the original request was to find out what was happening to Takatoshi.'But even if we're to look for him, where'Gotou hit Ishii's head.'Ow.''You never learn. There's only one place to go, right?''Ah 'Finally, Ishii understood as well.If Tozuka had run out of his house because he was afraid of the spirit, he would definitely go to Kirino, the pastor.'Anyway, let's go.'Gotou left the room with wide strides.Ishii hurriedly ran after him, but his feet tangled and he fell -16-'Sorry to bother.'Gotou opened the door to the church.Though it was late at night, the lights were on. It had a different illusive air to it.Ishii clung to Gotou, like he was afraid of something.Gotou pushed Ishii away and continued to walk.'So you really came.'The man in front of the altar slowly turned around to face them.It was Kirino, in his priest's robes.'I want to ask you something.'After Gotou said that, Kirino smiled at him gently.There was definitely something off. The Kirino in Gotou's memories had always been expressionless, as if he had been wearing a steel mask.'I understand. You want to ask about Tozuka-kun, don't you? He's there.'Kirino pointed at the centre of the pews.There was a man there curled up while shivering. It was Takatoshi.'I will exorcise the spirit possessing him now ' declared Kirino.'Ehh!' Ishii's shock was unnecessarily dramatic.'You serious?' Gotou asked quietly after walking up to Kirino in front of the altar.After Kirino looked at Takatoshi, he looked at Gotou once more.'That is the only way. If he stays like this, he'll lose his mind.''But what if he's not just imagining things?'Gotou looked at Takatoshi.Kirino thought that Takatoshi was imagining the spiritual phenomena, but a ghost could really be possessing Takatoshi. And there was still the possibility that it was somebody's prank.If that was the case, the situation wouldn't be fixed even if Kirino did something here.'It's just an act even if it doesn't work, there won't be any harm.''That's true, but'Though Kirino was calling what he was doing an exorcism, it was actually close to counselling.Even if it failed, the situation would just continue. There wouldn't be any harm.'Now, please don't be so stiff.'Kirino patted Gotou's shoulder.'But''It's fine. I won't do anything to cause trouble.''That's not what I'm talking about.''Then what is it?'Even though Kirino asked that, Gotou couldn't properly explain the feeling in his chest.It was just a feeling.Something terrible was going to happen after this he had that anxiety.'It's fine. Please believe me.'Then, Kirino walked up to Takatoshi. Believe him? Ha.Even when they were partnered, Gotou and Kirino hadn't had any trust between them.Like similar magnetic poles, they never approached each other, each keeping their own views. Gotou had never thought that Kirino would say something like 'Please believe me'.'What will we do?' asked Ishii after walking up to Gotou.Gotou looked towards the pews and saw Takatoshi clinging to Kirino while saying something.There was nothing to do. There was nothing the police could do in this situation.'All we can do is wait.'With determination, Gotou sat down at the front of the pews and crossed his arms.After saying that, his anxiety flew away, and he felt like his heart had calmed down.'The exorcism will be conducted in the waiting room in the back. Please wait here.'After saying that, Kirino and Takatoshi went through te door behind the podium.After the door closed, it opened once more and Kirino stuck his head out.'Gotou-san, once this is over, do you want to go have a drink? There are a lot of things I want to talk to you about.'Kirino gave him a friendly smile.'Drinking with you will just make the beer taste bad,' Gotou said caustically, but he also wanted to ask what had changed Kirino these past few years.'I see. Please don't worry about it then.'With a wry smile, Kirino closed the door.'Is it really OK?'Ishii looked anxious as he adjusted his glasses with his finger.'Who knows,' Gotou replied vaguely, looking up at the ceiling.Kirino changed he felt that, but maybe the current Kirino was the real one, and the Kirino Gotou knew had been the fake.That thought suddenly came to his mind.Kirino had been an excelling detective. Gotou had to admit that.In good ways and bad, Kirino's perspective was completely the opposite of Gotou's.Because of that, they always fought, but had Gotou ever asked what Kirino truly felt even once? I didn't.Kirino must have had his own beliefs and justice, but gotou had never tried to see that he'd always just rejected it.Maybe drinking together wouldn't be a bad idea.Just as Gotou was smiling self-derisively, there was the sound of something falling with a thump.He stood up reflexively and shared a look with Ishii. Did something happen?While thinking that, there was a loud crack like something had snapped.Stop! W-what are you doing!?Gotou heard Kirino's voice from the other side of the door. Something was definitely happening.Gotou ran forward and tried to open the door.However, it was locked and wouldn't open.'Kirino! What happened? Oi! Open up!' Gotou yelled frantically as he knocked on the door.He heard a beastly howl through the door I'll kill youuuu!It was a low, hoarse voice.Gotou slammed his body against the door, but the door was rather sturdy and Gotou bounced back.Stop it! Stop!Kirino was screaming.'D-Detective Gotou' Ishii said, seeming shaken.Gahhh!Gotou heard Kirino shriek from through the door. Then, like all the noise had been an illusion, it was silent.'Kirino! Oi, Kirino! Respond!'Gotou yelled at the door, but there was no response. You're kidding me, right?Gotou shook away the anxiety spreading through his heart. He picked up the podium beside him and threw it at the door.Crack the door was crushed.'You're in the way!'Gotou kicked the door that had warped with all his strength.When Gotou saw the room in front of him, he was lost for words.Kirino was collapsed on the floor. A large amount of blood was flowing out from his neck, dyeing the floor red.'Oi! Kirino! Get a hold of yourself!'Gotou ran up to Kirino and spoke to him, but there was no response, as if Kirino was a doll. You've got to be kidding me!'Oi! What are you doing!? Get a hold of yourself!'As Gotou yelled, he checked Kirino's breath. He wasn't breathing. He checked his pulse too, but there was no response either.Kirino just looked up into space with cloudy eyes.Ishii took out his mobile and made a call. Probably for an ambulance.'Don't die! Ishii, stop the blood!'Gotou yelled at Ishii, who had finished his call. Though he hesitated for a moment, Ishii applied his handkerchief to Kirino's neck.Gotou did CPR.'Listen up! Don't die! Nobody's going to die on my watch!'Gotou continued frantically while wiping the sweat from his forehead, but no matter what he did, Kirino's body didn't move at all.Gotou was running out of energy. Kirino's dead.That fact was spreading through Gotou's heart.'Damn it Why.'As he said that, Gotou slammed the floor with his fists. You empathise too much.He heard Kirino's voice in his ear. It was probably from his memories.Kirino was always like that. Looking at Gotou with cold eyes as Gotou let his emotions boil over.But now that Gotou thought about it, maybe it was because Kirino had been there that Gotou had been able to keep going without betraying his beliefs.'Detective Gotou!'Ishii's yell brought Gotou back to reality.Then, he saw Takatoshi shaking in a corner of the room. Blood was splattered all over his face.That wasn't all. His shaking hand gripped a knife covered in blood.A hot anger welled up within Gotou, taking over his whole body.'Was it you?' asked Gotou.Takatoshi furrowed his brows, looking dazed.'N-no What is this'Takatoshi threw the knife to the ground and tried to run.Something snapped within Gotou.'Did you do it, you bastard!?' shouted Gotou. He thrust Takatoshi to the floor, straddled him and punched him in the face.'D-Detective Gotou! P-please stop it!'Ishii tried to get between them to stop Gotou, but still Gotou's anger wasn't settled. He just swung his fists recklessly and yelled.-NOTES:1 The spring's name is Kagami Yuusen in Japanese. Kagami means mirror, while yuusen means gushing spring. It seems to have been made up by Kaminaga-sensei.